The Bind — S.K. Epperson

Centuries ago, an ancient alchemist's taste for young girls saw thirteen-year-old Lura Cartaun fleeing for her life. When he catches her, the old monster gives her a choice. Generations later her descendants are still trying to undo the curse placed upon them, a bind that finds child after child dying because of its name. The end to the bind may be in sight, however, with the appearance of another descendant, that of the evil alchemist, who comes to town and decides to do some grave digging. What he unearths causes the entire population of the town to be placed under quarantine, but it also brings two people together whose union has been centuries in the making.