Cyrene Strohm has gone from a high position in court, to being accused of crimes she didn’t commit and thrown in jail. Check out this exclusive excerpt from The Consort by K.A. Linde!

About ‘The Consort’ by K.A. Linde:

After the loss of a friend and false imprisonment in an Eleysian dungeon, Cyrene has no interest in destiny. Her heart was shattered, friends scattered, and her home is nothing but a pretty illusion. Even her magic won’t cooperate.

When all seems lost, she turns to the one person she never thought that she would trust:

Prince Kael.

His darkness mirrors a growing force lurking within her. A struggle she never imagined threatens to consume her. And as friends and foes begin to show their true colors, she starts questioning whether anyone is who they seem.

Even herself.

‘The Consort’ by K.A. Linde exclusive excerpt:

Sunlight.

Just a small stream.

Cyrene felt it on her skin, bright like a beacon on the sea. It warmed her face, pushing away the darkness, calling to her.

Light.

Not the absence of darkness but its playmate. Always reaching out to grasp the other, to hold it for a few more seconds each day. Constantly chasing. An endless game of tug-of-war. For, without one…how could there be an appreciation for the other?

Cyrene shucked off the darkness like a heavy blanket. She peeled it back from her head where it’d lain on her eyes, down her body, and all the way to her feet until she felt the weight of it release her. Though her heart remained heavy, whatever had held her underwater no longer remained. She must have burned it off with fever, for her skin was clammy. Her neck still slick with sweat.

Slowly, she opened her weary eyes and raised one dark blue eye up to the shaft of light breaching her prison cell. Her pupil shuttered to a mere pinprick. Warmth infused her, and she drank it up, letting it fill her to the brim.

No more.

She’d had enough.

She refused to ever feel so weak again. To ever let someone force her into nothingness. To ever have to claw her way back to sanity.

Even if she no longer knew which way was up or down, where her heart lay, or the bleakness of the road ahead, she knew that she was not weak. She had never been weak. She would never be weak.

And Dean had made a grave error in believing her to be so. To bringing her to her knees in such a manner.

With trepidation she hated feeling, she eased onto one elbow and took a shuddering breath. And then another. She was alive. That was what mattered right now. They hadn’t killed her without a proper trial, like Maelia. Though…Maelia’s crimes had been evident. Blood on her hands.

Cyrene snapped her eyes shut and curled in on herself again.

Blood. Creator. Blood.

How had I let this happen? How hadn’t I seen what my friend intended? She had seen the effortlessness of the way Maelia held a sword but assumed it had come from the training of having two Captains of the Guard as parents. Maelia never confirmed or denied that. She had seen the way Maelia blended into crowds so seamlessly that no one remembered seeing her, but Cyrene had just thought people had shoddy memories. She should have seen the fierceness hidden under the meek girl she had known as her friend. Should have known the deception that would follow. The assassin waiting to strike in their midst.

She shuddered once more at the thought and then let it slide to the back of her mind. She couldn’t process it all yet. Slowly, she moved into a sitting position with her back against the rock wall and looked around.

She was in a dark prison cell. Alone. She had been knocked out and drugged to keep her from accessing her magic. She should not have been awake. That much, she knew.

Dreamily, she remembered the other person saying they had given her a stronger dose. A sedative, she assumed. But what could numb me so completely? What could cut me off from my powers…from myself?

A question for another time. First things first, she needed to find out how long she had been down here and how to get out. It couldn’t have been that long, or she would have already stood trial…or been killed. Surely, the Eleysian court would be calling for her head.

The prince’s betrothed had turned traitor in the course of an afternoon. Uproar and commotion and fire and brimstone. She was no longer their prized and cherished soon-to-be princess, as she had been for that one glorious afternoon.

So, why am I here still?

Dean.

She crushed the idea. No. Dean would not save her. The way he had looked at her. No, she doubted very much that Dean cared whether or not she lost her pretty head.

But the weight on her finger held her fast.

Why had he not removed my engagement ring? The exquisite stone glinted up at her in the meager light. If he truly did not care for her life, then this should be gone. But she didn’t know the answer to that question. To any of her questions.

Cyrene ran trembling fingers through her matted hair and tried to find some semblance of her old self. The proud, honorable girl who would bring on a hurricane to stay with the man she loved, who would stop it to save his life. A piece of that girl had broken off while she lay on the prison cell floor.

Love was foolish and weak.

Love was destruction.

Love was utter ruin.

Pride, honor, power, control. These things were worth cultivating. Worth living and dying for.

She knew that now, where she had not known it before. Things would be different this time.

About K.A. Linde:

K.A. Linde grew up as a military brat and created fantastical stories based off of her love for Disney movies, fairy tales, and Star Wars. In her spare time, she is an avid traveler, loves reading young adult novels, and dancing. Additionally, K.A. has written more than a dozen adult novels and is a USA Today bestselling author. She lives in Lubbock, TX with her husband and two super adorable puppies.

The Consort by K.A. Linde will be released on October 10! Pre-order now from Amazon, iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, or Google Play! And don’t forget to add it to your Goodreads!