Title: Oceanfront Dining
Author: J. Joseph Vouono
Email: http://www.facebook.com/JJosephVuono
Genre: Horror
Excerpt Heat Level: 1
Book Heat Level: 3
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BLURB:
Thane Harmon, a dedicated monster hunter, travels to
Ocean City, Maryland to investigate into a possible werewolf incident upon the
area’s sandy shores. Unconvinced of a
threat, he allows himself to relax, breaking protocol by becoming emotionally
involved with a woman from his past. However, when the threat to the resort
town is found to be worse than ever imagined, the hunter is forced into action.
Through a series of flashbacks, he
recalls the moments that led him to his current lifestyle and finds himself
questioning the world he’s known for over a decade. The resort beaches
close and the bodies begin to pile up. Now, Thane must confront the current
danger and battle the scars of his past, facing down the toughest choice of his
life.
EXCERPT
He stalked softly to the mounds and stood over the creatures. The
vamps were lying on their backs, arms at their sides, eyes wide open. On the
left was a young woman, blonde hair, black eyes and a slender figure,
definitely a victim of a Seductive. The pin-striped blue business suit she was
wearing was dirty and tattered, fraying around the hem. She must have gone to
the wrong happy hour after work. Had he encountered her in a bar, Thane would
have been tempted. But as a member of the undead, she was just another target.
On the right was a middle-aged man, chubby and balding. Thane
smiled to himself, thinking this was the only way the bald fellow would get to
lay next to anyone nearly as attractive as the blonde Reluctant beside him. It
was a shame he had to contract the blood thirst to get to this point, but at
least he'd spent his last night so close. The chubby man's gray t-shirt was
splotched with blood from the pets piled up in the corner, and his jeans caked
with mud around the knees. This vamp didn't match most of the normal profiles
for a Reluctant, but no self-respecting Seductive would feed on dogs and rest
huddled in a basement. He must have been an out-of-towner who stumbled across
this safe house, a mistake that proved to be his undoing.
Thane knelt down on his left knee between the vamps and leaned
over the blonde in the business suit. He placed the stake in his right hand
softly on the woman's chest and quickly inspected the tool in his grasp. The
ash was sanded smooth and the point was sharp to the touch. It was thirteen
inches from tip to the rounded end, just enough room for two hands to grip. Ransom members rarely used mallets
anymore to stake a vamp, though most still carried one. It took far too long,
and in this business, time was often the difference between a successful
eradication and the hunter taking a hit. He placed the point of the stake
against the woman's left breast, and chose his mark. Extending his arms upward,
Thane tensed up for the final blow. He held the spot for a moment, building
momentum then slammed the stake downward into the vamp's chest.
The point entered the target and slipped through the suit toward
her now still heart. In an instant, the stake was embedded in the vamps chest.
She sprang up at the waist, mouth open in a muted scream. Her blood caked
fingers wrapped around the small portion of the wood that protruded from her
breast.
Thane slid backward on his knee, watching as the creature writhed
in pain.
She stared back at him, eyes slowly closing.
Less than fifteen seconds after Thane staked her, the vamp slumped
back. Her head hit the ground with a sickening thud. Within a minute her skin
would shrink around her body and her bones would crumble to dust. Within five
minutes there would be nothing left but a sharpened ash-wood stake and a pile
of gray and white powder.
Job well done,
Thane thought to himself.
Behind him, the male vamp moved.
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