Counting Shadows by Olivia Rivers
(Duplicity #1)
Publication date: June 30th 2013
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
Synopsis:
Two hearts, one kiss…
…Nothing left.
Faye’s
soul-mate is everything she should hate—an Angel, an outcast, an enemy.
Ashe is just one more imperfection in her life that somehow makes
everything… perfect.
Until he’s murdered.
With
the only person she loves ripped away, Faye sets out to avenge Ashe’s
death. The task seems impossible, until she finds Lor—an Angel who looks
nearly identical to Ashe’s killer. Arrogant and hot-headed, Lor is
everything Ashe wasn’t. But Lor is connected to her soul-mate’s past,
and Faye needs him to find the killer—even if Lor is potentially deadly.
But
when Faye discovers that Ashe’s past isn’t as black and white as she
thought, she faces an impossible choice: Give up the hunt, and risk the
lives of others. Or continue pursuing Ashe’s murderer, and forfeit the
lives of everyone in her family—including herself.
Purchase:
His black eyes settle
on mine, the pain in them a silent accusation. Ashe knows he’s
about to die. And he knows I’ve lied about his Fate.
I can’t feel guilt. I
can’t feel anything. There’s only my ragged breaths and
the tears pressing against my eyes. Ashe steps toward me, even though
I’m in the opposite direction of the door. No, I silently
beg him. Run. I don’t realize I’m shaking my head until he
falters.
“Stop,” one of the
guards hisses, even though he already has. “Don’t go near the
Lady Faye.”
My heart pounds
wildly. “Just count the beats when you get scared,” Ashe told
me months ago, as he pressed his palm over my heart. “Remember that
I’ll protect you until the day they stop. And don’t be scared
anymore.”
I gasp in air. One,
two, three, four…
He walks toward me, his
face hard with determination.
Five, six, seven…
One of the guards
shouts and stabs his spear forward. At Ashe. My Ashe.
My heart stops.
I scream at the guard,
telling him to stop, to leave, to disappear and never show his face
again. But my words are a jumbled mess, and it’s too late. The
spear pierces Ashe’s right wing, drawing blood. Nausea fills me as
the red blood mingles with his crimson feathers. I’ve always loved
his wings. They mark him as an Angel, the one bit of perfection in my
life.
Now those wings are
ruined.
Ashe’s eyes never
leave me, even as the guard tears his spear out of the wound. I
swallow hard. I’ve never stared into his eyes for too long, knowing
I’d probably lose myself in all the pain and loneliness in their
depths. Now I never want to look away.
“Get moving,” the
guard with the bloodied spear growls. He stabs at Ashe again, but
Ashe grabs the shaft of the spear before it strikes him. He yanks the
spear from the guard and snaps it in two. Ashe allows one of the
halves to clatter to the stone floor, but keeps hold of the sharpened
end. His gaze slowly sweeps over the four guards with weapons, a low
growl rumbling in his throat.
“You can’t do
this,” I say, finally finding my voice. “My father would never
allow it.”
“Your father ordered
this,” snaps the guard without a spear. He braces for an attack, as
do the others.
Then their leader takes
a step forward and pushes out a staying hand. “Wait.”
I recognize this leader
as Jolik. He was my bodyguard for awhile before Ashe became my
Guardian. I’m not sure how many bodyguards I went through—five,
six?—but they never lasted long before I excused them.
Jolik nods to Ashe.
“Let him say goodbye.”
The weaponless guard
speaks up. “He could kill her.”
“He won’t,” Jolik
says, shaking his head.
Ashe doesn’t wait for
Jolik to change his mind. He drops the broken spear and rushes to me.
Cupping my face with one hand, he uses the other to press me against
him. Familiar heat radiates off him this close. He tilts my chin up
and kisses me so gently, I barely feel his lips against mine. But I
can feel the desperation, and as he presses me a little closer, I
know this is a goodbye.
The kiss only lasts a
moment. Then the guards drag him away, and those threatening tears
finally spill. I’m not sure if the tears are angry or anguished. Or
maybe just broken.
“You’re right,
little sparrowhawk,” Ashe says over his shoulder. “Everything is
going to be okay. I promise.”
I don’t get to
respond. The last guard exits my chambers and slams the heavy door
closed, leaving me truly alone for the first time in years. I take a
shuddering breath, willing the doors to burst open, for Ashe to come
rushing back to me.
They don’t. Silence
settles over the room, screaming the truth:
Nothing will ever be
okay.
_______
AUTHOR BIO:
Olivia Rivers is the author of
five novels, ranging in genres from Epic Fantasy to Contemporary
Romance. Along with being a writer, she’s a freelance digital artist, a
literary agent assistant, and a high school student. She’s a nerd at
heart, and is a hopeless fan-girl for Doctor Who and Pokémon. Olivia
lives in California with a dog who thinks he’s a cat, a cat who thinks
he’s a dog, and a kitten who is just generally confused.
Author Links:
Website: http://oliviarivers.blogspot.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/
I like the excerpt! Thanks for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteOo, thank you for sharing this one. Looking good! And amazing to hear she's so young as well, the author that is. :) Thank you.
ReplyDelete