Paskal's Hope

All he wanted was to prove himself a man.
All she wanted was to learn to use her new-found magic.
Neither of them knew the price of their desires.

When 18-year-old Paskal set out for a week in the wilderness, he was confident his father would accept him as a man when he returned. But three days into his outing, he awakes from a nap to discover a mage gazing down at him—not just any mage, but a slaver no less! Trussed up and tossed in the back of a wagon, Paskal joins nineteen other hapless souls.

When 17-year-old Cambria's magic manifested, her mother sent her to the capital to learn how to use it. But without resources and knowledge, Cambria paid for her education with her power and her body. Six months later, she's far from home in the sun-cursed lands in the back of a wagon.

Sold at the first village along the Inferno Trail, Cambria and Paskal both loathe their masters, but when another clan attacks the town, Paskal sees their chance to escape. Not willing to leave without Cambria, he leads her straight into the arms of their new captors.

With all hope lost, Paskal begrudgingly accepts the title of slave, but even a slave can protect a friend and stand for what's right. The question is: how far is he willing to go? And who will pay the ultimate cost of his freedom and Cambria's safety?

Paskal's Hope is book 2 of the coming-of-age fantasy duology Journeys by Kandi J Wyatt that follows two different young men, and the women who love them, trying to find their place in the world and discover where their worth lies.