Maybe she could too.
With a last, long look at one house in particular, the shadow smiled and turned away.
She took a deep breath of steamy, clear Estori air, and wondered what freedom was going to be like.
- - -
After so long in the black, the light hurt.
“And here I thought you weren’t going to wake up.”
With a groan, she blinked away the sunlight. In the background there were voices, and the sound of someone pulling the curtains closed.
Slowly, Scarlett Carlyle made sense of the Mayor’s well-dressed figure leaning over her.
And sighed.
“Sorry...to disappoint.” A weight pinned one arm; weakly, she tugged at it until it went away. She reached up, feeling at the thick bandages that wound from her ribs up her neck and over one side of her face, including one eye.
She tried to move the other arm, and nothing happened.
There was nothing there to move.
“On the contrary.” Bertram smiled down at her though his eyes were touched with sadness...and respect? “I think you’ve convinced them. The town, I mean. You might not be able to play the role of gruff outsider after this, you know?”
The former Overseer managed a one-eyed glare. “Why am I even alive?”
“Ah, now that’s how I know you’re recovering.” The Mayor set some flowers and a basket of long The sandwiches on the table beside her face. “A mixture of luck and stubbornness, I believe. Someone managed to staunch the worst of your wounds on the field before we brought you back. And I suppose...a bit of belief, after all you did for us.”
Tentatively, she reached out and found a glimmering web of supporters, where none had been before.
Scarlett fell silent for a moment. “They don’t owe me anything,” she said quietly. “I did my duty. Their lives were mine, to protect as Overseer.”
“And yet, here we are.” Bertram opened her bedroom door and offered her a grateful smile. “Regardless. When they said you were waking up, I just had to come by and say thank you. And that I’m glad you made it, Scarlett.”
As he started to leave, she managed to raise her voice. “You know it’s only a matter of time. They’ll come back. Eventually.”
The Mayor chuckled. “You really are out of the loop, aren’t you? Someone should fill you in on what’s happened with the war.” She tried to raise a hand to protest as he left, but he ignored it and the door clicked closed.
A second later, it popped back open.
Bertram stuck his head in, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. “Oh. I thought I should warn you...that female Inquisitor you fought. We never found her body.” He met her eyes with a knowing smirk. “But maybe we shouldn’t be surprised. Inquisitors are notoriously hard to kill.” He chuckled. “Even former ones.”
And with that, he was gone.
Her stomach rumbled.
She shifted, staring at the sandwitches.
The weight on her arm, on the bed shifted, materialized into Anastasia’s features, peering down at her.
The bed creaked again, revealing Sophia, Anette.
Anastasia stood, took the tray of food, and sat next to her. She bent and placed a gentle kiss on the intact side of her forehead, and someone else followed suit.
“We’re all just glad you’re okay,” she said softly. Her bright eyes were red as if she’d been crying.
For a moment, the former Overseer couldn’t find the words to respond.
“Me too,” she finally replied.
And, to her surprise, she found she meant it.
She smiled and ignored the pain as five girls swarmed her.
She wrapped the ones she could catch in a weak, one-armed embrace, and smiled, thinking about the future.
From the Author
First off, the elephant in the room.
You might have noticed that Jone wasn’t in this book. At least, I hope so. And I apologize if that wasn’t what you wanted to see.
Hopefully, you have faith in me that it turned out best that way (I think so, or I wouldn’t have done it) and that you’ll see the full conclusion of her unfortunate cliffhanger in the next novella. And hopefully, you will find it, as well as the upcoming conclusion, worth the wait.
In the end, this story wasn’t about her, because I wanted to illustrate that the struggle in her world ultimately isn’t about her, either. She may be a leader, a spark of hope...but these things are always far bigger than any one person.
Also, it might be the best chance I’ll ever have to give you some of the details, story, and background that you’ve been asking for with the characters around her, as well as their true motives. It also let me flesh out the world more which is also something I wanted to do. And I hope you enjoyed it as well.
In return for your patience, I promise to get the next novella out as soon as possible—and there you’ll get the answers you seek.
Two installments left.
We’re almost at the end—for now.
But if you’ll excuse me...it’s my wifey’s birthday, and I owe her a dinner and a cheesecake for all of her hard work, without which this tale would never have seen the light of day. :]
See you next time, everyone. Happy reading. :]
Book 5: Hero of Arcadia, coming soon!
Thank you again for reading my works. If you like vampires, diversity in fiction, or urban fantasy, check out our other two series below, and sign up for our mailing list for release announcements and more. There’s a free book in it for ya! You can also get free stories and more from our Patrons Only Library on Patreon where you can get all the insider details. See ya next time!
Further Reading from Darksbane Books:
Dakota Shepherd Novels
Awakened (#1)
Hunted (#2)
Driven (novella #2.5)
Blooded (#3)
Dakota Shorts Vol. 1 (#3.5)
Risen (#4) - SOON!
Fallen (#5) - TBA
Dying Ashes series
Dead Girl’s Ashes (Dying Ashes #1)
Recommended: Five of Five short (Tales from the Ashes #1)
Blood Red Ashes (Dying Ashes #2)
Recommended: Homecoming short (Tales from the Ashes #2)
Heart of Ashes (Dying Ashes #3)
Recommended: Trouble on the Green short (Tales from the Ashes #3)
Dreadful Ashes (Dying Ashes #4)
Recommended: Haunted Motives short (Tales from the Ashes #4)
From the Ashes (Working Title - Dying Ashes #5) - Coming Spring 2019
www.DarksbaneBooks.com
Acknowledgments
Thank you to Shei and Rune, my little family.
Thanks to the people that invited me and encouraged me to give this whole thing a try; it escalated from “I don’t think I’ll like this” to “I adore this story” rather quickly. And it also taught me a bit about writing to boot. :]
Thanks to our Patreon supporters: David Nields, Abi Grey, BK Dobbs, Cheryl Bowen, Claire Smith, Hans Watts, Paige Abendroth, Ross Grant, Susan Wilson, and everyone else who’s ever supported our dreams, big or small.
And, as always, thanks to our fans, old and new, email subscribers and most importantly, readers. You make this shit work. Thanks Fan!
About the Author
Annathesa Darksbane loves writing books her readers can't put down, which you may or may not have figured out already. As a storyteller with over twenty years experience and quite a few published titles, there's nothing she'd rather be doing, even though she's done everything from engineering to game design and Aikido. When not writing, she loves studying martial arts, philosophy, psychology, and the future of cutting edge science.
If you want more thrilling, diverse urban fantasy, sci-fi, or fantasy, visit www.DarksbaneBooks.com for our upcoming releases—and nab some free books and short stories!
Copyright © 2016-2018 by Annathesa Nikola Darksbane.& Shei Darksbane
All rights reserved. This book o
r any portion thereof
may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever
without the express written permission of the publisher
except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Printed in the United States of America.
First Printing, February 9, 2019.
Darksbane Books
DarksbaneBooks.com
Cover design and illustration: Shei Darksbane
This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to real people and events are coincidence.
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