She raced her palm, let her power flow free. She didn’t know how or why but instinct took over. Light flashed as the figure of a woman with flowing brown hair and brown eyes smiled back at her.
“Mama,” Christy gasped.
“Hello, Christy.”
She covered her mouth, bit her lip to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. “Mama, how...”
“Energy exists in everything. I’m here because you needed me.”
Christy reached out, wanted to touch her, but she held back. “Mama, why does Alec want me? How do I cast a spell to remove the curse?” She shook her head. “I’m so sorry I cost you...”
“No,” Olivia said. “You’re not the reason I died. Alec and Oren killed me. I protected you with my last breath. I called Ronan, and he kept you safe.” Olivia smiled. “There’s a lot you don’t know. When the clans left Europe, the witches came with us. With their help, we created an island for us all to live on.
“We had a strong alpha who kept the clans under control. We all lived in harmony. But things changed when the alpha died, the clans fought for control and the witches took sides,” she explained. “Eventually Henric took power thirty years ago. I was young when I met him, he was strong, powerful and handsome.”
“You’re a witch too.” Christy realised. “That’s why I can do things other shifters can’t.”
Her mother nodded. “Yes, so is Ronan. Alec always envied the power of the witches. He tried to convince me to become his mate but I refused.”
She paced up and down, mind reeling from the sudden revelation. “What about the curse? I’ve never been affected by it.”
“Your witch blood protects you from it.”
Her brow creased “Why are the clans cursed?”
“The witches created it after the clans took over and killed our kind. Most of the witches left the island after the clan wars,” Olivia said. “After marrying your father, I wanted to find a way to free our people. We both wanted a united clan.”
She snorted. “Why did he try to marry me off to the bastard that killed you?”
“Because Alec said the curse would kill all of the Stargaza if he didn’t give you to him. Your father wanted to protect his people. He may have seemed cruel, but he hoped he’d find a way to break the curse. That’s why he asked Ronan to keep you safe.”
“Magda said she convinced Papa to–”
“No, Henric took Ronan out of the Outland because he knew he’d protect you from Alec. He’s your mate. Only together can you become true alphas. It’s the only way to take on Alec and Oren.”
“Ronan won’t become my mate, he refuses.”
“Talk to him. Show him you feel.” Olivia reached out and Christy felt warmth across her cheek. “I love you. You can do this.” Olivia started to fade away.
“Wait, Mama. You didn’t tell me how to end the curse.”
“You’ll know what to do.” Olivia vanished in a flash of gold light.
“Christy?” The sound of Ronan’s voice made her jump as she stared at the empty space where Olivia had been standing. “Chris, are you okay?” He appeared in the doorway. “What are you doing up here?”
“Er…I was just trying to see what else I could find. I saw my mum again. She came to me as a ghost.”
He glanced over at her. “What?”
“I don’t know how I did it, but I called her spirit to me and saw her,” she breathed. “It was incredible. She told me about when the first clans came with the witches.” She told him what Olivia had explained as they walked back to their hut.
“Papa really was trying to save the clan,” Christy said. “Alec had a hold on him too. He thought by you being my guard we’d find a way to stop the curse before Alec takes control over the entire island. Ronan, you can’t fight Alec tomorrow, not unless we’re mated first.”
“Chris, we’ve been through this.”
“What are you so afraid of?” she demanded. “I know you love me and I knew you were my true mate long before we came back here. So why do you keep pushing me away?”
Ronan grabbed her, putting one hand around the small of her back and the other caressed her face. “Because I want you. I want to make you mine, but I’m not sure you’re ready.”
She laced her arms around his neck. “I’m ready.”
Christy tugged off his shirt as they fought to be closer. He’d been holding back from being close to her but she was tired of waiting. They were meant to be together.
Ronan devoured her mouth, plunged his tongue inside her mouth, tasted her, felt her tongue twined with his. He pushed her back against the wall, as he pulled off her jumper and picking up her up. The need to touch, be touched, threatened to overwhelm them both.
Christy wrapped her legs around his waist, gasping as he pushed inside her and took them both over the edge.
Christy lay there Ronan’s arms, listening to the sound of his breathing. She smiled as she snuggled closer to him.
Christy? a voice sent a chill down her spine.
Mal? Christy sat up, glanced around. After seeing Olivia, had Malic come to tell her something too?
Christy...
Her eyes snapped shut, pain tore through her, in her mind she saw the flash of bars and blood.
Then it stopped. All traces of Mal’s presence had gone.
What did it mean?
She pulled out of Ronan’s embrace, yanked her clothes on and ran outside.
Malic? She screamed his name. Malic, come back, answer me!
No reply came.
She glanced back at Ronan’s sleeping form, knew what she had to do.
“Forgive me, Ronan. I love you but I can’t stay here,” she murmured.
If Malic still lived, she had to find him. She pulled up the hood of her jacket, hurried along the path, muttered a spell to barrier the house. Ronan would know she’d gone soon enough. They were part of each other now. Christy knew she had to reach the border before he could stop her.
“Christy!” someone called her name followed by the sound of footsteps.
She stopped and saw Lola behind her. “I have to go.”
“Why? I thought you and Ronan–”
“My brother is alive.” Christy’s eyes widened as realisation settled over her.
Lola gaped at her. “But how?”
She shook her head. “Just tell Ronan I’m sorry, but I have to do this.” She turned, ran and blurred back towards the border, back towards her former home, leaving her mate and her new family behind her.
Continues in The Alpha’s Curse
Afterword
Dear Reader,
Thank you for reading The Alpha’s Daughter.
I hope you enjoyed this book. I’d love it if you could post a review about it on Amazon or another book site. Getting reviews for my books gives me a big thrill and I look forward to hearing what you thought. Perhaps you can mention who your favourite character was and which parts you liked best.
For updates and news about my books signup for my author newsletter and get some free ebooks at tiffanyshand.com/newsletter
I look forward to hearing from you.
Tiffany Shand.
Excerpt from The Alphas Curse
Christy’s feet pounded against earth, twigs cracking as she raced back towards the border between the Outland and the Stargaza lands with tears streaming down her face. She had experienced the happiest moment of her life – now she walked back towards the man who tried to destroy everything she held dear.
Malic? she called out her brother’s name again. She knew it hadn’t been a dream or some trick sent by Oren. It had been real.
She stopped when she reached the border, glanced back. The Outland had felt more like home than the Stargaza ever had. People had respected her there. She’d felt free to be herself.
Her inner wolf demanded out. It wanted blood. Revenge.
Christy ignored the beast, made sure the charm Magda had given her was safe inside her bra. Forgive me, Ronan. She took a deep bre
ath, took one step over into Stargaza land and waited for the guards to appear.
Three men surrounded her, all strong and tough, their eyes leering at her.
“Stop, I’m Christiana, I’m the alpha.” She kept her hands by her side to avoid alarming them. “Take me to the mansion.” One of the men reached for her, she yanked his arm back, feeling the snap of bone. “Don’t touch me,” she warned. “I come in peace. Let go.” She shoved the man to the ground, marched ahead towards the mansion, hearing them cursing behind her.
Her heart ached at the sight of her former home where she’d watched her father be murdered. But maybe she hadn’t lost all her family. If Malic had survived she’d find him. Together they’d take down the bastard who had tried to destroy their family and clan.
Christy marched straight into the great hall, found Alec sitting in the alpha’s wooden throne. The mahogany wood gleamed and a wolf’s head was carved into the top half of the seat. It sickened her to see him sitting in her father’s seat, that throne had been made for an alpha, not a traitor to the clans. Now it was rightfully hers.
Alec’s dark eyes widened when he saw her. He rose, walked over. “You’ve returned.”
She glared at him. “I didn’t come here to you. I want to see my brother. Right now.”
She saw something flicker in his eyes – surprise. Her lips curved into a smile. Ha, weren’t expecting that now were you?
“Your brother is dead. I slaughtered him along with your father.”
“My father may be dead but Mal isn’t.” She met his gaze, searching for any hint of emotion but found none.
Alec circled her, then brushed a hand over her hair. “You’re brave coming back here, little wolf. I expected to have to drag you back.”
Christy slapped his hand away. “Don’t call me that, show some respect. I’m an alpha now.”
Alec threw his head back and laughed. “I am the alpha. There are no clans now, just one. Mine. The Stargaza is–”
She put her hands on her hips. “Still alive. As alpha, I can feel the presence of my clan. You didn’t kill all of them.”
Also by Tiffany Shand
THE ALPHA’S DAUGHTER: SHIFTER CLANS SERIES BOOK 1
After being kidnapped as a child, Christy Daine was sent away from her shifter clan to live among humans. For over a decade she has lived in fear of the people who tried to kill her. Living with her bodyguard, Ronan, the two embark on a secret relationship that could get them both killed.
When her father, the alpha of all the clans demands she return home to marry a man he’s chosen for her, Christy will finally have to face her past and her true nature. Danger lurks around every corner and even Ronan might not be the man she thought he was.
As the alpha’s daughter, can she really choose between the man she loves and the man she is supposed to be with? And who can she really trust?
AVAILABLE ON AMAZON
THE ALPHA’S CURSE: SHIFTER CLANS SERIES BOOK 3
Christy should be happy now she’s finally with the man she loves, but enemies still cover the island sanctuary that the shifter clans call home. After discovering her brother may still be alive, Christy must go back to the man responsible for killing her family and into the heart of danger.
Now the alpha, she must find a way to stop the people who seeks to destroy all shifters, bring together the clans and the outsiders and stop the centuries old Alpha’s Curse before it can destroy every shifter in existence.
AVAILABLE ON AMAZON
DENAI TOUCH: EXCALIBAR INVESTIGATIONS SERIES BOOK 1
Cate McCray is no ordinary witch.
Prophesied to be the one to destroy the Covenant, an age-old organisation who seeks to enslave all Magickind, the race is on for them to kill her before she receives immortality.
But before receiving the phenomenal power that comes with it, she must first survive the ascension and the only person who can help her is her elemental partner, Jason Talbot. But when the time comes, her forbidden love for Jason threatens to destroy them both.
As leader of Excalibar, an elite team of enforcers, they work to infiltrate the Covenant leading Cate into life-threatening situations. Can she outwit them before it’s too late?
AVAILABLE ON AMAZON
DENAI BOUND: EXCALIBAR INVESTIGATIONS SERIES BOOK 2
Denai witch, Cate McCray should be enjoying married life with her new elemental husband, Jason. But their arrival in a new city soon has them stumbling headlong into a new case with dangerous connections to the very people that govern their world.
Cate and Jason face opposition from those they once considered allies. Together with their team of enforcers, they must find the killer before anyone else dies.
With danger from all sides and the threat of ancient, dangerous magic, the team must pull together and use all their strength to find their enemy before disaster strikes.
AVAILIABLE ON AMAZON
BETRAYED BY BLOOD: THE AMARANTHINE CHRONCICLES BOOK 1
In a city of lies and deception, only one thing stands between chaos and justice. For centuries, a band of outlaws called the Amaranthine has kept the peace in Ormere and hidden in plain sight whilst the Order of Sorcerers spreads their deadly magic among the city’s inhabitants.
After losing her fiancé in bust gone wrong, Amaranthine Agent Kaylan Avilion returns home to discover that Elijah didn’t die but instead was changed by the twisted guards of the Order, who seek to find a dangerous artefact tied to Kaylan’s past and the murder of her family. When her sister goes missing and a foe from their past remerges, Kaylan knows she must save Freya before she’s poisoned by the very people who took Elijah away from her. But how will Kaylan react when she learns Elijah’s secret and can they come together to stop the Order’s plan in time?
AVAILABLE ON AMAZON
DARK REVENGE: THE AMARANTHINE CHRONCICLES BOOK 2
Darkness is sweeping through the city of Ormere as unnatural creatures stalk through the streets. People are dying and time is running out as a new evil threatens to take control of everything. The Amaranthine Order has been decimated leaving only a few of its people left to fight the coming terror.
Stunned by her sister Freya’s betrayal and plot to take over the city, Kaylan must do everything she can to find out what Freya plans to do when she finds an infamous book linked to the murder of their family. A book considered so dangerous that the last High Lord erased its location from history, the Amaranthine Chronicles are said to contain the darkest of all magics.
Kaylan is happy to finally have her ex-fiancé, Elijah, back in her life but he’s not the man she once knew and loved. After being turned into a shapeshifter, Elijah struggles to control his inner beast and his lingering feelings for Kaylan.
Can Elijah and Kaylan come together to stop Freya and uncover the secrets of the book before it’s too late?
AVAILABLE ON AMAZON
THE FINAL BATTLE THE AMARANTHINE CHRONCICLES BOOK 3
Darkness has claimed the city of Ormere and death has become a certainty for anyone stalking its empty streets. The government is in ruins and lawlessness ensues.
After their last encounter, Kaylan and Elijah barely managed to thwart her sister, Freya’s, latest attempts to find and use the elusive Amaranthine Chronicles. But in her desperation to receive ultimate power, Freya will stop at nothing to get what she wants. Even if it means destroying the last of her family.
Kaylan and Elijah must work on their fragile relationship and put their personal feelings aside to find the book and stop Freya before it’s too late. But with their allies growing thin, and a gang of ruthless shapeshifters close on their trail, will they finally find the book and stop Freya before time runs out? And will Kaylan have to make the ultimate sacrifice to save her city and the man she loves?
AVAILABLE ON AMAZON
Other Works
Magic, Mystery & Mayhem by Writebulb Writers Group in aid of Farleigh Hospice
“The rich cast of characters will gradually draw you int
o their extraordinary lives.” Immerse yourself in a collection of stories that blur the lines between fantasy and reality. What hides beneath the ocean, or lurks inside the forest? Is there such a thing as guardian angels, and what mystery awaits you at the lighthouse? Explore legends of alchemy and witchcraft; step into vivid new worlds, whilst also discovering what dangers can exist within our own. Prepare to be kidnapped on the street, trapped at the circus, and pursued by halflings. You won't regret it . . . or will you?
AVALIABLE ON AMAZON
Building Your Author Platform
Becoming an author in today’s world has never been easier with the self-publishing revolution. But how does an author stand out in a crowded market?
Setting up and building your author platform before you even publish your first book is the best way for building a solid platform that will last and help you grow your tribe of fans. This book contains all the fundamentals from creating your author website, to choosing your route of publishing and much more!
AVAILIABLE ON AMAZON
About the Author
Tiffany Shand was born in Essex and started writing short stories when she was a child.
She started writing novels in her early teens and discovered her love for fantasy and paranormal romance during this time.
She writes both non-fiction books for writers and fiction, but mostly fantasy and paranormal romance.
After doing a creative writing course in her early 20s, she is now a freelance copywriter and professional editor.
Tiffany lives in Essex with her family, two spoiled cats and a hamster.
Tiffany can be found:
Author website: tiffanyshand.com
Blog: The Creative Authorpreneur
Business site: Eclipse Editing
Twitter: @tiffanyshand
Facebook page: Tiffany Shand Author Page
Alpha Ascending (Shifter Clans Book 2) Page 6