Eternal Shadow: A New Adult Urban Fantasy Series (The Urban Fae Series Book 3)

by R. L. Wilson

  She shoots a look at my tattoo and stops braiding her hair. “You’re still using your magical abilities?”

  “Yeah, but not too much.” I twist my body in her direction, shaking my head no.

  She redirects her gaze to the coffee table. “Those magical abilities are tied to you. He made sure of that.”

  Who is he? And what is she talking about? “Who, Momma?”

  Momma’s face had haunted my dreams. Every day that she was missing, my dreams got longer and more vivid. The thought of never seeing her face again gave me night terrors. I won’t force her to talk about what happened. I will embrace her, welcome her home.

  “Your powers are strong and needed to be bound,” she explains before grabbing the remote from the coffee table.

  Bound to what? What the hell is she talking about?

  Morgan takes a seat on the chair with a puzzled expression on her face. She gives me an intense stare, as if I should know what she is talking about. I have no clue.

  “I did the binding.” She flicks on the television but continues blabbing about the binding. I notice red and raw bruises around her wrist. As if a rope was tied tightly around them. My gaze searches her arms and legs for more visible bruises. I don’t find any, but he certainly had her tied up somewhere.

  Then she sends a sharp stare at me. “I used the magic I know and understand.”

  Was she saying I use magic I don’t understand? Well, she would be right. Unique magic was coming from all directions. Most, I don’t understand. But I don’t care about magic right now. I’m more concerned about where Prentiss is, hoping he doesn’t return to finish me.

  I blame myself for this situation. I should have never let Momma move from Detroit knowing Prentiss would seek to destroy me. Safety is a priority, and I let my guard down. I failed to protect the only parent I have. I’m ashamed.

  Oh, my eyes jerk open and my heart hammers in my chest. That’s right, when Momma did magic, she did sigil magic. She made drawings and symbols and infused them with power.

  “Momma,” I scream. It was an excited scream. “Was that sigil magic—those symbols back at the haunted house?”

  “Haunted,” she giggles. “Why do you think it was haunted?”

  I swallow hard. “There were ghosts running rampant. The symbols were connected to the ghosts.”

  She scrunches her face into a frown. “No, silly those weren’t ghosts, they were shadows.”

  “Shadows? What exactly is a shadow?”

  “Shadow of a person. Everyone has a shadow. He has been collecting them.” She lowers her body to a lying position. She doesn’t seem bothered or scared. Morgan, on the other hand, is gasping.

  How could he be so cruel as to steal a part of someone’s very essence? Prentiss is sick and deranged. I know she’s talking about the devil.

  “Who is he?” She closes her eyes instead of answering my question.

  I know it was Prentiss, but that revelation sent a shock throughout my back. I froze in place and couldn’t breathe. The truth was a hard pill to swallow, and it clogs my throat.

  I force myself to talk. I have so many questions. “What does he do with the shadows?”

  “Some he holds hostage and others work for him.” She opens her eyes then sits upright on the couch and grabs a magazine from the coffee table and fans herself.

  The news is as hot as the temperature in this house.

  No one says a word. The silence in the room is loud, the tension so thick you can cut it with a knife. Then the doorbell rings.

  I stand there trying to collect my thoughts as Morgan drags herself to the door. Her hair is as messy as a bird’s nest and her robe’s half-tied. She opens the door and then twists to me. “It’s your cousin Andrea,” she says sarcastically.

  Morgan doesn’t care much for Andrea. She says Andrea showed up out of nowhere saying we are related, and she wasn’t buying it.

  Catching my breath, I nod, then Morgan opens the door.

  Momma leans back on the couch, giving Andrea an intense stare. She definitely recognizes her, but she doesn’t seem too enthused that she’s here.

  Morgan watches Andrea walk in and frowns, turning up her nose and curling her lips. The face she always makes when she doesn’t like someone.

  Andrea walks in with an enormous grin on her face while her eyes dance at the sight of Momma. She extends her hands, shaking her bangles, piercing the air with cheap perfume. Momma reluctantly hugs her back, but she never smiles.

  “How are you doing? Is everything ok?”

  Momma nods.

  She was just talking. Now she has that crazed stare upon her face. It was like a light switch. As soon as Andrea entered the room her personality sank. Or maybe it’s overshadowed by Andrea’s oversized personality.

  I hoped that this would be the time to ask Momma who my father is. But I guess that will have to wait until later.

  “Let’s go to my house,” Andrea says to Momma. “The family wants to see you. We were all so worried.”

  Morgan twists her lips to the side and shoots a look over at me.

  “Momma needs to rest,” I say.

  But Momma puts her shoes on, preparing to go with Andrea.

  “I’ll take care of her. She’ll be at the headquarters,” Andrea replies while never making eye contact with me.

  I don’t think it’s a good idea, but Momma doesn’t refuse, instead grabbing Andrea’s hand and walking toward the door. She is family and I don’t think she would hurt Momma. Would she?

  Chapter Eight

  The games have only just begun. Morgan and I are hunting missing shadows. I fear there’s more to these missing shadows than Momma is willing to tell.

  Standing in the middle of a busy intersection, an urgency looms within me. My life is racing as fast as the cars I stand in the middle of. The only difference is that the cars have a destination, and I’m crashing.

  It’s a gloomy day with the sun weaving behind the clouds. With the sweltering heat, most people stayed in low-lit areas, hiding from the sun. It will be difficult to see whose shadow is missing. But I’m determined to search.

  Horns and loud music blast through the air as we trot down the street. This city never sleeps.

  “How do you propose we find these missing shadows?” Morgan asks as she clutches her purse closer to her side. Her hair is pulled back loosely in a ponytail.

  “We find Prentiss, we find the missing shadows,” I explain as we come upon a bakery. The drifting scent of yeast and glaze is tickling my stomach. “Let’s get some beignets. I’ve heard they are the best.” I grab Morgan by her hand and pull her into the bakery. She drags her feet, hesitant about going inside.

  “We are supposed to be hunting shadows,” Morgan growls. She is still on her diet but she loves doughnuts. She’s hangry. I’d better get her something to eat other than those damn weight-loss shakes.

  As I enter, I observe Kato cramming beignets down his throat. We sneak up on Kato. I tap him on his shoulder. He swivels around with white powder covering his lips. He continues chewing and grins, then gulps down a cup of milk. “What are you guys doing here?” he asks before wiping the excess powder from his mouth.

  I raise a brow at him. He assisted us in finding Momma. But right now, he’s helping himself. All he will know is we are getting some beignets. I won’t tell him anything about shadow hunting now. I’ll tell him when it’s convenient for me. Besides, he will only try to talk me out of it. According to him, everything is dangerous. Welcome to my world, my life is Russian roulette every day.

  “What are you two doing here?” A shimmering glow rises on his face.

  “We came for beignets, like everyone else here,” I reply.

  He smirks and taps his hand on the stool next to him, signaling me to take a seat. I hop on the stool while studying the lady walking past to ensure that she indeed has a shadow. She wears a white dress with plum-colored hair. Her shadows glides alongside her.

  I order my beignets
to go. But the shadows are crowding each other. So many people are stuffed in here, I can’t tell if anyone is missing a shadow.

  Morgan tugs at my arm and points her head left. Glancing over, I observe a short man with a long beard. I squint; it’s fuzzy, but he has a shadow.

  “What are you doing?” Kato says.

  My heart drops into my socks as I tremble and snap my head in his direction. “Oh, nothing just waiting for my beignets.”

  The constant chatter makes it hard for me to hear Morgan. “You see that?” she whispers. As we watch, the man streaks away with a greasy white bag and his shirt barely reaching his waist. He has a shadow, though.

  “Let me talk to you for a second,” Kato says.

  He hops down off the stool and extends his hand out to help me down off mine. I follow him out of the noisy restaurant, staring at shadows on the way out.

  Heat presses against my skin as soon as I step foot out of the bakery. This heat is so hot it should be illegal.

  He gives me an expression of concern, which makes me feel guilty for holding the truth of our hunt for shadows.

  He moves my hair out of my face. I glance into his brown eyes.

  “Are you looking for shadows?” he asks.

  My first instinct is to lie. But the more I gaze into his eyes, I can’t. “Hmm.” I grunt as I stumble over my words.

  “Come on, out with it.”

  I squint, trying to see his shadow and I don’t. What the fuck? The sun is back, blazing in full effect. But there is no shadow.

  “Yes, I’m searching for shadows, and where the hell is yours?” I inch back and wipe my forehead. I’m trembling inside. Who is he? I just can’t trust Kato…everything about him is one big mystery.

  “You can keep searching, but you won’t find my shadow. I put mine away for safekeeping. How do you know about shadows, anyway?”

  “Momma told me Prentiss is collecting them. So, I figure I’ll find them.”

  “Harmony, I’m warning you to leave that alone.” He waves his hand. “It’s not for you. You can’t fix everything,” he adds.

  He says to leave it alone, but everything is dangerous. “Why do you need to hide your shadow?” I question.

  “My parents were murdered when I was young. I was there and watched as they were gutted like animals.” He gazes off into space as he speaks of his parents. My heart cracks for him. He’s never been so vulnerable with me.

  “I’d never been so helpless and terrified in my life. Those motherfuckers didn’t give two shits that I was standing right there.” His grip is tight as he twists the paper bag filled with beignets.

  “I had to get revenge. Even though I was a kid, I knew I would kill him. I turned to the streets as a kid, knowing I had to survive when I met this demon.”

  I shiver with pain as his face turns an angry red. The trauma from the loss of his parents still haunts him to this day. Rightfully so.

  “He offered me a deal to seek revenge on the person who killed my parents in return for working for him. I got my revenge but then I became a servant of his.”

  His eyes lock on my face. "That’s how I got into dark arts.”

  I let out a sigh. “So, you understand what it’s like to lose a parent.”

  He nods. “Yes, I do. I also know what it’s like to be a servant. And trust me, you don’t want that.” He gulps hard.

  “As a servant for the demon, I had to rob, steal, and deal in black magic. Do whatever I had to do. I wanted to survive and live to get my revenge, if nothing else.”

  The sleeveless shirt he wears has become soaked with sweat. His energy is so tense, I’m afraid to get too close to him. I can’t imagine seeing the murder of my parents. I want to wrap my arms around him and tell him everything will be fine. But that would be a lie. It won’t be okay; his parents are never coming back.

  “On one of my recent missions, I discovered the person who ordered the hit on my parents. He’s a shadow hunter, and can strip a person’s shadow. Then he sells it to the highest bidder.”

  He shoots me a sharp stare. It makes me tremble. “The shadow hunter is Prentiss.”

  I close my eyes for a second and shake my head in disbelief. Prentiss has his hands in everything evil.

  “I don’t understand; how long have you known it was Prentiss?”

  We should have killed him when we had the chance.

  “I just found out from my friend, the one you met at Jazz’s bar,” Kato explains.

  I nod my head yes, but I have no idea who his friend is. All I can remember is that he had an enormous belly.

  Prentiss’s days on Earth are temporary. He’s put an extreme amount of evil energy in the world. That karma is coming back to him tenfold.

  Chapter Nine

  “Are the warded lands and missing shadows connected?” I question.

  Kato shrugs and glares at the ground, avoiding eye contact. “I don’t want to know.” He keeps his eyes glued to the ground as if it rattles beneath him.

  I feel they’re all connected. And he knows more than he’s willing to tell. This city is one big secret, and Kato has more secrets than anyone. He’s like an onion; you have to peel back one layer at a time.

  A woman walks past wearing leggings as the sun exposes itself. I search for her shadow. My stomach nearly falls to the bottom of my socks. Her shadow is missing. She parades past, proudly looking at Kato and switching her big ass. Oblivious to the fact her shadow is separated from her.

  Move it along, lady, he’s not interested.

  “He’s not selling them, so why is he collecting them?” The fire within his eyes flickers.

  “How do you know?”

  “I asked around, no one is selling shadows right now.”

  My thoughts whirled. “Momma said he uses them to work for him. But he also used the same fire I did once before. He uses them for energy.”

  “He could collect these shadows for the fire that burns within.”

  “But what could he do with that?”

  “The same things that I can. I use the fire for energy.”

  Calling the energy from lands and people only awakens my magic. It strengthens me. I’ve been training hard to learn all the magic bottled up inside. It’s hot and bubbling, like a volcano ready to erupt.

  The doughnut shop door opens and a cool breeze escapes momentarily. Morgan comes out with a bag. She hands the bag to me. “Are you ready to go?”

  “Yeah, in a second.”

  Morgan taps my shoulders and holds up four fingers. Her way of telling me there are four missing shadows in the bakery. She chugs down half a bottle of water before burping.

  “Excuse you,” I say.

  “Oh yeah, excuse me. It’s damn hot out here for me,” she complains.

  Morgan never leaves home without a face full of makeup and her hair curled. Today, she has a ponytail and a bare face. And she did it all for me.

  “I’m going shadow hunting with you,” Kato insists. “At least I will keep you safe. Doesn’t matter what I say, you do what you damn well please.”

  I try holding back a smile but I can’t; I chuckle. He is right. It doesn’t matter what he says, I will find these missing shadows.

  We walk two doors down before we come across Derrick. He’s strutting hand in hand with a mysterious woman with long brown hair. She stares at me as if she cannot take her eyes off me. Her mouth flies open. I think she’s about to say something. But she doesn’t. Gripping Derrick’s hand tighter, she looks extremely nervous.

  “Hey, this is my friend, Leslie, and she needs your help,” Derrick says. She drops Derrick’s hand and comes closer to me. “I’m a shapeshifter,” she whispers.

  I nod, watching panic cross her dark eyes. She talks with a low, mysterious tone. She is hard to read.

  “Our lands were cursed, and I and my people cannot shift.” She looks over at Derrick. “He told me you were a healer.” She grimaces with a desperate smirk.

  Her words struggle to make sense i
n my head. Like they were moving through quick sand. They want me to heal all the cursed lands. But there are other healers in New Orleans. Why hasn’t anyone asked them?

  “Does that cause you any harm? You appear fine to me,” I question.

  “Because of us not being able to shift, our life expectancy decreases.” She squints.

  “Oh, I see.” But my head hurts with the danger.

  “I beg you to heal our lands. My life expectancy is only thirty years because I can’t shift. I’m twenty-eight and my brother will be thirty in three months.”

  My stomach spasms. I feel a heaviness on my back. I carry a lot of responsibility for a nineteen-year-old. But I have to help these people. I won’t sleep at night if I don’t try.

  I don’t know much about shapeshifters. I healed a few in Detroit. They have a reputation for lashing out. Other than that, they are a complete mystery to me. They don’t quite move like most supernaturals. Every shapeshifter I have ever encountered has a certain reservation; they seem to always be two steps behind.

  I glance at Derrick for direction. “I assure you they are safe. There’s nothing dangerous about shapeshifters.” He looks at the woman. “She’s like everyone else.”

  The way he grabs her hand, gazing into her eyes with a silly grin on his face, it’s clear she must be more than a friend. It seems like this would mean a great deal to him, and since he has helped me find Momma, I owe him one. Kato despises Derrick’s guts, but he’s been nice to me.

  Swallowing my horror, I say, “Absolutely.” Healing more cursed lands travels through my thoughts like a pack of wolves.

  Morgan, Kato, and I trail them through the deep woods thick with fog. Barely able to see in front of me, I step on Kato’s foot. He stumbles forward, muttering, “Hey, watch it.” Morgan snickers as her flip-flops crunch on the leaves as we move further through the wooded area. Derrick moves rapidly and Leslie a little slower, and I’m having a hard time keeping up. He’s accustomed to running on four feet. He needs to realize the rest of us only have two.

  We come upon a pond where the fog is thick dancing above the water. I pause, wondering how the hell we are supposed to get across the water.