Embraced by Embers
Page 19
((And we can’t...can’t let them keep it either,)) I managed to choke out telepathically.
((Cass, conserve your strength sweetheart. We’ll get you out of here.))
I sent him a short mental laugh. ((You’re adorable, but we all know I’ve got maybe 10, 15 minutes tops before I die. So shut up and let me think.))
He and Lily exchanged a look of mixed exasperation and affection.
((If...if I cast a firewall around you, can you grab the book and teleport to safety? Take it to Riku back at the monastery and tell him that hiding and protecting it are his new number one duty?))
Lily got a squirrelly look on her face. ((I can’t teleport far, remember?))
((Bullshit, little sister. You just pretend that so the little man over there doesn’t get hims widdle feelings hurt.))
She scowled. ((Okay, fine! So I’m a little stronger than I said. I’m not leaving you alone to die!))
((She won’t be alone,)) Jake reminded her. ((Besides. If they have that book and her, then we’re all screwed beyond belief. The dark future my aunt foretold will come to pass.))
((Fuck!)) Lily internally screamed.
I reached out a hand and squeezed. ((I’m sorry I misjudged you. You are a truly good person who I am proud to call sister. But Jake is right. If you truly care about me at all, you must get that book to safety. Jake and I have gotten out of worse scrapes. But we will not get out of our father’s hell on earth if he claims me as a minion. All my liegesworn and Bianca’s unborn twins will follow like an avalanche of dominoes. It will be a nightmare that never ends. I’ve seen it. And now I’m begging you. Please do this for me. For all of us!))
She squeezed my hand in return as a wondering light hit her eyes. ((I will do this. For you and Dia and Nic. And for the twins. But you have to promise to get out of this! I can’t lose another sister.))
((I promise,)) I said with no sign of the uncertainty churning inside. I could bluff with the best of them.
Jake closed his hand over both ours. ((We both promise. And you have a huge Clan waiting out there to help. You are our family, too.))
She nodded. ((Let’s do this fast, then. Before they expect it—or I change my mind. On my signal.))
((Thank God,)) I replied. ((I’m running on fumes here. Make it snappy, sis.))
She nodded with fire in her eyes and turned to our brother and father. “If we surrender, do you swear not to permanently kill Cass?”
Drew gave a smarmy smile but fell silent at Garrett’s warning look. “I have never intended permanent harm upon Cassidy. She is precious to me, just like you. You are all a part of my plan. Even Zoe, although she and I are going to have a very long overdue conversation when I use this book your brother obtained to track her down.”
“And Cass’s bondmate? He will be unharmed as well?”
“Of course! Hurting him would hurt her equally as much, and he’s too valuable an asset in his own right to waste.”
And that right there was how he saw us all. As assets to further his cause—or liabilities to end. Something Lily had come to realize on her own before she’d decided to commit to our side over his. Which he was about to find out.
((Now!)) she mentally shouted.
I very dramatically faked my death a little early, providing the perfect distraction as commotion broke out all around. Jake dropped me gently upon the floor and shifted so he blocked her from their view. I breathed through the agony of casting my Spirit and Fire, his Earth, and two nearby Elementals’ Water and Air to form a second-level Firewall around Lily. She disappeared from view, something nobody else noticed thanks to my melodrama and Jake’s positioning.
That didn’t last long. Drew suddenly shrieked, “The book’s gone! Is Zoe back?)
I found the strength to glance over. Garrett’s eyes went dark as he channeled Spirit and then shook his head. “No, Zoe’s not here—but neither is Lily.”
“That fucking bitch. I’ve told you over and over she can’t be trusted. But no, she’s your precious little Flower who must be coddled no matter the cost!”
Jake leaned down to scoop me into his arms again. ((We are so screwed right now, but hearing them rant makes this almost worth it.))
I gave a small satisfied smile only he could see. ((At least we’re getting screwed together.))
He gave a choked laugh, which drew Garrett’s attention and Drew’s ire. They advanced upon us, and I closed my eyes as my life force continued to drip away. My heart held on to the hope that our cavalry would somehow come to our rescue in the eleventh hour, even as my head pointed out how unlikely that seemed. Just when I’d given up all hope, explosive force rocked the building. I managed to open my eyes. Shelves shook and items fell all around. A fissure rent the floor down the middle, separating Drew, Garrett, and most of their minions on one side from Jake, me, and Dorian’s dead body on another. The few Freeholders who remained must have seen something I couldn’t, because they turned tail to flee through the back office and out an emergency exit.
“They’re behind this wall!” I heard Rhianne’s—the real Rhianne—voice exclaim. “You hit the right spot dead on, Avani.”
“I know that room like the back of my hand!” the Dragon replied. “Step back and we’ll get them out.”
Earth churned again, and a hole materialized in the nearest wall. Figures swarmed inside, some casting shields between us and our enemies and others moving to help Jake and me.
Rhianne, Dia, Nic, and Liam ran directly to us and smiled like the angels they were. I could no longer verbalize my thoughts, but I managed to speak telepathically. ((Thank God you’re here. Great scrying, Rhianne. I’m sorry to rush but I’m dead any second. Please make sure they grab the Prick’s body. I want a chat with him when we both revive. And no I’m not gonna bond with him like I did Keith, Jake.))
He nuzzled my face. ((Just shut up and save your strength already. We got this.))
((Yeah, sis. We got this!)) Dia chimed in. She smiled as a gorgeous woman with dark brown skin and beautiful brown eyes stepped over. The woman had a tall, regal bearing and wore her black hair in long cornrows enhanced with multicolored beads and filigree silver ornaments. Despite her modern jeans and sleeveless tank top, she possessed a quality that seemed to speak of ancient times.
((By the way,) Dia said with a huge smile. ((Have you met the woman who broke through Zoe’s telepathic shields and blocked her from your thoughts? This is the guardian of the book Zoe wanted to steal—and apparently my biological mother. Cassidy—meet my mom. Imani.))
Connect with Kasey Online
Hi there!
I hope you enjoyed reading Embraced by Embers; I sure enjoyed writing it! Since I write mostly “by the seat of my pants,” I am almost always as surprised by plot twists as you. Of course, then I have to go back and add in all the foreshadowing so everything makes sense. Luckily I’m one of those crazy authors who actually loves the editing stage!
I can’t wait for the next book, when we’ll find out more about Imani and wrap up this first quartet. Ignited by Ashes should release sometime in October or November of 2019. Don’t worry, though, there will be plenty more Cass and Company to come!
Cass’s sister Dia will start telling her own tale in The Gryphon Takes Flight Quartet starting in 2020. Other quartets will follow, including a second from Cass’s POV. After all, there’s no way this war we’ve got brewing can be resolved in just one more book! Until those future books are released, please consider reading one of my other books listed below. All my indie-published books are available at various online retailers and will be available as POD books in the future.
I love to connect with readers! You can find my current social media accounts by checking out my website at http://kaseymackenzie.com. Please sign up for my newsletter to stay up-to-date on all my red hot urban fantasy releases. It would also be completely amazing if you could leave a review online where you purchased this book or elsewhere online. Reviews (whether positive or negative) help wri
ters get new readers—meaning they can continue writing the books you love. Any time you take out of your busy life to post a review is appreciated more than this wordsmith can say.
Thanks so much for reading!
Kasey
Other Books by Kasey Mackenzie:
Urban Fantasy:
Novels from the Untamed Elements Universe:
The Phoenix on the Rise Quartet
(featuring Cassidy Grant)
Reborn in Fire
Forged from Flame
Embraced by Embers
Ignited by Ashes*
The Gryphon Takes Flight Quartet
(featuring Amadia Patterson)
Air Pressure*
Wind Shear*
Gale Force*
Hurricane Level*
Novels from Other Universes:
The Psychic Storm Series
(featuring Storm O’Malley)
Where Angels Fear
The Shades of Fury Series from Ace Books
(featuring Marissa Holloway)
Red Hot Fury
Green-Eyed Envy
Blackhearted Betrayal
New Adult Urban Fantasy:
The Eternal Academy Series
1: A Witch’s Beating Heart
2: A Witch’s Dark Curse*
Young Adult Urban Fantasy:
The Magical Ties That Bind Series
Subtle Fire
Steampunk:
The Austen Sisters Series
Plague and Pestilence*
(*Forthcoming)
Biography
Kasey Mackenzie lives with her husband and son in St. Louis, Missouri; home of the Gateway Arch, the baseball Cardinals, and the world’s greatest thin-crust pizza. Kasey was one of those students who always had her nose in a book–so no big surprise when she was voted Teacher’s Pet in her high school yearbook. Today, she is a voracious reader of fantasy, romance, science fiction, and YA. She adores her oversize dog, mischievous cat, and shaking her groove thing as a Zumba instructor. Let’s not discuss the hours spent PC video gaming or the amounts of Dr. Pepper Ten consumed...
Passionate about the written word, she feels extremely lucky to make a living as an editor and writer. Now, if she could just figure out how to get paid for cleaning her own house, maybe that would happen more often…