Into the Ashes [The Arcadians 2]

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Authors: Laurie Roma

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BOOK: Into the Ashes [The Arcadians 2]
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The Arcadians 2

Into the Ashes

Raven Sanchez is a Chicago cop who

has risen from the ashes of a painful

past. Struggling with the disappearance

of her friend, Raven seeks to find

balance in her life, but everything

changes when she’s struck by lightning

and finds herself transported to another

world.

Kings Savitar, Kadan and Tristan Akira

have been searching for the woman who

will complete their souls. Born in a world

with a shortage of females, they fear that

day will never come. When a goddess

suddenly appears in the middle of their

palace, they know she is the one they

have been waiting for and claim her

before she can escape.

Caught in a clash of cultures, Raven

must forge a place for herself in this new

world. When wills collide and legacies

are unveiled, can she find a way to

embrace being an Arcadian or will the

fires of lust burn them all to ashes?

Genre: Contemporary, Ménage a

Trois/Quatre, Paranormal, Science

Fiction, Shape-shifter

Length: 77,226 words

INTO THE ASHES

The Arcadians 2

Laurie Roma

MENAGE AMOUR

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www.SirenPublishing.com

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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK

IMPRINT: Ménage Amour

INTO THE ASHES

Copyright © 2013 by Laurie Roma

E-book ISBN: 978-1-62740-856-1

First E-book Publication: November

2013

Cover design by Harris Channing

All art and logo copyright © 2013 by

Siren Publishing, Inc.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This

literary work may not be reproduced

or transmitted in any form or by any

means,

including

electronic

or

photographic reproduction, in whole

or in part, without express written

permission.

All characters and events in this book

are fictitious. Any resemblance to

actual persons living or dead is

strictly coincidental.

PUBLISHER

Siren Publishing, Inc.

www.SirenPublishing.com

Letter to Readers

Dear Readers,

If you have purchased this copy

o f Into the Ashes by Laurie Roma

from BookStrand.com or its official

distributors, thank you. Also, thank

you for not sharing your copy of this

book.

Regarding E-book Piracy

This book is copyrighted intellectual

property. No other individual or

group has resale rights, auction

rights, membership rights, sharing

rights, or any kind of rights to sell or

to give away a copy of this book.

The author and the publisher work

very hard to bring our paying readers

high-quality reading entertainment.

This

is

Laurie

Roma’s

livelihood.

It’s

fair

and

simple. Please respect Ms. Roma’s

right to earn a living from her work.

Amanda Hilton, Publisher

www.SirenPublishing.com

www.BookStrand.com

DEDICATION

This one is for my readers. Thank

you all for your support, and for

encouraging me to create new and

exciting stories!

No matter what happened in the

past or how many obstacles life

throws in anyone’s path, everyone

deserves love and a chance to find

their own happily ever after. I wish

that for all of you, and until then,

reach for the stars and keep

reading…

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

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

Epilogue

About the Author

INTO THE ASHES

The Arcadians 2

LAURIE ROMA

Copyright © 2013

Chapter One

“Police! Stop right there!”

Detective Raven Sanchez cursed as

she gave chase after a thief through

the pouring rain.

It shouldn’t surprise her…they

never did stop.

She’d seen the snatch-and-grab

seconds after having stepped out of

the local deli she usually frequented

on her way home from shift. Sparing

a brief second to lament her umbrella

and the sandwich she’d been forced

to toss aside, she kicked it into high

gear as she chased down the stupid

teenager that had ripped the purse off

of an unsuspecting tourist.

Only blocks away from Chicago’s

Magnificent

Mile,

the

premier

shopping district in the heart of

downtown, tourists walked around

blissfully unaware of the dangers

their inattention presented. The

woman targeted by the teen had been

busy looking up at the high-rise

buildings, her purse dangling from

her hand with the zipper slightly

opened.

Christ, it was like asking to be

robbed.

Begging for it even.

Still, it was Raven’s job to make

sure all the people in her city, even

the stupid people, were safe.

Raven weaved and dodged through

the sea of pedestrians and onlookers

as she ran after the teen. It always

made her a little sick to see how so

many people could just stand back

and watch something happen without

interfering or coming to someone

else’s aid. The teen turned his head

to glance behind him, and damned if

the little shit didn’t smirk as he

thought he’d lost her in the crowd.

“Oh, fuck that…”

His expression changed as she

launched herself in the air and landed

on him, taking him down to the

pavement. They skidded like two

drunk frat brothers on a slip-and-

slide down the slick sidewalk,

coming to a stop when they hit the

side of a building with a solid thud.

Good thing he was on the bottom

because that fucking hurt.

“What…the…fuck, man?” the teen

wheezed out after he got his breath

back.

“You stupid asshole. When a cop

tells you to stop, you fucking stop, got

it?” The boy struggled to get away,

making her press her knee down on

his back to keep him in place.

“I didn’t do anything!”

Soaked to the skin, Raven’s

patience disappeared like a puff of

smoke. “You just snatched that

woman’s purse right in front of a cop,

genius. Now stop squirming or I’m

also gonna charge you with evading

instead of just the theft.”

The boy went limp underneath her

like a wet noodle. Raven held back a

wince as she hauled him to his feet.

Damn, she might have pulled

something on that dive. She cursed as

she noticed the tear in her favorite

jacket.

Well, damn it.

Could this day get any worse?

With a snarl she swung him around

to face her. The teenager’s mouth

dropped open in shock as he got his

first good look at her.

“Holy shit! You can’t be a cop!”

Raven rolled her eyes and tapped a

finger on the badge secured on the

waistband of her pants next to the gun

strapped to her side. She was used to

the reaction though. Nicknamed

“Detective Sexy” by her squad mates,

even soaking wet Raven Sanchez

looked more like a model or an

actress than a police detective.

It had been her bane for as long as

she’d been on the force.

She had a thick mane of curly black

hair that she ruthlessly tamed back

into a braid when she was on duty

and a face that was both graceful and

strong with sharp cheekbones and

full, lush lips. Raven was what most

people would call a knockout. But

what set her apart even more were

her brilliant green eyes that simmered

like two perfect emeralds under long,

thick, inky lashes.

When she entered the police

academy

after

graduating

from

college with a degree in criminology

they thought that she would never be

able to cut it as a cop because of her

looks.

They were wrong.

Because

people

always

underestimated her, she worked

twice as hard to get where she

wanted to be. She’d fought tooth and

nail to get where she was. If she

needed to downplay her looks, she’d

wear colored contacts to hide the

startling color of her eyes and bulky,

drab clothing to try to cover up her

voluptuous figure.

Hiding had been something she had

learned to do a long time ago.

Other than that, Raven had learned

to use her assets to her advantage. In

her line of work she’d found that men

usually went out of their way to

cooperate with her and most people

assumed she didn’t know what she

was doing or immediately thought she

wasn’t too bright because of her

looks.

To their detriment of course.

Raven was smart. With a sharp eye

for detail and a tenacity to find the

truth, she closed cases. She had a

passion for helping people and a

desire to seek justice for those who

couldn’t do it for themselves. Despite

her physical appearance she had

climbed the ranks and earned her

detective’s badge. Sure, some of the

guys she worked with didn’t think she

deserved it, but she knew better.

Over time, the guys in her squad had

grudgingly come to accept her. She’d

earned their trust and respect, and she

made damn sure they knew not to

mess with her.

She’d been a victim once and was

determined never to let it happen

again.

Raven had blossomed into a beauty

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