Harpy's Freedom: Supernatural Retrieval Agency, #3

By Laura Greenwood

Caught by the woman she's trying to bring down, Harper is determined to find a way to escape.

When a chance turn of events brings her back together with Elias, the chances of successfully bringing Ocypete down are higher than ever, if they can figure out how to outsmart the crime boss.

Can Harper find her freedom and protect the people she cares about, or will Ocypete win for good?
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Harpy's Freedom is book three of Supernatural Retrieval Agency, an urban fantasy romance series filled with harpies, cupids, action, and a hint of steam with a m/f romance.

If you like your romance with unusual supernatural creatures, action-packed law enforcement plots, and a quirky best friend, try the Supernatural Retrieval Agency series today, starting with Harpy's Mission.

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Drowlgon Press
• Release date: May 22, 2021
• ISBN: 9781393423904

Laura Greenwood

Laura is a USA Today Bestselling Author of paranormal romance, urban fantasy, and fantasy romance. When she's not writing, she drinks a lot of tea, tries to resist French macarons, and works towards a diploma in Egyptology. She lives in the UK, where most of her books are set. Laura specialises in quick reads, with healthy relationships and consent positive moments regardless of if she's writing light-hearted romance, mythology-heavy urban fantasy, or anything in between. You can find a full book list and more information on her website, or in The Paranormal Council Facebook Group. Happy Reading!

Book preview

Chapter 1

My back itches with the urge to let my wings loose and fly. But that's impossible. I don't know what Regina has done to the flat she's moved me into, but it stops me from changing into my full harpy form.

And that's a problem if I ever want to escape. Especially with the addition of steel doors and guards who change every few hours.

I suppose if I can't get my wings out in here, they can't either, but that relies on them being harpies and there's a good chance they aren't.

I sigh and head to the bathroom. There's a vent in the ceiling I think I can worm myself through. It'll take some doing but I'm determined to at least try. If I don't do anything, I'm going to go crazy with only myself for the company and not a lot to entertain myself with.

If this is Regina's method of torture, it’s working surprisingly well.

I glance towards the door to make sure none of the guards has decided to make a sudden appearance. That would certainly put a damper on my bid for freedom.

I slip into the bathroom and close the door as slowly as possible. The barely audible soft click of the catch slipping into place is still too loud for my liking. Without knowing what kind of supernaturals the guards are, I have no idea if one of them has super hearing, or something like that.

Perhaps I should have organised some kind of distraction, but with only me and the very basics in the flat, I'm not sure how well I could have pulled that off.

I wait a couple of moments so I can be as sure as possible that I haven't attracted any unwanted attention, then climb onto the toilet.

This would be so much easier if I could shift my feet into my talons to use as a better grip. I know better than to try to shift. It will only lead to frustration and exhaustion, neither of which will help me with my escape attempt.

I stretch as far as I can and push the vent covering. It scrapes loudly despite my previous attempts at loosening it. I wince and freeze in place to make sure no one is about to burst in on me. Perhaps it would be better if I got into a less incriminating position in case they do, but a small part of me is scared to move. Certainly more than I should be.

Once I'm certain the coast is still clear, I push on the covering again. The muscles in my arms and back burn with the strain. Yet another thing that would be easier if I could use my harpy magic.

I push those thoughts to the side. It's pointless to dwell on what I wish I could do. I've trained for most of my life to be able to do things without my magic so I'm not powerless in situations like this and now is the time to finally put that training to use.

The vent covering finally slides free. I'm careful to push it into the ventilation shaft above rather than letting it fall. Partly because of the noise risk, but also because it seems like a good idea to slot it back into place once I'm in the vent. It'll leave fewer clues about where I've gone.

Not that Regina will be asking that question for long. She knows as well as I do that I'll head straight back to the Supernatural Retrieval Agency station I call my home base.

I can't wait to get back inside and help Pippa and Elias uncover the truth about her. I don't need revenge for my kidnapping, but I do want justice for all the things she's done wrong.

At this point, I'm not convinced she's going to get it if I don't manage to get out of here. Maybe now she's done something as crazy as kidnapping an agent, my superiors will actually believe she's guilty of the rest of what we have evidence for.

Not that Michelson will like that. He'll probably try and take all the credit too.

I push the thought aside. For now, I need to focus on getting out of here. Getting distracted by what may or may not happen after isn't going to help me in the slightest.

I take a deep breath and latch onto the edge of the vent to hoist myself up. A soft grunt escapes me from the strain, but I manage to lift myself from the toilet. That's the easy part. Now I have to find a way to pull the rest of me into the vent.

And once I'm there, I have other problems. I have no idea what the layout of the building I'm in is like. I could end up stuck in the vents for days trying to find a way out.

It's best if I don't think about that either. I'll drive myself mad if I keep thinking about all the things that could go wrong. At least I already know that the first escape I did while in the hands of Ocypete's people was all arranged in advance by Regina. Otherwise, I'd be obsessing over the fact this isn't anywhere near as easy as that