Change of Darkness

by Jacinta Jade

  But she was ready and jumped clear before he could touch her, spinning as she did so to lunge forwards and snap at his body.

  Yet her teeth clipped together on empty air as Chezran also spun and barrelled his shoulder into hers, the full weight of his body sending Siraay tumbling roughly to the floor and causing her to slide several paces across the smooth, dark stone, the impact of her back against the long table and two chairs making the glasses upon it tinkle and tip, some smashing.

  She rolled away and came swiftly to her four feet, but Chezran was already in motion and repeated the manoeuvre a second time, again knocking Siraay off her feet and sending her sliding in a new direction, away from the table.

  This time, though, the lord pursued her, and before Siraay could escape, his massive body had pinned hers, one heavy paw batting away her lashing front paws as he dipped his head to her throat, making the sharp edges of his teeth felt below her chin.

  Siraay froze as Chezran gave a low growl, aware that he could rip out her throat easily. Her anger was fading, but something else was growing in its stead—an even stronger drive, which became more intense the longer Chezran held her there.

  And then the lord’s large silver-black head was lifting away from her throat, and Siraay found herself on her back on the ground, looking up into his large dark eyes, a lust just as strong as hers reflecting back at her.

  Then Chezran Changed—one moment the powerful sevonix and the next back to his dark-haired normal form, and Siraay gasped in surprise at the swift Change, the sound of her own voice making her aware that she, too, had shifted.

  But then the lust rose up again, and as Chezran bent to kiss her, his hands shifting to cup her face, she lifted her head from the floor, wrapping her arms around his neck as she kissed him back, long and hard.

  When the Xarcon lord’s lips parted from hers, he was smiling in satisfaction, but the smile rapidly gave way to a frenzied lust, and Chezran’s hands moved from her face to the top of her blue gown.

  Grabbing at the already torn shoulder strap, Chezran also gripped the other strap and, in a demonstration of his strength, ripped Siraay’s gown down the middle in one quick motion, the new rent exposing the lines of her toned stomach and her breasts to the warm air of the room.

  Then reaching down still farther while locking eyes with her, Chezran grabbed the torn edges of the leg split in Siraay’s dress and ripped again, and the dress fully parted across her body.

  Another quick move of his hands, and her undershorts were only memories of material, leaving her naked except for the golden necklace at her throat.

  And Siraay’s hands did not remain idle either, tearing away at the back of Chezran’s shirt, the fabric coming away with a satisfying ripping sound, the muscles in the lord’s broad chest—which she had only ever seen at a distance in the training hall—now on close display for her.

  Siraay reached for the clasp on Chezran’s pants, but the lord was quicker, rolling off her to undo them, striping them from his body and flinging them away with a reckless and mindless strength.

  Then he was upon her again, and Siraay’s world spun as their passion spiralled together, the heat of their bodies mingling until she thought she might combust.

  It lasted for a span. A raging, sensual, and aggressive dance between two powerful predators, both taking what they wanted from the other.

  It was a long time before their initial physical hunger for each other was satisfied, and when they were done, Chezran moved away, calling for a guard.

  Pleased at her conquest, Siraay sat up, watching curiously as a male soldier stepped into the room, his eyes remaining resolutely fixed high on a far wall as his naked lord addressed him. Siraay rolled her shoulders where she sat, not bothering to hide her own nakedness. Why should she, when her body was this toned, this shapely, and a perfect weapon?

  Chezran finished speaking with the guard, gesturing once to something beyond Siraay—probably the former head tactician’s body—and then he spun, striding briskly back across the room to Siraay, before he bent down and scooped her up off the floor into his arms.

  Siraay gasped out loud in surprise, but the lord was already carrying her towards the doors that were swinging open for them. She frowned when Chezran’s steps didn’t falter, but she didn’t say anything as he walked through the doors and into the public hallway, turning in the direction of the grand staircase.

  If he wasn’t shy of showing off his naked body to whomever they might pass after what they had just done, then she wouldn’t be either.

  Strength for strength.

  Yet Chezran quickly allayed those concerns as he glanced down at her, her head resting against his shoulder, her legs over his arm. ‘The guards have cleared anyone from the halls. But I’m not done with you yet.’

  Siraay raised her eyebrows at him, curious and teasing, as the lord carried her swiftly up the grand staircase, turned on the landing, then walked up to a second floor she hadn’t yet seen.

  Because it was his floor, she promptly realised as they emerged onto a landing.

  Two large doors burst open before them with a well-placed kick by Chezran that barely slowed him down, and Siraay gazed about for a brief moment at the enormous, luxuriously appointed space before she was laid down on a massive bed.

  ‘You’re mine,’ he growled in a low voice, leaning over her. ‘You belong to me.’

  The following spans were lost to Siraay as Chezran demonstrated the depth of his skills.

  CHAPTER FIFTY

  SIRAAY AWOKE IN the morning, dehydrated, her muscles aching, her clotted injury burning, and, not surprisingly, famished. But she had slept well, her night blissfully free of dreams, with her former self thankfully no longer making use of Siraay’s sleeping state to harass her.

  All this Siraay knew before she opened her eyes, but she couldn’t place the causes of those feelings for a moment.

  Until a deep, silky-smooth voice spoke.

  ‘I had the servants bring up nourishment for you, my beauty, but I can attend to your injuries first, if you like.’

  Siraay’s eyes snapped open and, finding herself lying on her side, saw dark, twisted blankets on a large bed and an ornate ceiling.

  The night before came flooding back to her, and smiling knowingly, Siraay raised herself up, twisting herself around to where Chezran was sitting close by on the edge of the bed, her necklace shifting slightly at her movement.

  Aside from his hair being slightly unruly, and the loose black pants he now wore, the lord looked the same as he had the previous evening, the memory of which made heat rise within her.

  ‘Not at all,’ she told him confidently. ‘My shoulder can wait until I’m ready to deal with it.’

  Chezran’s eyes were full of approval, and he turned and grabbed something dark that hung over the edge of the bed behind him. ‘This is for you.’

  He shook out the material, and Siraay saw that it was a long, silky wrap of the darkest blue. She moved to the edge of the bed and carefully stood, taking stock of her injuries as she did so. Yes, her muscles certainly ached, and the knife wound in her shoulder felt pretty raw, but she smiled anyway. She had won. She was here.

  Siraay rotated on the spot, allowing Chezran the opportunity to place the wrap around her shoulders. ‘Thank you, my lord.’ She went to grab the edges of the material in order to tie it around her body, but strong arms encircled hers, and it was with surprisingly gentle hands that Chezran enfolded her into the garment and tied the ends together over one hip. Then his hands lifted to centre the necklace’s jewel in the slight dip of her throat.

  She angled her chin, looking down and then back over her shoulder at the beautiful wrap as it trailed behind her onto the floor, then turned back up to smile seductively at the lord.

  A proud, fierce smile burned on his lips and in his eyes before he spun away and walked towards a door set into one wall.

  As Siraay moved to follow, she realised what she’d failed to note last night in he
r distraction—that as large as this room was, it still only contained a bed, two chairs, and a rug that was spread before one wall with a large, sunken fireplace.

  Siraay’s eyes glinted as she looked at it, knowing just what she would like to do in front of that fireplace, and how valuable it would be to have it during the colder nights of the final winter.

  As her eyes tracked past a slim mirror on one near wall, Siraay scrutinised herself quickly. Her hair was a little mussed, which was to be expected, and while there were still faint traces of blood around her mouth from her attack on the now-dead Atalia, the biggest relief was that her makeup hadn’t smudged too badly.

  When she glanced back towards Chezran, she saw he was holding open the door he had passed through and was waiting for her.

  Striding swiftly across her lord’s bedroom and through the open door, her injured shoulder throbbing with each step, Siraay’s gaze took in a new room that was even larger than the first. It contained one main circular table with chairs and a few other pieces of lounging furniture in front of the expansive windows.

  The table was set with a repast fit for, well, a lord, Siraay supposed. It had a variety of food you could reasonably expect at this morning span, and some that Siraay wouldn’t have expected. Yet given that the palace was so close to the sea, she figured it wasn’t all that surprising that Chezran would want fish and other seafood available to him.

  Her stomach awakened at the sight, and she began to walk purposely towards the table—yet when the light in the room altered slightly, she paused in her steps, her head turning automatically to look at the source.

  Shifting sunbeams poured in through the wall of floor-to-ceiling windows, but Siraay’s mouth parted in awe at what she hadn’t spied before.

  Through the glass, the view afforded from the room’s position in the palace showed a rough purple sea, undulating against a heavy morning sky, patches of the water grey white where clouds drifted above.

  The view made Siraay feel both overwhelmed and more aware than ever of her new status.

  ‘It’s something, isn’t it?’

  Siraay shifted and saw that Chezran was standing at the table, gesturing to a chair that he’d pulled out for her. She stirred herself to join him. ‘It is,’ she agreed, walking across to the indicted place and folding herself down gracefully into her seat, using her bare feet to draw the train of her dark wrap out of the way.

  ‘I admire the sea,’ Chezran said, waving a hand gently towards the glass. ‘It is ruled over by nothing, and everything makes way before it.’ Those dark eyes bored into Siraay’s, the ambition a visible hunger.

  She smiled at him. ‘I see why you would feel an affinity for it.’

  Chezran nodded and then waved at the offering arrayed upon the table for them. ‘After you, my lady.’

  It was with great need that Siraay applied herself to the food before her.

  ***

  Having finished their meal, Chezran had urged her to retire back to the bedroom with him, where they bathed and then proceeded to get sweaty once more, devouring each other’s bodies in the water, trying to slate the thirst that was their lust.

  Siraay had heard that this was what it was often like when a male and female of similar souls and purpose came together. She had thought, of course, about tending to her injuries, but then she knew that a short time spent in her sevonix form later would heal them more thoroughly than any of her own ministrations.

  Now out of the bath, a light touch ran down her exposed back and hip, and Siraay shivered pleasantly on the thick rug, even though the fire she lay before was more than sufficient at keeping back the chill winter air.

  Siraay rolled onto her back to look up into the face of her lord and mate, Chezran’s silky black hair hanging down around his face as he gazed back down at her. Her own hair was spread out around her on the ground in a red halo, undone and free, as it had been all morning.

  The lord leaned down over her, and Siraay could feel the warmth emanating from his body, completely separate from the heat of the fire.

  ‘You turned out to be everything I had hoped for,’ he murmured to her. ‘More deadly, more capable, more ruthless than any female I have known.’

  She didn’t answer but merely reached up to work one hand into his hair, before she gripped it tightly and pulled him roughly down to her, kissing his lips ferociously.

  Siraay knew that she didn’t love him. Not in the way that her former self had loved Baindan. No, this was entirely different. This was a relationship born from a mutual love of power itself. Yes, she was attracted to him—both physically and mentally—but it was Chezran’s position, his military might, and his own lust for power that made Siraay need to have him all for herself.

  When their mouths parted, Siraay said quietly, ‘I never thanked you, by the way, for setting me free.’ She gave him a look that was both sultry and shrewd. A look that promised loyalty and violence. ‘I will help you crush the Resistance and take control of this stale world. We,’ she said, emphasising the word, ‘will make it stronger.’

  The gaze Chezran returned was that of a male admiring a grand prize. ‘So beautiful,’ he said softly, his fingers playing with her red hair, before they shifted to run down over the scars on the left side of her face. ‘So deadly …’ He switched his grip to her chin, tilting her head back farther so he could look deep into her eyes, and the cruelty and power she could see in his gaze almost took Siraay’s breath away. ‘A living flame that will help me burn away the weakness in this world.’ The Lord of Xarcon’s lips curled into a malicious smile. They have no idea what I am about to unleash upon them.’

  END OF BOOK 3 - CHANGE OF DARKNESS

  TO BE CONTINUED...

  (READ AN EXCERPT FROM BOOK 4 - CHANGE OF FATE, AFTER ACKNOWLEDGMENTS)

  Dear reader,

  Thank you for purchasing the third book in the Change Series! This book has to be my personal favourite so far owing to the internal struggle Siray (and Siraay) goes through. I hope you enjoyed the book as well and loved the twists and turns along the way. I’d love to see a review online from you, as your feedback will help me to make other books (including the last one in this series) that much more of an immersive adventure for you.

  So click the link below and rate your experience, throwing in a word or two to capture your thoughts :) I generally respond to each review over time as a thank you to each reader, so keep an eye out for my response!

  Leave a review for Change of Darkness.

  So you’re three books in and hopefully hanging out for the fourth and final installment of the series, Change of Fate, which will be published in 2020. All be revealed in this explosive finale.

  In the coming finale, the battle for Kaslon will be decided by one…

  Happy reading,

  Jacinta Jade

  Acknowledgements

  Well, it’s actually happened. I’ve managed to publish the third book in my series, Change of Darkness. If I seem surprised, it’s because I am—I never set out to write this story as a series, but it happened because I realised at the end of writing Book 1, that Change of Chaos could not be a 2,000-page book! I actually might never have finished Book 1 at the time if I had known that I was going to be writing at least two more books …

  But it has happened, and as usual, there is a lot of craziness that occurs around getting a book ready for publication, and a lot of people who support that process, and so, I would like to say a special thanks to:

  Melissa—we only met in 2017, but I’m so glad we crossed paths because your comments on my drafts are always so good!

  Michelle Hope—my amazing editor who has managed to endure all my errors long enough to help me polish off this third instalment.

  Min and Damo—for getting your thoughts to me during such a busy year, so grateful for your support!

  Lisa, my parents and Shane—so glad you’re always willing for a chat about my work and talking through ideas.

  Al—for your support a
nd for being you.

  My Advanced Copy Reviewers—your comments are so valuable to me, both in helping me continue to make the series even better and in helping others discover my books.

  And finally, thank you, dear reader, for reading this book and joining me on this adventure. If you haven’t already left me a review/rating online (e.g. Goodreads or your favourite online retailer) for my books then please do, as although it takes only a minute to leave feedback the value of it to me is enduring! Plus, I love to know your thoughts and hear what you enjoyed about the story.

  Happy reading,

  JJ

  EXCERPT FROM BOOK 4 - CHANGE OF FATE

  PROLOGUE

  SIRAAY HAD NEVER been out on this balcony before. It was similar to the ones that jutted out from the Xarcon palace at various levels and angles in that it was made of stone and its mid-rise wall gave its occupants something to lean against without risk of falling off that high perch. Yet it was wholly different in the view it provided its temporary residents, which included Siraay and Lord Chezran plus a number of Chezran’s inner circle.

  For this balcony was not attached to the palace at all, but was situated against the high stone walls that circled the palace, the training yard and the arena. And the aspect from it that moment beat any the palace might have offered

  For below, on the ground some levels below, in regimented columns, was the bulk of the third division of Chezran’s army. Hundreds of males and females cheered loudly as the face and dark hair of their lord appeared on that edge high above, their fervour driven by in-grained, or forced, loyalty and a lust for the battle to come.