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From The Grey House:

“Natalie. Don’t disappoint me.” He did not hide the annoyance in his voice. It was the same voice he used before whipping or beating her.

Not wanting to be beaten yet again, Natalia gritted her teeth. If only Bethany wasn’t in danger… but Vincent was taking care of that; she had to play along until the vampire could act. Natalia, her mother’s face swimming before her, reached around her neck to the clasp. Sighing, she undid the clasp but didn’t move her hands. The necklace had been around her neck since age ten. She still remembered the day her mom showed her how to make it and the songs she needed to sing to weave her will into the beads. She felt something unwinding in her head. Natalia suspected it might be the control she had over the people she hypnotized.

Remembering how she felt when her mother died and gave back her memories, Natalia reeled the feeling in and clamped a hard mental hand on her control. Understanding gripped her. It was not just the necklace, but her will that made the hypnosis work. She could keep control of those she hypnotized without the necklace, but probably still needed it to get someone under her control. Knowing she could later retrieve her mother’s necklace that still lay in her jewelry box, Natalia made her decision. She opened her eyes, slipped off the necklace, and handed it to Zechariah.

From The Grey House:

“To what do I owe the pleasure? Did Vincent send you to throw me out?”

Her directness surprised Anthony into looking at her. He had been leading her toward a less crowded corner, not really paying attention to her. Not having a retort, he settled for the inane. “I gave my name, what’s yours?”

Natalia stood looking at him, then started twirling her necklace. “I’ll give you more courtesy than you gave me. My name is Natalia Mirela Liliana Dveski. My first name comes from my mother’s mother. It means ‘born on Christmas Day’. Mirela Liliana was the name of my mother’s grandmother. Mirela means ‘to admire’.” Her voice was slowing down; becoming melodious. Anthony was caught in the reflection of the dancing silver beads. As he was not yet hers, she continued.“Liliana is pure simplicity. The meaning there will not be a surprise. Can you guess? It means lily. Put them all together and you see that my name means: ‘To admire the lily born on Christmas Day.’ Do you think that is a fitting name? Am I a lily to be admired?”

Anthony’s eyes closed slowly as she spoke. He swayed a little but steadied when she asked her questions. “Yes. A lily. I must find one for you. But there are none as beautiful as you. I apologize-”

From The Grey House:

“Crap.”

Charlie gave up the stealth and shoved the door open. He turned on the light as he walked in and then stopped. Something crunched under his boot. Backing up carefully, he looked down and became angry and scared. He had stepped on her already broken cell phone. He knelt and touched the broken pieces. Had she tried to call for help? Her phone was completely dead; he couldn’t even turn it on.

Charlie stood and continued his search of the house. The kitchen was the only other room with anything out of place. Whoever took her came while she was eating breakfast. There was a bowl of congealed cereal sitting on the kitchen table. A hard piece of half eaten toast was next to it, along with a glass of orange juice. A breeze came through the open window and ruffled the paper napkin being held down by the butter stained knife.

From The Grey House:

Jordan’s hand shot out. The magic field it was trapped in zapped its fingers before it could touch Vincent. Vincent smiled.

“I told you I could control you.” Vincent straightened as Jordan started beating against the magic field. The mage, a strong one, chanted louder. Jordan was screaming in rage and pain before he finally stopped and fell to the ground. Smoke rose from various places and the smell of burnt fur and skin made Aaron gag. The vampires and other guards were unaffected.

From The Grey House:

Both women turned at the low voice. Vincent was leaning against the wall by the door, which was across from the end of the couch. He was dressed in a black tuxedo with a dark blue shirt, and matching handkerchief in his pocket. He looked dressed for an elegant evening out. He had been at the symphony with Mierka and some business partners. He did not enjoy being called away; his body language showed his feelings.

From The Grey House (This trilogy takes place in the Bay Area. Of course I’m going to mention the Golden Gate Bridge):

Once in the car, Vincent attempted to turn the talk to more pleasant topics. His tone was light, but his body language revealed his anxiety. He was waiting on phone calls. They reached the Golden Gate Bridge before Vincent’s phone rang. It was Rebecca. She was talking quickly, as if talking to voice mail. It meant she couldn’t answer questions for fear of being overheard and couldn’t move to a quiet location for fear of losing the quarry.

“Hi! It’s me! Just wanted to let you know I’m at The Hook Up. My friend is waiting for people to show up I think, but no one seems to be home. If anyone calls for me, tell them to come join me. I’m bored.”

From The Grey House:

“She runs on the beach after her shift. Likes the privacy.”

Vincent leaned back in the leather chair and looked beyond Richard to the bank of television screens. There were three cameras that pointed toward the beach. He didn’t see anyone on any of them. Richard looked in the same direction then got up and pointed at a screen showing part of the deck. There was a table with a bottle of water, a towel and a backpack on it. Its two chairs were still set on the floor rather than in the storage area, as they should be.

“She’ll set everything right before she leaves. Always does.”

The Grey House:

(Technically the word is conFINEd, but hey, it’s my site, I do what I want):

Charlie was reminded early the next evening when Joseph grabbed him from his bed and threw him in the dungeon. As the door closed behind him, Joseph informed Charlie that he was to be kept locked up for three days. He would be given food and water, and would not be shackled. Since he left without Vincent’s permission to pursue Vincent’s woman, he would be confined. Knowing it could have been a lot worse, Charlie accepted his punishment and settled in his cell to out wait the three days.

From The Grey House:

The stairs were well built, with reinforced walls on both sides. They were soundproofed, as was the door. At the bottom of the stairs was another locked door. After checking the monitor above him, Vincent punched in a code and the metal door before him slid open. He stepped into the closet sized chamber, and the door closed behind him. He checked the next monitor as the large fans above played with his hair. All was normal therefore he typed in his code into yet another keypad, and the second metal door slid open.

From The Grey House:

He laughed. “Because yeah, the bastard has a dungeon.” He paused, took her shake from her and took a large sip. “Hey that’s pretty good.” He handed the cup back, ignoring the annoyed look on her face. “So, I woke up in a cage, in a dungeon. There were other cages. Most held wolves. Two others held humans. About two minutes after I woke up, a short woman walked in carrying robes. She handed me one without saying anything, then placed the two others on the cages of the two other guys. They were still asleep.”