From The Deeps (Seven Wardens Book 1) Read online

  “Sorry to burst your bubble, but you may have to,” Macey said. It earned her a hard stare from the punk. “I don’t like it much either,” she added and his expression softened a tiny bit. “But it’s the way we travel from A to B, so you better get used to it.”

  “Who says I’m going to travel with you? I’ve not decided yet.”

  Macey sighed. “Didn’t we go through all of this already? We can help you find Amber. You said yourself that your location spell isn’t working anymore. Maybe we can find a solution together? As much as it pains me to say this, but if the prophecy is true, we’re going to need you. You’re one of us, just like Amber is.”

  He frowned. “If we manage to get Amber away from him, I don’t want to commit to anything. It’s her decision, too. If she doesn’t want to stay, we can leave.”

  It wasn’t a question. Damn that stubborn man. She was glad he was not one of her guys. Hers were much nicer. Luckily the prophecy didn’t mean that she had to be with all of them. Although... how was she supposed to get his mark without... Eurgh. No, she was not going to sleep with him. He already had a girlfriend... kind of.

  “That’s only fair,” she sighed grudgingly. Hopefully Amber was going to be nicer. She was going to have to use all her charm to get Lightning on her side. They were going to need her. It wouldn’t work without all seven of them. Whatever ‘it’ was that they had to do to heal the Staran and stop the worlds from separating.

  “Good, so what do we do now?” Izban asked, but before she could answer, a blinding pain shot through her skull.

  The Voice was back.

  She felt her body drop to the floor, but it was like an echo from far away amidst the pain that was racking her mind. It was so much worse than the times before. It felt as if he was closer, stronger, more brutal.

  She clung to her mental barriers, begging them to stay up, but the onslaught was too much for them. There were cracks already, quickly becoming bigger as the Voice was trying to enter her mind.

  He threw pain at her and all she could do was endure.

  He was almost through.

  With her last conscious thought, the pictured her three men. Cam. Flint. Jared. Hopefully, they would do as she’d asked and flee. Be safe. Live a life without her. Maybe still fulfil their quest somehow. And forget her.

  “I love you,” she whispered as her barriers exploded into a million stars and Mahaun invaded her thoughts.

  HELLO, LITTLE KELPIE. FINALLY, YOU’RE MINE.

  Epilogue

  Knowing how she was going to die was torture. Having to relive the vision each and every day, even more so. But that’s what Amber had to endure ever since Mahoun had brought her here.

  It was her own fault for being too cocky. There’d been a storm brewing, and she’d thought she could try and harness the power from it. She’d always had an affinity for weather magic, and this particular storm had called to her in a way she’d never experienced before. Izban had tried to tell her no. She should have listened. If she’d stayed, maybe he’d finally have acted on the feelings he so clearly had for her.

  She hadn’t noticed when they were still at school together; she’d been too focused on her studies to truly notice. Only after she’d been taken had she realised all the signs.

  A groan came from the cell around the corner. She’d seen them when they were brought in a few days ago. Two men, probably twins, who’d been screaming something about being royalty. Not that it would help them. It didn’t matter who you were down here, in the end, everybody succumbed to the darkness.

  She clutched her head and screamed as pain assailed her. Even when he wasn’t in the room, he was able to manipulate her mind and show her images of how she’d die. At first, she hoped the angry girl whose hair turned green, would never show up. That had been weeks ago. Now, she was praying for her to arrive and release her from her pain.

  It always started the same. A new prisoner would be brought to her, a woman close to her own age. She’d be unconscious and Amber would wait for her to wake up. But that didn’t happen, so Amber would go to sleep, only to wake up to being strangled by the woman. There was a lot of angry screaming, glowing eyes and hair changing colour. The girl cursing at her, green hair floating around her head in an eerie way was usually the last thing Amber saw before the vision stopped.

  But every night, the green-haired woman would follow her into her dreams. She’d taken on a life of her own. Nightmares were all Amber had nowadays.

  Her days were a nightmare, her nights just the same.

  She didn’t even know how long she’d been here. It could easily be years.

  Years of pain and dread.

  She wasn’t going to last much longer. She could already feel her sanity slip away.

  She yawned. She wasn’t going to be able to stay up much longer. She’d tried not sleeping, but it wasn’t working. She’d have to face the green-haired woman again.

  Maybe this time, she’d be able to kill her rather than being murdered.

  Maybe.

  * * *

  ~ FIN ~

  * * *

  Don’t worry, this isn’t the end of Macey’s story! It continues in Into the Mists, out in March, which you can pre-order already.

  And if you want to find out more about Amber/Lightning, then take a look at the Breaking the Myth anthology (out in January) in which you can find out how she met Izban.

  About Skye MacKinnon

  If you liked Macey, I’m sure you’ll also adore my character Wyn and her four Guardians in Winter Princess, a paranormal reverse harem set in Scotland (you may notice a pattern there).

  * * *

  If you’re into cuddly bears, you should read my dystopian reverse harem Polar Destiny featuring some very sexy bear shifters (including a polar bear!). And yes, it’s set in Scotland.

  * * *

  And finally, another co-written story (this time with the lovely Arizona Tape) is Partridge in the P.E.A.R., a satirical sci-fi reverse harem, part of the 12 Days of Christmas anthology.

  * * *

  If you prefer a list, here you go:

  * * *

  Daughter of Winter Series (Paranormal RH)

  Winter Princess

  Winter Heiress (2018)

  Winter Queen (2018)

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  Ruined Heart Series (Fantasy RH)

  Heart of Time

  Heart of Four (2018)

  * * *

  The Drowning Series (Dystopian RH)

  Polar Destiny

  Polar Fates (2018)

  * * *

  Anthologies

  Highland Butterflies - United in Love (FF romance)

  Partridge in the P.E.A.R - 12 Days of Christmas (sci-fi RH; 20th November)

  Alone – Once Upon A Twist (sci-fi RH; January 2018)

  Mother of Gods: A Winter Princess Prequel – Breaking the Myth (January 2018)

  * * *

  And a few words about me:

  Skye MacKinnon tells stories about science for a living - but at night she writes fiction, mainly fantasy. When she's not writing, she's out and about with her camera, or spends time with mythical creatures and the odd vampire living in her kindle.

  Usually, there's tea and cake involved.

  She lives in Scotland with her two overly spoilt house rabbits and a few hundred self-obsessed characters constantly asking her to tell their stories. One day she will. Promise.

  * * *

  To find out about my current and future books (yes, I just switched back into first person), you can subscribe to my newsletter or follow me on social media.

  Newsletter: https://skyemackinnon.com/newsletter

  Website: http://skyemackinnon.com/

  Twitter: https://twitter.com/skye_mackinnon

  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skyemackinnonauthor/

  Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/skyesbookheaven/

  About Laura Greenwood

  Laura is a USA Today Bestselling Paranormal Ro
mance Author. Whether it’s witches, shifters or princesses, she writes the stories that just won’t leave her head.

  * * *

  While she’s not writing, Laura loves to read, bake and cook…apparently successfully!

  * * *

  You can find her books on her website:

  http://www.authorlauragreenwood.co.uk/

  * * *

  Laura is also a member of the Flock Author Collective, a group of four European paranormal romance, reverse harem & LBGT authors. You can find out more about the Flock here:

  http://www.authorlauragreenwood.co.uk/p/the-flock.html

  You can check out my other first in series here:

  * * *

  Twin Souls (co-written with Arizona Tape): Soulswap (books2read.com/soulswap)

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  The Paranormal Council Universe:

  * * *

  Fated Seasons (RH): Saving Eira (books2read.com/savingeira)

  * * *

  Thornheart Coven: Witch's Potion (books2read.com/witchspotion)

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  The Paranormal Council: The Dryad's Pawprint (books2read.com/thedryadspawprint)

  * * *

  Other Paranormal Series:

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  Ashryn Barker (RH): Shattered Illusions (books2read.com/shatteredillusions)

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  Beyond The Curse: Awakening (books2read.com/awakeningbeyondthecurse)