Sanctuary of the Shadow by Aurora Ascher

Author:Aurora Ascher
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fantasy Romance; Fantasy New Adult; Fantasy; Red Tower; Red Tower Books; New Adult; Wraith; Oracle; Seer; Shadows; Queen; Elements; Elemental Emergence; Elemental War; Circus; Fortune teller; Hybrids; Wings; fire; water; Tarot cards; Elemental Queens; Avatar the last airbender; Magic; Magical Circus; Romance; Forbidden Romance; Enchanter; Tarot; The Sandman; The Greatest Show; Sanctuary of the Shadow; Sanctuary of the Shadow by Aurora Ascher; Aurora Ascher; action and adventure; betrayal; magic; powers; winged creatures; imaginative; debut; dark; light; dark and light; opposites attract; forbidden; opposites; trust; loyalty; mysterious; mystery; abandoned; new beginnings; revenge; overcoming odds; Wraith; Oracle; Seer; Shadows; Queen; Elements; Elemental Emergence; Elemental War; Circus; Fortune teller; Hybrids; Wings; fire; water; Tarot cards; Elemental Queens; Avatar the last airbender
Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
Published: 2023-07-23T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

“I know this story, I think.” Harrow shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “Everyone does. Furie’s mate attacked a village in your territory, and when you retaliated, he was killed.”

Darya looked away. “That is what happened. To a point.” Was that guilt in her expression?

“Was it on purpose?”

Her silver eyes flashed. “What do you think?”

Harrow studied her closely. The Queens could be benevolent goddesses one day and fickle, ruthless tyrants the next. “I’ve heard tales that Furie’s mate was blood-crazed, obsessed with warring. I was told that Furie was the senseless one, who hungered for power and preyed on innocents. But that’s not true, is it? I think you were sick of defending your borders from the constant threat of invasion. You killed him on purpose and tried to make it look like an accident.”

As the truth sank in, her heart broke all over again. This was the real reason she’d lost her people. Darya was not a protector, but the aggressor in a war that had plunged the world into a dark age.

Again, Darya’s gaze wandered away. “Think you so little of me, daughter of the Water?”

“Am I right?”

Reluctantly, she nodded. “Furie was incapable of denying Ferron anything. She lured him in with the promise of immortality, but that wasn’t enough. He wanted every soldier in his army gifted with Fire magic, and I feared what would happen if she allowed her powers to spread too rampantly. Her queendom was growing too powerful, and I had to put a stop to it.

“So when Ferron and his men attacked my borders, I dispatched a secret cadre of soldiers with special orders to assassinate him and make it appear to be an accidental casualty in the skirmish. He was a legendary warrior, but even he could not defeat two dozen men at once. The assassination was a success, but my plan failed. Furie knew her mate was too skilled a fighter to ever be killed in a mere raid. She didn’t believe my ruse for a second.” Darya sighed heavily, appearing her ancient age for a brief moment. “Needless to say, I paid for my betrayal many times over.”

Harrow couldn’t speak. That old grief had risen in her throat like bile, transformed into helpless anger. Her mother’s death, her clan’s death, all the Seers’ deaths… They were all because Darya had betrayed her sister and Furie had retaliated tenfold. In their struggle for power, they had broken the land and their own people.

Countless lives had been lost. Centuries of wars had ensued. The losses were staggering.

“I know what you’re thinking, dearest, and it’s nothing I haven’t thought myself a thousand times over.”

“Then why are you still fighting? Why not end this?”

“How can I? After her warrior’s death, I tried my best to reconcile with Furie, but there was no reaching her. Her grief consumed her, changed her utterly. I had no idea she cared for the man that much.” She shook her head. “I never could have imagined. My own mate

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