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Chapter 1

May 5, 1843

Winter stepped out of the ra stones to the sidewalk in the quiet neighborhood Aiden had selected He looked up and down the street but sa people Sunrise was only a couple of hours away He felt both exhausted and so very alive

He was a vampire

Aiden had changed him into a vampire

When his father slipped aith his older brothers, Marcus, Rafe, and Beltran, he had begun to fear he would be excluded That he’d be left hu him safe Yet, the whole reason they’d waited until he’d reached the age of twenty-three was so they could stop protecting hi him like a child

A bit to his surprise, they’d coreed

The early hours of the spring day were crisp and cool; a thin tendril of fog inding its way through the city There was a distant cloh the buildings made it hard to place its direction Otherwise, the world was silent

There was a feelinghim Winter turned in time to see the va into the building containing a variety of rundown flats

His senses were soHe could feel things He are of Aiden differently now His sire There was an extra energy to hie but oddly grounding and co as well As if he were suddenly more connected to this man than he’d been before

Would it be the same for his brothers?

Unfortunately, answering that question would have to wait until they returned to Marcus’s home For now, it was just hi his oldest brother was at all happy about He had wanted to accompany Winter, but Aiden had insisted it be just the two of theuess as to why

With his surrogate father standing close by, Winter turned his attention to his surroundings He closed his eyes and listened

But only silence could be heard