Fighting Destiny (The Fae Chronicles, #1) by Amelia Hutchins
Dedication
To my husband who is my best friend and my biggest fan. Who has stood beside me from the very beginning of this journey. To my kids for being patient while mommy sat glued to her computer writing. To my grandmother and mother who never limited my imagination and for the endless stories that made my own imagination soar to endless boundaries. The beta group who read the story many times over until it was perfected, there are too many to name but ladies you know who you are. And to Gina, for her endless hours of dedication, editing, tossing ideas and dealing with me while I spoke Atlantean. Without you this book could not be what it is. And to Gina’s husband for allowing her to work with me through endless nights of editing and the kids for being art gurus.
One
“Comm. Check. Adam, come in?” I said over the traffic noise I was hearing through the small device hidden in my ear.
“Roger that,” Adam said from his safe distance behind the old shipping warehouse a few blocks away.
I pulled the leather coat up tighter around my neck as a woman and child passed me on the street beneath the Dark Fortress. I’d been given an unusual assignment from Alden, the leader of the Guild where I worked.
Break in and steal the Dark Prince of the Fae’s crown. Normally, given my past history, I would have walked away or given this particular assignment over to another from the Guild, but Alden demanded it be me who took it. It was an overly risky and stupid assignment as far as I was concerned, but I had no say in the matter.
Adam and I typically worked as enforcers and assassins for an organization of Witches that kept Otherworld creatures on the right track and out of the local newspapers. Thirty some years ago, those of the Otherworld crept out of the shadows and made it known to the human race that they were no longer alone here on earth.
Of course, Witches had always been among them, but we'd been content to just watch from the shadows. Until the Fae, taking the matters into their own hands came out and let the humans know they were no longer the top of the food chain. It had changed everything. Governments were now run with the help of the Otherworlder's.
It had been a huge adjustment for the humans but eventually most had come to terms with it and those that were considered royalty of the Otherworld creatures had been given safe passage and diplomatic immunity. Even now, I was walking on sovereign land that had been legally declared a section of Faery.
Normally my job was easy, enforce the laws and protect humankind from becoming food for the Otherworld creatures. Today it wasn’t that simple, I was stepping out of my comfort zone and into the realm of the Fae where no human rules could be applied. If I failed they could kill me and no one would ever know it.
It was a small price to pay for what I had been given. When I was young, my parents had been brutally murdered by the Fae. I'd gone to live inside the safety of the Guild soon after and while it hadn't been ideal, it had become my home.
I had more than what most orphaned children had and I'd been trained to take my place among the Guild. We were taught that life wasn’t about being selfish, it was about giving back to those who needed it or those who couldn’t protect themselves from the deadly creatures who wanted to feed off of them. That's where I come in. I keep them safe even if they never realize it. I'm not looking for payback, or gratitude, I'm in it to keep this world safe.
I turned, watching the wide glass doors open as an entourage of Otherworld beings that guarded the Dark Prince emerged from the embassy. Ryder was reported to be a notorious playboy, right up until last week when he announced his engagement to the Heir of the Light Fae who had seemingly appeared from thin air.
The Fae normally kept their lives out of the spotlight, but this story had hit every major newspaper around the world in a matter of hours. It wasn’t every day that the Fae announced weddings or anything for that matter and this one was going up on a grand scale. Two royal houses combining together was big Fae business. The papers loved it.
“I got movement, seven guards and a male in a dark leather trench. They're heading for the black limo, over.” I said, pulling my magic around me and making myself look like one of the everyday humans on the street just milling about for a paper, or a look at the royal Prince.