Ephemeral and Fleeting Read online

  –Judy Adams

  Once again, I was taken on an exciting journey . . . It’s not like you have to read the first book to enjoy this one, but I . . . read Oathtaker and swiftly moved on to Select . . . I normally do not read fantasy books, always figured it would be like reading a fairytale. This, however, is nothing like a fairytale . . . [Reding] has great imagination . . .

  –Barb

  I read the first in the series and I was hooked . . . The writing style, as in the first book, is . . . detailed and colorful . . . It’s like you stepped into the movie and became one of the characters . . . Great story . . . [W]aiting with baited breath for the next one.

  –Raymond Vinzant

  Reding has done it again. She has written an epic tale that will leave you satisfied and imploring her for more at the same time. Without a doubt, she is an extraordinarily gifted author . . . Her words instantly take you to another world . . . Reding develops . . . characters so well you feel like you have known them from the beginning . . . This is by far my new favorite book. At least until part three is released.

  –Deanna Lancow

  I read it as a stand-alone book. I found the synopsis of the first novel . . . very helpful. It was easy to understand the characters . . . I look for the [next] book in the series . . . Excellent read.

  –Linda Klages

  Award winning author Patricia Reding once again returns readers to her fantasy world in Select, the sequel to Oathtaker . . . Reding amazes me. She has conjured up a fantasy world and brought it to life. It is a world filled with enchantment and mystery. She breathed life into her characters . . . In this magical land, we find certainty and abiding love. We discover truths . . . secreted and evident. Truths that you can enact in your everyday life . . . There is a deep message in this book . . .

  –Annie

  BOOKS BY PATRICIA REDING

  The Oathtaker Series

  Oathtaker

  Select

  Ephemeral and Fleeting

  DEDICATION

  Ephemeral and Fleeting: The Oathtaker Series, Volume Three, is dedicated to all my new author friends around the world. You inspire me. Keep on writing!

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  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

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  Chapter Forty-Nine

  Chapter Fifty

  Chapter Fifty-One

  Chapter Fifty-Two

  Chapter Fifty-Three

  Chapter Fifty-Four

  Chapter Fifty-Five

  Chapter Fifty-Six

  Chapter Fifty-Seven

  CAST OF CHARACTERS

  Synopsis – Oathtaker: The Oathtaker Series, Volume One

  Synopsis – Select: The Oathtaker Series, Volume Two

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  A Note About the Multi-Award Winning

  Volumes One and Two of

  The Oathtaker Series

  As is often the case with a fantasy series, new portions follow along after the passage of some time. Thus, for your convenience, included at the back of this, Ephemeral and Fleeting: The Oathtaker Series, Volume Three, is a full synopsis of Oathtaker: The Oathtaker Series, Volume One, and another of Select: The Oathtaker Series, Volume Two. Each covers the high points of the tales, in the order in which they were told, and thus, should help to refresh your memory. Enjoy the journey!

  Chapter One

  It almost tickled, the way it ran down from behind her ear and across her neck before dripping from her hair, its crimson warmth collecting in a puddle before her. The pain nearly unbearable, and unable to move, as a weight pinned her to the floor, she watched the glistening ruby pool grow. How ironic that with all her efforts over the past years to protect Ehyeh’s chosen, her days would end as the result of an accident entirely of her own making.

  She knew her time ran short, as the Good One had revealed things to her some time ago. But this was not at all what she’d expected. Her mind racing, she revisited images from her past. Two, in particular, troubled her. She’d not been mindful of discussing some things with others who had a need to know. The thought made her wince. Also, she’d failed to understand, failed to allow that there were those who might know as well—or even better—than she, failed to appreciate the difficulties they faced.

  If only Ehyeh would grant me the opportunity to set things right and to make amends . . .

  No longer able to watch the puddle of her life force grow larger, she closed her eyes, even as a wisp of air passed over her face.

  “Gracious!” someone gasped.

  Then came the lightest touch at her cheek like the wings of a lightfly.

  With what seemed to be the last of her strength, she opened her eyes again.

  “Hold on,” Ephemeral—generally known as Effie—the queen of the flits, urged, as she flitted at her shoulder. “Help is coming.”

  “They’re almost here,” her husband, Fleet, short for Fleeting, added.

  A long quiet minute passed. Only the whisper of the flits’ wings, and a faint rustling from the woman’s labored, shallow breathing, sounded out.

  Then with a resounding crash, the door burst open. Chaos in the form of over a half dozen Oathtakers, Mara at the lead, entered. A single member of the Select, Basha’s charge, Therese, accompanied them.

  “Hold on, Lucy,” Mara urged as she rushed to her side, “hold on.” Then, “Dixon, Jerrett,” she called over her shoulder, “get this thing off of her!”

  “Lend us a hand here,” Dixon said to his cohorts, Marshall, Kayson, and Raman.

  “I’ll help with my attendant magic,” Basha offered. Drawing on her power, she concentrated on moving the beam that pinned Lucy to the floor.

  As she, along with the men, saw to the task, Mara placed her hands on Lucy’s shoulders. She reached inside for her magic power—power that granted her the ability to heal—and then let it loose.

  As the beam dropped back to the floor with a thud, Basha rushed to Mara’s side. “Great Good One, she doesn’t look good!” she exclaimed.

  Velia knelt and, like her fellow Oathtaker, placed her hands on the woman. Then, “Ahhhhh,” she cried out, the sound so intense, it made the hair on Mara’s arms rise. “Uhhhhhh,” she then moaned, gasping for another breath.

  The men approached.

  “What is it?” Jerrett asked, his hand on his wife, Velia’s, shoulder.

  “Ohhhh, the . . .”

  “If it’s too much, you shouldn’t do it. Just because your magic allows you to take on the pain of another, doesn’
t mean that you should.”

  “Ahhh, I just . . . Ohhh . . . Mara, I—” She gulped. “I think she’s . . . broken her back. I feel intense pain, but nothing from her waist down.”

  “I can’t see to that now, I’ve got to stop the bleeding from this cut here and check for internal injuries.”

  “Hurry. It’s . . . excruciating.” Velia cried out again, then gasped as she sucked another breath in through her teeth.

  Shaking her head, signifying she required quiet, Mara released more magic into Lucy. She knew the woman still lived—she could feel the flicker of life within her. She followed her power, as it raced to the source of Lucy’s most serious injury.

  “Gracious Ehyeh, she’s ruptured her spleen,” she whispered. “She’s bled internally so, so badly.”

  “Can you heal her?” Therese asked.

  “Shhh.” Mara concentrated more acutely, filling Lucy with her magic. Mere seconds later, nearly spent, she dropped her head and shuddered.

  “That’s enough,” Dixon said. “You have to stop now.”

  “I just need a little . . .”

  He tore her hands away. “Please, stop. That’s enough. We don’t want to lose Lucy, but neither can we lose you.”

  “But, Dixon—”

  “No, that’s enough now.”

  “I can’t stop. Not yet! Dixon—”

  “Please, Mara, no.”

  “Maybe you should try,” Velia called over her shoulder to Kayson, another of the Oathtakers.

  Mara touched Lucy again. “Hold on. I think she’s passed out,” she said.

  “You’re right,” Velia muttered, “I don’t feel her pain any longer—and thank goodness for that.”

  At that precise moment, Lucy gurgled, then went utterly still. The earlier sporadic, yet shallow rise and fall of her chest, halted.

  Mara touched her once more. “Wait.” She gasped. Her hands shook. “She’s . . .” She grabbed the woman’s wrist and felt for a pulse. There was nothing. Then she thought she saw a shimmer of light form and radiate over her before it, just as quickly, dissipated.

  “I can’t feel anything!” she cried. “Please, no. No!” She turned tear-filled eyes Dixon’s way.

  Basha held her hand to her mouth. “No.”

  “Great Good One,” Velia said, “is she—”

  “Dead?” Mara whispered. She closed her eyes and nodded.

  Fleet hovered at her shoulder. “We came the minute it happened. We found you as quickly as—”

  Mara held out her hand so that the flits could land in her palm.

  “I’m so sorry,” Effie said.

  “It’s not your fault.” Mara shook her head. “I should have done more myself.”

  “No,” Dixon assured her, “you did all you could.”

  Once again, she looked his way. A single tear rolled down her cheek. “I did try. Truly, I never meant for—”

  “No, of course you didn’t.” He reached for her hand. Then, as Effie and Fleet flew into the air, he crouched down at her side. He wrapped his arms around her. “We all know that you did everything you could.”

  Silence ensued. Only the scratching of a branch outside, brushing against the window, interrupted it. Seconds later came a howl from Jerrett’s nearly constant companion—the wolf, Bane—sitting just outside the door.

  Jerrett stepped nearer. “We’ll take her body to the infirmary to prepare it for burial.”

  Velia, at his side, leaned toward him, then buried her face in his chest. “This is awful,” she said.

  “What’ll we do without her?” Therese asked no one in particular. “I just . . . can’t believe this. It can’t be true. She wasn’t supposed to . . . die.”

  Marshall sighed. “But of course, as we all know, the gift of ‘continued youth’ that Ehyeh granted to her as an Oathtaker, was just that. It was not immortality.”

  Basha patted her charge’s back. “Therese, I know how you feel, but . . .” She sucked in a deep breath and stood to her full height. “Listen, everyone, we all have to be strong now, and we have to stick together. We can’t let this loss cause any division amongst us, or create any difficulties with the others.”

  She glanced at each of her companions in turn. “Now I know this may seem premature to you, but we have to face facts. For starters, we’d best determine right here and right now who will be our administrative lead going forward.” She hesitated. “Of course, the natural person would be Mara,” she added as her eyes rested on her friend.

  “Oh, no! Not me! I’ve enough to do without—”

  Just then, the door burst open again. Mara’s charges, the twins—and the current ranking members of the first family of the Select, Reigna and Eden—entered.

  “Felicity had a spell,” Reigna cried. “She rambled something that made Trumble think that someone was hurt.” She hurried to Mara’s side. “What happened?”

  With tears welled in her eyes, Mara looked her way, then at Eden. “I’m so sorry, girls. It’s Lucy. I’m afraid she’s . . .” She swallowed hard, unable to say the word.

  “No!” Reigna dropped to her knees. She grabbed Lucy’s hand and squeezed it. “No, Ehyeh! No! Please, return her to us. Please, please, don’t take her!” She wept. “Oh, why couldn’t it be someone else? We need her! No, no, no. This can’t be! Please,” she pleaded.

  Mara crouched down and put her arm around her. “I’m sorry, Reigna. I tried. Truly . . .”

  Reigna brushed her hand away. “No, Mara. Lucy may be difficult—but we need her!” Still weeping, she hung her head, muttering, praying.

  Eden knelt at her sister’s side. She leaned in and brushed the back of her hand against Lucy’s cheek. “Reigna, that’s enough now. There’s nothing more you can do.”

  “We have to save her!”

  “It’s too late,” Mara said. “I’m so sorry . . .”

  At that very moment, Lucy sucked in a deep breath.

  Eden pulled back, her eyes wide. “But . . . she was dead!”

  Shaking her head, Mara looked from Dixon, to each of her Oathtaker friends in turn, to Therese, and finally, back to Lucy. “This isn’t possible,” she said. “She was dead. I felt—I saw—the life leave her, myself.”

  Groaning, Lucy opened her eyes and looked about.

  “Are you all right?” Eden asked her.

  She stared at her. “I . . . should be dead.” She glanced Reigna’s way. “You shouldn’t have done that.”

  “Done what?”

  “Here, help me sit up.”

  Mara gave her a hand. “You need to be careful. We thought we’d lost you.”

  “You did.”

  “But that’s not . . . possible.”

  Lucy exhaled audibly. “You shouldn’t have done that, Reigna,” she repeated. “It was . . . my time.”

  “What are you talking about?” she asked.

  Lucy dropped her head into her hands. “I’d hoped to have time to explain this all to you before I—” She glanced back up. “Well, I guess you’ve discovered for yourself that . . .” Her voice trailed off to nothing. Then, “I need to speak with you, Reigna and Eden,” she said, “and with you, Mara. I see I should have done this earlier.”

  “What’s this all about, Lucy?” Dixon asked. “What just happened here?”

  She took to her knees. “As to what happened here, it was foolish, really. I was moving those things,” she pointed to some crates at the back of the room, “when I looked out the window. I thought I saw someone I knew.” She closed her eyes tightly.

  “Who did you think you saw?” Mara asked. “The prospect seems to trouble you.”

  “Oh, never mind. It wasn’t . . . possible. He’s probably . . .” Her brow furrowed.

  She stood, approached the window, and then looked out searchingly through the autumn leaves falling, floating, on the cool breeze.

  “Anyway,” she said upon returning, “the beam fell and I didn’t move fast enough.”

  “Who did you think you saw, Lucy?”
Mara persisted.

  She waved her hand. “Never mind. Listen, why don’t you all get comfortable? I’ve some things to share. I thought it could wait, but . . . Well, I suppose I should have realized that life can change drastically in an unplanned moment, so I’d best fill you in now, before something happens that keeps me from being able to do so later.”

  Dixon patted a rhythm on his thigh. “All right, Lucy, let’s hear it.”

  “Please, Dixon,” she motioned with her hand, “have a seat. Everyone, have a seat. There are things you all should know.”

  Amidst the sounds of shuffling and of weapons clanging, they sat on the floor, as they’d previously removed all the furniture from the building.

  Lucy pulled her shoulders back. “Let me begin with a heartfelt . . . apology.” She glanced Mara and Dixon’s way. “I owe the two of you . . . Well, the truth is that I owe you more than I could ever repay. You’ve been instrumental in so many things, and I’m sorry to say that I . . .”

  “What is it, Lucy?” Mara asked.

  She turned to Basha and Therese, sitting side-by-side. “You two tried to tell me some time back, that I shouldn’t be so quick to find fault—that I should recognize that I, too, could make a mistake—that I should join you ‘lowly mortals in the land of the living.’” She sighed. “You were right.” She looked back at Dixon. “I was wrong, Dixon. I know I said it before, but I’m not sure that I truly appreciated what I’d done.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You know. When I had you taken captive. When I planned to have you tried for treason. It was . . . wrong of me. Very, very wrong.” She motioned toward where she’d fallen, earlier. “When that beam fell on me, I thought I was dead. While pinned beneath it, I discovered that one of the things I most regretted—and believe me, I’ve been around long enough to have many regrets—was that I’d not made proper amends to you.” She turned Mara’s way. “Nor to you, she added. “I suppose the truth is . . .” She fell silent, holding her mouth firmly shut.