#MIDWEEKTEASE~19~TRICK OR TREATS LITTLE MAN, HERE I COME...

Happy Midweek to you! Thank you for stopping by Midweek Tease where we all share a little bit of a work in progress, upcoming release, or published work. As always, a special shout out to Angelica Dawson for putting together this weekly blog hop! This week's tease comes from my paranormal wip that has an upcoming deadline of June first for a late summer/early fall release in the Cimmerian Shades PNR/UFR boxed set. I'm super excited about this one because it's my first strictly paranormal book. And check out this awesome cover by EmCat Designs! Okay, so this book had a different title and I changed it. You've met the lead character, Agent Tatum Wilder, now meet one of her colleagues...

Agent Scarlet Reed watched as the balding overweight man scurried across the street. In his haste, he stumbled, not once, but twice. Sweat and fear emanated from him in waves.

Humans, a sad pathetic race. Easy prey for all the supernatural beings in the grand universe. Always ready to give up their greedy little secrets for sex, wealth, or power which placed them in need of the Nubian Council’s constant protection and rescue. She sometimes wondered why the Goddess cared so much, but if she hadn’t, the Phoenix would never have come into being. Little did the human race know how important the Phoenix were. The elite force kept the delicate balance that currently existed between all species.

Some believed humans the weakest link in the chain and would take great pride and a perverse joy in driving them to extinction. If it weren’t for the Nubian Council’s constant vigilance in saving their asses by using agents such as her, humans would’ve been destroyed hundreds of years ago causing a chain reaction most supernatural beings shudder to think about. Take vampires for example. They relied on human blood for survival. No humans. No blood. Simple as that.

When Scarlet had been a mere mortal, she’d been a virgin sacrifice to the Sun God, Ra. She’d been excited and eager to be called into the Goddess’ service and leave her miserable human existence behind. Now, it was her job to make sure humans weren’t preyed upon. She was still young enough to take a certain pride in that.

Scarlet glanced down from her five story perch of the roof of the abandoned building just as her target entered a titty bar decorated in the spirit of the upcoming Halloween holiday. The blatant display of “witches” with exaggerated cleavage and g-strings almost comical. She smiled.

Straightening, the night wrapped its velvety shroud around her. She cocked her head, listening to sounds of music and the randy shouts of lustful men with her keen hearing. At 1200 years of age, she was one of the youngest Phoenix. Phoenix were reborn every century on the anniversary of their human death when the Akthuá began—a painful transition where their powers and heightened senses were weakened right before they were consumed by fire and turned to ash.

She grimaced, her most recent agonizing experience with the Akthuá still fresh in her memory. The process started relatively easy enough with the loss of balance. Her beautiful burnished red hair with its golden highlights had turned dull and fell out in tufts. She lost the ability to see using her night vision. Her core body temperature rose until the first flames licked her flesh and then she’d been devoured in blessed incineration, screaming for the mercy of Sekhmet, the Goddess of War begging to die and end a misery seemingly with no conclusion.

From the pile of the ash, a Phoenix was rejuvenated and blessed with a new power. Some can foretell the future. Others could read minds. There were even those Phoenix that manipulated time and space to teleport themselves, but only the very old gain that ability. Their powers of persuasion through seduction and sex were beyond compare. And Vamps thought they cornered the market in sensuality. Scarlet snickered. As if…

Each Akthuá a Phoenix endured was more painful than the last. Shrieks of agony from those even much older than herself could be heard from the four corners of the earth, to the heavens above, and straight down to the fiery depths of hell. Which was why during Akthuá a Phoenix would check into the Temple of Karnak—a sort of hospital for the supernatural.

The healers of Karnak could do little to ease the extreme torment, but they provided protection in a Phoenix’s vulnerable state. It was the only time a Phoenix could be killed.

Protection against Him.

A frisson of fear twisted and snaked around her spine, coiling tight. She shivered. Scarlet dismissed her morbid thoughts before they became rooted in her brain. Strange, she hadn’t thought of the Dark Pharaoh in a very long time… Maybe her brain had fried a bit too much after this last Akthuá. Not that she felt any lingering effects of being turned into a pile of ash. Her body was now restored and fresh. The new power of levitating objects provided a new thrill, but an unfounded apathy had taken hold. Her very existence bored her when she wasn’t on assignment. Now she had a bit more understanding of what her fellow Phoenix grumbled about upon occasion.

How the sweet fuck was she supposed to deal with that shit? When she returned to the house, which she shared with the rest of the Phoenix agents, she’d ask Magda a few questions. At over six thousand years old, she was the oldest living Phoenix in existence and their leader. 

Scarlet slipped off her five inch stilettos and leapt from roof and landed on the sidewalk five stories below with the ease and grace of a feline. No sense in ruining her favorite Jimmy Choos by being careless. Replacing her cherished heels onto her feet, she adjusted the black leather mini skirt and golden sequined tank top she wore, then took the same path as her target across the deserted street. He was one of seven needed. Their combined DNA was supposedly the key to a cure of some super virus against humans. She’d wished she’d paid more attention at the briefing, but like a kid in a candy store after her rebirth, she’d been restless and had wanted to play with her new power.

Scarlet stopped and inhaled deeply. Judging by the pheromones of the man of interest to a certain vampire faction, he’d be putty in her hands. Her lips curved as exhilaration rushed through her veins replacing her earlier apathy. Thank the Goddess. She lived for this shit.

Trick or treats little man, here I come…

*****

And there you have it... I hope you enjoyed meeting Agent Scarlet. Initially, I'd written a scene where she'd died, but my sister, Elizabeth, begged me to keep her alive because she liked her so much. So I did. Don't forget to stop by and check out the rest of today's teases!

Later Gators!

Kathleen💋