Thirst of Youth: Justin Brower wanted an escape from his mundane life in a small coastal Oregon town. Prior to his death, Justin’s grandfather inspired him to have as much fun as he could while he was young.

Thirst of Youth: Horror

BUY:AMAZON

BLURB: THIRST OF YOUTH

Justin Brower wanted an escape from his mundane life in a small coastal Oregon town. Prior to his death, Justin’s grandfather inspired him to have as much fun as he could while he was young. That’s why Justin moved to Southern California. After wrecking his truck during the long drive south, he is picked up by two strangers his age, on their way to Santa Monica. An unlikely encounter at an out of the way gas station opens his eyes to the secret existence of a creature that devours human flesh. Before summer’s end, the bloody secrets of the vamptilian will spill into Justin’s world—into his blood. He will become one of them. When he refuses to live reckless and hunt humans as prey, he must battle the monsters to keep himself and his friends alive.

EXCERPT: THIRST OF YOUTH

Elena stood in the doorway of the store and stared out. She took a deep breath, apologized one last time to the cashier, and stepped outside. She turned first to her left and then to her right. Elena was relieved to see the women were gone. Unless she took a shortcut through a long alley, about another half mile lay between the convenience store and her apartment. The alley trailed behind a group of apartments two blocks from the convenience store. Again, she felt the cold rush of fear cramping her joints as she attempted to speed up her pace. Elena refused to turn around. She knew her pursuers stalked closely. If she looked over her shoulder, Elena would have known the two women were within an arms reach. They moved with the wind, silent and with little effort. At any moment, the devious strangers could have snatched her. Their instincts made them patient for the exact second when Elena’s body was at its ripest. The point in time when her heart pumped erratically and her life’s energy was so full of horror that when they bit into her flesh her vital fluid would spill into their mouths as uninhibited as water from an overflowing dam. It was all part of the game to them, a strategic element of the hunter. They consumed the fear radiating from Elena’s body.

Once she reached the alley, it was a straight shot to her front door. Elena forced herself to believe she had reached a semi-safe point in her journey. If anything were too happen, she presumed her screams would echo amongst the walls, encouraging one of the tenants in the apartments above to call the police. Turning the corner into the alley, she glanced over her shoulder to determine the distance separating her and the two menacing women. The two anomalous strangers had disappeared into the darkness once again. Elena saw the small light from the front porch of her apartment. A quarter of the way into the alley, she began to hear a sound similar to whispers all around her. She marched through the darkness observing everything that hid in the shadows. Her eyes filled with terrifying illusions. Every box, garbage can, or heap of trash became a threat. There was no one there. She turned toward her apartment and gazed intently into the beacon of light. She sauntered steadily, nearly running.Elena’s ears filled with the unnerving ring of whispers.The whispering grew louder, sounding more and more like hissing, or the unmistakable rattle of someone shivering. She looked over her shoulder again. This time two shadows appeared behind her at the corner where she entered the alley. She heard their laughter as they moved closer and closer. A powerful gust blew by. Suddenly a blackened figure appeared next to Elena shoving her to the ground. As she rolled on the cool pavement kicking and screaming, the two women grabbed her legs, reeling her in like a hooked salmon. The women’s eyes were darker than the darkest night, resembling black shiny marble. They bore into Elena’s soul. Both hissed–exposing there jagged demonic fangs. When Elena felt the icy fire of pain arch through her body, she knew she was going to die. The monsters moaned as they cut into Elena’s limbs, ripping away the firm flesh. She closed her eyes as the demons sucked blood from her wounds. She tried to scream. Her muscles cramped from the lack of blood flow. She grew weaker and weaker. The two ferocious women continued to pull tissue away from her legs.

Cars drove by on the narrow street in front of Elena’s apartment. No one heard her screams. Suddenly the two beasts relinquished their bloodletting. Both ran off giggling playfully as a man approached. Elena’s tears blurred her vision. She silently thanked the mysterious man for arriving before the two demons had eaten her completely. She lay paralyzed. Droplets of blood escaped from her mutilated legs–pooling underneath shredded tears at the back of her arms. She whispered for the man to help her. Elena could not see him clearly. As he moved cunningly toward her, she realized his soothing eyes hypnotized her. Something about him made her feel relaxed even after all that had happen only seconds before. He kneeled close to her. Softly grabbing her hair, he yanked her head back exposing her neck. She could feel the warmth of his sharp fangs as they pierced her skin.Elena struggled to breathe as the man sucked harder and harder. Slipping in and out of consciousness, she tried to reach up to pull the man away from her neck. His thirst drained the little strength Elena had left. She heard him purring as her eyes closed. When she opened them again, the man had disappeared. In the humid heat of the summer night, the chill of death coursed through Elena’s young body. She took two slow gasping breaths and then she breathed no more. Elena lay lifeless–eyes wide open, fixated on the small light on the front porch of her apartment.

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