Bat Out of Hell
Bat Out of Hell
Part of the Immortal Ops World
Mandy M. Roth
Bat Out of Hell (Crimson Ops) © Copyright Nov 2021, Mandy M. Roth
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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All books copyrighted to the author and may not be resold or given away without written permission from the author, Mandy M. Roth®.
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Mandy M. Roth®, Immortal Ops®, PSI-Ops®, Immortal Outcasts®, Paranormal Security and Intelligence®, and Paranormal Security and Intelligence Ops Shadow Agents® are registered trademarks of Raven Happy Hour, LLC
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This novel is a work of fiction. Any and all characters, events, and places are of the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or events or places is merely coincidence. The book is fictional and not a how-to. As always, in real life practice good judgment in all situations. Novel intended for adults only. Must be 18 years or older to read.
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Published by Raven Happy Hour, LLC
Oxford, MS 38655
www.ravenhappyhour.com
Raven Books and all affiliate sites and projects are © Copyrighted 2004—2021
Contents
Suggested Reading Order of Books Released to Date in the Immortal Ops Series World
Blurb
Author’s Note
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Sources
Immortal Ops® Series Helper
About the Author
Suggested Reading Order of Books Released to Date in the Immortal Ops Series World
While books in the Immortal Ops Series World can be read in any order, the author suggests reading them in the following order:
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Immortal Ops (Immortal Ops)
Critical Intelligence (Immortal Ops)
Radar Deception (Immortal Ops)
Strategic Vulnerability (Immortal Ops)
Tactical Magik (Immortal Ops)
Act of Mercy (PSI-Ops)
Administrative Control (Immortal Ops)
Act of Surrender (PSI-Ops)
Broken Communication (Immortal Outcasts)
Separation Zone (Immortal Ops)
Act of Submission (PSI-Ops)
Damage Report (Immortal Outcasts)
Act of Command (PSI-Ops)
Wolf’s Surrender (Shadow Agents)
The Dragon Shifter’s Duty (Shadow Agents)
Midnight Echoes (Crimson Ops)
Isolated Maneuver (Immortal Outcasts)
Expecting Darkness (Crimson Ops)
Area of Influence (Immortal Ops)
Act of Passion (PSI-Ops)
Act of Brotherhood (PSI-Ops)
Healing the Wolf (Shadow Agents)
Wrecked Intel (Immortal Outcasts)
Bound by Midnight (Crimson Ops)
Out of the Dark (Shadow Agents)
Act of Surveillance (PSI-Ops)
Bat Out of Hell (Crimson Ops)
Act of Freedom (PSI-Ops)
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This list is NOT up to date. Please check MandyRoth.com for the most current release list.
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Mandy is always releasing new books within the series world. Sign up for her newsletter at MandyRoth.com to never miss a new release.
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You can read each individual series within the world, in whatever order you want…
PSI-Ops: Paranormal Security and Intelligence
Act of Mercy
Act of Surrender
Act of Submission
Act of Command
Act of Passion
Act of Brotherhood
Act of Surveillance
Act of Freedom
And more…
Immortal Ops:
Immortal Ops
Critical Intelligence
Radar Deception
Strategic Vulnerability
Tactical Magik
Administrative Control
Separation Zone
Area of Influence
And more…
Immortal Outcasts:
Broken Communication
Damage Report
Isolated Maneuver
Wrecked Intel
And more…
Paranormal Security and Intelligence Ops: Shadow Agents
Wolf’s Surrender
The Dragon Shifter’s Duty
Healing the Wolf
Out of the Dark
And more…
Paranormal Security and Intelligence Ops: Crimson Ops Series
Midnight Echoes
Expecting Darkness
Bound by Midnight
Bat Out of Hell
And more…
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Paranormal Regulators Series and Clear Sight Division Operatives (Part of the Immortal Ops World) Coming Soon!
Blurb
Bat Out of Hell (Crimson Ops)
Mandy M. Roth
Special Operative Blaise Regnier feels the darkness he carries within creeping up on him. With centuries under his skull-studded belt, this immortal vampire has seen a thing or two in his day. Not to mention he’s become something of an expert at hiding his worries and emotions behind dark wit and black leather pants. It's just a matter of time before his inner demon holds all the cards, and then he'll be the next threat his teammates need to hunt to protect mankind. As it turns out, someone has that task well in hand, and she's not playing games. Too bad an old enemy has resurfaced, wanting to end their sizzling romance before it can even get started.
Author’s Note
For maximum enjoyment, be sure to read Act of Surveillance (PSI-Ops), Rurik and Liberty’s story, prior to reading this title.
Dedication
To my late-night crew, Charise M. Studesville, Jayson Smiley, Stan Bravo, Stephanie Berchiolly, Aaron Cabrera, and Thomas Hamilton. Thanks for keeping vampire hours with me while I wrote this book. To Shane, Jennifer, Heather, and Kelli, thank you for helping to get me to the finish line, and for making the book stronger along the way.
Chapter One
Ten years prior…
Isobel Gilbert sat on her bed, looking around the extra-large girls’ sleeping quarters of the group home. She wasn’t sure why the facility wasn’t packed to capacity, like so many of the other group homes she’d been placed in over the course of the last ten years that she’d spent bouncing around the foster care system.
It was by far the best of the homes. Yes, it had its flaws, but she didn’t fear closing her eyes at night. And she didn’t have to push chairs against door handles, hoping to wedge them closed so she could sleep without worrying about who might enter.
This one had wallpaper with small pink roses that ran in long stripes. It wasn’t even close to her taste, but it was far better than a number of the foster homes she’d been in, which had peeling paper, water stains, and mice and bugs in the walls.
She could more than live with pink compared to that.
The beds were twin size with dark wood head and footboards. The bedding was stark white. The beds lined both sides of the long, rectangular room. Between each was a matching wooden bed
side table with three drawers. Isobel’s table held all she had to her name in the world.
It wasn’t much.
Enough to fit in a trash bag between each home.
She’d learned early in her life to avoid becoming attached to anything. That being said, there were two items she’d taken a liking to over the course of her months at the group home for teens. Two things that meant the world to her.
One was a small painting a friend did in art class. It sat propped on the bedside table, near a glass of water, against a tiny reading lamp. The other item that meant something to her was on her wrist. It was the only thing of value she had, even though the actual value was probably laughable.
The day of her birthday—or rather, the day that had been assigned as her birthday, since the actual date was something of a mystery—she’d woken to find a silver charm bracelet on her bedside table. A small red bow had adorned it. No note had been attached.
The charms were each vampire-themed in nature, meaning whoever had left it knew her well. She’d had an odd fascination with anything and everything vampire all her life. It was one of her many quirks.
She brought her arm to her chest, touching the charms, one by one. Her fingers skimmed the cross charm as the door to the room opened.
Dr. Chapman stood there, gripping the handle, his dark gaze sweeping over the room. If he’d knocked, Isobel had missed it. She’d been forced to speak with countless counselors and therapists over the years, mostly because her attitude was considered less than stellar. Most of them annoyed her with their nonstop attempts to get her to open up about her feelings. Isobel wasn’t even big on sharing her feelings with her best friends, let alone with some random adult.
Dr. Chapman was different. He was the on-staff therapist and also taught health class. He didn’t push for her to share. He just let her discuss whatever she felt like talking about.
Isobel had never before been in a children’s home that also provided an in-house education. Another perk, in her opinion of the place. She hated attending public schools. She was always an outsider.
Always the new girl.
The freak.
Dr. Chapman looked in at them all, his focus coming to her, as he remained in the doorway. He zeroed in on the charm bracelet she was fondling and swallowed hard. “Ladies, it’s past lights-out time.”
“Sorry,” said Daisy Charny from her bed, two down from Isobel’s. “We’re done.”
Nodding, he began to retreat, only to pause and glance back at Isobel. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but he didn’t. Instead, he pulled the door closed behind him as he left.
Liberty Mansfield laughed. Her bed was next to Isobel’s. “Glad we were all dressed. That would have been awkward.”
“He gives me the willies,” said Daisy.
“Everyone gives you the willies,” said Liberty.
Daisy laughed. “Fact.”
Isobel continued to hold her charm bracelet to her chest, unsure how she felt about the man. He’d been nice to her since her arrival. She met with him once a week for a private therapy session. Most of the time she discussed mythology or folklore, or something of the like. The topic was never anything important. That worked for her.
“Gotta pee!” Daisy darted past the end of Isobel’s bed as she ran toward the bathroom. Her blonde hair bounced as she did. She was in white pajamas and was barefoot.
The bathroom was at the far end of the room. It contained a number of shower and toilet stalls. Again, it was much nicer than those of any of the other places Isobel had been. The whole place looked to be a remodeled school of some sort.
She didn’t ask.
She’d been calling the facility home for months now and hated to admit that it actually felt like a real home. The most real she’d known to date. Being attached to it, and those within it, scared her.
Two of the residents, Daisy and Liberty, felt more like sisters than merely friends. Finding them had felt as if she was reconnecting with family. Their time there, at that home, was some of the first good memories Isobel had. Finally, she was around others like her—teens who were more than met the eye and who could do extraordinary things.
Things they’d worked so hard to keep hidden from others for fear of what would happen. They hadn’t shouted it from the rooftops when they realized others were like them. They’d quietly formed a sisterhood. Friendships so tight, so real, and so true that nothing could or would ever come between them.
Isobel had thought she’d died and gone to misfit kid heaven. So did Liberty. They’d basically been on cloud nine for months. Daisy wasn’t totally onboard with the home, often mentioning how off the place felt to her.
Sure, the home wasn’t perfect, but nowhere was.
It seemed safe enough to Isobel, especially with what she was hiding from the rest of the world. Her dark secret was being able to start fires with her mind. Liberty could move things with hers. And Daisy’s intuition was the sort of thing that was featured in comic books. It was off the charts. Often Daisy’s dreams came true as well, which was kind of freaky, but not as much as being able to light something on fire with a thought.
What Isobel and Liberty could do was downright deadly. Daisy’s ability was just unnerving.
For the first time in her life, Isobel finally felt like she wasn’t a monster. And she could finally show another what she could do without fear of repercussion, she could confess the nightmares she’d had for as long as she could recall.
Dreams filled with what looked like scenes from a science-fiction movie. One where scientists had gone mad and were keeping small children in cages and locked rooms, experimenting on them, forcing them to be more than they were born to be.
To be something other than human.
Liberty and Daisy had shared their dreams as well. Ones they too had been having for as far back as they could remember. There were far too many similarities to be overlooked or dismissed. It became very clear, very fast, that they’d been held at the same location.
Isobel even had memories that were identical to Daisy’s. Ones that had them huddled together, hugging one another, worried for a friend who was missing as huge men dressed like soldiers took them to safety, to freedom.
Daisy exited the bathroom, smiling as she did. “Remind me to drink less water at dinner tomorrow.”
Isobel grinned, still holding her arm to her chest, still touching the charms.
Daisy paused on her way back to her bed. She stared at Isobel. “You good?”
“I am, worrywart,” replied Isobel.
Daisy nodded and raced to her bed, jumping on it, and then climbing under the covers fast.
Isobel took that moment to do the world’s longest, most impressive burp. At least she was pretty sure it set a record. Maybe not. But still, it was impressive.
A pillow came from the right, hitting Isobel in the side of the head, making her laugh. She lifted it and threw it back at its owner, a girl with long brown hair and the faintest of scars on her face—Liberty. “Dude, rude.”
Liberty giggled and caught the pillow, putting it under her head. “Stop belching and go to sleep.”
Isobel burped again, long and loud, drawing groans from the other teen.
“She’s kind of like living with a boy,” said Daisy, still getting comfortable in her bed. “Ask her to burp the alphabet. She’ll do it.”
“I know,” said Liberty, shaking her head as she struck the pillow with her fist, knocking the lumps out before settling in. “For real. We have class first thing in the morning. I need my sleep, and we don’t need Dr. Chapman back here.”
Isobel eyed her. “It’s true. When you’re tired, you’re very unpleasant to be around.”
Daisy laughed. “Oh yeah. Libs is totally the one who is hard to be around when tired. Not you. No. You’re a sweetheart.”
Isobel snorted. “Right!”
“I’m shutting the light off now,” said Daisy. “Are you done with your one-woman burping show?”
Isobel grinned before burping again. “Almost.”
“She’s so classy,” said Liberty to Daisy as the two laughed.
Isobel lay back in her bed, her gaze going to the small painting Daisy had done for her in art class. It was a painting of a graveyard at night with a full moon and a shadowy figure in the background. Daisy never said what the figure was or who it was supposed to be, but Isobel instantly thought of a vampire when she saw it. No shock since Isobel had a thing for vampires, loved reading about all the myths and legends surrounding them.
Liberty rolled onto her back as Daisy shut off the light.
The exterior security lights provided enough glow for the girls to see at least a little.
Isobel settled down under her covers before pulling her long black hair out from under her back. She moved to her side, facing Liberty and Daisy’s direction. “So, earlier today, after music class, I was headed to Dr. Chapman’s office for my therapy session when I saw Mr. Foster arguing with him.”
“Really? Mr. Foster is always so calm. I can’t really picture him being worked up,” said Liberty.