The Darkest Night (19 page)

“Maybe you should change, considering,” EveStar shot back.

Adelyn stiffened in shock. “You know better than most, the phae were devastated in the last upheaval. These fugitives can’t risk revealing us again.”

The handmaid’s vague smile returned. “Change yourself? Is that what I said? Ah, words are slippery as serpents. I meant, be sure to change your glamour, child, lest yet another human sees you and falls in love.”

Adelyn winced at the reminder. Damn her eyes for inspiring that odious ode. And damn her pointless preoccupation with pretty slippers that kept her from asking the handmaid about the sunlit world. After all, EveStar had walked among humans back when the phae had been known and feared and revered. Now she never left the phaedrealii; how was Adelyn, small and steel-born, supposed to survive?

Before Adelyn could ask that plaintive question, the corridor ended in a small, empty chamber.

The end of the road. And the beginning of one.

While wisps drifted in dreamy helixes, EveStar eased the satchel from Adelyn’s tight clutch. The handmaid sprinkled a pinch of spores in a circle. “May you find what you’re looking for, child, what you truly seek.”

Adelyn saw nothing past the rapidly sprouting spores. Tears blurred everything else. When the mushrooms were knee high, a gust of otherworldly air whirled through. Her breath hitched on the overwhelming fusion of wet dirt, hot metal and air chilled to a biting edge. Would she ever again feel the sanctuary of the court’s magic around her? Her thighs twitched with the desire to run. But there was no place to hide in the phaedrealii. Which left her no choice.

Clamping one hand over her nose and mouth, she stepped into the circle, into the sunlit world.

Read the rest January 2013!

Find the cover and pre-order information (when it becomes available)
here
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Acknowledgments

My thanks to the marvelous author Delilah Marvelle for her priceless feedback. (To wit: “Schwing? Or no schwing?” Schwing, of course!)

Fervent thanks also to Mom (“This one seems a little more sacrilegious.” Which part?) and Sis (“The hero is wearing a skirt?” No!
Shirt.
Damn typos!) for fearlessly opening any email I send them.

As always, my deep love to Scott for the soup and support.

And to the Marked Souls readers, I can never thank you enough. I hope you enjoyed THE DARKEST NIGHT.

About the Author

Jessa Slade writes paranormal romance, urban fantasy romance, and science fiction romance—basically, anything with woo-woo and woo-hoo! She is a member of the Romance Writers of Americ and wishes someone else would write the “about the author” section of her books. She lives in the Pacific Northwest where the rain rain rain keeps her at her computer.

She loves to hear from readers, and you can find her goofing off online more than she should.

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Praise for the Marked Souls

Vowed in Shadows

“
Vowed in Shadows
took me on a dark and sexy and intense ride with two complex, compelling characters.”—
New York Times
bestselling author Nalini Singh

“If you like your stories filled with action and romance, plus about two wounded souls, then this is a series for you. This series is wonderful; it has everything you could want to read about.”—Night Owl Reviews (top pick)

“A solid entry in what is sure to become a classic series in the genre.”—Fresh Fiction

“Slade’s characters are extremely well-developed, with boundless emotional depth. In this third Marked Souls novel, the story line is gripping, with plenty of sensual scenes.”—
Romantic Times

Forged of Shadows

“Dark, dangerous, and spiced with passion, this is a well-written tale that will grab your attention from the very beginning.”
—Romance Reviews Today

“The word play is riveting and the story line is fast and action packed.”
—Smexy Books

“The only thing I can say about this series is WOW!!! Ms. Slade brings the fight against evil from the dark and into the light. This story is so exciting and action packed that I had a hard time putting it down. I ended up reading it in one night. I can’t wait to see what comes next for this great new romantic urban fantasy series.”—Night Owl Reviews (five stars)

“[A] heady mix of philosophy and religion . . . serves as part of the framework for this excellent series and sets it apart from the pack . . . Be first in line for book three,
Vowed in Shadows
.”
—Bitten by Books (5 tombstones)

“For readers who love J. R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood, the Marked Souls series will hit the spot.”
—
Romantic Times
(4 stars)

Seduced by Shadows

“Wonderfully addictive!”
—
New York Times
bestselling author Gena Showalter

“Slade’s debut presents a dark and dense supernatural conflict with high stakes in a world where demons and angels possess humans and use them as tools in the unending fight between heaven and hell . . . [a] rich crossover urban fantasy.”
—
Publishers Weekly

“A beautiful and inventive new series start, with plenty of action and wonderful characters!”
—Errant Dreams

“A gripping, suspenseful story, with some hot romantic interactions thrown in for good measure.
”—SanFranciscoBookReview.com

“
Seduced by Shadows
blew me away . . . Slade creates a beyond-life-or-death struggle for love and redemption in a chilling, complex, and utterly believable world.”
—Jeri Smith-Ready, award-winning author of
Wicked Game

THE DARKEST NIGHT

Copyright © 2012 Jessa Slade

Cover design © Jessa Slade
Photography © tankist276
Brushes © ObsidianDawn.com

Digital Edition 1.0

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as factual. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

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