Keegan was surprised at Lauren’s enthusiasm. The fair didn’t quite sound like her thing. She was probably hoping someone was going to tell her that she and Josh would be married, have three kids, and live happily ever after.

  The fair was disappointing at first glance. Keegan had been expecting…well, she wasn’t sure exactly what, but it looked like some boring craft fair in a church basement. A few tables and stands were arranged around the room with a bunch of old people seated at them. It didn’t look like the few attendees milling around the place were actually buying anything. Still, she could hear her mother in her head. Don’t judge a book by its cover, Keegan. She decided she might as well relax and try to have fun with her friends.

  Keegan noticed a large red sign at the entrance of the fair that said NO PHOTOGRAPHY. Mumbling under her breath, she put her camera back in the bag.

  They stopped at each stand, admiring the jewelry, crystals, tarot cards, and many other items available. There were certainly some fascinating things. Keegan picked up a moonstone necklace for her mother. The small sign next to it said it would bring considerable fortune. Keegan also knew it was a healing stone. It was one of her favorites. She loved the way you could see the colors through it when it was held to the light.

  Lauren came to a halt in front of a stand where a woman sat behind a table, dressed like a stereotypical fortuneteller. She was slightly overweight, fortyish, and wearing a multi-colored dress that gave her an outrageous gypsy appearance. She had a kind face. Her long, curly hair was a brilliant red like that of a clown’s nose. Gesturing to a pile of rocks on the table, she told Lauren, “Pick one and hand it to me. I can tell your future.”

  Lauren did so. When the woman had the rock, she closed her eyes and ran her small hands around it for a few moments before looking up at Lauren with a warm smile.

  “You will do great things and succeed in whatever you put your mind to. I also see that you should put your focus into law.”

  Lauren’s mouth gaped open; her dream was to be a lawyer. The girls all looked at each other in disbelief.

  Anna jumped up and down yelling, “Me next!” She grabbed a rock and handed it across the table.

  The woman did the same thing as with Lauren’s, closing her eyes and feeling the rock. “Child, you have a beautiful soul but you will struggle in life if you do not let go of the sadness inside of you.”

  Keegan and Lauren glanced over at Anna, surprised to see her brush away a tear. “Thank you,” she said quietly and put the rock in her pocket.

  Finally, it was Keegan’s turn. Placing her hands over the pile of rocks, she grasped the one that was calling to her and handed it to the woman. The woman kept her eyes closed for an extremely long time. When she finally opened them, she looked at Keegan warily. Keegan’s heart started to race. She felt as if the woman knew she wasn’t human and was going to say so.

  The woman sighed, handing the rock back to her. “I’m sorry, I feel nothing.”

  “What do you mean you feel nothing?” Keegan balked at the woman.

  “That’s just how it works sometimes. I’m sorry.” She shrugged.

  Keegan wanted to ask the psychic some questions, but Anna and Lauren were keen to move on and dragged Keegan to the next stand. She turned to look back and the woman returned her stare with a blank look. Keegan thought for sure something wasn’t quite right. Could she possibly know her elfin secret? Maybe she truly was unreadable and that’s why the woman looked at her strangely. It seemed odd, not to mention disappointing. Keegan wanted to hear what the psychic had to say about her.

  The three girls spent hours browsing, which turned out to be a lot of fun. The crowd steadily built in the room so that it no longer looked sad and unused, but with the dim light and the noise of guests, it felt like a fair. After enough time had passed, and Keegan’s feet were starting to hurt, she yawned and stretched dramatically.

  “Are you guys ready to go?” she asked, tugging at Anna’s sleeve.

  Lauren nodded vehemently. “I shouldn’t have worn these boots. I’m exhausted.”

  Though she had done well hiding it for most of the day, Anna had obviously been shaken by the psychic’s words. There was a haunted look in her eye as she just shrugged and said, “Sure, let’s go get dinner.”

  As they walked towards the door, Keegan sensed someone watching her. She glanced around the room, searching for the source of the feeling, and was startled to come face to face with another elf.

  Elves could recognize each other if they happened to cross paths. Unless, of course, it was one’s chosen—they were cloaked from each other by magic. Keegan had never seen anything quite like this elf. The girl was stunningly beautiful, but that was not a surprise as all elves tend to be overly attractive. She had short black hair, pale skin, rosy cheeks, and the greenest eyes Keegan had ever seen on a person. She felt as if she were staring into the eyes of a cat.

  What took Keegan by surprise was the darkness around the stranger. Keegan had heard of dark elves. Wherever there was light there had to be dark, but knowing something in your mind and actually seeing it is different. This was the first time she had seen a dark elf with her own eyes. She had heard they mainly lived up north and rarely made efforts to be a part of the human world like the light elves. Since her childhood, they’d almost felt like specters—boogeymen told through light elves’ folklore.

  Keegan’s body went cold. She tensed up, and all her senses heightened as her eyes were caught by the stranger’s.

  “Do you know her?” Anna asked, looking between Keegan and the other girl.

  Keegan couldn’t talk. She felt as if her eyes were locked in place by the dark elf, and she was unable to move unless the girl allowed it.

  Finally, the dark elf averted her gaze, and Keegan’s body relaxed. A distracted look crossed her face as she replied, “She looked familiar, but let’s get out of here.” Keegan’s only desire in that moment was to rush home and talk to her mother about what had happened.

  From a distance, Rourk was staring with a grim expression on his handsome face.

  What was that exchange all about and who was the dark elf?

  He had to make a choice. He could continue to follow the girls or go inside and talk to the dark elf. As much as it pained him to watch Keegan walk away, he quickly advanced into the building. He needed to know if she was in danger.

  Rourk scanned the room, but he didn’t see the dark elf anywhere. Where could she have gone? Closing his eyes, he breathed deeply as he felt the coldness wash over him. He saw her with his mind’s eye. The dark elf had taken the back door and was walking casually down the alley. It was times like this when he was grateful to be the descendent of a great warrior. He’d trained his whole life for his calling—from the time he got out of bed in the morning until the time he went to sleep at night. Hell, he even dreamed about the techniques he’d learned. He needed to put them to good use.

  Silently he advanced. He was now the hunter, and she, his prey.

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  Table of 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 1

  Chapter 2

 

 

  Alexia Purdy, Reign of Blood

 

 

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