The Cloaked Maiden: A Reverse Harem Romance (Rise of the Ash Gods Book 2)

by Cara Wylde

  “Well, we’re in Asia… Thailand is in Asia...”

  “Asia is frigging huge!” The hobgoblin threw his hands in the air.

  “Forget about that.” Veles took Valentina’s hands into his. “What did she ask in exchange for this information? The gods and goddesses of the Major Arcana have a duty to their Keeper to help her, but Baba Yaga is not one of them.”

  Valentina bit the inside of her lip. “It doesn’t matter. I can handle it.”

  “Val...”

  “I can handle it, I said.” She pulled her hands free and walked away, hoping she was heading in the general direction of the Hermit’s cottage. “Come on, guys. We’re taking a little detour.”

  EPILOGUE

  Leavenworth, Washington

  Valentina pulled in front of Piper’s house, one foot on the ground, the engine still roaring under her. Her black cloak fell over her shoulders and back, finally tamed after the maddening ride from the airport to her hometown. Magny poofed himself on her shoulder as soon as she stopped the engine and flung her other leg off the motorcycle. Passersby stared at her as if she were out of this world, and a white, fluffy Maltese started barking its tiny lungs at her. A subtle flick of her wrist was enough to quiet him and make him sit like the good doggy that he was. She walked to the front gate. The front yard was empty, but she immediately spotted someone at the first-floor window. That was Piper’s room. With a smile on her lips and hope filling her heart, Valentina opened the gate and strolled down the alley to the front door. Her best friend burst out of the house and ran into Valentina’s arms.

  “You’re here! I can’t believe you’re here!” Piper held on to her friend for dear life. “I’ve missed you so much.”

  “I missed you too.” Val closed her eyes and inhaled Piper’s unique scent. Roses and strawberries. It was silly, but she was glad her Pipes hadn’t changed her shampoo. She smelled like home.

  After another moment, Piper let go and held Valentina at arm’s length. The next second, her face fell.

  “Oh my God, what happened to your face?!” She reached out to touch the long scar on Val’s right cheek.

  Val stopped her, her fingers wrapping around Piper’s thin wrist before her hand made contact with the healing scar.

  “Nothing.”

  “What do you mean nothing?! Who did this to you? What happened?” She took a step back, and finally saw the big picture. “What’s with the cloak?” She looked past her shoulder. “And the bike... Oh my God, you’re riding a motorcycle now?”

  Valentina laughed. “So many questions, Pipes! Okay, okay! A lot of things happened. I’ll tell you everything, I promise. But I need to see my parents now.”

  “Oh.” Piper bit the inside of her cheek. She was suddenly very silent.

  “Who is it?”

  Sia emerged from the house, her fiery hair shining bright in the summer sun. When she saw Valentina, she stopped in her tracks. Magny had already taken his favorite place on Piper’s shoulder, and Sia scowled at him. Two months had passed since the witch and the hobgoblin had lied to her, and she hadn’t forgiven them yet. She doubted she ever would.

  “It’s you,” the redhead said. “Jesus, what happened to your face?”

  Val rolled her eyes. “It can wait. Piper, I... I’m going home. I stopped by because...” She dragged in a breath. “Well, I’m afraid to go alone. Will you please come with me? And Sia, too. If she wants.”

  Sia crossed her arms over her chest. “Sure. Whatever. I’m in. If only to see the look on your face.”

  Valentina’s heart shrunk at her words. She had expected this to be tough, but from the painter’s reaction, she now understood it was going to be the toughest thing she had ever done. Whatever was to come, she hoped she could handle it. She’d handled Thailand quite well, and she had the battle scar to prove it, but if she was going to be scarred this time, it wouldn’t be her body taking the hit, but her soul.

  “I see your parents once a week or so,” said Piper in a small voice. “That guy, Dante, too. They seem... okay.”

  “What does okay mean?”

  Piper shrugged. “Let’s just say that if I didn’t know what was happening, I wouldn’t figure out that something was off.”

  The three young women sneaked out of Piper’s yard through the back door and took the back alleys toward Valentina’s house. Val didn’t want to make her presence known prematurely. She wanted to observe Adelle and Cosimo De Rossi from afar, if she could, if only for a minute. She wondered whether they could feel her getting closer and closer, crossing the street to their back garden, lifting herself off the ground and floating three inches above it so she could see over the fence. Piper and Sia were at her side, and that did make her feel slightly better. She had thought of summoning Loki, Veles, Jove, and Nergal, but the truth was she wanted to do this alone. Piper and Sia would stay outside and she’d go in. Eventually. She wanted to face the Walk-Ins that had taken over her parents face-to-face, with no one standing between them.

  “Here they are,” Piper whispered, pointing at the second-floor window. “I told you, they seem normal.”

  “Let me look into their eyes, and then I’ll tell you if they’re normal or not,” Valentina whispered.

  She could see them. They were in the art room, and her father was painting while her mother read in a reclining chair. From where she stood – or floated, in this case – they did look like two people enjoying a quiet afternoon together. Except... Cosimo De Rossi had never showed any interested in painting before, had always been clumsy with a simple pencil, let alone with a brush, and had often loudly expressed his opinion about how doodling was for bored knuckleheads. Aside from that, he was a classy gentleman, an attentive husband, and a good father. Adelina De Rossi did read, though. Valentina squinted her eyes and used a quick sigil to enhance her sight. Her mother was holding an anthology of retold fairy tales. Valentina did a double take and almost lost her balance. She grabbed the fence for support.

  “What’s wrong?” Sia whispered.

  “My mom... She never reads...” She sighed and rubbed her temple. “It doesn’t matter. They’re both doing things that are very uncharacteristic of them.”

  “People change?” Sia offered reluctantly.

  “You know it’s not that.”

  “Sorry. I was trying to help.”

  Valentina’s feet touched the ground. She wrapped her arms around herself for a moment, cocooning her trembling body in Death’s cloak. The more she stood there, watching her parents through the tall window of the art room, the sicker she got. It was different from how she felt when she flashed through time. It was like the sickness came from deep within her; it wasn’t caused by external factors. It was caused by the knowledge that she had left them. She had taken the Suit of Spades and ran like a coward. And now... Now they weren’t themselves anymore.

  “I’m going in.”

  “You’re so pale. And you’re shaking.” Piper touched her arm, but instead of leaning into her touch, Valentina pulled away. “You don’t have to do this now. They’ve been here all along. They’ll be here tomorrow, too. You need food and rest. And... a doctor to look at that scar.”

  “No.” She was trembling harder now. “I’ve crossed the globe to get back here. I should have come sooner. I... I’m going in before I change my mind.”

  Piper tried to stop her, but Sia grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her back. They watched as Valentina opened the back gate of her parents’ garden and floated toward the house as to not make a sound. She reached the door, turned the knob gently and soundlessly, and disappeared inside the house. Piper’s hand flew to her chest. Even Magny had forgotten how to breathe.

  “She’s going to be fine,” Sia whispered in her girlfriend’s ear. “She’s a powerful witch and the most loyal Keeper her coven could have wished for. Whatever she finds in there, she can beat it.”

  “She doesn’t want to beat anyone,” Magny said. “She w
ants to save them.”

  Sia smiled. “All the better. Our world is in good hands.”

  THE END

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  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Cara Wylde loves to write about strong, feisty women and their hot Alphas who will do anything to make them happy. Her books are filled with romance and just a dash of mystery, suspense, and that eerie atmosphere she fell in love with reading too many gothic novels. With a master's degree in Comparative Literature, she can't help but play with tropes and themes from various genres, trying to come up with fresh perspectives on the paranormal characters her readers love so much. Vampires, shapeshifters, demons, witches... Cara will always make sure they get their own twists.

  When she's not writing, Cara is reading, planning her next story, or daydreaming. Oh! And also studying and reading Tarot. If you’re interested, you can visit her Tarot Website.

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