The Sacrifice Read online

  The Sacrifice

  Evangeline Anderson

  KINDLE EDITION

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  PUBLISHED BY:

  Evangeline Anderson on Kindle

  The Sacrifice

  Copyright © 2012 by Evangeline Anderson

  Kindle Edition License Notes

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to Amazon.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author's work.

  Author's Note--I realize everyone is waiting for the next Kindred novel, Exiled, and I promise I am working on it right now and hope to have it out this fall of 2012. In the mean time, I hope you enjoy The Sacrifice. Please don't pirate and hugs and happy reading to all!

  Evangeline

  Chapter One

  “So what are you wearing to the Glen tonight?” Lexy sounds thrilled, as though she can’t wait to offer herself up as a sex slave . Or maybe she’s excited about offering me. Since I’m finally twice eleven, (twenty-two in regular, non-witchy language,) I am finally eligible to be chosen as the Sacrifice. Not that the Sovereign would pick me, but still, it’s a coming of age rite.

  “I don’t know…” I sigh and lean against the counter displaying some of our most potent magical herbs. The dry, fragrant scent of them fills the air around us, so much that sometimes I think I smell it in my sleep. This shop, The Witch’s Brew, has been in our family for generations and I’m the general manager. Not because I want to be but because I really don’t have much of a choice.

  “Come on, Emma—you must have something picked out. You’re twice eleven now.” Lexy swishes her long auburn hair over one shoulder, still sounding excited.

  “I don’t see why I have to come at all, let alone get all dressed up,” I grumble. “It’s not like I’ll ever get chosen.” Not that I want to be chosen, of course—no one does. Being the Bloodlust Sacrifice for the Sovereign of the Tampa Bay supernatural community is considered a deep honor—but it’s also a hassle and a pain in the neck. And I do mean that literally—the Sovereign is a vampire.

  “You don’t know that—you might be chosen.” But Lexy sounds doubtful. “I mean, you’re a member of an ancient family with a powerful magical lineage,” she continues, obviously trying to be upbeat. “Your mom was the head of the coven until—”

  “Please, don’t.” I hold up a hand to stop her.

  “Sorry.” Lexy looks contrite. She knows I don’t like discussing my mother. She died in a house fire when I was only eight but the memories are painful and I still miss her every day. “Anyway,” Lexy goes on, “I’m just trying to say you do have a chance.”

  “Right,” I snort disdainfully. “Lexy, I have no chance—I’m a dud.”

  Lexy puts one perfectly manicured hand on her slender hip. “Don’t call yourself that, Emma!”

  “Why not? It’s the truth.” A 'dud' is a person from a magical family with no magic of their own. That description fits me to a T. After my mother’s untimely death, I went to live with my aunt and cousins, of which Lexy is my favorite. We were all about the same age and as we grew, my cousins all began to exhibit signs of magical skill. Me, I exhibited nothing. Nada. Zip. Zero. Zilch. Then when puberty hit us all, one by one, their powers grew. The onset of menarche is a powerful time for a witch. A time when her hair and eyes take their true and lasting shade and she comes into her own magically and physically.

  All of my cousins came through puberty beautifully. Lexy, Trissa, and Delilah each have flaming red hair and brilliant green eyes. They’re all tall and slender and gorgeous—every supernatural creature with a penis within a hundred mile radius is attracted to their beauty and magic. A fact that Lexy and her sisters take full advantage of. In fact, Delilah, the most delectable of the three, even specializes in sex magic. Making love with a lot of different men isn’t looked down upon in the witch’s matrilineal society—it’s more like a status symbol. Lexy and Trissa are a bit more sedate but not much—they always have a date or three lined up for Friday night.

  And then there’s me.

  Puberty was not kind to Emma Krist. It didn't seem to matter how ancient my lineage or how powerful my mother was, the whole legacy just passed me by. All I have to show for my passage to womanhood is mousy brown hair, muddy hazel eyes, and debilitating menstrual cramps every time my period rolls around. Not to mention that I never got the tall, slender figures my cousins inherited. Instead, I’m short and curvy—way too curvy, unfortunately, with big boobs and even bigger hips. Add that to my lack of magic and the males of the supernatural community aren’t exactly beating down my door. Or any other males either, for that matter.

  “Don’t be so hard on yourself,” Lexy says, frowning. “You’re beautiful, Emma, and you’ll come into your power eventually. I know you will.”

  “Yeah, right,” I mumble. “And until then, I’ll just keep minding the shop while the rest of you actually practice the craft.”

  “You don’t have to stay here, you know,” she points out. “You could get a job in the human world if you wanted to.”

  I’m planning on doing just that, actually. I’m getting a degree in Herbology and Botany, taking classes at night whenever I can. But I’ve still got a few years to go before I graduate so, in the meantime, the family shop is my best option. Besides, somebody has to run it and it would be a waste to have a real witch tending the shop when she could be out practicing the craft.

  “I’ll be fine,” I say, wanting to change the subject. “Anyway, what are you wearing?”

  “A sexy sheer little something I picked up at the last festival.” Lexy gives me a coquettish smile. “Guaranteed to get Alex’s attention and keep it.” Alex is the alpha wolf she’s been flirting with for the past few months. She’ll probably get him during the Sacrifice Ceremony but knowing Lexy, once she has what she wants, she’ll lose interest and move on to the next interesting male. “So what are you wearing?” Lexy demands, returning to her original question. “Something sexy, I hope.”

  Actually, I plan on wearing a nice long black skirt and a long sleeved silk shirt to go with it. Not very sexy and not very cool, considering the Florida heat, but black is slenderizing and the long skirt and sleeves will cover a multitude of sins. I can’t tell Lexy that, of course—she’ll have a fit. So I just shrug vaguely. “I’ve got something picked out at home—it’s no big deal.”

  “Of course it’s a big deal—it’s your twice eleven!”

  “I don’t know why you’re so excited,” I grouse. “It’s bound to be the same as always. The Sovereign will chose one of the fairy girls because they’re the prettiest and sexiest and their blood is the most potent. Then everyone else will pair off and the whole thing will become one long orgy.”

  “Will you listen to yourself?” Lexy shakes her head in exasperation. “I’m telling you, it’s going to be different this year. Don’t forget, there’s a new Sovereign ascending.”

  “So?” I shrug. “He’s still going to be a vampire. What’s the difference?”

  “The difference is that he’s younger—only a little over a hundred, and you know that’s not very old where vamps are concerned. Plus, everyone is saying he’s into some pretty kinky stuff.”

  I raise my eyebrows. “Kinky how?”

  “You know,” Lexy says mysteriously. “Whips and chains and bondage. Apparently he has unusual ways of taking blood and power. And he fucks like a bull.” She sighs. “I wouldn’t really want to be chosen but if I was…”

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