Beatriz Fernandez Centenera

From birth to death, The War is all the citizens of Dystance know. As children it is drilled into their heads that war is the purpose behind all existence. Winter doesn't agree. She's stumbled across remnants of life the way it was before The War began and now she longs to be as free as her ancestors. With help from her best friend, Cedar, and the boy she is forbidden to love, Tallow, she believes she can do it. Winter can see a life beyond the Pickets, beyond the constant hunger and the threat of death, beyond the war machine.

Sparks fly when Chance meets tall, sexy Xav at a Wilmington bar and they have the hottest one-nighter of their lives. But Chance doesn't do repeats, Xav seems detached, and they go their separate ways without a word. Later, when closeted assistant district attorney C. Evan "Chance" Fairchild meets Dare's Landing's newest deputy sheriff, Xavier "Xav" Constantine, Evan isn't only wary. He's irritated as hell.

Kismet Andreas lives in fear of the shadows. For the young tattoo artist, the shadows hold more than darkness. He is certain of his insanity because the dark holds creatures and crawling things only he can see - monsters who hunt out the weak to eat their minds and souls, leaving behind only empty husks and despair. And if there's one thing Kismet fears more than being hunted - it's the madness left in its wake.