Obstacles, page 1
Obstacles
New Beginnings Series, Volume 3
W.J. May
Published by Dark Shadow Publishing, 2024.
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
OBSTACLES
First edition. November 17, 2024.
Copyright © 2024 W.J. May.
ISBN: 979-8227478382
Written by W.J. May.
@Copyright 2024 by W. J. May
THIS E-BOOK OR PRINT is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book/paperback may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of the author.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual person, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
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Copyright 2024 by W.J. May
Obstacles, Book 3 of the New Beginnings Series
Cover design by: Book Cover by Design
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Have You Read the C.o.K Series?
The Chronicles of Kerrigan
Book I - Rae of Hope is FREE!
BOOK TRAILER:
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How hard do you have to shake the family tree to find the truth about the past?
Fifteen year-old Rae Kerrigan never really knew her family's history. Her mother and father died when she was young and it is only when she accepts a scholarship to the prestigious Guilder Boarding School in England that a mysterious family secret is revealed.
Will the sins of the father be the sins of the daughter?
As Rae struggles with new friends, a new school and a star-struck forbidden love, she must also face the ultimate challenge: receive a tattoo on her sixteenth birthday with specific powers that may bind her to an unspeakable darkness. It's up to Rae to undo the dark evil in her family's past and have a ray of hope for her future.
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Obstacles Blurb
USA TODAY BESTSELLING author, W.J. May, continues the highly anticipated bestselling YA/NA series about love, betrayal, magic and fantasy.
Learn to fight—it is the only option...
With the flip of a coin, everything can change...
Against all the odds, the friends have outrun the danger chasing them and reached the tower. The ravens have been sent and the plan is underway. It seems as though the tides are finally changing, but when a stunning ultimatum shakes the fellowship to its core, Kiera finds herself in the last place she ever wanted: caught between two men. And caught between two stones.
As news of their quest spreads like wildfire, the people of the realm come alive with excitement. War is coming, and the darkness that’s been approaching is finally here. When the enemy makes the first strike, the kingdoms must answer. But not everyone is fighting on the same side.
It’s the things you take for granted you miss the most.
Be careful who you trust. Even the devil was once an angel.
Beginning’s End Series
Beginnings
Curiosity
Scrutiny
Foresight
Disavow
Trickery
Wisdom
Decree
Influence
Prevail
Dignified
Honored
NEW BEGINNINGS SERIES
Decisions
Pursue
Obstacles
Gateways
Predestined
Conclude
The Queen’s Alpha Series
Eternal
Everlasting
Unceasing
Evermore
Forever
Boundless
Prophecy
Protected
Foretelling
Revelation
Betrayal
Resolved
The Omega Queen Series
Discipline
Bravery
Courage
Conquer
Strength
Validation
APPROVAL
Blessing
Balance
Grievance
Enchanted
Gratified
FULL READING ORDER
Contents
Have You Read the C.o.K Series?
Find W.J. May
Obstacles Blurb
Beginning’s End Series
NEW BEGINNINGS SERIES
The Queen’s Alpha Series
The Omega Queen Series
FULL READING ORDER
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
NEW BEGINNINGS SERIES
Beginning’s End Series
The Queen’s Alpha Series
The Omega Queen Series
Find W.J. May
More books by W.J. May
Chapter 1
I can’t believe this is happening...
Kiera stood without expression by the window, her body frozen into permanence, her eyes glazed with the glow of afternoon sun. Hours had passed since she’d taken up position. Shadows passed slowly across the floor behind her. Her knees had been throbbing, now they had stopped.
More time passed, but she didn’t notice. Her mind was consumed with a single thought.
For the first time in almost a year...we’re not under the same roof.
It seemed a simple condemnation, almost trivial, under the circumstances, yet it summarized things perfectly all the same. Month after month, season after season, the friends had travelled in each other’s company. Sleeping together, bleeding together. Crossing great seas and mountains, forests and rivers and frozen plains. Month after month, season after season. Often in complete isolation, leaning only on each other, as the rest of the world faded away. A part of her was simply reeling; a puppet who’d lost its strings. It felt like someone had cut away two of her limbs. The others idled aimlessly at her sides, not certain what it was they were supposed to do.
How is THIS what breaks us?
The question had been somersaulting through her mind for the better part of the day, battling against the hinges, and pounding against the inside of her skull. A thousand dangers they’d come across, over the course of their travels. Blisserin and kraken, foul weather and sorcerers, the army of an angry god—and all his wicked plans. It should have been enough to end their fateful journey; it should have torn them to pieces a thousand times. But it hadn’t. They’d managed to fight their way to the next morning; clawing through the wreckage, bloody, yet alive.
While each day brought forth a new adventure, it was the only thing that remained constant, a certainty—deeply-rooted and profound—that they would face it side by side. She would never have considered anything different, that that their family would split up the middle. That their paths would diverge, and some of them would be facing the next adventure alone.
A quiet breath raised her shoulders as her gaze spilled aimlessly over the street, seeing without seeing, tracing mindless patterns. By now, she’d been staring so long, she could draw the place to perfection. The crooked weathervane that sat atop the apothecary, the broken pieces of pottery from a pitcher someone had dropped. A cat was curled in the flowerbeds beneath her, licking rhythmically at its paw. Every so often it would drop back its head and crack a yawn.
She stared a while, then turned away. A tear rolled down her cheek.
No, she couldn’t believe it had happened. She didn’t think theirs was a bond that could fracture, let alone break. Once it had, she’d expected the fae to fix it. And indeed, he had tried.
“Do not do this,” he’d said with quiet urgency, standing in the doorway and watching as Jesse stormed through the bedroom, throwing things into a bag. “Please, let us speak on it—”
“Why?” the wolf snapped without looking, never breaking his stride. There was no logic in what h e was packing. A fist of clothes from the bureau, a vase of flowers that had been sitting atop the hearth. “You have already decided. I will march with the love my life into battle, and you will cower in the sunshine with yours. It’s settled. There’s no need to discuss it further.”
There was a tinkling of glass, as the vase shattered somewhere deep within his satchel. As he whirled around to the table, a trail of shredded petals floated to the ground just behind.
“Your love has only to fear the enemy,” Eden countered, a blazing fire still sparking the blues of his eyes. “She can keep her gaze forward, and not be checking over her shoulder at every turn.” He tried uselessly to stop the wolf’s momentum, placing himself in his path. “This is not an overabundance of caution, Jess. Evander will die,” he said flatly, “my father will make sure of it. He will be a commander in this great army. I cannot...I cannot walk him straight into the lion’s den.”
It was quiet a moment as the two men stared at each other.
“So you have said,” Jesse answered shortly, knocking past him.
It had been like that since the fae had made his fateful declaration. If the mortals were to travel on to Saveen, it would be journey they would make alone. The path had not changed, but the destination was not the same for the both of them. He and the vampire would be forced to remain.
Whether or not Evander agreed with this, it was impossible to say. While the others were in constant motion, circling around each other in a quick-moving orbit, the vampire had been standing silently in the corner, his back pressed against the wall. His dark eyes followed everything, jumping from one person to another, catching onto the slightest of details, but he said not a single word.
Twice, Kiera had tried to catch his gaze. But his eyes were fixed upon Eden.
“You cannot be serious in this,” the fae exclaimed, watching as the shifter rummaged roughly in his pack and grabbed a bunch of random tonics. Half of them were mostly empty, the others were a mystery. He stuffed them into his satchel just the same. “Jesse, just wait—”
“You don’t mind, do you?” Jesse answered curtly, snatching an immortal dagger off the table as well. “It’s not like you’ll have any use for them. And who knows? It may save mine and Kiera’s life.”
She’d flinched internally, feeling as Eden’s eyes flickered her way.
It had never been openly discussed, whether or not she would be leaving with him. Truth be told, since the wolf had grabbed his pack from the bureau and began stuffing things inside, she’d yet to get over the plain shock. It could not be possible that things had unraveled so quickly. There must be a way to stop them somehow, to turn back the tide. Yet even as she stood there, wringing her fingers and trying to breathe, she knew it wouldn’t be that simple. The match had struck quickly, but the fire had been carefully gathered. For weeks now, the pair had been stacking their side with kindling, building it higher and higher. The ensuing blaze seemed inevitable, just a matter of time.
The fae was still watching, but for once, she couldn’t bring herself to meet his gaze.
Is this truly going to happen? Are we about to walk out that door?
Jesse seemed to think it was; he seemed almost relieved it was out in the open. For weeks they had been playing shadow games, lingering in the sunlight, writing letters instead of swinging their swords. His blood ran hot, and there was no time for such delays. The army was assembling on the western shore, preparing for the fight. He was damn sure going to be fighting with them.
“You would be flippant with this?” Eden said quietly, eyes burning a hole in the back of his head. “Do you know how much it costs me to say it? I am not blinded by love for Evander. If my father wished harm upon either of you, my answer would be the same.” He paused, waiting for an answer, only to be met with that manic rage. His composure cracked and his eyes flashed again, a hint of impatience leaking through. “This is madness—why can you not see it?”
The shifter knocked past him again. “Screw off—”
“Jesse.”
“We have been at this from the beginning,” Jesse cried, whirling suddenly around. His finger jabbed in Kiera’s direction, pointing at her stricken face. “That dragon appeared in the sky over her village. She crawled out of the ashes, and has been fighting her way forward ever since. We met an immortal in the hollow, he gave her a sacred talisman. The son of our greatest enemy gave her the same. We have talked with gods, and rallied the people of the realm together. We have journeyed farther than anyone in history, and returned to lead the way.” The momentum built to a rising crest before hovering at its peak, ready to break either way—but ready to break all the same. “You wish to change all that,” he said at half the volume, shaking his head. “You wish to walk away and pretend that it never happened...because you’re worried there might be danger along the way.”
The room fell abruptly quiet, filled only with the sound of their quickened breaths.
It was a wild simplification. So terribly wild, if Eden were feeling more like himself, he might have broken the shifter’s jaw. But there was truth, buried at the core of it. A troublesome needle that had burrowed its way under his skin. His eyes flashed suddenly over the wolf’s shoulder, resting a fraction of a second upon the vampire’s face. It wasn’t until much later, Kiera would realize Evander had said something. Silent words, whispered through the bond between them. Words that only the fae would ever be able to hear. Their eyes locked the span of a heartbeat, then Eden shook his head.
“This is not an abstract danger,” he answered softly, breaking into pieces but unwilling to surrender an inch of ground. He couldn’t bring himself to do it. Not with the stakes so high. “You know me better than that. Evander is sentenced to die,” he said simply, “his name, written on my father’s blade. You say we have journeyed farther than anyone in history, that the stars themselves seemed to have been guiding the way. I do not disagree; the beacons are lit, we are the ones who’ve done it. But you say we now return...to lead the way.”
He stared a moment, then shook his head. “I seek not to lead anything. We have shown them the path, that is enough. If things were different, I would be there on the front lines, Evander at my side. But this story is bigger than us now, and we do not always get to decide the way the game is played. If these are the rules, as they are written, then I will not be a part of it. I will not see him dead, so you can play soldier by the sea.”
Another simplification, and the wolf did not have the immortal’s patience. There was a tight clenching in his jaw, and for a horrible moment, Kiera thought he might throw himself upon the fae right then and there. He didn’t. He merely nodded curtly, and continued filling his bag.
“Then it’s as you’ve said. This is where we part ways.”
Eden came to a stop in the middle of the floor, watching him pace back and forth. His lips were slightly parted, but he was like a man who had reached the end of his breath. His piece had been said, and all that remained was to witness aftermath. His eyes tightened at the corners, and though some part of him was straining forward, he was standing very still, like he’d been staked in place by an invisible blade. A moment passed, and he wilted ever so slightly.
“Where will you go?” he asked softly, voice nearly cracking.
Jesse almost stopped at that. The men weren’t just friends, they were like brothers. And he didn’t need to be looking to know the exact look on the fae’s face. He pulled in a breath, knuckles tightening on a blanket, looking as though he’d been pierced himself. Then he crammed it into his pack, swinging the strap over his shoulder.
“What do you care, Eden?” he answered tonelessly, striding to the hallway. “You said it yourself, our journey together is finished. This fellowship has come to an end.”
The vampire stirred in the corner as the fae winced at the venom in his voice, looking like some inner part of him had actually begun to tear. He stood there a moment longer, staring at the wolf’s dark hair, before the impulse became too strong, and he swept suddenly after him.
