Possessed

Contents Copyright Sign-up for my newsletter Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Thanks for Reading Book 2 in the Demon Marked series Sign-up for my newsletter Also By Antara Mann About The Author Possessed (Demon Marked Book 1) by Antara Mann Copyright © Antara Mann 2023. All rights reserved. http://www.antaraman.com Cover art: Miblart No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the author. Reviewers may quote brief passages in reviews. This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Sign-up for my newsletter and get two free fantasy stories! If you want to be notified when my next novel is released and get free stories and occasional other goodies, please sign up for my mailing list at: https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/g9d0r3 Your email address will never be shared and you can unsubscribe at any time. Chapter 1 Ashadha When Evalyn McDonald came to my office on the fateful day of September 2nd, 2045, I thought it was just the usual case of a worried housewife concerned for her hard-working husband. I detected her magical signature—a shifter—a few seconds before the door creaked open. The bells hanging from the ceiling, a present from a client, rattled and announced the entrance of a new client. A petite blonde woman with attractive features stood at the doorway, her body language suggested that she wasn’t sure what she was doing here. Just a wrong word on my part or even if my voice didn’t sound convincing could make her wind up and leave my small, one-person detective agency. The fact that my office was situated in Johnsonville, the worst of Aran’s suburbs, wasn’t helping her nerves, either. “Hello, ma’am. How can I help you?” I greeted the newcomer. My tone made her visibly relax and she took a tentative step closer to my wooden desk. “Hi, is this Four Paws and a Broom? And you must be Ashadha Matthews?” She asked and gripped the handbag in her right hand more tightly. A warm wave of satisfaction coursed in my belly when she said the name of my small paranormal detective agency, but I focused on keeping the woman’s interest in my psychic abilities. “Yes, ma’am. I’m Ashadha and this is my detective agency, Four Paws and a Broom. I’ve helped humans and supernaturals alike in missing person cases—” “Oh, I know about your abilities; that’s why I came to you instead of the ABI,” she cut me off, her body finally relaxed. Without even awaiting my prompt, she slid into the vacant chair before my desk. I swallowed a lump in the back of my throat when I heard her mention the dreaded acronym of ABI. It stood for Angelica Bureau of Investigations, the investigating body of the Angelica Order. They now ruled the world and what was left of the United States after the war and cataclysms that had raged the earth until just a few years ago. I tried to push away my fear of ABI and everything they stood for, and set my mind on the woman in front of me. “You’ve heard about me? Did someone recommend my agency to you?” It was always good to have satisfied clients and word of mouth remained the best advertising. A slight smile flickered on the blonde woman’s pale, elongated face. Now that she had been here for a few minutes, I could decipher her distinctive magical scent: it smelled of pine trees, flavored with the richness of musk, mixed with spices. She was definitely a werewolf, no doubt about that. A bubble of curiosity coursed through me as I had never dealt with shifters; up until now, mostly humans and a few fae had hired my clairvoyant services. “Conner gave me your address. He praised your special gift,” the woman said. I furrowed my brows. “Conner, the bartender at the Shamrock?” Even in my wildest imagination, I couldn’t have pictured the fae bartender at the Irish pub in downtown Aran putting in a good word for my detective agency. The woman nodded, clearly not caring about my surprise. “He said you could see into the past or future simply by touching a person. Is that true?” Even though she maintained a steady, nonchalant voice, a slight trail at the end of her question betrayed her anxiousness. I reclined in my chair, already anticipating that she would hire me. “Yes, ma’am, he was right. I can indeed see the past, present, and even the future of a person by touching either them or an important object belonging to them. I need the object to have imbibed their energy.” I cracked a smile as I explained to her how my special gift worked. I’d had this ability ever since I was a child and it had always been part of me, yet I was still human. At least that was what the world believed. I couldn’t let anyone, least of all ABI and the Angelica Order, learn that I was a half-demon. This would mean my end and sign my death sentence. In the best-case scenario, the Angelica Order would imprison me so that they could study my demoniacal magic, given they were curious about it. I bet they’d love to experiment on me. “Very well, then, you’re the person I’m looking for,” the woman said energetically as she placed her handbag onto her knees, revealing her black leggings below a summer shirt. “My name’s Evalyn McDonald and I’d like to hire you to investigate my husband, Charlie. He is not missing, thank goodness, though I have other concerns.”