Destria Waves (Sekaii 1) by
Lily Raine
About the book:
Anastasia has always been different,
and not just because she knows over fifteen languages and prefers to be alone.
After she was attacked while visiting family in Russia over seven years ago,
Ana has been able to heal rapidly amongst other things. Unable to accept her
own immortality, despite increasing proof, she goes away to Joya Del Mar Arts
Academy with her two cousins, Jo and Mason. Instead of worrying about recitals
and dance steps, Ana discovers a secret world of demons, mermaids and angels.
Their only connection however, seems to be an increasing need to find her so
that the demons can force Ana to bring back their master. After transforming a
bear into a human boy, Ana can no longer hide her abilities and struggles with
the idea that she is not human, although she does not know what she is. When a
mysterious man in a mask continues to stalk Ana with the intention of getting
her to eat a blue flower, Ana gets the sinking suspicion that the man in the
mask is the same young man who destroyed her life seven years prior. When Ana
discovers a secret lair hidden beneath the waves where the demons are
regrouping, Ana realizes she has a terrible choice to make. Sacrifice her life
and the life of the mermaids who fuel the underwater power source, or escape and
allow the demons free reign to destroy the human world. But if Ana chooses to
accept her immortality, then the life of her cousins and boyfriend, Daniel,
will forever be compromised.
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Excerpt:
Coldness
spread through my body like a disease when I saw a faint blue color glowing from the woods. It alighted brightly
and then dimmed down before becoming completely aglow again.
Without hesitation, I ran
towards the light, feeling the heavy pressure of my shoes thumping against my
back.
I felt tricked. Each time I
neared the blue light, it was extinguished and then relit farther away from
where I was standing. Taking a deep breath, I looked at the trees around me and
stayed completely still so I could catch movement.
I realized I had gone in a
sort of circle chasing the light, but there was a faint directional pattern it
seemed to prefer. Acting quickly, I ran in the direction I thought the blue
light would appear, stumbling over roots.
For being a small island,
the woods were intricate and I was already far away from the road. Regaining my
composure, I felt my hands stinging where I’d braced my fall and tried to pull
myself to a sitting position, but my legs were tired from hours of dancing.
“Oh, Aria,” The voice was
deep and firm. My legs trembled and my fingers twitched in anticipation. “Don’t
you want to look at me?”
I started to shake my head,
but curiosity made me gave in.
He was abnormally tall. I
would guess he was well over six foot, but he was extremely slender. With the
right leverage, a person might think they could knock him over. But I saw the
sturdy muscle wrapped around his arms, abdomen and legs underneath his tight
outfit.
He wore dark pants, dark
shoes, and a white shirt with a tie. Over his ensemble was a dark vest and attached
hood, a kind of look a modern day Jack the Ripper would wear. His hood was
down, exposing a curly black hair and fair skin. His mask was of a kind of
monster. Around the bulging eyes of the mask was a type of skeleton, but the
cheeks looked like a hollowed out animal. His eyes were a deep purple.
“Do I know you?” I asked
quietly as I found my footing and pulled myself up. I wrapped my hands around
my bag protectively. I felt foolish for thinking he wanted a pair of Pointe
shoes.
The man nodded before walking
along the small clearing I had followed him to. “You used to know me.”
My heart became cold. I
tried to imagine him without his demon mask. Tried to put a knife in his hand
and a scar in the corner of his mouth, but he didn’t feel the part.
“When?”
“Thousands of years ago.”
I wondered if he was sick
and had escaped from somewhere. Or if he was simply a very rich teenager who
enjoyed dressing up and frightening young women. I knew it wasn’t uncommon in
Bay Shore for bored young men to do so.
To disguise my fear and
slight confusion, I spoke with logic. “Human life doesn’t extend that far.”
He stopped moving and
placed one hand inside of his small vest pocket. “Who said you were a human?”
I stared blankly at him.
“What are you then?”
“You know several languages
don’t you?”
I blanched, suddenly angry.
Hidden beneath my bed in locked chests were books about medicine, animals,
languages and mathematics. There was no way he could know what I studied unless
he’d violated my privacy. I took a breath and stepped away. “How do you know?”
“I know a lot about you.”
My foot touched a branch I
carefully stepped over. “Why?”
“Would you like to see
something?” He asked, changing the subject abruptly. Before I could respond, he
had withdrawn his hand and was waving a kind of orb in front of me. A bluish
glow surrounded the orb, making it impossible for me to see what it actually
looked.
“What is that?”
“You’ll find out.” He
whispered softly, replacing the object inside his pocket and once again casting
us into darkness. “You see, I’m going to let them find it. Shouldn’t take them
long to figure out what it is.”
I was so confused about
what he was saying, I didn’t realize he’d strode towards me. With him standing
clearly in front of me, I felt my body shiver, his height immense.
“I have to test you. I have
to make sure.”
I gripped my bag tightly
again, prepared to swing if he came much closer. “You speak in riddles.”
He tipped his head to the
side and from underneath his mask, I could see a faint smile. “And you speak
denial.”
There
wasn’t enough time for me to react and before I could even swing my bag around,
I felt his hand close around my throat. Screaming would be pointless and would
raise my pulse to an even higher rate. I closed my eyes, willing my heart to
flow to a natural rate, slowing my anxiety. I heard him whisper one last word
before the grass beneath me felt weightless. “Aria."
Meet the Author
Lily Raine, author of the
Anastasia Series, is happy to be part of World Castle Publishing. Lily lives in
Michigan where when it’s not cold, the weather and the lakes are beautiful.
Lily married her best friend, Thomas, when she was eighteen years old. They
live together with their two cats, Misaki and Mason.
Lily enjoys biking, swimming, dancing, painting, and going
anywhere there are animals. She is currently working on her Master’s Degree
from Wayne State University. Afterwards, she hopes to continue to get her PhD
in Clinical Social Work.
Lily loves young adult novels, particularly ones with
paranormal elements. She also really enjoys LGBT literature with young adult
characters and wishes there were more with paranormal aspects.
Twitter: @authorLilyRaine
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Lily-Raine/e/B0141KF0PO
