Blind Dragon

Max Carter is on a roll. He has an awaking best seller and a brand new contract for three more books. Who would have thought a book debunking the vampire myth would actually sell? Who was he to question good fortune? For the first time in thirty-six years it seems as if he had a life. He finally had the home and family denied him as a child.His wife, Renee, is a raven-haired stunner and brilliant systems analyst but the love of his life is a beautiful, unusually gifted, seven-year old daughter named Lizzy.
Lizzy was a prodigy. A petite little girl with thick, black hair which, like her father’s curled of its own free will. Lizzy had broken all the academic records in her school and had scored off the charts on the various IQ tests. Lizzy was gifted in many ways. It was as if she had a built in early warning system. She knew things but her true talent lay in music. By the age of 4 she had mastered the violin and by six the piano. They had been pressured to put her in Julliard but had decided to have her tutored instead. So after much searching they had found Beth Carlow.Beth had been a prodigy herself and had performed in Carnegie Hall on several occasions. She had been destined for greatness until the arthritis had attacked her hands. Now playing was far too painful but the love of music and the genius she had manifested were channeled into working with Lizzy.Then out of the blue a Dr. Fastow calls and asks him to come in to discuss an abnormality in his blood. The meeting with Dr. Fastow borders on the insane as he tells Max that his blood shows evidence of an extra chromosome pair called the Melchizedek Gene. Max wants nothing to do with Fastow or participating in Fastow’s research. As Max is leaving Fastow warns,” We haven’t much time. There are others that are looking for you as well and I am afraid their intentions are not as scientific as my own.”All was well with the Carter family until Max receives a threatening note with his mail. The script was unusual. It resembled an ancient calligraphy but different. The ink was dark brown and seemed thicker than normal, almost like wax. Having suffered a similar situation Max called in Detective Quarrels. The first experience had been a nightmare but there was a positive side.Max and Quarrels had become friends.Quarrels was a straight-up guy and Max trusted him explicitly.
Max receives a call from Quarrels. The forensics from the note indicates the odd looking ink was in fact human blood. Quarrels also informs Max that there have been three gruesome murders in which the heads were physically torn from the torso. Quarrels sends out a patrol car to keep watch.Kim Baros, Max’s research assistant meets Dr. Nicoli Themas, an ancient and mysterious academic, while riding the train. As if in a moment of clarity, Kim sets up an impromptu meeting between Max and Dr. Themas to discuss the differences they have regarding vampire lore. The meeting goes badly as Dr. Themas warns Max. ”Evil is coming. It is coming for you. I implore you to leave this place. Send your family to another place far from you. Never go near them again.” Max asks him to leave.Beth has a visit from Dr. Marcus Cain. A RA Specialist who claims to have a cure for her pain drenched hands. Dr. Cain cures hers RA as he turns her into a vampire.Beth slaughters Renee as Dr. Cain takes Lizzy hostage in a cruel game of kill me if you can. Challenged to a Shibboleth; a contest of wills. He must find and destroy the Dr. Cain to save his daughters' life and his own immortal soul. Time is running out for Max. He must not only elude the police, who have implicated him in his wife's murder, but struggle with his own transformation into a vampire.Max is aided by his assistant, Kim, and Dr. Nicoli Themas. As he struggles to save Lizzy and his own humanity, little does he realize there are much darker forces at play?