Story of the Forsaken

Story of the Forsaken Story of the Forsaken THE WORLD OF THE FALLEN GATES BOOK TWO ARIANA CANE Copyright © 2023 by Ariana Cane All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in book reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, contact the author at the contact form @arianacane.com ASIN ‏ : B0C41R2467 Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Names, characters, and places are products of the author’s imagination. First printed edition June 2023. Cover designer: Books and Moods. Editor: Anna Noel. Proofreader: Lauren Alexander. arianacane.com Contents Prologue 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 Epilogue Afterword Terms Let’s stay in touch Also by Ariana Cane Prologue Twenty-five years ago The pain hit her straining back as if someone’s fist was trying to rip her spine out of her body. Tears clouded her already blurry vision. Her contractions were becoming more frequent. When a new wave hit, she cried out, calling for help. But none of her own people, those who would understand what her mistake truly meant and would be able to help, were around. Maybe that was a blessing in disguise. Childbirth. Something she didn’t anticipate experiencing. At least, not there and not then. She and her husband already had one child, a beautiful dark-haired boy with big blue eyes, a carbon copy of his father who was born a few months before she crossed worlds. A perfect human boy she adopted as her own when she fell in love with his father. She hoped that this baby would look just like him too. She begged the universe for it, even though she knew the chances were slim—her blood was too strong, and heritage undeniable. Her husband was at work, and she couldn’t reach the phone to call him. Falling on the floor, she cried out again. Something was wrong, very wrong. Little Jason came downstairs from his room, his little feet bare on the cold floor. “Hey, honey. You have to call your father for me. Okay?” A new contraction hit, but she had to swallow the pain for fear of scaring him. “Remember, I told you about the phone and the numbers on the paper?” she asked, her voice calm in comparison to her thoughts. He nodded, dropping his teddy bear. His mom needed his help, so he had to be a big boy. “Good. That’s good.” She ground her teeth as another wave hit. “You have to take this paper and dial those numbers on the phone. Can you do that for me?” He took off toward the kitchen without a question. Only three and a half years old, he was so smart. Pulling a stool from the table, twice his size, he dragged it over to the phone. It hung so high on the wall, so it took him a while to grab it. Holding the piece of paper in his little hands, he dialed the numbers on the handset and waited. Someone picked up after the third ring. “Hello?” the voice said, but Jason didn’t answer. Hearing his mom cry out again, he dropped the phone and sprinted back to her. The phone hung from the cord and hit the wall with a gentle thud. “Hello, hello!” someone was yelling on the other end, hearing her cries. The blood was everywhere. Something was very wrong. It wasn’t supposed to be like that, not with her kind. A childbirth was sacred and didn’t come with pain, not like that anyway—a gift from their creator. This pain… it was human. For the first time, she feared she could lose her child, maybe even her own life before she completed the mission. But she also worried that her baby boy, who was staring at her with big, round eyes, would always remember her like that. Bloody and hopeless. She leaned on the floor and told him, “Jason, honey. I need strawberries. I want them so much right now. Can you go and pick them fresh from the garden?” The boy nodded and ran to the kitchen. He was so focused. His mom needed strawberries—they would make her feel better. He grabbed the biggest plate he could find in the lower cabinets and ran outside. She cried again. Not in pain this time, but fear. She knew something was wrong—she felt the air shift when the baby was coming. She knew this world was accepting this special child. She also knew what it meant for the future of this baby—empty and nothing. “Lariela! Lariela!” Her husband arrived, and he knelt next to her. Now everything would be okay. He was here, her strong human husband who was a better man than any of the powerful warriors she’d known. “Something is wrong, Mike.” She gripped his hand. “She’s not coming out. I don’t even feel her!” She cried again. “Everything will be fine. The doctor is on the way.” He held her hand, convincing them both that it would be okay. He’d always known this day might come, but he wasn’t ready. A contraction hit her so hard this time that she couldn’t control herself, gripping his hand in her powerful one. He felt a bone crack but didn’t complain. He would take a thousand broken bones if it could make her feel better. The air became more electrified with each new contraction. One after another, until she heard a scream. Looking up, she saw Mike holding a baby girl in his