The Fabled Read online

  The Fabled

  Book One of the Fabled Series

  S. L. Gavyn

  Smashwords Edition

  Copyright 2014 S. L. Gavyn

  Discover more information about S. L. Gavyn’s books at http://www.slgavyn.com, like her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/slgavyn or follow her on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/slgavyn.

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  Books Available by S. L. Gavyn

  The Forged by Magic Trilogy:

  Brimstone (Book 1)

  Iron Made (Book 2)

  Ange Noir (Book 2.5)

  Dragon’s Flame (Book 3)

  The Avery Tywella Series:

  Darkened (Book 1)

  Deadened (Book 2)

  Deceived (Book 3)

  Balancing The Scales

  Content

  Acknowledgment

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Preview of Fable City

  Acknowledgements

  As always I’ll start by thanking my family for their support. Without you I would be lost at sea without an anchor. (Or a paddle. A paddle would be nice but nope.)

  Next I would like to thank my book cover model Kimberly Crabtree for agreeing to pose for this shoot and also, I can’t forget the photographer Siara McCormick who took some amazing photos. You guys are awesome.

  Lastly, I’ll give a shout out to my beta readers. You know who you are.

  Prologue

  Egypt 800 A. D.

  “And so it is said. So it shall be.”

  “Halt Aerystasia. You speak of our destruction. How can we possibly reverse this future?”

  “I speak of warning. That is my gift. Some might be changed while other fates are inevitable. This, I believe, might be altered.”

  “How? You say we will be destroyed by the Humans. You say they will possess weapons capable of annihilating us but say this future can be changed. Do you suggest we kill them before they have opportunity to obtain such weapons?”

  “No Augustus. That is not of which I speak. The Humans are too precious to our kinds.”

  “We must shield ourselves then. But we live secretly as is. How can we shield ourselves further?”

  Aerystasia smiled at the council. “I do not believe staying adumbrate is appropriate. Perhaps announcing our presence is key.”

  “You must have the fevers, Aerystasia. Announcing ourselves to the Humans will only bring our destruction faster,” Lucian, the head of the Council of Elders spoke up for the first time.

  “You misunderstand. I believe you are right. The Humans consider us monsters and if we were to confirm our existence then much bloodshed will pursue. But, if we were to spread stories with false details about the monsters the Humans believe us to be, they will one day become common tales told among them young and old.”

  “You speak of fables. Ones depicting our kinds as the terror in the night. How will that make them want to kill us less?” Augustus asked.

  As second in command of the council he was always trying to show his leadership while Lucian sat back, observed and came to far better conclusions.

  “These fables will one day become common knowledge. Were they to have details untrue to our kinds…”

  “The Humans would not be able to spot a true Lycan or Vamprene or any other of our kinds,” Lucian finished.

  Aerystasia smiled and nodded slightly. “Might I suggest sending fable tellers to all the continents? Even the one undiscovered yet. The natives there do love their stories.”

  “Hiding in plain sight. Will this be enough to change your vision?” Augustus asked.

  “I cannot be certain but I believe so. I will inform you if I have another vision concerning this,” Aerystasia told the council before bowing and leaving the room.

  After she left Lucian turned to the other four members of the council. Each member represented one of the major species, other than Humans, that inhabit this planet.

  “How can we be assured this is fact?” Augustus asked once she was gone.

  “Aerystasia is the most powerful oracle in the world. Since her birth over a millennium ago no one has bested her accuracy. If she says this will come to pass, it will come. Unless we stop it,” Lucian said.

  “Aye, she is powerful indeed,” the Bruce added.

  Lucian nodded then looked at Augustus to see if he would argue further. When he stilled his mouth Lucian turned to the rest of the members.

  “Council, now is the time to act. I think it would be prudent if each member of the council determine the false characteristics of your people. I will send for the best storytellers to speak these fables across the globe. We will spread the tales and we will join together to protect ourselves against this future threat.”

  There were a round of nods and everyone started to disperse. Lucian turned to the open balcony doors and looked out into the night beyond. With any luck these tales would be enough to deter their future enemy. Aerystasia was right, they couldn’t kill all Humans. Not only were they needed but if they killed the Humans that would make them no better. No, they would spread these fables until the Humans no longer suspected the real thing actually existed. Their people would no longer be separate species coinciding in secrecy against the Humans but would unite as one. They would become the Fabled, those of myth, those of legend.

  Chapter One

  “Dream a little dream”

  “Sam, hurry up. All the good looking guys will be gone before we even get to the club.”

  I opened the door to the bathroom and looked at my business partner. “I didn’t realize we were trolling for men. You said we would just meet for drinks to unwind after a busy day.”

  “We have been busy. Do you know how many small businesses fail because the owners didn’t take the time to set them up correctly to begin with? A lot I can tell you that. And what’s a better way to unwind than to sit back, drink a few, and admire some good-looking hunks?”

  I smiled at her. I always did like to people watch. I was actually pretty good at guessing something about them. Either what they were there for (sometimes that one was too easy) or what they did for a living or just something about their personality. My ex-friend back home used to tell me it was my sixth sense. That was before I found out her and my husband had been meeting up for a romp every time I was out of town. Needless to say, he’s not my husband anymore and she’s not my friend. Guess my powers of observ
ation only extend to strangers.

  Karen reached out and grabbed my hand. “Come on. I can tell your thoughts have gone south so let’s get out of here.”

  I couldn’t help smiling at her double entendre. That I live in Florida made her statement mean something else. Perhaps it was the affair that made me seek business opportunities elsewhere or maybe it was just fate that I ran into Karen just as she was ready to leave the publishing house she had been with for years. We started talking and before you could say “Bob’s your uncle” we had started our own small publishing company in Vegas since that’s where K was from and she was the one with all the publishing knowledge. I was the asset that was able to speed read through dozens of books a week and tell which ones had the possibility to become bestsellers and which ones would bomb. While K was the one that met with the clients and filed the necessary paperwork.

  After only six months in business we already had three authors on the bestsellers list. That fact alone was bringing in business like you wouldn’t believe. This trip had been to take care of the final touches of our shared business. And to celebrate our striving business.

  At the club (which looked more like a bar to me) there were several middle aged people like ourselves sitting around having drinks. K found us a table off to one corner because she liked my ability to guess people as much as I liked guessing them.

  “What about that guy over there?” K pointed to a man across the room who looked to be in his late thirties.

  “He’s looking to cheat on his wife.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “Well, besides the light colored ring around his finger where he normally wears his wedding band, see how he’s looking around. He looks desperate. He’s drinking too much which means he’s nervous and he keeps running his hand through his hair which is starting to thin. It’s probably a habit. That means he’s been stressed quite a bit recently and marital problems is the number one cause of stress in middle aged men. Also, judging by the timid nature he’s exuding I’d say he’s looking for a woman to take control of the situation.”

  “So you’re saying if I walked over and told him to get in my car for some quality time of domination, he’d be my bitch for the night.”

  “Pretty much. If you’re into that kind of thing.”

  “No thanks. I like my men, men.”

  “You and me both.”

  She laughed as did I. The thought of K as a dominatrix was funny. She just didn’t look the part. She was only five-two with light brown hair and eyes. Her small frame and delicate features made her look almost pixie-ish.

  As we sat there people watching what appeared to be a woman walked into the club and headed for the bar to order a drink.

  “What about her?” K asked me.

  I looked at her and raised a brow. “That’s a man.”

  She looked at me then at the woman then back to me. “What makes you say that? She’s not really tall or big boned.”

  “First, she has an Adam’s apple. That’s a dead giveaway. Second, it’s in the brow. I’m not one hundred percent sure but I would be willing to put money on it.”

  “Really?”

  “Yep.”

  About that time the woman’s eyes met the man’s and they shared a look. She took her drink from the bartender and walked over to the man’s table. Even though we couldn’t hear their conversation, she obviously asked him if she could sit and he told her yes. She had a seat and they were instantly engulfed in conversation.

  I looked over at K and raised my brows. “Looks like cheater might get more than he bargained for tonight.”

  She pulled her eyes away from the couple and when she looked at me hers were wide. I started laughing and she joined me. The thought of what’s going to happen when that “woman” takes that cheater to her place was hilarious. That’s what he gets for cheating on his wife. Then again, he might actually like it. If so, I feel sorry for the wife. It’s bad enough to be cheated on without the other woman turning out to be another man. Even though I felt bad for her the thought made me laugh harder.

  By the time I finally gained my composure a man had joined our table. He looked to be in his mid-twenties with black hair and eyes so dark brown that they almost looked black. He wore a gray t-shirt, dark jeans, and a black leather jacket and boots.

  “Roman, I didn’t know you were going to be here tonight,” K said to the man.

  “I hadn’t planned on it either. Who is your lovely friend, Karen?”

  He had been looking at me while talking to K. I don’t know what his interest is. I am at least fifteen years older than him and although I’m not ugly I’m certainly not the best looking woman while he on the other hand, I wouldn’t be surprised to see on the cover of a magazine talking about the hottest men in America. He would probably be toward the top of the list too. Those dark eyes made me think wicked thoughts and I’m ashamed to say he had a starring role in all of them.

  “Oh, this is my friend and business associate, Samantha Wilson. Sam, this is Roman. He’s a friend of mine.”

  I just bet he is. Even though K is my age she likes to look at and even date younger men. Personally, I wouldn’t date anyone that wasn’t at least in his forties. I mean, how could I bring a twenty-something year old man home to meet my kids who are almost the same age?

  “Hello, Roman.”

  “Samantha. What a lovely name.”

  “Everyone calls me Sam.”

  He frowned. “Do you prefer to have a man’s name?”

  I shrugged. “I like it.” And, I don’t really give a fuck if you do or not. That’s it Sam. Stick to your guns. You don’t need some child telling you what name you need. Even if he is the nicest looking guy you’ve seen in a while.

  “I think you are definitely too feminine to have a man’s name.”

  I looked at K and rolled my eyes. She was looking strangely at Roman then at me and back to him. I brought my brows together in a typical “what” expression. She shook her head slightly.

  “So, what do you do at Karen’s business, Samantha?” Roman asked as he took a seat at the table uninvited.

  Apparently, he thought he had the right. I’m sure with his good looks he was used to getting anything and anyone he wanted.

  “Actually, Sam owns half of the business,” Karen interjected.

  “Really. Attractive and successful. What a combination.”

  Okay. So this guy must have a thing for older women. It’s time to nip this in the bud. Even though my inner libido is begging me to indulge him I don’t have it in me to lead someone on. I know there is no chance I would ever be in any kind of relationship with him and I wasn’t looking for a one night stand.

  “I’m sorry Roman but me and K were kind of in the middle of something so if you don’t mind…” I let it hang.

  He looked shocked. I looked over at K in hopes she would back me in getting rid of him and she looked almost worried. Did she think he would get mad because I’m not interested in him?

  After a moment he seemed to snap out of his shock and instead seemed confused. “I apologize. I didn’t realize I was intruding.” He stood up. “I hope you both have a wonderful evening. Karen. Samantha.” He nodded to each of us as he said our names. Then he walked over to the bar and had a seat on one of the stools.

  “Wow. I’ve never seen him act that way about a woman before,” K said as she stared at his back.

  “You mean you two weren’t involved.”

  She looked at me. “No! I told you we were just old friends. It was never anything like that.”

  “Oh.” Old friends? From when? When he was a toddler and she used to babysit him?

  “Weren’t you attracted to him?” She asked me.

  Hell yeah!! I shrugged to play it down. I really didn’t want her to think I was some kind of cougar. “He’s good looking sure. But he’s way too young for me. Could you imagine me bringing him home to meet my kids?”

  “You could just have a fling with him.
You’re halfway across the US from your kids. They’ll never know.”

  “Ugh. I would feel like a cradle robber. No thank you. I think I’ll stick with men my own age.”

  “He’s older than he looks you know.”

  “If you tell me he’s my age, I’ll be asking what the name of his plastic surgeon is because his work is totally worth the money.”

  She laughed. “No. I guess he doesn’t look our age. Maybe it’s just that he’s an old soul.”

  I raised a brow.

  “Well, one things for sure. He was totally smitten with you. I wonder what he’s going to do about it.”

  “There’s nothing he can do.” Oh, if only I had known. It turned out there was a lot he could do.

  The next morning I stood outside the building in which K had leased an office for our publishing business. It was a new twelve story building that looked sleek and expensive. Which was why K chose it. Image was everything and she couldn’t very well meet clients in her kitchen. Or, at least that’s what she told me when she rented it.

  I entered the building and walked to the wall of elevators on the other side. As I stood waiting a man walked up to stand beside me. The elevator dinged and both of us entered. He reached forward to push the button for his floor then turned to me. I saw he had already pushed the tenth.

  “I’m getting off at the tenth as well,” I told him.

  He nodded with a polite smile then stood toward the back of the elevator. He could have been the older brother to Roman from last night. Same dark hair and eyes, even the mouth looked just as kissable. But this man was probably twenty years older. He looked at me and, catching me checking him out, smiled again. I suddenly felt nervous so I decided to talk. It’s what I usually do.

  “So you work on the tenth floor?”

  “Yes, I recently moved my practice there.”

  “You’re a shrink?”