Gunnar Peters

On the brink of losing her position as a maid and with no prospects to go on, the offer of a place at Rooksgrave Manor - a house of ill and unusual repute - sounds like a perfect fit for a young woman with Esther’s inclinations. Even better, the invitation comes by the hand of the handsome Dr. Underwood, a delicate gentleman with a ferocious alter ego who knows exactly what he wants from Esther. Upon arrival, the men and the daily decadence of the manor feel too good to be true for a girl of Esther’s station.

It used to be easy to pass as human beat cop Essie Shaw. Lay low, don’t draw too much attention. Now I’m hiding in plain sight, working for the JP, praying my teammates won’t notice my non-human magical quirks and figure out I’m a nephilim. As the magic clawing within me threatens to reveal me, my complicated emotional bond with the team grows: Gideon, whose cold, professional distance cuts me; Jacob, whose mixed messages confuse me; Kol, whose friendship warms me; and Marcus, whose wolf could turn on me.

They’ll do anything to protect her...as long as they never learn her secret. I’m Officer Essie Shaw, and I shouldn’t exist. If anyone finds out their friendly neighborhood beat cop is a nephilim - public enemy number one - I’ll be imprisoned. Or worse, dissected. I survive by keeping my head down and my barely there magic under wraps. But when I lose a fight with a strange, smoke-like wraith, I’m confronted with my worst nightmare.

For 18 years I've suffered at the hands of the Hunters. They've done their best to break me, to tear me open and unleash the terrifying monster that lives within. Until the day they go too far. When a desperate escape leads to another brush with death, I'm forced to place my trust in the hands of four formidable strangers. Wild and untamed, their feral natures call to me, their warrior hearts make mine come alive. And when they offer me a place to stay while I heal, I can't say no. But the secrets I carry are deadly, and my past is a twisted, evil nightmare better left forgotten.