Briar City Alphas: Books 1-3 by Dane Thea

Author:Dane, Thea
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Thea Dane
Published: 2021-08-05T00:00:00+00:00

VIOLETTA AWAKENED AT night. The room had cooled down by ten degrees. She put on jeans and a sweatshirt before retracing her steps to go downstairs into the great hall.

A member of Salome’s staff directed her to the dining hall. There, Salome and Brenda sat waiting for her at a large table that looked like it could seat twelve people. The breakfast spread also appeared as though it could feed the same number of individuals.

Salome welcomed her. “I thought you might like to eat a little breakfast before I show you around other parts of the castle.”

“This isn’t little. This is a feast.” She sat down. A staff member promptly came forward and lifted the lid of her platter to reveal eggs, savory sausage, and creamy potatoes. “Are more people coming?”

“No. Just you, me, and Brenda for now.”

Brenda pushed a plate of pastries toward her. “Violetta, you must try my scones. They’re very popular with the humans in the village.”

Violetta bit into the fresh, warm scone. “This is delicious.”

Salome’s friend beamed with pride. “I used fresh strawberries from my garden. I know the recipe is somewhat untraditional for scones.”

“Nonsense.” Salome sipped tea. “Violetta ought to know we don’t do a lot of tradition around here. Your scones are delightful.”

Brenda’s vampiric energy gained another aura level as she took in the compliments. “Violetta, will you be joining us for the Midnight Wine and Lights Festival on Sunday night?”

Violetta finished chewing. “What’s that?”

“Every year in the village, vampires and their human allies gather to celebrate the beginning of summer,” Salome explained while adding sugar cubes to her tea. “It used to be a secret festival during the Dark Ages.”

“The days when most vampires and humans were enemies.” Brenda filled in more details. “But Ronan Village has always been a place of respite for our kind. The Desmond clan protected the village during times of siege.”

“Sounds like a rich history.” Violetta took another bite of the scone.

“It is. Eat up, child.” Salome motioned with her hands. “I want to show you a special part of the castle.”

After Violetta gorged herself on all manner of sweet carbs and savory protein, she let the two vampire matrons take her around the castle. They showed her room after room filled with Salome’s remodeling projects and collections of art she picked up during her travels abroad. The final stop was a small room that was about the size of a typical den in a modern house.

“This used to be Lee’s playroom as a child. When he was a teenager, he used it for craftwork.” Salome went into the room and stood next to a table with a lofty wooden model display of a castle and surrounding village. “He made this model when he was thirteen.”

Violetta got closer to the table and inspected the intricately carved buildings and people. The castle was a miniature scale of the real thing, from the spires to the drawbridge. Its village even had houses with interlocking fences and garden plots. “How long did it take Lee to create this?”

Salome struggled to remember.

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