Luka's Dawn, Episode 2

Good news, vampire junkies!  The second installment of Luka's Dawn is available here for pre-order.

If you're lucky, maybe one of these days I'll run out of Flannery O'Conner references for my graphics.

Here is a short excerpt:

Flannery looked up from her ice cream, suspicion in her deep blue eyes.

“Are you two going to yell at me, too?” she asked.  Raina and Luka exchanged glances.

“Kitten, have we ever yelled at you?” Luka asked.

“No, I guess not,” the child admitted sullenly.

“You want to talk about it?” asked Raina.

“I just thought she should know that her husband is stepping out!” the little girl erupted.  “And everyone is acting like I am the worst little girl in the world.  Does she want to get herpes?  Because that’s how you get herpes.”

The sound of her lisping the word “herpes” through her missing front tooth caused Raina to snort a laugh, which she tried unsuccessfully to hide behind her hand.

“It’s not funny!” Flannery insisted, scowling.

 “No, it isn’t,” Luka agreed, seeking to mollify her.  “It isn’t funny.  I know you meant well, kitten.  But humans . . . they don’t tend to appreciate such warnings.  They blame the messenger.  And they don’t have much patience for children who are different.  It’s not fair to you, but that’s just how they are.  The loss is theirs, kitten.  You are an ancient and powerful creature.  They are merely human.”

Flannery looked down at her dish, poking angrily at the melting ice cream with her spoon.  “My mommy is pregnant,” she announced, tears springing to her eyes.  “With twins.  I don’t think my mommy knows yet.  And they’re going to be all normal and perfect, and my mom and dad are not going to want me anymore.  I’ve seen it.”

Remind me again why killing them is a bad idea? Luka asked himself.

“Oh, honey,” Raina replied, pulling the girl onto her lap for a hug.  “I know they don’t understand you, but they do love you.  They’re not going to stop loving you just because they have more children.  That isn’t how it works.”  

Luka hoped she wasn’t lying.  It’s not as though either of them had any children.  What would they know about it?

“They’ll be easier to love,” Flannery insisted.  “I’ll love them, too, but it will still make me mad.”

“Well, I won’t love them at all, and if they’re mean to you, I’ll eat them right up,” Luka promised.  He extended his fangs and made a scary face until Flannery giggled.