Kaylia shook her head. “That’s impossible. The arach were too strong not to have powers before becoming adults.”
“That’s part of our other conversation, but we’ll keep her safe from the Lord until we’re ready to face him.”
“Not to state the obvious here, but you just failed at keeping her safe. If the harrow stone wasn’t originally an arach possession, the curse would have killed her.”
“So that’s why it reacted to her like it did,” he muttered. “It recognized her as its rightful owner.”
“Yes, and it also has a lot of power. All of which belongs to her now.”
“We never could have seen that coming. How were we supposed to know about the stone? But we will keep her alive, and we will bring down the Lord.”
“There are going to be a lot of obstacles you’re never going to see coming.”
“I know,” Brokk said. He was beginning to suspect this woman might be one of them.
“She’s also his mate,” Kaylia whispered.
“She is.”
“No wonder he was so furious, and it will only get worse. Both of their powers are going to keep growing.”
And Brokk was afraid neither of them would know how to control them.
He and Kaylia didn’t speak as they studied the couple. Lexi pulled back to rest her hand against Cole’s cheek before they kissed.
“But if she does fall, or if he can’t control whatever has turned him into the Shadow Reaver… because this is a new development for him, is it not?” Kaylia asked.
“It is,” Brokk confirmed.
“I thought so. What he can do would have gotten out long ago, and we all would have known about him, if it was something he could always do. But if he can’t control what he is becoming and if she does die, who will save the rest of us from him?”
Brokk didn’t reply, mainly because he’d been contemplating the same question before she voiced it. Never in his life had he ever thought Cole could become the enemy, but after what he’d seen today, he was beginning to fear that a bigger danger than the Lord was emerging.
And this one may be the brother he’d always considered his best friend and strongest ally.
Read on for an excerpt from Shadows of Fury Book 4 in the series!
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Sneak Peek
Shadows of Fury, The Shadow Realms Book 4
Chapter 1
Cole held Lexi in his arms as he studied the crone and his brother while they spoke. He couldn’t hear what they were saying, but judging by the way both their eyes continuously flicked to him and Lexi, they were the topic of conversation.
Of course, he couldn’t expect anything less after what just transpired with the harrow stone and Lexi. However, judging by the fact Brokk’s face had drained of color and Kaylia looked extremely uneasy, whatever they were talking about wasn’t good.
He imagined they were discussing that Shadow Reaver bullshit the crones were muttering about while he was in their realm, but he didn’t care. He’d done what was necessary to save Lexi’s life, and even if it meant drawing every shadow in all the realms to him, he would do it again.
When Lexi shuddered, he squeezed her tighter as he tried not to recall what it was like to stare at her unmoving body while she lay on the floor. That stone had nearly killed her.
He glanced uneasily at the red stone, still lying on the ground only a few feet away. If he could have reached it without disrupting Lexi too much, he would have kicked the fucking thing clear across the room.
Instead, he glowered at it before shifting his attention back to Brokk and the crone. His gaze locked with Kaylia’s, and for the first time, true fear shone in her pewter gray eyes. She had a right to be afraid; she had to know he wouldn’t let her put Lexi’s life in danger.
Which meant she most likely wouldn’t leave here alive.
“What should I do with you?” he asked.
Kaylia’s shoulders went back as her elegant, blonde eyebrows rose. “What do you mean, do with me?”
Lexi stirred in his arms and lifted her head. She was still far too pale but alive and moving, and that was all that mattered.
“Yes,” Cole said. “Do with you.”
“You won’t be doing anything with me. I’m free to do as I please.”
When Lexi woke, he’d released the shadows that came to him, but the ones inside him stirred at Kaylia’s tone. Recalling how hostile they’d been, he tamped the shadows down again. He would keep them away from Lexi.
“No, you won’t,” he replied. “Not with what you know about her. I can’t let you walk free with that knowledge.”
“Cole,” Lexi whispered.
He kissed her forehead before adjusting his hold on her. He made sure she was comfortable against the wall before releasing her and rising. Kaylia braced her feet apart as she faced off against him.
“It doesn’t matter what you are,” Kaylia said. “Or what you can do. If you kill me, the crones will come for you. They’ll hunt you down—”
“And what?” Cole demanded. “What will they do? I’ll destroy them all. I’ll burn this whole fucking world to keep her safe.”
Kaylia gulped, but the stubborn woman’s chin rose.
“Cole—”
Kaylia cut off whatever Lexi was about to say.
“You are not indestructible, and neither is she!”
Despite his intention to keep the shadows suppressed, they shifted and stirred inside him. Their power swelled into his fingertips as they sought release. They ached to break free and destroy, but he fisted his hands against the impulse.
No matter what, he didn’t want to make enemies of the crones. They would be far better allies than enemies. But he would unleash hell on them if it became necessary.
“Are you threatening her?” Cole snarled, and his voice started to take on that faint hint of distortion it held while he was in the crone realm.
Chapter 2
“Whoa! Slow down here,” Brokk said as he stepped between them and held his hands up.
“Yes,” Del said as he moved away from the fireplace and closer to Brokk.
Orin remained standing with his arm resting on the mantle, though an amused smile curved his lips, his posture said he wasn’t as relaxed as he was pretending to be.
Behind him, Lexi placed her hand against the wall and rose. “What is going on? What exactly happened with the stone, with me, and the curse? How am I still alive?”
When Kaylia looked to her, Cole growled as he stepped between them. It didn’t dissuade Kaylia from speaking to her.
“The stone reacted to you in such a way because it is an arach possession, and it recognized you as its rightful owner. Unfortunately, the curse still had some effect on you, but the stone protected you from the full brunt of it, so you didn’t die. And then I removed the curse from the stone so that Sahira, this vamp—” her lip curled in disgust as she jerked her head toward Brokk—“and you wouldn’t die.”