Chapter 1
The present day
Sometimes destiny arrived with the crash of a bomb detonating in the trees.
Janet Isabella Kayrs perched on a rock wall facing the tarmac as men in full combat gear loaded helicopters. A young vampire had accidentally launched a rocket into the Oregon forest, but the blaze had already been contained. Unlike the smell.
Dawn began to peek over the horizon, bringing a flash of sunlight lacking in warmth. A breeze slithered through her black silk shirt, but she’d chosen carefully, and she didn’t want a jacket. Just in case she needed to fight.
Tension battled with oxygen, mingling with power. The vampires, each and every one, had a power more daunting than oxygen molecules. With destiny all but riding her, Janie fought to control her emotions. Indulging in fear would get her killed.
With a screeching protest, a heavily secured door opened to her right. She turned and forced a smile. “There’s my favorite firefighter.”
Garrett Kayrs, her younger brother, wiped soot off his forehead. “I helped put out the fire, but it wasn’t me.” He leaned back against the wall, long legs extended, worry cutting grooves next to his generous mouth. “I haven’t accidentally set off an explosive since the fifth grade.”
“I remember.” This time her smile arrived easily. “You were playing in the armory and blew up several trucks.”
“Dad was mad.”
The understatement widened Janie’s smile. “Yeah, but he was amused, too.”
Garrett’s odd gaze sharpened as he watched a missile being loaded. “I don’t think you should go.”
“I know.” She took a deep breath and studied him. At twenty years old, the young vampire stood well over six feet tall. He’d inherited their father’s broad shoulders and rugged features, but the unique metallic gray eyes were all Garrett’s. She slipped her arm through his, impressed by the solid muscle. “I have to go.”
He shut his eyes, the cords in his arm vibrating with a dangerous tension. “Then I should be there.”
Janie leaned against him. With almost five years between them, she’d vowed to protect him at his birth. Even after he’d outgrown her when she’d turned twelve, she’d known how to make him laugh, how to ease the pressure he must surely feel as the sole Kayrs born in the new generation.
Vampires produced only male babies, and not very often. So far Garrett was the single progeny of the Kayrs ruling family.
“You’re needed here to protect headquarters,” she said. “And Mom.”
His massive body shuddered. “I’m torn.” Garrett lifted his chin. “I need to be here for Mom but want to be at the peace talks with you.”
In profile, he looked just as dangerous as their father.
“I’m trained, Garrett.”
“You’re human, Janie.” Garrett hunched his shoulders forward. “No matter how well trained you are, you’re still human.”
Janie nodded. The breeze whipped around them, and she pushed hair out of her eyes. When her mother had mated Talen Kayrs, he’d adopted Janie. He was the only father she’d ever known. While she loved her family, she’d never lived a normal life. “Sometimes I forget I’m human.”
“I don’t,” Garrett said softly.
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