Many obstacles stand in the way of baronet’s son Warrick Synclaire being with his best friend, Thomas Smythe. Same-sex love is illegal in early 20th Century England, and Warrick is heading for Canada while Thomas is destined for the military college at Sandhurst. Warrick isn't sure he can bear the separation. However, the day before Warwick leaves, Thomas persuades him to see a fortune teller. The old gypsy woman’s warnings fail to scare Warwick, but another gypsy, Nicolae, by turns intrigues, arouses, and terrifies him. That night, Nicolae breaks into Warwick’s bedchamber, bedding then biting him. Warwick, unable to process the encounter, convinces himself it was just a bad dream and sails off to Canada to start a new life. In Canada, Warrick renews his acquaintance with Fox Sullivan, who he first met during the war. Soon the two become lovers, but for Warwick, the relationship is purely physical. Thomas still owns his heart. When he can stand their separation no longer, Warrick returns to his ancestral home in Kent, determined to reunite with Thomas, who now has a lover of his own. But the encounter with Nicolae years earlier changed Warwick considerably. Every full moon he turns into a ravenous creature, which seems able to rule Warwick’s life even during the daytime. Determined to win over Warrick, Fox sells his medical practice and sails to England. But is he too late to save the man he loves?

Destiny's End

The baby reached up to touch Roddy’s cheek. His breath hitched in his throat, and when he looked up at me, his eyes were bright with tears but his smile was radiant. Her action was most assuredly random, but I wasn’t about to tell him that. He tucked the blanket more firmly around her and began to sing softly, his favourite song from Gilbert and Sullivan’s ThePirates of Penzanceabout a poor wandering one.


His voice cracked when he reached the last line, and he tightened his arms around her. “We’re keeping her.” He spoke to the gypsy, but he was looking at me.


I closed my eye and nodded, remembering when the wise woman had foretold the arrival of the little girl who had entered our lives this night. I took them both in my arms.


“Can you read her future in her palm, Grandmother?” I asked when I finally had my emotions under control once more. “Will her father’s legacy be passed on to her?”


Chapter 111