VBT: Searching

by Rachel Graves

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GENRE: Urban Fantasy 

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BLURB:

A dragon terrified of being discovered by the government, Ravenna Drake is constantly on the 

move. When the woman who raised her gets cancer, Ravenna trades her nomadic work 

restoring black market magical goods for a steady job. But her cautious life ends after her name 

is found at the scene of a werewolf murder.

Dr. Ian Chen, a sorcerer bonded to a powerful relic, works for the government treating 

supernatural citizens. He insists on investigating when his patient’s body is discovered 

completely drained of blood. His search leads him to the beautiful but frustrating Ravenna 

Drake, who refuses to stay away from the case or follow his instructions.

As more bloodless bodies surface, threats from secret societies and corrupt politicians force the 

dragon and the sorcerer to work together. If Ravenna and Ian can’t catch the killer, the people 

they love the most may be the next to die.

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EXCERPT

His foot reached out to blur the circle and the ghost changed. Agony forced every other emotion 

aside. He couldn’t breathe, a heavy weight settled on his chest. Panic set in as he wheezed, his 

heart racing the way hers had raced. Was he experiencing her last minutes or just panicking at 

the emotions? Could he trust himself? Darkness started to crowd the edges of his vision. Not 

enough air. Sweat broke out along his back. Somewhere, Cloak was saying something, but he 

couldn’t hear it over the pounding of blood in his ears. He was going to die here. The blackness 

got closer.“No.” The flood of emotions stopped immediately, as Drake stepped in front of him. “That’s not

how this works. You don’t get to scream at him.”

His head throbbed, stinging like acid dripping down his face, but he could breathe again. The

darkness receded. The first thing he saw was Drake moving into the center of the stain, acting

as if the blood wasn’t there.

“I’ll give you enough energy to manifest, but start screaming again and I will end you, even if we

haven’t heard a damn thing you’ve got to say. Understand?” She paused, then reached her

hand out. A shaft of sunlight came in through the window and her hand seemed to glow. Then

the end of it disappeared, replaced with a chest. The shape grew outward, a filmy light turning

into a woman. The process took less than a minute, and he heard the sheriff whisper to God.

“Dr. Chen, she can talk to you now.” Drake said it with a very deliberate emphasis on the word

talk. Whatever the ghost intended, it wasn’t going to stand up to her. A deep surge of gratitude

coursed through him.

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 AUTHOR :

Rachel Graves writes mysteries that blend the supernatural with steamy, sexy scenes. Her work

explores the many shades of gray found between the lines of right and wrong. Rachel's books

focus on strong heroines who take charge of their own fate, their friends, and their families.

Rachel is a member of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America and uses research skills

honed getting a graduate degree in psychology to seek out rare folklore and magical creatures.

Her writing incorporates popular monsters like vampires and werewolves as well as diverse

creatures like selkies and yuki onna. Rachel has lived in a cursed town, taken far too many

ghost tours, and counts down to every Halloween starting in November. You can read short

stories and learn more about her on her

 Website

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