Undertow

K. R. Conway

UNDERTOW

Copyright © 2013 Kathleen R Conway

All rights reserved.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons living or dead, is coincidental.

Copyright © 2013 by Kathleen R. Conway

All rights reserved. In accordance with U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher / author is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from this book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at
[email protected]
. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

Kathleen R Conway

Bourne MA 02532

Visit the author’s website at
www.CapeCodScribe.com

First Edition: August 2013

Conway, Kathleen R.

    Undertow / by Kathleen R. Conway – 1
st
ed.

    Summary: Seventeen-year-old Eila Walker learns that she is the last descendant in a rare line of dangerous humans while being protected by four unlikely friends, including a young man who is her genetic enemy, as she hunts for answers to her own family’s dark past and a destiny that wants her dead.

ISBN:
978-0-9897763-1-8

Published in the United States of America

DEDICATION

For Mom.

The most hyperactive, devoted cheerleader I have ever known in sky-high zebra pumps. I adore you.

UNDERTOW

Eila Walker knows luck is not a friend, so she is downright shocked to inherit a million-dollar Cape Cod home. And yeah, her new town isn't perfect: the cheerleaders are heinous clones, the local undertow can kill ya, and her Great Grams was supposedly fried by lightning in the harbor square. Still, Eila is hopeful her luckless days are in the past . . . until history decides to repeat itself.

When drool-worthy Raef O’Reilly becomes her friendly, yet weirdly protective shadow, Eila thinks life is pretty darn perfect – until she is hauled beneath the waves by an unnatural undertow. Revealing coal-black eyes and iron-like strength as he rescues her, Raef can no longer hide what he is . . . or what she can do. Eila, last of her kind, can supposedly channel the power of human souls, while Raef is more adept at stealing them.
 Even worse, the legend about her ancestor isn't such a myth, since Eila’s grandmother was one kick-butt warrior until her lightning-like power backfired. A power that is written all over Eila's DNA.

Determined to stay one step ahead of a dangerous clan that is hunting her, Raef, along with three unlikely allies, will do all they can to protect her. But as hidden pieces of their brutal histories unravel, Eila begins to understand just what went down in the harbor square. She soon realizes that following in her grandmother’s fearless footsteps may be the only way to save those she loves . . . including Raef.

PRAISE FOR UNDERTOW

“
Finally some fresh new worlds in the Young Adult Paranormal series! Wow, the author does a wonderful job of creating a whole new realm of Paranormal. It is fresh and a fabulous new read.”
– Vicci’s Crazy Book Addiction

“I could not put this one down! Even when I needed to put it down, I had to almost immediately pick it back up. It took mere hours for me to read this entire book and I am truly ticked that Eila's next story won't be published until July 2014. I don't want to wait for this story to continue! This is an addictive read.”
  - The Library Talker

“Finally a book has been written that will attract the teenager of today. UNDERTOW is not only well written, but it will also keep the teenage reader spellbound.  Harry Potter brought all ages of readers back to the joys of reading and KR Conway has written a book specifically for the teenager of 2013.  Her first novel is well written and will make it impossible for the reader to put the book down. A thriller that was written specifically for today's youth.”
– veteran author, Judith L. Reiss

“Love it! I love it! LOVE IT!!!! I couldn’t wait to get back to it.”
– Goodreads reviewer

“The story grabbed me and pulled me under right away (pun fully intended!). It is so much more than a teenage drama, which I had assumed it was in the beginning (without knowing anything about the story). Plenty of action, a little comedy, drama, and a love story. This book has it all.”
– Goodreads Reviewer

“Great book!! The writing was vivid and created great atmospheres and characters. The mystery about Eila, Raef, and the others was top-notch. This YA book is one of the few I've read that gives a brave, relatable heroine that I adore and would actually want to be friends with in real life.”
– YA author Grace Campbell

“I had so much fun reading Undertow. The book is fast paced and creative, not to mention well written. The story will appeal to all readers, not just fans of young adult fiction. Author K.R. Conway created a new world that is easy to get lost in.”
– Sara Mannal, Television Journalist 

Prologue

Barnstable Harbor, Massachusetts

October 14, 1851

Killing Jacob Rysse would not be an issue.

Dying in the process, however, was more difficult for Elizabeth to stomach.

She didn’t fear death, for sacrifice was both expected and inevitable in her race. She was a fighter after all and the carnage left behind by Rysse and her own family was nothing new.

But leaving behind those she loved was more painful than any form of torture she had known. Her infant son would never remember her, the Captain would mourn her, but Christian? Christian may very well never forgive her.

He would quickly figure out that she was not at the blacksmith’s as they had agreed to meet. She had left him, instead, a letter and her necklace among the sawdust tables of the shop. In it she had written out her instructions in the same sweeping lines that had conveyed so much between them during the rebellion.  What she asked of him was simple: protect the house, protect the necklace, and protect their secret. He would do it for her, just as she now was about to do for him and for the child.

Rysse was hunting her family and had succeeded at killing most of her kind. By taking him out, she was protecting them all. Christian would understand that hopefully. Eventually.

Her well-laid plan would draw Rysse in, and his perfection as a murderer should ensure her success.

He wanted her power.

He believed she would trade it for revenge.

He was about to die for his ignorance.

She hurried towards the harbor docks and though it was well past midnight, the moon opened the world before her. The harbor was glassy and black, strewn with fishing vessels and whaling ships whose masts seem to scrape along the stars. Soft wooden moans escaped the ships as they rolled lightly in the water and Elizabeth shifted her heavy skirt that scuffed the cobblestone street. 

As she reached the fountain at the center square, Rysse stepped out of the shadows. He was as she remembered him: tall, stunning
, and dangerously seductive. His dark eyes and ebony hair were useful to lure his victims, making him irresistible when it came to women. Unfortunately, few women ever lived long enough to realize their terrible error. On the rare occasion he left one alive, she would inevitably take her own life within a matter of hours.

He needed to die. Elizabeth would make sure he did.

“Mrs. Walker. I must say I was most pleased to receive your message, though meeting me alone . . .” Rysse shook his head in mock disapproval, “Overconfidence seems to run through your family’s bloodlines. I was sure you understood that such a trait is a distinct disability in my presence.”

Elizabeth watched as Rysse strolled towards her, his eyes skimming over her form-fitting corset and raven hair. His roving gaze disgusted her, but she didn’t flinch.  Rysse closed his eyes and breathed in her essence like the most exquisite bouquet. His close proximity lit Elizabeth’s nerves on fire, but she forced herself forward as Rysse became instantly alert, tracking her movements cautiously.

His lips curved into a flawless grin. “It is truly a shame at your family’s fixed desire to be eliminated. But you, I’m sure, may harbor your own delight in their demise,” he purred while watching her carefully, as any enemy would. Elizabeth forced a neutral expression as she buried her rage and Rysse took it as confirmation that she was, indeed, like him.

Elizabeth drew herself up straighter. “I do not recognize such a thing as family anymore. Surely you know this. Tonight is solely about you and me,” she lied, a hateful edge to her voice.

“They did not deserve to survive. How did it feel to be so treated by them?” he asked, attempting to ignite her fury. Elizabeth’s mind flashed to her childhood and of Christian in the woods so long ago. His face filled her thoughts and cut through her heart, but she pushed his protective eyes from her memory.

She took a slow, deep breath and looked fiercely at the soulless man. “Retribution will be mine,” she replied, quietly spooling her dangerous power. “Do we have an accord?”

“Oh yes,” he laughed, looking lustfully over the gentle, perfect curves of her body. “You are a most unique creature, Elizabeth. A beautiful, fatal flower, aren’t you?”

The question was pointless, as both her
kind and his knew she was different. She was a flaw of evolution – a dark mark among a perfect race -- and her kind saw her as a dangerous liability. Elizabeth knew, however, that Rysse and his clan saw her as the perfect weapon if she could be changed; if she could become like him.  That was what he wanted – a soul-thief like himself with limitless power. He wanted a Lunaterra like her, which he could corrupt and then command.

She had told him she would do it.

He was about to learn that she lied.

Suddenly Elizabeth caught sight of two more like Rysse, standing in the shadows near the building behind them. She recognized their young faces and was pained to see what they had become. No doubt they now worked for Rysse –  as killers, enslaved to his every whim. They were good men when they were human, but she held little hope they would survive what she was about to do.

“I do believe you are you afraid of me, Jacob,” taunted Elizabeth, breaking the silence and attempting to bait his inner demon.

Rysse, indignant at her apparent confidence, grabbed her roughly by the neck, causing her hair to cascade down his arm. She was face to face with him, separated by a thin veil of moonlight.

Behind them, the two witnesses straightened. No doubt intrigued by the exchange.  No doubt completely unaware of what was about to unfold.

Elizabeth refocused and looked confidently back at Rysse as the marks began to surface on his face. The intricate black designs swirled over his cheekbones and brow, forming the ancient symbols of the one who had created his kind. H
is eyes bled to black as he began his attempt to turn Elizabeth. She didn’t fight, didn’t resist, and Rysse took it as an honest desire to become immortal.

Elizabeth’s chest constricted as she felt Rysse begin to weave
a stolen life-force into her potent soul, the marks extending onto her own skin as well. Rysse believed the exchange – the forced infection – should change her, just as it would for a human.

The moonlight filled Elizabeth’s face as the telltale golden rings wrapped around the green of her eyes. It flared and pulsed like liquid stardust - a distinctive, genetic reaction to Rysse’s markings.

But as their lives mixed, Rysse realized that this woman was entirely different from the others. Somehow Elizabeth forced her essence to reverse and pour into Rysse as if a dam had broken.

His face contorted as a burning sensation began coursing through his body, evolving into an excruciating pain. It was a fire inside him that slowly spread and raged hotter and more relentless by the second.

He closed his eyes, pummeled by the pain, knowing that what was happening should be impossible. No Lunaterra could reverse the flow, and yet Elizabeth was running him through with her essence like a hot sword.  He tried to pull away, but he was locked to her by an invisible force as his muscles seized in pain. 

Furious and confused, he roared through his clenched jaw at the injustice of his prey becoming predator. He began squeezing her throat, all previous plans to recruit her abandoned.

His only goal now was to kill her. Quickly.

Elizabeth, her eyes now radiant like the sun, began to falter as her body called one last time to the power she commanded. White light began to glow from her skin and wound around her and Rysse like a serpent, engulfing them both. He began screaming, but it was too late.

The town square shook with thunder as the ivory snake quickly evolved into a column of fire and vaulted skyward. With one last ricocheting crack, the tower of light collapsed and a massive wave of energy churned away from them. The boats in the harbor rocked violently, nearly capsizing in the shockwave that raced across the water. The energy rushed through the two onlookers and they fell to the ground, their bodies arching in agony, as their genetic code was forcefully re-written.

A dusting of ash at the foot of the fountain marked where Rysse had been incinerated. Beside it lay Elizabeth, her dark hair fanned on the cobblestone street. Not a single scorch-mark flawed her lifeless body.

The sudden stillness of the night was soon broken by a man’s voice in the distance, calling desperately for her, pleading for a response.  He called to her, over and over, from the direction of the blacksmith’s, but his own painful echo was all that responded.

As his voice rang out in the night, the two from the shadows staggered to their feet, forever changed, and disappeared into the darkness of the surrounding town.