This is book 3 in the Queens of Raz series. Download book 1 - book 2 - book 4
Three years after A Matter of Time, Ann is called to come to the aid of the Olympians who are the gods and goddesses of Greek and Roman Mythology. They are in danger of dying because someone stole their immortal power. The trek to find the missing stone takes Ann from a planet called Lone back to Earth. Except, this time she goes to a place long ago removed from the map: Atlantis. It is here she learns the origins of the Olympian gods, faces an old nemesis, and discovers just how much she is capable of doing as Queen.
Excerpt:
Location: Outside the Royal Palace
Planet: Raz
Galaxy: Enchanted
Ann, the Queen of Raz, sat on a chair, enjoying the warm sunny afternoon. It was another perfect day on Raz. It seemed that every day on this planet was perfect. Even the rainy days inspired her. She glanced at the beautiful flowers in the gardens next to the lawn where she and her children were playing. The mountains in the distance never failed to take her breath away.
"Mommy, what is this?" Katherine asked, breaking Ann out of her thoughts.
Ann turned her attention back to her daughter who was holding a fuzzy black caterpillar. She grimaced at the bug. As pretty as Raz was, she still didn"t like the bugs. She wasn"t much of an outdoors person, although she did enjoy taking walks through the palace grounds. She knew her children loved playing outside in their sandbox and swing set which Hathor had built, so she went out with them whenever her busy schedule permitted her to do so. "That"s a caterpillar," she finally told her three year old daughter.
"I like it. It"s soft." Katherine grinned as she petted it. "Can I keep it?"
"I think it will be happier if you let it stay out here with its friends."
"It has friends?"
"Sure. All creatures have friends."
Matthew, her son, slowly walked up to Katherine to see what she was holding.
His steps were still uncertain, for he was still learning to walk on his own, but he managed to get to his destination without falling down. He was fourteen months old and full of curiosity. He reached out to touch the caterpillar, but Katherine quickly pulled back her hands and shrieked that it was hers.
"Let him see it, Katherine," Ann stated. She picked him up and put him on her lap. "There. Now he won"t touch it."
Katherine reluctantly brought the caterpillar near to him so he could see it.
Ann still couldn't believe how much they resembled Hathor. They had his blond hair and light blue eyes. They did have her curls. Her long brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail. She usually wore her silk dresses, but today she was relaxing in her cotton shorts and sleeveless t-shirt. It wasn"t often she got a day off from her duties to sit around in her Earth clothes.
Matthew giggled as the caterpillar crawled up Katherine's arm.
Ann remembered playing with bugs when she was a kid,
but there was no way she would touch one now.
"Daddy!" Katherine cried with joy. She dropped the caterpillar and ran to Hathor who had just walked onto the lawn.
Ann screamed as the caterpillar fell on her leg. Matthew giggled again.
"Don"t worry. Your secret is safe with me," Hathor said good-naturedly as he carried Katherine in his arms and walked over to Ann and Matthew. "Nobody will know the same person who killed Omin was defeated by a harmless caterpillar."
She smiled at his humor. "Yeah well, no one's perfect."
He bent over and kissed her. "How are things going?" "Great. We"re just enjoying the nice day."
"I can"t wait for next month. I have a big surprise for you," he commented.
"It"ll be five years since we got married." Where did the time go? It seemed like it was yesterday when he brought her to Raz to become Queen.
"Five wonderful years," he said.
She agreed with him. It hadn't always been easy to adjust to her life on Raz or being married, but she was glad that she was where she was at and wouldn"t change it for anything.
"So you"re not going to tell me what you have planned, are you?" she asked.
"No way. I want it to be a surprise."
"Can I have a surprise too?" Katherine wondered, looking up at him with wide eyes.
"Maybe for your birthday," he agreed.
Katherine would be four a month after their anniversary.
Matthew wiggled out of Ann's arms and ran to the sandbox where he picked up the ball sitting in it and quietly studied it.
"Can I pick some flowers?" Katherine asked as Hathor put her down.
"Alright but stay where I can see you," Ann replied.
She eagerly ran to the garden next to where they were sitting.
Hathor sat beside Ann and held her hand. "They sure are
cute at this age. Next year, I will start teaching Katherine about Raz."
