Love & War Book 1 in the Arcadia Falls Chronicles by Jennifer Malone Wright

…
    ~~~***~~~
    Large, fat snowflakes fell gently from the
moody, grey sky.
    I tilted my head and let the flakes fall
onto my face, tempted to stick out my tongue and catch them like I
did when I was a little girl.
    “You ready?” Drew called out.
    “I am!” Alice’s voice rang across the snow
covered field.
    Shaking off the memories and the wet snow, I
snapped back to attention. “Me, too. I’m ready.” I spread my arms
wide, focusing my energy and imagining what I wanted it to do. The
heat flowed and expanded in my body, making its way outward until
two flaming spheres appeared in my palms. The fire danced and
swirled, just waiting to be released.
    I moved my gaze back to Alice, who looked
like a snow princess in her white coat with fur trim and matching
boots. Her whole outfit was white, even her jeans. She wore her
blonde hair down to cover her ears, instead of her usual ponytail,
and she had twin short swords crossed at her back, replacing her
customary hip sword. Her hands were up and at the ready.
    Still hesitant, even though we had done this
before, I pulled back and launched my flaming spheres at her.
    Between her extended hands a wavering glow
appeared. The gentle glow moved like the ripples when you touched
still water. My fire balls hit the glowing shield and absorbed
right into it. Thank God. Those fireballs could cause some serious
damage if they had actually hit her.
    As soon as the shield had completely
absorbed the fire, I charged her.
    She saw me coming and expanded her shield
wider. I knew I wouldn’t be able to penetrate it, so I dug my boots
into the snow and pushed off, sailing right over the top of her
head. While I was over her, she spun, letting down her shield and
drawing her swords simultaneously.
    My gun was out of its holster before I even
landed. I stuck the landing and had the weapon aimed between her
swords, directly at her heart.
     
     
     
    READ AN EXCERPT FROM SAVIOR
    A FULL LEGNTH NOVEL BY JENNIFER MALONE
WRIGHT

    Sweltering heat emanated from the searing
flames. Alex ignored his blistered skin and burnt clothes. He
plunged both arms into the blazing orange inferno without a second
thought for his own well-being. His hands frantically flailed until
he found what he searched for. He pulled the charred remains up and
hugged them to his chest before he gave a desperate glance toward
the others.
    Smoke curled into his mouth and nose and
made it nearly impossible to breathe.
    “ Hurry, hurry. Get out now,” a gentle
voice whispered into his ears. “You must go right now if you want
to live.”
    However, he couldn’t leave them behind.
    “ Go now,” the voice whispered more
urgently.
    Sparks flew when a giant log broke in half
and fell from the ceiling. It crashed onto the floor less than two
feet from where Alex stood. Flames engulfed the fallen wood and
created yet another obstacle.
    The voice tried again, crying out, “Hurry,
Alex!”
    Alex knew he needed to move if he wanted to
live, but he paused for a moment to question whether he even wanted
to bother. The flames grew while Alex stood motionless, undecided.
Suddenly, a great push from behind thrust him forward toward a wall
of fire.
     
    ***
    Alex stirred in his mahogany coffin, one of
the best money could buy. He felt the soft, white velvet lining rub
against his cheek, but it didn't comfort him. He panted like a
thirsty dog and writhed helplessly inside the narrow wooden
box.
    His eyes snapped open. First, he checked his
hands for burns, but he found none. He groaned while he became more
aware, and realized he'd had another nightmare.
    He sighed, wondering if the recurring dreams
were going to last forever. He reached up and unlatched the locks
he’d installed for his own safety, or at least his peace of mind.
He pushed open the lid and sat upright. His gaze wandered across
the room while his mind tried to fight off the feeling of dread he
had about the night ahead.
    In the center of a large stone room that was
buried