Novels by Jess Stanley

Pacing the library, I waited for the phone to pick up.“This is Maddison.”I could hear the tautness of pleasure to the vampire’s voice, and it pissed me off. While I had told Tony, his relationship with Maddison was not forbidden, it was not looked upon favorably right now. “Where is Tony?”I heard the phone scrambled between hands as my head of security took the device from his fledgling. “Lord Raynes?”My temper was white hot. “Where have you been?”“Sir. We were with Lord James all of last night. Someone came into Miss Brennan’s room and tried to take her. We stopped them. But they had the mark of Korin’s coven, so we dragged him back to his master. Turns out he’s a traitor and Korin flayed him.”Yeah, that sounded about right for my cousin. If anyone crossed him, he would make them pay in the most painful of ways. “And now?”“Sir

I had eaten.Proteins bars were my staple when in a vampire safe house.I’d showered and I’d napped, while the little black box I’d found in the bag Rhayden had left, did its thing. When I plugged it into the computer, it had lurched to life and started to correlate against other files, bringing up possibilities and discarding unwanted files.Maddison had called.They were at Korin’s mansion.They’d been the ones to leave blood in the hotel room.One of Korin’s lackeys had decided they didn’t like their Lord being weak, by hiring a human and wanted to make an example of him, by coming after me. They just didn’t count on the fact Maddison and Tony were in my room.I was amazed I’d slept through the fight.Maddison told me they were there, while Korin literally flayed the vampire alive, for information on who he’d defected to. I really didn’t want to know but was g

I didn’t think my heart could have taken much more… but the punch coming from Mars had been so left of field, that when it happened, the only safe option was for me to leave. If I had stayed, I would have thrown her against a wall and hurt her. I might have even killed he…Never in my life had I met someone so infuriating. But that was what she was. My infuriating, beautiful human lover. And there in lay the problem. She was human.

He was still a crappy driver and I held onto the seat as Rhayden raced through the streets of Vegas. “Where are we going?”“Somewhere safe.” He growled, his hands tight on the steering wheel. My eyes slammed close as Rhayden swerved into oncoming traffic to get around a tour bus.“Rhayden! For fuck’s sake slow down!” He put his foot down harder and the car lurched, making me grit my teeth, “Rhayden, please.”He didn’t listen and I knew he wouldn’t. He had a mission.Get me to safety. He would do that, and I wouldn’t be able to change the way he did.So while he drove like a maniac and I hoped to hell we didn’t get pulled over by cops—because Rhayden Raynes would be difficult to explain— I thought of other things.Like Johan.How had he found me?After two years, why had he suddenly surfaced?The last time we’d seen each other,

I sat opposite my cousin, staring at him, while he stared right back. “Cousin, so good to see you again…”I rolled my eyes. “Let’s cut the crap, Korin. You know I can’t stand being in the same city as you, let alone the same room.”Korin’s throaty chuckle echoed around the room, earning a few sniggers from fledglings in the shadows. I could smell the stale blood in their veins. They were barely a week turned. How long my cousin had fallen… “Oh I do miss this. The old jabs and barbs. Tell me, are you still sore about Loretta?”

“You look tired Marley.”I looked to Maddison, “I-I had a visitor.”“Yes, Lord Raynes spoke to us before he left this evening. I am sorry about what happened last night, with Korin.”“It's ok. I wasn't expecting him in my hotel room. He didn't give me a chance to do anything but talk with him, even though I would have rather put a bullet in his brain.”Maddison giggled and I smiled, this woman, this vampire was quickly becoming one of my confidants, and I considered her, my friend. “So, Lord Raynes came all this way to…?”My face heated and Maddison smiled.“Ahh… You seem to have a touch. Absinthe is not one to swoon or fall for someone, he hasn't even been Mated before. You must have a very, very big pull. Not only him, but Rhayden too? Two powerful, old vampires wanting you. Girl, you are the bomb!”I laughed, tipping my head back and Maddison join

“So now what?”Noah grimaced and Serenity’s heart flipped as he looked back to her. there was something he wasn''t telling her. He and Thorne had been keeping her safe for so long, by not telling her anything, or showing her their world... now it seemed to not be sitting well with him, having to explain things and exposing things which might put her in danger.“We know the angels are not loathed to using dirty tactics and Manipulators. So, we just keep ahead of them. I’ll have to call in some contacts, and possible a few favors, just to keep you safe, until your birthday. Then… well then the real fun starts.”“What do you mean?”Noah leaned forward, his blond hair dropping over his eyes and he stared at his hands. “We have to get you to the leaders of the Horde.”There were leaders? Well, she guessed if there were higher ranking angels, there would be higher ranking demons too.

“If it makes you feel any better, Thorne and I don’t have parents anymore either. No demons or angels do. We’re… possessed.”“Possessed?”“Yeah.” Noah put the cap on his water and dumped it beside him, before picking himself up and going to the bookshelf again. Pulling out a different tome, he came back and sat beside her. The heat from his thigh against hers had her stomach fluttering, but she shut it down and watched as he opened the book. “The soul… no, that’s not quite the right word… uh… the essence of a demon is housed in a crystal.”Noah flipped a couple pages and showed her a picture. There was a pile of crystals heaped on the floor of a room and a body strapped to a table in the middle. He flipped over another page and showed her the picture.“One of those shards, houses a demon’s essence. It is then surgically grafted onto the

Thorne spun on his heel in seconds, his eyes wide and Noah spat out a spray of his drink and stared at her. “What?”“I mean, it’s okay if you are. I don’t mind. In this day and age, two guys being together is nothing new and it’s kind of adorable to think two demons might be—”“Just stop.” Noah held up his hand and she looked at Thorne who was shaking his head and silently chuckling to himself. She looked at the blond again and Noah leaned forward. “Thorne and I are not together. We never have been and never will be. I happen to think all women are goddesses, should be treated as such and shown the wildest passion imaginable.”Serenity’s face heated and she lowered her gaze for a moment.“Thorne and I have known each other for over one and a half centuries. We are as close to being brothers as we can get and that is it. There is nothing romantic or sexual going on

“So, the angels are down one Manipulator.” Noah was shuffling through the papers in front of him, while Thorne stood near the window, forever looking out it to the city beyond.While he watched the city, she watched him.Brooding.Serenity thought Noah had been bad. Thorne was worse. While he physically didn’t speak, even when he answered in sign language, something was dark about him.“Are you listening to me?”Serenity looked at Noah and nodded, before shaking her head. “Sort of.”“For fuck’s sake.” Noah looked at Thorne. “Did you notice anything on your way back?”Thorne turned and shrugged, his hands lifting. “It’s eerie out there. I haven’t seen an angel for over six hours. Before…” Thorne looked at Serenity. “Her… there were at least a dozen in the district.”“Fuck. The

Serenity was a bundle of nerves.It’d been an hour since Noah had texted Thorne. An hour of sitting, waiting. “Jeez, where is he?”“Thorne doesn’t like using public transport. He’d be walking.”“From where? London?”Noah snorted and stubbed out his cigarette, coming back inside. “He would have been looking for a new factory, and possibly a new apartment. This one’s been compromised.”“Uh, duh.”Noah ignored her and walked to the kitchen, opening the cupboard to make more coffee. “Plus, we need to find somewhere with a never-ending supply of coffee.”“Or you could not drink it all.” Serenity smirked and Noah turned back to her, flipping her off. “Well, I wish he’d hurry up.”“Getting nervous?”“Sort of. I mean-well…”Noah chuckled and pulled his phone out of hi

Someone was trying to cleave her head in two. Serenity groaned and opened her eyes, wincing at the bright light coming from the open door.“Take it easy. Here.” Noah’s voice was soft, and he touched her hand, putting pills into her palm. “These will help.”She gingerly took them, the glass of water he offered and sat up, swallowing the aspirin. Laying back again, she watched as Noah lifted himself and took the glass out to the kitchen.Serenity frowned and rolled to the side, climbing from the bed slowly, and walked to the door. Noah stood at the kitchen bench, but didn’t turn around, as he asked, “Coffee?”“Yeah, thanks.” She walked across the floor to the sofas, taking the blanket off the back of one of them and snuggled down into the plush furniture, wrapping the fabric around her. She watched the demon as he made her a coffee and turned back to her.“Well, whatever you did, sent