Dark Butterfly

By Meyari McFarland

Dana shivered in the chill air on her hotel balcony.

Damn Mother anyways. If she had her way, Dana would never see Mother again.

Except that she would. Inevitably.

Because shadows come to life and magical maids showed Dana just what Mother had been hiding all along.

Which meant that now it was Dana's turn to hunt Mother down.

Only one of them was living through this Christmas.

• Language: English
• Publisher: MDR Publishing
• Release date: Oct 19, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370764655

Meyari McFarland

Meyari McFarland has been telling stories since she was a small child. Her stories range from SF and Fantasy adventures to Romances but they always feature strong characters who do what they think is right no matter what gets in their way. Her series range from Space Opera Romance in the Drath series to Epic Fantasy in the Mages of Tindiere world. Other series include Matriarchies of Muirin, the Clockwork Rift Steampunk mysteries, and the Tales of Unification urban fantasy stories, plus many more. You can find all of her work on MDR Publishing's website at www.MDR-Publishing.com.

Book preview

Dark Butterfly

By Meyari McFarland

Other Romance Novels by Meyari McFarland:

A New Path

Following the Trail

Crafting Home

Finding a Way

Go Between

Like Arrows of Fate

Out of Disaster

The Shores of Twilight Bay

Coming Together

Following the Beacon

The Solace of Her Clan

You can find these and many other books at www.MDR_Publishing.com.

Copyright ©2017 by Mary Raichle

Cover image

© Fotokostic | Dreamstime.com - Knight Fighting Dragon Photo

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Requests for permission to make copies of any part of the work should be emailed to [e-mail].

This book is also available in TPB format from all major retailers.

Dedication:

This story is dedicated to my father who always encouraged me to read.

Table of Contents

Dark Butterfly

Excerpt: Waves of the Falling Moon

Afterword

Dark Butterfly

Dana pulled the hotel robe tighter around herself, shivering in the chill. Odd that she was cold. She was angry enough that damn if she didn't feel like the entire block should be hot as midsummer, baking in ninety-degree heat. Instead there was snow and a light breeze that made the night feel colder than it actually was.

Damn Mother anyway. This entire mess was all her fault. Dana shook her head, determined not to let her fury get the better of her yet again. Too many times. Too many times, she'd let Mother wind her up and gotten torn to shreds for it. Smacked around, scolded, verbally abused and scorned to the point that Dana had long lines of scars on her wrists from dealing with the pain.

So no. Mother wasn't going to win this time, the bitch. Even if Dana had to stand outside in the cold until she half-froze, just to get her temper under control.

The hotel balcony was tiny, barely a yard wide and twice that long. Honestly, she wasn't sure anyone had been out here in years. There were blacked, slimy leaves mixed in with the remnants of snow in the corner between the balcony and the building.

No reason for anyone to stand on the balcony, truth be told. Her room overlooked the parking lot. Not even the main parking lot, the side one tucked back behind the building, away from the street and the good spots that were easy to get in and out of.

Beyond the snowy asphalt was a gravel-covered field that might once have been intended as an extension. Or maybe someone had once upon a time thought to build a restaurant or a shopping complex next door, as they did. The chain-link fence around it was so old that it was rusting away. In the flickering lights from the parking lot poles, the rust looked like blood.

She sighed, tapping her feet because her toes ached and her hands hurt from clenching so hard around her fluffy white hotel robe. Stupid Mother and her stupid threats and her stupid demands that Dana absolutely had to be there for Christmas dinner even though the weather was horrendous and an avalanche had cut all access to Mother's property.

Like that was Dana's fault. The bitch.

No. No breaking her hand on the brick wall. Or breaking the glass in her sliding door. Not like Dana's budget could afford paying for that.

Her breath gusted out and froze in crystals that sparkled before