Lola Taylor's Blog, page 4

New website coming soon!

Hello, everyone! Just a heads-up that my website will be undergoing some changes. Things might get messy (broken links, incomplete pages), but I’m aiming to have the new website ready to go by October 1st. The new look is very book-and-reader-centric, and I’m super stoked to share it with you. Thanks for sticking with me during this transformation phase. I have lots of fun goodies planned for you in the upcoming months, so stay tuned. — xoxo Lola

New Release! Ritual, the final book in the Blood Moon Rising series

I can’t believe it’s finally here! This has been a long time coming, and I thank you all for your patience, support, and understanding. I’m still waiting on the book to go live at a few retailers. I’ll add those links as they become available. =)

Without further ado… Enjoy! – xoxo Lola

***NOW AVAILABLE!***

Release Date: 8/23/2016

Available formats: eBook (paperback coming Winter 2016)

Language: English

Length: Novel (359 printed pages)

Series: Blood Moon Rising (Book 6 of 6)

FIND OUT HOW IT ALL ENDS NOW

AMAZON US || AMAZON UK || AMAZON AU || AMAZON CA || APPLE || BARNES & NOBLE || KOBO || SCRIBD || INKTERA (PAGE FOUNDRY) || SMASHWORDS

*check back soon for more retailers!

Synopsis

Elijah Johnson never thought he’d see one, let alone both, of his brothers again. If only it were a happy reunion, but that bullshit was usually reserved for fairy tales and soap operas. One brother is lukewarm and civil; the other wants to knock his block off. Not that Elijah can blame them. He’s feeling pretty rotten about the state of their relationship, and is starting to question whether staying away was the right choice…

Verika Tate—whoops, “Johnson”—is growing into her powers at an alarming rate, but she’s not about to tell her mate that. He has enough on his plate as is, namely dealing with his own insecurities about magic while his brothers try convincing him to join them on an epic quest to defeat the witch he fears more than death itself.

As Verika and Elijah struggle to deal with their inner demons, the strength of their bond will be tested—especially as Mistress Black draws closer, determined to convert Verika over to her side and use her to destroy everything in her path.

Can true love survive in a world wrought with war and treachery?

The climactic ending to the Blood Moon Rising series.

FIND OUT HOW IT ALL ENDS NOW

AMAZON US || AMAZON UK || AMAZON AU || AMAZON CA || APPLE || BARNES & NOBLE || KOBO || SCRIBD || INKTERA (PAGE FOUNDRY) || SMASHWORDS

*check back soon for more retailers!

Ritual ARC Giveaway Winners Announced!

Blood Moon Rising Book 6 Ritual

The Ritual ARC Giveaway is officially over, and the winners have been announced on the giveaway page! Congrats! A big thank you to everyone who entered. Books were just sent out via email. =) Winners, if for some reason you don’t get it, just shoot me a message here or email me at lolawritespnr@gmail.com. Have a great weekend!http://www.lolataylorbooks.com/ritual-giveaway/

Here’s the new look for Blood Moon Rising!

A few months ago I mentioned big changes coming. I was referring to the complete overhaul of my books. Another round of editing on backlist works, new formatting, new covers. Kitten over at Deranged Doctor Design designs all my book covers, and she has done a FABULOUS job. From the moment I saw the new covers for Fever, Protector, and Ritual, I knew they were going to help take this series to a whole new level. So, without further ado, here they are! What do you think? Leave comments below!

Quick Q&A:

Will Ritual be published with the new cover? Yes! Since it’s the next book I’m publishing, Ritual will be the first of the set to be published with the new formatting and cover art.

What about the other books in the series? You can expect to see the new cover art, formatting, and re-edited versions by the first of November.

Are you going to be doing paperbacks? Yes! I’ll start getting those up this year, and continue on into next year. The full series will be available in paperback by Spring of next year at the latest.

Blood Moon Rising Book 1 Fever
Blood Moon Rising Book 6 Ritual
Blood Moon Rising Book 2 Protector

Big Changes Coming

Hello Dear Readers =)

I hope all of you are doing well. Let me just say I appreciate every single one of your social media messages and emails and Authorgraph requests. You keep me going with your encouragement, and I feel truly blessed to have each and every one of you in my life.

Now for the “meat” of this post… I started writing this last week, before my Monday morning hit, and got busy during my work week and didn’t get a chance to come back to it. It’s been a LONG while since I’ve posted something, so I figured it was time. Plus, I don’t like leaving you guys hanging, wondering if I’ve dropped off the face of the earth. =) Thing is, I couldn’t figure out how to word this, so I kept putting it off.

I’ve been writing for almost seven years now (WOW! I can’t believe it’s already been that long.), and I’m going on my fifth year publishing. It’s been a rocky road, with more failures than successes, but I’ve kept going because I can’t not write. Sure, I’ve had doubts, massive ones, if I’m being honest. Wondering if I’m meant to do this, if I should just throw in the towel. Quitting’s crossed my mind, of course, but usually only for a moment until my brain screams, “What the hell? What do you mean quit? You can’t freaking quit! You’ve come too far!” Then I’ll go right back to writing. While I can usually talk myself down from the ledge, so to speak, I’ve never come so close to actually quitting as I have recently.

Several weeks ago, I went through what could only be called a “mid-career writer crisis.” Like, I completely locked up and couldn’t write anything. Didn’t even want to look at one of my books. I questioned my entire journey as a writer, doubted I was actually cut out to be one. For the first time, I seriously considered never writing another thing after I wrapped up the Blood Moon Rising and Her Dark Desires series. Like maybe I should accept my fate, because I was never going to make it, and I should just be happy with what I have.

It sounds like a pity party, and I suppose in a way it was. But it went deeper than that. This was paralyzing doubt, the likes of which I’ve never experienced before. It was a really dark time for me. I stopped reading, stopped writing,  stopped doing everything I’d loved because I found no enjoyment in it. All I could think about was “Am I really quitting?”

That hung over my head like a storm cloud for what seemed like forever until, one day, I confessed to my husband how much I was struggling and what I was contemplating of doing. “You can’t quit,” he said matter-of-factly while we drove home from getting a bite to eat. “That’s silly. You just need to keep going.”

Keep going.

Did I want to keep going? What would my life be like if I wasn’t constantly thinking about writing, learning about editing, fussing over my stories, fretting over my micro book business/hobby? Would I be happier? Was the grass really greener on the other side?

Suddenly, this sparkling dream I had when I first started out, this hope of someday becoming a full-time professional storyteller, seemed more like an ominous mountain I’d never be able to climb in this lifetime. It took a lot of soul-searching, a lot of journaling to help me figure things out. I realized I’ve been treating this more like a hobby instead of like a business, and that’s the real reason I’m struggling. I was the reason I wasn’t seeing the success I dreamed of, and that filled me with all kinds of doubts and fears.

When I first started publishing, I was more or less testing the waters to see how I liked going out on my own. To see how I liked being an author. Slowly, it’s grown into something bigger, but it’s still not as big as I want it to be. All of that’s my fault, because I’m not putting as much time or effort into it as I could or would like to.

I had three choices: keep doing what I’m doing, up my game, or quit.

Knowing I was on the cusp of a big decision, I froze, unsure which direction I wanted to go. People change over time. I’ve changed. I’m not the same person I was seven years ago when I first began to write, and I had to ask myself, “Do I still want this? Have my wants/desires/goals changed? How will my life change if I really went for this?”  In a busy, busy world, with busy, busy lives, it’s hard to make yourself stop long enough to ask yourself what you really want out of life. When I really thought about it, I discovered I did still want to be a professional writer–badly. And a lot of my fears and doubts came from the fact I was scared of change itself–scared of how becoming a true professional author might affect my life. And I was scared of failing. I decided the only solution to beating back those crippling fears and doubts was to rip the Band-Aid off and move forward.

“Forward,” for me, means making everything–and I do mean everything–look more professional. Get an author photo done, get my books formatted by a pro, get all my book covers rebranded, redo my website and social media hubs, work with not only a copy editor but a proofreader. Or two. It means taking the time to not just read fiction but to study it more, to pick apart books by longtime professional writers (Roberts, King, Steel) in order to learn from them. It means taking business and marketing classes.

It means completely overhauling my brand, and changing my perspective from writer-hobbyist to writer-entrepreneur. I’ve taken a class here or there on editing, writing, read books on everything from character development to online marketing. But I’ve never gone “all in,” not really. I was too chicken to.

Change, especially big change, isn’t something that comes easily to me. I tend to cling to what I know. =) Which is why when my schedule changes or some other big event happens, it takes me a while to bounce back. One of the other things I suppose I’ll have to work on–adaptability. *grins*

Anyway, I just wanted you to know why I disappeared and where I was coming from. But enough about that.

Here’s what you can expect over the next few weeks…

I will still probably be fairly quiet on social media while I get my ducks in a row. Those ducks being wrapping up Ritual, which is in final revisions on my end. (The revision process on Ritual has been a lot more taxing than previous books, but more on that later.) It also means re-reading every book before it to check for consistency because I realized I had a major plot hole in one of the previous books. (No, I’m not telling you which.

Ritual update

Hello, hello!

Just a quick update to let you all know what’s going on with me on the writing front… and just in general.

We had snow thunder here in the Midwest this morning. Plenty of snow–but the wind wasn’t quite strong enough to officially call it a blizzard–with thunder and lightning thrown in. It was strange. lol

Started a new job this week, so my schedule’s been all messed up. Two weeks of 8am-5pm, then I’ll have a day off and switch to 4 10s, 6pm-5am. I’m a night owl, so I don’t think being up all night will bother me. If anything it will feel more natural. =P But that first switchover week from days to nights is going to be rough. Thankful I have a job, though. There are still a lot of people out there who haven’t been as lucky.

We also got a puppy back in December. We already had one dog… and that was enough for me. lol But my hubby really wanted another one. So Chewie (yes, after Chewbaca =) became a part of our family. Here he is. His eyes aren’t quite as blue anymore. They’ve turned more gray, but he’s still precious. Stinker is pretty photogenic. He’s a lot more dominant than Jazzy, our year and a half old white German Shepherd female. So training him has kept us busy. He’s slowly improving day by day.

 

 

 

 

 

On the book front, I’m still writing, editing, and brainstorming. Ritual turned out to be a big book (close to 80k!), so it’s taking me a while to comb through it and polish it. What’s taking the most time is all the damn fact-checking. You see, once you get to the end of the series, you’ve built history with the characters. Their backgrounds, what’s happened with them… as a writer, you have to keep track of all of that. Make sure all the facts match up from book to book. I’ve had to read through parts of previous books just to make sure I’ve “dotted my I’s and crossed my Ts,” so to speak. Aiming to have it out by the end of this month, but I’m not going to lie it might not make it into the world until next month. Just know I’m working as fast as I can while still being able to produce good work. =)

If you have any questions, please email me. I’ll get back to you within 24-48 hours. Unless my spam filter eats it. In which case, please send me another message. My email is lolawritespnr@gmail.com, or you can use the contact form in the menu (top of the site).

Thank you all again for your patience. You probably won’t hear much from me this month, as I try to wrap up Ritual and adjust to my new schedule. Will still be stopping by social media (Facebook mostly), so give me a shout out there if you like. =)

Have a good week, and stay safe if you’re having crazy weather!

Lola

Survey Results

Hope everyone had a happy holiday, and that your new year is off to a good start! =) Mine has certainly been busy.

Been meaning to post this for a while now. December was a crazy month, and January is about the same. Lots going on, one goal of which is trying to wrap up Ritual so I can get it out by the end of the month. Along that note, there won’t be a new chapter of Ritual posted this week, or the next, as I’m getting closer to releasing it. I hope you’ve enjoyed the posted chapters. =) Don’t worry–Free Fiction Friday will be back in 2 weeks with a brand new story.

Thank you again to everyone who participated in my survey! It provided some valuable, and surprising, insight into what your reading habits / preferences are. Without further ado… (Click on the image to make it bigger.)

 

 

Nothing too surprising here. A lot of books get detected by my radar via vendor site recommendations while browsing for other books. I will say I didn’t realize so many of you are on Goodreads! I guess, for some reason, I thought it would be a lower percentage. Before I became a writer I was on Goodreads all the time. Since becoming a writer, however, I’ve withdrawn from Goodreads. I feel it’s more of a “readers’ space”. There have been some problems with authors policing reviews. (A lot of good it does them to be an ass on any social media, for that matter.) Because of this, I feel like a lot of readers feel uncomfortable posting their honest opinions about a book. They might be too afraid to even review a book at all, for fear of retaliation from an upset author. I never want readers to feel as if I’m looking over their shoulders. Though I would never dream of commenting no matter what anybody says (because, let’s admit it, that only adds fuel to the fire), I’ve decided to stay away from Goodreads and just let it be a place for readers to gather and talk about the books they love, hate, and are indifferent to.

 

 

Almost evenly split here, which is cool. I thought I was going to have more standalone-only lovers.  I could go either way myself. If it’s a world I really love, populated by people I have fun reading about, then I don’t care if it has cliffhangers or not–I’m going to read it. But sometimes I just want a complete story, no strings attached. Variety is always good, especially for somebody with book ADD, like me.

2016 Challenge: Read a book a week

I think I left this out on my New Year’s Resolutions. I feel like I got so wrapped up in other things last year, that I didn’t make as much time to read as I had the year before. Which makes me sad.

I’ve been a lifelong reader. When I was a little girl I would read The Babysitter’s Club, Goosebumps, Nancy Drew, and The Saddle Club. (I had a gazillion of those, including all the specials, because I was also on a huge I-love-horses kick.) I would read instead of doing my homework–especially when it was math. That might be why I still suck at it to this day. =P

Anyway, writers are always saying to read widely. Read not only books inside your genre, but outside. Things you never thought you might enjoy. I started to branch out a bit last year. One of the books I really got into–a book I didn’t think I was going to like because the main character was such a Debbie Downer–was Dark Places by Gillian Flynn. (The book is way better than the movie, BTW. The movie’s relatively close, but some books just don’t translate well to film, IMHO. Stellar cast, though.) The main character is like a trainwreck. You kinda wanna look away, but you just can’t. She’s fascinating. She’s broken and angry and really struggles to do the right thing at first. Being a mystery / thriller lover, I also loved trying to figure exactly what went down the night her entire family was murdered. That’s the fun in reading mysteries–the “whodunit?” On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being “Did Not Finish” and 5 being “I loved it,” this book easily earns a 5. Great page-turner.

And right now I’m reading Beacon 23: The Novel, a serialized sci-fi novel by Hugh Howey. (It’s really good!) I can honestly say I haven’t been able to predict a thing that’s happened, which is refreshing. In romance, you know the couple’s going to end up together. Which, let’s admit it, can make them a tad predictable at times. =) Hugh’s characters are crazy and funny. (Seriously, the main character is a little nuts–and totally loveable for it.) They feel like real people, and they very much drive the story forward. If you’re looking to take a break between novels, or are just looking for something quick, fun, and different to read, then I’d highly recommend Beacon 23: The Novel.

You don’t have to buy the entire thing at once, though, unless you want to. The first part is only 0.99—Beacon 23: Part One: Little Noises (Kindle Single).

I’m on Part 4 of Beacon, which I’ll finish by Sunday night. Then onto the fifth and final part next week. It’s not very long, so I’ll probably finish early. (Hey, if I can read more than one story in a week, even better.)

Thought it might be fun to post what I’ve been reading, which I intend to do once a week if I’m really enjoying something. Sometimes I abandon a book because I’m just not feeling it. When that happens I just won’t recommend anything that week. I’ve never been a fan of bashing other authors’ work. It’s my fault I don’t like it, not theirs.

So that’s that. If anyone wants to join me on the Read-a-Book-a-Week Challenge, go right ahead. I’m always looking for more good reads. =) Leave comments here or on my social media pages. Happy reading!

Lola

FYI–I’m trying out affiliate marketing, so here’s the disclosure: Lola Taylor is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

As a side note, I will NEVER recommend anything I haven’t personally read or used, or that hasn’t come from a trusted, vetted source.

 

2016 New Year’s Resolutions

“Happy New Year 2016” by Julie ann Johnson (https://www.flickr.com/photos/pyride/) is licensed under CC BY-2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...).

Happy New Year! A lot of people get sad when one year ends and another begins, but not me. I get excited. It’s a time to start afresh and set new goals. A time to become inspired and fired up for the new year.

In case anyone’s curious, here are some of my resolutions…

Eat healthier. As in limit fast food outings to once or twice a week, max.
Cut out soda completely. (Gonna be REALLY hard for me! I love Dr. Pepper.)
Cut out sweets–cookies, cupcakes, candy, etc. My birthday, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are the days I’m willing to make exceptions for. =) Still gonna be really hard. I have such a big freaking sweet tooth!
Write 3k a day, every day, without fail.
Prioritize better. Or, really, just manage my time better, because I kind of suck at it right now.
Exercise at least 30 minutes a day.
Find something to be thankful for every day.
Curb negative thinking and stay positive.
Get into audio books and paperbacks.
Eat more veggies, even when I don’t wanna. =P

What about you guys? Do you have any goals for this year? Share in the comments, and good luck! May the new year bring your dreams closer.

Lola

Free Fiction Friday! Ritual Chapter 8

Every Friday until the book’s release, I’ll post a chapter. Enjoy! If you would like to be notified of the book’s release, please sign up for my new release newsletter . =)

I recommend starting with Chapter 1.

CHAPTER 8 (Warning! There are spoilers. I recommend reading the books in order, starting with Fever, which is currently free! Also, please keep in mind this is the raw manuscript, meaning it hasn’t been glossed over by an editor yet. Some things may change slightly upon final publication. =)

As the waitress set the steaming, hot-off-the-grill steak in front of him, Elijah couldn’t wait to dig in. Screw Mistress Black for the next ten minutes. He was eating some goddamned steak.

He grabbed a fork and knife and went to town. It took a few minutes for him to notice everyone was staring.

“What?” he asked, looking around.

Verika, him, his brothers and their mates were gathered around a long, rectangular dining table in the manor. The meal’s theme was “soul food,” fried chicken and okra, green beans bathed in bacon fat, mashed potatoes loaded with garlic, sour cream, and butter, bowls of white and brown gravy. Sweet tea with lemon, frothy, ice-cold beer, corn-on-the-freaking-cob glistening with butter, cornbread—hell, yeah!—black-eyed peas. Homemade bread. And he was pretty sure he could smell a pecan pie roasting in the oven.

This was by far the nicest meal he’d had in months.

His stomach practically wept in happiness.

Pressing his lips together, he gently set down his fork and knife. No one else had touched their food.

Gage cleared his throat. “We, um, thought it might be good to pray first.”

Elijah raised a brow. Their mother had been sort of religious—she believed in demons because she constantly prattled about the ones taking over their father, read “addictions”—but their father sure as hell wasn’t. They’d gone to church maybe five times a year, and that was only on potluck nights for the free meals.

But hey, he wasn’t judging. They’d need all the help they could get, divine or otherwise.

Taking Verika’s and Alara’s hands, he bowed his head.

And suddenly felt ashamed.

Who the fuck did he think he was, asking God or the Creator or Allah or whoever they were praying to for help? He didn’t deserve it, not after the things he’d done. He felt naked in the darkness of his subconscious, all his sins laid bare. He was filthy, disgusting.

Nothing more than an animal.

When Gage said, “Amen,” Elijah jerked his hands back as if he’d been burned. Alara and Verika cast him curious looks, then each other before picking up their silverware.

His chest rose and fell with more labored breaths than before.

You okay? Came Verika’s quiet, understanding voice inside his head.

He latched onto her presence, let it soothe him. Yeah. I’m fine. Just wigging myself out.

I didn’t know anyone actually said that anymore. A small smile.

Yeah, well, I’m quirky like that. He smiled back.

Now, about that steak business…

Conversation didn’t resume for another blissful fifteen minutes. And when it did, Elijah felt like throwing up that he’d just ate.

“Do you know where Mistress Black is?” Nik asked after a hefty swallow of beer.

Elijah choked. Gage glared at Nik, giving him a “Really? Did you really just throw that out there?” look.

Verika reached for Elijah’s hand beneath the table. He squeezed back and then backed off, not wanting to break her delicate fingers. Took a few deep breaths.

Just breathe. Breathe, dammit.

You can do this, Verika coaxed gently.

He felt her warmth, her sunshine. Despite being a Black Witch, she was the kindest, brightest person he knew. Her whole soul radiated goodness the likes of which he’d never known.

With mechanical effort, he forced air into his lungs, enough to give voice to his thoughts. “Sort of.” The air felt thin, cold. Probably just him. “I have… these patches of memories. What the place looks like. General area. I don’t remember exactly where it is.”

“Why not?” Nik again.

Gage gave an eye roll of exasperation, wadded up his napkin, and threw it on his half-finished plate. “Would you back off?” he growled to Nik.

Nik merely raised his brows, as if to say, “What?”

“It’s fine,” Verika spoke up. It looked like everyone had stopped eating. Talking about a mass-murdering psychopath was a sure way to kill conversation. “We need to talk about this.”

“Couldn’t he have waited after I’d gotten done eating?” Elijah grumbled.

“My thoughts exactly,” Gage murmured.

Alara cleared her throat. “So I’m assuming Mistress Black has blocked your memories somehow?”

They all turned to stare at him. It felt like he was smothering under a pile of rocks.

He shrugged. Or he tried to. His shoulder felt like it had locked in place. “I guess. Sounds like the kind of thing she’d do.”

“Wise move on her part,” Gage said. He was leaned back in his chair, arms crossed with one hand massaging the light stubble around his chin. “I bet there are spells and wards not just on her base of operations but on everyone within her employ.”

“Can’t we just break the spells preventing Elijah from remembering where she lives?” Danica prompted.

Elijah felt like he’d swallowed ice. The cold settled in his gut, knotting it up.

Breathe. Breathe. In and out. There ya go.

“That might be a possibility,” Verika said, smiling politely at Danica. Swooping in to save her mate, who felt like he was drowning in an Arctic ocean. “I thought of that, while we were on the road. But we never had a chance to test it out because we were always running.”

Elijah inwardly smiled at the clever little lie. So innocent and believable coming from her. More like “yeah, my mate is scared shitless of magic, so we didn’t go there.”

Alara wrote that idea down on a piece of paper. Apparently, she was this meeting’s scribe.

“If we can’t break the spells on Elijah’s memory,” Gage said, his voice calm and commanding, “then we should look into locating Mistress Black’s hide-out based on detecting her wards. Can a tracker spell do that?”

“I suppose it’s possible,” Verika said, getting that excited glimmer in her eye. She always got it when talking about magic. He could tell she really loved it, that despite bearing the knowledge she possessed one of the most dangerous magics known to man, she felt more whole now knowing she wasn’t broken. That she did possess a power, just like any other “normal” witch or warlock.

Too bad he fucking hated magic with every fiber of his being.

You promised. You made a promise you’d try, and you’d better fucking keep it.

He wasn’t going to focus on being actively afraid of magic, not anymore. Part of his cognitive therapy he’d learned about at a bookstore they’d stopped by on their way here. He never was a fan of self-help books. Didn’t believe in them. But when you had little cash to pay a therapist, sometimes yourself was all you had.

“You don’t remember what state you were in, what part of the country… if you were even in this country?” Nik asked.

Suppressing his dread at thinking a magical barrier was inside his head, Elijah replied, “No. Not really anyway. I remember there being a forest outside her mansion. That’s what it was, a mansion.” Flashes of memory came back. His brows furrowed. “I remember the trees trying to kill me.”

Alara’s pen stopped scribbling.

People blinked. Then blinked again.

“The fuck?”

“Nik!” Gage reprimanded.

“Apparently,” Verika went on quickly, “Mistress Black bewitched the trees as a type of security. They literally came to life and went after Elijah, from what I understand?” She looked at him.

All he could manage was a nod. God, his neck felt stiff. His whole body felt stiff.

Fuck, he didn’t want to be here.

Deep breaths. Deep breaths.

“Damn,” Nik said. “I don’t suppose they were like the Treebeard and the Ents from Lord of the Rings?”

Danica stared. “You watched Lord of the Rings?”

“What’s Lord of the Rings?” Alara asked, head swishing back and forth as she looked from Danica to Nik.

“Are you kidding me?” Nik said, eyes going wide. “Only the greatest fantasy epic ever.”

“That’s debatable,” Gage muttered. “You obviously don’t watch HBO.”

“I’m surprised you find time, Your Highness.” Nik grinned at Gage’s pointed scowl. “Anyway, babe,” he said, addressing Alara again, “we’ve seriously got to have a movie night. Plan on setting aside twelve hours or so for a Lord of the Rings marathon.” Pause. “Actually, better make that twenty-four hours. We’ll need to watch The Hobbit, too, to complete your education.”

“Good God, these films are twenty-four hours long?”

“Nah. About twenty, twenty-two hours, give or take a few. I was just planning for bathroom breaks and sexy time on the couch.”

“All right,” Danica said loudly, “let’s get back to the topic at hand here. How are we going to find Mistress Black?”

Elijah’s throat tightened at hearing her name.

Find Mistress Black.

He didn’t want to talk about this, ever. He wanted her to just crawl into a hole and rot and die. Or jump off a cliff. Or run into rush hour traffic.

He wanted her to disappear.

Verika glanced at him, back at Danica. “I’ll run a tracking spell after dinner. I should be able to mask its origin from anyone looking for us.”

“Speaking of which,” Gage said, “why haven’t the D.P.I. showed up?”

“Yeah,” Danica chimed in. “Once they realized who Elijah was kin to, you’d think they’d come banging on our doors. Again.”

“My doors now, actually, love,” Nik said cheekily. “Though mi casa is su casa.”

“They didn’t know who Elijah was at first,” Verika said. “He was simply a John Smith.” She nibbled her lip.

“What?” Gage asked, eyeing her carefully.

Verika inhaled a deep breath. Let it out. “You know I told you the D.P.I’s been compromised? Well, one of my coworkers knew Elijah. She was working for Mistress Black.”

“Fuck me,” Nik wailed.

“Nik,” Alara snapped. “Not at the dinner table.”

“I didn’t mean literally, love.”

“Neither did I.” Her eyes narrowed. “Language.”

“The world’s going to shit and you’re worried about my table manners?”

“Can we please stop bickering and get this sorted out?” Danica said, exasperated. “I, for one, would like to prevent the Apocalypse or whatever she has planned.”

“Yeah, what is that by the way?” Nik interjected, flinging the question at Elijah, who was on the verge of hyperventilating.

It kept spinning round and round his head: break the spell preventing him from remembering, find Mistress Black, tracking spells, magicmagicmagic.

“I can’t do this,” he said quietly.

Everyone looked at him.

“Eli,” Verika said softly, squeezing his hand. It was hard for her to grip, he was sweating so.

“Say what?” Nik said.

“I can’t do this,” Elijah said louder, shaking his head, closing his eyes. He saw the brand in his mind’s eye, burning with purple magic.

You’ll always be mine, Elijah.

“You have to do this, Eli,” Gage said quietly. A command from a king to a subordinate.

Nik’s eyes had turned to stone, as well. As had Alara’s.

Fuck, they were going to force him into compliance. Probably strap him down while he choked on the stench of magic, let it invade and violate his body. Tear his mind apart.

Elijah started to stand. He stumbled, causing his chair to tip backward.

“Where are you going?” Gage called as he went for the door.

Away. Anywhere but here.

Ican’tIcan’tIcan’t—

Nik blocked his exit. “You’re not going anywhere.”

“Get out of my way,” he growled, on the verge of Shifting. No one cornered a frightened animal, let alone a wolf, and hoped to get away unscratched.

Nik’s anger leaked out. “Don’t you want to help? Don’t you give a damn about anybody but yourself?”

Alara started to stand. “Nik—”

“No, he needs to hear this. I’m fucking tired of you running away. When things get tough, you turn your back. Like a goddamn pussy.”

“You don’t know what she did to me, what she made me do.”

“Yeah? That’s because you never fucking tell us shit. You don’t trust us. You’ve never fucking trusted us with the truth.”

“That’s not true.” His voice even sounded weak to him.

“Isn’t it, though? Isn’t that the reason you never called, emailed, or wrote? Why you refused to open up to us? You weren’t trying to protect us. You never were. You were only trying to protect yourself.” His eyes shone. The anger had faded, leaving disappointment. Which was ten times worse. Elijah would gladly take an angry Nik over a Nik that was disappointed in him.

The faint echo of a headache throbbed in his head. On a whim, he glanced at his mate. She was still sitting at the table, massaging her temples with her face scrunched up.

Gage appeared behind Nik, rested a hand on his shoulder. “That’s enough. Calm down.”

Nik didn’t fight him. “It’s fine. I’m fine.” His started to walk away when his jaw ticked—and that’s when Elijah knew he was in trouble.

The shine dried up, leaving raw fury in Nik’s eyes. “Nah. On second thought, no I’m not.”

He tackled Elijah.

The women shot from the table as the two men tumbled on top of it, tipping it over and scattering plates, food, and silverware everywhere.

“Oh, my God!” Danica exclaimed, watching with a hand clapped over her mouth.

Verika backed away toward the wall, still clutching her head, as Alara and Gage dove for Nik and Elijah, who were a tangle of limbs.

Nik was a lot stronger than he looked. More so when that strength was powered by anger. As Nik made to bite down, teeth sharpened to points and glinting like the fancy cutlery now strewn about the floor, Elijah brought his arm up. Fangs sank into his skin, piercing skin and tearing muscle. Fuck, that hurt.

The lights flickered in his peripheral vision. Or at least he thought they did. It was hard to tell from rolling and tumbling so much. And being bitten. That kind of sucked on a few different levels.

Bitten by his brother.

Bitten by his brother, who was also a werewolf. With fangs.

Bitten by his brother, who was also a werewolf, who decided he’d do more damage if he shook his head like a shark.

Damn.

Ow.

“Nik!” Danica screamed from the background.

Two sets of hands, one delicate and soft and the other scarred and calloused, made a grab for them, trying to pry them apart. “Snap out of it!” yelled Alara, teeth gritted and muscles strained. “You don’t want to do this, Nik. Pull back now before you do something you regret.”

Nik let up on the bite long enough to say, “The only thing I regret is not doing this sooner.”

His attack resumed. Gage got a foothold in, managing to dislodge his brother enough to start peeling him back.

Until Nik elbowed Gage in the mouth.

Gage’s hands slipped as they flew to his busted lip. “Son of a bitch!”

“What the fuck, Nik?” Danica screamed.

“Stop it.” A quiet, pleading voice—Verika’s.

Verika.

God, how could Elijah have forgotten about her? Lousy didn’t begin to cover how he felt. Sure, he was being assaulted by a land shark, but that was no excuse. Lesser wolves still protected their mates, still thought of their well-being twenty-four-seven.

Fuck, he didn’t deserve her. Maybe he should turn himself in to Mistress Black, offer her his body and soul in exchange for Verika’s safety.

What the hell was he thinking? That idea was completely irrational. For one, as if Mistress Black would ever leave him or Verika alone. Secondly, he knew it was his fear of magic talking, giving him the same old scpeal wrapped up in the noble thought of “abandoning her for her own good.”

He could never leave her, ever.

He’d die first.

Which, if Nik had his way, would apparently be sooner than he’d thought.

Dishes rattled in the background. He glanced over.

And stopped breathing.

Were the dishes—were the dishes levitating?

“Stop it.”

That same voice, more strained this time. Female.

His mate’s.

“Verika,” he breathed.

Alara and Gage’s voices faded away to silence as he focused in on his mate. The bond felt tight, agitated.

Stressed.

Verika, he said, straight to her head.

I… can’t… hold it.

Hold what?

“Stop it!”

The sound of exploding glass filled the room. Danica shrieked. Nik dislodged himself from Elijah and dove for Alara, throwing her to the floor and shielding her body with his.

Elijah sat straight up. His eyes scanned the room, heart thrumming along so fast he feared it might give out.

There was Verika, standing in a corner, shaking. The windows lay in shambles around them, and the carpet glittered with glass and porcelain fragments. All but a perfectly clean two-foot circle around Verika. Her fair skin didn’t appear to have a scratch on it.

Verika’s terrified green eyes locked on his, pleading, searching.

“I’m sorry,” she mouthed.

The next second she doubled over. Vomit spewed from her mouth, landing in a pile on the carpet.

No, not vomit.

Blood.

***

Verika swore she hadn’t laid down this much even on her vacations. Not that she’d taken many.

Back in their room, Elijah sat by the bed, watching her carefully, stroking her skin. He felt so hot. Or maybe that was because she felt like she’d turned into a human Popsicle. God, she was freezing.

Blankets had been brought in, and piled high upon the comforter. The hearth had been restocked, and a fire burned bright, showering the room with its hot breath. Little good they did her. The cold wouldn’t go away. It had seeped into her marrow, lingering there and making her feel absolutely wretched.

“I still don’t understand why Elijah didn’t get sick,” Danica said. She and Gage were gathered around the bed, though at a healthy distance.

She couldn’t blame them. Though Heath swore neither she nor Elijah were contagious, one couldn’t be too careful.

“It might affect her differently.” Heath dropped her wrist, checked his watch, marked something down on his chart. “Perhaps the Blood Magic the Brand stems from doesn’t mix well with her Black Magic.”

Elijah chewed on his lip. Verika reached up and lightly touched his face, skimming her thumb along his bottom lip.

You’ll worry a hole in it if you’re not careful, she chided lightly, smiling.

I know. He took her hand, kissed her palm. I can’t help myself.

Heath took a few more vitals before performing a healing spell. Elijah looked like he may vomit, but he refused to leave his mate’s side. After Heath left, the silence in the room was heavy.

“I don’t like stating the obvious,” Gage said quietly, “but I believe this leaves us no choice but to find Mistress Black. By any means necessary.”

He looked directly at Elijah. Meaning, scared of magic or not, you won’t have a choice.

Elijah swallowed hard and nodded. “Agreed.”

Verika’s heart swelled. He was so, so scared. Glimpsing his dreams, she knew the nightmares of his past—the torture, the pain, the grief—lingered just below the surface of his conscious thought at all times. But he was being brave for her.

For her.

Gage sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Verika had noticed, with amusement, that all the boys did that when they were frustrated or exasperated or just plain at a loss for words. “I’m going to go check on Nik.”

Danica smiled sweetly and gave a little wave, following him out and closing the door.

Elijah leaned forward, rested his head on her lap and closed his eyes. “I fucked up.”

“Hush.” She stroked his hair in long, soothing movements. “Nik started it.”

“But I instigated it, in a way. I tried running away again.”

“And no one can blame you. It takes time to heal from trauma. Years.”

“But we don’t have years.” He sat up and looked at her, looking haunted. “We have weeks. Days. Hours, even.”

She did what her mother did in tough situations. It came naturally to her, taking his hand, squeezing it, and smiling. “Then we’ll make the most of them.”

The silence turned bittersweet, swollen with the thought they could both be dead very, very soon.

Enjoy it while it lasts.