I will be staying here at the temple for a while to make sure that he's okay. I hope things are going well, but if not, please send me a note and I will come back to help.
I love you with all my heart.
Always,
Mom
I refolded the letter and tucked it back into the envelope then clutched it to my chest. It would be so much easier to have her here, but I couldn't take her away now. Dad needed her and his affliction was thousands of times worse than a rough day at the castle. Besides, I think she needed Dad too.
The weight of the day dragged on me, everything getting heavier and hazy. I chuckled to myself. I'd started to sound like an old man, constantly tired and lacking energy. I should be in the prime of my life, partying with my friends at the tavern until the early hours, but it was barely twilight and all I wanted was sleep.
Slowly, I stood up and slipped my jacket off, then pulled my shirt over my head. The sunburn on my skin had started to fade but left behind an irritating itch. I fought myself to avoid scratching, even though I had to clench my teeth at times to do so.
I tossed the letter on my dresser and flipped my belt out of its buckle. Then I stopped cold, my hand gripped on the piece of leather as I glimpsed a new face in the mirror. It wore my shoulders and naked torso, but instead of my youthful features and strong jaw were strands of thinning silver hair and thick bushy eyebrows. I leapt toward the mirror and ran my fingers down my face, but soft wrinkled skin hung limp from my cheekbones. My heart pumped loud in my chest, the sound echoed through my room as the blood rushed to my aged complexion. What was happening? This couldn’t be real. I closed my eyes tight hoping for this to be a dream, or more accurately a nightmare. Except when I opened them again the face of the old man stared back at me.
No. No. No.
I smashed my fists against the dresser, the mirror shimmied, but the image didn’t get any better. I grabbed the sides of my head, gripping grey hair in my hands, and paced the floor of my room. I felt like I'd aged, but I didn't really mean it. At least not like this. I rushed to the door and my hand hovered over the door knob, but I didn't turn it because where but I go? Mom and Dad were gone, and no one else would understand. I closed my eyes as wet tears formed in the corners. Anyone else with think I was some sort of monster.
A strange tingling sensation rushed over my skin. My face burned, My hands raged with fire. I looked down as fur and claws appeared on my nails and knuckles. I rushed back to the mirror as a thick furry mane and a beast-like face stared back at me. I screamed, but it came out as a roar. I slammed my mouth shut, my heart pounding even louder, banging against my ribs as if it's tried to escape me. The curse. I hadn't escaped it after all.
My arms trembled. This couldn't be happening. Not to me. Not now. I grabbed the mirror from the top of the dresser and tossed it to the ground with a growl. The wooden frame splintered as the mirrored glass smashed into shards. But no relief came. Instead, the destruction only fueled my rage. Heat coursed through me, electric and strong. I bit my tongue and tasted blood, trying to calm the beast inside aching to be set free. I didn't want this. I wanted to be me again. I needed to be me.
The strange itching tingle started again, but this time when I looked at my hands they were mine again. I touched my face. Smooth young skin spread out beneath my fingertips. I knelt down beside the broken mirror and my own face, my real face, reflected in every single shard, staring back in fractures like a spider's eye.
Relief washed over me, but only for a moment as pieces started to fall in place, even though big gaps in the puzzle still remained. Edwin said he felt something in my blood. I arrived right after the curse was broken, and no one knows where I came from. Maybe I wasn't their miracle baby after all. Maybe I was phase two. I fell back onto the floor as the idea rammed my chest like a flock of arrows, each one piercing my skin and leaking poison into my blood. Could this be because of the darkness? Or maybe the curse never really went away. Or, the one thing that made sense of all this; maybe everything was my fault. Maybe the problem in the castle was me.
Continue the adventure in Throne of Betrayal
After the Happily Ever After…
There is more to these stories. You want to know what happens next right? Fast forward eighteen years…
Pick up book one now
PREQUEL
SLEEPING BEAUTY
1. Queen of Dragons
2. Heiress of Embers
3. Throne of Fury
4. Goddess of Flames
LITTLE MERMAID
5. Queen of Mermaids
6. Heiress of the Sea
7. Throne of Change
8. Goddess of Water
RED RIDING HOOD
9. King of Wolves
10. Heir of the Curse
11. Throne of Night
12. God of Shifters
RAPUNZEL
13. King of Devotion
14. Heir of Thorns
15. Throne of Enchantment
16. God of Loyalty
RUMPELSTILTSKIN
17. Queen of Unicorns
18. Heiress of Gold
19. Throne of Sacrifice
20. Goddess of Loss
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
21. King of Beasts
22. Heir of Beauty
23. Throne of Betrayal
24. God of Illusion
ALADDIN
25. Queen of the Sun
26. Heiress of Shadows
27. Throne of the Phoenix
28. Goddess of Fire
CINDERELLA
29. Queen of Song
30. Heiress of Melody
31. Throne of Symphony
32. Goddess of Harmony
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
33. Queen of Clockwork
35. Throne of Cards
36. Goddess of Hearts
WIZARD OF OZ
37. King of Traitors
38. Heir of Fugitives
39. Throne of Emeralds
40. God of Storms
SNOW WHITE
41. Queen of Reflections
42. Heiress of Mirrors
43. Throne of Wands
44. Goddess of Magic
PETER PAN
45. Queen of Skies
46. Heiress of Stars
47. Throne of Feathers
48. Goddess of Air
URBIS - Coming soon
49. Kingdom of Royalty
50. Kingdom of Power
51. Kingdom of Fairytales
52. Kingdom of Ever After
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A note from the author
The Kingdom of Fairytales authors hope you enjoyed this new way of reading. We don’t think that a series has ever been set with one chapter a day thought a whole year before and we hope we did it justice.
With this in mind, please leave a review, but when you do, remember that these books were always meant to be short breaks in your day and the blurb reflects that.
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The Kingdom of Fairytales Team
These books would not be written without a great many people. Here is our team:
Many thanks to those who have made this possible.
Thank you to Rhi Parkes without whom, this series would never have come about.
Thanks to all the authors.
J.A
. Armitage, Audrey Rich, B. Kristen Mcmichael, Emma Savant, Jennifer Ellision, Scarlett Kol, R. Castro, Margo Ryerkerk, Zara Quentin, Laura Greenwood and Anne Stryker
Also thank you to our amazing Beta team
Nadine Peterse-Vrijhof, Diane Major, Kalli Bunch and Stephanie Pittser.
Thank you to our Patrons
Gigi Nickerson
About J.A. Armitage
J.A lives in a total fantasy world (because reality is boring right?) When she's not writing all the crazy fun in her head, she can be found eating cake, designing pretty pictures and hanging upside down from the tallest climbing frame in the local playground while her children look on in embarrassment. She's travelled the world working as everything from a banana picker in Australia to a Pantomime clown, has climbed to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro and the bottom of the Grand Canyon and once gave birth to a surrogate baby for a friend of hers.
She spends way too much time gossiping on facebook and if you want to be part of her Reading Army, where you'll get lots of freebies, exclusive sneak peeks and super secret sales, join up here
https://www.subscribepage.com/v7o8k4
Somehow she finds time to write.
About Scarlett Kol
Scarlett Kol is the best-selling author of dystopian, paranormal and fantasy novels for young adults. Born and raised in Northern Manitoba, she grew up reading books and writing stories about creatures that make you want to sleep with the lights on. As an adult, she's still a little afraid of the dark. Scarlett lives just outside Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
Scarlett is also the author of Wicked Descent along with many more.
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