Ivona Knight, Vampyress
by Shannon Leigh

Bound by a promise to rid the earth of her enemy's kin, and cursed to harbor the beast that drove the horrid Prince of Walachia to perform unspeakable acts of cruelty upon her loved ones, Ivona Knight has spent the last five hundred years fulfilling her pledge to obliterate the Dracula line—but she has done so with a price. She dares not develop friendships or fall in love, her engagements are nothing more than a temporary indulgence; for who-so-ever lingers by her side eventually falls to the lure of The Evil residing within her tainted soul.

Trapped inside a remote tavern by the hammering storm, which has cut off the electricity and continues to blast the walls outside with torrential waves of rain, wind, and hair-raising thunder, Ivona, along with a dozen or so other patrons, pass the time by telling stories. Although she has no interest in the coveted prize, Ivona hopes to gain insight on her latest prey. But as she conveys her tale, she senses a familiar presence emanating from one of the others, one that stirs emotions deep within her which only one other has ever evoked. Has Ivona found her next target? Or has she become the hunted?

Shannon Leigh's Bio

Shannon Leigh is a practicing registered nurse who graduated with a B.S.N. R.N. from the Indiana University School of nursing in May of 1996. She lives in Indiana with her husband, four sons, and two cats. When she's not chasing after her four rambunctious boys, she enjoys tole painting, drawing, reading, writing, and watching vampire flicks. Ranked number four in the nation for its B.S.N. R.N. program, Ms. Leigh graduated from Indiana University in 1996 with distinction, the top 10% of her class. Since graduation, she's concentrated on acquiring a broad range of nursing experience including Obstetrics, Pediatrics, Women's Care, Medical Surgical, and Occupational Health. She currently works as an Occupational Health Nurse Specialist at the U.S. Census Bureau in Indiana. Prior to college, Ms. Leigh attended Jeffersonville High School. During her senior year, she enrolled in college level English, which required in-depth writing projects and study of proper grammar usage. Although she never pursued publishing, she wrote several short stories that were read by her friends and classmates. Ms. Leigh has always enjoyed the paranormal genre and so has focused her writing endeavors there. In february 2002, her dream of being published became a reality when her first full-length novel, Immortal Desires, was released from DLSIJ Press. Her second full-length novel, More Than Prophecy, has just been released from Amber Quill Press. Ms. Leigh has begun work on its sequel, When Destiny Calls, and hopes to have it ready for editing soon.