On Wicked Ground (Solsti Prophecy Book 4) Read online

  ON WICKED GROUND

  SHARON KAY

  This is a work of fiction. Any actual places are used in a fictional context. Other names of places and people are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual places or people is purely coincidental.

  Edited by Janet Michelson

  Cover art by Amanda Simpson at Pixel Mischief

  Interior design by Ink Slinger Editorial Services

  FIRST EDITION

  ON WICKED GROUND Copyright © 2014 Sharon Kay

  All rights reserved.

  ALSO BY SHARON KAY

  WICKED WIND (Solsti Prophecy #1)

  WICKED WAVES (Solsti Prophecy #2

  WICKED FLAMES (Solsti Prophecy #3)

  KISSED BY A DEMON SPY: A NOVELLA

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  First, a huge, sincere THANK YOU to my readers! Without you, these stories would remain untold. Your support, comments, and messages motivate me and mean more to me than I can possibly express.

  Thank you to my amazing husband, for your patience and support of my writing. You are wonderful to brainstorm with about plots and powers. I love you!

  Thank you to my son. I love everything we do together. I love your bright and curious mind, and your endless questions (and thank you to Google for helping me answer them)!

  Thank you to my parents and siblings, my in-laws, and my extended family for your love and encouragement of my creativity.

  Thank you to my critique partners and beta readers for taking time to read the various drafts of my first novella: Auburn, Cam, Claudia, Cristin, Gina, Heather, Jamie K., Jamie S., Nicola, Racquel, and Skye. Your opinions, advice, and nit-pickiness are invaluable, sometimes hilarious, and always spot-on!

  Thank you to the trio of women who make my plain Word document into a professional-looking book: Amanda Simpson, my cover designer at Pixel Mischief; Janet Michelson, my eagle-eyed editor; and Cheryl Murphy at Ink Slinger Editorial Services, my formatter and savior from the scary world of ebook html-coding.

  And a big hug and kiss to the many bloggers I have had the joy to work with. The support you give to indie authors is amazing. Many of you have jobs and families and still make time to read and review dozens (if not hundreds) of books each year, providing exposure for us through insightful and witty reviews, blog tours, cover reveals, and contests. THANK YOU!

  CONTENTS

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  A Note from Sharon

  Glossary

  About Sharon

  CHAPTER ONE

  ALINA STARED INTO THE MIRROR that was lying on her bed, hands hovering over the surface as if she could actually touch the women she saw reflected in its depths. Two brunettes and one blonde, they looked like they knew each other well. They embraced in a crowded hallway, confused expressions streaked with tears.

  What were they saying?

  Had the mirror worked? Alina had cast a blood spell upon the reflective surface and attempted to find the three, pushed by an insatiable urge for knowledge stemming from the weirdest night she’d ever had.

  The job she had worked tonight with her dad had gone south fast. She acquired the item they were after, but her getaway hadn’t gone so well. She ended up unconscious at the bottom of a ravine.

  Yeah, she’d worked smoother ops than that.

  But even more unusual was the fact that she’d shifted the ground to free herself, something no one should be able to do.

  No one, except the one female who could command the earth. One of four legendary women who each controlled an element. And that had compelled her to search, to see if she possibly could have a blood connection to the other three. They had all been recently found, commanding air, water, and fire…but their counterpart was missing.

  Gazing into the mirror now, the question screamed in her mind. Are they my sisters?

  Nervous anticipation sent tingles down her bare arms. Which was silly, because she was on the outside looking in. She didn’t know if they were aware of her at all. Still, her heart slammed with the tantalizing possibility.

  Seeing their images magnified the intense and sudden pull to uncover her origins. She’d asked the mirror to reflect her childhood, most of which was a blur of darkness. No memories. No family. Nothing until a vampire named Sebastian had found her in a subterranean cave and cared for her as his own daughter.

  The first images the mirror showed her had been a family with four small girls. Two brunettes and two blondes. Alina smoothed back her own pale hair, a match of the blond woman in the mirror. The lighting was dim around the group…were they in a fancy home, or a hotel maybe? The blonde leaned against a large man who was as tall as the door and almost as wide.

  Alina peered closer. The women gestured and rubbed their eyes. Was it night wherever they were, just like it was here? Had something woken them?

  The door to her bedroom flew open. “Alina!” Sebastian stood in the doorway, eyes wild. “What’s going on? The amount of magic coming from this room is going to—”

  “Nothing. I—” Her concentration shattered, and the images in the mirror disappeared.

  His gaze dropped to the mirror. “Gods, no! What have you done?”

  “I wanted to find out about when I was young, before you found me.” She stared at the man who had raised her. “I needed—”

  “You used it.” He braced his hands on the doorframe, breath ragged. “You know the rules. No scrying unless it’s an emergency. And call me first. If you don’t do it properly, you create waves of energy that can attract the wrong kind of attention. Especially with that.” He pointed to the mirror.

  “But Dad, tonight, when I fell—”

  “We have to leave. Right now.”

  “Why? What does this have to do with anything?” She waved a hand angrily over the mirror.

  He shoved a hand into his blond hair and cursed under his breath. “Using that mirror put us in danger.”

  “Danger? From who?” Alina’s heart pounded with dread, shaken by the disappearance of his easy-going nature.

  “I can explain later. Pack your things.” He stalked out and a minute later she heard cabinet doors being opened and closed. Items slammed as they were set down, then rustled as they were packed.

  Alina stood, frowning at the glass surface for a minute before changing out of the slinky dress she’d worn for her job tonight. She pulled on a black tank top and slim black jeans, wincing as the denim brushed over her still-healing ankle. She didn’t possess the rapid healing that predatory demons did—at least, not at their accelerated rate, and her ankle still showed the evidence of meeting the ugly jaws of a he
llhound in her escape-turned-clusterfuck tonight.

  Stupid canine. The wound had closed but was still tender and she tugged on soft socks before attempting her boots. She eased the leather gingerly over her bite, then slid a blade into each boot. Straightening, she surveyed her tiny room. Living as thieves meant lots of overnight changes of address, and this tiny rented house was no different than dozens of others they’d lived in. She was used to it, but this time her dad was acting more unsettled than she’d ever seen.

  She bent to retrieve a duffel bag from under her bed, and began her standard process of packing essential items. Clothes, knives, amulets, jewelry with secret compartments to hide poison or blood. A bracelet that unfurled into a rope.

  Just your standard equipment for a life of crime.

  “Ready?” A nervous edge bled through her dad’s voice as he called from the hallway.

  “Ready,” she mumbled.

  “Good.” He walked into her room, mouth drawn in a thin line, jaw clenched. He held the transportation amulet she’d stolen earlier that evening. It had been a perfectly executed joint heist, with him creating the distraction of an explosion, while she nabbed the goods. Well, it had been perfect, until she was bitten by a hellhound and then fell down a ravine.

  “Looks like we got that just in time,” she said, trying to lighten the mood.

  His face was grim. “We’re out of time. Grab the mirror.” He slipped the amulet’s chain over his head.

  She’d never seen him look so grim and her stomach knotted with guilt for causing it, even though she didn’t fully understand why. Grabbing the padded case they used for storing the mirror, she packed it and slung the strap over her shoulder before clasping his hands.

  He muttered a spell and a wall of mist rose around them. Next, a feeling of weightlessness. But no nausea. The little amulet she had stolen provided smooth travel, not the sick feeling induced by jumping into a portal.

  Hands squeezed tightly in his, she felt like she was floating for a minute. Then her feet registered the sturdiness of ground. She took a deep breath, the mist dissipated, and Alina found herself on the side of a dark road outside a big city whose buildings were bathed in a sea of bright light.

  “Is this Halice?” She studied the jagged skyline.

  “Yes.” Sebastian dropped her hands but remained otherwise motionless, wary blue eyes scanning their nearest surroundings first, and then farther away. He did it with the practiced ease of someone who’d looked over his shoulder his whole life.

  Alina paused too, listening and watching. Not that her senses were that good. She struggled to identify most species by scent, a skill that came so easily to everyone else.

  Halice vibrated with life. It was the time of the winter solstice, and creatures of all species were restless with a seasonal fertility drive. Alina and Sebastian stood on the side of a main road that led into the maze of tall buildings. The road was draped in shadows, but inside the city proper, fire bulbs hovered over every street corner. The city was so bright Alina had to search to find Torth’s twin moons, thin crescents that appeared carved low in the sky.

  “I don’t sense any predators,” Sebastian said. “Let’s go.”

  Their road merged seamlessly with another, and then they were under a bright arch of fire bulbs. The white balls of flame were powered by the ley lines running under and around the city, as was everything mechanical. The arch was a nice touch, probably from some architect hired to play up the city’s glitter and distract from its seedy underbelly.

  A giggling group of female nymphs passed them and headed down a street leading to a strip of clubs and bars. All around, voices chattered in festive conversation. Small pops echoed as portals opened and closed, announcing creatures leaving or coming to the city.

  They passed a tall glass building with a crown of oversized fire bulbs on the very top. Though Alina couldn’t see it from the ground, she was well aware she stood at the base of one of the city’s most beautiful landmarks. She should know—she’d broken into it once.

  Turning onto a street lined with bars and eateries, they walked into a big restaurant. A sign directed them to seat themselves, so Sebastian headed for a dark corner and slid into a booth.

  He ran a hand through his short blond hair, then drummed nervous fingers on the table as she sat. “Now, what was so important that you couldn’t wait for me?” His tone was low, but full of reproach.

  “What’s so dangerous about that mirror?” she countered. “I’ve never seen you like…” she waved her hand in front of her, “this.”

  He sighed and dropped his head back, then lowered his gaze to hers. “It has a counter spell, of sorts.”

  She froze. “What kind of counter spell?”

  He leaned forward, elbows on the table. “You’re not the only one who saw the images it showed you.”

  “What do you mean?”

  He paused, like he was searching for the right words. “You know my father was a thief. He taught me everything I know. Everything I taught you.”

  Alina nodded.

  “He acquired that mirror as payment for a particularly tough job. It was for a mage. My father said he’d only do the job if the mirror was his payment. The guy didn’t want to give up the mirror, but he wanted my dad, since he was the best.”

  A purple-haired elf walked over, bouncy and cheerful. Her hair was in two pigtails twisted high on her head, displaying her pointed ears. “What can I get you tonight?” She set two glasses of ice water on the table.

  Alina eyed her dad. “Breakfast food is good any time of day or night, right? Scrambled eggs and coffee, please.”

  Sebastian ordered eggs too, with steak and a side of chocolate cake. He rubbed his thumb over the condensation on his glass, eyes darting to the waitress’s retreating form. When she was out of earshot, he took a deep breath. “So my dad pulled off the job, obviously, and earned the mirror. But the mage was pissed to have to give it up. So he added a spell to it—”

  “Whoa.” Alina held up a hand. “Added? I thought you couldn’t do that to an already enchanted object.”

  “Yeah, well, this guy could.”

  “Makes me wonder, if he was so powerful, why couldn’t he get whatever he wanted himself? Why hire someone?”

  “It was dirty and dangerous, I assume.” Sebastian toyed with his fork. “Anyway, when you use the mirror, it seems to work as you expect. But the counter spell works in the background, unbeknownst to you. It displays the user, and also who or what the user is looking at.”

  Dread crept up her spine. “Displays it to who?”

  “The person who you’d least want to know what you’re doing.”

  “Huh?”

  “The person who stands to be harmed the most by your search. Or who will be threatened, or lose something, if the user gets to the place she’s looking at. Or meets up with the people she sees.”

  Alina’s jaw dropped. “How would they know?”

  Sabastian leaned back in the booth. “They’ll get a vision. They’ll see you, and whoever you were looking at. And they will get a strong sense of the locations of both.”

  “Shit,” she muttered.

  “So the mage was able to spy on my dad. Did it for retaliation. He saw all his planned heists and blocked him, at first to mess with him, and then…”

  Alina knew the rest. She’d never met her grandfather. He’d been killed on the job. “I’m sorry.”

  “What the hell was so important that you’d use it? Why now?”

  She shoved a hand through her short pixie-cut hair and finger-combed the longer front layers. “I told you I fell down a ravine, trying to get away from our location.”

  He nodded.

  “And I must have blacked out or something. When I woke up, I was pinned under a huge tree, and there were boulders all around. I couldn’t get out, and I was wishing I could move the stuff off me…and then…” She shook her head. “This sounds crazy. But it all moved.”

  Sebastian’s eyeb
rows shot up. “By itself?”

  “No.” She bit her lip. “I think I did it.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “How—”

  The waitress returned with their food, all cheerful smiles. “Can I get you anything else?”

  A boatload of answers? The food looked good, but knowledge of the counter spell unsettled Alina’s stomach. “No, thanks.”

  When the elf walked away, Alina pushed her food to the side and leaned in close to Sebastian. “At the party—Mulvari’s house—when I was in the jewel room looking for the amulet, I overheard two women talking about…the Solsti.”

  Sebastian’s eyes narrowed. “There’ve been rumors, yes. And I’m sure that’s all they are.”

  “Yeah, that’s what they said. But they also said one is missing.”

  Her dad looked at her expectantly. “So?”

  “And then I fell down a ravine and was able to move the earth.”

  He stared at her like she’d spoken a long-dead Earth dialect. “You think you’re—”

  “Shh.” She put a hand on his arm. “I don’t know. That’s the problem. I don’t know anything about my early years. And neither do you. So, I asked the mirror. I had to know.”

  His eyes pierced her. “And what did you see?”

  “Three women. And when they were children, there was a fourth. And a mom and dad.”

  He shook his head and frowned. “Alina, this is a big jump…”

  “I need answers. I’m twenty-four years old and half of my life is missing. You found me in a freaking cave when I was twelve. I need to know where I came from.”

  He sipped a glass of mango juice. “I wish I knew. I always figured you were some kind of fae hybrid. But a Sol—”

  “Shh,” she said again. “I’m afraid to say it out loud.”

  “Okay.” He chewed a mouthful of steak. “If you want answers, we can start digging. We can see if any sorcerers, or a mage or a witch can discern lineage…though usually only Elders can, and they require huge payments.”

  “But we’re in a big city. Surely we can find someone who knows someone?”