Free Austin's Lost Bride (The Sterns) by Mindi Winters Page A

then,” she asked, not believing her luck.
    “Yes, but not until I turn you—completely.”
    Rebecca’s head spun at completely. Why turn her if he just wanted to kill her? She knew the answer as quickly as she thought it. It was the same reason the Roman turned Mannus: To utterly destroy him when he is finally killed.
    The turning wasn’t automatic. Sure he’d drain her and then feed her his blood, letting the beast inside. But that wasn’t enough. The beast would be balanced and at war with the human soul. Each existing until a mortal death comes and the soul prevails or the beast is sated with the blood of a first kill. The beast always won. In the end and with the passing of the life taken, the soul is devoured by the beast so that no chance of ascension to heaven remains. Then any death that comes is absolutely final.
    Rebecca’s eyes widened with fear and realization that she would never see her loved ones again even in the afterlife, because she wouldn’t have one.
    “The only question is: do we complete the turning with a victim off the street? Or do we go looking for your former favorite?”
    Austin.
    Rebecca felt a lump in her throat. She hated Austin, but didn’t want to see him dead. She began to struggle harder, but the thralls’ grip remained tight and Mannus increased his hold on her throat, tilting her head slightly to the left. He moved in for the bite, his fangs finally showing in full. She could feel the anticipation radiate from him.
    Mannus sensed what she saw. Another person was in the building. Two mini-crossbow bolts came out of the shadow straight for Mannus’s heart. He spun around quickly, letting go of her neck. The first bolt hit him in the side and Mannus let out a scream so primal it made her wonder briefly if anyone at the fast food joint would call the police. The second bolt Mannus avoided with a step back. That bolt hit a thrall holding her straight in the face and he was down.
    One arm now free, she made a quick throat strike at the other thrall holding her. Before he was down, Rebecca made a move for her silver dagger. Inherited from her mother, it was the most potent weapon she possessed and she readied to throw it.
    The final thrall had started shooting, but he considered the unseen hunter to be the bigger threat and was aiming away from her. Two more bolts came out of the dark, all at Mannus, but he was ready now. Wincing in obvious pain, but his face filled with rage, he was ready. He deflected both bolts with ease. He grabbed the bolt in his side and pulled it out just as Rebecca’s dagger struck him.
    Mannus screamed. Even in a jaded city like Detroit, Rebecca knew someone must have called the cops by now. The vampire reached to pull out the dagger, dropping it quickly when the handle burned his skin. Rebecca could see real fear in Mannus’s eyes now. He was hurt badly. The dagger was more than a simple inheritance from her mother. It was enchanted by magic and blessed by God. It had killed many supernatural creatures in its history and now it was hers.
    She locked eyes onto him and prepared her next attack. A second later, she watched stunned as he turned into a bat and escaped through the roofless building into the night.
    Impossible.
    He shouldn’t have been able to escape. The dagger’s magic should have bound his transformation abilities. Then she reminded herself that Mannus was considered one of the most powerful vampires existing today. The amount of blood he would need to overcome the dagger’s magic was simply staggering.
    A bullet grazed her arm and she dropped in pain. She cursed herself for gawking and turned to face the last thrall. Hate filled his eyes for her hurting his master, but before he could get another shot off, a mini-bolt hit him in the skull.
    Thank God that thralls usually aren’t too bright. After having their minds warped to the vampire’s will, a thrall wasn’t usually left with much independent thinking. The thrall had forgotten