*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
*Granger*Commander Castiel Westfall enters Ryatt’s office without a sound, but his presence is felt by the entire room. Ryatt looks up from the map laid out on his ebony wood desk as the commander comes to a halt and stands near one of the massive windows overlooking the city of Veiled Valley. Westfall’s black hair is cut short and peppered with silver along his temples, and his arms are crossed over his broad chest as the sunlight dances over his black leather armor. Glacier blue eyes meet mine as he gives me a short nod of hello. I’ve known him for years now, and he’s still as unsettling as the first moment I saw him. He’s handsome and fit for a man in his mid-fifties, but his brow is perpetually pinched by a scowl that seems to be his most relaxed expression.Shadows dance around him, severed into pieces by the sunlight. Shadowsygner. One of the last. He’s the second most powerful man in the room beside Ryatt. Maybe even the entire kingdom.I roll my lower lip between my teeth an
*Ella*Once I get over the initial shock of seeing Commander Westfall for the first time, I find I liked him quite a bit. Stern, brooding, but with a softer edge than most men in his position, he reminds me of the commanders in my father's life during my childhood. It’s hard to get over the startling resemblance he shares with my mate, however. Even as he explains that no, he isn’t King Kane, and he isn’t in my room to murder me in cold blood, or worse, I see nothing but my mate in the sharp lines of his face. In the shadows that dance in the unforgiving sunlight. In the way his smile ticks into the smirk I find so familiar. Only then, after sensing my shock and fear, does he explain who he is. A commander, and the man who trained my mate to wield the powers they share.Now I’m walking beside him along a bridge, following behind Granger and Amanda as we explore the city I now rule, apparently. Commander Westfall doesn’t speak unless spoken to directly. He prefers a yes or no questi
*Ella*Ryatt keeps a firm grip on my wrist as he leads me through his maze of a castle. Dressed in a form fitting black shirt and black pants and free of his leather armor, I can see every solid line of his body from his ripped chest to his muscular thighs. He moves like a predator honing in on its prey when we reach his bedroom–our bedroom–and shuts the door firmly behind him. The sun is beginning to set. The curtains whisper in the cool mountain breeze as golden light floods the room through the open doors leading to the balcony. A dinner service has been laid out on a round table near one of the ceiling-height windows–steak, vegetables, salad, and bread–as well as a few plates of fruit and dessert. Ryatt says nothing as I walk to the center of the room and look around, still in awe that this is where I live now, where I call home. It’s grander than anything I’ve ever seen in my life. “You need to eat something,” he says from the walk-in closet. I hear clothes hitting the floor,
*Ryatt*I don’t normally stay in the dining hall this long after breakfast. It’s nearly 9:00, and the sky outside hasn’t even begun to lighten. Rain bursts over the balcony in sheets of silver as I pour myself a third cup of coffee and rest my legs on the opposite chair, crossing my ankles. The obsidian walls in the cavernous room glimmer in the light radiating from the hearth. It’s quiet, peaceful. The two-story high wooden doors burst open, slamming into the walls on either side. The impact echoes through the room, followed by brisk footsteps. “What in the actual fuck, Ryatt?!” Ella comes to a stop a few feet away from the table with a sneer. Her face is bright red and peppered with soft bruises and welts. Her hair is tightly braided but loose strands fall around her face, and her eyes? Goddess, there she is. Finally, that girl I fell in love with at the ball has returned to me. “Good morning,” I smile as I casually bring my coffee mug to my lips. Ella’s eyes blaze like sapphi
*Ryatt*“She tells me how much she hates you everyday during training,” Westfalls says as we walk along one of the bridges at night, ten days after I tore Ella’s heart in half in the dining hall. I’ve just arrived in Veiled Valley after a week-long journey to the Roguelands to check on my commanders and generals and to make sure Alpha Magnus of Granite Rise didn’t string Granger up by his neck in a tree for what he did to Princess Amanda. “Everything she does is in spite of you,” he continues when I don’t reply. “I can’t say I don’t deserve whatever she’s saying.”“She has a rather colorful vocabulary.” He stops to look out over the city. From our vantage point, the tinkling lights send sprays of silver dancing over the levels of bridges, all the way down to the river. I sigh heavily and go to stuff my hands in the pockets of my jacket before I remember I’m wearing a cloak and not my leather jacket, which I’d dropped off at a seamstress to be mended shortly after I arrived back in
Misty“Everyone’s okay,” I tell Lexa and Addy, laying them out in the center of Ryan’s bed, side by side. Both babies scowl up at me–Lexa, for not being her mother, and my own son for showing another baby attention. Lexa’s face scrunches. She puffs her cheeks out in the threat of a wail while Addy picks up on her energy and begins to whine. I cover my ears, taking the deepest breath I can handle, and scoop both screaming infants into my arms for the hundredth time in the last two hours. “They just won’t sleep,” I say, rounding the corner into the living room where Sarah is still camped out with her new babies, and Sydney is pacing like a madman in front of the windows, looking for any sign of Kenna, Ryan, Aviva, and the kids. Sarah’s fast asleep with her brand new twins resting in a floor cot nearby, but Sydney has free hands, so I thrust Lexa against his chest without saying another word. “Freya’s supposed to be coming up to help,” he says under his breath, still looking worse fo
AvivaRyan looks hilarious in the too-tight clothes borrowed from some rural villager half his height and weight. He glances at me with a scowl, rolling his eyes and cursing under his breath. “Don’t look at me, Aviva.”“I can’t help it. Your whole ass is out,” I giggle, wiping tears from my eyes. Goddess, I wish I had his camera with me. He reaches down to pull what had once been trousers down over his thighs while shooting me another glare. He had to cut them into shorts to fit. The shirt isn’t any less revealing, but at least he’s not naked… or worse, in his terrifying beast form. He’s too exhausted after being in his beast form to shift into his wolf, which would have been easier than this, but I’m enjoying myself thoroughly at his expense. A few of the men from the village titter behind us while I walk a few paces behind my mate who’s turning a deep red in the face and sulking as we walk up the rural road, passing a few shops and cabins where people peek from their windows as we
AvivaThe forest shifts from endless shadows to an assortment of pale gold as the sun rises. I’m sprinting in my wolf form, Ryan not far behind in his. There was no reason for him to shift into his beast, thank goodness. He’s actually slower in that form than his wolf, but we’ve covered serious ground in the two hours since leaving Silverhide. Forty miles, in fact. A new record. Panting, I reach the far edge of the forest that weaves through the tribal territories of the Deadlands. Behind us, the packs of Silverhide and Endova are just waking up for the day. Ahead of us, the sun hasn’t even begun to touch the towering mountains to the far west, where my new powers showed me a glimpse of Maeve and Logan. I’m still getting used to the prickle of energy that wasn’t there before. It’s now the air I breathe–the blood rushing through my veins–the rhythmic thump of my heartbeat. I’m changed; for better or worse, I don’t know. All I know for sure is that we have another twenty to thirty m
Misty“Briar,” Sarah says weakly, sweeping her thumb over the perfectly pink baby girl’s cheek. Sarah smiles softly, her eyes still glazed with exhaustion and her hair damp with sweat. “And this one–” she reaches for the second baby, another girl, nestled in a traumatized Sydney’s arms. “Celeste.”“Those are beautiful names,” Aviva says gently, laying another warm rag over Sarah’s forehead. I’m watching from afar, my trembling hands cupping a mug of calming tea that’s doing nothing for my system. I was a teenager when Sarah came into Sydney’s life. I remember whispers about her falling ill but didn’t understand how horrifically sick she’d really been until now. Sarah is a Mystic. She’s different. It takes so much more energy to heal her. Healing her sucked my powers dry, and I feel… shockingly empty right now. It was like running a marathon and then getting hit by a bus, but she’s alive, and so are her twins. Sydney accepts another cup of tea from Ryan with a weak nod. He looks lik
MistyCole doesn’t tell me I should get some rest, and for that I’m eternally grateful. I pace the cabin, watching as he organizes and takes inventory of his medical kit. I remember the day I found out he was a physician. It had been a shock. My arm had been torn to the bone by a rabid, cursed wolf, and this man–this stranger who I thought was evil–sewed me back together again. That feels like a lifetime ago. Maybe it was, honestly. Sometimes I wonder if our weeks in Richard’s fortress actually happened or if it were a fever dream. But the glint of lantern light on the sharpened edge of a scalpel pulls me back into reality as he drops it into a pot of boiling water. “Are you going with us?” I ask into the silence. Cole’s mouth twitches with something unsaid. He shakes his head, glancing at me over his shoulder. “No. I’m going to stay here with Addy and be available to anyone who needs a healer.”I wait for him to tell me I should try to get a few minutes of sleep, but he doesn’t. I
Aviva“No one needs to worry about me,” Sarah says confidently, cradling the swell of her belly as she leads our group through the woods toward the lake. “I’m not going to go into labor right now, I promise.”Sydney grumbles something under his breath in response, the words drifting on the warm breeze making the leaves dance above our heads. Ryan’s hand is on my lower back–a warm, solid presence. Lexa’s asleep in her sling on his back, and when I look up at the two of them–with Ryan wearing a traditional Endovian sling and his face cast in uncertain shadows–I feel a prickle of regret. Part of me believes I shouldn’t have told him about what I saw in the forge. The past lives I walked through, the wars, the downfall of our kind… and most importantly, the fact that in another life, we lost our children and were separated for decades, only to find each other again in the very last moments before we both died. It stings to think about, though it doesn’t affect our lives now. I’m not sur
AvivaI watch Sarah and Misty leave the room. Misty takes Lexa with her, giving me a moment alone. I should be resting right now. If Maeve and Logan aren’t found by sunset, I have to put these new, unnatural-feeling powers to the test. I listen to the soft conversations taking place just beyond the bedroom door. I already know Ryan’s on edge and doing his best to handle this situation, but having Evander and Sydney here isn’t helping his stress levels at all, I fear. His wife almost drowned, his uncle wants me locked up in Moonrise until my powers fully emerge to ensure I’m not a danger to myself and others, and Maeve and Logan are still out there, hopefully together and safe. The door opens a crack before widening, revealing my mate and a large plate of food. The scent of blueberry syrup fills the air, bringing back memories of making this exact breakfast for my sisters, but that… causes my mind to drift back to the tangle of new memories. Memories of the countless lives my soul
MistySometime in the dead of night, Cole took Addy from my arms and laid him in his crib. I was next and woke up tucked against Cole’s chest as the first rays of warm, morning sunlight drifted through the window. Addy wakes up happy every morning lately and is beside himself with glee when he sees me looking down into his crib, extending my arms for him. Cole thinks Addy looks like me, but I beg to differ. I think his hair will be blond, of course, given that both his parents have fair, light hair but his eyes are starting to change from that soft blue to a paler, icier gray, like Cole’s. I run my fingers through his hair while he nurses. Cole continues to sleep, and I let him. I’m dreading starting our day, honestly, and stepping out into the village to see the aftermath of Kyra’s destruction and wait for news about Maeve and Logan.I feel awful for Kenna. My heart is shattered for her and Evander. I hold Addy c
MistyCole’s arms are wrapped around my stomach, his eyes widened in disbelief as he stares at Aviva. She looks like a wet rat right now–completely soaked to the bone with her hair plastered to her face and her knife belt hanging off her waist, but otherwise she’s whole.My powers are a meer flicker of what they usually are, but I feel them simmering to life as the strange, glowing symbols all over her arms and legs start to dim, and the roaring in my ears fades to the point I can hear my rapid heartbeat and Cole’s heart behind me. Ryan looks devastated. Devastated, and shocked–a myriad of emotions I can’t even begin to put into words. He shakes his head, mouthing Aviva’s name as he reaches a hand toward her then retreats. Aviva looks terrified as she scans the group, panting hard, her breath coming in shallow rasps. She turns her gaze back to Ryan, and her expression shatters, tears welling in h