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Informations
Publié par | Mozaika Publications |
Date de parution | 20 août 2020 |
Nombre de lectures | 10 |
EAN13 | 9781631424984 |
Langue | English |
Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0012€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.
Extrait
Prophecy of Magic
Sasha Urban Series: Book 6
Dima Zales
♠ Mozaika Publications ♠
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Sneak Peek at The Thought Readers
About the Author
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is purely coincidental.
Copyright © 2019 Dima Zales and Anna Zaires
www.dimazales.com
All rights reserved.
Except for use in a review, no part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission.
Published by Mozaika Publications, an imprint of Mozaika LLC.
www.mozaikallc.com
Cover by Orina Kafe
www.orinakafe-art.com
ISBN-13: 978-1-63142-498-4
ISBN-13: 978-1-63142-499-1
Chapter One
My biological mother is Lilith.
As in, the mother of demons from human legend.
The same Lilith who made herself a god on one of the Otherlands and kept my biological father, Rasputin, in a dungeon, with occasional torture thrown in for good measure.
Yeah, okay.
Getting up, I grab some clothes as I attempt to process all this.
My mother is an ultra-rare Cognizant with double powers—that of a vampire and probability manipulator. She was going to raise me in such a horrible way that Rasputin had to steal me away and hide me on Earth with my non-Cognizant parents. And now, armed with my full name, she’s looking for me.
What does she want with me? Somehow, I doubt she’s hoping we go to a yoga retreat together.
Not that this is my biggest concern right now. My vision started off with her looking for Nero. She wants revenge for what he did on her world.
He’s potentially in more trouble than I am.
Accidentally putting my right foot into the left leg of my jeans, I nearly faceplant. Catching myself on my desk, I finish dressing and locate my phone.
Wow.
I have countless missed calls from Mom, my adoptive—but no less real—mother.
Is she back from her trip? Or does she want to stay in Paris longer?
Oh, and I also have a few missed calls from my adoptive dad—and he definitely should be back from his vacation by now.
Great. I got so busy seeking my biological parents, I abandoned my real ones—which is just unacceptable. Mom and Dad are the people who raised me. They should always matter to me more than the virtual stranger that is Rasputin.
And let’s not even start on Lilith.
The good news is that Mom doesn’t seem to be in panic mode just yet; she’d be calling nonstop if that were the case. Or maybe she’s beyond panic mode and in a new phase I haven’t seen yet?
But no. Then she’d be over here. That, or have the cops looking for me.
Deciding to deal with the potential life-and-death situation of Lilith seeking revenge first, I call Nero.
He doesn’t pick up, so I leave a voicemail urging him to call me back.
Usually my boss is pretty quick to get back in touch, but seconds tick by and nothing happens.
So as not to go crazy, I make my way into the bathroom and do my morning routine.
When I’m done washing up, I text Nero to call me back now , and my eyes don’t leave the phone as I walk to the kitchen.
No reply.
Felix and Fluffster are both eating oatmeal when I walk in, and the cat is munching on her Fancy Feast. Looking up from her plate, she gives me a look that seems to say, “Another peasant Our Majesty has to patiently tolerate. Our mercy knows no bounds.”
Felix is holding a spoon in one hand and a phone in the other. “Maya, I’m really sorry,” he says over the food in his mouth. “I wasn’t ignoring your calls and texts; I was in a place with no reception. I’ll explain—”
Ah.
So I’m not the only one in trouble for going incommunicado. Felix wasn’t reachable either—and is now having to explain himself to my almost-eighteen-year-old friend from Orientation.
Oh, and the guilty way he’s defending himself makes it official.
He and Maya are dating.
“Sasha,” Fluffster says mentally. “You’re up early. How are you feeling?”
“One sec,” I mumble and email Nero an even more pointed demand to get in touch.
Noticing me, Felix rattles out more apologies to Maya, explains that he can’t talk right now, and hangs up.
As I wait for Nero to reply, I grab a bowl and ladle some oatmeal into it.
“Are you okay?” Felix asks, his unibrow quivering as he eyes me quizzically. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“No,” I say after I swallow my first blissful spoonful of nourishment. “I learned something this morning that’s really disturbing.”
Checking my phone for Nero’s reply every few seconds, I proceed to tell them about my vision of Lilith.
A stunned silence follows, with no one but the cat eating.
“I don’t know what to say,” Felix finally mutters. “That… thing is your mother?”
I grimace. “I know. And now I can’t reach Nero. I hope she didn’t get to him somehow.”
“Nero can take care of himself,” Felix says confidently. “This is Earth. Lilith can’t do the stunts from her world here.”
“But Nero can’t turn into a dragon on a whim either,” Fluffster says. “Maybe that evens things out?”
“Right,” I say, the food feeling like a brick in my belly. “But why is Nero not calling me back?”
“He could be in a meeting,” Felix says. “Give him a few minutes before you start to freak out.”
“You’re right.” I spoon more oatmeal into my mouth. “I’ll give him until I’m done with breakfast.”
As I chew, an idea occurs to me—something I should’ve done right away but forgot in my panic.
I can look at Nero’s future to make sure he’s okay.
Eagerly focusing, I end up in Headspace and dwell on Nero’s essence. For good measure, I add my very complex feelings for Nero to the summons, mimicking what Rasputin does when he wants a vision about someone. I even go as far as to remind myself that we’ve had an intimate encounter where Nero pleasured me but didn’t give in to his own desire out of fear of losing control and hurting me—whatever that entails.
My work pays off.
A bunch of safe-seeming shapes show up around me, and I reach for the most promising one.
I’m bodiless—which means the vision doesn’t include me.
Nero is in his office in the club on Gomorrah. Walking up to the wall, he opens the safe.
Reverently, he takes out the sword he left there yesterday—the sword I came to think of as mine. It’s made of something like the technology of the gates, and Lilith used it to kill Nero in one of my visions.
Is he planning to attack Lilith with it? If so, does he know she’s already on Earth? Rasputin did warn him that since she has Nero’s blood, she’ll be coming for him out of vindictiveness. Then again, Nero said he was going to leave to go look for Claudia regardless. Is that what he’s about to do? Go after this woman whom he thought dead but has just discovered is alive?
Is he leaving me without so much as a goodbye?
Nero presses the button on the sword hilt, and the shimmering lightsaber-like blade shows up, illuminating his menacing expression.
Nodding, he presses the button again to hide the blade.
I’m back at the kitchen table in my apartment.
Felix and Fluffster are talking about something, but my thoughts are with Nero.
This vision explains why he didn’t reply to my calls, emails, and texts.
He’s probably already on Gomorrah, about to do what I just saw in that vision.
As upset as I am about his leaving, I’m also relieved. From now until the near future in my vision, he’s safe. And since he’s in his own club on Gomorrah and has that sword, he’s better equipped to deal with Lilith.
Still, for good measure, I go into Headspace and focus on Lilith again.
Examining my biological mother, I notice more resemblances between the two of us, from pale skin to a certain mischievous glint in her eyes.
She’s standing n