Page 1 of The Daughters of Nyx

PROLOGUE

MAEVE

THE unsteady thrum of hearts echoedin myears as the Seer paced the length of soldiers standing before her.

Since we’d entered the large training hall, her thin lips had been pursed and her eyes narrowed. The line of soldiers dwindled as she assessed them, excusing some while placing others in groups. I watched her survey us, and I could feel the impatience growing in my chest.

As her eyes skimmed the lines of soldiers—some I knew, others I’d only seen in passing—my nerves grew, too, prickling my skin.

I’d been in the newly chosen group for nearly three hours with little to no progress and some unfortunate strain on my back. Because not only was Seer Sable here, but so was Queen

Greer and her mates. They’d been anxiously watching since the beginning, which either meant the Seer was weeding out potential spies, or recruiting a top secret group for a mission.

I hoped for the latter. But knowing the Seer, the former was always a possibility.

I cast a questioning glance to Elias Beckham, who had been standing at my side since the early hours. He’d done well to keep his usual scowl off his face, but now it threatened to spill across his features. For a shifter, he could almost be considered handsome: short, scruffy, brown hair with golden streaks brushed his forehead, with dark green eyes, and heavily scarred—though I didn’t know many from the Phoenix Compound who didn’t have scars all over their bodies, and they wore them like armour or medals of valour.

There were others who were getting tired, too. I could scent the exhaustion in the air. Our initial group was dwindling, leaving this newly formed group with twenty or so members. When the last of the initial group left the hall, the Seer turned on us once more.

And her lips remained as thin as my nerves as she walked the length of us, her violet eyes calculating. She was reading us, that much was clear. Every look was calculated, deducing. She paused briefly before one of the Fae knights, looked him over, and motioned for him to leave. She did this another three times before stopping before her son.

From the corner of my eye, I watched the interaction. I heard every word like they were speaking to me directly, but I supposed that’s what happened when you were a vampire with heightened senses.

“Can I leave?” Rowan Archer asked, staring down at his small mother like an insolent child. Boredom coloured every word, darkening his eyes.

Seer Sable’s eyes narrowed, and she rubbed at her chin in thought. After a moment, she said, “No,” before moving on.

She excused two more before her eyes rested on me. Sable shared the same copper hair as her son, though hers fell to her waist in a mix of braids and curls. Charms hung from the strands and chimed like bells as she walked. Her dress was crumpled, almost like she’d been asleep right before we were called into the hall; like she too was surprised to be down here.

Her gaze ran the length of my body. She tapped a long, pink nail against her cheek before nodding, almost to herself. “You’ll be good,” she murmured. Then she looked up and almost smiled. “Stay.”

She moved on.

Elias remained at my side. Two more were excused. Our group decreased until there were five. Left was a shifter with a temper that matched Elias’s. I sensed the man beside me stiffen as Sable spent several moments contemplating the burly figure, but she waved him out and moved on to the final person.

Beside me, Elias released a breath.

But this time, it was my turn to tense.

Sable regarded the Queen’s son carefully. There were only four of us left, and Adrian Kingsley was either the final piece of this mystery, or would be released like all those before him.

For a moment, I thought he might be waved off, but instead, Sable’s thin lips cracked and a smile brightened her

eyes. She patted the young Prince on the shoulder, nodded, and murmured, “Yes, this is perfect.”

Sable hobbled to the Queen’s side and whispered in her ear, though as hard as I tried, I could not make out what she said. The Queen looked up, nodded, and a smile made for pleasing the masses of Avalon broke across her youthful face. It was hard to imagine that she was hundreds of years old—and that she predated most of the supernatural residents on our island.

Queen Greer raised her hands and beckoned us closer. Elias muttered a ‘finally’ under his breath as we made our way to the podium. I was surrounded by men I barely knew; Adrian and Rowan were both mages with the uncanny ability to get in trouble. They were swift in standing together, Adrian on my left, Rowan at the end. Elias stood on my other side.

Without instruction, we knelt and pressed our right fists to our hearts. I lowered my head as the other men did, and we waited. I couldn’t help but notice I was the only female in the group.

“Rise,” Queen Greer instructed.

As I stood, I took in the members of Queen Greer’s personal council. Her Fated Mates.

The group had grown in the years since I joined the compound. Two hundred years ago, she had six people at her side, but now eight stood with her; a mix of men of different species, all Chosen by Nyx for Queen Greer. They were her conduits, the measure of her power, and they stood as regal as she, despite being soldiers and scholars.

The Queen looked between us; she had a hardened gaze, one that revealed nothing of her years spent ruling over the

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