Of Shadows and Ash

by Dana Marie Bell

  “No.” He smiled, his expression serene. “I think we’ll be together beyond that.”

  She began to move again. “We’ll have to wait and see.”

  “We have all of eternity, right?”

  “Exactly.” Selena ran her hands up to his chest so they were in their favorite position. Skin to skin, stuck together, sliding against one another as they made love. “You’re stuck with me for good.”

  “I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He thrust up, the slow glide becoming more intense. It was becoming more difficult to hold back, to keep the pleasure at bay and just enjoy each other’s bodies.

  “Ash.” Her fingers flexed, her nails digging into his skin, leaving behind tiny little half-moons.

  “Yes, Selena.”

  Above her, leaves rustled and limbs quivered as his tree prepared itself for not one, but two souls.

  Her body throbbed, her vision going bright as the long, hard thrusts began pushing her toward her orgasm. She leaned down, kissing her mate desperately, unable to keep the ecstasy at bay.

  She cried out as the tree bound them together, the orgasm ripping through her until she was blind to everything but the three of them. Ash cried out as they both came, shuddering under her in the throes of his pleasure. The tree shared in their pleasure, their love, as it would for the remainder of their days, humming its contentment at their finally joining. Her thoughts and his swirled together with the familiar, quiet strength of his ash, its strength blending with theirs, its acceptance a balm to her soul.

  When it was over, when the last shivering need had been quenched, Selena looked down at her mate. “Wow.”

  He slid his hands free of the tree and put them around her waist, holding her tight. “Thank you, little witch.”

  “For what?”

  He stroked her damp hair back from her forehead, smiling when her bangs flopped back into her eyes. “For loving me back. Finally.”

  “Hmph.” She snuggled against him. “Like I had a choice.”

  “Nope.” His smug contentment would have been annoying if she didn’t have his tree laughing along with her. The leaves above her rustled, dropping two perfect green sprigs on top of her head. “We can be pretty stubborn when we need to be.”

  She glanced at him. “You don’t say.”

  The amusement fled from his expression. “From now on, whatever shadows you face, I’ll be right there at your side.”

  She yawned and snuggled in close. She was so ready for a nap it wasn’t funny. “And when that time comes, when the shadow returns, I won’t have anyone else guard me.”

  “This is almost perfect.”

  Almost?

  She opened her eyes, sleepily staring at him for a few seconds until it dawned on her that he wasn’t looking at her. It wasn’t until she saw where he was gazing that she understood. “Iva will wake, I promise, Ash.”

  “But will she be whole?” The quiet pain behind the question told her more than anything how desperately Ash wanted Iva to be fully healed.

  “For all our sakes, I hope so. If she’s not, we’ll try and put her back together as best we can.” She yawned again, closing her eyes. “Until then, all we can do is pray.”

  “And do our best to hold the shadows at bay.” His hands swept down her back to cup her ass. “Come on, little witch. Let’s go home.”

  She sighed happily. “Ash?”

  “Hmm?”

  “Haven’t you figured it out yet? I am home.”

  The pure happiness that poured from both her mate and his tree made the confession more than worth it. Now if only he’d build her some bookshelves...

  * * *

  “No!”

  Ash held out his hand and growled. “Gimme.”

  “My cookies!” Eddy ran in circles around the Throne, the bag of chocolate cookies held over his head like an Olympic torch while the rest of the Grove leaders looked on and laughed. “Mine mine mine!” He cackled like a crazed hyena, leaping over roots and generally making himself look like a complete nut job.

  Trajan sat on one of the roots of the great oak, laughing his ass off at Eddy’s antics. Dragos sat next to him, shaking his head, obviously used to his Renfield’s insanity.

  God, they’d needed this. The ability to kick back and just relax had been gone for so long Ash could barely remember it. Now that the threat of the shadow man was no longer looming over them, they were taking some precious time to unwind.

  Eddy raced under the sacred grove’s birch tree, still cackling, the bag of cookies held high. An arm snaked out of the birch and snatched the cookies as Eddy ran underneath. Eddy skidded to a halt and scowled up into the tree. “Hey!”

  Greer’s voice cooed, “Ooh, Oreos.” He dangled upside down, his white-blond and orange hair standing out against the bright green leaves. “Got milk?”

  Eddy jumped, trying to grab a branch or something, Ash wasn’t sure. “Give me my cookies back, you...you cookie-napper.”

  This time it was Eddy who was chasing a dryad. Greer leapt from branch to branch, the cookies in hand, Eddy right underneath him.

  Ash parked his behind next to Mina. The queen was watching the boys play with a bemused smile. “Is it me, or are they about the same age mentally?”

  “Nine?”

  Ash smirked as Greer deliberately missed his footing, falling out of the tree with the cookies safely on his chest. Eddy’s howl of triumph rivaled a wolf’s as he snatched the cookies and dashed to the lap of his large mate. Eddy stuffed three chocolate cookies at once and grinned a cookies and cream grin at Greer.

  “I would have said ten, but close enough.” Ash winked at Mina. “So. What do you think of being stepmom to the cookie monster?”

  Mina shoved him playfully. “Asshole.” But she was watching Eddy fondly as he cuddled with Trajan. The big dragon whispered softly into his mate’s ear, and Eddy blushed furiously. “We need to do this more often.”

  “Do what?” Already his gaze, as always, turned toward Selena. She was sitting next to Amara, chatting quietly with the hamadryad, while Parker stood silent watch over them both.

  She was back to her normal self—bossy, opinionated, stubborn as hell and perfect in every way. She was fitting into life in the Throne seamlessly, meeting weekly with the witches and coordinating with the rest of the Grove leaders to keep them up to date on how Dr. Douglas was doing with his search for a vaccine. So far, little progress had been made, but Selena was optimistic that it was only a matter of time. She was offering her own blood as testing material, theorizing that as she was so vulnerable, if the vaccine destroyed the demon blood in her it would work for all the witches.

  In fact, all of the leaders had volunteered, causing a flood of blood donations to both the hospital and the laboratory. Parker had declared it a vampire smorgasbord, much to Dragos’s disgust.

  “Have a quiet family evening.” Mina smiled as Dragos put his arm around her. They’d agreed to meet Eddy not long after Dragos woke for the night. Mina had used her gift as queen to light the Throne, giving the human Renfield a chance to play.

  “I agree, Mina mea.” Dragos maneuvered them until Mina was between his legs, his arms wrapped around her, holding her tight. “It would be nice to have a quiet evening just for us, so we can unwind and go over our week.”

  “Even if there are problems, we can hash them out, talk amongst ourselves to try and find a way to fix them.” Mina settled against her mate, but her expression was thoughtful. “We should make this mandatory for all of the leaders, then use the town hall meetings to discuss what we’ve decided along with the usual town problems.”

  She was right. If they were going to have weekly meetings, then all of the rulers needed to be involved. And as the witch doctor, Selena had her place among them. “We need to include Dominic as well.” He might not be a coven leader or mayor, but he was a unicorn. He deserved his spot with them whether he liked it or not.

  “Of course, but we’ll have to keep his involvement quiet. He s
till doesn’t want the townsfolk knowing exactly what he is.”

  Ash saw Greer stand up and brush himself off. He was watching Trajan and Eddy, and his wistful expression hurt to see, but his brother quickly turned his attention to Ash and Mina. He proved he’d heard exactly what they’d been talking about by piping in with his own opinion. “What about Parker and Amara?” Greer flopped down at their feet with a quiet sigh. “They’re family too.”

  Dragos growled. “I’m not sure the Throne can withstand you, Eddy and Parker in such a small place, trying to be serious.”

  Ash looked around the more than ample grove, chuckling as he pictured the three men. Alone, each of them was a force to be reckoned with. Together, Dragos might have a point. Their personalities were bigger than all of Maggie’s Grove.

  “Have you seen Iva at all?” Dragos glanced over at where Noah sat beneath Iva’s yew, describing in a quiet voice everything that was going on. The alpha, like always, made it a point to try and inform his mate of what was happening around her, trying to gently coax her back into the world of the living.

  Ash didn’t want to lose his sister. If she faded forever into her tree she would be lost to them, dead beyond all hope of recovery. Worse, they’d lose Noah as well. The Alpha would mourn himself to death along with her, or go insane. The only ones strong enough to face him if that happened were Dragos and Vasile, and they’d be forced to put him down if he went nuts.

  He’d hate to see him dead. The fur ball had grown on him in the weeks since Iva had come home. Thank the Goddess her leaves were finally turning green again, though her bark still bore the scars of her captivity. The best, brightest bit of hope they’d all gotten was Iva’s voice during his battle with the shadow man, but none of them had heard a peep from her since.

  “No.” Mina leaned back against Dragos, the sorrow in her expression mirroring the pain Ash felt whenever he thought about Iva and what she’d been through. “I’m scared, Dragos. What if she never comes out?”

  Dragos hugged her tightly. “Then we mourn, love.”

  Greer put his head on Mina’s knee. “We’ll figure something out, Mina. We can’t lose Iva now that we’ve found her. Besides, I still think she’s getting better, not worse.”

  Ash took hold of her hand. “He’s right. Between all of us we’ll find some way to help her heal.”

  “And if worse comes to worst, Eddy, Parker and I will all stand around her tree and sing Kumbaya until she cries uncle.” Greer laughed as Mina bopped him on the head. “Don’t think we won’t do it.”

  “That’s what worries me.” Dragos shuddered. “I’ve heard Parker sing.”

  Eddy and Trajan joined them. “Everything all right?” Eddy was watching them with a worried frown, his bottom lip caught between his teeth.

  “Shh, Eddy. Everything will be fine.” Trajan was obviously trying to soothe his mate, running his hands up and down the Renfield’s arms.

  Eddy had been studiously avoiding Iva’s tree since he’d arrived.

  “We’re worried about Iva.” Ash wasn’t going to beat around the proverbial bush. If Eddy could help Iva in some way, all the better.

  Eddy nodded and took a step toward Iva’s tree. Or at least he tried to. Trajan wouldn’t let him go. “No. It will hurt you.”

  Eddy took hold of Trajan’s hand. “Not if you’re with me.”

  “I would not be anywhere else, dragostea mea.” Trajan allowed Eddy to slowly approach Iva’s yew.

  Noah took a deep breath as the two neared him.

  “Hey, Noah.” Eddy smiled reassuringly. “I want to see how Iva’s feeling, all right?”

  Noah stared at Trajan until the dragon bared his neck. A normal wolf versus a normal dragon would be an uneven match, but in the shifter world it wasn’t always about size. Noah was the alpha of the United States for a reason. His strength was unrivaled, and his power over the shifters was so strong that even a dragon bowed to him. Only Vasile seemed immune to the pull of the alpha, but as the prince of dragons it was to be expected.

  Noah allowed Eddy to pass, granting him the right to touch Iva’s yew.

  Eddy shuddered. “Oh, she’s in pain.”

  Noah snarled, but not at Eddy. Ash understood how he felt. When Selena had hurt, it had been all he could do to keep the rage from finding a way out.

  “Is there anything we can do to help her?” Trajan was the one who asked, surprising Ash. The man had been a sheer jerk when he first arrived in Maggie’s Grove, but since meeting Eddy and making up with his brothers he fit right in.

  “She needs...something.” Eddy frowned. “I can’t feel what it is, but she needs it badly.”

  “Is it something physical or emotional?” Ash stood, ready to find whatever his sister needed to ease her suffering.

  “I’m not sure. All I feel is pain and need.” Eddy was starting to sweat, shuddering and breathing heavily. “It hurts.”

  “Enough, Eddy.” Trajan pulled Eddy away from the yew, picking up his mate and striding far away from it.

  “I’m sorry.” Eddy had tears in his eyes as he looked at them. “The pain was too much.”

  “It’s all right, Eddy.” Noah’s tone was gravelly but gentle. The man was suffering almost as much as Iva. “At least we know she’s still in there.”

  “And maybe we can figure out what it is she needs.” Mina had that gleam in her eye that Ash instantly recognized. She had a purpose, something to hunt for, and once Mina made up her mind very little could persuade her to change it. “Greer?”

  Greer nodded and stood. “She’s always been fond of chocolate.” When the others stared at him, he shrugged. “What?”

  “Could they have addicted her to something in that lab?” Ash hated to bring up the thought, but someone had to say it.

  “It’s possible.” Noah was growling. “Hell, with what we saw there anything is possible.”

  “We’re still going through the files we stole from the Van Helsings.” Dragos stood and began to pace. “Some of the experiments they were running were sick.”

  “They were looking for the best ways to kill us, Dragos. For all we know they injected her with weed killer as well as demon blood.” Ash ran his hands through his hair. If he had to guess, her tree was slowly easing the bad blood, and its effects, from Iva’s body.

  “Ash?” Selena was there, her gaze filled with concern. “Worried about Iva?”

  Ash nodded. “We’re discussing when she might come out. Eddy says she’s in pain, and that she needs something.” Selena and Greer stared at one another, that silent communication between a healer of the physical and a healer of the spirit no longer causing him any jealousy. “Well?”

  “Do you two have something to tell the class?” Dragos’s brows rose.

  “She’s hurting on the spiritual plane as well as the physical, but I couldn’t tell you why.” Selena sat at Ash’s feet, staring at Iva’s yew.

  “She’s healing, though, I can tell you that. But it’s going to be long, and painful.” Greer shook his head. “And there’s nothing we can do to help but be here for her, and let her know we love her.”

  “We’ll kill her demons, just like we did before.” Ash nodded at Noah, letting him know that Ash would be there for them both.

  “All of us. Together.” Selena smiled and took his hand.

  “’Cause that’s what family does,” Eddy said quietly from within Trajan’s embrace.

  Ash squeezed his mate’s fingers, smiling as everyone agreed. Whatever Iva or Noah needed, they’d...

  They’d...

  Why was everyone staring toward the edge of the Throne? Ash stood, ready to call his sword and defend his home once more.

  “Greer?” Mollie Ferguson, her face pale, her eyes red-rimmed, stood on the edge of the Throne. She was shaking and covered in blood. “Please? I need your help...”

  * * * * *

  Craving more paranormal romance? Check out the other titles in Dana Marie Bell’s Maggie’s Grove series, available now!r />
  Blood of the Maple

  A seduction-gone-wrong leaves vampire Parker Hollis with a new vegetarian lifestyle and on the run from a vengeful witch. Moving to small-town Maggie’s Grove, Parker meets a redheaded dryad with green, leafy blood that draws him in a way he hasn’t experienced in decades. His new neighbor smells divine, and it isn’t long before craving gives in to need.

  In a unique community of supernaturals, tree-loving outcast Amara Schwedler has never quite fit in. She’s scarred by a traumatic incident and feared by the local townsfolk. She’s convinced Parker will look elsewhere for a mate once he discovers she’s not one of the O-positive set, and can’t believe it when Parker finds her irresistible.

  When the witch who’s been plaguing Parker’s life discovers the newfound attraction between Parker and Amara, she takes out her anger on the town. Can the supernaturals of Maggie’s Grove accept Amara and band together in time to withstand the assaults of the enraged witch?

  Throne of Oak

  Book two of Maggie’s Grove

  Vampire Dragos Ibanescu, Mayor of Maggie’s Grove, is about to lose his mind. His mate, the dryad queen Mina Chainey, refuses to have anything to do with him after her ordeal at the hands of an evil witch. If he doesn’t mate with her soon, he may lose control of the beast within him—a force far more dangerous than anyone in town knows...

  Mina’s nightmares of her time with the witch haunt her. The Queen of the Forest can’t muster the strength needed to fight her terror. Unable to leave the Throne, she vows she will not accept Dragos until she can stand at his side as an equal. But the nightmares are only growing in strength, and soon she realizes that there’s more to her pain than simple fear.

  Dark forces are converging on Maggie’s Grove, and a horde of hunters stalk supernaturals from the shadows. Only by uniting in body and mind will Mina and Dragos find the strength to defend their home.

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