Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 119746 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 599(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119746 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 599(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
The kitchen is warm and fragrant when I enter. Aubrey stands at the stove, hair pulled back in a messy bun, wearing one of my flannel shirts over her pajama pants.
“You’re up early,” I say, crossing to wrap my arms around her waist.
She leans back into me, still focused on the pancakes she’s flipping. “Heard you leave. Couldn’t fall back asleep.”
I press a kiss to her neck, breathing in the scent of her—herbal shampoo, sleep-warm skin, something essentially Aubrey that I’ve never been able to name. “Bad dreams?”
She shakes her head. “Just excited. New client today.”
The nightmares come less frequently now. For both of us. Time doesn’t heal all wounds, but it does blunt their edges.
“The veteran?” I ask, reaching around her for a mug. The coffee she makes is strong enough to strip paint, but I’ve developed a taste for it.
“Army Ranger. Double amputee. Margaret’s been working with him for weeks, but today’s his first session with Duke.” Pride colors her voice. Her program for veterans has become the center’s most successful initiative, drawing clients from three states.
“He’s in good hands,” I say. With Duke. With Aubrey. With all of us who’ve fought our own battles and survived.
We eat breakfast on the porch, watching the mountains change colors as the sun rises fully. Aubrey’s ankle—healed now but still aching in cold weather—is propped on the railing. The scar on her temple has faded to a thin silver line, visible only if you know to look for it.
“Marcus’s parole hearing is next month,” she says, eyes still on the distant peaks.
I nod, tension settling between my shoulder blades at the name. “Rodriguez called yesterday. They want me to testify again.”
Her hand finds mine across the table. “You don’t have to.”
“Yes, I do.” My thumb brushes over her wedding ring. “He doesn’t get to walk free. Not after everything.”
My testimony two years ago put Marcus away for what should have been twenty years. His lawyers have been fighting for early release ever since. So far, we’ve won every appeal. I intend to keep that record.
“I’ll come with you,” Aubrey says. Not a question.
“You always do.” I lift her hand, press a kiss to her knuckles. Calloused now from ranch work, from the life we’ve built together.
The sound of a car coming up the drive signals the arrival of our first staff members. Soon the quiet morning will give way to the controlled chaos of the therapy center—children’s voices, horses’ hooves, the constant movement of a place dedicated to healing.
We don’t have children of our own. Won’t ever. We made that decision together, early on. Aubrey never wanted kids, and after learning about the McAlister bloodline, neither of us wanted to risk passing on that particular legacy. Besides, we have dozens of kids who need us, who come through our programs. That’s enough.
More than enough.
“Ready for the day?” Aubrey asks, rising from her chair with that determined energy that still takes my breath away.
I stand, drawing her close for a moment. Over her shoulder, I can see the mountains where we almost died, where we found each other, where nightmares still might lurk in dark caves and forgotten histories. But here, on this ranch, we’ve built something stronger than fear. Something real.
“Ready,” I say, kissing her once more before we head inside to start another day at Lost Trail Ranch—a place to find yourself.
Just like we did.
Thank you so much for reading Death Valley! If you want to read more of my horror romances, might I suggest the following:
Grave Matter
Horror Romance meets Science Fiction in this dark and delicious gothic psychological thriller by NYT bestseller Karina Halle, perfect for fans of Gothikana, Ninth House, and Mexican Gothic.
Grad Student Sydney Denik is getting a second chance. When a dream opportunity presents itself with a prestigious foundation doing promising Alzheimer’s research, Sydney leaves the shambles of her old life to join a dozen other students at an isolated lodge hidden away in a remote, fog-shrouded inlet on Vancouver Island.
But the Madrona Foundation harbors more than brilliant minds. Everyone around her is hiding a terrible secret—including the resident psychologist she’s falling in love with. A student disappears, and no one but Sydney seems to care. Ghosts walk the halls. Snow falls in the middle of summer. Dead animals move like the living. The more Sydney uncovers about the foundation, the more she begins to question her own sanity. And if Sydney isn’t going mad, then the horrors in the surrounding forest are real, and the Madrona Foundation may be the biggest monster of all.
Blood Orange
From New York Times bestselling author Karina Halle comes a dark and delicious Dracula retelling filled with secrets and lies, dangerous liaisons and a forbidden, student-teacher, second chance love story with a twist.
"My heart will always find yours."
Dahlia Abernathy has only known revenge. When her parents were killed at an early age by vampires, Dahlia spent the rest of her life under the thumb of the Witch's Guild being trained to kill them. Her latest mission sends her undercover to a prestigious music academy in Venice, Italy. Her goal? To kill Professor Valtu Aminoff, her teacher and the notorious vampire who inspired Bram Stoker's Dracula.