The word felt odd in her mouth, like chewing on something dry. Aria tightened the protective ward surrounding her, Harry, and an unconscious Benjamin.

  “That the creation must destroy the creator. Do you think, if they had never found me, that I would be different? Not a monster?” She grimaced as her fire barrier began breaking down under the counterspells of the hellhounds. They relentlessly sought more of her flesh.

  Aria spoke up. “I don’t know, Mira, but I do know that you didn’t start off this way. Let us help you, before it’s too late.”

  She wagged her index finger at Aria, as if reprimanding a child. “The sin eaters made me, now I will unmake them. Then, no more children will be turned into monsters by them. It’s time for all sin eaters to go away. Don’t you see that?” Just as the hellhounds broke through the barrier, Mira faced the darkness still enveloping the building and disappeared through the window. The hellhounds followed, their bone-chilling howls filling the air.

  Aria doubled over, heaving a sigh and praying that the creatures would stay on Mira’s trail and not decide to come back for her or her friends.

  Harry had gone over to Benjamin, who was knocked out cold. He checked for a pulse. “He’s breathing. Might have a hell of a headache when he wakes up. Are you okay?”

  “Yeah.”

  He approached, concern in his expression. “She’s coming back for you, isn’t she?”

  The darkness outside subsided, and Aria could see the neighborhood outside her window. “Eventually, but I think she’s going after Edwin and the other sin eaters.”

  “What?”

  “He’s building a new community, in Los Angeles. That’s where she’s going. She’ll eat their souls and take them all.”

  Harry observed her, then frowned. “And you actually want to follow her to L.A.?”

  “Remember what we talked about the other day, and if I was still committed to protecting humanity? Whether or not I still had faith in people?”

  “Yes, I do.”

  “Even if I didn’t stand in her way and let her destroy all the other sin eaters, do you honestly think she’d stop with them? Clare said she didn’t stop. I’m not sure if she can. She’d just find another group of people to devour, and then another.” And, despite how she felt about Edwin and his prior actions, she’d be a hypocrite to stand by and let Mira snatch his soul. Besides, there was still the possibility of redemption for the old Shrivener.

  Harry slipped his gun into a holster at his belt. “Are you prepared to fight Mira, to the death?”

  “I won’t have to,” Aria said in a barely audible voice. She gestured toward her bedroom where Clare slept. “Now that we have our mother, we can subdue Mira and perform the Undoing.”

  A spell she was desperate to partake in just a short while ago. One of the main reasons she had even sought out her birth mother. The Undoing was a ritual that would strip a sin eater of her powers—and that’s exactly what Mira needed. If she couldn’t find her sister and stop her, then the darkness they had just encountered was only a taste of what the other woman had in store for the entire world.

  Harry arched an eyebrow. “Why didn’t Clare just do that Undoing spell, then?”

  “Clare must’ve been missing one or more components to the spell. Hey, does Jonathan know anything about that? He was a Loremaster when he was alive.”

  He paused and tilted his head slightly, listening to the ghost’s chatter. He let out an incredulous laugh. “Why can’t these spell ingredients be things we actually see and use everyday? Why unicorn farts and rare jewels?”

  Aria crossed her arms. “I doubt we’re going to strip Mira of her powers with a unicorn fart. What does Jonathan say we need?”

  Harry’s expression sobered, and he leveled his gaze at her. “Got any vampire blood lying around?”

  “You have got to be kidding me.” That unicorn fart was more attainable. Besides the fact that there were probably less vampires than sin eaters walking around in 2017, which was saying something, they were vicious and powerful. One couldn’t exactly walk up to them and ask for some of their blood.

  Harry’s phone rang, and he pulled it out of his jacket pocket. He rolled his eyes when he saw who was calling. “Now what does he want?”

  “Is it Jacob?” He was probably the only person in the world Harry would hate to receive a call from.

  Harry shook his head and answered. “What is it? This had better be good.”

  He listened intently and then nearly dropped his phone. His face went pale. He hastily told the other person that he’d arrive in Los Angeles as soon as possible.

  “What is it, Harry?”

  “That was my brother.”

  “The one who shoved you through a window?”

  “I’ll have to explain that, but it looks like we’re both going to L.A.”

  “What did he say?”

  “You remember I told you my brother was a federal agent?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, apparently he heads a special task force that goes after dangerous people like Cedric.”

  Aria’s eyes widened. “He knows where Cedric Astaroth is?”

  “Even better.” Harry grinned. “He’s got that bloodsucking vampire locked up at a high security facility. I can finally get my curse lifted, and you can get your missing ingredient for that spell.”

  Aria broke into a smile. Hearing the news felt like an uplifting light at the end of a dark, painful tunnel. “Harry, that’s wonderful! This is what we needed.”

  And she especially needed this.

  Not only had the vampire cursed Harry with the Imperare, causing the spirits to invade Harry’s mind, but Cedric had also framed Aria for murder in an attempt to hasten bloodshed and strife in Miracle Falls. Once the vampire fled the city, she and Harry believed they had lost their chance at obtaining justice.

  She opened her right hand and studied her sin eater birthmark. It emitted a soft glow. It was as if the deep magic inside her knew exactly what was going on, and it wanted her to take on this task. Edwin Kovar had once recited an old sin eater proverb to her: We are the right hand of Mercy, but we also sit at the feet of Justice.

  Justice would come soon enough, and she would bring it swiftly against those who had been gifted with powers but then chose to walk the path of darkness.

  “Well, Aria, it looks like we have work to do.” Harry smiled at her. He looked a hundred times better. Whatever had been draining him, depressing him, or disturbing his peace, was now gone.

  “Yes, we do. So let’s get started.”

  Legacy (Book 3) is Coming!

  Legacy (The Aria Knight Chronicles #3) is in the works! Join the Fantasy, Mashups & Mayhem newsletter so we can notify you as soon as it’s on pre-order. Thank you!

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  www.aleshaescobar.com/newsletter

  About Alesha Escobar

  Alesha Escobar

  Amazon Bestselling Author

  Alesha Escobar writes fantasy to support her chocolate habit. She enjoys reading everything from Tolkien and the Dresden Files, to the Hellblazer comics and classic literature. She’s the author of the bestselling Gray Tower Trilogy, an action-packed supernatural thriller set in an alternate World War II. The trilogy hit the bestsellers lists at Amazon (Top 60 in the entire Kindle store), as well as iBooks, Kobo, Barnes & Noble online, and Amazon UK. The first book of the trilogy, THE TOWER’S ALCHEMIST, is currently free to download at all online retailers and is also available in audiobook format.

  Besides being a loving warrior mom to her six children, she enjoys crafts, consuming more coffee than is necessary, and spending time with her husband Luis, a 20-year art veteran for The Simpsons television show.

  To receive free and discounted book offers from a Alesha, join her Fantasy, Mashups, & Mayhem mailing list today at www.aleshaescobar.com/newsletter

  Other Books by Alesha Escobar

  The Gray Tower Trilogy

  The Tower’s Alchemist #1

  Dark Rift #2

  Circadian Circle #3

  The Diviners

  House of Diviners #1

  Order of the Black Sun #2 (Coming Soon)

  The Aria Knight Chronicles

  Sin Eater #1

  Revelations #2

  Short Stories

  Logan 6

  The Black Dagger Gods

  About Samantha LaFantasie

  Samantha LaFantasie

  USA Today Bestselling Author

  Hailing from Kansas City, Missouri, Samantha LaFantasie spends her free time chasing her three kids and dog named Fido. Writing has always been a passion of hers, as she’s foregone all other desires in order to devote herself to this one obsession, even though she often finds herself arguing with her characters through much of the process.

  She’s primarily a fantasy writer but often feels pulled to genres such as sci-fi, romance, and others. Samantha became a bestselling author with the Pandora Box Set (which included Made to Forget: Nepherium Novella series—Part One) on both Amazon and USA Today.

  Samantha loves to take time to enjoy other activities such as photography and playing her favorite game of all time, Guild Wars 2.

  Other Books by Samantha LaFantasie

  The Nepherium Novella Series

  Nepherium: The Complete Collection

  Heart Song (A Fantasy)

  The Aria Knight Chronicles

  Sin Eater #1

  Revelations #2

 

 

  Alesha Escobar, Revelations

 

 

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