Lady Wynwood's Spies, volume 1: Archer EXCERPT - Nightmare

I’m posting an excerpt of Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 1: Archer, the first part of my Lady Wynwood’s Spies series!

Part one in a Christian Regency Romantic Adventure epic serial novel with a supernatural twist
Lady Wynwood’s Spies series, volume 1

She met him again by shooting him.

After four seasons and unmarried because she is taller than most of her dance partners, Miss Phoebe Sauber receives the shocking news that she is being callously banished from her father’s estate because he is remarrying. Feeling betrayed by her father and by God, and wanting to escape her family’s presence, she attends an archery tournament with her friends.

But her perfect aim fails her, and her arrow hits a piece of paper held by Mr. Michael Coulton-Jones, whom she hasn’t seen much in society in several years. But strangely, her arrow tears a section of the paper with a partial symbol that looks eerily familiar to her.

He met her again while searching for a killer.

Michael had quit his work as a spy for the Foreign Office when his brother was poisoned. His search for the murderer leads him to Apothecary Jack, a criminal underworld leader with a penchant for poisons, who is gathering a powerful army through an alchemical potion that can give men supernatural strength.

But his path unexpectedly crosses again with Miss Sauber, who saves him from a trap laid by Jack. She and her Aunt Laura, Lady Wynwood, have found a vital connection to Apothecary Jack and the mysterious group he works for.

Now Michael, who had vowed to never again allow civilians to come to harm, must work with a nobleman keeping dangerous secrets, a human lie detector, a chemist, a fellow former spy, and the one woman he’s never allowed himself to get close to.

And it is only this ragtag group that stands against a traitorous organization that could enable Napoleon to conquer the world.

PLEASE NOTE: This is the first book in the Lady Wynwood’s Spies series, an epic serial novel. Each volume has a completed story arc, but this is NOT a stand-alone novel and ends on a cliffhanger.

All the posted parts are listed here.

***

Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 1: Archer

A Christian Regency Romantic Adventure serial novel

Camille Elliot

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
2 Corinthians 5:17 (KJV)

Nightmare

The young girl huddled at the top of the stairs, listening to the sounds from the floor below. Her uncle had been shouting loudly, but she hadn’t been able to make out the words. She heard women shrieking—her aunt, and her aunt’s maid, Aya—and then crying.

Then abruptly there had been a few minutes of strange quiet, as if the house were holding its breath.

Now the floors below echoed with the footsteps of many servants, speaking low, urgent words.

The girl often stayed overnight at her aunt’s house, because while her uncle usually ignored her, her aunt cosseted her and gave her the affection she lacked at home. Therefore the girl knew there was an unusual amount of hurried activity for so late at night—it was nearly midnight, and she had woken up because of the noise. But now, there was no more of her uncle’s shouting.

The girl clung to the banister as she sat on the step. She should return to the nursery at the end of the hallway behind her, but she couldn’t move from this spot, not quite disobeying the orders of Jane, the maid who had been assigned to care for her. When she woke, Jane had ordered her to stay and then rushed downstairs.

The girl had often complained to her aunt that at nearly eleven years old, she was too old to stay in the nursery and deserved a proper guest bedchamber, but now she was glad she had had Jane nearby when they heard the shouting start.

Despite the unusual bustle of so many servants, surely no one was actually injured? If there were, there would be more wailing and shock, surely?

Light footsteps raced up the stairs, and before she could get up and return to the nursery, Jane appeared at the turn in the staircase and saw her through the banister. “I didn’t think you’d stay put, but at least you didn’t come downstairs.”

“What has happened?”

“Nothing to worry you, poppet.” Jane sat down next to her on the step and placed an arm around her. “There was an accident, but the servants are just cleaning things up. We’ll stay up here until everything is quite done.”

Her words were calm and cheerful, but the hand on the girl’s shoulder trembled.

“Is Aunt Laura all right?”

“She will be, my darling.” Jane gave her a hug. “Now, she will be.”

***

Buy Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 1: Archer:
Kindle
Paperback

NOTE: Unfortunately, the book will only be in Amazon for now. However, if you buy a copy on Amazon and would like to read it on your non-Kindle reader, forward the receipt of your purchase to me at camys.loft@gmail.com and I’ll have BookFunnel send you an .epub copy of the file so you can side load it onto your ebook reader. (If you have any trouble downloading your copy, please click the help link at the top of the download page. The friendly folks at BookFunnel will help you get your book.) You might also be able to download a DRM-free copy from Amazon through “Your Content and Devices” page on the Amazon website.

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