Underworld Frights & Sleepless Nights: Mystical Midlife in Maine Book 9 (Paranormal Women's Midlife Fiction)

UNDERWORLD FRIGHTS & SLEEPLESS NIGHTS MYSTICAL MIDLIFE IN MAINE BOOK 9 BRENDA TRIM CONTENTS 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 EXCERPT FROM PIXIE DUST & BRAIN RUST BOOK #10 About the Author Also by Brenda Trim Copyright © January 2023 by Brenda Trim Editor: Chris Cain & Kelly Smyczynski Cover Art by Fiona Jayde * * * This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writers’ imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental. WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction of this work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. All rights reserved. With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the authors. Created with Vellum If you have something worth fighting for, then fight for it with everything you’ve got. ~Phoebe Dieudonne CHAPTER 1 “Shit!” I cursed as I jumped out of the way of the bat woman who fell from the sky. We were being attacked while Aidoneus’s life hung on the line. He was in a magical coma, and I had no idea how to wake him up from it. We hadn’t even escaped Zaleria’s twisted underground castle yet. There was a good chance she was on her way to re-capture us at that very moment, and we had to deal with yet another of her damn demonic obstacles. Rolling out of the way, I threw my hands in the air and blasted the ugly creature with my flames. They bounced off her black, leathery skin. One of Stella’s daggers poked through her right wing making her shriek. She twisted and grabbed my best friend, throwing her in my direction. I cast a magical bubble around Tseki and Aidoneus while retrieving the dagger I’d returned to my waist band. Murtagh raced past Tseki who bent down to place Aidon in the doorway of the castle. Two more of the bat-like women descended upon us. I was dangerously low on energy to fuel my magic. I had the physical prowess of a toddler playing soccer, so I didn’t relish being left to defend myself with a dagger. Talons wrapped around my arms and dragged me in front of the leathery monstrosity. I had no idea what these creatures were. I’d never seen them before. They looked like giant bats with breasts and a human face. Her breath smelled like a vat of dead crickets as she breathed on my neck and hissed at Stella. She hadn’t paid attention to my weapon, and I drove it back into her gut. Her wings jerked, slicing my biceps open in the process. I managed to jerk my dagger up as she kicked me away. Stella was right behind me and slashed at the injured wing. Blood flew as the bat woman flapped wildly while crying out. The sound of Murtagh and Tsekani fighting their own bat creatures echoed behind us. “Let’s go for her stomach,” Stella called out. “Finish what you started, and teach this bitch a lesson.” My heart skipped several beats. This was not my happy, loving best friend. Stella always had a smile, and saw the bright side of things. She approached magic with the same enthusiasm and excitement in all parts of her life. It was what I loved most about her. It gutted me to see the darkness rearing its ugly head. That same dark part of me rose with her suggestion and, before I could process, I was moving to her and stabbing her stomach again. Talons swiped through my hair, tangling it, and scratching my scalp in the process. I lost a few clumps of hair when I lurched forward to help Stella. The bat woman growled when I pushed my hand through her wing and pulled. She released Stella and stumbled away. Stella and I ran after her together and had our weapons poised to attack. We never had to make a move because she fell down when she tried to come at us. We warily walked closer. I nudged her side, but she remained still. After a scan of the castle and sky above, I went back to Aidon and knelt to check on him. He was in the same position as when Tseki had put him down. Unable to stop myself, I bent and pressed my lips to his briefly. “I made sure he wasn’t hurt,” Thokrum told me. I looked up from Aidon to the dwarf. “You did great. Thank you for making sure he wasn’t harmed.” I brushed the black locks off Aidon’s forehead and then stood up. Tsekani threw a black arm that had a triangle of skin hanging from it. It made my stomach roil The other two bat women were dead, and I didn’t see any sign of more coming after us. “Does this mean we’re going to face all this shit again?” Stella asked. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “I sure as hell hope not.” We moved to the wooded path of the drawbridge a couple of feet away. “We never faced them the first time,” Tsekani pointed out as he scooped Aidon into his arms. I tried to send out my magical feelers, but all they did was flicker before popping out of existence. “That’s right. You threw us through the doorway.” Stella bounded forward like the Energizer Bunny and stuck one foot on the other side of the wall so it hung over the moat. “There’s no mountain troll.