Crystal Clear

By A.C. Dawn

All Hallow's Eve is upon us and the Queen of the Damned will rise after a century's slumber. Jason, the ancient Vampire King, stands ready to send her back to Hell, where she belongs. His only need? The location of her rising.

I'm expected to have the answer. But I'm the black sheep of a family full of powerful seers. To me, the past is crystal clear, but my third eye refuses to see the future. Bound by fate yet separated by ancient hatreds, Jason and I must unite to overcome my magical blindness before the bloodthirsty queen rises and unleashes Hell on earth.

Thrust into a whirlwind of danger and desire, sparks fly when I break all the rules, aligning myself with the vampire king. As we race against time to unlock the secrets of my sight, my forbidden attraction to this deadly creature of the night intensifies, making it doubly difficult to save the world.

Balancing terror and temptation, we're dancing on a knife's edge. With one wrong step, humanity—and my heart—will be lost to the shadows forever.

Can I trust the enigmatic Vampire King and embrace my destiny, or is humanity—and my heart—doomed to the darkness? Grab your copy of Crystal Clear to find out!

• Language: English
• Publisher: A.C. Dawn
• Release date: Sep 18, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223812616

A.C. Dawn

A.C. Dawn is an active and enthusiastic author and reader of short stories, novellas, and novels. She enjoys bringing her characters to life and strives to stir the imagination of her readers. She believes the best writing touches the reader in ways they hadn’t expected and will never forget! So, that's the official bio... Really, I'm a lover of chocolate, a strong jaw line with a 5 o'clock shadow, and romances that make your heart pound and your middle get all squishy. I love quiet country living on my north Georgia farm with my family and fur babies of all shapes and sizes. I think the scariest thing in life is how fast my daughter is growing and an empty coffee pot. I can't stand slow drivers in the fast lane and wimpy handshakes. I have endless stories rumbling around among the rocks in my head. I can't wait to share them with you!

Book preview

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Chapter 1

It is done, Jason said, wiping the blood from his mouth as he stood. His wife sprawled, unmoving, at his feet.

I shook my head. It is only just beginning. Once every century, she will rise. The magic that binds her must be renewed.

Jason raised his gaze to mine, horror etched on his features. I must kill her again?

You must, or all of humanity will suffer. I paused, surprised at the pang of sympathy for the vampire at my feet. As with all magic, balance must be maintained. Your queen shall have the opportunity to change her ways. With each rising, she will be offered a chance to live in harmony.

Jason sighed and gently ran his hand over Mariana’s face, closing her eyes. She will never change.

An eternity trapped in the Underworld may inspire her to think differently. I shrugged and turned away.

Where will she rise next, witch? Jason blocked my path, standing with his hands on his hips, glaring at me.

This was the crucial moment, the moment history changed, and the powers in the world shifted. I offer you a pact, Vampire King. I will use my sight as will my descendants through the ages to provide you the location of Mariana’s rising. In exchange, you will end the bloodshed between our people. Vampires will no longer prey upon witches.

I held my breath, waiting for the answer. The blood spilled in war between our people could fill rivers, and for the first time, witches had the advantage. If the Vampire King knew where his queen was to rise, he could meet her and send her back to Hell before she unleashed her blood thirsty terror on the world. Without that knowledge, he could only wait for news of death and destruction and would then face his queen with an army at her back.

Jason nodded without hesitation. I have no wish for our feud to continue. Let us stand as allies in this common goal to protect the innocent. Upon my oath, I give my word that henceforth vampires will not take a witch’s life.

Around us, vampires and witches alike gasped, casting uneasy glances at each other. I drew a blade across my palm and held it out to the Vampire King. Witches will henceforth provide you with the location of your queen’s next rising and will not seek retribution for the witches killed at the hands of vampires. Our people are at peace. My last statement hung in the air, dramatic and final.

Jason slashed open his palm with his teeth and joined his hand with mine.

A cheer rose from the crowd and echoed around the amphitheater. For a moment, I closed my eyes, imagining the historic occasion centuries ago. The magic started with that pact still held firm to this day. The power of the spell, its vitality, boggled my mind.

I turned with Ethan, the actor who played Jason, and we bowed as the supporting cast joined us. The polite applause washed over us and I breathed a sigh of relief. Another year done.

Nice job, everyone! Alex, the director, joined us on stage, taking his bow along with us. Ethan, amazing emotion. I was hanging on every word. He clapped Ethan on the back and turned a beaming smile on me. As always, Addy, perfection. He bussed a kiss on each of my cheeks like we had just finished a production of a Broadway show.

It’s my fifth time. If I can’t get it right by now, I should give up, I said, turning away from Alex and his creepy air kisses.

We hurried off stage to allow the next skit to come on. The Slaughter Creek Coven, under the guise of the Ladies Auxiliary, put on the fall festival every year, starting with a series of skits about the legend of the Vampire King and the town’s bloody beginnings. Founded as a haven for witches, bloodshed and conflict filled the town’s history.

Though in the modern era, humans and witches lived side by side. The humans loved the mystical legends and energy that filled the town. In their heart of hearts, they knew it was more than fiction, but were happy to live in their comfortable delusions. The witches, however, would never forget, and the festival was their opportunity to remind everyone of their roots.

I cringed as the screaming sounds of the next skit penetrated the horse trailer that served as a dressing room. I was glad I graduated from that particular skit—the witch burnings of 1690. With a shiver, I changed into my next costume, relieved that all I had to do for the rest of the evening was run the fortune teller’s tent.

The swirling Boho skirt swished around my legs, and I tied a colorful bandana around my curly hair. Squinting into the make-up mirror, I painted on a fresh layer of blood red lipstick and lined my eyes with a thick black line, pulling it out past the corner to add a bit of drama. Satisfied, I headed to play my next role of the night.

Katie met me as I stepped out of the trailer. I gave my bestie a smile and accepted the steaming corn dog she offered. The stick still held its heat and the golden batter smelled heavenly.

Fresh out of the fryer, she confirmed and took a big bite of hers. She yelped, fanning her mouth as her eyes watered. Hot! Too hot!

As she hopped around, I laughed and handed her my bottle of water. They say patience is a virtue. I used my best coven mistress’ voice.

Katie took a swig of the water and rolled her eyes. Why didn’t you warn me, Ms. Fortune Teller?

Oh wait. I'm getting a vision. I closed my eyes for a moment. When I opened them, I gave Katie a wry grin. I saw in the future, you will burn your tongue again because you have no patience.

Katie laughed. I’ve waited all year for this. She waved her ketchup covered corn dog in the air.

Yeah, and a few more minutes would have been just too much. I took a cautious nibble of my mustard dipped corn dog and when I found it didn’t leave third-degree burns, I took a big bite. I groaned with pleasure at the sweet and salty deliciousness. What did you think of the play? I asked around my mouthful of corn dog.

Katie shrugged. Alex definitely put his own spin on it with all the vampires wearing those things over their faces. Probably the creepiest one I have ever seen. You were fabulous, of course.

Thanks. Hopefully, Nellie can take it over soon.

Since I was the youngest of the Buckley women, I was stuck playing the unnamed witch who struck a bargain with the Vampire King until one of my nieces got old enough to take over the part. As very distant descendants of that witch—though I never understood how we knew that since history didn’t record the witch’s name—we held the responsibility for the role. I didn’t mind it too much; though, I would rather have played the Vampire King. The noble tragedy of having to kill his wife over and over to save his people and all of humanity stirred the romantic in me.

Since Nellie currently has a four-word vocabulary, I think the role is yours for a while longer. That video your brother posted on social media of her riding her broom in her princess dress was precious.

What can I say? She has the Buckley flair for the dramatic.

We polished off our corn dogs, and Katie filled me in on the best vendors at the fair, including a new shop offering a variety of rare crystals.

And before you ask, I don’t know. Katie forestalled my question about benitoite, a rare crystal, I’d been searching for. They have tons of different crystals though, so maybe.

Is your mom all set up? I asked, making a mental note to stop by the crystal vendor’s tent early the next morning. Benitoite was known to awaken psychic abilities.

Yeah, she’s gone all out this year. Katie’s mom ran a local homeopathic shop that supplied humans with all kinds of remedies that they never suspected came from a witch. On Samhain, she always had a booth set up like an apothecary of old, with bottles and powders that bore names like wolf’s teeth or unicorn horn and contained natural ingredients with healing properties.

We stopped to fill our mugs with homemade root beer that frothed and fuzzed with dry ice. Corn dogs and root beer were the best part of fall. The fizzy bubbles danced on my tongue as I savored the sweet and spicy brew.

Mom found a new treasure. She wants you to come over and check it out when you get a minute.

That piqued my interest. Katie’s mom shared my enthusiasm for antiques. My ability to see into the past of an object made running my antique store, Adelaide’s Attic, more interesting—not that my mother appreciated that.