“Collin, Nora,” I cried out, waving my hands at them. They were still flying around the coyote, but upon hearing my voice, they paused. “I found something,” I shrieked.
With my adrenaline pumping and my breath hitched in my throat, I took the object in my hands and pulled it up into the gleaming view of the moonlight. As the light cast its glow upon the ruby red emblem, a surge of excitement filled me.
I had found the necklace.
Holding it up with my free hand, I allowed the others to see what I had found. Ace was running toward the tree, but quickly shifted, allowing his lavish, black wings to fly him to me.
“Is that the necklace?” Nora asked, landing on the branch just above where I was straddling two thick branches.
“I think so,” I beamed, holding it up so I could inspect it.
Of all the places we had looked, inside the trunk of a tree wasn’t one of them. However, now that I thought it over, it made perfect sense. The pond was the life source for so many things on this property. It was a place where my mom and dad had found solace as teens, where people long ago who lived on this same property found love, and where the trees that allowed the Crows to watch over me, perched.
This tree was the Protector of my secrets and now, I had the answer to saving myself and our town.
“Lizzie, you have to put it on. Once you do, the protection spell will take effect,” Ace ordered, looming over me as he stared down at the beautiful necklace. “We can save Thomas.”
Placing the necklace around my neck, I felt a spark as the world seemed to shift back into place. The wild, Demon beast below stopped its attack and ran off toward the woods. Cries of pain rang out from all the animals as the Demons that had once possessed their bodies, were vanquished by the magic of the necklace. I knew in time, I would learn about the magic of this necklace and my role; but for now, I was just happy to stop the evil. As the animals departed back to the woods, I refused to move until the last one was gone and out of sight.
“You did it!” Maylee cheered from below us.
I smiled down at her as my fingers traced the intricate silver casing of the ruby. It was strange how something so small could hold so much power. We all climbed down from the tree and once we were all finally on solid ground again, Ace lifted me into his arms and spun me around. I laughed as a surge of emotions took over. Being in Ace’s arms was like finding home again and now with the necklace safely around my neck, I could breathe once again. Stopping, Ace slowly put me back down. His hands lingered on my waist and I secretly wanted him to hold me forever.
The sight of Thomas’s body brought me back to the stark reality that he had been injured. Running to him, I fell to my knees, calling out for him to be ok.
“Calm down, Lizzie,” Thomas said breathlessly.
My eyes grew in bewilderment. “You are ok?”
“Not now, but I will be. When you found the necklace, you ended the Demons. I will recover from my injuries because of you,” he said, his smile genuine.
I released a breath and felt my body relax. Knowing Thomas was going to be ok calmed my nerves.
In the distance, I could hear my mom calling out my name as she and my dad rushed to where we were.
“Lizzie, are you ok?” my dad yelled, as he stopped in front of us.
Stepping back, Ace gave us room so that my dad could embrace me. My mom was next as she pulled us all into a family hug.
“Mom, I’m fine. I found the necklace,” I said, showing them the gem.
Releasing a heavy sigh, she smiled as she examined the object. “Lizzie, when that Demon was after you, there was nothing we could do. It was as though we were frozen in time. All the spirits around here were calling out to me, but I couldn’t do anything. I was so frightened.”
“It’s going to be ok now,” I said, smiling at everyone.
As the other Crows shifted back into human form, we all made our way back to my house. Thomas called Levine to tell him that we found the necklace. He made sure to tell the Crow Haven Council and his father-- Ace and Maylee’s uncle, too.
I made a mental note to ask where he was again, but that would have to come at a later time. For tonight, we were going to celebrate my first battle and defeat with a Demon.
I was a Shadow Seeker and I had won the war over the dark shadows.
Chapter Twenty-Five
At Last
With the necklace now safely in my possession, things began to change for me. First, Monday morning arrived with my mom receiving a phone call that local wildlife officials said that the wild animals were starting to retreat back into the woods. The town was still on high-alert, but the news gave everyone the hope they had needed.
With the necklace found, Thomas gave me the day off from training. I wasn’t sure why I needed to continue training, but he felt like I needed the practice. He was still sore, but had recovered swiftly. I guess being a Crow had its perks.
Now, I can’t help but get caught up in the excitement with the coming dance and Jamboree. The town had decorated in vibrant fall colors and trucks were making their way in town with the carnival rides, food trucks, and booths for the festival on Saturday and Sunday.
Twirling my necklace around my finger, I smiled over at Ace as he and Levine trained.
“Where is Maylee?” Nora asked, sounding annoyed as she wiped her face with a clean towel. She had just ran for an hour on the treadmill while I focused on boxing.
“She’s out with Duncan,” I responded.
The guys all grunted while Nora smiled mischievously. I couldn’t wait until I became privy to their knowledge of Duncan.
Finishing up his workout, Ace ran over and pulled me into his sweaty arms. I feigned anger as I laughed and struggled to break out of his strong grip.
“You can’t get away from me,” Ace laughed.
Turning in his arms, I placed my hands on his chest. “I wouldn’t dare run away from you.” Placing a kiss to his cheek, I reveled in this moment. We had come so far since when we had first met. Now, Ace and I were inseparable and I couldn’t be happier.
“Good, because I’m never letting you go,” he promised.
“Gross,” Thomas tsked, shaking his head. “What do you love birds have planned this weekend?” he asked.
“I’m taking Lizzie to the Jamboree,” Ace replied, before I could even think.
“Seriously?” I asked, shock registering on my face.
Ace looked down at me, love lingering in his eyes. “You deserve to enjoy the town you saved. Plus, it sounds like fun,” he said, trying not to smile.
Laughing, I poked his chest. “So, it’s not too juvenile for you?”
“Oh it is, but I would do anything to make you happy,” he gushed.
And, with Ace in my life, I was beyond happy.
Walking through the Jamboree, I felt like a kid on Christmas morning. Main Street was lined with delicious smelling food trucks while the courthouse lawn was littered with craft booths from local vendors. A local radio station played music in the streets as people danced along. It was magical and enchanting and I couldn’t help but get lost in the spell cast by the fun.
After Ace and I filled our stomachs full of corn dogs and sweet funnel cakes, we drove out to the fair grounds where the carnival was lit up like Vegas.
“What do you want to do first?” Ace asked, as we stood in the middle of the carnival.
My eyes were taking in the sights and I couldn’t decide. Everything looked like so much fun as people laughed and screamed on the rides. I watched a family laugh as a little boy won a huge green dragon stuffed animal at one of the ring toss games.
Then, the bright lights of the Ferris Wheel called out to me like a beacon.
Pulling Ace along with me, I rushed through the crowds and got in line. “This is what I want to do.”
Wrapping an arm around my shoulder, Ace kissed my forehead. “Anything you want.”
“I love this change in you,” I goded, hugging him tightly.
Admiring him, I took a moment to really memorize everything about him. Even though the heartache he had put me through; it was all worth it now. I understood his need to protect me and himself. Our lives were complicated, but we both deserve happiness.
As our car approached, we sat down and watched as the world grew smaller as we sailed into the sky. All of the lights and sounds of the carnival became a blur as I felt like I was looking down on a snow globe, an observer to the fantastic fun below.
The cool wind wrapped itself around me and I shuddered. However, I was quickly warmed by Ace’s arms as he held me close to him.
“I want you forever,” Ace said, wrapping me tightly into his warm arms.
“Forever is a long time,” I said, turning my head so I could take in all of his beautiful face.
“Not long enough,” he sighed. “An eternity isn’t long enough, but I will spend all of the time I am given loving you and protecting you.”
Tears pooled in my eyes as a surge of bliss filled me. I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would ever be this happy. I was different-- that was definitely for sure, but somehow, I had found a way to accept my unique ability. I had found my voice and the journey to discovering who I truly was.
I was a Shadow Seeker.
A beholder of protection to a town I now called home.
And, I was part of Crow Haven.
My life may not be perfect, but it’s mine and I can’t wait to see what else is in store for me.
“Good, because I wouldn’t want it any other way,” I said.
As we sat together, our souls combined as one while I watched as two Crows flew over us. I knew it wasn’t by happenstance and it made me smile knowing that we were all together in our secret world.
The End...for now
A Note to Readers
Thank you so much for reading this novel. This story has been in the works for years, and I really hoped you enjoyed the first book in the Crow Haven Series. This is a spin-off from my best-selling, Wicked Cries Series, and I hope you stick around to check out what happens in the second book, Dangerous Alliances. Be on the look out for this one!
If you are like me and love to talk about books you loved, please consider leaving me a review on Amazon and Goodreads. These reviews are what authors depend on to gain new readers. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
As an additional bonus, I am including an excerpt from Wicked Cries: Book 1 in the Wicked Cries Series. Turn the page to enjoy!
Extras
Chapter One
I didn’t think my night could get any worse. Well, that was until the dead girl punched me in the face. The Electric Night Club was over-crowded with sizzling teenagers bumping and grinding their sweaty bodies against one another in the thick and humid air. Amber, Lia, and I had been sitting around our usual table at the underage teen club, celebrating the end of summer vacation and our last night as high school students together. Within the sultry night club, the heat was almost as bad as the vibrating techno music blaring from the loud speakers above our heads.
No one noticed my bloody attack until after I was already lying on the cold ground. Of course, no one else seemed to notice the freakishly tall blonde girl glaring down at me. Then again, they wouldn’t, because she was dead. Unlike me, everyone else was normal and didn't find themselves intertwined with the angry deceased.
I lay on the cold, sticky ground, repulsed by the amount of spilled drinks that seemed to glue me to the floor. Music and voices blended together until the room became more of a holding cell than a dance club. I searched through the crowd for my best friends, Amber and Lia, only to find my attention focused on the DJ at the front of the club. The volume in the room exploded when Tanner Mason grabbed the microphone from the surprised spikey-haired DJ. "School’s out, everyone party!" Tanner, the undeniably gorgeous homecoming king yelled over the booming noise as he stood on a metal chair, holding a large cup in one hand. Liquid spilled out over the edges and onto a group of dancing girls as he banged his head with the beat of the music. Cheering erupted from the crowd and everyone threw their hands in the air as they danced. Hosting this incredible bash was just another notch on his jerk-belt.
Amber was still sitting in our booth, the sharp tone of her voice cutting through the music. "He's such a loser; I can’t believe I dated him, especially when I should be single for summer." Amber, my overly dramatic yet loveable best friend was, as always, too busy telling another dramatic story about her latest fight with this month’s boyfriend to notice I'd been assaulted. Tanner had dumped Amber before summer break, but in her story, she was the one doing the dumping. Her hands were waving in front of her as she spoke, adding juicy drama to help get her point across. The sharp thump of a new beat blaring through the speaker startled the group, making my absence from my seat noticeable.
"So, of course, I told him to get lost when I found the necklace in his car that totally wasn’t mine…" Still rambling on about her latest dating disaster, Amber reached for my leg and jumped when all she grabbed was moist air. She stopped talking, bounced up, and her mouth dropped about ten feet when she noticed I was on the ground. Her eyes grew to the size of saucers, especially when she saw the bright red blood dripping from my nose. She reached her hand out to offer me support, and said loudly, "Sadie! Your nose! What happened?" She fumbled through her purse for a tissue, and then yelled for Lia, the motherly one of our group.
Lia pulled me up off the floor, inspected my nose, and helped clean the dirt off my shorts. My heart was beating against my chest in the same fast rhythm as the music. Though my legs were trembling, I tried to keep my cool. I couldn’t let them see my fear; I had to pretend I'd had an accident and that I wasn't engaged in a bloodbath with the dead.
I rolled my eyes and found my voice just in time to see a crowd begin to gather around us. "I’m fine," I yelled. "It’s nothing‒just a minor nose bleed." I smiled, trying to take the focus off myself. This was just the thing I needed on my last night in town: a juicy story starring myself. I could already hear the gossip spreading.
"Did you see what happened?" one girl asked, as she stood by the bar sipping her diet Coke like it was her last meal.
"Yeah, I think her friend punched her," another girl responded, searching through the crowd.
Great, I thought. Just another reason for everyone at school to think I was even more of a total loser freak. I guess that’s why when I jumped up, knocking my watered-down cola all over the table, everyone looked at me like I was crazy. Who could blame them, really? I was known for having conversations when no one was around and bailing on my friends without a clear explanation. For the last few years I've sort of been a messenger for the afterlife. Think of it as UPS for the deceased. It was a frustrating job—there was no pay, rough hours, and the occasional punch from a cranky dead girl. The bad thing is, I’m the only person who can see and hear these people, so when a situation like this happens, I look a little crazy. I mean, I can’t just tell a bunch of teenagers that a dead girl punched me!
I didn’t blame everyone for labeling me a freak; it was hard not to agree with them. So, when my parents informed me that we'd be moving across the country to Salem, Massachusetts at the start of my junior year of high school, I didn’t put up too big of a fight. Maybe my demons would remain here. Maybe I'd finally get a chance to be normal.
As I wiped the blood off my face, I glared at the lanky dead girl staring at me. I knew who she was‒her name is, I mean, was, Charlotte. She'd been bothering me for the last week and refused to be patient with me as I worked to help her move on to the afterlife, or wherever it is that the deceased go. Her once blonde hair hanging straight down her back was dirty, with clots of dirt peeking out from it. Her white shirt was torn, and her jeans were stained with a dark rust color. I k
new it was blood‒her blood. I knew why she was angry too, I just didn’t think she'd take it to this extreme.
I gave her a piercing look as I moved quickly away from her.
Amber shook her head. "Sadie, what is wrong with you?" Amber, who was the only person other than Lia who didn’t think I was certifiably insane, nudged my shoulder as she tried to act coy. Amber befriended me in kindergarten, when she thought I was talking to an imaginary friend and not a dead kid, and we've been close ever since. "Did you just fall out of your chair on purpose? I mean, really, Sadie, you've been so weird lately. What is going on?"
"Nothing," I mumbled, trying to wipe up the mess I'd made. I was soaked with cola and other liquids I didn’t want to think about. "I lost my balance." I tried to look calm, but I knew I must have been as pale as a ghost. Even seeing me frozen and scared stiff wouldn't stop Amber from giving me a hard time. She was lucky she was my best friend.
The night club was not my usual scene. I preferred a tamer setting, but somehow Amber and Lia had talked me into coming to Electric for one last blowout before I left town for good. Amber, who was rumored to have dated every guy at our school and her country club, never let anyone keep her from having a good time, no matter what was going on.
Lia reached for some napkins and tried to soak up the mess I'd made. "Seriously, Sadie, I know you’re upset about moving, but you need to calm down." She rolled her baby blue eyes and puffed her long bangs away from her forehead, yelling all the while, trying to make her voice rise above the crowd.
I rolled my eyes in return and sighed. If she only knew why I was so jumpy, she’d probably run away screaming.
"You’re right," I shouted, standing up and moving away from the leather booth. "Excuse me." I started to walk through the crowd toward the ladies’ room, keeping my head up to make sure I didn't cause any more catastrophes. "I'm going to go wash off my face," I yelled over my shoulder, hoping Amber and Lia would stay put. As I walked, I was aware of Charlotte following me. It was hard not to wonder what the kids at the club would think if they knew they were dancing with a dead girl.
Shadow Seeker (A Crow Haven Series Book 1) Page 18