Eternal Breath of Darkness by Candice Stauffer Read Free Book Online Page A

through her body. She’d never experienced anything like it.
Tilting her head back, she watched in awe as lightning swirled in a massive
funnel above them. There were so many bright colors clashing together,
exploding. Violent, turbulent power surrounded her, filled her. The power was
too intense. It was too much. It was deadly.
    He bent his head to kiss her
cheek. “What you’re feeling, what you’re seeing is a part of me. No part of me
could ever hurt you.” The strange funnel of colorful lightning moved closer,
completely surrounding them. Then, waves of something fiery and wild enveloped
them.
    * * *
    Zack turned to watch. He was alone, always and forever alone. He
chose to be alone. Having a woman would only bring him frustration and sorrow,
but watching Haden and Caylee at that moment created a memory he wouldn’t soon
forget. Haden was a fool in love. He was a moron. He was way too old to be
showing off like a teenage boy. Shaking his head, Zack cursed aloud. He never
thought Haden would ever fall victim to love. A particularly sharp, painful
stab of envy pierced his heart, but he would rather die than ever admit to
feeling it.
    Sighing aloud, he turned to
walk away. Caught off guard by a blinding flash, Zack stumbled. “What the fuck
are you doing, Joseph? Where’s the vampire?”
    “He got away. And sorry. I
couldn’t resist.” Saving the picture on his phone, Joseph laughed aloud. “This
sweet, sappy look on your face is priceless.” He sent the picture to Zack’s
profile. “It makes you look all cute and huggable.” He laughed again. “Check it
out.” He tilted the phone to show Zack. “Jacob likes it. Oh wow, take a look,”
he commented. Squinting, Joseph read aloud, “Great profile picture, lover boy!”
    “You’re an asshole, Joseph,”
Zack growled between clenched teeth. “Put the fucking phone away.” He turned
and walked away.
    “Just a minute. Oh, damn,
Zack, you’re a popular guy. There’re already six … no, eight more likes
and five more comments.”
    Zack turned suddenly. “I
told you to put the fucking phone away!” He ripped the phone out of Joseph’s
hand, crushed it in his fist, and threw it. The pieces instantly burst into
flames and turned to ashes.
    “You dumb son of a bitch.
Your temper tantrums really suck. And for your information, nobody likes to be
around you. Nobody. I would recommend a good therapist to you, but you’re
seriously, irreversibly screwed up beyond any fucking hope,” Joseph said.
    “Agreed,” Zack growled. “Now
shut the hell up. We have vampires to kill. We can’t allow any of them to get
away. I think they have his woman’s scent. What the hell is Haden’s problem? I
can’t believe she’s still mortal.” He started to walk away but stopped and
turned to face Joseph. “And if you know what’s good for you, you’ll stop
changing my fucking status and posting profile pictures.”
    * * *
    A burst of energy rushed past Caylee. Then, bolt after bolt of
bluish white lightning arced across the sky, lighting the meadow and casting
shadows in the trees surrounding it. The sound of thunder was so loud it caused
the ground to shake. She covered her ears. She would’ve fallen to her knees if
Haden hadn’t been standing behind her, holding her in his strong arms and
anchoring her against his solid body. She blinked to focus on a pitch-black
cloud of smoke forming several feet in front of her. She wanted to run, but
sensing she was about to see something spectacular, she remained still, waiting
to see what would happen next.
    Holding her breath, she
watched as the smoke dissipated and a huge, shadowy image appeared. Squinting,
she struggled to make sense of what she was seeing. It was an animal. A very
large animal.
    A colorful series of
explosions, similar to fireworks, started at the top of the animal’s head and
continued all the way to the tip of its tail until brilliant shades of red,
gold, silver, and purple shimmering streaks