Primeval Prelude: Reverse Harem Siren Romance (Spellsinger Book 4)

by Amy Sumida

  Hades paused and allowed the gathering to process their pain for a minute.

  “There has never been a Spellsinger death,” he went on. “So there are no traditions for us to follow, and there will hopefully be none needed in the future. But Alexandra's fellow Spellsingers would like to honor her as they avenged her; in song together. They'll be singing Alex's favorite song; 'Over the Rainbow' in the style of another island-dwelling musician who has passed away: Mr. Israel Kamakawiwo'ole.”

  Hades waved us Spellsingers forward. My men let go of me, and I went as if I were walking through a dream. I knew this was coming, and I thought I had prepared for it, but the reality was so awful that my mind couldn't process it. I went to stand beside Daphne, on the end of our line, and she took my hand.

  “Once more, for Alex,” Eilener said to the rest of us.

  We nodded, and then looked at Cerberus. My best friend had offered to play the ukulele for us; to give our song the authenticity that Alexandra would have loved. He started to play the softly joyous notes, and then we began to sing.

  Just a little humming at first, our unified magic rose around us before we even formed words. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I sang the hopeful lyrics; that somewhere, someday I would see her again. That Alexandra's dreams hadn't died with her but had continued with her soul into another world, just beyond that Rainbow Bridge. Our spell drifted out and lifted Alex's body, carrying her gently to her grave. We laid her down within it tenderly, and then, as everyone wept, we covered her with sandy soil; tucking her in to her final rest.

  I lifted my face to the night sky and hoped that the magic within the mermaid's shell worked, and that Alexandra's soul was set free. I would remember that sparkling vision until the day my soul moved on. It had been exactly what I would have pictured Alexandra's essence to look like; glittering and beautiful. I said goodbye to her in the best way I knew how—with song—and my song combined with the other Spellsingers to spread out over the assemblage. But this time, our spell was sweet. This time, we didn't kill, but mourned a death and let go of someone we loved.

  With the final chorus, the entire gathering joined in, and we all sang our goodbyes. Cerberus played the last few chords, and then the music echoed away across the sea. The crowd went silent, and all that was heard was the rushing of waves upon the nearby shore. It was so very peaceful.

  Until there was the sound of shifting sand.

  We all gaped at Alexandra's grave as the sand dipped and water seeped up from its center. More and more liquid gathered over the sand, collecting into a shape that was quickly becoming human. Gasps spread through the crowd as a body formed from the gathering liquid, and then the water lost its translucency and turned into flesh. Hair streamed out from the pale head; hair the color of polished ebony. The face took form; features defining it into something very familiar.

  “Alexandra!” Sophie cried and launched herself forward.

  The body of water opened its eyes and revealed them to be sea-green; Alexandra's had been brown. Still, they had the shape of Alex's eyes. The chin was a little sharper, and the cheekbones higher, but the smile that blossomed over that face was all Alexandra.

  “Mother,” she whispered.

  “Holy fucking Hades,” Cerberus whispered.

  “How?” Sophie cried as she stroked her daughter's cheek.

  “I don't know,” Alexandra said as she sat up. “I feel strange.”

  “What do you remember?” Odin came forward and bent down beside the women.

  “I remember singing and then being taken into the sky,” she said with a frown. “I fell, and I died.”

  “Yes,” Sophie could barely say the word through her tears.

  “But I couldn't leave.” Alex turned to look up at us Spellsingers. “I knew you needed me. I had to know that you were safe before I moved on.”

  “Thank you for saving us, Alex,” Adelaid cried as she knelt beside her. “We would have killed an entire planet, and then the backlash may have killed us.”

  “I know,” Alexandra whispered. “But I don't know how I came back into this body. This unusual body.” Alex stared at her hands as if they didn't belong to her. “I feel very... wet.”

  “Wet?” Odin asked in surprise.

  “Well, she did emerge from a puddle,” Hades pointed out in a dry tone (oh, the irony).

  “I don't understand,” Alex said.

  “Then I shall explain,” a man's voice came from behind the gathering nearest the sea.

  The crowd parted, and an asrai stepped forward. He was smiling, beautiful, and very familiar.

  “Tell?” I asked in shock.

  “Technically, I'm Tell the Second. But Tell is fine. Hello, Elaria,” the reborn asrai said. “My father told me that a new asrai would be born today, and I was to welcome her into the sea.”

  “A new asrai?” Sophie asked; her wings shivering.

  “This is the tribute of the water fey of Tír na nÓg,” Tell the Second said. “They could not bring Alexandra back in a solid form, but people are made up of more water than they realize, and the water within Alex remembered her. Because of this memory and the lingering of her soul, they were able to give her a new form and a new life.”

  “The life of an asrai?” Alexandra asked with a grin.

  “You're happy about this?” Sophie was shocked.

  “Mother, I'm alive, and I get to live in the sea,” Alex said joyously. “Is that not miraculous?”

  Sophie blinked for a moment and then started laughing. “Yes, sweetheart; it's a miracle.” She hugged Alexandra and helped her to her newly-formed feet. Then Sophie turned to Tell. “Look after her,” she said to him. “Or I will come after you.”

  “I'm not stealing your daughter away this very second.” Tell laughed; the seashells in his long, white hair clicking together. “Asrai need the water, but we can part from it for short periods. Our only restriction is sunlight. Alexandra, unfortunately, will never see the sun again.”

  “You'll miss it,” Banning said to Alex gently, “but when you are denied the Sun, you find more beauty in the Moon.”

  “Thank you,” Alexandra said to Banning. “I know that I will. It's far better than being dead, anyway.” She laughed, and the relieved and astounded gathering joined her. “Does anyone have a coat or something? I'm naked here, people.”

  More laughter filled the air, and a cloak was found for Alex before she was passed around the joyous group, to be hugged over and over.

  Chapter Sixty-Five

  I sat with my consorts, watching Alexandra dance with yet another man. She had come back to life even more vivacious than she'd been, to begin with. Tell watched her with covetous looks that I was sure would lead to lots of delicious trouble; especially with the way Alex was staring back at him. Sophie and the rest of our family rejoiced as we had never rejoiced before. It wasn't every day that a loved one came back from the dead.

  “I need to return to Sgàthan and thank those fairies,” I murmured.

  “We'll go with you,” Declan said.

  “I had no idea that the water fey held such power,” Torin said with wonder.

  “They must have joined their magic as the Spellsingers did,” Declan theorized. “They collected the magic in that shell, and the burial released it.”

  “The earth,” I whispered.

  “What's that, El?” Banning asked.

  “The earth released it,” I said in a stronger voice. “But it had to be earth tempered by the sea—sand.”

  “The salt-laced sand near a shore,” Torin added. “Earth to release the magic, and salt to give it a purpose.”

  “It was a seashell bomb.” I laughed. “A hell of a lot better than the last magical bomb we dealt with.”

  “It was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen,” Gage whispered.

  “With Elaria as a mate, the amazing becomes commonplace,” Banning said softly.

  I smiled at him tenderly.

  “I'm serious, Elaria,” Bann
ing declared. “We were all beings of magic before we met you, but you made our lives magical.”

  “The cage,” Torin muttered.

  “The what?” Gage gaped at him.

  “Our little bird has imprisoned us with her love,” Torin said. “But there's nowhere more wondrous than her cage.”

  “Nowhere I'd rather be,” Banning agreed.

  “As long as you're in there with me.” Gage grinned at me.

  “And we can rattle the bars together.” Declan waggled his ruby brows at me.

  We all groaned and shook our heads.

  “What?” Declan asked innocently.

  “Way to ruin a moment, dickhead,” Banning huffed.

  “Nothing is ever ruined with Elaria,” Declan went serious. “In fact, she does the opposite.” He leaned forward and kissed me sweetly before he whispered to me, “You make every moment sublime.”

  And I knew that this was only the beginning; merely a prelude of the magical moments to come.

  Epilogue

  There's a lot of change happening in Primeval. New leadership was installed at the Amber Temple, and all the races of the Lesser Fey are gathering to decide upon new laws to govern themselves by, as well as new ways to protect the forest.

  The Kyanite kingdom is recovering from the loss of so many traitorous Shining Ones, as well as the loss of a few honorable ones. The traitors were last seen leaving Tír na nÓg, and the honorable knights who died at the Primeval Battle were buried in the royal cemetery, beside their last queen. No; they hadn't been able to save my predecessor, but they had made the ultimate sacrifice for me in payment for their ignorance. I think that deserved some recognition.

  The Copper Kingdom forges on without a ruler, but I have faith that it will soon find its king or queen. On a much wetter note, I returned to the shores of the Sgàthan, but I did so in the Alexandrite Kingdom instead of Primeval. Declan showed me how to call the water fey, and guess who appeared? My old friend Tell—the first. He graciously accepted the gratitude of my family, promised to pass it on to the other water fey, and assured me that his son, Tell the second, would look after Alexandra.

  Banning's Gura suffered the greatest losses, but it isn't broken. The survivors are stronger than they were before the war, and they're grateful for that. The loss of their loved ones is easier to bear, knowing that they'd had some time in the sun before they died. Banning took the bodies of his fallen Blooders back to Kansas and buried them in a small cemetery behind his country club. One large funeral was held for them; which my consorts and I attended, along with representatives from the other races who fought in Primeval. I had thought those representatives were only going to attend Alexandra's funeral, but they showed up for every memorial service held for the fallen warriors of Primeval. I know this because my consorts and I went to all of them as well. It was the least we could do.

  Gage's family has finally accepted that he won't be moving home anytime soon. That was a huge relief; the last thing I needed was the Griffins mad at me. It was bad enough to know that the Manticores were still gunning for me. You'd think that the last slaughter would have turned them off from their vengeance, but instead, it has cemented their hatred. Word on the Beneath streets is that they are looking to hire another assassin.

  But I can't worry about that right now; I have four consorts to love and an entire jewel kingdom to look after. I've decided that it's time to focus on being a queen and a lover. Anything else will just have to wait.

  Keep reading for Grammar Giggles, a Pronunciation Guide, and a sneak peek into the next book in the Spellsinger Series:

  Keep reading for a sneak peek in the next book in the Spellsinger Series:

  A Ballad of Blood

  Now available on Amazon

  Chapter One

  Moonlight skimmed the surface of the little lake, making it into a mirror. Birds cried in the early night, cooing to their mates to settle in for the night. The scent of crushed grass rose from beneath the picnic blanket Banning had laid out for us, and the bite of dry, red wine added an acidic note. The taste of the wine was on my lips, melding with a faint flavor of my blood. Banning had kissed me after he fed.

  Dusk had fallen only an hour ago, but we had been out on the empty golf course for much longer than that. Banning had shut his country club down for a week; to give his Blooders—aka vampires—some time off after they'd helped us protect the Primeval Forest of Tír na nÓg against Norse Giants—long story. Twenty-six Blooders had died in the battle, and not only did the survivors need some time off to relax, but they needed it to mourn. The only bright side was the fact that Banning's Blooders had been able to feed from several types of immortals in the days leading up to the battle, and had become much stronger for it—even gaining an ability to walk in the sunshine again.

  Banning himself had drunk from Torin, Declan, Gage, and me. He had previously taken blood only from me, and that had given him the ability to withstand sunlight. But after drinking from two Shining Ones and a Griffin, Banning was now ten times stronger, which meant that our whole romantic quintet was ten times stronger. Today, that strength had shown itself in our lovemaking.

  We had made love beneath the warm sun for hours; one of Banning's favorite pastimes now. When he had neared completion, he bit me and sent us both over ecstasy's edge. We shouted together—our cries echoing across the lake—but it didn't matter. No one would disturb us. Or so I thought.

  As we laid there naked, wrapped around each other, one of Banning's Blooders came running up. At least it was a woman, otherwise Banning would have blown a Blooder gasket. It was bad enough that she got an eyeful of his goods, it would have been far worse if some Blooder guy had gotten the same from me.

  “Gheara, I'm so sorry,” Megan said as she kept her eyes averted. “I wouldn't bother you if it wasn't important.”

  “What's happened?” Banning asked as he handed me my clothes.

  “There's a visitor here from Romania,” Megan said. “From your father,” she added just in case we didn't make the connection.”

  “We'll be right there,” Banning said.

  Megan started to run away, but Banning called after her.

  “Has he hurt anyone?”

  “No, Gheara,” she said. Then added, “Not yet.”

  She hurried back to the club.

  “Great.” I sighed. “I knew this was too good to be true.”

  “What?”

  “This peace,” I huffed. “No one trying to kill the ones we love or us. I knew it wasn't forever.”

  “Nothing is forever,” Banning said softly before he kissed my cheek. “But sometimes that's a good thing.”

  Banning and I had been lovers in the past, but I had been killed. Then I had been reborn as a Spellsinger. I remembered the love we had shared, but Banning was right; this time around was so much better.

  We hurried up to the Crouching Lion's main clubhouse. The lights were on inside, but I didn't see anyone through the windows. We went through the back entrance and then made our way to the main room, where the reason for the lack of people was revealed. The entire Gura was in one room, staring at one guy. But all the attention swiveled to Banning and me as we walked in.

  The man who had been the center of attention stood to greet us. He was slickly handsome; like a car salesman turned actor. He had close-cropped dark hair, pale gray eyes that made him look blind at first glance, and skin paler than the inside of a clam. His elegant hands were clasped loosely before him, barely pressing into his tailored suit, and his lips were set in a relaxed smile.

  “Prince Banning?” He asked as we approached.

  “'Gheara Banning' is fine,” Banning corrected.

  “I hardly think so.” The man's lips twisted into a wry smile and his gaze dropped over Banning's body in a sexually speculative manner. “You are most definitely a prince.”

  I coughed to cover my laugh.

  “And you are the Spellsinger, I presume? The man asked; completely unruffled by my amus
ement.

  “Propriety dictates that you introduce yourself before others,” I said crisply.

  “Ah, my apologies,” he murmured with a smirk. “I am Randal Longchamp of the Suceava Gura.”

  “Longchamp?” Banning frowned. “There was a gheara named Longchamp in England.”

  “I am he,” Randal confirmed. “I abdicated to join your father's gura.”

  “Why would you do that?” Banning asked.