EXCERPT 1

Excerpt from “The Vessels” (Book 1) — Chapter 27, The Rogue

(Eric is the serial killer spirit that returns and goes rogue for revenge. He is the primary villain throughout the series.)

Flesh and mist swirled together until they painfully regrouped into Matheus’s sick and weakened body. He collapsed on a filthy sidewalk just off a back alley, organs sliding back into place, heart struggling to beat. Horns honked and traffic flew past while Eric waited for Matheus’s scrambled brain to fire up his parasympathetic nerves and bring things back online. Transport was as easy as breathing in a Vessel, but in an average human, especially one this feeble and infirm, it was like trying to hurl a tornado.

The nearby dumpster dribbled foul juices. Homeless people and prostitutes walked the dirty streets of gang-tagged stores, and a pawnshop’s neon sign flashed advertisements for slot machines.

Downtown Reno.

Eric recognized it from trips he’d taken in human life. He’d transported them here from San Francisco, targeting that new Vessels Program the Spirit Guard had mentioned. They must be close. 

In India, where he’d entered this plane, the Program was based in an orphanage forty kilometers from the lake. Here, it must be that homeless shelter on the corner, the one with the soup kitchen entry on one side and the gated courtyard. All these Programs were alike—based in some kind of overlooked business that served others, near a lake owned by an indigenous tribe, and run by a bunch of do-gooders out to make the world a better place. The whole thing made him sick. Only the strongest, toughest, and most self-serving would survive, so why bother with anyone else?

Outside the shelter, a petite woman with wavy hair leaned against a SUV, a hybrid, of course, from the looks of it. She spoke to a thirty-something, blond man behind the wheel. The Rogue felt the tattoo around the man’s ankle, as well as his inner strength. This man was a Vessel, albeit newly marked, and he didn’t yet have the coin.

Perfect.

EXCERPT 2

Excerpt from “The Coin: Book 2” — Chapter 1, Tal

(Tal is the main character in this ensemble cast. She changes the most throughout the series and is the only one to reflect all aspects of The Vessels Program as human, Vessel, and spirit.)

A hatch spun open, and Captain Hugh Benham emerged, his wide shoulders cutting the white light from inside the ship. He was tall and barrel-chested, and he wore the same Royal British Navy uniform and sported the same youthful build he’d had in 1805 when he died battling Napoleon. His sapphire eyes glistened in the night, framed by a mane of black hair pulled back in a ponytail. This brave, distinguished, yet humble commander had become Elysium’s choice for Spirit Ship Captain, and he’d ferried souls back and forth across the divide ever since. He also initiated each new vessel with a ritualistic blessing that opened their tattoo portal.

The captain stepped onto the plank and walked across the churning water to meet Chief Black. They clasped arms in greeting, the captain’s wool uniform pressed against the chief’s beaded deerskin tunic, then walked to shore. Captain Hugh greeted Sam, Liam, and each of the vessels: Tal first, followed by Avani and Link. 

A current shot through Tal as their hands connected. It took her back to the first time they’d met and the initial soul-searing blessing he and Chief Black had bestowed.

“It’s time,” Captain Hugh told them.

Link exhaled. Avani nodded.

Tal swallowed again. Fall leaves shivered, and another owl screeched. 

The captain turned toward the lake and extended his arms palms up as three tiny, glowing balls of mist rose from the ship. Smoky pearls set loose from their giant shell.

Tal, Avani, and Link grabbed their left ankles. The tattoos on each burned as the orbs floated close. 

“You’d think we’d get used to this,” Avani said through gritted teeth. 

“Good thing it fades,” Link added.

“Not fast enough,” Tal mumbled. 

“Who wishes to go first?” Captain Hugh asked.

The three vessels rotated with each journey, and it was Avani’s turn to step up. But before she could move, one of the misty orbs pulsed brightly, lifting and lowering as if on invisible strings near Captain Hugh’s chest. His brow lifted slightly.

“This one asks to go first,” he said. “With Tal.”

Tal stiffened. Spirits chose their vessels and dictated the journeys, but seldom did they care who went first. Sam put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

Tal moved into position with Chief Black on her left side, Liam on her right, and the captain in front. The spirit floated behind her to complete the circle.

The three men spread their arms to touch hands, and Chief Black began to chant. Echoing his words, the Anaho once again danced to drums around the fire. Air billowed and twisted around the spirit as it expanded and grew into human-like form. Two eyes took shape on its face, and when its head lined up with Tal’s, their eyes merged into bright green beams until the spirit disappeared through Tal’s jacket and into her back.

Icy heat spread and shifted as it grew to fill the spaces between her organs and to wrap itself around her muscles and bones. The spirit bent her arms and legs and turned her head, test-driving control. It also acquiesced when she brought her limbs back into place. Her brown eyes sparkled with a dusting of green.

“Everything okay?” Sam asked, watching her for anything unusual.

Tal smiled and held up one thumb. Sam and the others relaxed.

Captain Hugh clapped a hand on her shoulder. “Godspeed.”

Wind stirred the dirt and leaves at her feet. A familiar bolt of light cut the air, and the lake disappeared.

When Tal swirled back into herself again, she was standing outside the rusted skeleton of the same Pittsburgh steel mill where her life had careened off the cliff five months earlier. A bust gone wrong had claimed her police partner and best friend, Jake, and she had been falsely accused of causing it. Chief Demmings had taken her gun and badge and forced her on leave until further investigation.

Detective Tucker Manning had made those allegations. Jake’s former partner and best friend had hated Tal from the moment she had arrived, and he used her insubordination, her push to rush in after seeing the unexpected gunmen, as a way to remove her from the force. But Tal had subsequently seen Tucker accepting money from the drug dealer who got away, the one who had arranged the gunmen to begin with. Tal didn’t know why or what Tucker was up to, but she was confident he would kill anyone who found out.