Thea Harrison - Serpents Kiss: Elder Races:

Dragon Bound

Black Dagger Brotherhood readers will love [this book]! Dragon Bound has it all: a smart heroine, a sexy alpha hero and a dark, compelling world. Im hooked!

J. R. Ward, #1 New York Times bestselling author

I absolutely loved Dragon Bound! Once I started reading, I was mesmerized to the very last page. Thea Harrison is a master storyteller, and she transported me to a fascinating world I want to visit again and again. Its a fabulous, exciting read that paranormal romance readers will love.

Christine Feehan, #1 New York Times bestselling author

I loved this book so much I didnt want it to end. Smoldering sensuality, fascinating characters and an intriguing worldDragon Bound kept me glued to the pages. Thea Harrison has a new fan in me!

Nalini Singh, New York Times bestselling author

Thea Harrison has created a truly original urban fantasy romance... When the shapeshifting dragon locks horns with his very special heroine, sparks fly that any reader will enjoy. Buy yourself an extra-large cappuccino, sit back and enjoy the decadent fun!

Angela Knight, New York Times bestselling author

Thea Harrison is definitely an author to watch. Sexy and action packed, Dragon Bound features a strong, likable heroine, a white-hot luscious hero and an original and intriguing world that swallowed me whole. This novel held me transfixed from beginning to end! Ill definitely be keeping my eyes open for the next book in this series.

Anya Bast, New York Times bestselling author

Full of tense action, toe-curling love scenes and intriguing characters that will stay with you long after the story is over. All that is wrapped inside a colorful, compelling world with magic so real, the reader can feel it. Thea Harrison is a fantastic new talent who will soon be taking the world of paranormal romance by storm.

Shannon K. Butcher, national bestselling author

Fun, feral and fiercely excitingI cant get enough! Thea Harrison supplies deliciously addictive paranormal romance, and Im already jonesing for the next hit.

Ann Aguirre, national bestselling author

DRAGON BOUND

STORMS HEART

SERPENTS KISS

Published by Hachette Digital

ISBN: 978-0-748-13251-5

All characters and events in this publication, other than those clearly in the public domain, are fictitious and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Copyright 2011 by Thea Harrison

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of the publisher.

Hachette Digital

Little, Brown Book Group

100 Victoria Embankment

London, EC4Y 0DY

www.hachette.co.uk

Once again, I have a lot of people to thank:

To Luann Reed-Siegel, who has done an amazing job on copy-editing.

To publicist Erin Galloway at Penguin, who has been friendly, patient, informative, prompt, dedicated, and enthusiastic.

To Janet and Don, who offered.

To my beta readers Shawn, Kristin, Anne, and Fran for their prompt, intelligent feedback. You guys are awesome!

To Lorene and Carol, as always.

To Matt, for his continuing goodhearted, generous work on the website.

To my editor, Cindy Hwang, and my agent, Amy Boggs. Thank you again, for everything you do.

And last but most important, to you, the readers. Without you, none of this would be happening. Im eternally grateful.

Politics, n. A strife of interests masquerading as a contest of principles.

The conduct of public affairs for private advantage.

For the Elder Races, this generally involves bloodshed of some sort and a spate of funerals.

AMBROSE BIERCE ON REVISING THE DEVILS DICTIONARY

I am a bad woman, of course, said Carling Severan, the Vampyre sorceress, in an absent tone of voice. It is a fact that I made peace with many centuries ago. I calibrate everything I do, even the most generous-seeming gesture, in terms of how it may serve me.

Carling sat in her favorite armchair by a spacious window. The chairs butter-soft leather had long ago molded to the contours of her body. Outside the window lay a lush, well-tended garden that was ornamented with the subtle hues of the moonlit night. Her gaze was trained on the scene, but, like her face, the expression in her long almond-shaped eyes was blank.

Why would you say such a thing? Rhoswen asked. There were tears in the younger Vampyres voice as she knelt beside the armchair, her blonde head turned up to Carling like a flowers to a midnight sun. Youre the most wonderful person in the world.

That is very sweet of you. Carling kissed Rhoswens forehead, since the other woman seemed to need it. Although the distance in Carlings gaze lessened, it did not entirely disappear. But those are rather disturbing words. If you believe that of someone such as I, you must acquire more discernment.

Her servants tears spilled over and streaked down a cameo-perfect face. Rhoswen threw her arms around Carling with a sob.

Carlings sleek eyebrows rose. What is this? she asked, her tone weary. What have I said to upset you?

Rhoswen shook her head and clung tighter.

Rhoswen was one of Carlings two youngest progeny. Carling had stopped creating Vampyres long ago, except for a few extraordinarily talented exceptions she had discovered in the latter part of the nineteenth century. Rhoswen had been part of a shabby Shakespearean theatre company, with a voice of pure gold and a fatal case of pulmonary tuberculosis. Carling had turned Rhoswen when she had been a frightened, dying eighteen-year-old. She allowed the younger woman greater liberties than she did her other servants. She endured Rhoswens strangling hold as she thought.

She said, We were talking about the events that led up to the Dark Fae Queens coronation. You persist in believing that I did a good thing when I healed Niniane and her lover Tiago when they were injured. While the results might have been beneficial, I was merely pointing out what a selfish creature at heart I really am.

Two days ago, Rhoswen said into her lap. We had that conversation two days ago, and then you faded again.

Did I? She straightened her back, bracing herself against the news. Well, we knew the deterioration was accelerating.

No one fully understood why very old Vampyres went through a period of increasing mental deterioration before they disinte-grated into outright madness, then death. Since it was rare for Vampyres to achieve such an extreme old age, the phenomenon was little known outside the upper echelon of the Nightkind community. Vampyres lived violent lives, and they tended to die from other causes first.

Perhaps it was the inevitable progression of the disease itself. Perhaps, Carling thought, in the end our beginning contains the seeds of our eventual downfall. The souls that began as human were never meant to live the near-immortal life that the Vampyrism gave them.

Rhoswens tear-streaked face lifted. But you got better for a while! In Chicago, and later at the Dark Fae coronation, you were fully alert and functioning. You were present for every moment. We just have to keep you stimulated with new things.

Carling regarded her with a wry expression. Extraordinary experiences did seem to help, as they jolted one into alertness for a time. The problem was they only helped temporarily. To someone who has witnessed the passage of millennia, after a while even the extraordinary experiences became ordinary.