Page 1 of Blades of Ice

Chapter 1

Lydia plunked downher empty martini glass and raised a finger to the bartender.

“What are you doing?” Cailín asked as she slid onto the stool next to Lydia’s, placing her small backpack on the bar.

Lydia narrowed her eyes at the redhead. “Planning world domination. What does it look like I’m doing?”

Cailín ignored her snark. “You sure you need another one?”

“Need? No. Want? Yes.” Because of her shifter metabolism, it would take a lot more than five martinis to get drunk, but a girl could try. It had been a week since the showdown in West Virginia with the Bridgewater pack, and Lydia was no closer to having her shit together. Her parents had driven her home after the incident that sent her into a tailspin. Lydia had unintentionally killed a she-wolf who intended to attack Dakota, the new Gargoyle Queen. Nikolas, Lydia’s father, had intentionally killed a wolf who put his hands on Lydia as well as attacked Dakota’s best friend, Jolee. Nikolas had no trouble sleeping after taking a life. Lydia? She couldn’t sleep without reliving the moment her sword pierced the female. Hell, she couldn’t unsee it while awake either.

Since she was young, Lydia had trained with her Clanmates in all types of weapons as well as in hand-to-hand combat. They were taught what it meant to defend not only one another but especially their King and Queen. What they hadn’t been taught was how that first fatal blow would affect them mentally. Her parents’ generation had seen plenty of action, but they eitherforgot what it felt like to take a life the first time, or they were made of stronger stuff than she was.

Lydia propped an elbow on the bar. “Why are you here? You’re supposed to be guarding Connor and Alyssa.”

Cailín lowered her voice where only Lydia would hear her. “They’re hosting a birthday party for one of Gannon’s daughters, so the house will be filled with Goyles.”

“That doesn’t explain why you’re here or how you found me.”

“You honestly think your parents don’t have eyes on you right now?”

Lydia knew they did, and that was part of her problem. She twisted the magical silver bracelets on her wrist that became whatever weapon was needed with only a thought. Luna and Solara, twin witches, had taken their mother’s ability to change her bracelet into a wand and expounded on it. As she studied the metal bands, Lydia wondered… “Check, please,” she told the bartender when he placed the fresh martini in front of her.

Cailín grabbed the glass, removed the olive-filled skewer, and downed the martini in one go.

Lydia gasped. “What the hell?” Cailín then shoved the olives in her mouth, chewing noisily and grinning at Lydia.

Lydia removed a credit card from her wallet and placed it on top of the receipt. “Why are we friends?”

Cailín swallowed the green mess. “Because I’m fuckin’ awesome.”

That she was. The female was a badass, but she was also quirky, getting her personality from her human papa. Lydia signed the receipt, returned her credit card to the wallet, and shoved it in her purse. “Let’s go.”

“Where to?” Cailín grabbed the small backpack she used as a purse and joined Lydia.

“To see Luna.”

“Isn’t she in New Orleans?”

Lydia waved bye to her cousin, Robbie, who was the general manager of Colden’s Key. “Nope. She got back yesterday.” Luna and Solara split their time between Atlanta and New Orleans. Luna was loud and outgoing, inheriting her mother’s magical skills. Solara was quiet, and while she was also proficient in spells and potions, she had inherited Lilly’s artistic abilities, preferring to hide out painting.

Lydia’s phone rang, and she checked the caller ID.Shit.Normally, she wouldn’t curse seeing her mom’s name, but Sophia had been smothering her ever since they returned from West Virginia. “Hi, Mom.”

“Hey, Sweet Girl. Just checking in.”

“I’m fine. Cailín and I are headed over to Solaralun.”

“Oh, that sounds fun. Mind if I tag along?”

Lydia wanted to say yes, she minded, but she truly didn’t. Sophia Stone was the best mother in the world. She’d been overbearing the last few days, but it was because she loved Lydia beyond measure. “Don’t mind at all. Do you want us to pick you up?”

“Nah. I’m leaving the doctor’s office now. I’ll meet you there.”

“Sounds good.” Lydia disconnected just as they reached Cailín’s cherry red hybrid Jeep. When she clicked the locks, Lydia climbed into the passenger seat. They had the tops off even though it was early November. Georgia weather was always a crap shoot, but the days were still mild enough to go topless. In the Jeep, that was. Solaralun, the twin’s occult store, was located in Little Five Points, a hip, artistic area not far from Colden’s Key. They could probably walk there faster than they could drive considering all the one-way streets in Atlanta.

Cailín expertly shifted gears as she navigated the busy roads. “Why are we going to see Luna?”

“I want to see if she can spell the bracelets so what happened before doesn’t happen again.”

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