MIDNIGHT CONQUEST: Book 1 of the Bonded By Blood Vampire Chronicles

Midnight Conquest

Book 1 of the Bonded By Blood

Vampire Chronicles

(Approximately 105,000 words)

Arial Burnz

Masked in a Gypsy guise,
Broderick MacDougal
hides his vampiric identity while seeking to destroy the man who slaughtered his family. When an old Clan rival ensnares Broderick in a trap using an enticing widow, he is compelled to discover if she is bait or an accomplice, and the cinnamon-haired beauty is his next conquest.

Widow of an abusive husband,
Davina Stewart-Russell
clings to the only image that gave her strength during those dark times—the Gypsy rogue who stole her heart as a youth. After nine years, she is finally face-to-face with him again, but reality clashes with fantasy as she is confronted with Broderick’s passionate pursuit.

When Davina’s past returns to haunt her, Broderick is forced to reveal a dark secret worse than anything Davina thought possible. The challenge before them has fatal risks and neither of them is prepared for the sacrifices expected for the sake of eternal love.

Reader Advisory: This story contains explicit love scenes, described using graphic and direct language. This story also contains explicit, nail-biting scenes of violence and domestic abuse. (Don’t worry…the bad guys get it in the end!)

Midnight Conquest

Book 1 of the Bonded By Blood

Vampire Chronicles

by

Arial Burnz

* * * * *

PUBLISHED BY:

Mystical Press

Midnight Conquest: Book 1 of the Bonded By Blood Vampire Chronicles

Copyright © 2011 by G.C. Henderson

2
^nd
Edition

Edited by AJ Nuest

Cover art by Arial Burnz

E-book License Notes

This publication is protected under the US Copyright Act of 1976 and all other applicable international, federal, state and local laws, and all rights are reserved, including resale rights: you are not allowed to give or sell this e-book to anyone else. This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. 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, you are depriving the author of her rightful royalties. Please pay for your copy by purchasing it at ArialBurnz.com or Amazon.com. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.

No part of this e-book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the author, except for small excerpts for review or media purposes.

* * * * *

This e-book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons—living, dead, magical or undead—places, events or locales, is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously. Though there are actual historical events used in this book, they are for backdrop purposes only and may contain some artistic license.

Dedication

A Thank You to Sting

For “Moon Over Bourbon Street”

He fed me the intro

To Anne Rice’s treat

She’s planted the seed

To all that I’ve written

If it wasn’t for her

I’d have never been bitten

* * * * *

“An epic fantasy from start to finish! Two lovers destined for eternity despite all the odds. With outstanding characters and non-stop action, I couldn't put the book down. Kudos to Ms. Burnz for creating such a beautiful tale!”

—
AJ Nuest, author of
Jezebel’s Wish

“Arial has the unique ability to write in such a way that it unfolds in an array of emotional and mythological layers I found impossible to step away from.”

—M. Sembera, author of
The Rennillia Series

* * * * *

Acknowledgments

It goes without saying that I could never achieve my dreams as a writer without the unfailing love and support of my husband, DeWayne. He gives me the freedom to spread my wings and fly. He also puts up with my endless brainstorming sessions and overloading his brain with all the information about my characters. What a trooper! He deserves a medal!!

Nor can I forget to mention my mother, for without her, I would not be here. She is my number one fan, boosting my ego because she thinks my writing is perfect from the first draft. Gotta love moms! Furthermore, my very talented mother painted the scenery on the bottom-half of my first cover. Thank you for such an excellent vision of the world I built for my characters. You really brought it to life!

Additionally, my heartfelt thanks and appreciation goes out to all my beta readers. Your input, comments, honesty and encouragement through the various stages of this novel are invaluable. Hugs to (listed alphabetically)
Elizabyth Burtis
,
Michelle Ferguson
,
Mildred L. Losee
,
Dallas Maupin
, and
Lori “Beanie” Tunno
.

A special thank you goes to my editor,
AJ Nuest
. I dragged you into this and you embraced my project with open arms, being a great contributor in helping me close this 20-year endeavor with a bang. Not only has your keen eye helped me fine-tune my prose, but you loved, defended and coddled “my baby” as if it were your own. You also fell in love with Broderick as much as I did…and that says a lot! Your friendship and partnership are cherished treasures. I can’t wait to work with you on Book 2! (And for those of you interested, her last name is pronounced NOOST.)

Two more people must be singled out. A big hug and an I’m-not-worthy-groveling-before-you to
HP Mallory
. Your friendship, encouragement and guidance have been priceless. You’re an inspiration! And a heartfelt thank you to
Steve Anderson
who graciously provided advice and translation for the Hebrew I’m using in my vampire lore and prophecy. I could not have done any of it without your assistance. Your knowledge of the language knocked my socks off and I am humbled in your virtual presence.

If I thank any more people, my readers are going to abandon me, as there are too many people to mention here without taking up an additional ten pages. Most of you know who you are, and many of you know I started this particular project over twenty years ago. Thank you all for never giving up on me and being my cheering section.

For those who tried to interfere with my dream and douse my fire, I’m happy to say I proved you wrong…and you can kiss my unicorn.

Author Notes

Make no mistake, this novel is not classified as
historical fiction
, but instead a
paranormal romance novel
with an historical backdrop. As such, I wrote most of my story in a fair amount of contemporary language. I strived to ensure the dialogue of my characters had a “flavor” of the Renaissance period, with a few Scottish words thrown in here and there. I make no claims the language is historically accurate. Imagine a modern person reciting an old tale. That is the spirit in which this story is conveyed. (Besides, there are only so many modern words to describe the male and female genitalia, let alone limiting myself to the meager supply of 16
th
century vocabulary.)

I have been warned, by many of my writer friends who craft historical novels, that if their readers find any historical inaccuracies, they receive plenty of e-mail detailing their mistakes. My own grandmother is a History Nazi—a history book to her left and a romance novel to her right, checking all the facts—so I know how much people enjoy this endeavor. Forasmuch, I have done my best to be as historically accurate as I could be. Though I’ve collected information from various sources, the most recent resource I used was Alison Sim’s wonderful book
The Tudor Housewife
(ISBN 0-7735-2233-6). It’s a well-encapsulated reference for how life was during the time of my novel and has a generous amount of information that debunks a lot of misconceptions about this time period (e.g., the average age of first marriage was mid-twenties, not the teens!)

I am not an historian. If there are any mistakes in the history presented in this book, they are my mistakes and I offer my heartfelt apologies in advance and sincerely hope these inaccuracies do not interfere with your ability to enjoy the story. All in all, this
is
a paranormal/fantasy romance novel. I do, however, welcome your comments so that I may learn from these mistakes. Please be kind. :D

I encourage you to visit my web site (www.ArialBurnz.com) for more information on the Bonded By Blood Vampire Chronicles.

Without further ado, and at long last, I give you…MIDNIGHT CONQUEST.

That’s my two pence…

Arial

June 2011

Midnight Conquest

Chapter One

Scottish Fortress of the Vamsyrian Council—1486

“Death? Shall I—” Another wave of agony pressed upon his chest. Broderick MacDougal braced as razor-like pain raked through the inside of his body and coursed through his veins. He dropped to his knees. Putting his hands in front of him, he kept his face from hitting the sandstone as the breath was knocked from his lungs. Panting, he laid his cheek against the floor. The cold stone soothed the fever of his skin. The sound of his ragged breaths echoed off the vastness of the Vamsyrian Fortress. As the agony subsided, he struggled to right himself and stared at the youthful faces of the Elders.

The Elders of the Vamsyrian Council sat on their black iron thrones behind the expanse of their black marble table, looking like anything but elders. They glared down at Broderick, who knelt on the floor before them. All three men of various unknown nationalities and features, garbed in formal brocade robes of deep red, seemed no older than five-and-twenty years. Yet they measured their ages in centuries, Cordelia had told him.

Able to stand once more, Broderick cleared his throat. “Death?” he repeated. “Shall I not be permitted to live should I choose neither of the other options?”

Elder Rasheed, who had given Broderick his three choices, raised a coal-black eyebrow. “If you choose to go with the Army of Light, we are not permitted to kill you; but yea, if one does not choose them or us, it is customary to kill those who have rescinded from making this choice. That is a rare occurrence, but has happened. Killing you would be more out of mercy than preserving the secrecy of our race.”