Excerpt from Golden

She tore through the dense forest, branches snatching at her cloak.

Her lungs burned, every breath a desperate gasp, as she pushed her legs harder. She had to push past the fear. Push past the pain. It was her only chance of escape. She tripped and fell to the ground.

Despair clutched her in an iron grip. Get up! Do you want to die? She stumbled to her feet and kept going. She heard the persistent shuffle of footsteps behind her. Lilith was getting closer.

Her heart pounded like a war drum in her ears. The darkness was smothering. Her body was giving out, but she had to keep going. Too much was at stake to give up now. She kept running, her mind a blur.

A taunting voice rang through the darkness, “You can’t run forever.”

She would run until she had no strength left. No sooner had the words flitted through her mind when her foot caught on a root. This time, she went down hard, her hand landing on a sharp rock that pierced through her flesh. She gasped, feeling the sticky warmth of her blood flowing over her hand.

She heard the frantic thudding of footsteps and turned to see her tormentor rushing toward her.

“You can never escape me,” Lilith screamed. She looked down at her prey, a peculiar sadness weighing in her voice. “You and I both know how this is going to end. It didn’t have to be this way. Together, we could’ve been invincible.”

“Nay, for you couldn’t rest until you took possession of my amulet. Your insatiable thirst for power has cankered your soul. If only you had stopped to consider how your actions affect others.”

“Silence,” Lilith screeched. “I’ll hear no more drivel from you. This ends tonight.”

Isolde had known that Lilith would eventually find her. She’d thought she was prepared to die. But now, when the prospect was upon her, the lie unraveled. Trembles rattled through her body. She poured all of her remaining strength into the fury of her words. “You failed. Killing me won’t change anything. I’ve put measures into place—measures that will protect the amulet and ensure that good will ultimately prevail.”

“You think you can stop me from getting what I want? You’re pathetic. So naïve. How exhausting it must be to carry around your heavy cloak of perceived righteousness. You sicken me.” She held out her hand. “Now, hand it over.”

Laughter riddled Isolde’s throat. “You’ve wasted your time hunting me down. I don’t have the amulet.”

“You lie,” Lilith raged.

She lifted her chin. “The amulet is safe from you.”

“Give me the amulet, or I’ll destroy you!”

A bitter laugh bubbled from Isolde’s lips. “I don’t have it.”

“Very well.” Her voice was quiet. Final. “Time to end this.”

Shudders ran through Isolde, knowing what was coming next.

Lilith would use the amulet against her.

A whimper rose in her throat. She clamped down her lips so that it wouldn’t escape. She had to be brave. She had to endure the pain with dignity and grace. A silent prayer went through her mind. Please help this to pass quickly.

A deafening silence pressed against her ears.

Then came the blinding light, searing through her mind and soul.

“Tell me what you did with the amulet,” Lilith shouted.

Even though she knew it was futile to resist, Isolde fought, clinging to her final shreds of willpower.

Then, her sanity was shattered as a ragged cry ripped from her throat.

Chapter from Beastly Charm

It started with a tickle in her throat that turned to a shiver—the kind of foreboding shiver that let Belle know that she was coming down with something, despite her best efforts to ward it off. She pulled into her reserved parking space at the Aspen Grove Realty Group and sneezed. A cold chill vibrated through her body as her eyes watered. She longed to crawl into bed and take a nap, but there was no time to stop. Everything hinged on the upcoming deal and the conference call that was scheduled to take place in ... She glanced at the clock on the dash and felt a wave of panic. The call was starting in five minutes. She’d have to hurry to make it on time.

As Belle rushed into the office, the matronly receptionist looked up from her desk. “Peter’s in the conference room.” She offered a rushed smile before standing. “Here, let me take your coat and purse, and I’ll put them in your office. Go on in.”

Belle gave her an appreciative smile. “Thanks, Sheila.” She stepped into the room. “Sorry I’m late,” she mouthed to Peter who gestured for her to take the chair next to his.

“The call is going through now,” he explained and then got a good look at her face. “Are you okay?”

She nodded and began removing the documents from her briefcase.

A man’s voice came over the phone. He had a distinctive British accent. “Hello.”

Peter leaned forward in his seat. “Hello Mr. Blake, this is Peter Wallace from Aspen Grove Realty. I have Belle Montrose here with me. We appreciate you taking the time to do a conference call with us today.”

Belle could hear the nervous hum in Peter’s voice. They’d been trying for six months to get in touch with the elusive Sebastian Blake, the owner of Rosewood Estate. A decade or so ago, in its heyday, Rosewood was an exclusive finishing school where the very elite went to learn proper etiquette and manners; however, due to the slower economy and the overall shift away from polite society in general, Rosewood was on a downward spiral. When the founder, Charlotte Blake, passed away two years ago, it was rumored that her son, Sebastian, was considering selling the property. The estate was comprised of fifteen acres of some of the most valuable real estate in Park City, and it was Belle’s fervent hope that she could convince Sebastian Blake to sell. She had a lot riding on this one.

“Mr. Wallace, this is Alastair Henning, Mr. Blake’s assistant. He asked me to inform you that he has changed his mind about speaking to you.”

Peter shot Belle a concerned look.

“Mr. Henning,” Belle piped in, “this is Belle Montrose. I spoke with you yesterday.”

“Yes, madam, I remember,” came the clipped response.

She squelched the cough that was building in her throat. “When we spoke, you indicated that Mr. Blake would at least talk to us.”

“I’m sorry, but Mr. Blake wants no further contact with your company.”

Belle almost came out of her seat. “Excuse me, but is Mr. Blake there? If I could speak to him, I’m sure he would like to know that my client is willing to offer a fair market price for the property.”

“Good day.” They heard a click.

“What happened? Did he just hang up on us?” Blood rushed to Belle’s face, and she had the urge to punch something. “I can’t believe this!” The cough finally broke through. She covered her mouth and doubled over as a fit of coughing overtook her.

Peter put a hand on her arm. “Hey, are you okay?”

She gulped to get the coughing under control. “I’m fine.” Her head was starting to swim.

“You don’t look fine. You look like the walking dead. You need to be home in bed.”

“I don’t have time to be sick,” she said hoarsely. “When I talked to Alastair Henning yesterday, he said that Sebastian Blake would speak to us.”

Peter shrugged. “I guess he changed his mind.”

Despondency settled over Belle.

Peter started rubbing her arm. “Belle, there will be other deals. There’s no need to get so upset.”

She raked her hair out of her face. “You don’t understand.”

“Well, of course I understand, babe. I know how much your work means to you, and I know you were hopeful about this account.”

There was so much Belle could’ve said, like how everything she’d spent a lifetime trying to build was riding on this deal. But then she would have to explain to Peter why she’d not told him everything from the get-go. He would want to know why she was withholding important information when they were planning on getting married. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust him. She did. There were just some things she wanted to keep to herself ... for now anyway.

He turned her around to face him. “You’re sick, honey. You need to go home and go to bed. You need to get some rest, so that you won’t be sick on our cruise.”

Frustration pricked Belle. “How can you think of a cruise, right now?”

“How can you not be thinking about it? We’ve been planning this cruise for months. A chance to get away from the hustle and bustle of this place. You and me in the sun.” His voice grew husky. “In the hot tub.”

She gave him a small smile. “I’m excited about the cruise too.”

He brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes. “I know we both pride ourselves in keeping our noses to the grind, but you know, Belle, there’s more to life than work.”

“Yes, I know. You’re right.” She paused and clenched her fists before jumping to her feet. “But I’m so mad right now I could spit nails!” She began pacing back and forth. “Peter, do you realize how valuable that property is? Think about it—there’s enough room to build an entire neighborhood.”

“Down, girl. You’ve done everything you could. You can’t make him talk to you if he won’t.”

She spun around. “What?”

“You can’t make him talk to you if he won’t,” he repeated. “It’s not like you can jump in his face and demand that he listen to you.” A smile stole across his lips. “Although if he’s like any other man on the planet, he’ll take one look at you and offer you the moon.”

Her face brightened. “Peter, you’re a genius! That’s exactly what I’ll do.”

Peter lifted an eyebrow. “What?”

She shoved the documents back into her briefcase. Then she reached for the handle and started walking toward the door.

“Where are you going?”

“To Park City to see Sebastian Blake.”

Peter shook his head in exasperation. “Today?”

“Yes, today.”

“But what about the cruise?”

She chuckled. “Don’t worry, Peter. I’ll be back in plenty of time. It’s Monday, and we don’t leave until Friday. I’ll drive to Park City today ...” she glanced at the clock on the wall “... and talk to him this evening. I’ll get a hotel tonight and will head back tomorrow. That’ll give me two days to pack for the trip. And if I’m lucky, I might even squeeze in a little time to rest.”

Peter stood and went to her side. “I’ll go with you.”

She gave him a peck on the cheek. “Thank you, it means the world to me that you would offer, but you have enough to take care of here. You said yourself last night that it will be all you can do to finish up everything before the trip.” She could tell from the look in his eyes that he knew she was right. “This is my baby. I’ll take care of it.”

He caught hold of her arm and looked into her eyes. “Be careful.”

She smiled. “Always.”

“I love you,” he said as she went out the door.

“Love you back!” she called over her shoulder.