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Books
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Highlands at Dawn
Series:
Astral Guardians
~ Book 2
Publisher:
Totally Bound
October 2014
ISBN #: 9781784302313
Genre: Paranormal
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Things aren’t always what they seem…
Billy Kwan has been sent to Scotland to look into some
unusual activity caused by one of Them. What he discovers is
not only another artifact, but his mate, and his entire
reason for being there has changed. Now, protecting her
takes top priority.
Malmuirie ‘Mal’ Gordon is a surgeon, and used to stressful
situations, however, when she meets Billy it’s unlike
anything she’s experienced before. Together, they might just
be able to remain alive long enough to make it back to
Oregon and start their life together. |
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Excerpt |
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Content below is not
suitable if under 18. |
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Glasgow, Scotland
William ‘Billy’ Kwan hung back as he trailed the disciple of
The New Order down St Vincent Street. He’d been here a few
days now and had seen some of the destruction up in the
Highlands. People were referring to it as an act of nature.
He knew better.
On his way back to the city, he had discovered himself on a
bus with this guy who seemed to have a set destination in
mind. Billy knew he was a member of The New Order because of
the mark on his neck, their symbol. So he’d opted to follow
him and see what was going on. Find out what it was he could
ruin for The New Order. He’d not found whatever it was They
had been after in the Highlands, but he wasn’t going
anywhere yet and would head back up to take another look
around.
He spied it the same time The New Order fanatic did. A faint
trail of gold dust that to someone who didn’t know what they
were looking for would have come across as naught but dust
particles gleaming beneath the streetlights.
It wasn’t fair to the one who emitted that signal, for they
typically didn’t know what danger it brought them. He picked
up his pace, needing to do his duty and help protect
whomever the particles were from. To lose a mate for one of
his brethren wasn’t an option. The artifact could wait a bit
more.
The man he was trailing increased his speed until he was
moving through the patrons on the street at a near jog.
Billy increased his speed as well but did it so he didn’t
appear as if he were following. Not that it would have
mattered—from the looks of things, this man was solely
focused on the gold dust trail.
The New Order man stopped and looked around. Billy knew he’d
lost the dust trail and walked by him, since he personally
hadn’t lost it. It had, however, gotten much fainter. He
continued up the well-lit street until it guided him into an
establishment. King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut.
Interesting.
The name gave him pause until his eyes picked up the faint
trace once more, reminding him of his objective. If the dust
went in, so would he.
He moved by the open door—basically ignoring the people to
his right that hung out on the steps leading up from the
place—which had the name of tonight’s gig written in chalk
on a board, encompassing the full inside of the door. The
music, which had poured out onto the street, grew much
louder as he walked in and after paying the cover charge
just inside the door looked around the place. People
swarmed—talking, laughing and eating. His stomach growled as
he realized he’d not eaten for several hours.
He found an empty seat, thankfully with the wall at his back
so he could keep an eye on the entire room. The particles
had almost faded completely away with the numerous bodies in
the place. He didn’t know if they had gone to a male or a
female either, so his hunt wouldn’t be that easy.
“What can I get you?” a woman asked him. She was a redhead
with a stunning smile.
He looked at the menu and said, “I’ll have the Tennessee
burger, please and I’ll have that as a rump-steak patty.”
The cheddar and bacon combined with Jack Daniel’s Tennessee
Honey mustard mayo sounded good.
“You got it.” She winked and sashayed off, talking and
waving to other patrons.
He continued to peruse the crowd, hoping he’d get a chance
to see and potentially save the one who now had a beacon
over their head—a beacon, which would only attract more from
The New Order. The crowd in the place was an eclectic mix of
people.
He perked up a bit when the man he’d been following entered
and scanned the room. When their gazes met, Billy gave him a
brief nod before smiling at the woman who returned with his
drink.
“Thank you.”
Another wink and she was gone again, slipping through the
throng. He thought he caught a flash of gold by a group of
dancing women but he couldn’t pick just one out of the
bunch.
When his food arrived, he dug in happily. He’d just finished
when he saw it again. Stronger this time—and leaving.
Whomever it was with had a hoodie pulled up over their head
as they slipped from the place. This time he also thought he
noticed wisps of indigo intermixed with the gold. That’s
new. Wiping his mouth, Billy dug for money to cover the meal
and shot off after the person in the dark blue.
It was definitely them—he could see the gold much easier now
that they strode along the sidewalk. His power flared as he
walked around a corner and he slowed, searching for the
danger. It came from behind. The New Order fool jostled him
out of the way as he hurried by.
Billy grabbed him and slammed him into the brick wall of a
building. “I don’t think so,” he ground out.
“What the…? Who the fuck are you?”
He shoved him into the darkness of the nearby alley.
“Guardian,” he said arrogantly.
“Fuck you. I won’t tell you anything.”
“Don’t want you to.” He hit him in the jaw and waited.
The man’s blue eyes grew wide as he realized what had just
happened. Sure enough, not much later white foam appeared at
the corner of his mouth. Billy had popped his cyanide pill.
Billy laid him on the ground and slipped back out. Guess I
didn’t want to find out what he wanted after all.
Damn it! He hastened up the street, searching for the
particle trail. There! Across to the other side and around
the corner. Billy jogged between the slow-moving cars and
made his way to it. The sign was fading fast. Whoever I’m
chasing is moving at a good speed and is going faster.
Lengthening his stride, he followed it until he reached
another building. Really? A hospital? Billy double-checked
he hadn’t made a mistake in where it went. Nope, he hadn’t.
He strode into the emergency room and glanced around. No
sign of the person who he’d chased here. There were people
sitting in chairs throughout, awaiting their turn. Men and
women in scrubs ran back and forth. He didn’t understand the
words with the thick brogue but he got the gist. An
emergency approached.
Sirens preceded the actual arrival and he stepped aside as
staff members came running forward. They wheeled the gurney
toward the doors and he narrowed his gaze when he saw two
men step out of the shadows with weapons drawn.
Security stepped forward as did he, unwilling to sit by and
let innocents get hurt. A woman in a white lab coat and
stethoscope lifted her head and speared the leader with a
glare.
“What are you going to do with that? Shoot me? This man has
two bullets in his chest cavity and you come in here waving
that gun around like it’s your own damn playground. You want
to shoot me? Go ahead—and he dies. If you want me to save
him, get the fuck out of my way and let me do my job.”
The man backed down. |
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Copyright © Aliyah
Burke, 2014.
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All Rights Reserved. |
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