A Pool of Peony - The Life & Death Cycle, #2

The mist has thickened with a vendetta. A bounty has been offered for answers. And no one's story is safe. It's been six months since the Storm of Nightmares and Bria has not gone home. With wanted signs plastered throughout Rosada, she has been stuck chasing the so-called Story Collector throughout the Independent City of Mert. Yet, when a break-in occurs in Todd Dray's shop, it unleashes a chain of events that sends the city into disarray. With his mind tormented by demons and flashes of his past catching up with him, Brent has been navigating Mert as a half version of himself.
When a masked figure offers to help, he accepts, unknowingly stepping into a conflict that has riddled the world for centuries. The City of Mert has become a target for both the Order of the Effluvium and the Council of Mist Keepers. With fear mounting, Bria, with the help of a mysterious, red-eyed woman, a palaver of immortals, and a silver pool, must decide what part she plays in this oncoming storm. Can she find the Story Collector before it's too late? This book is rated 16+ due to mature content and includes mentions of death, violence/sexual assault, adult language, alcohol use, and psychological abuse/trauma.