Black Orchid (Svatura)

by Abigail Owen

  Epilogue

  “To our King and Queen!” Selene’s father bellowed as he held up a champagne flute, toasting the bride and groom.

  A great cheer resounded through the hall. Adelaide watched as Selene and Griffin exchanged a kiss. She felt utterly secure in her own happiness with Nate’s arms firmly around her. Selene looked gorgeous in a silky, form-fitting dress that showed off her willowy body. Simple and elegant, just like her.

  Adelaide looked around the room through the lens of glittering threads of relationships. So many te’sorthene in one place. Her own parents. Charlotte and Dexter. Ellie and Alex. Selene and Griffin. Lila and Ramsey. And, of course, Nate and herself.

  So many beautiful families. They would soon be separated by physical distance. Griffin, Selene, and her parents would stay with the Vyusher. Lila and Ramsey were going to Louisiana with her new tribe.

  Adelaide and Nate had really debated returning to their Outback home – the place where they’d truly fallen in love. In the end, though, they decided to just visit that home often and instead make their permanent home in Colorado with both of their parents. Charlotte and Dexter didn’t want Nate further than one house away for the next hundred years.

  Adelaide smiled at the thought. She didn’t blame them. Sometimes at night she’d wake up terrified that it’d all been a dream, that he was still lost. But he’d wrap his arm around her, pulling her close into his body, laying sweet kisses along her neck, her shoulder, her cheeks. And she’d breathe a sigh of relief, and thankfulness.

  She cuddled into him now, just thinking about it.

  Ellie and Alex were coming to Colorado too. They wanted Hugh’s healing abilities close by in case there were any complications. Adelaide hid a secret smile as she looked at the relationship line she saw crisscrossing the couple.

  Ellie’s sudden recovery of her powers hadn’t been an accident. The baby she carried had been turning them off somehow. Adelaide could see the new little line of relationship between mother and child, and it was different now. Formed perhaps when Ellie learned of the new life growing inside her. Either way, Ellie’s knowledge of her condition had helped her overcome any issues. Adelaide sighed, content and happy as she wondered when Ellie would tell everyone else.

  “What was that sigh for?” Nate murmured in her ear.

  Adelaide tipped her chin up for a tender kiss. “Nothing. It’s just… for the first time in a long while, I’m hopeful for the future.”

  KEY CONCEPTS, CHARACTERS, & POWERS

  Key Concepts

  Svatura – Any person with extraordinary powers. The term was coined by Ellie and Griffin’s great-grandfather who lived with a group of gypsies. It is a Roma term.

  Powers – Primarily powers are genetic, passed down through generations. But each new generation has a slightly different take on the power(s) they inherit. Most Svatura marry humans (there’s not a ton of Svatura out there) and so most offspring only inherit one power. Multiple powers are unusual. Powers also kick in around puberty and gaining perfect control over them takes time (centuries sometimes). In addition, if a baby may inherit more than about three powers, usually that results in twins, who split up the powers.

  Aging – Svatura age at a slower pace. It kicks in around puberty and slows down exponentially for the first thousand years and then slowly speeds back up. They can live as long as two-thousand years.

  Vyusher, Timening, etc. – Some tribes of Svatura people give themselves a more regional name. Vyusher means wolf. Timening means jaguar.

  Te’sorthene – another Roma term. In this series, it means fated souls bonded by heart and spirit.

  Core Svatura Family

  Adelaide Jenner – Relationships: Hugh’s and Lucy’s daughter, Lila’s sister, Nate’s te’sorthene, Alex’s adoptive sister. Powers: inherited - sees relationships between people; received – telepathy, falcon morph, dragon morph, possible dream control and power control.

  Nate Pierce – Relationships: Charlotte’s and Dexter’s adoptive son, Adelaide’s te’sorthene, Ramsey’s adoptive brother. Powers: super strength and speed. Feels a link to Adelaide.

  Lila Jenner – Relationships: Hugh’s and Lucy’s daughter, Adelaide’s sister, Ramsey’s te’sorthene, Alex’s adoptive sister. Powers: inherited – sees when people are telling the truth, senses and heals emotions; received – falcon morph, telepathy, dream control, dragon morph.

  Ramsey Pierce – Relationships: Charlotte’s and Dexter’s adoptive son, Lila’s te’sorthene, Nate’s adoptive brother. Powers: firestarter. Feels a link to Lila.

  Ellie Aubrey Jenner – Relationships: Descendent of the original Svatura/gypsy line and Svatura Princess, Alex’s te’sorthene and wife, Griffin’s twin sister. Powers: Metamorph forms include dragon, jaguar, wolf, and falcon (she gets more forms when she touches other metamorphs), controls others’ powers if she’s touching them, linked to her twin’s power of telepathy.

  Alex Jenner – Relationships: Ellie’s te’sorthene and husband, Hugh’s and Lucy’s adoptive son, Lila’s and Adelaide’s adoptive brother. Powers: freezes objects (not into ice, but stopping motion).

  Selene – Relationships: Queen of the Vyusher, Griffin’s te’sorthene, Gideon’s twin sister. Powers: inherited - wolf metamorph, dream visitor, turns off others’ powers (including hiding Svatura from trackers in small numbers), enhances others’ powers around her; received – falcon morph, dragon morph, telepathy.

  Griffin Aubrey – Relationships: Descendent of the original Svatura/gypsy line and Svatura Prince, Selene’s te’sorthene, Ellie’s twin brother. Powers: telepathy, invisible shield (can be used both physically or to make himself invisible), linked to his twin’s falcon morph, wolf morph. Feels a link to Selene.

  Hugh and Lucy Jenner – Relationships: each other’s te’sorthene and spouse, Lila’s and Adelaide’s parents, Alex’s adoptive parents. Powers: Lucy – senses the essence of a person (good/bad) and tells if they’re Svatura, premonitions; Hugh – physical healing.

  Charlotte and Dexter Pierce - Relationships: each other’s te’sorthene and spouse, Ramsey’s and Nate’s adoptive parents. Powers: Charlotte – teleporter; Dexter – turns things to metal (including gold).

  Vyusher

  Gideon (deceased) – Relationships: previous King of the Vyusher, Selene’s twin brother, Maddox’s protégé. Powers: inherited – forces people to his will and makes them think it was their idea; received – wolf metamorph.

  Oren (deceased) – Relationships: Vyusher High Council member, Selene’s second father. Powers: astral-projection.

  Desmond – Relationships: Xavier’s son, Selene’s good friend. Maggie’s boyfriend? Powers: invisibility.

  Xavier – Relationships: Vyusher High Council member, Desmond’s father. Powers: moves the castle to any location.

  Maggie – Relationships: Sheila’s friend. Desmond’s girlfriend? Powers: projects sound and the wolf pack’s thoughts.

  Sheila – Powers: tracker, wolf morph.

  Others – Jason – telekinetic who can crush, Darius – controls earth (dirt, rocks, etc.), Megan – creates a vacuum, Angelica – soothing presence, Samuel – prophesy, Selene’s parents - none.

  Maddox’s Forces

  Maddox – Relationships: The big bad. Gideon’s mentor and lieutenant. Powers: inherited - dragon metamorph, dream control. Received – wolf metamorph.

  Zara – Relationships: supposedly Maddox’s te’sorthene. Powers: unknown.

  Corin – Powers: teleporter.

  Talia – Relationships: Nate’s false te’sorthene. Powers: feels others’ emotions, emotional vampire and brainwasher.

  Melanie – Powers: puts people in stasis/coma with a touch.

  Greasy Dave – Power: unknown

  Others (Unnamed): lasso guy, strong guy.

  Louisiana Svatura

  Marcus (deceased) – Relationships: Leader of his tribe, Lila’s friend. Powers: toxic gas.

  Stephen – Relationships: Marcus’s lieutenant, Ariel’s l
ove?. Powers: Creates steel bands.

  Dane – Powers: inherited – bear metamorph; received – wolf metamorph.

  Seamus – Powers: inherited – lava bombs; received – wolf metamorph.

  Ariel – Relationships: Stephen’s love? Powers: inherited - nerve control (removed by Selene); received – wolf metamorph.

  Others Named – James – telepath, Beau – alligator metamorph, Sylvie – creates tornadoes.

  Others Unnamed – pink bubble-gum blog maker, 2 tiger metamorphs.

  Other Characters

  Unnamed Timening (Brazilian Svatura) – the leader of the tribe, a woman, unnamed.

  Gustavo – Timening (Brazilian Svatura) who buries people alive.

  Unnamed Timening (Brazilian Svatura) – anaconda shifter.

  Unnamed African Svatura – lioness shifter.

  Unnamed Russian Svatura – freezes (ice) with a touch.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  Dear Reader,

  I can’t believe that I’ve completed my first series! Thank you so much for trying out a self-published author for four straight books. My readers are incredible and very important to me. My readers’ encouragement and interest inspired me to keep writing the Svatura series. I would also not be able to do this without my editor - Wendy Schirmer, my cover artist - Jason Vines, and a host of helpers. A huge THANK YOU and I LOVE YOU to my amazing husband and children who not only support but encourage this obsession of mine.

  I loved every second of writing and publishing this book. I hope you enjoyed exploring this little world I created that has been floating around in my head for years. If you enjoyed this book, please look for future books in new series coming soon.

  If you would like to contact me, feel free to go to any of my author sites. I love to hear from my readers. Thanks again!

  Sincerely,

  Abigail Owen, Author

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