The Shadow Prince (Mortal Enchantment, #1)

Chapter One

A beach bonfire? Now, that's my kind of party.

Judging by the football jerseys and the excitement level of the group, I guess they'd just come from a winning game. They made their way to the shore with their coolers and a beer keg. A few of the guys dropped their stuff, found a good spot, and started digging their pit. Another guy left the group, returning a few minutes later with the baseball-sized rocks he used to encircle the hole. Girls showed up with handfuls of leaves and twigs. After one of them arranged the sticks into a pyramid, there was only one thing left they needed: fire.

They had no idea the flame ignited only because elementals existed in the mortal world. We controlled and maintained the fire element.

One of the smaller, non-jock looking mortals tried several times to spark the flame with a lighter, but the wind coming off the ocean blew it out. The poor guy looked embarrassed, peering over his shoulder at a couple of cute girls in a cluster. I decided to make him look like a hero. Hidden behind a glamour, I kneeled beside him as he made another attempt. I touched the twigs with the tip of my finger, setting them ablaze. The crowd cheered, passing around fist bumps. The scrawny kid walked away smiling, holding the hand of one of the girls.

Mission accomplished.

A chuckle rang out above the crashing waves. I turned around, discovering Marcus, my best friend, in his mortal form. He walked toward me wearing a red cashmere sweater and khaki pants; made me think of some preppy mortal getting ready to board a sailboat. But that was far from the truth. He was a Gabriel Hound-a shape-shifting fire elemental. His kind was created by my mother, Prisma, centuries ago. They were the most dangerous members of our court, controlled by her alone. Marcus, however, didn't fit the mold.

He stood at my side. ‟Working hard I see."

I hadn't seen him in months. Once he learned to shift, his father ordered him back to Avalon. ‟What can I say? I'm a workaholic."

"Yeah." He snorted. ‟I'm surprised to see you haven't joined their celebration." He bowed and said sarcastically, ‟Your Majesty."

‟You know me better than that. I'm a total professional," I said, smirking.

He raised an eyebrow. ‟Ah, yes. You're completely above partying with the mortals. It's not like you'd ever break the rules."

"Never." We were both full of shit. I enjoy removing the glamour every once in a while. It sucked to spend all my time in their world, but never actually being part of it.

"It's for the best, you know. Those poor girls could never resist the beautiful boy with the sultry brown locks," he mocked, reaching out as if he wanted to touch my hair. ‟And those radiant blue eyes-"

I put him in a headlock. ‟You're a dick. You know that, right?" I laughed. The mortal girls made it easy for me, but I was always honest. Regardless of how far it went, I never gave them any illusions of a future with me.

Maneuvering out of my hold, he managed to twist both my arms behind my back until I couldn't move. ‟Nice piercing, by the way. Has your mother seen it?" he asked, referring to the silver barbell in my right eyebrow.

‟Why would she?" I kicked his foot out from under him and we both fell. ‟When has she ever taken an interest in me?"

He chuckled, shaking his head. ‟You're the sole heir to her throne. I'd say that makes you pretty important."

I may be her only biological child, but she has no interest in passing her crown onto me. The mists surrounding Avalon prevented aging. As long as she remained within its protection, she could remain on the throne as long as she wished. There was always a chance she could be killed, but only another royal family member had enough power to take her out. ‟You obviously don't know her very well."