With only three weeks left until the ebook release of SEELIE PRINCESS, I want to give you a sneak peek at what’s waiting for you. You can read the entire first chapter below.
On some days, missing
her father was only background noise. On others, the hole he’d left behind
sucked all the sound from the world around her.
Today was one of those
silent days.
Kayla was gazing out the
window at the dull sky, her reflection blurred by the glass vibrating as the
train rushed over the tracks. The image vanished as a ray of sunshine broke
through the thick clouds, making Kayla squint. Her eyes took some time to
adjust to the sudden brightness, but when they had, the train was already
approaching the station.
“Kay, are you even
listening?”
Turning away from the
window, Kayla blinked at her friend Abby, who had her phone held out toward
Kayla. “Did you see this? It’s a new club opening tonight,” Abby said. “We
should go.”
Kayla frowned. “Can’t
you ask Meghan?”
“No,” Abby said curtly.
She took her phone back and shoved it into her handbag. Kayla glimpsed several
textbooks, all dog-eared and worn, but that was what happened when you took a
handbag to school. “Meghan’s not my best friend, is she? Besides, we didn’t go
out for your birthday last week.”
Kayla hugged her
backpack closer to her chest. “We went to the movies,” she said. “With popcorn
and everything.”
Abby raised an eyebrow. “That’s
not the same as partying. Anyway, I’ve got to get off.” Tossing back her long
hair, she leaned in for a hug. Kayla held on for a second, the scent of Abby’s
coconut shampoo tickling her nose.
“Text me if you change
your mind,” Abby said. She stood and filed out of the train, waving at Kayla
through the window.
Kayla watched Abby grow
smaller and smaller as the train pulled out of the station. Once she was out of
sight, Kayla took out her phone, scrolling up and down without reading any of
the words. Her eyes stung with an exhaustion she couldn’t shake off.
People around Kayla rose
to their feet as a crackling voice on the intercom announced their next stop
and the train slowed down again. The platform was packed with commuters,
impatiently waiting for the arriving train.
The brakes squealed, and
the train came to a stop. As soon as the doors slid open, people pushed
outside, while those waiting on the platform tried to squeeze inside. Kayla let
her gaze wander over the crowd, taking in all the different people: short and
tall, thin and thick, young and old, black and white. Unfamiliar faces. Except…
Kayla gasped.
Brown eyes, tousled
russet hair. A face she hadn’t seen in years. As the platform cleared, her
father turned the other way.
“Dad, wait!” She leaped
to her feet. People cursed as she pushed her way through to the exit, her eyes
fixed on her father out on the platform. He was heading toward the stairs. A
voice sounded from the speakers, announcing their departure. Kayla pushed and
shoved.
“Dad!” She stumbled out
of the train, the doors slamming shut the moment she stepped outside. The
wheels of the train screeched as it left the station.
The platform had
cleared. Kayla hurried over to the stairway where she’d last seen him and
sprinted down the stairs, almost slipping on the last step. She skidded to a
halt on the sidewalk.
Cars were rushing by,
people walking along, but her father had disappeared. Heart thrumming in her
chest, Kayla spun around, scanning the area. She could hardly breathe, and the
rush of her blood was so loud in her ears that she couldn’t hear either.
Tears stung her eyes.
She sank to the curb, hugging her trembling arms tight to her chest. After all
this time, had it really been him?
It couldn’t have been
him. He hadn’t been standing on that platform, just like he hadn’t been in the
crowd of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade five years ago. Or in that restaurant
back in her home town. Or at the lake where they went camping when she was
younger.
It never was her father,
just a ghost she kept chasing through the dark.
Kayla reached into her
jacket pocket for her phone, but her fingers brushed something round and rough.
She pulled it out and stared at the object in her hand. It was an acorn, larger
than any she’d ever seen. Not that she’d held many acorns before.
Frowning, she looked up
and down the streets, but the sidewalk was empty. As she twisted the acorn in
her fingers, the cap came off, revealing a hollow inside. Stuffed within was
some paper, which Kayla pried from it and unfolded.
For a second, the entire
world stopped, shrouded in white noise, and Kayla stared at the paper in her
hands. Only four words were scribbled on it.
Your father is alive.
Continue reading → SEELIE PRINCESS: Excerpt #1