Sylvia Day - A Touch of Crimson

The first book in the Renegade Angels Trilogy series, 2007

My gratitude to Danielle Perez, Claire Zion, Kara Welsh, Leslie Gelbman, and everyone at NAL for all the enthusiasm shown for my Renegade Angels from auction to publication.

A tip of my hat to Beth Miller for all the little things.

A shout out to Erin Galloway for her input and for just being her.

Thanks to the art department for granting my wish to have Tony Mauro design my cover.

I have mad love for Tony Mauro and his head-turning, kick-ass artwork for Adrian. I’m grateful for the many ways he allowed me to use his art to share Adrian’s story.

Thank you to Monique Patterson for feeding my muse.

Huge thanks to Shayla Black and Cynthia D’Alba for reading early drafts of this story and helping me pull it together.

Much love to my friend Lora Leigh, to whom Lindsay/ Shadoe pay homage.

Lara Adrian, Larissa Ione, Angela Knight, and Cheyenne McCray are very busy women, yet they generously spent some of their precious time reading Adrian and Lindsay’s story. Thank you so much, ladies! I’m grateful.

CHANGE -the process a mortal undergoes to become a vampire.

FALLEN -the Watchers after the fall from grace. They have been stripped of their wings and their souls, leaving them as immortal blood drinkers who cannot procreate.

LYCANS -a subgroup of the Fallen who were spared vampirism by agreeing to serve the Sentinels . They were transfused with demon blood, which preserved their souls but made them mortal. They can shape-shift and procreate.

MINION -a mortal who has been Changed into a vampire by one of the Fallen . Most mortals do not adjust well and become rabid. Unlike the Fallen , they cannot tolerate sunlight.

NAPHIL -singular of nephalim .

NEPHALIM -the children of mortal and Watcher parents. Their blood drinking contributed to and inspired the vampiric punishment of the Fallen .

(“they turned themselves against men, in order to devour them”-Enoch 7:13)

(“No food shall they eat; and they shall be thirsty”-Enoch 15:10)

SENTINELS -an elite special ops unit of the seraphim , tasked with enforcing the punishment of the Watchers .

SERAPH -singular of seraphim .

SERAPHIM -the highest rank of angel in the angelic hierarchy.

VAMPIRES -a term that encompasses both the Fallen and their minions .

WATCHERS -two hundred seraphim angels sent to earth at the beginning of time to observe mortals. They violated the laws by taking mortals as mates and were punished with an eternity on earth as vampires with no possibility of forgiveness.

“Phineas is dead.”

The pronouncement hit Adrian Mitchell like a physical blow. Gripping the handrail to counterbalance his shaken composure, he rounded a bend in the stairwell and looked at the seraph who ascended abreast of him. With the relaying of the news, Jason Taylor advanced into Phineas’s former rank as Adrian’s second-in-command. “When? How?”

Jason easily kept up with Adrian’s inhuman pace as they approached the roof. “About an hour ago. It was called in as a vamp attack.”

“No one noticed a vampire within striking distance? How the fuck is that possible?”

“That was my question. I sent Damien to investigate.”

They reached the last landing. The lycan guard in front of them pushed open the heavy metal door, and Adrian slipped sunglasses over his eyes before stepping into the Arizona sunshine. He watched the guard recoil from the ovenlike heat, then heard a complaining growl from the second lycan, who brought up the rear. As base creatures of instinct, they were susceptible to physical stimuli in ways the seraphim and vampires were not. Adrian didn’t feel the temperature at all; the loss of Phineas had chilled his blood.

A helicopter waited on the pad in front of them, its whirring blades churning the oppressively dry and gritty air. Its rounded side was emblazoned with both MITCHELL AERONAUTICS and Adrian’s winged logo.

“You have doubts.” He focused on the details because he couldn’t afford to vent his fury now. Inside, he was shattered by grief over the loss of his best friend and trusted lieutenant. But as leader of the Sentinels, he couldn’t appear diminished in any way. Phineas’s death would send ripples through the ranks of his elite unit of seraphim. The Sentinels would be looking to him for strength and guidance.

“One of his lycans survived the attack.” Despite the roar of the aircraft’s engine, Jason didn’t need to raise his voice to be heard. He also didn’t cover his seraph blue eyes, despite the pair of designer shades perched atop his golden head. “I find it a bit… odd that Phineas was investigating the size of the Navajo Lake pack; then he gets ambushed on the way home and killed. Yet one of his dogs survives to call it in as a vamp assault?”

Adrian had been utilizing the lycans for centuries as both guards for the Sentinels and heeler dogs to herd the vampires into designated areas. But recent signs of restlessness among the lycans signaled a need for him to reevaluate. They’d been created for the express purpose of serving his unit. If necessary, Adrian would remind them of the pact made by their ancestors. They could have all been turned into soulless, bloodsucking vampires as punishment for their crimes, but he’d spared them in return for their indenture. Although some of the lycans believed their debt had been paid by their predecessors, they failed to recognize that this world was made for mortals. They could never live among and alongside humans. Their only place was the one Adrian had made for them.

One of his guards ducked low and pushed through the air turbulence created by the helicopter blades. Reaching the aircraft, the lycan held the door open.

Adrian’s power buffered him from the tempest, allowing him to proceed without effort. He looked at Jason. “I’ll need to question the lycan who survived the attack.”

“I’ll tell Damien.” The wind whipped through the lieutenant’s blond locks and sent his sunglasses flying.

Adrian snatched them out of the air with a lightning-quick grasp. Vaulting into the cabin, he settled into one of the two rear-facing bucket seats.

Jason occupied the other one. “But I have to ask: is a guard dog that can’t guard worth anything? Maybe you should put him down to reinforce that by example.”