The highly anticipated release of the third book in the Winters Saga Series, Fire Master Rising is now available. Check out this entertaining excerpt and grab your copy available in
Chapter Two
Rebecca
REBECCA
HAD LEARNED MANY THINGS since becoming privy to the magic that existed in the world,
hidden just below the surface of civilized society, lurking in the darkness,
and only visible to those that had the connection. Her education increased even
more since she merged into a pack alpha. One valuable lesson was the rules of
traveling to alternate dimensions, and how tricky that travel really was. First
you had to find the right portal, and make sure it went to the right world, and
then you had to make sure it didn’t drop you off in an inconvenient location,
like the middle of a public place or the bottom of the ocean. Magic only helped
a being get through the portal, it didn’t help direct where they went, and it
didn’t conceal their arrival or departure. Dimensional travel was not for the
novice supernatural. One needed to be prepared for just about anything.
Kia, the dragon shifter assigned to help
Rebecca take down the drug trafficking of Black Death in her world, suggested
the portal they were using today as an alternative to the one she’d been
through before. The portal they were forced to use today delivered them to a
bathroom stall in a dive bar. It was troublesome. At most, only one person
could travel through at a time, but it was fairly safe as long as no one
entered the bathroom while they were transporting. She would’ve used the one they
brought her through when Becky and her team first kidnapped her, but it was too
much of a risk. They had no idea who was controlling it at the moment. It could
be either the wolves or the dragons…or something worse. The biggest concern was
that Becky was oddly out of communication. That knowledge didn’t help matters,
and made this journey far more dangerous. If they weren’t on a rescue mission
for her overzealous brother they would not be taking the chance at all. Not
until they could contact her double here. But Hunter left them no choice.
That being the case, here they were. One
by one, piling up in the small, smelly, grimy bathroom that looked like it had
been at least a month since it had seen a good cleaning. Her large group was
almost complete; Kia, Lucky, Miracle, Mystery, Gabriel, Savannah, Natalia,
Sundae, Georgie, Jackson, and now they were waiting on Maverick, who had
insisted on coming despite how little Rebecca did to make him feel welcome. She
knew she should be thankful her father was alive after all these years, but
there wasn’t a single atom in her body that cared for the man who left them
without parents, and made her blame herself for their deaths.
She heard a splash, and a string of curse
words announcing his arrival. She fought off the urge to laugh, which was far
easier than she expected as Savannah narrowed her disapproving eyes at her
sister. When he exited the stall with a wet pant leg everyone except Rebecca had
the good sense to look away. Rebecca tossed her blonde curls behind her slender
shoulders and chuckled at the mess he was. “I’m sorry. I should’ve told you we
were arriving in a toilet.” Her sapphire eyes glared at him making it clear to
everyone, he may be here with them, but she had no desire to forgive him for
his hand in their mother’s death or his abandonment of them afterwards.
Savannah, Rebecca’s twin, snatched some
paper towels from the dispenser, and handed them to her father. She leveled an
angry scowl at Rebecca who had the good sense to look away this time. Their
relationship was still very shaky since Savannah had been sired by a vampire,
and Rebecca became a werewolf. She didn't want to upset the new balance they
had created too much. “Now that the games are over, can we get back to finding
our brother?”
The alpha wolf in Rebecca’s mind, who
preferred to be called Siren, snarled making it clear she wasn’t happy about
any of this, especially about working with vampires. Her instant hatred of the
vampires was more biological and instinctual than anything else. Vampires and
werewolves were genetically designed enemies; perfectly matched in every way,
complete with a primal need to destroy each other whenever the chance arose.
Before Rebecca and Celestia - Savannah’s sire, signed the truce to enter into
peace talks, the idea of working together would have been laughable. Now, it
was expected, enforced by the Authority, Convent of Souls, and Protectors. But
none of that dictated she couldn’t be passive aggressive in making her father
pay for all the torment he put them through, and for the fact that he hid Mira
and Mysti from them.
“Kia, please lead the way.” Rebecca swept
her arm out, and turned the leadership over to the spunky, petite, brunette
dragon shifter. She was an example of ‘looks
can be deceiving’ just like Sundae, one of her new pack members. Sundae was
once a dream assassin, and now she was a werewolf after Rebecca accidentally
infected her with the virus. It was the same night Georgie joined the pack,
only in Sundae’s case, making her a wolf was an accident. Georgie took that
choice from Rebecca. Rebecca didn’t want to take the chance on the military
veteran who was suffering post-traumatic stress after being cursed by a group of
supernatural beings in the African desert. She was mentally unstable. But the
beast master, and her wolf, had different ideas. It only took a scratch from
her wolf claws, and the girl was forced to face her biggest battle, the one for
her life. Both Sundae and Georgie were on the verge of death before the
infection receded, and they were changed into wolves. It was odd since
Rebecca’s reaction to being infected was a nasty flu that kept her in bed for a
couple of days. She suspected it had something to do with the merging of her
magic and her wolf, but had no way to prove it. She wasn’t in the market to
create more wolves at the moment, despite the growing need.
The dive bar lived up to its name. ‘End of the Road’. Rebecca couldn’t help
but empathize with those lost souls drinking, and snorting their pain away with
alcohol and drugs. She was on the same fast track before she discovered the
werewolf community. Her music was the only thing that seemed to keep her sane
back then, her music and her siblings. The death of her parents had left her
with a terrible case of survivor’s guilt. It was because of her weakness that
they were killed, or at least, that was what she was left to believe for the
last ten years. It was only recently that she discovered her mother’s death had
very little to do with her, and everything to do with the world of magic and
their families. None of that was important now. Now, they needed to find their
brother, and bring him home.
The smell of human pain, cyborg mechanics,
and shifter magic mixed with desperation, assaulted her senses. The continuing
war in this universe was a devastating example of what greed and power wrought.
Gabriel slipped his fingers into Rebecca’s hand. His very presence put her, and
her wolf at ease. She offered a shaky smile in his direction as she watched her
pack of misfits keep their heads low while they left the bar.
Kia led them down back streets, doing her
best to keep them out of sight. They all knew they didn’t belong here, and it
was obvious how much their group stood out against the heartbreaking
inhabitants of this world. Humans were scattered on the streets living in boxes,
and scrounging through the trash to find food. The people were dirty, their
clothes shredded and worn. Her team looked healthy by comparison. Their looks
weren’t the only indication they didn’t belong, they smelled different too.
People from here smelled metallic and sulfuric, and those from her Earth were
more organic.
It only took about forty-five minutes
before they made it to their destination. Kia’s directions got them there
safely, and only required them to duck into random alleys a few times to avoid
the local population. How the dark-haired, petite, dragon shifter managed to
keep them from attracting attention made Rebecca respect her even more than she
already did. Kia had become a valuable member of her pack, even if she was on
loan from Becky.
The abandoned warehouse that served as the
dragon shifters’ headquarters was painfully familiar to Rebecca. It was where
they took her when they kidnapped her the first time. The place was still a run
down, grimy mess. She supposed that was to keep the appearance up that it was
uninhabited. But she knew the truth. There were many dangerous shifters that called
this place home.
As Rebecca and her team entered the
warehouse, she could feel the uncomfortable push that occurred when she was in
close proximity to Becky - her alternate dimension double, and the leader of
the dragon shifters on this Earth. She looked around, and saw a furious Becky
approach them with purposeful strides, her trusty gun drawn and hanging at her
side, finger close to the trigger. Rebecca wasn’t worried for herself, but she
knew Becky was unstable, and her concern was for her pack and family. She
stepped in front of her pack, comfortable in the knowledge that she was
protecting them.
Rebecca didn’t think she’d ever get used
to the angry dragon wearing her face. She wasn’t Savvy, she wasn’t her sister.
Unfortunately, she was her, only raised under different circumstances. In a
strange way, she reminded Rebecca how miserably insane she would’ve become if
her life had been altered. It made her grateful for the messed up existence she
did have.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Becky
asked, only focused on Rebecca. Her alternate was a dead ringer for her, minus
the chocolate-brown hair, and the new scar on her cheek. In a way, the scar
made her look more treacherous, if that was possible. Rebecca knew this version
of her was lethal. It only took one look in Becky’s violet eyes to feel like she
was being assessed by a predator.
Becky took a precarious step toward
Rebecca, her eyes shooting daggers at her. Rebecca didn’t back away. She stood
her ground as any proud alpha would do. The closer her double got, the stronger
the push against her. Being in the same vicinity as your alternate double was
like pushing two magnets with opposite energies against each other. They
literally repelled each other. The next step Becky took made Rebecca’s air
shield pop into place restricting her from getting any closer. A smile slid
across her lips, satisfaction in her eyes. Her protection magic came in handy
on many occasions, especially with her maniac double. “My brother was lured
over here by the wolves. We are here to rescue him.”
“Hunter? How difficult is it to keep your
family safe?” Becky roared.
“At least I have a family to take care
of.” Rebecca regretted the words the moment she spoke them, but tension always
arose when two alphas faced off. Perhaps Becky had good cause to be bitter
about the whole ordeal. She’d lost her entire family in the car accident, but
Rebecca hadn’t. Then, Becky lost her grandmother a year or two later. In an odd
sort of way, holding Rebecca accountable for her family’s safety made freakish
sense.
Becky seemed to grow in size, if that was
possible. She looked like she was fighting off a shift. “You would do well to
remember I eat wolves like you for dinner.” Smoke wafted out of her nostrils,
and Rebecca felt the power of the dragon even behind her shield. She was
thankful her pack was behind her, shielded by the same invisible barrier that
protected her.
At least until Savannah stepped forward to
examine Becky closer. “Dear gods, Becca. She looks more like you than I do.” Savannah
and Rebecca were identical twins, with only a few differences between them.
Before Rebecca became a werewolf, and Savvy a vampire, it was almost impossible
to tell them apart. Now, however, their looks were changing a little, morphing
them both into different creatures, and telling them apart was far easier.
Rebecca didn’t know why it was that way, but suspected it was because they were
new creatures, and somehow, their DNA was altered. She wasn’t entirely sure,
but her human body never felt quite the same after her first wolf
transformation, and she suspected that when Savannah woke from the dead she was
altered as well.
Becky’s furious violet eyes turned toward Savannah.
Sadness mixed with loneliness, and happiness danced in their midst. It was an
eerily odd combination. But the sight of Savannah managed to calm the maddened
shifter down enough that the smoke was no longer being emitted from her nostrils.
“Savannah?” Becky’s voice cracked a little.
Savannah smiled. “Yes, nice to meet you…
um… what do I call you?”
Becky wrapped her arms around Savannah and
held her close. It took Savannah a moment to reciprocate the embrace, but she
did, more out of obligation than desire, Rebecca suspected. Even so, a tinge of
jealousy seeped into Rebecca’s mind. Savvy and Becky weren’t genetic enemies.
They were just two supernaturals with a family in common. Rebecca pushed back
the inappropriate feelings and refocused on the matter at hand. Becky and
Savannah could have that connection that she gave up without a second thought.
The connection that was severed the night she transformed into a werewolf for
the first time. A tiny part of her was thankful that they weren’t connected
with the twin sense anymore because Savvy didn’t have to feel her pain every
time she morphed into a wolf, but deep down losing it hurt her far more.
Savannah was her sister, through thick and thin, love and hate. Their mother
promised they would always have each other. For eighteen years, all they had
was each other, Hunter, and grandmother. They were just starting to get used to
the idea of Maverick, Mysti, and Mira. They didn’t need another sister, especially
one she couldn’t even get in close proximity to without producing a protection
barrier.
“So can you help us or not?” Rebecca asked,
finding it difficult to keep the annoyance out of her voice.
Becky pulled back from the hug. The smirk
on her face told Rebecca that she caught the tone of her voice. “Last I checked,
you were supposed to be helping me with my wolf problem. Have I not held up to
my part of the deal?”
“And rescuing my brother is the beginning
of my plan.” Rebecca rolled her eyes. “You can’t very well expect me to leave
him here without help. Had you been around your com the last few days we
could’ve made the rescue days ago.”
Becky sighed heavily. “Again, I’ve been
busy maintaining a decent level of peace here since you can’t seem to uphold
your end of our bargain.”
“I’ll continue our work on eliminating the
drug ring on my side once I free
Hunter.” Rebecca’s hands fisted at her side. She had very little patience for
her double. The shaking of her limbs did little to hide the urge to punch the
she-dragon. The desire to hurt her double rolled through her like waves holding
on by a very weak thread.
“I may be a little crazy, but I’m far from
stupid. I can’t hurt you, but there is nothing stopping me from hurting your
friends or family if you don’t make quick work of exterminating my rodent
problem.” Her voice made it undeniably clear she’d hurt those close to Rebecca
if necessary.
Rebecca growled. “The way you talk about
the wolves is insulting. In case you’ve forgotten, I’m one of those problems
you talk about.”
Becky laughed. “Yes. But you are safe
because you are a means to an end.”
“And when I’m not useful anymore?” The
obvious question slipped from her lips. She was being pushed to her brink, and
the animal was coming close to the surface, weakening her inhibitors, primal
instincts taking the driver’s seat.
Becky shrugged. “Not really relevant
because we live in different universes.”
‘And we can’t
touch each other’,
Rebecca thought coldly as she swallowed the knowledge that Becky would easily
kill her as she would anyone else. ‘What
kind of person does one have to be to be able to kill a mirror image of
themselves?’
‘The kind of
person that has seen too much death and destruction,’ Siren answered the
question in Rebecca’s mind.
‘You don’t need to
defend her.’ The
snarl from Rebecca in her mind was unnecessary, but she was irked beyond her
normal tolerance at this point.
Gabriel stepped forward, using the
advantage of surprise as he punched Becky squarely in the jaw. “I don’t take
kindly to people threatening my mate or our pack.” The blow was hard enough to
send Becky flying backward. Lucky jumped to his side, always ready for battle. It
was one of those moments when Rebecca wished she wasn’t protected behind an air
barrier. She wanted to be the one that dealt the punch.
‘I’ll
always have your back, my love.’ Gabriel grinned as he spoke in her mind
using the mating connection.
Becky jumped up, and her body began
morphing into a beautiful but deadly dragon. Iridescent purple wings sprouted
from her back. Her skin started turning into lavender scales, and she fell to
all fours. Smoke wafted from her nose as her head morphed into that of a
dragon. The process took very little time. Gabe barely morphed into the wolf
before the dragon used her large talon to send him flying as easily as someone
batting away an irritating gnat. The hair on Rebecca’s face grew, her eyes
turned violet, her teeth elongated, and her claws came out. There was very
little she could do with the air shield in front of her, but that didn’t stop
her from trying. Her wolf was readying for battle, and if any of Becky’s pack
came near, they’d suffer the pain she wanted to inflict on her double.
Lucky drew two swords from his back
holster. Sundae, Georgie, and Savannah fell in line with Lucky, ready to defend.
Gabriel shook off the pain, and circled behind the dragon, still in wolf form.
The mating bond told her he was hurt more than he let on.
‘Back
down, Gabe.’ Rebecca warned.
‘Never,’
he growled.
‘Idiot! I think
sometimes you’re going to be the death of me,’ Rebecca sighed
heavily.
Kia morphed into an emerald green dragon,
and stepped in front of Lucky and the rest of the pack attempting to protect
them. Both dragons faced off and circled.
Right before Kia was ready to strike,
Georgie stepped forward. “I command you, dragon, to stop. All the animals in
the room froze including Georgie who let out a frustrated breath. She really
had to work on that.
“At this point, Becky, we have the upper
hand. Are you willing to concede?” Lucky asked, swords swishing through the air
as he was one of the few who wasn’t frozen.
The dragon couldn’t move, but the smoke
leaving her nostrils, and the concession in her violet eyes was enough to
convince them.
“I release you,” Georgie spoke with
difficulty. The animals were free to move again, all morphing back into their
human forms.
“What in all that is holy?” Becky asked
when she was back to normal, well, as normal as a crazy person is allowed. She
examined Georgie. “How did you do that?”
Gabriel and Lucky stood in front of
Georgie, and pushed her back behind the protective shield that was in front of
Rebecca.
Becky laughed wickedly. “Fine, keep your
secrets. I really don’t care. I’m sorry for being such a horrific hostess. I
just got news that two more of my pack were taken into custody… so as you see,
I have my own problems to deal with.” She zeroed in on Rebecca. “And then you
come here and tell me that your brother is being held by the wolves, and I find
out Savannah is a vampire?” She turned to Savannah. “Vampires were massacred a long
time ago here. Humans, cyborgs, and supernaturals rose up against them, and
hunted them into extinction.”
Savannah shivered at the tactless news.
“That is good to know.”
Becky shook her head. “No, it isn’t. Don’t
you see? That means for every minute you are here, you are in jeopardy. All
vampires will need to return as soon as possible.” Again, zeroing in on Rebecca.
“Do you never tire of putting your family members in peril?”
“How was I supposed to know that?”
Becky pulled out the gun and tapped it on
her head. “You scout it out. Don’t you know anything about war zones?” She
started pacing. “Haven’t you ever read a book on strategy?” She zeroed her eyes
on Kia, “and you should’ve known better.”
Rebecca shook her head. “No, I really
don’t.” She turned to Georgie and Sundae. “You two take Savannah and … Maverick
back home.” They nodded.
“I don’t want to go.” Savannah practically
stomped her foot. She was getting overly temperamental lately, and Rebecca
hoped it was just a phase she was going through because her temper tantrums
were getting exhausting.
“You will be safer at home,” Rebecca tried
again.
“I’m not going either,” Maverick chimed
in.
Becky’s eyes narrowed on Maverick. It
appeared she didn’t like the man that was their father either. Maybe someday
Rebecca would ask her about that, but not today. Today, she didn’t care. Today
was about saving Hunter.
Savannah she wouldn’t punch, but Maverick
was a different story. Rebecca turned toward him. “Seriously? You were just
told you were in danger being here.”
“He’s my brother.”
“He’s my son.” Savannah and Maverick spoke
at the same time.
Rebecca shrugged her shoulders. “Suit
yourselves.” On the outside, she looked okay, but on the inside she was worried
about Savvy’s safety, and deep, deep, way deep down, Maverick’s too.
‘You’re pathetic
sometimes,’
Siren whispered angrily.
‘And other times,
I am outstanding.’
She reminded her wolf of the battle with Devon a couple of weeks ago. ‘So deal with it.’ That battle did more
than solidify her leadership as the pack alpha. It also earned a little respect
from Siren, who shared her mind.
Becky let out an angry scream. “Fine! Take
Jaden and Kia, and find your brother.” She began walking away, and the
protective barrier blocking Rebecca disappeared. She turned back, eyes zooming
in on Becca. “If you find my people, please bring them back to me… alive if at
all possible.” She spun around from them, and started walking away again. “And
please, find time to keep your promise.” Her voice echoed through the empty
warehouse.
