The Gift

Kieran and Gwen are powerful Strigorii vampires who’ve been married over three and a half centuries. Their Master Vampire, Abbott, realizes the couple is on the eve of dissolving their marriage, but no one wants to see their long-time romantic partnership break up. Abbott hopes the gift of a shared blood servant who happens to be a trained bodyguard can solve several problems in one solution. With the coming war so close, he needs to take steps to protect the couple who manage his vast fortune. If the former slave can also help them find common ground and rekindle their romance? Even better.

Ajax was abducted from foster care as a small child and raised as a slave. Chosen for his size, he was forced into hard physical labor to create a huge, intimidating physique. His original Vampire Master had the slave trained to be his personal bodyguard, and Ajax excels at it. When Abbott took over the territory, he tried letting Ajax work for Drake Security, but the werewolf was miserable.

How can a swan possibly fit into this? Arabella’s mother sold her eggs to the traffickers, and the swanling was hatched into slavery. When the Swan Queen took over the crown, she tried to award Arabella her freedom, but it never took. Surprisingly, it’s possible the little swan might be the glue that holds everything together.

Our story starts on one Christmas and ends on the next. A lot can happen in a year.