by Lora Ann
Light
Beautiful Ashes
Book 3
Lora Ann
Light
(Beautiful Ashes Series, Book 3)
Lora Ann
Light
Published by The Greatest of These, LLC
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locals are entirely coincidental.
The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved below, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
All Rights Reserved
Copyright © 2017 by Lora Ann
Cover design by Sabre Gray & Bane Cover Studio
http://www.sabregraybanecoverstudio.com/
*
WARNING*
This is a dark romance, erotic, supernatural thriller that contains elements which may be disturbing and offensive. If you are bothered or triggered by violence, torture, and abuse, please read with extreme caution. For a mature audience, only!
This is the epic conclusion to Tar and Keeley’s story!
Please read books 1 & 2 in the Beautiful Ashes Series first.
Dark: http://amzn.to/1LXMlVB
Fire: http://amzn.to/2chia0D
Connected Books to the Beautiful Ashes Series:
Strand Brothers Series
Branded: Book 1 http://amzn.to/1R0vRut
Bound: Book 2 http://amzn.to/20dPnaE
Broken: Book 3 http://amzn.to/1RUQG8X
Bliss: Epilogue Novella http://amzn.to/1MjRSWI
The Strand Brothers Complete Set http://amzn.to/1pvv0sN
Acknowledgements
There is no way I could do any of this without my wing-woman aka PA Suzanne Gangarosa. She definitely keeps me organized and in line, but more than that, I’m honored to call her friend. Suzanne: Thank you for putting up with my crazy ass and believing in me.
Speaking of not doing this alone, I’d be remiss not to mention my kickass team: Tina Henry, Cathy Dione, Carolyn Muller, Carolann Evans, Wendy Tucker Wignall, Shelli Rae, Rin Barcal, Sherri Comer, Cynthia Loki Graves, Helena Hoorn, Hazel Lewis, Sherry Bruyette, Doris Hires Collins, Jenny Shepherd, and Angela Peters. Ladies: My cup overflows! Your hard work, support, plus your friendship, means so much. From the bottom of my heart—Thank you!
Contest Winners:
Vickie Brown for naming our angel and one of our heroes, Kian.
Angela Peters for naming one of our villains and actor, Zak Gillian.
Suzanne Gangarosa for naming our super model, Lexi Brooks.
Shout out to the amazing Sabre Gray & Bane Cover Studio for this beautiful cover and graphics!
A special thank you to my boys for believing in my dream (though they are not allowed to read my books until they’re twenty-one), supporting and sharing their mom, and most of all for their love. I love you all so, so much!
Most of all I thank God, for putting a dream in my heart and creating me to weave the tapestry of words. But more importantly, for calling me daughter.
Contents
Copyright
Warning
Read First
Acknowledgements
Dedication
Scripture
Quote
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
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Epilogue
Playlist
Special Note
Author Bio
Author Contact Information
Preview of Exile (Society Book 7) by Mason Sabre
Dedication
To my wonderful readers and fans. Thank you for believing in Keeley and Tar, as well as your amazing support.
He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire.
He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along.
Psalm 40:2 NLT
“
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
Chapter One
The tarp yanked hard from the weight that fell into it. But she was safe. Lacey cried out, “Keeley!”
There was no movement from the small frame caught in the material. Mitch gave out the command, “On three everyone gently lay down the tarp.”
Lacey scrambled to her sister’s side brushing off the nasty little spiders crawling all over both of them. Softly she stroked Keeley’s cheek, moving her hair to the side. She appeared peaceful, as if lost in blissful slumber. Lacey leaned down and could feel warm breath on her face. She searched Mitch’s gaze. “What’s wrong with her?”
He did a quick check of her vitals and ever-so tenderly searched for a head wound. His hands came away blood free, and he couldn’t find any lumps either. “My best guess is the fright from the fall knocked her out.”
Lacey nodded but found her attention divided. Mitch followed where her eyes had gone and let a ripe curse fly as he hopped to his feet. Alex grabbed a hold of the tarpaulin. “Lacey. Get her off! NOW!”
Shelby assisted with helping move Keeley as the guys repositioned the canvas. Alex looked up. “Mother fuck!” It was the only thing spoken before a heavy weight yanked both men off their feet. They were unable to hold the rough cloth as it ripped. The body inside fell with a loud thunk.
“Shit! That was his head,” Mitch cried out as he scrambled toward the big man.
Alex swallowed hard as he overheard, “Fuck! Hang on, little brother!”
Lacey’s scream was deafening as she and Alex watched E dangle over the warehouse edge. They looked on in horror as he slipped further out of Nik’s grasp.
Nik’s grip was fierce as he locked onto E’s ankle and pulled with all he had in him.
E was trying to feel around for any kind of leverage to help his brother when he slid further down. He realized his searching hands were causing his body to wriggle, so he froze. Nik needed a stronger hold before E could help him. E looked down toward Lacey, trying in vain to let her know he loved her so, so much.
Keeley sat up on a gasp, momentarily dazed. Once she saw Tar lying lifeless on the unforgiving cement, she was a flash of motion. She wa
s next to him crying his name over and over. Mitch was torn. The tarp was of no use anymore, and neither Mitch nor Alex could reach the roof in time to help Nik. Although, that didn’t stop Alex from trying as he ran up the flight of stairs two at a time.
There was a loud grunt that echoed off the buildings followed by an eerie silence that filled the space. Shelby absently thought, straight out of a horror novel.
Lacey broke the heavy quiet when her knees hit the pavement. She began to pray in earnest. Shelby was amazed as Mitch did the same. She felt as if she were invading something private and sacred, until Nik groaned loudly. Keeley held on to Tar’s unmoving hand as she clasped Lacey’s. Shelby quickly realized it was the only hope E had, so she, too, held hands with the others. Unsure if it would work but willing to try anything.
Shelby glanced up toward the roof where her eyes darted back and forth, trying to make sense of what she saw. Dark shadows surrounded E’s upper body and a distinct light haloed Nik’s hands, which were wrapped around E’s ankle. He fought valiantly to reach a protruding piece of the building in order to help his brother haul him to safety. His fingers kept slipping and she observed that they appeared black. Shelby shook her head, assuming it was some sort of a hallucination.
The fight to survive grew fiercer as another battle took place. Good and evil locked in combat. Keeley felt the swish of an invisible sword along her face and gasped. Her eyes locked on Nik’s as he leaned precariously over the ledge. She wanted to scream but a giant lump obstructed her throat. All she could do was watch, pray, hope he was strong enough to help her beloved brother-in-law.
Nik felt assistance in his pulling while his muscles burned from the exertion. No doubt in his mind that the only reason his little brother had not fallen to his death was due to divine intervention. “E,” he shouted, “find something you can push yourself toward me with.”
“Thank fuck!” E replied when that protruding little ledge, he’d been trying to grasp, was finally in his reach. He pushed as Nik pulled, working as a team to slowly ease his body back onto the roof.
In a split second it all changed. Nik lost his hold and E fell like an anvil. There was no time to scream, no time to react. But Keeley saw the man, who always appeared in bright light, nearly blinding her. He directed E’s fall to an awning none of them noticed before. E collided with that material and not one witness thought it could possibly hold such a large man. But hold it did as E safely landed within its embrace.
Lacey trembled, standing and watching with caution to see if her husband was all right. She wanted to run toward him, but Mitch held her in place. “No. Hang back just a minute.” His head cocked in a peculiar way. They both gasped in relief when E’s hand clutched the side of that awning. Lacey, Mitch, and Shelby went to assist him.
Keeley continued to stare at the bright figure above Tar’s head. Her fervent pleading, “Don’t take him from him me,” heard loud and clear as the angel awaited his orders. He wanted to give Keeley her happily-ever-after, but that simply wasn’t his to give. A sigh of gratitude escaped him when the decision was made in the couple’s favor. Her wince of pain alerted him to her broken arm where he lightly touched. The angel watched Keeley’s hair raise from his breath, showing him she was injured from the fight he’d been in with the demon. Ever-so gently he stroked her cheek where blood and tears mingled. “You are a warrior, dear Keeley.” He looked down at Tar knowing the fight was not over for them, yet hoping they would prevail. That this second chance—well, actually more than—would be exactly what they needed.
Lacey stumbled back as her husband’s weight pushed against her. “God, I thought I lost you,” she kept repeating as her fist made contact with his chest.
She wasn’t hurting him but E stilled her anyway. “Sweetness, I won’t leave without you.” Her sob echoed off the buildings. E stood there, holding his beautiful Lacey, silently offering up a heartfelt thank you.
Alex was up on the roof with Nik, sitting against the back wall. “You did good, big brother.”
Nik shook his head. “I had help.”
Alex studied him. “E was able to assist?”
The chuckle was low and appreciative. “Sort of. But there was a divine presence at work here tonight.”
“I don’t doubt that,” Alex replied, staring off into the starry sky.
The sirens broke the calm of the moment as both men stood. They knew this was far from over and more battles would be fought. The Strand brothers were raised that you love with all you had each and every day, because tomorrow was never guaranteed. And as each brother touched another life, that was passed on. Both Alex and Nik hoped, prayed, that Keeley and Tar would win. That once more, true love would conquer all.
Chapter Two
Keeley didn’t want to sit still while the doctor insisted she was checked out thoroughly, including x-rays. Tar was still unconscious and she was worried sick. Something the doctor mumbled caught her attention. “Doesn’t make any sense.”
She leveled her gaze on his. “What?”
“This cut on your cheek.”
She recalled the man in light, touching her so gently there, and the feel of a sword that made it. A pregnant pause filled the air. Keeley knew she had once more come face-to-face with her angel. But admitting that to the ER doctor would get her sent for a CAT scan on her head, keeping her from Tar. She decided it was best to pretend like the cut came from her fall off the roof. “I must’ve somehow scratched it on my fall.”
His brow quirked. “That would make sense if it were indeed a scratch. Or at least jagged.”
She shrugged. “Lucky I guess.”
He gave a disbelieving chuckle while cleaning the wound. No one had mentioned a knife being involved, though he knew it was a clean sharp edge that’d left such a mark. The fact it was partially healed baffled him more. Then again, the mid-shaft fractures in her humerus were another mystery. How she’d managed three clean breaks that appeared to be almost fused back together was nothing short of amazing. But it wasn’t like he hadn’t witnessed strange things before. One didn’t work in emergency care and not come eye to eye with the unexplainable. “I’m going to order a brace for your arm and give you a prescription for an antibiotic, just to be sure no infection sets in the cut on your cheek.”
Keeley nodded, taking the script from him. “Thanks. I’m good to go?”
“Once your arm is in a fracture brace, yes.”
She rolled her eyes at him as he wisely chose to say no more. The wait was killing her as fear held her in its tight grip.
*****
Tar woke with a start, scanning the room. His brain provided the information, hospital. But the why was lost to him. His head felt like someone took a jack hammer to it. What the hell happened? The door flew open and there she stood. Rage filled him. She had some nerve walking in there looking like she actually gave a damn about him.
Keeley held his scalding glare. Why was he so furious with her? “You okay?” her voice tinny sounding.
“Why the fuck do you care?” he growled.
Her eyes widened as she slowed her steps. What could she have possibly done for him to spew such wrath? All right, she knew she’d done plenty. Deserved his loathing for more than one thing, but still…something was off. Way off. “I,” she cleared her throat and locked her gaze with his. “I love you.”
“Don’t lie to me.” His jaw clenched tight.
She stared him down. Keeley would be the first to admit she’d made numerous mistakes, committed heinous sins, but she wasn’t lying. Not this time. Not about how she felt about him. “I’m telling you the truth.”
“Ha! You wouldn’t know the truth if it bit you in the ass.”
He wasn’t necessarily wrong about her. For many years, she’d struggled greatly with honesty. Mostly to protect those she loved from her despicable addictions. “Tar, why are you so angry with me?”
“Really?” he barked out. “If I need to explain it, then you don’t know me at all. And if you
don’t know me, how could you possibly love me as you claim.”
Well, fuck. He was speaking in weird riddles. At the same time, pissing her off. She squared her tiny shoulders and took a step toward the bed. “I don’t know what this is about. But I’m not a mind reader. So how ‘bout you bring me up to speed.”
“Don’t take that attitude with me,” he grumbled low and threatening.
Oh, hell no! “You don’t get to tell me what attitude I can or can’t have.” Another step brought her right beside him, daring him to touch her.
He was just about to let her have it when suddenly, there was a searing pain in his head. A loud piercing squeal in his ears brought his hands to them as he began to bellow, “IN COMING!”
Shit! He wasn’t present and accounted for. Keeley knew he was caught somewhere in the past. “Tarius. Look at me! It’s me Keeley.” She grabbed his huge shoulders. He had a hold of her before she could react. The look in his eyes was terrifying. But she held firm. “Tar, I love you. I love you. I LOVE you!”
There was a flash of recognition in his gaze as he dropped her. His big hands shook and his entire body trembled. “Keeley?” He barely got her name past his lips.
“Yes. I’m right here.” Tears streaming down her face as she forced herself back within his reach.
“I—”
“TAR,” Keeley screamed and shook him, but it was useless. He was no longer there.
The room filled with medical personnel as someone grabbed Keeley and pulled her from the fray. She kept trying to get back to him, but whoever held her wasn’t letting go. She began to wail as big arms scooped her up and carried her out. Her face buried in his muscled chest while sobs wracked her little body.
