“Told you this investigation wasn’t your cup of tea,” Jackson says.
He’s right. I totally zoned out as soon as he got a kitty boner over all things tech and Blood Web.
I open my fortune cookie with a satisfying crunch, hoping it will tell me something about money or an improved sex life. Instead, I get ‘Your decisions will not yield fruit.’
Great. I shove the note away.
“What bullshit is this?!”
Jackson reads mine, laughs, then opens his.
“Mine says ‘You radiate excellence.’”
I roll my eyes. It would. Jackson pulls out his phone.
“Want to see photos of the Wolf pack I’m investigating?”
My curiosity is ignited again, and I open and close my hands in a grabby motion. I haven’t had anything to do with Werewolves before, least of all seen photos of any packs recently.
He passes me his phone, and I look closely at the grainy image of four people, clearly taken in secret by a long-lens camera. A woman with elfin features, short hair, a leather jacket. Another woman with a dark bob and full lips. But the two men are strikingly different — one blond and lean and the other as buff as Jason Momoa, if Jason had been left to fend for himself in the wilderness his whole life. None of them look that dangerous, but then none of the deadly bastards I’ve dealt with in the past have either.
“They went for a meeting at multiple embassies last week to get help with their project, but then...” Jackson swipes to the next photo of the four of them in front of what looks like an important building. He points at the tall blonde. “This Wolf was shot right after they visited the Japanese embassy. Silver bullet. He’s dead.”
I zoom in on the picture. The four of them look close, like real friends, and younger than I imagined a lone pack to be. Something catches my eye. Jackson goes to take his phone back, but I wrestle it out of his hand and zoom in on the background.
“Why is there a bear statue in front of that building?”
Jackson peers at the photo.
“They have them in front of all official buildings in the city. Embassies, important offices. It’s the symbol of Berlin.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s Berlin, Saskia. Bear-Lin. It’s in the name. They even have a bear on the city’s emblem; a bear and a crown on a shield.”
Jackson’s earlier words shoot into my head like lighting. In the last decade Germany has become a Mecca of sorts for Wolf packs.
My thoughts spiral. My jaw drops.
Go to where the bear meets the wolf.
Jackson continues talking about Blockchain again, but I put my hand up to silence him.
“Bears,” I shout. “And Wolves!”
“What…”
“That’s where she is!” I smile triumphantly. “In Berlin.”
“Who?”
The word is sweet on my tongue. A victory. A comfort. A promise.
“Mikayla,” I say, relief flooding through me. “My sister is in Berlin.”
Acknowledgments
This book was a tough one to write.
We wanted to pay homage to Natali’s home country and the complex and glorious city of Barcelona, but also explore themes of trauma, loss, and belonging. We also wanted to explore the strength of women alongside the corruption of power. So due to these more serious topics, we had a lot less room for dick jokes, but we still tried to ram a few in where we could (see what we did there?).
Jokes aside, we have a lot of people to thank for helping us get here. First of all, a HUGE thank you goes out to our readers. Without your constant enthusiasm, messages, and hyping we wouldn’t have made it past book one. We do all this for you, and we can’t wait to bring you many more adventures.
Another big thank you goes out to our agent Cristina Galimberti, who champions this series abroad, and makes sure our European adventures make it into as many international hands as possible.
Thank you to all the magical authors who have supported the Blood Web Chronicles from day one — Siren Queen Alexandra Christo, Prose Witch Alice Broadway, Musemage Anna Day, Devil Diva Emma S. Jackson, Word Witch Isabella May, and Editor Extraordinaire at The Glass House magazine, Emma-Claire Wilson.
Thank you to the immensely supportive Facebook groups 20BooksTo50K, MWHITL, The Savvy Writer’ Snug, the Sitting Room, and The Fiction Café (special thanks to Dreamchasers Emma and Wendy), as well the Romance Novelists Association. Also, a huge thanks to Jennie Griffiths at Collab Writers and Elliot Grove at Raindance Film Festival who have supported our bigger vision from the start – Hollywood, we’re getting to you! Speaking of Hollywood, special shout-out to Danny Trejo.
A HUGE thank you to our loyal and amazing street team, the Verity Knights (keep reading to discover how you can also join our fun gang)! Rachel, we hope you like your special villain.
Big hugs go out to our Bruixa besties Bea, Bryony, Jenn, Julia, Lauren, Nicole, Pippa, Renée, and Yuliya.
Thank you, Dr. Sam Hirst from Romancing the Gothic (and all your book club members) for your support. And thank you to the Warlocks over at the Writing Community Chat Show, and The Idiot on the Writer’s Block.
A big hug to our husbands Pete and David. We have been complete Witch bitches racing to meet this book’s deadline, so thanks for being understanding. Unfortunately, this madness is never going to end, so brace yourselves for our next deadline. And sorry none of your word suggestions made it into our sex scenes — our readers are immensely thankful for that.
This series would never have been written were it not for our immigrant parents and international families. Thanks to them we’ve lived all over the world, which means we’ve been able to (we hope) describe each of our books’ locations with heart and authenticity.
But the biggest thank you goes to one another and to the power of female friendship. For the long non-writing chats, laughter, inappropriate stories and endless phone therapy sessions. Friendship is a special kind of Bitchcraft, and as Saskia says ‘it’s pure and real and sacred’…the best magic there is.
Also by Caedis Knight
Want to find out how Saskia’s story began?
Discover the Blood Web Chronicles prequel novella
SIRENS OF LOS ANGELES.
Out now on Amazon!
Also by Caedis Knight
Saskia’s story continues in….
Vampires of Moscow
Blood Web Chronicles
Book One
Verity Knights
Want to play an active role in shaping the Blood Web Chronicles and Saskia’s story?
Visit the Caedis Knight website and apply to be a part of the elite Blood Web Chronicles street team, the Verity Knights, now!
About the authors
Caedis Knight is the pen name of two established fantasy authors, Jacqueline Silvester and N J Simmonds. Silvester began her career in screenwriting and lived all over the world before going on to pen her highly successful YA series Wunderkids. Spanish Londoner Simmonds' background was originally in marketing before writing her fantasy series The Indigo Chronicles, along with various manga stories and writing collaborations. Together they created Blood Web Chronicles — their first paranormal romance series set in Europe. Great friends and avid travelers, you can find them whizzing between one another's homes in Germany and the Netherlands, or having Zoom calls to excitedly plot Saskia's next humorous sexy adventure.
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And visit caedisknight.com to subscribe to our Blood Bitches & Word Witches newsletter.
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Witches of Barcelona: A Dark, Funny & Sexy Urban Paranormal Romance Series (Blood Web Chronicles Book 2) Page 24