Blood Song: Immortal Keeper Vampire Paranormal Romance Series Read online

  Blood Song

  Immortal Keeper Vampire Paranormal Romance Series

  C.D. Gorri

  Blood Song

  Immortal Keeper

  Vampire Paranormal Romance Series

  by C.D. Gorri

  Edited by T.P. BookNookNuts

  Copyright 2021 C.D. Gorri, NJ, USA

  This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, places, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either part of the author’s imagination and/or used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental. This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. All rights are reserved. No part of this book is to be reproduced, scanned, downloaded, printed, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of any materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Contents

  PROLOGUE

  1. CHAPTER 1

  2. CHAPTER 2

  3. CHAPTER 3

  4. CHAPTER 4

  5. CHAPTER 5

  6. CHAPTER 6

  7. CHAPTER 7

  Epilogue

  P.S

  About the Author

  Connect with C.D. Gorri

  Other Titles by C.D. Gorri

  Excerpt from The Enforcer by C.D. Gorri

  Excerpt from Code Wolf:

  Dedication

  To those of you who love completely and are looking for your own blood song.

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  Description

  Her blood sings for him, will he answer the call?

  Aleksei Delov is the owner of Timeless Possessions, part of a global conglomerate of corporations. The immortal Vampire Prince is renowned for his ability to acquire authentic, priceless antiques for his various private clientele. Alek’s reputation is everything, until he meets her.

  Carina Martin has a unique talent to find objects and to identify them by touch. She uses it for other people in order to eke out a meager living among other normals along the East Coast, but there is more to life than that, and she is dying for a piece of it.

  When someone robs Aleksei and passes off fakes in his name, he tracks Carina down and offers his patronage in exchange for the use of her abilities.

  But he is not prepared for his reaction to the beautiful normal. Can he resist the female, or will he be seduced by her blood song?

  PROLOGUE

  Carina

  “Have you heard of the Ouroboros Society?”

  He spoke with a slight accent. His voice had that deep, velvety timber I loved and it seemed to tease and stroke up and down my spine like a lover’s hands. I wasn’t prepared for it or for my wildly inappropriate reaction considering my precarious situation.

  I hated to admit it, but I hardly understood his question lost as I was in the contemplation of his voice. That coupled with the loss of too much blood had left me lightheaded and dizzy. My fingers and toes had already gone numb, and I felt as if a frozen sort of shroud was draped over my beaten body. I was dying and I knew it.

  That did not change the fact that the stranger speaking to me was positively dazzling. Breathtakingly beautiful men were not exactly my forte, and he was better looking than anything or anyone I had ever seen.

  Silver eyes seemed to take me in from head to toe in an instant. If not for that movement, he could’ve been a statue. Tall and built under his impeccable suit. Who dressed like that around here, anyway?

  Oh yeah. He was definitely better looking than anything I’d seen in the last twenty-four hours. But that was not hard to accomplish considering I was lying on an uneven cobblestone alley between poorly handled plastic bags of rotting garbage, broken bottles, drug paraphernalia, and puddles whose contents I would rather not think about.

  In between them were the usual marks of the rodent population, scat from various strays and nocturnal critters, and whatever else wallowed in the dank and dark alleyway. What was it he said again? Oh yeah, something about an Ouroboros Society?

  More supernatural business. Shit I tried to stay out of, though that was hard since I had a foot halfway into that world myself. Being a psychic kind of sucked, especially for a normal like me. I could hardly recall a memory where someone didn’t look at me like I was crazy when I revealed what I could do. Which was probably why I had so few friends.

  Normally, I didn’t care for pity parties. But fuck it. I was dying. If I couldn’t feel sorry for myself when I was dying, when was the appropriate time? SMH. Yeah, this really sucked. And I was feeling worse by the minute. Numbness didn’t mean I couldn’t still feel the pain. On the contrary, the bitter cold seeping through my blood was like a thousand needles racing through my veins. It hurt like fuck.

  “Focus on my voice,” the stranger said and my eyes locked on his, “We, those of us who follow the ways of the Ouroboros Society, are a group of Vampires who provide patronage to certain humans we are interested in seeing reach their full potential. Humans like you, Carina Martin,” he smiled briefly, showcasing his perfect white teeth on a way that was both predatory and somehow enticing.

  The handsome man cocked his head and flared his nostrils, closing his pale silver eyes for a moment while he sucked in a deep breath. I stared as the tip of his tongue darted out, licking his lips. He growled a bit, as if he was savoring whatever scent he was picking up.

  Suddenly, I understood. Here was a man who was not a man at all. He was one of them. A creature. An other. A supernatural, like they showed on the news. But what kind? My own human senses could not tell me unless I was touching him. He could be a Shifter or a Fae. A Vampire perhaps?

  A trickle of fear raced down my spine. Yes, something inside me was practically jumping up and down at the thought. Vampire. That seemed to fit the pale, powerful predator in my midst. The strongest of all the races that had only recently come to the attention of the rest of the world and this was the first one I had ever met. I had to admit I’d been shocked when all matter of paranormal creatures began to make themselves known but then again how could they not?

  Technology being what it was, it was only a matter of time really. So it was fact. For the past few years or decades, whatever really, supernaturals the world over had all outed themselves in small reveals. Not unified, and not on any timeline known to humans. They worked alone and slowly. But what was slow to a being whose lifespan was inconceivable to a human? What was time to an immortal?

  I remembered my first experience of the supernatural world. A Pack of heroic Werewolves appeared on a video on the internet with footage of themselves shifting and chasing a would-be rapist from Central Park. They broke the web with that footage. With it came a myriad of conspiracy theories.

  Was it a deep fake? Were they even human? All sorts of activists and nut jobs had crawled out of the woodworks to nail the story. At the time, I was between foster homes and I didn’t give two shits about a Wolf Pack across the Hudson.

  Live and let live. That was my creed. But other normals had their panties in a bunch over the whole thing. We needed new laws they said, new jails for people like that.

  Whatever. I just wanted to keep my head down and make a living. And get my revenge.

  “Are you hurting?” the stranger crouched beside me and I tried to move, to scoot away, but my body protested.

  Speech seemed beyo
nd me. I tried to respond, but all that came out was a groan. Or something like that. My jaw had been broken by the first pair of fists that had struck when Vladek’s men had finally caught up to me.

  The pain I’d felt then and when another goon had knocked me into the brick wall was all slowly fading away. That wasn’t a good sign. At least when I was in pain, I knew I was alive.

  “Easy,” the man lifted my head and placed something soft beneath it.

  Was it his jacket? Oh, no. He was dressed so finely, I’d hate to think what the muck covering the alley floor was doing to the expensive-looking material.

  Who was this guy? Some kind of guardian angel? No. That wasn’t right. My mind kept racing back to the first supernatural word I’d thought that had made any sense.

  Vampire. He was a Vampire. I don’t know how I knew. I just did. That look was far too predatory to belong to some ethereal being sent to lead me to the hereafter. Wherever the fuck that would be, who knew?

  I had more pressing matters to think about. Like whether the tall, gorgeous man in the black on black suit was friend or foe. Either way, right behind that initial jolt of fear, raced another emotion. Something I had to work hard to ignore. A pesky little itch that occasionally flared to life, though I’d managed to resist all manner of persuasion for the past twenty-five years.

  I didn’t know what to make of it really. I’d never felt like that before. Especially not under those circumstances. I guess all those foster parents were right, I really was fucked up.

  Oh well. Nothing like dying to make a girl horny.

  “Are you able to follow what I am saying?”

  I tried to answer his questions, but I could only gurgle in response. My eyes widened. I started hyperventilating, making any number of nasty little noises in lieu of speech.

  Oh, that’s attractive. FML.

  The fuckers who’d been tracking me down all damn day had finally caught up with me not too long ago. They did a hell of a number on my face and neck too. But what did I expect after targeting a man like Vladek the Merciless?

  I mean, it was right there in his name. The mobster was not known for his forgiving nature. I knew that going in, but this was and had always been personal. Vladek was responsible for the death of my parents.

  His goons ran the drug dealers who’d gunned down my mother and father when I was just a baby. Bouncing around the foster care system was one hell of a shitty way to grow up. Far as I was concerned, that Russian fucker deserved everything he had coming to him.

  As for what I’d done to deserve such treatment, well, I simply rerouted one of his trucks to a non-disclosed location. I’d called in a favor from a hacker friend who managed to get inside the GPS systems of the truck that was holding Vladek’s merch.

  Now my merch.

  “Don’t try to answer with words. Simply nod if you understand me,” the stranger instructed.

  I nodded once, to show I heard him and was still listening. Maybe the hottie would say something worthwhile. If not, he could get the fuck out of my alley and let me die in peace already.

  “My name is Aleksei Delov, Miss Martin, and I would like to offer you my patronage.”

  I didn’t have any idea what he was talking about, so I waited for him to continue. Not like I was going anyplace else without some serious fucking help. The cold, wet filth covering the ground was slowly seeping through my clothes. I admit I couldn’t feel my toes and feet, or my hands, but my back was soaked.

  Fuck. This was my favorite jacket. A little black leather number I’d picked up at a consignment shop that fit my curvier-than-I’d-like frame perfectly.

  “Ms. Martin? Do I have your attention?”

  I blinked once.

  “Good. Blink once for yes, twice for no.”

  I blinked once again, and he smiled even more brilliantly than before. He could’ve been a model with that perfectly symmetrical face. He had glossy, thick locks that matched the smattering of hair that covered his chin. I always did like a five-o’clock shadow on a man. Still, he’d been hot before, up close he was almost too gorgeous.

  “Under my patronage you would be protected, taken care of, I can start by healing your wounds.”

  So my little sixth sense was right. There was only one creature I knew of that could heal humans. Fear spiked through my blood, but with it came that other emotion. One that closely resembled anticipation but bordered on lust. Something inside me recognized him and wanted what he offered.

  There was that sliver of dismay again, making itself known with a sharp tremble that wracked my body. And that, once more, was followed by a wicked urge to get closer to the stranger. To kiss the hard slash of his lips and bare my throat for his pleasure.

  And mine, the naughty voice inside my head insisted.

  “Blink for me, Miss Martin, once if you accept my offer,” he said, and the deep seductive tone of his voice made me want to close my eyes and just listen to him for the rest of my life.

  Only thing was, if I didn’t answer him, the rest of my life was unlikely to be longer than a few minutes.

  Fuck. What kind of choice was that? I’ve always wanted to see more of the world, but was I ready to become a Vampire? I hoped to convey my question through the look on my face. Surprised even myself when it worked. The beautiful male Vampire seemed to understand. He cocked his head to the side and his eyes burned for a moment like molten silver.

  “I understand your concern, Carina. I am a Vampire, as you’ve no doubt ascertained by now, but I assure you, this bite will not be the one that turns you. In order for me to make a Vampire, you would have to drink from my vein as well, among other rituals that would need to be performed to seal the pact.”

  I gurgled once again, wanting more information, but unable to verbalize my questions. This was frustrating me, and yet as I slipped further away, I knew I was going to agree. What choice did I have?

  “You do not know me, but I do not lie. I have no intention of turning you today.”

  I blinked. Hard. And watched his helpless reaction. The stranger’s nostrils flared and his eyes glowed. I wondered if his fangs were descending even then and my fear spiked again.

  Fuck it. I was too weak to argue. Too close to death to have any other options. So, yes, I waited a beat and blinked my eyes once more. Nodding my head as much as I could, I accepted the Vampire’s offer.

  “It will hurt at first, understand? There is nothing I can do for that here,” he seemed to struggle with that part of it, and for the life of me I didn’t know why he should care if he hurt me or not, but I appreciated it. Really I did.

  “My offer of patronage comes at a price. My help for yours. Are we agreed?”

  I blinked my response. Yes, I agreed. I would help him and he would save my life. That was only fair. His eyes blazed like molten silver, glowing even brighter in the darkness that surrounded us.

  I could hardly breathe as the walls began to close in on me. This was really happening. I wasn’t lost in some dime store novel or one of those b-movies I can’t seem to get enough of.

  No. This was real. I tried to move. Some deep-seated fight-or-flight instinct, I supposed, but my legs didn’t cooperate. I was completely numb now from the waist down. Arms too. Shit. I was losing feeling in all my extremities. Except for the cold. That I still felt like ice water seeping into my blood.

  He was offering me the only way out of an impossible situation. But again, if I were honest with myself, I would have to admit I was more than intrigued. I was outright curious. I wanted what he offered. And maybe something more as well.

  “Blink one more time, so I know for sure,” he growled the words.

  I did, and the Vampire’s impossibly gorgeous face seemed to hover above mine. My eyes widened as he plucked me off the floor effortlessly. Holding me in his arms as if I was light as a feather. But even half-dead, I knew better than that.

  His strength was disconcerting, as was the inhuman speed with which he’d moved me to the far side of th
e alley. He’d looked so polished and suave from a distance, but up close he was so much more.

  Every inch of his face commanded my attention. He captivated me, so much so it ravaged my heart to look at him. His lips were a hard slash across his face, his jaw and cheekbones were chiseled as if carved from marble, his nose was straight, and the smattering of five o’clock shadow gave him just a touch of roughness.

  If this was any other circumstance, I might have tried flirting with him. For now, I was simply grateful to be off the dirty, wet floor. He used one long-fingered hand to push my hair away, off my face and past my shoulder, then he tilted my face towards his.

  He was still growling softly in his throat, reminding me that he was a predator and I was helpless. A willing victim. All I could do was trust his word that he was trying to help. Not because he liked me, but because he needed me.

  Still, trust was a tough concept for someone like me. Someone who’d been used and abused by the system and the very people who were supposed to keep me safe. But there I was, putting my life in the hands of a stranger. A hunter. One I could not possibly defend myself from.

  A Vampire, for fuck’s sake.

  He caressed my face with exquisite gentleness and I had to admit, it was unexpected. Unnecessary too. I would have thought he’d simply strike my skin with his fangs and drink from me regardless of my comfort, but no.

  Aleksei Delov was far too sophisticated for such animalistic behavior. Unlike the goons who’d had their fun tearing at my skin with claws and snarling at me like a pack of rabid dogs. Vladek’s Werewolf posse had treated me like a plaything.