*Ella*I hadn’t planned on beating up three witches today. It wasn’t on my schedule at all. Putting Petra into a headlock and dragging her to the cold crystal floor hadn’t been on the itinerary, nor had swinging her friend into the wall by the woman’s auburn hair, or using her other friend's cloak as a weapon I then strangled the third witch with. I didn’t kill any of them, but I wanted to. I’d scratched and bit and punched with all of my physical might until all three women were panting, gagging, and choking for both breath and mercy. Then, I’d simply stepped over them and walked out of the castle and into the rain. Petra hadn’t had any idea what she’d been getting into when she cornered me and raked her iron-tipped fingernails over my cheek. She has no idea I’d been trained as a warrior since the day I turned five years old, that I’d let grown men with decades of experience throw me around the sparring ring in the castle until my skin was bruised and covered in welts. She has no i
*Ella*Ryatt’s tongue drags over my core. He trembles with a low, satisfied growl that fills the room and blurs my senses. He grips my thighs–hard. Hard enough that I’d thrust back to reality and there’s nothing but the feel of his mouth on my skin and his tongue slowly, so achingly slowly, sliding up and done my entrance. My heart is racing. I feel it will burst out of my chest. No one has ever done this to me before. Even in college, during those crazy parties I’d attended with my sorority sisters and roommates, I’d never done more than kiss someone. I’d always backed out, or the guy would get nervous about going any further with the royal princess. But Ryatt… he’s not going to stop until I’m a writhing mess in his hands, and I can’t take it anymore.Ripples of pure pleasure erupt over my skin. My toes curl, and I close my eyes and bury my fingers in his hair, giving him the green light to do what he wants. Another low growl breaks through the still night air in the room as he gr
*Maddy*I curl my toes in the hot sand and shiver with warmth. The sun beats down on my bare shoulders, and a cool ocean breeze touches my cheeks. My lips taste like saltwater, and I squint up into the sun, shielding my eyes with my hand. I’ve never been anywhere more beautiful in my life, and I’m not sure I ever want to leave.“Two boys,” Maddox says, followed by the sound of him clapping Isaac hard on the shoulder as they walk ahead of me along the beach. “It’s a true blessing of the Goddess, Isaac.”“I know,” Isaac replies, his voice fading as he continues, “but I’m worried about succession…”My stomach does a little flip. Whether it’s from the nerves I’ve felt coming off my mate since we found out about our boys, or from one of those boys doing a little twirl, I’m not sure. I ignore the former and rest my hand on my belly as I let the gentle, turquoise waves brush over my toes and ankles. Isla comes to stand next to me in her wide-brim hat and sunglasses. She gives me a smug smi
*Ryatt*I watch my mate run her fingers through her maid’s tight blonde curls. Hannah is asleep, her cheek resting on her pillow as Ella kneels at her bedside. “She’s doing better with treatment,” says a cloaked healer, a man, who stands beside me. “Queen Ravenna has her on a tonic of wormroot, silver bane, arrowroot, and moonspring oil every two hours to keep her strength, but she struggles to leave the bed.”“She needs to be allowed to go outside and breathe fresh air,” I reply quietly.“Her strength continues to diminish, Your Highness.” The healer turns to me, and we turn away from Ella and Hannah and walk toward the door. “I’ve conferred with the other healers, and the mystics, and we’ve all come to the conclusion that she should remain here for treatment until her mate, if possible, is able to come here.”“What could he possibly do to help? Did crossing the veil not tear her to shreds like I was made to believe?”The healer tilts his head, his face shadowed by his hood. “This i
*Ella*Ryatt’s eyes are so full of heat my toes curl in my boots as I look up at him, trying to maintain the scowl on my face. He leans in close, whispering in my ear, “Did I not just come inside of you only a few hours ago?”A shiver runs down my spine and blooms across my belly. I fight the urge to close my eyes as his breath dusts over my skin, his lips brushing against my ear. “I plan to do that again tonight, Princess.” His hand slides down my belly. “You’re not drinking a single drop of wine from now on.”“What makes you think I’m not on a contraceptive tonic?” I grind out, and it takes all of my energy to do so. I’m melting into a puddle at his touch and the raw, heated tone of his voice. I’m also exceedingly thankful for the cloak of unnatural darkness around us. Hopefully no one can see, or hear, what he’s saying and doing to me right now, especially as his hand slides lower and into the folds of my cloak. “You’re not,” he says with finality. “I would have smelled it on you
*Ryatt*We stood in silence against the beating of drums and the thrumming sounds of voices lifted in song. I’d watched the eclipse cast the entire world in shadow, the event making my own shadow powers sing. But my eyes were on the lake–still as glass–and my mate, who’d gone beneath the surface. I waited. I tugged on our bond. She hadn’t closed me out, but the water acted like some kind of barrier between us regardless. Then it happened. A few seconds after the first rays of moonlight returned, the lake began to glow and shift with soft, crimson energy that sent shockwaves across the rocky shore. I felt Ella’s power. It ignited my own like it had the moment she slid her hand in mine, and I brought her through the veil. It mingled, turning into something new, something ancient, something more powerful that I’d ever felt before. My men had staggered to the lakeshore and fallen to their knees when she finally breached the surface of the water. Everyone had stopped what they were doin
*Ella*I’ve never seen anything like the look he just gave me in my life. I’m in serious trouble now. I need this more than anything. I need that numb, out of body experience that I can only achieve with Ryatt. I need a break from my own mind, especially after what happened tonight. I don’t remember how we got back to this house, but I remember snippets of the past hour, at least. Ryatt cursing under his breath as he kicked open the front door with me shivering in his arms. Ryatt ripping my dress off my frozen body while scaldingly hot water pummeled my skin. Ryatt begging me to wake up, to come back to him, tugging on that bond between us while he covered me with his naked body in our bed to try to keep me warm. Heat funnels through the room. A bead of sweat rolls down my spine as I continue to look at him over my shoulder, my fingers gripping the headboard like it’s my only lifeline. He takes a heaving breath, his eyes locked on mine, and his expression shifts from that feral bl
*Ella*My world spins, then settles. I suck in a breath and open my eyes, blinking into midmorning sunlight streaming through massive, cathedral style stained glass windows of the brightest purples, silvers, and blues. The mosaic floor beneath my feet shimmers in the flecks of multicolored light dancing over the tiles and the toes of my boots. I feel like I’m on a boat, like the floor is shifting side to side, but then my body catches up with my mind. I suck in a breath in surprise as my vision fully clears, and the room I’m now standing in comes into sharp clarity. The domed stained glass ceiling seems impossible high. The spires and columns of pure obsidian seem like they’ve been pulled here from a place lost to time. This place is… incredible. Like nothing I’ve ever seen before. I slowly turn my head and realize Amanda is standing beside me, looking just as shocked as I am. Her golden eyes are locked on the ceiling, her lips slightly parted as she blinks into the sunlight. But t
BrieLogan steps into my dad’s office. All eyes turn to him as he scans the men–Sydney, Grandpa Ryatt, my father, a few others that serve both my father and grandfather as generals, captains, and commanders. Logan’s eyes are like polished, imperfect emeralds as he eyes my grandpa wearily, like he’s not entirely sure he understands what Ryatt just said to everyone in the room. “Brie, you don’t need to be here for this,” Aviva whispers behind me, knitting her fingers in mine. But Logan growls, “She stays.”A silent, heavy, creeping hint of tension scatters around the room. The entire castle would explode if someone lit a match right now, I’m sure. My spine tingles as Logan turns to Ryatt and says, calmly despite the bite in his voice, “There’s nothing in Emberfyll.”“Quite the contrary,” my grandfather replies immediately, rounding my father’s desk, his shadow powers simmering and coiling around his fingers, “Debris has been washing up on the southern shore of Tarsian for decades now.
LoganBrie looks exhausted, but otherwise… happy, thank the Goddess, as she sits between her mother and Misty, listening to their conversation and picking at a sandwich. I lean my elbows on the table across the room where I’m sitting in silence, alone, still waiting for my mind to catch up with my body after Maeve jumped with us from the middle of the ocean to Veiled Valley. A shadow moves into view, crossing through the doorway before a shadow breaches the informal living area. Ryan looks around before turning the corner, beelining for me, waving away several rushed questions coming from the group of women on the couches nearby. He braces his hands on the table beside me, leaning down to whisper into my ear, “I need to speak to you in private before Ryatt returns. Can you come with me?”I glance at Brie, who’s watching us with her brows furrowed in worry. I suck my teeth before nodding, and Ryan moves back a step so I can stand. Brie and I have been using the mind-link as much as
BrieI pull the stool out from under my vanity, sinking down and facing Blake. I’m older than him by a few months. We’ve always been close, even when we were younger, and he tended to want to play rowdy boy games with Aris. He always sat quietly and played tea-party with me, though, without fail. He’s also the pariah of the family and knows it. His powers rival Ryatt’s, which is a terrifying thought. In fact, I often question who’s more powerful–him or Maeve? But that’s not a fair question at the moment, given that Maeve’s powers aren’t even fully developed yet. Blake, however… he exudes energy that makes my skin tingle as he sits in my desk chair, resting his elbows on his knees. “You found us, didn’t you?” He nods, a flash of guilt darkening his irises. “I admit I didn’t even look until Maeve cornered me. She felt you, she said. Sensed your arrival back in our waters.”I wonder how much Logan told the family. Probably everything, I’m sure. That man can talk, and I love that abou
BrieAt first I think I’m dreaming that I’m in my room in Veiled Valley. Familiar smells and textures unravel my senses, shielding me in a sense of calm serenity I haven’t felt in a very long time. Sunlight trickles through the curtains as they lift in a soft, warm summer breeze. Birdsong flutters through the air, breaking through murmured conversation nearby, but it sounds like a gorgeous day outside. The kind of summer day I’d spend in the garden before shifting and running into the mountains to that overlook, where a waterfall funnels back toward the city of deep, emerald green and crystal. The vision fades for the space of a breath, my eyes growing heavy once again. I wonder what I’ll dream of next? I hope it’s a good dream. But my stomach rolls and pitches, and I choke on a cough. Bright pain tingles through my body, settling at the base of my neck where a headache of epic proportions explodes, and suddenly wherever I am is too bright and far too loud. I groan, twisting into t
LoganI hit solid ground with a crunch that reverberates through my body, shocking me back to life. Dark stone and stained glass come into view, and it’s all familiar. We’re in Veiled Valley, in the castle.I blink, sucking in a breath, then curl to a seated position before swaying to my feet, my vision blurred, but I can just make out the outline of Maeve clutching Brie to her chest as Brie slumps over her arms. I run, slipping over the stone floor, and pull Brie out of Maeve’s grasp just as she begins to fall to the ground. “What is wrong with you?!” I shout at Maeve, kneeling and cradling Brie as my knees hit the ground. “What were you thinking?!”I smooth Brie’s hair out of her face. Her eyes are closed, and she’s pale, barely breathing. “Hey, Brie? Brie, come on–” I run my hand over her face, smoothing pale silver tears from her eyes, but she remains frozen. I look up at Maeve, who’s panting, a horrified look on her face. She shakes her head over, and over, mouthing something
LoganBrie folds her arms under her chest against the sudden, humid chill in the air. Thunder booms around us as the Artemis creeps toward the towering waves that should be crashing down on the deck but seem to hang in midair, casting long shadows over the ship. I rest my hands on the railing, caging Brie in against the wooden slats while we look up at the waves, neither of us breathing. In fact, everyone aboard the Artemis is standing on the deck, watching the unnerving sight in absolute bone-chilling silence. The waves simply vanish ahead of us, rolling back into the depths, allowing the fleet of over a dozen boats to pass. It’s unreal. It doesn’t make any sense whatsoever. “Are you all right?” I ask my mate, resting my hand on her upper arm. She nods but is beyond words at this point. I don’t blame her. I feel like I’ve been holding my breath for the last half hour as the Artemis leads the charge. Several men scale the ratlines to hang from the masts, keeping an eye on the shi
Brie“There’s four main ports on the continent,” Logan says, bending over the crude, illustrated map of Crescent Falls and Eastonia for Alex. “Here, in Maatua. Just south of that is Avalone, in Veiled Valley. I believe that’s where we’ll be closest. However, if we come out of the veil far south, there’s a port here, in Tarsian, which is part of Eastonia. And if we’re somehow north.” He breaths, tapping the map with his knuckles. “We’ll be here, in Crescent Falls.”“And Emberfyll is… where?” Alex asks.“Somewhere… over here, I believe.” He drags a finger south from Tarsian and sharply east. I follow it, my chest tightening as I look up at him. We’re on the Artemis right now, tucked away in Alex and Monica’s private quarters. Behind us, the Asteria, the Atropos, and two other grand ships bob in the water. Beyond them, an entire fleet of ships of varying sizes follows our progress away from Tempest Valley and into the open, toward the veil. We’ve been on the water for two weeks. Before
MaeveMom stands with her arms crossed on the balcony overlooking the ballroom in our castle. In the city below, the once beautiful, tropical landscape is cast in shadow. The crystal bridges lined with greenery are now painted in banners of black. A field of flowers stretches beyond the gates of the castle, left by mourners. Left for my sister. Veiled Valley has never been this quiet and dark. The sun has barely shown itself since Brie left us. The castle itself has barely stirred in that time. It’s magic just… can’t handle Brie’s loss. It mourns with the rest of us, sometimes sending a low, choked groan through the corridors that make the lights flicker, like the magic is crying. “I’m not ready,” Mom says quietly as she watches the women below mingle in small circles, most, if not all of them, dressed in dark fabric–mourning gowns. “I’ll tell them we’re waiting. It's not a problem,” I reply, gliding to her side, reaching to lay my hand over hers as she grips the balcony, but she t
LoganBrie moves like the water, like a tree swaying in the wind, the most natural I’ve ever seen her. Her full, luscious curves are on achingly full display in the bikini she’s wearing, which does little to hide what… what I want to claim as mine. Her body, her mind, her soul… Even after spending the majority of the afternoon and evening in my wolf form, thinking finally having the opportunity to shift would clear my head, it only made those feelings worse. Feelings that tell me I’m making a mistake. Leaving her behind, choosing Emberfyll over her…. It’s the worst thing I’ve ever done. Sawyer sighs beside me, lifting his drink to his mouth. It’s rum, which I’m not a fan of but have been drinking since the boats pulled up to the dock, mostly against my will. “She’s beautiful,” he says, nudging his shoulder against my arm. “I know.” I wish she knew. I wish I could show her that, make her believe it somehow. Show her how much she’s worth, but… I’d be crossing the line we nearly cro