We moved down the road at an easier gait, and I adjusted my rear in the saddle, causing Killian to tighten his hold. Anytime I moved even the subtlest motion, he would pull me closer against his enticing scent.
“Hold still, witch.”
“My ass hurts, not to mention other parts of me.”
“You keep moving against me like that, and this ride will take a very dark turn, woman. I’m fighting your scent, and everything within me wants to dominate you something fierce after you issued your little challenge, which was fucking stupid to do.”
“I don’t understand half the noises I make, Killian,” I admitted softly, feeling annoyed at being forced to endure his company for the trek to Knox. Killian seemed to deflate a little at that, realizing I really didn’t have any clue what sounds my beast made.
I also hated that I was excited to see Knox after being away from him for nearly three weeks. It bothered me more than anything, the butterflies at the idea of smelling his enticingly male scent that both calmed and soothed my unease like a balm against my soul. I also welcomed the thought of a full night of dreamless sleep, where the nightmares couldn’t touch me.
A thick fog slipped from the forest floor, flooding over the path. Killian slowed the horse, following the fog with his eyes into the dark forest. Growling erupted from the surrounding woods, gradually growing in volume.
We sat in the middle of the road, staring at the downed trees that once again blocked our path as shadows slipped from the forest, moving toward us.
Killian turned to Lore, speaking in the language they used when they didn’t want me to understand what they were saying.
All at once, Killian, Lore, and Greer dismounted with the other men in the group, closing in around the horse where I remained until Killian reached up, pulling me down beside him.
“One wrong move, Aria, and you’re dead. I won’t hesitate to end you. Do you understand me?” Killian warned with a low purr, enhancing his meaning. “Don’t give me an excuse, woman.”
“I understand.”
“You better pray that this isn’t a rescue party coming to get you.” He watched me, drawing his sword as he and the others formed a circle around me.
Power slithered through the area, enhanced by magic, sending it rushing toward us. My eyes moved to the source, finding a hooded figure standing deeply within the shadows, surrounded by red eyes.
A singsong voice echoed a chant, and the fog increased as giant dogs lunged toward us. Knox’s men all swung together in synchronized movements as they fought off the attack. An arrow shot from the woods, slicing through my arm as it grazed me.
Men rushed forward from the side of the road in an ambush, and I felt my nails sliding into place as Knox’s men moved apart, swinging their swords as the other men lunged, deftly attacking without fear.
I felt witchcraft in the air, the call to use my magic against the hooded woman as she watched me standing like a stick in the road, unable to do anything other than watch.
A hound broke through the line, and I leaped, slicing through him as Killian turned briefly to assure himself that I had it handled before he attacked the nearest warrior charging us.
We were outnumbered, and the witch standing in the woods wasn’t just powerful; she was a dark witch who commanded beasts with rows of blade-like teeth and crimson eyes.
Lore cried out as a sword sliced into his arm, and I moved, shoving my hand through the male’s chest, swinging the blade, pushing Lore away as I defended him. Greer used dual blades, slashing them low and rapidly as the men with us tired from fighting endlessly, while the witch’s magic fueling the others. I turned as one warrior in our party swung wide, barely missing me as something slammed against my head, knocking me to the ground.
I screamed, fighting against the hand that pulled me away from the small fighting group. I couldn’t see past the stars that filled my vision, or the magic choking me while it held me in the thrall of its endless power. I couldn’t fight or release my power to help the others, either. I felt something slamming me down as a blade moved forward, Killian’s scent hit me.
He fought to get me free, to keep them from dragging me into the woods. I felt his magic, but the dark magic oozing through the woods that rushed over us was intensely stronger. Air entered my starving lungs, and I gasped, feeling it sucked out again by force. Whoever the witch was, she starved my lungs for air, holding me powerless and in the thrall of despair while starving my body for oxygen.
I was grabbed, lifted, and dragged painfully away from the sound of the swords still meeting in battle. Killian growled, shouting for me to fight, but I had nothing left without oxygen or magic to assist me. They dropped me on the forest floor within the fog, and I gasped for air as a sliver was allowed into my throat.
I held my pounding head as I sat up, only for someone to grab my hair, yanking me backward into the darkness. I watched Knox’s men fighting off overwhelming odds.
Killian rattled, continuing to fight as three armed men swung blades at Lore, hitting him before he could deflect all three blows. I screamed, turning as a hooded figure aimed a silver-tipped bow in Lore’s direction, fully intending to end his life with the arrow.
I moved without thinking before the arrow was shot, slamming into the archer with inhuman speed. Someone placed a hood over my head as I heard the ancient language of the witches spoken. I went limp, fainting as if I’d passed out from the words. I’d used every ounce of strength I’d had left to save Lore, and in doing so, I’d fucked myself.
The sound of screaming rattles and battle cries filled the night as the warriors fought while I was carted off deeper into the woods. The assailants moved me away from the fighting, and I was unable to see anything past the hood covering my eyes.
I could smell the sick scent of dark, rotting magic mixed with spices to hide the smell of decaying flesh. Black magic slithered over me, alerting me that there was more than one witch present. Heartbeats sounded around me, and I counted them, calculating my odds of escape.
“Mistress, the men will die if you leave before the fighting ends,” a deep voice announced, disturbing my calculations.
“Leave them to their fates. They’re not our men. They’re Lord Andres’s hired hands that he found along his way after slaughtering his army when he switched sides. Come, the king will hunt this one down. We must put miles between us and his dead men. Finding them dead will probably slow him down. Lord Andres is waiting in the woods by the falls. We will not waste another hour of nightfall since my power weakens with the light.”
“And her?” a man asked.
“She will die a traitor’s death for what she has done to our people. She’s too powerful to allow the other side to wield and has proven difficult to catch without the King of Norvalla sniffing her cunt. If what Lord Andres says is true, she is the one thing that can kill our queen, and we cannot allow that to happen at all costs. Even if the cost is her life,” she laughed soundlessly, yet I felt her respond.
Hands touched my side, trailing over it while bile pushed against my throat. I was hefted up without warning and tossed into what I assumed was a cart. The thing jerked forward, and the sound of wheels over rough terrain filled my ears.
Tears slipped free as the thought of Lore, Killian, and Greer meeting their end filled my mind. It was a cruel fate and ending for them. Knox would hunt me down, assuming I’d allowed them to be murdered in cold blood to escape him. He wouldn’t even realize it wasn’t me until it was too late to do anything to save me.
I’d be dead before Knox reached me, of that I was certain. Lord Andres wouldn’t leave me unscathed, not after I’d openly challenged him. The witch that seemed to be in charge, well, she wanted me dead so that I wouldn’t pose a threat to Ilsa. No one would come to save me because I’d pushed everyone who could, away. I’d wanted to protect them, and in doing so, I’d left myself open to be at the mercy of my enemies.
Ironically, I was currently praying my enemy would come and save m
e. The enemy of my enemy and all that jazz, right? My mind wandered to Knox, and I fought the tears that stung my eyes, wondering if he’d even care what had happened to me. What hurt the most was I wasn’t sure I even mattered to him beyond something he could wield as a weapon.
Would he miss me when I was gone?
Would he care?
Would I survive this, or would I be just another nameless grave within this world?
I would survive. I promised myself.
I would take the heads of those who had harmed my friends and enemies.
I was Aria Hecate, and I wasn’t dying like some weak-minded witch.
I’d escape, and when I did, I’d bring them all to their knees and rattle until they fucking shattered while I rose. I didn’t need saving. I’d save myself, avenging those who died trying to protect me, facing Knox in the aftermath as his enemy.
Only this time, he wouldn’t forgive me.
The End for Now
Ruins of Chaos coming Winter 2020
Nine Realms’ Compendium
Key Players in the Series
Knox Karnavious – King of Norvalla
Brander – Brother of Knox, full-blooded
Lore – Brother of Knox
Fade – Brother to Knox, full-blooded
Killian – Lilianna’s brother and Knox’s best friend
Greer – Friend and butler to Knox, vampire
Hecate Bloodline Introduced So Far
Freya – Daughter of Hecate Dead
Aurora – Daughter of Hecate, sister to Freya who raised the twins.
Hysteria – Daughter of Hecate Dead
Twins of the Bloodline
Aria Primrose Hecate / Amara/Dead Other half unknown
Kinvara / Valeria – Succubi
Aine / Luna – Alpha werewolf
Sabine / Callista – Nymphs
Reign / Rhaghana – Unknown
Tieghan/Tamryn – Witches, born of human fathers
Alpha Pack
Dimitri – Pure-born alpha werewolf
Jasper – Pure-born werewolf, Fallon’s son, and Prince of the Alpha wolves/Dead
Fallon – Pure-born alpha wolf, King of the Alpha Pack/Dead
Minotaurs
Gerald – King of the Kingdom of Unwanted Beasts/Dead
Garrett – Son of the King of the Kingdom of Unwanted Beasts
Other People
Neven – The Queen of Nymphs
Ilsa – The High Queen of Witches
Esmeralda – Unmarked witch friend to Aria Hecate
Asil – Witch holding a stronghold against Knox for Ilsa
Tristan – Slumlord
Taren Oleander – The King of Gargoyle’s / Keeper of Lightning
Soraya – Witch that works for the High Queen of Witches
Julia – Witch controlled by Ilsa, sister of Soraya
Siobhan – Marked witch under Knox’s rule
Bekkah – Marked witch under Knox’s rule
Eva – Unknown
Aden – Unknown
Items and More
Grimoire – A book of ancient spells
Scrying – The ability to search a map with magic to find a location.
White Oak Trees – Grown only in Norvalla in the Arcadian Forest of Knowledge
Frost fire – Ice from the Dark Mountains, appears as regular ice until it swallows up anything, or anyone it can touch. Unbreakable by anything other than witches fire, a spell that only rare witches can use. It was used to protect Norvalla from the Kingdom of Unwanted Beasts.
Midnight Blooming black roses – Grown in the darkest passes in the Dark Mountains. A rare type of rose that blossom’s in the icy snow caps of the mountain, holding a unique essence that witches covet.
Tonics – medicinal potions for healing
Gargoyles – Protectors of the Library of Knowledge
The visited lands within the Nine Realms to date
Dorcha –The Darkest Realm, realm in which Norvalla sits as capital
Norvalla – Knox’s Homeland
Kingdom of Unwanted Beasts – Realm that borders Norvalla
Kingdom of Vãkya – Aria’s homeland, where Ilsa currently resides within the Palace of Magic
Valley of the Dead – Land that borders between Vãkya and Dorcha
House of Magic – Formerly known as Kerrigan Keep, now Aria’s sanctuary below the ruins of a castle she claimed.
The Dark Mountains – The Mountain range bordering The Kingdom of Unwanted Beast and Norvalla’s high passes.
Library of Knowledge – An ever-changing room that only reveals its treasures to those it finds worthy of the knowledge it holds.
About the Author
Amelia Hutchins is the number one national bestselling author of the Monsters, The Fae Chronicles, and Nine Realm series. She is an admitted coffee addict, who drinks magical potions of caffeine and turns them into magical worlds. She writes alpha-hole males and the alpha women who knock them on their arses, hard. She doesn’t write romance. She writes fast-paced books that go hard against traditional standards. Sometimes a story isn’t about the romance; it’s about rising to a challenge, breaking through them like wrecking balls, and shaking up entire worlds to discover who they really are. If you’d like to check out more of her work, or just hang out in an amazing tribe of people who enjoy rough men, and sharp women, join her at Author Amelia Hutchins Group on Facebook.
Stalker Links
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Table of Contents
Books By Amelia
Warning
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-Three
Chapter Forty-Four
Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter Forty-Six
Chapter Forty-Seven
Chapter Forty-Eight
Chapter Forty-Nine
Chapter Fifty
Chapter Fifty-One
Chapter Fifty-Two
Chapter Fifty-Three
Chapter Fifty-Four
Chapter Fifty-Five
Chapter Fifty-Six
Chapter Fifty-Seven
Nine Realms’ Compendium
List of Realms Visited
About the Author
Ashes of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms Book 2) Page 41