Luke Irontree & the Last Vampire War (Books 8-10), page 1
Luke Irontree & The Last Vampire War (Books 8-10)
A Luke Irontree Box Set
C. Thomas Lafollette
LUKE IRONTREE & THE LAST VAMPIRE WAR
(BOOKS 8-10)
C. Thomas Lafollette
* * *
A Broken World Publication
13820 NE Airport Way
Suite #K395495
Portland, OR 97251-1158
Luke Irontree & The Last Vampire War
Books 8-10
Copyright © 2024 by C. Thomas Lafollette
ISBN 978-1-960766-16-8 (ebook)
* * *
Cover Design: Ravven
Developmental Editing by: Suzanne Lahna
Copy/Line Editing & Proofreading: Amy Cissell
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the author at editors@brokenworldpublishing.com.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Contents
Get a Free Copy of The Centurion Immortal
Ancient Sword Falling
Pronunciation Guide & Author’s Notes
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Ancient Sword Unyielding
Pronunciation Guide & Author’s Notes
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Ancient Sword Shattering
Pronunciation Guide & Author’s Notes
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
The Red City Reaper Rides For The First Time In…
About the Author
Also by C. Thomas Lafollette
Your Free Book Is Waiting
The Centurion Immortal returns to the land of his birth, but he never suspected he’d be drawn into a supernatural turf war.
A vacation in Belgium is the perfect way for an incognito immortal to get in touch with his roots. Former Roman Legionnaire and vampire slayer Luke Irontree is pulled into a supernatural feud when he’s offered a job he can’t refuse—rescue an innocent woman and child from his ancient enemies. When he goes undercover at an EDM festival, he has everything under control. But when his prey find out he’s more than a simple tourist, things take a turn for the deadly.
Suddenly up to his neck in vampires, Luke must play a lethal game of cat and mouse in which his survival is the prize. Can he escape the trap set for him while rescuing the people caught in the middle? Or will the blood of his immortal life trickle down a rusty grate in a basement in Liege?
Get a free copy of a Luke Irontree Prequel
The Centurion Immortal here:
www.cthomaslafollette.com
ANCIENT SWORD FALLING
C. Thomas Lafollette
* * *
A Broken World Publication
13820 NE Airport Way
Suite #K395495
Portland, OR 97251-1158
Ancient Sword Falling
Copyright © 2023 by C. Thomas Lafollette
ISBN 978-1-949410-85-3 (ebook);
ISBN 978-1-949410-86-0 (paperback)
* * *
Cover Design: Ravven
Developmental Editing by: Suzanne Lahna
Copy/Line Editing: Alin Silverwood
Proofreading: Amy Cissell
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the author at editors@brokenworldpublishing.com.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
To Luke
You’re a figment of my imagination, splatterings of ink on dead trees, and a collection of bytes in the electronic ether, but we’ve come a long way on this journey!
Pronunciation Guide & Author’s Notes
Pronunciation: Latin names and words are mentioned throughout the book and are intended to be read with the classical Latin pronunciation. For instance, “c” is always pronounced hard, like a “k.” “U” is always a short “oo” sound. “V” typically sounds like a “w.” If you wish to go deeper, here's a link from Loyola University of Chicago.
Lucius – Loo-kih-oos
Silvanius – Sihl-wahn-ih-oos
Ferrata – Fehr-rah-tah
Jung-sook — Yoong-sook
Jan - Yeahn
Roxiustanta - Roks-see-oo-stahn-nah
Surena - Ser-rehn-nah
Selene - Sehl-lee-nee
Le Mousquetaire - Ley Moos-keh-tare
Latin Words: Latin words are used for effect and to add to the “flavor” of the story, not to reflect Latin grammar, declensions, or conjugations.
Contents: This book contains some gore and body horror. There is also gun, sword violence, and death.
Chapter
One
Luke’s heart raced as the private jet took off from the small Parisian airport. The last time he’d attempted to board a private jet offered by a European packleader, he’d been tranquilized and kidnapped as he watched his friends fly away, helpless to aid him.
Gripping the armrests, he thought he might rip them from the seat. Roxi did her best to soothe him as his foot tapped nervously on the airplane’s floor. He appreciated Roxi’s efforts. Though the only thing that worked was gravity pushing him back in his seat as the plane’s wheels left the ground. The jet climbing, he took his first deep breath. And once the relief settled in, he felt hollowed out.
He did his best to push the tension away once they leveled out and were safely away from the airport, though he never could break entirely free from it. Next to him, Roxi slept, alternating between resting against the inner wall of the private jet and snuggling up on his shoulder. When she leaned on him, he turned his head and kissed the top of hers, her wild hair tickling his nose. She hadn’t had a professional haircut in a long time, according to her, but even when freshly styled, it still liked to fly away. The other bonus of her proximity was her scent. It tantalized and calmed him all at once.
If the choice had been Roxi or vengeance, he’d have forsaken his own revenge for her life. Fortunately, he didn’t have to do either. Mathis had been taken down then cast out to try to survive; no doubt there were multiple bounties on his head from all those he’d betrayed in his hunt for power and wealth. Without his money and connections, he was useless to his vampire overlords. In fact, he was a loose end for them to tie up. Permanently.
Heinrich Netzke, Cologne’s former alpha, had been turned over to his pack for trial and justice. Luke didn’t bother asking what that meant in the scheme of things. It wasn’t his business. Heidi, the new packleader, could manage her own affairs.
His only regret was that he hadn’t been able to bring justice to Jan, the man who’d murdered his own father to gain control of the wealthy Flanders Pack, their control of Belgium and the south of the Netherlands, and the mighty ports in Antwerp and Rotterdam. Luke had helped orchestrate his fall, removing his wealth and leadership of the Pack, but he’d slipped through their fingers and escaped the justice everyone wanted to bring to the patricidal fuckhead.
Luke felt for Pieter, who’d have to wait a bit longer before he could avenge his murdered father. Sometimes Pieter was hard to read. Mostly, he looked weary. Luke would have to get some private time with his Belgian friend for a heart-to-heart when they were both settled after their travels.
With a stop in New York City to refuel, they still had a long day before they landed back home in Portland. Luke couldn’t wait to see his girlfriend Maggie—she’d been one of the first to depart after their conference in Paris—and his adopted child Gwen and bestow some well-earned scritches on his cat Alfred.
His life before becoming involved with the North Portland Pack had been a lonely and tedious life with only his cat Alfred to keep him company. At first, he’d feared involving Pablo and Delilah in vampire hunting, but if he’d not given in, he’d probably have been dead multiple times over by now. He’d been reluctant at first, but they’d become so much more than allies of convenience.
He turned in his seat and smiled at Pablo and Delilah. Pablo grinned and winked at him. Delilah nodded, the corners of her lips quirking up. They were family. And knowing them had helped him grow his family further.
He would never have met Maggie. And even though the circumstances of their meeting were dark, he’d never have met Roxi. She’d have died alone in that prison under the arena or in one of their arenas fighting to entertain the soulless bloodsucking monsters.
So many lives intersecting with his would have been irrevocably altered had he not taken the chance and made two new friends. Now, he loved and was loved. He had a girlfriend and, though they hadn’t discussed official terms, another budding relationship. He had friends, and he had a young teen he needed to guide to adulthood. He also had a weird dog whose presence locked in one of the high security cells of the arena was still a mystery.
When they hit a patch of rough air, Roxi startled awake, her eyes wide. Her unfocused gaze flicked about as she clung tightly to Luke’s hand. When her breathing calmed, she looked a bit sheepish.
“Sorry. I didn’t know where I was. I sometimes wake up and think I’m still in that cell under the arena,” she mumbled just loud enough for him to hear it.
“That’s OK, Roxi. I still struggle with the memory of the arena, too. I haven’t had enough time to really unpack it with my therapist, not with the full half year we’ve had since getting out. It’s a lot.” Resting his hand on her cheek, he turned her head and kissed her.
“I’m glad I can wake up next to you, even if it’s on this rinky-dink plane. It feels more secure to be near you. For so long, you were the only bright light. Now I have more to look forward to than seeing your face through a hole in the stone.”
Luke chuckled. “Yeah. It’s a bit of an adjustment not being in that cell, but the last few weeks with you have been wonderful. It’s weird to say, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
“Yeah. It’s the one good thing I can say about the arena—it brought me you.” Roxi kissed his cheek.
“It might be more than just one positive. In all the years I’ve been doing this, I’ve never had a target to aim for. I’ve killed powerful elite vampires by the legion, but I’ve never had a true target to aim my gladius at. We’ve brought down some powerful associates of the vampires and spoked the wheel of their plans in Western Europe. We’ve got a whole bunch of financial intelligence we’ll need to sort through, but I think we have a real chance of doing something meaningful and potentially permanently disabling to the vampires.” Luke could feel his excitement building at the thought of maybe being able to end it all.
Roxi looked scared and hopeful all at once. “Do…do you really think that’s possible? To, you know, end it? For real?”
“I hope so, and for once, that hope might actually have some evidence to back and bolster it.” He squeezed Roxi’s hand.
“I truly hope you’re right, Luke. There is nothing more I long for, well, other than being in your arms, but ending vampires would be a close second.”
Luke chuckled at the sweet grin on her face. “Roxi, I love you.”
She patted Luke on the cheek. “I know. Now let me out. I need to visit the loo.”
He moved out and let her into the narrow walkway, then sat back down. He didn’t want to let himself fantasize about a world without vampires, so he forced his brain to lean into the other fantasies he had—home and friends and loved ones. He was still amazed at how domestic his desires had become. Spending time with Gwen talking music or teaching her to fight. Goofing with his friends down at the pub as they shared beers. Kissing a beautiful woman he adored. Sleeping late and being woken by an insistent cat. These had become the goalposts for a good life for him, the things he truly wanted.
Sam squeezed his shoulder, interrupting his wool gathering. “Scoot.”
He slid over into Roxi’s seat, letting Sam take his spot. “What can I do for you, Sam?”
“Nothing specific. Just wanted to check in with you to see how you’re doing. You seemed pretty tense this morning.”
“Yeah. I was having some real trouble keeping calm until we got off the ground. I almost had a panic attack. About the only thing that staved it off was Roxi’s presence. I was terrified something bad would happen.”
