Snippet Saturday: Guest Author S.L. Baron with an excerpt from 'Blood Ties'

Cover for 'Blood Ties' by S.L. Baron

Blood Ties

An Excerpt from S.L. Baron's newest release

Thad started as Annelie tossed the newspaper onto his chest. She stood in front of him, arms crossed over her breasts, as he reclined on the sofa in Kali’s Cabaret’s office. “You’re in one of the photos.”

He grabbed the paper, examining the part she had folded to the beat of the music below. “Well, fuck me dead. There I am.” His shoulders lifted. “Least I shaved for it.”

“Seriously? That’s all you can say?” Her eyes roamed over his face as she shook her head. “Do you know how much danger that puts us in? One of those agents could’ve recognized you from before! Idiot.”

Thad sat up, putting the paper on the table beside him, and released a slow breath. Annelie made it clear every day that she didn’t like how he did things, not that he had wanted to be there. The thought of his former lover feeding from children still turned his stomach. Kali was at least honest with me about herself when she hired me. But, since none of the Children of the Night volunteered to help with the upcoming intervention, Shreya had convinced him to join Annelie in Las Vegas. Couldn’ say no ta an Original, could ya, Thaddy? Not like ya ever say no ta Kali, either.

“Lemme get this straigh’. Ya think that—” he pointed to the paper “—is gonna expose vampires ta the world? Not, say, Lucian’s face on the back a his books, Livia an’ her well-known theatre company—”

“Just…  stop. Listen, I know you didn’t want to be here and I didn’t want…” Annelie stiffened as she looked up at the doorway behind Thad.

Thad followed her eyes and rose to his feet beside her, a wave of abhorrence rolling over him from Annelie’s direction. Only one immortal can cause that reaction. 

He studied the vampire before him, Annelie’s estranged sire. The Ancient stood quietly just inside the doorway, his perfectly tailored pinstripe suit giving him the air of a business executive. Jet lashes framed his amber eyes; the soft light of the room cast a warm glow on his smooth, shaved head. An aura of dangerous power and sensuality radiated around him. Fancies himself somethin’. Then again, wasn’ he a pharaoh?

“Hello, Annelie.” The vampire’s gaze slid over her schoolgirl outfit, then met her face, his lips rising into a cocksure smile. “It’s been a long time.”

“Centuries. I liked it that way, Pepi,” she replied, covering her bare midriff with her arms. “Why are you here?”

Pepi tilted his head to the side, pouting. “Hmm, not the warmest greeting I’ve ever had, but I expected nothing less really. From you.” He cleared his throat. “Nunzia and her Pet saw your Mo Cheann Beag on the television. An airport in Madrid.”

“An’ ya were worried about ma photo in the paper,” Thad breathed, rolling his eyes.

Pepi turned, looking at Thad as if he were an insect, before returning his attention to Annelie. “Does Kali know what she’s doing? And with a child vampire. I knew you liked to feed on the young ones—getting back at the world for the cruel loss of your own family, I imagine that’s how you justified it—but siring one? That’s different now.”

“Bridget has Kali’s blessing.” Annelie’s voice wavered. Her eyes avoided Pepi’s. “As for the child, I’d never… Shreya and Ajit have joined her cause. They—”

“Shreya and Ajit?” Pepi’s face lit up. “The mythic children! How long has it been since they surfaced? Four thousand years now? They must love you.”

She closed her eyes, pressing her fingers to them. “Why did you come here?”

Pepi smirked, clearly pleased about the discomfort he caused the other vampire. “We—my coven, I suppose you’d call it—were curious. Nunzia, especially, thought it might be an enjoyable endeavor if it involved tormenting terrorists or some such activity.” His lips pursed. “Plus, I thought it might be nice to visit my first fledgling. You know how special you are to me.”

“Yes, I have always felt so special,” Annelie snapped, glaring at him. “When you held me down, forced immortality on me when all I wanted to do was die. Special, my exact thought… You didn’t even have the courtesy to heal my scars before siring me.”

“After all these millennia, that’s still the thanks I get.” With lightning speed, Pepi was beside her, stroking her back. “You deserved better than crucifixion, nailed to a wooden cross, rotting along the roadside for all of Rome to see. The scars are there to remind you of your mortal life, for you to appreciate the gift I gave you.”

Thad watched as Annelie wilted under her sire’s touch. The mix of terror and revulsion in her topaz eyes made his chest tighten. And, before his brain registered what his body was doing, his fist met Pepi’s face, making the Ancient stumble backward.

Annelie inhaled a startled breath, covering her mouth.

Pepi cradled his nose as it healed and then shook blood from his fingers. An instant later, he slammed Thad against the wall. “How dare you lay your hands on me?” Rage burned in his eyes as he lifted the weaker vampire by the throat. “Do you know who I am? Pepi II Neferkare. I was the longest reigning pharaoh of Egypt, deputy of the gods on this earth during that time, last great pharaoh of the Old Kingdom. And you are… who? Who are you to touch me?” He banged Thad’s head against the wall hard enough to dent the plaster.

Thad wheezed, the breath that had been knocked out of him returning as the bass from the music below vibrated through his body like a heartbeat. “Thaddeus P. Boyd. Kali’s personal assistant.” A grin turned the corners of his mouth up as a tremor went through Pepi. “Ya know Kali well, don’cha?” The Ancient’s grip eased. “Didn’ she run ya down in the middle a the night ta sire ya?”

Pepi bared his fangs, a low hiss escaping him as his face moved for Thad’s neck.

“Get off of him,” Annelie commanded, her voice steady as she walked closer. “You know Kali won’t be happy if you hurt him.”

Pepi slowly released Thad, letting him slide to the floor, then turned to her, running a hand over his head.

“Go. If you want to help in Bridget’s crusade, I can’t stop you. Take Nunzia, your little coven—” she spat the word “—and find her and Ajit. They’re in Egypt. You’ll feel right at home, I’m sure.”

“Indeed.” The ancient vampire straightened his double-breasted jacket. “I had hoped this meeting would be more pleasant, Annelie.” He turned and left without another word.

Thad rubbed the back of his head as Annelie knelt beside him. “Thinks highly of himself, doesn’ he?”

“He could’ve killed you.”

“Yeah, well… coulda. I was more scared when I thought Livia was gonna destroy me for makin’ out with her daughter.”

“Idiot.” Amusement laced the word.

A corner of his mouth quirked up. “I’m startin’ ta think that’s a term of endearment from ya.”

Annelie’s face softened as she shook her head at him. She gently tilted his chin up, the tips of her fangs peeking out from her parted lips.

Thad raised an eyebrow at her. She’d been adamant about not sharing her blood with him during their two years together. “Ya never… an’ I don’ think after…” His gaze shifted from hers.

“I don’t expect you to forgive me. I haven’t truly forgiven myself, but I’ve come to terms with who I was and what I did.” Annelie bit her bottom lip. “Despite what I did and how it disgusts you, you stood up to Pepi, risked your life. Let me do this.” She nuzzled his neck, then slid her teeth through his skin before he could protest.

“Shit,” he breathed, a jolt of pleasure mixing with the pain. His fingers wove themselves into her hair, his teeth tingling at the thought of tasting her blood. Her hand glided up to the back of his head and eased his mouth down to her throat, inviting him to drink. Without another sound, he bit down. Dark chocolate and red wine flooded his mouth, healing his bruised body as it spread through him.

*This excerpt is from S.L. Baron's brand new release 'Blood Ties'. Baron is an awesome writer, and I highly recommend her work. Please, help me in making her book launch a huge success and go grab a copy: here. While you're at it, pick up 'Vanilla Blood', the first book featuring her awesome vampire characters. Great books from a great author!