Chronicles of the Uprising (Trilogy 1): Trilogy 1 (43 page)

Other Titles By Katie Salidas

The Immortalis Series:

Becoming a vampire is easy. Living with the condition... that's the hard part. Join Alyssa as she stumbles through the world of the "Unnatural."

Book 1: Immortalis Carpe Noctem
  - Newbie vampire Alyssa never asked for this life, but now it's all she has. Rescued from death by Lysander, the aloof and sexy leader of the Peregrinus vampire clan, she's barely cut her teeth before she becomes a target. Kallisto, an ancient and vindictive vampire queen – and Lysander's old mate - wants nothing less than final death for her former lover and his new toy. She's not above letting the Acta Sanctorum, and its greatest vampire hunter, Santino, know exactly where the clan can be found.With no time to mourn her old life, Alyssa's survival depends on her new family. She will have to stand alongside Lysander and fight against two enemies who will stop at nothing to destroy them.

Book 2: Hunters & Prey
-  Rule number one: humans and vampires don't co-exist. One is the hunter and one is the prey. Simple, right? Not for newly-turned vampire Alyssa. A surprise confrontation with Santino Vitale, the Acta Sanctorum's most fearsome hunter, sends her fleeing back to the world she once knew, and Fallon, the human friend she's missed more than anything. Now she has some explaining to do. However, that will have to wait. With the Acta Sanctorum hot on their heels, staying alive is more important than educating a human on the finer points of bloodlust.

Book 3: Pandora's Box
-  After a few months as a vampire, Alyssa thought she'd learned all she needed to know about the supernatural world. But her confidence is shattered by the delivery of a mysterious package - a Pandora's Box. Seemingly innocuous, the box is in reality an ancient prison, generated by a magic more powerful than anyone in her clan has ever known. But what manner of evil could need such force to contain it? When the box is opened, the sinister creature within is released, and only supernatural blood will satiate its thirst. The clan soon learns how it feels when the hunter becomes the hunted.

Book 4: Soulstone
-  It’s a desperate time for rookie vampire Alyssa, and her sanity is hanging by a slender thread. Her clan is still reeling from the monumental battle with Aniketos; a battle that claimed the body of Lysander, her sire and lover, and trapped his spirit in a mysterious crystal. A Soulstone. Unfortunately, no amount of magic has been able to release Lysander’s spirit, and the stone is starting to fade. Weeks of effort have proved futile. Her clan, the Peregrinus, have all but given up hope. Only Alyssa still believes her lover can be released. In despair, Alyssa begs the help of the local witch coven, and unwittingly exposes the supernaturals of Boston to unwanted attention from the Acta Sanctorum. The Saints converge on the city and begin their cleansing crusade to rid the world of all things “Unnatural.” In the middle of an all-out war, but no closer to a solution to the dying stone, Alyssa is left with an unenviable choice: save her mate, or save her clan.

Book 5: Moonlight

Good girls don’t wear fur, or fight over men, and they certainly don’t run around naked, howling at the moon. But then, no-one ever called Fallon a good girl. As a human
unofficially
mated to an Alpha werewolf, Fallon is being pressured to “become”...or be gone. Her mate Aiden, the interim leader of the Olde Town Pack, is in a position that demands he either choose a wolf mate...or leave the pack forever. No matter how hot the sex with Fallon is, he can’t ignore centuries of tradition. Become a wolf or not. If only the choice were that simple. Fallon’s options are further clouded by the overt presence of other females desperate to be the Alpha’s mate. And when these bitches get serious, it’s not just claws that come out. If Fallon wants to keep her man and take the title she’ll have to exert a little dominance of her own.

Book 6: Dark Salvation

A gathering storm of violence is on the horizon. Whispered threats of the Acta Sanctorum’s return have the supernatural world abuzz. Only recently aware of the other world hidden behind our own, Kitara Vanders has barely scratched the surface of what being supernatural truly means. A special woman in her own right, she possesses unique telepathic abilities, gifts that have recently come under the scrutiny of the Acta Sanctorum, a fanatical organization whose mission is to cleanse the world of anything supernatural. Targeted, and marked for death, Kitara’s only hope lies with the lethally seductive yet emotionally scarred warrior, Nicholas.

Knowing full well the atrocities the Acta Sanctorum is capable of, Nicholas is all too eager for the battle to begin. Fueled by pain and rage from the loss of his mate, he’s itching for a fight, but one thing stands in his way, Kitara: a beautiful dark-haired woman with unique psychic abilities and an unusual link to the Saints. Despite his resolve to remain focused on his mission, a purely physical relationship binds them together in a way neither of them expected. And when her life hangs in the balance, Nicholas finds his own is teetering on the edge too.

Sample Immortalis Carpe Noctem

I hated waiting!

I shot impatient glances at my phone, checking the time displayed in green LED. It was late and I was restless.

Sounds of clapping in the background signaled that another poetry reading had finished.

It was a busy night at Café Copioh; but then, just about every night here was busy.

Copioh drew in a unique crowd from the nearby college. It wasn’t one of those fancy frou-frou coffee houses. It had a bohemian feel: colorful, vibrant, and eclectic. Each wall had been painted in a different color: teal, maroon, sand, and sage. Reprints of various famous artworks lined the walls, including a large mural of Van Gogh’s Starry Night, in black light reflective paint. A plethora of flea market-style furnishings were strewn about haphazardly in the large space, completing the relaxed, homey feel.

Mike, the manager—a stereotypical beatnik-esque guy, complete with goatee and long pony-tail—set down a Styrofoam cup filled with a dark, chocolaty drink. “You adding this to your tab, Alyssa?”

I smiled. “Yeah. I’ll pay up on Friday, okay?”

He nodded and walked away.

I was a regular here. Mike knew this and usually let me slide until payday. I could be found here almost every night. And so could my friend, Fallon.

I shot another impatient glance at my phone and sighed.

“Ten p.m. C’mon Fallon, I don’t want to wait all night.”

A loud, shrill voice spoke over the café’s speaker system. I cringed, hearing the start of another dreary poem.

Someone was almost always on the makeshift stage. Reading poetry was the custom here. I sat back into the cushions of my favorite brown threadbare loveseat in the front window, far away from the stage, and tried unsuccessfully to ignore the babbling. I never did care for poetry. Most of it was nothing more than nonsensical emotional ramblings, with too much use of words like
dark, black, emptiness, and despair.

A hum of mumbling voices nearby tempted me to listen. Eavesdropping here was like having a front-row seat to a taping of my own personal soap opera. Tidbits of gossip about people I knew piqued my interest, momentarily stealing my focus.

The sudden jingle of my cell phone startled me. I jumped to answer it, almost knocking over my mocha. I didn’t need the caller ID to tell me who it was. Fallon was well over an hour late.

“Please tell me you are close. You would not believe the day I had. I need to vent,” I blurted out, forgetting the pleasantries of a proper greeting.

“Sorry, Alyssa, I’m not going to make it out tonight.”

Great, what else could go wrong today?

“What? No! Oh, c’mon, Fallon. Don’t leave me hanging. I need a friend today. I got fired….”

“Lyss, I don’t feel like going out tonight. I’m tired and it’s already late. Let’s just meet up tomorrow, okay?”

I huffed, not wanting to answer.

“Alyssa, I promise, tomorrow,” Fallon said in her most sympathetic voice.

“Yeah, sure. Whatever.” I didn’t bother hiding my disappointment.

“Sorry, Lyss, I’ll make it up to you. I promise. We’ll go out tomorrow. You can tell me all about work then, okay?”

“Fine. But next time, don’t leave me hanging here by myself for an hour before you decide to cancel on me.” I breathed a disappointed sigh and pressed the end button on the phone.

The perfect end to the perfect day. Might as well pack up and go home
. I gulped down my mocha, waved to the manager, and walked out the front door.

A hot summer breeze greeted me: a mixture of coffee, car exhaust, and the lingering tang of grease from a nearby taco shop.

I set off across the street to the University. My apartment was on the other side of campus. Just a quick ten-minute walk and I would be home.

Being a petite woman, I never did like walking home alone, especially at night, and tried to avoid it whenever possible. I’d heard too many horror stories about college girls like myself being raped or worse. This time, though, I had no choice. There was no friend to take me home, so I had to hoof it. Reaching into my bag, I pulled out a keychain of pepper spray.
Old Reliable
.

Knives could be turned against you and do some serious damage. I knew pepper spray was a good enough deterrent without having the potential to be deadly. If someone managed to get it away and use it against me, the worst I could expect was stinging eyes, and that was better than a stab wound.

UNLV was quiet at this time of night. The regular classes had ended hours ago and the walkways were empty. My finger covered the trigger of the keychain as I took the pathway leading toward the theater and music halls.

Just walk fast and don’t talk to anybody. I took a deep breath, steeling my courage while attempting to calm my nerves. I hated walking home alone.

Sounds of distant chatter caught my attention. Echoes of raised voices reverberated off brick buildings. It sounded like a couple of men arguing somewhere ahead of me. Tightening my grip on the keychain, I quickened my pace.

Almost home, just keep going
.

Small lamps dotted the walkway, and floodlights hung from the corners of some of the buildings. Normally, there was plenty of light on the walkway, but tonight something felt different. Things seemed darker. A light on one of the buildings flickered. I noticed another building’s lights had completely burned out, leaving a portion of my path in darkness.

I gritted my teeth and fought against the weak voice of my intuition telling me to go back to the café.

The arguing voices faded into silence as I neared the theater. An eerie quiet sent a shiver dancing down my spine. I stopped and looked around, checking for any movement in the shadows. Intuition, no longer a weak voice in my head, screamed at me to run. Something wasn’t right.

Probably just some frat boys. Calm down, Alyssa, no reason to get scared.
Reasoning with myself didn’t help. My heartbeat sped as I continued down the path, pounding hard against the wall of my chest.

“Excuse me,” a male voice called out from behind me.

I stifled a gasp and my heart skipped a beat.

“Excuse me, miss. Hello. Can you help me?”

Against my better judgment, I turned toward the voice.

“Sorry to bother you. I’m new here and kind of lost. Could you tell me where the library is? I’m supposed to be meeting a friend there.”

The guy sounds friendly enough. Okay, just give a quick answer and leave
.

I squinted, trying to get a better look at the guy who had called out to me. A skinny, twenty-something guy passed out of the shadows into the light. A wide-mouthed smile covered his bony face. He didn’t seem all that intimidating. I felt a little silly for letting myself be spooked. He looked like an average college guy: short spiky hair, glasses, and a generic sarcastic saying on his t-shirt. For a second, I thought I recognized him from somewhere. Maybe he’d stopped into Copioh before.

I took my finger off the pepper spray trigger. “Sorry, I’m a little jumpy tonight. It’s no problem. Just go down that way.” I pointed in the direction of the library.

Something tapped me hard on the shoulder. I turned around, seeing a blur of knuckles just before a fist slammed into my face.

Pain shot through my jaw. Stunned, my vision blurred out of focus. I dropped my bag and keychain as I fell to the ground. I landed hard on my back, knocking the wind out of myself. A hot throbbing radiated from my cheek to my ear.

I looked up, trying to focus through the confusion and pain. A hulk of a man stood before me.

“Help!” I screamed.

The large man swung his foot, kicking me hard in the ribs.

I yelped as burning pain shot though my chest.