by Amy Sumida
“You're happy about this?” Sophie was shocked.
“Mother, I'm alive, and I get to live in the sea,” Alex said joyously. “Is that not miraculous?”
Sophie blinked for a moment and then started laughing. “Yes, sweetheart; it's a miracle.” She hugged Alexandra and helped her to her newly-formed feet. Then Sophie turned to Tell. “Look after her,” she said to him. “Or I will come after you.”
“I'm not stealing your daughter away this very second.” Tell laughed; the seashells in his long, white hair clicking together. “Asrai need the water, but we can part from it for short periods. Our only restriction is sunlight. Alexandra, unfortunately, will never see the sun again.”
“You'll miss it,” Banning said to Alex gently, “but when you are denied the Sun, you find more beauty in the Moon.”
“Thank you,” Alexandra said to Banning. “I know that I will. It's far better than being dead, anyway.” She laughed, and the relieved and astounded gathering joined her. “Does anyone have a coat or something? I'm naked here, people.”
More laughter filled the air, and a cloak was found for Alex before she was passed around the joyous group, to be hugged over and over.
Chapter Sixty-Five
I sat with my consorts, watching Alexandra dance with yet another man. She had come back to life even more vivacious than she'd been, to begin with. Tell watched her with covetous looks that I was sure would lead to lots of delicious trouble; especially with the way Alex was staring back at him. Sophie and the rest of our family rejoiced as we had never rejoiced before. It wasn't every day that a loved one came back from the dead.
“I need to return to Sgàthan and thank those fairies,” I murmured.
“We'll go with you,” Declan said.
“I had no idea that the water fey held such power,” Torin said with wonder.
“They must have joined their magic as the Spellsingers did,” Declan theorized. “They collected the magic in that shell, and the burial released it.”
“The earth,” I whispered.
“What's that, El?” Banning asked.
“The earth released it,” I said in a stronger voice. “But it had to be earth tempered by the sea—sand.”
“The salt-laced sand near a shore,” Torin added. “Earth to release the magic, and salt to give it a purpose.”
“It was a seashell bomb.” I laughed. “A hell of a lot better than the last magical bomb we dealt with.”
“It was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen,” Gage whispered.
“With Elaria as a mate, the amazing becomes commonplace,” Banning said softly.
I smiled at him tenderly.
“I'm serious, Elaria,” Banning declared. “We were all beings of magic before we met you, but you made our lives magical.”
“The cage,” Torin muttered.
“The what?” Gage gaped at him.
“Our little bird has imprisoned us with her love,” Torin said. “But there's nowhere more wondrous than her cage.”
“Nowhere I'd rather be,” Banning agreed.
“As long as you're in there with me.” Gage grinned at me.
“And we can rattle the bars together.” Declan waggled his ruby brows at me.
We all groaned and shook our heads.
“What?” Declan asked innocently.
“Way to ruin a moment, dickhead,” Banning huffed.
“Nothing is ever ruined with Elaria,” Declan went serious. “In fact, she does the opposite.” He leaned forward and kissed me sweetly before he whispered to me, “You make every moment sublime.”
And I knew that this was only the beginning; merely a prelude of the magical moments to come.
Epilogue
There's a lot of change happening in Primeval. New leadership was installed at the Amber Temple, and all the races of the Lesser Fey are gathering to decide upon new laws to govern themselves by, as well as new ways to protect the forest.
The Kyanite kingdom is recovering from the loss of so many traitorous Shining Ones, as well as the loss of a few honorable ones. The traitors were last seen leaving Tír na nÓg, and the honorable knights who died at the Primeval Battle were buried in the royal cemetery, beside their last queen. No; they hadn't been able to save my predecessor, but they had made the ultimate sacrifice for me in payment for their ignorance. I think that deserved some recognition.
The Copper Kingdom forges on without a ruler, but I have faith that it will soon find its king or queen. On a much wetter note, I returned to the shores of the Sgàthan, but I did so in the Alexandrite Kingdom instead of Primeval. Declan showed me how to call the water fey, and guess who appeared? My old friend Tell—the first. He graciously accepted the gratitude of my family, promised to pass it on to the other water fey, and assured me that his son, Tell the second, would look after Alexandra.
Banning's Gura suffered the greatest losses, but it isn't broken. The survivors are stronger than they were before the war, and they're grateful for that. The loss of their loved ones is easier to bear, knowing that they'd had some time in the sun before they died. Banning took the bodies of his fallen Blooders back to Kansas and buried them in a small cemetery behind his country club. One large funeral was held for them; which my consorts and I attended, along with representatives from the other races who fought in Primeval. I had thought those representatives were only going to attend Alexandra's funeral, but they showed up for every memorial service held for the fallen warriors of Primeval. I know this because my consorts and I went to all of them as well. It was the least we could do.
Gage's family has finally accepted that he won't be moving home anytime soon. That was a huge relief; the last thing I needed was the Griffins mad at me. It was bad enough to know that the Manticores were still gunning for me. You'd think that the last slaughter would have turned them off from their vengeance, but instead, it has cemented their hatred. Word on the Beneath streets is that they are looking to hire another assassin.
But I can't worry about that right now; I have four consorts to love and an entire jewel kingdom to look after. I've decided that it's time to focus on being a queen and a lover. Anything else will just have to wait.
Keep reading for Grammar Giggles, a Pronunciation Guide, peeks into other series, and a sneak peek into the next book in the Spellsinger Series:
A Ballad of Blood
Chapter One
Moonlight skimmed the surface of the little lake, making it into a mirror. Birds cried in the early night, cooing to their mates to settle in for the night. The scent of crushed grass rose from beneath the picnic blanket Banning had laid out for us, and the bite of dry, red wine added an acidic note. The taste of the wine was on my lips, melding with a faint flavor of my blood. Banning had kissed me after he fed.
Dusk had fallen only an hour ago, but we had been out on the empty golf course for much longer than that. Banning had shut his country club down for a week; to give his Blooders—aka vampires—some time off after they'd helped us protect the Primeval Forest of Tír na nÓg against Norse Giants—long story. Twenty-six Blooders had died in the battle, and not only did the survivors need some time off to relax, but they needed it to mourn. The only bright side was the fact that Banning's Blooders had been able to feed from several types of immortals in the days leading up to the battle, and had become much stronger for it—even gaining an ability to walk in the sunshine again.
Banning himself had drunk from Torin, Declan, Gage, and me. He had previously taken blood only from me, and that had given him the ability to withstand sunlight. But after drinking from two Shining Ones and a Griffin, Banning was now ten times stronger, which meant that our whole romantic quintet was ten times stronger. Today, that strength had shown itself in our lovemaking.
We had made love beneath the warm sun for hours; one of Banning's favorite pastimes now. When he had neared completion, he bit me and sent us both over ecstasy's edge. We shouted together—our cries echoing across the lake—but it didn't m
atter. No one would disturb us. Or so I thought.
As we laid there naked, wrapped around each other, one of Banning's Blooders came running up. At least it was a woman, otherwise Banning would have blown a Blooder gasket. It was bad enough that she got an eyeful of his goods, it would have been far worse if some Blooder guy had gotten the same from me.
“Gheara, I'm so sorry,” Megan said as she kept her eyes averted. “I wouldn't bother you if it wasn't important.”
“What's happened?” Banning asked as he handed me my clothes.
“There's a visitor here from Romania,” Megan said. “From your father,” she added just in case we didn't make the connection.”
“We'll be right there,” Banning said.
Megan started to run away, but Banning called after her.
“Has he hurt anyone?”
“No, Gheara,” she said. Then added, “Not yet.”
She hurried back to the club.
“Great.” I sighed. “I knew this was too good to be true.”
“What?”
“This peace,” I huffed. “No one trying to kill the ones we love or us. I knew it wasn't forever.”
“Nothing is forever,” Banning said softly before he kissed my cheek. “But sometimes that's a good thing.”
Banning and I had been lovers in the past, but I had been killed. Then I had been reborn as a Spellsinger. I remembered the love we had shared, but Banning was right; this time around was so much better.
We hurried up to the Crouching Lion's main clubhouse. The lights were on inside, but I didn't see anyone through the windows. We went through the back entrance and then made our way to the main room, where the reason for the lack of people was revealed. The entire Gura was in one room, staring at one guy. But all the attention swiveled to Banning and me as we walked in.
The man who had been the center of attention stood to greet us. He was slickly handsome; like a car salesman turned actor. He had close-cropped dark hair, pale gray eyes that made him look blind at first glance, and skin paler than the inside of a clam. His elegant hands were clasped loosely before him, barely pressing into his tailored suit, and his lips were set in a relaxed smile.
“Prince Banning?” He asked as we approached.
“'Gheara Banning' is fine,” Banning corrected.
“I hardly think so.” The man's lips twisted into a wry smile and his gaze dropped over Banning's body in a sexually speculative manner. “You are most definitely a prince.”
I coughed to cover my laugh.
“And you are the Spellsinger, I presume? The man asked; completely unruffled by my amusement.
“Propriety dictates that you introduce yourself before others,” I said crisply.
“Ah, my apologies,” he murmured with a smirk. “I am Randal Longchamp of the Suceava Gura.”
“Longchamp?” Banning frowned. “There was a gheara named Longchamp in England.”
“I am he,” Randal confirmed. “I abdicated to join your father's gura.”
“Why would you do that?” Banning asked.
“Because my king asked it of me,” Randal said as if it were obvious. “The original gura must be protected, and it was greatly depleted recently.”
“Yeah; we know.” It was my turn to smirk.
Randal sniffed in offense and set his indignant stare on me. “You mock the slaughter of the first Gura?”
“That wasn't a slaughter,” I huffed. “You want to talk about a slaughter? I'll tell you about the thousands of Jotun we killed last week. Now, that was a slaughter.”
Randal's eyes went wide, and he looked around the room at the smug faces with new respect. “I haven't heard of this battle. Why did you kill Norse Giants?”
“Because they had the nerve to try to take over Tír na nÓg,” Banning said. “That's my consort's world now, and if you come against my woman, you come against me.”
“And all of us,” Arnold—one of Banning's commanders—added.
Randal started to look nervous, but he quickly masked it. “I was sent by our king to—”
“Your king,” Banning corrected.
“What?” Randal's eyes went even wider.
“He's your king, not mine,” Banning said evenly. “The last time I saw my father, he tried to kill my lady. I spared his life, but he's still dead to me, and I refuse to serve a dead king.”
“Then I suppose this invitation will also be refused,” Randal pulled an envelope out of his inner pocket and handed it to Banning. “But I vowed to deliver it, and await your response.”
Banning opened the envelope and pulled out a beautifully calligraphed invitation to King Sorin's birthday party. He laughed and tossed the invitation into the nearest fireplace.
“You supposed correctly,” Banning said. “Thank you for delivering it, Gheara Randal.”
Randal blinked in surprise and then bowed. “It was an honor to meet you, Gheara Banning.”
Banning smiled at that. The man had earned enough respect with that one word to encourage further consideration.
“May I offer you some refreshment before you leave?” Banning asked. “You've come a long way.”
“I would love to take you up on that”—Randall smiled warmly—“but not tonight. Thank you for your hospitality, but I need to head back to the airport. My plane leaves in two hours.”
“Have a safe trip,” Banning said.
“Thank you.” Randal turned toward the door and then paused. Over his shoulder, he said, “Your father is determined to make the Suceava Gura the strongest in the world, and to see you lead it.” He looked Banning in the eye. “At any cost.”
“I appreciate the warning.” Banning said with sincere sobriety.
Randal nodded back and left.
“Well that was interesting,” I noted.
“My father strengthening his Gura to come after me?” Banning asked. “We already knew he was working toward that end.”
“No; that Randal guy,” I said. “He was totally into you.”
“He was not,” Banning huffed.
“Oh, yeah; he wanted you,” I teased.
The Gura chuckled.
“He did, Gheara,” Arnold confirmed. “He was checking you out.”
“My father is possibly consolidating a gura of ghearas to attack us for the second time, and you people want to talk about the sexual tastes of our visitor.”
I looked around the room at all the smiling faces, and then back at Banning. “Yep,” I answered for everyone.
“May the Gods help us,” Banning groaned.
“They probably will, if we ask nicely,” I said merrily.
Banning rolled his eyes and walked away.
Grammar Giggles
And just for a little giggle, here are some grammar mistakes found during the editing of this book.
Correct Line: His altar room was deep inside the stone foundation of the island, but there was only one way down to it, and that was through Odin's private rooms, which were on the main floor.
Giggle: His altar room was deep inside the stone foundation of the island, but there was only one way down to it, and that was through Odin's privates rooms, which were on the main floor. (I put this one first because I thought it was the funniest; I laughed so damn hard when I caught it. Odin has a whole room for his privates.)
Correct line: The rest of the court watched in horror as more men and women fell to the stones; writhing through the loss of their magic.
Giggle: The rest of the court watched in horror as more men and women fell to the stones; writing through the loss of their magic.
Correct line: Odin was very intuitive; nearly to the point of being psychic.
Giggle: Odin was very intuitive; nearly to the pint of being psychic.
Correct line: “I was able to get several Gods to assist us.”
Giggle: “I was able to get several Gods to insist us.”
Correct line: It even gave me hope; its cheery tambourine leading into a lighthearted beat.
/> Giggle: It even gave me hope; its cherry tambourine leading into a lighthearted beat.
Correct line: Not that I didn't trust Reyne; I simply wanted to get the children to safety before the blood started to flow.
Giggle: Not that I didn't tryst Reyne; I simply wanted to get the children to safety before the blood started to flow.
And please feel free to write me at [email protected] if you spot any grammar errors yourself. I'm a poor self-published author who must rely on the kindness of my super-smart friends for help in editing. Please have mercy on my writing.
Pronunciation Guide/ Character List
Adam MacLaine: Human client
Aoide: E-da, Elaria's aunt and Siren
Arnet: Are-net, Knight of Flourite
Ava: A-vah, Queen of Sapphire
Banning: Ban-ing, Gheara of the Kansas Gura
Barret: Bare-it, Commander of Chrysocolla Army
Bran: Bran, King of Garnet
Branna: Bra-nah, Duchess of Jade
Carrick: Care-ick, Knight of Onyx
Cerberus: Ser-bur-us, Demi-God dog-shifter
Declan: Deck-lan, King of Alexandrite
Edmond: King of Jet
Eileen: I-lean, Queen of Copper
Elaria: Eh-lar-ee-ah, Spellsinger
Finbar: Fin-bar, Duke of Sapphire
Gage Saeiqa: Gauge Sah-E-kah, griffin
Galen: Gay-lin, King of Sapphire
Garret: Gare-it, King of Topaz
Gerard: Jare-rod, Knight of Onyx
Hugh: Hew, Knight of Onyx
Isandra: I-san-dra, Queen of Diamond
Jack Armstrong: Loup
Jameson: Jay-meh-son, Knight of Fluorite
Jarlath: Jar-leth, King of Diamond
Jonah Malone: Human gangster
Kalliope: Kah-lie-oh-pee, Elaria's mother and a Siren
Kean: Key-in, Knight of Howlite
Lorcan: Lore-can, King of Copper
Maeve: May-ve, Queen of Peridot
Moirin: Moy-rin, Queen of Tiger's Eye