by Viola Grace
Table of Contents
Dedication
Carnival: Isobel
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
About the Author
Isobel Marlin is one of the most powerful mages ever born. She has been trained by her father and mother using any and all magical races to supplement her education.
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Arcane
Copyright © 2017 Viola Grace
ISBN: 978-1-4874-1450-4
Cover art by Martine Jardin
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.
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Devine Destinies, an imprint of eXtasy Books Inc
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Arcane
Half-Blood Club Book 1
By
Viola Grace
Dedication
To anyone with a close group of friends. You know, the ones that you can see every week or once a year, and it is like you were never apart.
Carnival: Isobel
The craving was there again. Izzy wrinkled her nose and tried to fight it, but she knew she was going to be unsuccessful.
Izzy went downstairs and found her mom. “Mom, I need to go out today.”
Her mother was in the kitchen where flasks and flames were within her attentive control. “Where are you going, Junior?”
She raised her hand and ticked off her requirements. “I need a corn dog, a hamburger, cotton candy, a toffee apple, and a funnel cake.”
Her mom grinned. “Go ahead. Do you need a ride?”
“No. I am going to take my bike. I will be back before dark.”
Her mother nodded. “Call if you need a ride home.”
“Yup.” Izzy grinned, grabbed her money, and left the house. She followed her nose to the carnival grounds a few blocks away. The scent had been teasing her for days.
The ride ticket was ignored on her wrist. She had no interest in being whirled around like she was sitting at the bottom of a bucket. She was after food, so she got in line for the first of her treasures.
The girl ahead of her looked confused and bit her lip as she stared at the selections.
Izzy leaned forward. “What are you looking for?”
The girl yelped and turned to face her. “Oh, I was just looking for lemonade.”
Izzy watched as the blue-black hair slid over the girl’s shoulder and a delicately pointed ear was exposed.
“Um, the lemonade stand is two down on the left. I can show you if you like.”
The girl blinked slowly and then smiled. “Thank you. That would be nice.”
Izzy linked arms with her and whispered, “Your right ear is showing a little.”
The girl blushed and smoothed her hair over it. “Thanks. You know what I am?”
“Not exactly, but I have met folks with ears like that, and they are rarely at carnivals.”
The lemonade stand was shaped like a huge cup of lemonade, and when the girl had her drink and was sipping slowly, Izzy introduced herself.
“Hi. I am Isobel.”
The girl shifted the cup and wiped the condensation off her hand before she extended it. “Esmerelda. You can call me Esmy.”
“Izzy.”
They shook hands and smiled.
Izzy chuckled. “Would you like a culinary tour of the carnival? I am about to eat my way from one end to the other.”
Esmy blinked. “That sounds more interesting than what I had planned. I was just going to wander around until my mom picked me up.”
Izzy chuckled. “In that case, let me introduce you to the wonders of deep fried cheesecake.”
Esmy laughed. “Tell me more.”
They linked arms again and wandered up and down the food stalls until they were exhausted and looking for a place to sit.
The two girls sitting at the picnic table looked weirdly familiar, and Izzy decided at that moment that she was going to make a few new friends. It was just that kind of a day.
Prologue
The small house on the corner of the street rang with laughter. Inside the warm confines an elf, a mage, a werewolf and a dragon were all having margaritas and chocolate fondue. It was a cheerfully drunk, feminine coalition that would stop at nothing to protect one another from the grip of the mages and dragon councils respectively.
It was the bi-weekly meeting of the Half-Blood Club, and all members were in attendance; Hookey, the half-elf. Hex, offspring of a magus and a hedge witch. Jinx, the half werewolf, and George, a full-blooded female dragon hiding from the council. The names went back to their meeting as children, when they didn’t want any nosey mages to catch on to whom and what they were.
* * * *
With a deep sigh of inevitability, Hookey stood and faced her friends. “I have a rather alarming announcement to make.”
The women around the table stopped for a moment, and all eyes focused on the speaker.
“In two days, I will have to face the High Council and submit to testing to assess my power level. After the tests, I will be put to the Question as to the existence of others like me.” She took a deep breath and flipped her hair over her shoulder with a frustrated motion. “I’m afraid that we’re going to be ‘outed,’ ladies.”
George eyed her dubiously. “Why now? Why, after all these years, are you being tested?”
“Apparently, my grandmother has pulled some strings to get me before the council. If I pass the testing, and we all know I will, I get to attend the Winter Ball. Every desperate elf maiden’s dream.” Hookey grinned with pure mischief in her eyes. “I have nothing to wear.”
“Are you going to remove the glamour?” Returning to what was important, George reached for the pitcher of margaritas.
“I don’t think I have a choice. The council will be able to see the spell when I undergo the tests.” Hookey shrugged apologetically. “Sorry, everybody. I never intended for it to happen this way. If my grandmother weren’t sleeping with the councillor from the fey contingent, they would never have considered letting me be tested.”
“Well, it’s not like we didn’t know this day would come.” Hex sighed with her usual practicality. “I guess we just have to make our own moves as fast as we can.”
Jinx looked hesitant and mortified. “Umm... I haven’t exactly chosen my target yet.”
Hookey was exasperated, “Why not? It’s not like you didn’t have the opportunity.”
“Yeah, at least you have a wide-open field of candidates. Not like some of us.” George was disgruntled, her eyes flared in annoyance.
“Hey, George, lighten up. We all know that you’ve made your choice.” Hex’s tone was half an octave higher than usual, and she started blushing.
“And we all know that you’ve made up your own mind on the matter, Hex. How long have you been working for him now?” George’s voice was sly.
“I am not working for him. I am merely subcontracting my services to his company. For the last six months.” She made every effort to sound prim, but she still blushed to her roots as she obviously thought about her target male.
Hookey clapped her hands. “Okay, ladies, what I’m getting out of this is that there is no time to waste.”
Hex nodded. “Right, George, make your move. I’ll be standing by if you need help.”
“Help? What kind of help could I need? I’m just going to fuck him, not let him do my taxes.” George was grinning like a fool as she contemplated jumping the male of her choice. Dragons were occasionally difficult to deal with, but they had frenzied sex drives. She had been fighting her own raging hormones for so long that she was almost snarling at the thought of a good lay. Hookey was relieved that the tension would soon be plumbed.
“Nevertheless, if you do need anything, I’ll be there.” Hex got a faraway look in her eyes for a moment then focused back on the women in front of her.
“Jinx, you hide.”
“Hide where?”
“Your father’s mother still owns some property out of town, doesn’t she? Go there.” Hex seemed to be in fine form. Jinx looked surprised, but a pleased expression crossed her face as the logistics worked out in her mind.
“That’s a great idea. No one would think to look for me there, the clan doesn’t know about it, and Mom would never tell.” Relief was evident in her voice. “I’ll head out tomorrow.”
“Hookey, you, I’m afraid, are on your own. Your grandmother has someone in mind for you, but I just hope for your sake it is not the council rep she slept with.” Hex stopped to sip her drink.
“Ewww, could you imagine? Sharing a guy with your grandmother?” Jinx was horrified.
“Hey, guys, do you remember the time that my mom and I had a date with the same guy?” George giggled. “He thought we were sisters, and for some reason, it seemed to turn him on.”
“Until you changed form and stranded him outside the reservoir with a memory wipe.” Jinx snorted. “Not very sporting of you. He never had a chance.”
The room collapsed into giggles and anecdotes as the beverages began to disappear. The tension of the tasks looming before them forgotten for a few hours as they just enjoyed being with friends who understood what it was like to be a being of magic.
Hookey was determined to get good and drunk. Life for their group was about to become a trial, and men were at the heart of it.
Chapter One
“Okay, Hex, how did you know?” George was genuinely curious as she held the cell phone to her ear and swung her free leg off the edge of the bed.
“I saw it. I didn’t know exactly when, but I did see you in trouble.” Silence fell on the other end of the line. “What do you need?”
“I need you to get me the heck out of here.” The words came out through her gritted teeth.
“Can’t you fly out?” The hilarity in her voice was not contagious.
“I can’t transform with this stupid shackle on my leg. He chained me to the bed, Hex!” George was furious.
“He chained you?” Hex attempted to keep her voice flat, trying not to laugh. The snickering was in every word.
“Yep. There is just enough play to let me get to the bathroom and back, but my clothes are nowhere to be found. I need help here.” She wasn’t trying to hide the stress she was feeling.
“Where is he right now?”
“He flew off at dawn, about five minutes after he locked me in place. He said he would be back for lunch.”
“Is there a large mirror nearby?”
She thwacked her head with the heel of her hand. “Oh, of course! Why didn’t I think of that? Yeah, there’s one right across from the bed.”
“Touch it and hold on until I come through, okay?”
“You bet. I’m on it now.” George reached out to flatten her palm against the cool, slick surface of the mirror.
Seconds later, it began to ripple and shimmer. A hand appeared in the silver pool then a foot, and seconds later, Hex stepped through.
* * * *
Hex whistled softly as she entered the bedroom. “Wow, looks like you had a lot of fun last night.”
She surveyed the room. Sconces were askew on the walls, pillows had been disembowelled and the sheets were escaping the confines of the bed. The ambience of the room was also heavily coloured by the scent of sex that hung in the air.
Perched on the edge of the bed was her friend Graylin Treel, known to the Half-Blood Club as George, and, incidentally, splendidly nude. Black waves of hair partially concealed the love bites and bruises that decorated her golden skin. Her black eyes were tired but shining.
“Yeah, it was tons of fun. I just want this damn shackle off so that I can get the hell out of here and contemplate trying it again.” Her left leg lifted slightly and waved in the air to cause a gentle jingling noise.
“Uh, why did he shackle you?” Hex knelt down and began to chant in a low tone. Energy built up and surrounded the cuff.
“Something about making sure that I was here when he got back.” George watched carefully and sighed. “Dragon tradition apparently. At least in his family.” She shook her head. “Mom never mentioned this. Mind you, when she and Mathias mated, they were in mid-air, and she took off before he recovered.”
* * * *
George held herself still and watched her friend at work. No matter how closely she watched, she would never be able to pull off the spell with as much dexterity as Hex. It did seem a shame that with all that talent, she would never be acknowledged as one of the greatest powers of the modern age unless she joined the aegis of the High Council.
With a shimmering pop, the cuff released.
* * * *
“C’mon. I think I hear something.” Hex looked uneasy as she began to feel the presence of power approaching rapidly.
“Me, too. Let’s go.” George jumped off of the bed and stood next to the mirror.
Hex raised her palm to the mirror and began to chant softly once again. The mirror turned into a pool of silver, and she reached out to grab George’s hand as she began to enter the pool.
“Shit, let’s go!” George shoved Hex into the mirror as Rikard came into the bedroom at a full run.
His bellow of rage followed the women through the mirror as they tumbled out the other side. Hex waved her hand frantically at the frame in her living room, and it became a mirror once again.
“That was too close.” Hex slumped onto her couch and flipped an afghan at George.
George tucked the blanket around her naked form and scooted onto the other end of the couch.
“I am so sorry. I never meant for you to get involved.”
“Was that Rikard?”
“Yep.”
“As in, Dragon Council Rikard?”
“Yep.”
“As in, not going to stop until he finds you now that he knows you exist, Rikard?” Hex had her eyes closed, her head leaning back onto the couch and one hand pinching the bridge of her nose.
“Yep.”
“As in, able to call upon the entire High Council for a tracking spell to pinpoint your location at any time, Rikard?”
“Yep.”
“Well, you sure can pick ’em.” She sat up and eyed her friend. “How long do you think it will take for him to find you?”
“I think I have about a week. After that, I’ll need to be ready to move very fast, very suddenly.” George sighed.
“Why him?” She was curious. Her own choice had been made for quite some time, but the criteria that drove her friends was a mystery to her.
“I needed a dragon, right?” George waited for her no
d. “So, I did my research. Who was the best looking, who was not my father—that was a big one—and who had the best ratings in bed.”
“Whoa, how did you find that last one out?”
“I polled his ex-lovers. He likes it a little rough, very fast, and very often.” George blushed, “So do I.”
“So, it was good then?”
“It was fantastic. I left as many marks on him as he did on me. We started in the main hall and worked our way to the bedroom.” A dreamy smile crept across her face, and her eyes fluttered shut at the remembrances. “He may need to have his drywall fixed though; I think we did some damage.”
“How long did you say it was going to take him to find you?” Hex’s eyes grew distant as she listened to movement on the astral plane. A pulsing shift of power was drawing near.
“At least a week, why?” George sat up and began to look worried.
“There’s a dragon coming in for a landing in my backyard as we speak. That’s why.” Hex got up and walked to the patio door. She breathed a sigh of relief. The silvery green dragon was extremely familiar.
“It’s your mom.” Hex flipped the lock, swinging the door open in welcome. A minute later George’s naked mother was walking quickly across the grass and into the house.
“Excuse me for a moment. I’ll be right back with some clothing.” Hex shot up the stairs as quickly as she could. The look in Arabel’s eyes was pure murder. Angry dragons were best avoided.
* * * *
In a tone universal to all races, Arabel rounded on her offspring. “Graylin Treel. What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
“Whatever do you mean, Mom?”
“The entire dragon horde has been alerted to your presence. Rikard himself just sent out an alert to locate you.”
