Marked by Fate: Path to Destiny, #1

By Freya LeCrow

----Some Mature Content-----

Majesta never thought she would find the man of her dreams, let alone two of them. The thought of love, at first sight, seemed ludicrous to her. Then she fell into the arms of a man who swept her off her feet. The trouble with both men, they are not human. Simple bookkeeper finds herself in the middle of a book herself.

Five hundred years Magnusson has waited for his soul to return only to witness the human woman being swept away by another man. One that he knows too well. It isn't going to be easy to get her back and keep her safe. He can't lose her again, but he can't think of her becoming like him.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Freya LeCrow
• Release date: Dec 29, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393793656

Book preview

Chapter 1

The chilly October wind whipped her hair out of the twist, the long black threads blew in the wind. A chill went down her spine. A simple thought entered her mind, something is coming, making her stomach clinch. A figure appeared across the street and she pulled the cape around her like a shield. Tall and dark, hidden in the shadows, he appeared to be tracking her scent with his movements. Like a cat, he slunk through the shadows, hunting her. Her heart pounded in her ears. She heard her name whispered on the wind.

Majesta...Majesta... It kept whispering her name. Each time the name sounded she quivered. A hand on her arm brought her heart to her throat cutting off her scream. Fear paralyzed her when she looked around finding emptiness. The corset squeezed her torso, making it hard to breath. The cloak she wore clung to her drenched frame. Majesta's long hip hugging skirts showed more of her full figure than she really had intended. Was this how the women felt in the old days, like a drowned rat? The rain was supposed to hold off until tomorrow, but it was her luck for it to start tonight.

A hand touched her shoulder and her heart nearly burst out of her chest.  The man that had once been across the street was gone, now standing in front of her. Dreams were one thing; she could wake up and it would be over. This was real life and he could kill her. Fingers moved to her hair and she shivered from his cold caress. Fog moved into the city winding around her. The wind whipped her raven locks around her face.  

The stinging pain brought her back to reality, she knew she needed to run, but still her feet were riveted to the ground. In those first moments with him this close Majesta knew he would take something from her and give something she didn’t really want. It was just as they said in the bible. The devil has a forked tongue and it will tempt you with honey. She never thought she would give into the devil, but when he looked like this, you were doomed from the start. The man stood at least six foot two, with board shoulders and a slim waist. Majesta could imagine his waist being more like a V that lead to dusty hair and... Majesta shook her head to clear the image. His tall stature gave little away about his age, although the clothing he was wearing hinted at another era.

Majesta was dressed like a peasant girl but it was Halloween and she had been at a party with friends. It was the part she had chosen to play. His trousers stopped at mid-calf, the shirt was white and hugged his broad chest. The long sleeves had billowing ends, which cupped his hands, like a lover. His shirt opened slightly to show a small section of his chest. Brown curly hair peeked out, beckoning a woman’s touch.

The urge to touch this man was overpowering and her hand started to move toward him. With a jerk she pulled her hand back, looking at him, afraid of what it was he wanted.

I think you know. His voice was like a summer breeze as it caressed her skin. Majesta wanted nothing more than to listen to him speak. His Irish brogue seemed to soothe her even as her alarm grew. All she could do was shake her head no at the man. She really had no idea... Or did she? It was so confusing to be standing here, her body seemingly unwilling to follow her brain’s command to flee. His hand on her neck gave her a rush that was weird and a bit frightening. His cold hand warmed as he touched her, and she wondered if he was stealing her soul right then. She knew he wasn’t; he was just taking the warmth from her skin. The pleasure on his face told her that he wasn’t accustomed to having warmth in his body. After a few moments she started to get her wits back and pulled away from the man.

What do you want? Majesta started her words wavered as she spoke, showing how scared her was. I don’t know who you are. Or what you want from me.

That smile that appeared on his face sent fear racing through her spine. It was bad enough to stand there looking at this man and knowing that she wanted more than just a kiss. The thought didn’t seem to be her own.  It shocked her, because it wasn’t something she would think about a stranger. Her body wanted him in other ways as well. Nothing she could really do about that at this point, the bigger issue here was that she needed to get away from him. Mind and body seemed to be on different pages here. She finally moved her feet and started to back away. With a move she couldn’t see he was behind her, Majesta's body ran right into his. It was like hitting a brick wall.

Oh now, lassie, you know what it is I’m wanting, Craven told her, his lips touching her ear lightly.

She shook her head at the man then tried to move away from him again, but he wrapped his arms around her. The next thing she knew they appeared in a windowless stone room. The warmth from a fire surprised her as she felt her knees give out. She had the sensation of falling without falling. Her body went limp in his arms. Craven carried her to the large bed. Darkness hugged her on all sides, and she didn’t know if she wanted to be in this room alone with this man. Majesta struggled to keep her eyes open to look around. A few things caught her eye like the room was straight out of a knight’s tale movie. The walls were large stone, with no space to let light in. A large fireplace was on one wall with a large mantel hovering over the open pit. On the mantel sat a very old clock and pictures and paintings from different eras. Black and white and then going into color; they showed the same man over and over. This brought back the fear that this man wasn’t human.

The room started to go black again, cool hard hands had laid her in a bed larger than her king-sized bed at home.  Majesta didn’t recall how she had gotten there, her mind a blank. Moments seemed to blur when she looked up to see a man sitting on the edge of the bed looking down at her.

You have finally returned to me. Craven whispered into her neck.

What in the world at your talking about? Majesta looked terrified as the man talked to her.

You shall find out, Lassie. Craven told her with a evil smile on his face.

No, you will take me home. I have things to do. Majesta tried to move but couldn’t.  Her mind told her she was tied to the bed, but when she looked, she wasn’t.  Terror was building her mind. Why can’t I move?

I don’t want you to. Craven could make her believe anything his eyes could keep her enthralled.

That doesn’t make sense! It was a scream that echoed back to her.

Memories will return I am sure. With that he stood to leave.

She could hear his shoes echoing as he walked out of the room.  It pissed her off that he left her on the bed like this.  Why would he do this to her? She wasn’t anything special.  Just a bookstore own who loved to read.

Chapter 2

Majesta woke with a start and came to a sitting position on the bed. She felt like she was under water for a few moments.  As her head cleared enough for her to see where she was. Wait...where the hell was, she? The memories of the night before came flooding back to her. The man and the rain...she looked down at her body to find that she was naked on the bed. Being naked in the bed didn’t mean that anything happened.  It just meant that her clothes had been soaked clean through.  Maybe the man had tried to get her dry clothes? Thoughts of other things wouldn’t jump into her mind.

As she looked around her eyes stopped when they found the first picture of the man that had taken her. Taken was a strong word for it in truth, because she hadn’t really stopped him. Majesta was a black belt in Kenpo, but she hadn’t fought this man. In truth she had fallen right into his bed. Well not really into the bed, but right into his arms the night before.

Okay, she had to get herself together and figure a way out of this. He couldn’t keep her here right? Well he could, because she could recall trying to get up and thinking she was tied to the bed but no ropes or anything being there. That thought alone brought the fight or flight in her. This man had taken her, and they had vanished, but that wasn’t possible, was it? It was starting to give her a headache and she didn’t have anything to take away the pain. A sharp pain trailed down her back from the base of her neck. A knock on the door startled her, making her jump and twist her neck.  It popped and she sighed in relief. She almost fell off the bed.

The door creaked open and her eyes went to the door. Standing in the doorway was a young woman with long black hair. The dress she wore was far from the normal everyday wear. It dragged on the floor and looked like it was made of wool or some other heavy material. It was drab in the coloring, but it fit her well. The dress had a corset type top that pushed her breasts in and up. It didn’t look comfortable at all, and she seemed to hate the thing. How the hell would she know the woman hated the dress? It was a feeling that swam in her mind and down to her heart making her rub at her chest. Also, why the hell did the woman look just like her?  It was strange enough to be taken and left in a room naked, but to see someone that could be your twin?  That was off the charts strange.

My lady the woman gave a short bow good evening to you.

Majesta looked at her confused. The woman seemed to think that funny. It was hard enough to think that this woman was laughing at her, even worse was the fact that she felt like she had really missed something.

Where am I? The question slipped right out of her mouth before she could stop it.

The Isle of mist, the young woman spoke at her not to her.

What? Majesta’s eyes got as big as saucers and the woman laughed. Anger flared to life in Majesta and she jumped out of the bed. The moment she did it, she knew it was a bad idea for she didn’t have the strength to hold her body up. She wobbled and fell to the floor; Majesta looked up at the woman and glared.

Miss, are you all right? she came rushing toward her, but Majesta waved her off. The woman didn’t seem all that worried, more pissed if you asked her. Tears still burned at the back of her eyes and she wanted to scream that she was not alright, but she didn’t want to make more of an ass of herself. So she sat on the cold stone floor wondering if she could really catch her death this way.

I’m fine, but I can’t be on the Isle of Mist, Majesta said with a pout on her face.

Ye are on the Isle Miss, the woman said.

My name is Majesta. Please call me that. She started to get up and found herself right back on her bottom. The fact that she was nude bothered her, but she couldn’t fix that now. Majesta needed to stand up first. So she slowly tried to stand, but she landed yet again on her rump. She would have a bruise there if she didn’t stop.

Let me help ye. The woman moved toward her and Majesta jerked away from her. A smile appeared on her face and she moved away this time faster than she would have thought possible. It was weird to see someone move so fast. After a few moments she found herself back on the bed.

Do you have a name? Majesta asked. When she looked at the woman it made Majesta think she knew her.

Yes, it is Amèliä. Amèliä moved away from the bed then went to stoke the fire. It was almost out but she didn’t seem to mind the cold like Majesta did. Goose flesh was crawling up her body. She wondered where her clothes had ended up and how the hell she had ended up here. She looked around the room for her clothes. The night was a blur in her mind but she had a feeling things had happened that she didn’t want or wanted and her mind was playing tricks on her.

You say I am on the Isle of Mist. Where is that per say? Majesta pulled a blanket up to cover her nude body. It didn’t make much sense why she was shy, it never really bothered her before.

You are in Ireland...well not really; it is a small Isle that most can’t find, Amèliä said. 

Now Majesta was really confused. How could she be halfway across the world when she didn’t recall getting on a plane, let alone it taking less than a night to get there? She was also confused on what time of day it was, seeing as there were no windows in this place. Majesta looked around the room and still came up dry on a clock to tell her the time of day. Her body was stiff and she had a feeling she had been laying there for more than a few hours.

What time is it? Hell, what day is it? Majesta asked.  The fire was starting to warm the room.

It is around midday, and it is the 2nd of November, Amèliä told her.

Holy shit, she had been gone for two days, she wondered if anyone was looking for her. With her free hand she pushed her long black hair out of her face and wished she had a brush. The tears she had been pushing back started to roll down her face, burning her skin as they went. The urge to scream, fight, but she didn’t really know who to fight. Amèliä stopped what she was doing to look at Majesta.

She didn’t seem to understand why Majesta was crying; it wasn’t really that hard to figure out. Majesta put her face into her hands and let the tears roll down. The door to the room slammed open and a man appeared in the frame. Amèliä turned glaring at the figure for a moment then thought better of it going back to work. The man walked to her bed to sit with her. Majesta knew who it was before he even sat down; she could feel him like he was a part of her. It scared her that he was that important to her and yet she didn’t even know his name. When his hand touched her, Majesta jumped and moved to the far side of the bed. She could feel his disappointment and she wanted to smile be happy about that. She couldn’t stop the sadness that overtook her at that moment. Majesta didn’t want to upset this man and she sure in the world didn’t want him mad at her.

"Mo chroí, what is the matter?" She looked at him and wanted to know what he had said, it wasn’t English, that was for sure. The look in those green eyes welcomed her but she had a feeling she shouldn’t look him in the eyes. The feeling of swimming came over her and she felt her body move back toward him. It wasn’t her, but it was. She lay against his chest and cried till his shirt was soaked.

Majesta’s body was cold to the touch and when she was close to him, she felt warm. This didn’t seem right in her mind, but she didn’t want to move. The feel of his hands on her body was a welcome joy. She didn’t hear the door close or Amèliä leave. All Majesta knew was him, the feel of his hard body, the way he smelled of cloves. His arms went around her to hug her to his chest; he seemed to pet her. It didn’t feel like that to her body, which seemed to yearn for him in a way she had never felt for another person. In a deep part of her mind however something screamed that it wasn’t right. That this man wasn’t right for her, that he was messing with her mind.

"Shhh... Grá mo chroí, it is alright, what is making you so sad?" Craven asked, breaking part of the spell.

Why did he care that she was sad? What did it really matter to him? Majesta was confused and wanted nothing to do with this man.

Chapter 3

What did you do to me? How in the world am I here? Sniffling she wanted to back away from him, to hide under the blankets,