Lahat ng Kabanata ng Leesa's Advent: Kabanata 531 - Kabanata 540

When darkness descends, Kai gets ready to leave. I wish I could go down to the bay with him. I’d love to see Selene, Tamika and Colella and thank them for saving my life. Dad is having none of it, though. He’s taking no chances, keeping everyone inside the building, away from any spying eyes. He’s not going to risk divulging our presence until he absolutely has to. My expression of gratitude to my mermaid friends will have to wait one more day.“Be careful,” I tell Kai. “Like my dad said, don’t take any chances over there.”“I won’t,” Kai says, smiling. “I want to make sure I’m around for your birthday.” He leans forward and kisses the top of my forehead. “I think it’s likely to be quite a party.”The touch of his lips against my skin sends a shiver of delight through me. I have no idea what to make of the kiss. Was it just a friendly birthday peck in advance, o

The force of the flames washes across me like a gale force wind. Surprisingly, I feel very little heat, no more than when the hot Santa Ana winds blow into San Diego from the desert. Wrapped in the plume of fire, I see the world as if looking through orange-tinted glasses. Somehow, without understanding why, I know what I need to do. The feeling is completely new to me, completely foreign to anything in my life before. Knowing without truly knowing is the best I can describe it. It’s as if a voice inside my head is whispering to me, telling me what I must do an instant before I do it. It’s not really a voice, though—it’s more like a feeling that guides me.At last, I’m beginning to understand what it’s like to have a Power.I quickly turn my head toward Kai, who is still clutching my upper arm. He’s staring at me wide-eyed, his face glowing bright orange in the fire.“Don’t let go of me,” I shout, trying to make sure he hears me above the roaring flames. “Whatever you do, DO NOT LET G

STEFANI never wanted to be a vampire. By that, I mean I didn’t wake up one morning and think how cool it would be to be a vampire, nor did I ever daydream about becoming one of the undead. The thought never crossed my mind. In fact, when it occurred, I tried my best to prevent it, but that’s a tale I will get to presently.Make no mistake, I’m thrilled that it happened, and I would never undo it even if given the chance. I love my vampire existence. It’s not perfect—not yet, anyhow, but it’s better than anything else I can imagine. And it is especially preferable to being dead, buried and forgotten.My name is Stefan de Kula, second son of Count Ramon de Kula. I am now well over three hundred years old. I am the last of the de Kula line, and have been for more than two centuries. I do not miss my family at all. I have a new father now—Ricard, the vampire who turned me—and a new family, my coven, here in central Connecticut.How did the second son of an Italian count end up as a vampi

For my companions, I chose Donatello and three other veteran hunters. We gathered our supplies and weapons and were riding from the castle within an hour of having received the mission from my father. We still had several hours before darkness would make tracking the beast more difficult, if not impossible.Our first destination was the home of the family of the unfortunate girl who had been killed. I wished to examine her wounds, to see for myself what kind of beast we might be hunting.The hut was the same as all the other peasant huts upon my father’s land. Crude and simple, fashioned of mud and rock, with a thatched roof. The door was open, but even so, I knocked upon the doorframe before stepping inside with Donatello.The young woman’s body w

The next thing I knew, I was lying on my back with Ricard squatting beside me. I tried to turn my head, but found I could not. Nor could I lift my arms or move my legs. Despite my best effort to control myself, panic surged through me. I was paralyzed! Ricard laid his palm on my forehead. His hand was ice cold. “It’s all right,” he said softly. “In a few minutes, you’re going to begin to hurt like you have never hurt before, but you are strong—I believe you will survive it.” Something in his tone made me think he had reason to believe I might not survive the transformation, but I was not worried. The die was cast—whatever would be, would be. I wanted to answer him, to tell him I was ready for whatever happened, good or bad, but my tongue was as frozen as the rest of me. The only thing I could move was my eyes. I couldn’t even blink my reassurance. Ricard obviously knew I was unable to speak, because he continued talking. “When this is over, you are going to feel better than you have