by Cara Wylde
THE CLOAKED MAIDEN
RISE OF THE ASH GODS, BOOK 2
- reverse harem romance –
Copyright © 2019 by Cara Wylde
Cover by Otilia Jakab
All rights are reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher, except for the use of brief quotations in book reviews.
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are fictitious or have been used fictitiously, and are not to be construed as real in any way. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales, or organizations is entirely coincidental.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Have you read the Prequel?
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Epilogue
More Books by Cara Wyle
About the Author
Have you read the Prequel?
Dear reader,
It will take Valentina four books to find all her nine mates and build her harem. If you want to find out who her mates are before she does, then make sure you read The Test, a short Prequel that is available for FREE everywhere. Enjoy!
Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon AU | Amazon CA
Apple | Kobo | Barnes&Noble | Scribd
Prolific Works | BookFunnel
Valentina has prepared for this all her life. She is ready. Just one test to pass, and she’ll finally become a Keeper of the Spades, and a proper member of her coven. Born a witch, sworn to protect the Mysteries of the Tarot, Val will not fail and will not disappoint her family.
But something goes awfully wrong. When she gets lost in the intricate multi-dimensions of the Test, she loses control and gets thrown from one time-space to another. And that’s how she meets them. She doesn’t know who they are, but what she knows for sure is they are not just men. Ghosts? Angels, or demons? Gods?
Fate is playing tricks on her… She only wants to pass the Test and serve her coven, not figure out why she was meant to meet nine strangers who seem just as confused as she is.
Book 1 is also available on Amazon and free in Kindle Unlimited!
The Hanged Maiden
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CHAPTER ONE
Valentina had been in Cairo for a little over three days, and now she was packing up to leave. After what had happened at la Congrega di Denari, after what she’s seen in the back room of the jewelry shop, she couldn’t stay. She threw her suitcase on the bed and started stuffing clothes, cosmetics, and the few souvenirs she’d gotten from Castelluccio, Grenoble, and the bazaar in it. Magny was poofing himself around the room. One second, he was on Val’s shoulder, the next he was in her suitcase, then on the coffee table, back in her suitcase... He was worse than a cat!
“This is a bad idea,” he said.
“Magny, stop. I have to go home. I have to. After what you’ve told me, I can’t stay away any longer.”
The hobgoblin sighed. “Believe me, I know how you feel.”
“Do you, though?”
He rolled his eyes and tapped his finger between his bushy eyebrows. “I have the vision, okay? We can’t go there.”
“My family is there. They’re alive! Dante is alive!”
“You saw what happened to the High Keeper of the Coins. What was living inside his body, tearing him to pieces... What if...”
She leaned down to look the small creature right in the face. “Don’t say it. Don’t you dare say it. What happened to the High Keeper... It didn’t happen to my parents. They weren’t even at the temple when we were attacked.”
“What about your friend, Dante?”
Valentina shook her head in denial. She grabbed Magny by the back of his coat and flung him out of her suitcase.
“For Goddess’ sake, Keeper! We cannot go! Look...” He clung to the leather box secured to her belt and pulled at the clasp until it got undone and her tarot cards scattered on the bed and the floor.
Valentina yelped and slapped him away. “What did you do that for?” She knelt and started gathering the cards in a neat pile. From the Hanged Man card, Loki smirked at her. Inside the Magician, Veles was sleeping in his dragon form, completely unaware of the drama. She’d never thought dragons could sleep that much.
“Look at the Suit of Pentacles!” Magny insisted. “Just look at the cards, okay? Ask them what they saw.”
Valentina sighed in exasperation. The first thing she did after the High Keeper had given her his cards had been to move the Suit of Pentacles into her own tarot deck. Magny was right. She should have done more. She should have listened to them. All they were talking about was the attack on their temple, but she didn’t want to hear about it. She didn’t want to hear how those disgusting creatures from the fourth dimension had hijacked every member of the coven and started using their bodies as hosts. If she listened to that... if she believed it... then her mom and dad were lost. Dante was lost. She’d get to Leavenworth only to see their faces shifting and contorting as foreign beings consumed them from the inside. She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head harder. She had to get that image out of her head. She had to think clearly. What had happened to the Keepers of La Congrega di Denari couldn’t have happened to her family and friends. No. The De Rossis and the Contis were stronger than that. And luckier. She remembered how Veles talked about Fate like she was a woman. Well, Fate had been on Valentina’s side so far. She would never let her down like that.
“Think about it, Keeper. You’re close.”
Val finished picking up the cards and placed them back in their pouch.
“I’m far from close.” She knew what Magny was talking about. She’d thought about it herself. “What do I have? The Suit of Swords and the Suit of Pentacles, half of the Major Arcana fast asleep, and two cards from the other half. The Cups and the Wands are still lost, and I have no idea how to get to them. I need to find seven more gods, and I don’t know how to do that either.”
“It’s still good progress.”
“Hardly.” She turned to Magny, gave him a small smile, and wiggled her left shoulder invitingly. He got the message and poofed himself there. “And Piper is gone, Magny. I feel so alone and lost. I’m tired. I just can’t do this anymore.”
The hobgoblin huffed. “I’m here! And anyway, Pipes is not gone. She’s just in love. With the wrong person, I might add. But she misses you and talks about you every day.”
“If I go back to Leavenworth, maybe someone can help me. Maybe I don’t have to do this alone. Who am I trying to fool, Magny? I’m just a mediocre Keeper. I can’t save the Mysteries of the Tarot all by myself.”
“You convinced two badass gods to get carded for you. I wouldn’t say a mediocre Keeper could have done that.”
“I’ve made up my mind. I’m sorry.” She went back to packing.
But giving up wasn’t an option for Magny. “Okay, let’s say that what happened at the temple in Cairo didn’t happen in Leavenworth. Great! You’d have a whole coven to count on. But what if it did? What if we go there, and they’re all like the High Keeper of the Coins? Those things living and breathing inside of them. What if your parents are not your parents anymore?”
Valentina was silent for a moment. She sat on the edge of the bed and rubbed at her sore ribs. Ravenna was doing quite a number on her. Since she’d left Grenoble, she’d made it her mission to ignore her as much as she could. Her twin sister’s Higher Self was constantly talking in her head, but Val rarely responded. Little by little, she was learning to tune her out. And when Ravenna got too loud and exhausting, Val summoned both Loki and Veles, and as long as the two gods were by her side, the voice was silent. Living with an old, powerful curse was no easy feat.
“All the more reason to go, then. I have to help them, even if I don’t know how. I can’t just leave them to suffer while I go save the world,” she finally said.
Magnus let out a deep sigh. How could she be both wrong and right at the same time? He guessed that was one thing humans were really good at: paradox.
“I understand,” he finally gave in. “Let’s go see your folks.”
Valentina smiled and booped him jokingly on the head. She couldn’t believe there had been a time, not too long ago, when she would have done anything to convince Magnus to stay with the Antiquarian. Now, she was glad he was there. It was hard to keep reminding herself that hobgoblins never did anything selflessly. Her dad always said to never trust semi-slugs and hobgoblins. But he was being so helpful! Maybe everyone was wrong about hobgoblins. Or maybe, Magnus Luchtar was special. The voice in her head laughed hysterically. “Sure. Keep telling yourself that. When did you become so naïve?” Val ignored it.
She stood up and went into the bathroom to make sure she hadn’t forgotten anything.
“No matter what we find,” she told Magny, who was still perched up on her shoulder, “we’ll deal with it. We’ll find a way.”
The hobgoblin nodded despite his whole expression saying something else.
“Tickets,” he said instead.
“Oh, you’re right!” She had been so confused and rattled that she’d forgotten the most important thing: to buy plane tickets. Well, actually, just one ticket. “Let’s see...” She took out her phone, and before lighting up the screen, she whispered a chant under her breath and drew a couple of sigils. When she went into the app to find a flight to the US, she managed to buy the last ticket as if by magic. She had to be at the airport in an hour.
“Neat!”
“Why not witch my way out of the mess from time to time?” she giggled. “Loki taught me.”
Twenty minutes later, she was in a cab, saying goodbye to Cairo. She hadn’t even gotten to see the pyramids and the Sphinx, and that kind of left a bitter taste in her mouth. Maybe some other time, when the Major Arcana was back on its feet, so to speak, and the Tarot was safe. Then, she could travel the world for real, not just run from one city to the next without even having time to breathe, let alone enjoy anything. At the airport, as she got out of the cab, Magny poofed himself on top of her suitcase. He liked being wheeled around through the ever-growing crowd. Val found her gate. The plane had just landed, and the boarding was about to begin. As she stood in line, waiting for the other passengers to move their bums faster and get off the plane, foot tapping impatiently, Valentina thought she saw something, or rather someone, out of the corner of her eye. She strained to see over the crowd. Someone who looked familiar had just walked through the other gate and headed to customs.
“What are you doing?” Magny held on tight when Valentina jumped out of the queue and started walking briskly, following the people who’d just gotten off the plane. “We’re going to miss our flight.”
“Just one second. I thought I saw...”
There he was. Tall, with wide shoulders and a bulky chest that could barely fit in his tailored suit, tanned skin and short, raven black hair combed neatly away from his high forehead.
“I know him.”
Magny rolled his eyes and poofed himself up on her head. Valentina grumbled angrily and tried to swat him down, but he avoided her and kept his balance on the tips of his toes.
“Looks like your regular businessman who’s come to spend his money in the great al-Qahirah,” the hobgoblin said dismissively, jokingly using the Arab name of the city.
“No, I know him.” Val was almost running now. “He’s Gideon Jove.” She added in a whisper: “Our Jupiter.” She reached the customs line and tried to make her way through the throng of people. They were all giving her nasty looks. “Excuse me, I just... There’s someone. I promise you, I’m not skipping the line.” Most of them didn’t understand English, and they were starting to curse her in Arabic, Turkish, and a bunch of other languages she couldn’t place. “I’m sorry...”
She had made it halfway through when a heavily armed security guard stopped her, asked her to identify herself, and pulled her to the side to try and figure out what she was doing and why.
“You have to let me go.”
“Miss, you’re supposed to board the flight to Washington.”
“I... I...” She looked past his shoulder but couldn’t see the gate anymore. The passengers were already boarding.
“Miss, I will escort you to your gate now.”
He motioned for her to walk ahead, but she stayed put.
Valentina didn’t know what to do. She ran her hand through her long, black hair, and pulled harshly at the knots. Still on the top of her head, but invisible to everyone else, Magny was silent. For the first time in her life, she wanted the hobgoblin to tell her what to do, and he was playing dead fish. “Ravenna?” she tried, shyly. She couldn’t believe she was doing this! Asking for Ravenna’s advice. Insane! “What do I do, sis?”
“So, I’m your sis now?” the voice huffed, sounding almost offended.
“I’d ask my tarot cards, but if I reach for my belt, I’m afraid he’s going to shoot me.” She was referring to the Egyptian guard.
Ravenna laughed. “Witch your way out of it, witch!”
“Knock it out. What do I do?”
“Well, let’s see. Go back home to your family, or go chase after the god? Truth be told, he’s right under your nose. He found you, you didn’t find him. If you lose him now, will you see him again?”
Valentina bit the inside of her cheek. Ravenna wasn’t just right. She was on the same page as her. She’d been thinking the same. She hated it, but she knew what she had to do.
Jupiter was there. Her family and coven would have to wait just a little bit longer. She couldn’t pass on this unexpected chance to restore yet another card of the Trionfi Chiari.
She took a deep breath, gave the guard a sweet smile, and quickly drew two sigils in the air. Before the man realized what was happening, she pushed them with a swift gesture inside his Heart Chakra, and the guy immediately softened and melted under her innocent blue gaze.
“I cannot go to Washington, sir,” she said in a gentle, somewhat pleading voice. “I have to go back. I’ve just remembered I have something very important to do in Cairo.”
The man nodded despite the fact that what she was saying made no sense. If she hadn’t put a spell on him, he would have probably taken her to the closest security office and interrogated her thoroughly. Instead, he said: “I’ll escort you,” and fifteen minutes later, Valentina and Magny were back outside, in front of the terminal, among people who were pushing luggage carts and hailing cabs, wondering whether they had missed Gideon Jove.
They hadn’t.
When she saw him handing his luggage to a cab driver and getting ready to get in the car, Valentina started running like her life depended on it. Magny was bouncing on top of her suitcase, hold
ing on to the handle, thinking to himself there was a good reason why he’d never liked roller coasters.
“Excuse me, sir! Excuse me!”
Val waved and ran faster. When Gideon Jove heard her and raised his gaze, she almost froze in place. Golden eyes. Like a Mediterranean sunset. No, she couldn’t lose her head. Not now. He already had one leg in the car, and after she’d just missed her flight, she couldn’t afford to miss him too. She stopped in front of him abruptly, heart hammering in her chest, her breathing so accelerated that she was almost hyperventilating.
“Can I help you?” he asked simply.
Valentina blinked in confusion. Then, her confusion turned to indignation, because Jove had just stolen a glance at Magnus, whom he could obviously see, and now he was looking at her, his eyes clearly saying he’d recognized her.
“Yes, yes you can.”
He stared at her, waiting for her to go on. So frustrating.
“We’ve met before. In another place, strange circumstances... I’m Valentina De Rossi.” She checked to see if the cab driver was listening. She was pretty sure he could speak English. “I’m a Keeper of the Spades.”
“You are, aren’t you?”
What was that supposed to mean?
“You’re Gideon Jove. We met in your office. In New York. You were... with a client. Or business partner.”
Gideon smirked, then pursed his lips and studied her for a long moment. It was as if he was trying to make up his mind about her, and all she could do, all she had to do, was stand there, like a good girl, and let him make his assessment. Goddess, he was handsome! No, he was more than handsome. He was imposing, intimidating, and so hot and charming at the same time! Sex on legs. Sex on two strong, ripped legs that said he belonged in a gym, not in a corner office. He gave off such an Emperor vibe. He was the Emperor. Now, the only problem was: how did one trap an Emperor in a tarot card?
