Shaede Assassin

Darian Charles wasn't always a member of the supernatural community. Nor was she always an assassin. As a young woman growing up amidst the Suffrage movement, Darian is dazzled by the prospect of living an independent life. When her aristocratic father marries her off to San Francisco's most eligible bachelor, Henry Charles, she sees the possibility for love and adventure. But her new life is far from perfect. For years, Darian suffers at the hand of her cruel husband, always yearning for an escape: one that she knows to be all but impossible.

Darian exists in a realm of darkness. Made and abandoned over a century ago, she is a Shaede, virtually immortal and able to blend with the shadows once the sun sets. An assassin, she spends her nights meting out death for the highest bidder. She’s alone in the world, the last of her kind—or so she thinks. When her infatuated employer, Tyler, sends her out on a routine hit, Darian discovers her mark is not only another Shaede, but Alexander Peck, King of the Shaede Nation. Her not-so-chance meeting with Alexander takes her deep into the realm of who—and what—she really is.

With the help of her mentor, Raif, Darian has spent the past few months searching for Delilah, Azriel’s accomplice in his coup against the Shaede nation. But now that they’ve flushed the half-crazed Oracle from hiding, a shocking truth is revealed. One that’s too painful for Raif to entertain, and too enticing for Darian to ignore.

Tyler loves Darian like no other, not like her friends, not like her mentor, Raif, and not like the Shaede king who is trying to stake his claim on her. Tyler sees beyond her bluster and prowess to the real Darian—she’s vulnerable just like anyone else. But her growing supernatural powers and impulse to finish every job—no matter what—fills him with dread. Could it be only a matter of time before he loses her?

Life isn’t always easy for a Shade assassin. Darian’s extraordinary abilities have made her indispensable to the Shaede Nation, as well as their king, Alexander Peck. But disregard for her own safety and inability to steer clear of danger, has driven her protector, Tyler, to his breaking point. Darian wants to salvage their tenuous bond, but her new assignment, to protect Anya—the first Shaede to become pregnant in centuries—quickly takes precedence over Darian’s love life.

Six months can feel like a just couple of weeks when you’ve been away in another realm. Literally. Now that Darian is back in Seattle, she’s ready to face the life—and the man—she left behind. But it’s not going to be easy when a ghost from her past shows up looking to wreak havoc on Seattle’s supernatural crime scene.

Has Darian’s past finally caught up with her? The Rakshasa queen, Padma, has a score to settle—she wants those responsible for her son’s death to pay and to pay dearly. Darian, Tyler and Xander are all at risk—and Padma’s powers could force them to live the rest of their lives in the madness of the Realm of Illusions. While Darian is taken and is the first to suffer, she’s soon rescued by Tyler, the one man to never disappoint. But what Darian doesn’t know is that her freedom comes at a steep price—Xander’s the King of Shaedes, imprisonment.

Between her mysterious memory loss and the constant headaches that plague her, Darian has had enough. And the million-dollar bounty on her head certainly isn’t helping either. It’s tough to maintain her under-the-radar status when every ambitious assassin in the Pacific Northwest has eyes on that sweet payout! Desperate to reclaim her lost memories—there could be a light at the end of the tunnel in the form of Camden Walsh. But as is custom in the supernatural world, his help offers more questions than it does actual answers.

Darian is once again adrift. Her safe haven has been destroyed by an unknown foe and her only allies have left Seattle to fight the impending coup of Xander's kingdom. Besides having a new handler—assigned to her by the overbearing Shaede King, Darian is plagued by debilitating headaches and haunted by gaps in her memory that she can't seem to fill. She's a survivor, though. And she'll carry on.