A Faerie's Secret (Creepy Hollow Book 4) (36 page)

After a long moment, he says, “Yes. But that isn’t going to be a problem after I tell you everything.”

Everything?
After all the mystery surrounding this guy, I didn’t expect to hear those words. “Do you mean that?”

He takes in a breath that sounds a little shaky. “Yes. If you want to hear the truth.”

The truth.
Do I really want to know Chase’s truth? Perhaps not knowing is better. It will be easier to face the Guild every day if I don’t know all the details of his illegal activity. But not knowing means there can’t be anything …
more
between us. Because a relationship can’t work when there are secrets.

“Calla? Cal, are you out here?” Violet’s voice pulls me from my thoughts.

“Who’s that?” Chase asks, a frown creasing his brow.

I look over his shoulder to the trees where the voice came from and see a figure in white moving between them. “My brother’s wife.”

“Cal, come back,” she calls, waving as she sees me. “Tilly wants us to do that silly dance and I’m
so
not doing it without you.”

“Come on,” I say to Chase, deciding I can make my choice to hear his truth or not later. “You can meet my family and make fun of me while I pretend I can dance.” I tug at his hand, but he doesn’t move. His face is frozen into an odd expression.

“No,” he murmurs, staring unseeingly at the ground.

“What?”

“I
do
know you.”

“What do you—”

He looks up, his gaze suddenly intense. “The moment I first saw you, I knew I recognized you. I
knew
it.”

“Chase—”

“I’m sorry, Calla.” He takes a step back, and over his shoulder I see Violet coming toward us.

“Chase, what’s going on?”

“I’ve never lied to you, I swear. This is who I am.”

“What are you …”

My voice trails off as Vi stops just outside the pavilion, her mouth open to say something before she freezes, her expression turning slowly to one of horror. Several things happen at once then, and I see them all as if in slow motion: Vi’s arms rising into position and grasping a bow and arrow, Chase’s hand sweeping through the air as he backs away from both of us, and snowflakes—snowflakes?—falling everywhere.

Then everything speeds up. The snow is a blizzard, and the wind whips my hair around my face, and all I can see is white as I raise my hands to protect my face.

The wind dies down. The snow drifts away. A hush falls over the area.

Chase is gone.

I’m utterly confused. I look back at Violet, at the stunned expression on her face. “It can’t be,” she whispers. And then the greatest secret of all comes crashing from her lips:

“Draven.”

 

 

Calla’s story continues in Creepy Hollow, Book Five.

 

COMING SOON!

 

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Several years ago, when I was writing
The Faerie Guardian
, I planned for the possibility of continuing the Creepy Hollow series with Calla as a main character. When I reached the end of
The Faerie War
, I was exhausted. I needed a break—which came in the form of the Trouble series—but I knew in the back of my mind that this series wasn’t over yet. I loved the world and the characters too much to say goodbye after only three books. I didn’t make any promises. I didn’t set any specific dates. But observant Creepy Hollow fans reached the end of
The Faerie War
and noticed I’d left a few loose ends untied. And since they love this world and its characters as much as I do, they asked for more.

Well, this is the first part of the ‘more,’ and I hope you’ve enjoyed it. There is a lot
more
to come!

My first thanks, as always, goes to God. I’m grateful every day for all He’s given me, including a career that came out of my love for crafting stories. My second thanks goes to everyone who has played a part in bringing the beginning of Calla’s story to the page: Creepy Hollow fans begging for more, my writer friends’ support and teaching, my early readers’ enthusiasm, and my review team’s dedication. And my last thanks (also as always) goes to Kyle. For everything. (Which I would list, but I might run out of paper …)

BOOKS BY RACHEL MORGAN

THE CREEPY HOLLOW SERIES

Bestselling YA fantasy series

Kick-butt faerie Violet is about to graduate as the top guardian of her class, but when an assignment goes wrong and the human boy she’s meant to be protecting follows her back into the fae realm, a dangerous plot is set in motion.

Magic, mystery, danger, action, romance … This series has it all!

An A to Z of Creepy Hollow Fae (Prequel Short Stories)

The Faerie Guardian

The Faerie Prince

The Faerie War

A Faerie’s Secret

 

THE TROUBLE SERIES

Swoon-worthy guys, comical moments, witty dialogue, and hot kisses ...

This sweet contemporary romance series will sweep you off your feet!

Forgiven (A Trouble Novella)

The Trouble with Flying

The Trouble with Flirting

The Trouble with Faking

The Trouble with Falling

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

 

Rachel Morgan is a South African author who spent a large portion of her childhood living in a fantasy land of her own making. After completing a degree in genetics, she decided science wasn’t for her—after all, they didn’t approve of made-up facts. These days she spends much of her time immersed in fantasy land once more, writing fiction for young adults and those young at heart.

 

Connect with Rachel online:

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Goodreads

 

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Table of Contents

Part I

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Part II

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Part III

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Thirty

Next in the Creepy Hollow Series

Acknowledgements

Books by Rachel Morgan

About the Author

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