Authors: Quinn Loftis
“Talk to me, Cypher.” Lilly ran a finger lightly across his lips. “Show me what I’m worth to you.”
“A gypsy healer’s blood is very powerful,” he began in a tired voice. “They are pure – pure of heart and mind and there is power in that purity, power that a witch could never possess because witches lack that purity. Mona wants the healer’s blood. She wants to destroy the pack and take the healer.”
Lilly jumped from his lap and he let her, knowing she needed to get it off her chest.
“You were going to help her with this?” Lilly’s eyes widened.
“I led her to believe I would open the veil to the underworld, Lilly. I never intended to help her destroy anything.”
“How am I supposed to believe you? How am I supposed to trust you?” she asked him incredulously.
“You have to make a choice.” He held his hand out to her, waiting to see if she would take it. “Make a choice to see what this is between us. Either way I will not let any harm come to your daughter or her friends.”
Lilly looked into his eyes and then at his outstretched hand. She seemed to make a decision. And when she placed her smaller hand in his, she let him pull her back onto his lap. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her tenderly, then he smiled at the dazed look in her eyes.
“Wipe that smirk off your face, warlock King,” she growled playfully.
“My apologies. I didn’t realize my kisses were so potent.”
Lilly snorted. “Maybe they’re actually boring and making me sleepy.”
Cypher grabbed her chin gently but firmly and held her still as he kissed her again. When he was done he pulled back and looked at the passion dancing in her golden eyes.
“Definitely not boring,” he murmured.
She grinned and nipped his lips affectionately.
Deciding he couldn’t put it off any longer, he let out a deep breath.
“I’m meeting with Mona tomorrow.”
Lilly sat up straight and waited for him to continue.
“I’ve got to keep her thinking I’m going to help her, but I’m going to come up with a way to stall.”
“How?” Lilly asked brightly, obviously liking his plan.
“I’m the only being who knows how to open the Veil to the underworld.”
“Why only you?” Lilly interrupted.
“Can you imagine the danger of having a bunch of supernaturals running around with that knowledge?”
Lilly nodded, “I can see how that would be dangerous, but how did you end up being the one with that responsibility?”
“It’s always been the burden of the warlock King to keep the secret of the underworld. The King before me held it and when he passed I inherited it.”
“So it’s one of those 'this is just the way it is' things?” Lilly asked.
“I guess you could say that. My race is deeply magical and very old. But, as I mentioned, the Fae have left this realm, and our magic is waning as a result.”
“Wait, what? The Fae have left?” Lilly asked, confused. Apparently she hadn't been listening. She didn’t know anything about the Fae other than that they existed, but found it interesting and a little unnerving that they had chosen to leave this realm.
“After the Great Purge, the Fae faded out of view. They stuck to their side of the veil and since there have been no
healers;
they haven’t bothered checking in much. They are the very epitome of magic and since they have pulled back so has the magic.”
“So are you weaker because of it?”
“Yes,” he repeated. Cypher saw the worry in her face and quickly added, “But I am still very, very powerful.”
Lilly grinned. “Nice save.”
Cypher smiled back. “I like you,” he told her.
Lilly let out a bark of laughter. “Good to know. I like you too.”
In an instant Cypher’s face grew serious again, the romantic moment gone. “Mona doesn’t know what it takes to open the Veil. If I can convince her that there is something I need in order to open it, something I don’t have right now...”
Lilly made an “ah” movement with her mouth. “You can buy yourself time,” she finished his thought.
“Exactly.”
“Okay, so what is it that you are going to
need
?” She made little quotation marks around the word “need”.
“Usually in any sort of spell there is a sacrifice. There is in the case of opening the Veil – it requires blood, my blood. But, again, she doesn’t know this.”
Cypher was quiet for a moment too long and Lilly tilted his head until he was looking at her.
“What is it?” she asked.
“I just thought about something that could either work in our favor or be a liability.”
“Oh?” Lilly’s brow rose.
“Magic is finicky, Lilly. It lives and breathes on its own. We, my people, the Fae, the wolves, and so on, are simply the wielders of it. We do not own it, nor do we always control it.”
“What are you trying to say, Cypher?”
“I know the magic it requires to open the Veil; I know the sacrifice. But that was before you.”
“What do I have to do with it?”
“You have changed me and that is no small thing. I’m very old, little one – ancient. And to change something in me at this point... I don’t know how that change will affect w
hat the magic requires of me,”
Cypher explained.
“So, you're telling me that you don’t really know what it will take to open the Veil?”
Cypher’s lips tensed. “Not yet.”
“Then you won’t have to convince Mona, or lie at all. You can truly tell her you aren’t sure what it’s going to take.”
Cypher nodded in agreement. “That should buy us time. But now that I’ve realized that I do not know what the sacrifice will entail, I need to figure it out. I don’t want any surprises.”
“When do you meet with her?” Lilly asked as she stood from his lap. He let her go reluctantly and watched as she stretched her arms above her head, stretching out her back.
Cypher glanced out the window and noted the lightning in the night sky. “In a few hours.”
Lilly grabbed his hand and pulled him from the couch. He stood and looked down at her curiously.
“Good, then we have a few hours to get some rest.” She began pulling him in the direction of the staircase.
“You’re going to lay with me?” he asked her slowly.
Lilly choked down her laughter. “You make it sound so biblical. We’re going to sleep in the same bed. I’m tired, but I would like to hear some more about you and your people, so I’m going to let you talk to me until I fall asleep,” she informed him with a grin.
“You’re going to 'let me'?”
Cypher chuckled as he let her pull him up the stairs and down the hall.
Lilly kicked her shoes off and climbed into the large bed. She tried to get her breathing under control as Cypher’s large body lay down next to hers. It had been a very long time since she had been in bed with a man – to sleep or otherwise.
“Are you alright, Lilly?” Cypher asked as he rolled onto his side. He propped himself up on an elbow and looked down at her.
“Mm-hmm,” she murmured nervously.
“Lilly.” Cypher scooted closer and wrapped a large arm around her waist and pulled her next to him.
“It’s just been a long time since a man has held me,” she whispered into the dark room.
“I am not a man,” he told her, and she felt the whisper of his lips against her neck as he leaned down and nuzzled her.
“You know what I mean.”
“If it makes you feel better I have never lain with a woman in my arms.”
Lilly looked over her shoulder at him, her eyes wide in shock. “Never?”
“No. I’ve been waiting for my mate.”
“But surely you’ve been with a woman.” Lilly’s words stumbled out.
Cypher chuckled. “Yes, although that is not really a conversation I want to have while I hold you in my arms.”
Lilly smiled. “Agreed.” She let out a breath. “Now, tell me of your people. Keep my mind from worrying about my daughter and worrying about you helping that stupid witch take our world to hell in a hand basket.”
Cypher smirked at her choice of words and proceeded to do as she asked. He had only made it as far as his adolescent years before Lilly was breathing slowly and deeply, eyes closed, and a calm expression on her face. Sleep had taken her.
~
Mona stood stiffly, staring at the tall, stoic warlock King. She was trying to keep her cool, but knowing that her plan was being delayed yet again was not sitting well.
“So you're telling me that you don’t know exactly what you are going to need to do to open the Veil?” she hissed
Cypher’s eyes narrowed.
“I am not backing out of my end of the deal, Desdemona. You know how magic works. There is always a price. I knew the price before I had a mate – now Lilly is my mate. This changes everything.”
“Ah, your mate? How sweet. I’ll be sure and get you an appropriate wedding gift – maybe a nice wolf rug for your living room.”
Cypher ignored the remark.
“If you want this done right you are going to have to trust me,” he told her firmly.
Mona let out a harsh laugh.
“Great King, you should know better than most that there is no one you can trust in this world. Even your precious Lilly has secrets. But since you are my only option I suppose I have no choice. Hear this now, however.” The room grew chilly. “If you are not true to your word I will kill her. I will gut her like a fish before your very eyes.”
Cypher let out a roar and a sword appeared in his hand. He was in front of her in an instant, the sword poised at her throat.
“Hear
me,
witch. Threaten the woman I love again and I will carve you into pieces and send them in packages as gifts to the wolves. They will feed on your flesh and dance in victory over your downfall. Do not ever threaten what is mine.”
Mona pushed the blade away with her finger, slicing it open in the process. The sword seemed to absorb her blood – then it began to glow. She stared in horror at the blade.
Cypher smiled wickedly.
“The blade has your scent now, witch. There is no place in this realm or any other in which you can hide. Remember that.” He lowered the sword. “I will see you in a few days. It would not be wise to know how to open the Veil, but not how to close it, lest more demons than you can handle get loose.”
In great discomfort, Mona watched the warlock King close the door behind him.
She had been overconfident and it had cost her dearly. She had shed blood for another. Not just another but for one of great power. She needed to watch the King closely – needed to think of a special spell for Lilly, one that would keep him in line when the time came. She hadn’t been lying when she told him to trust no one. Mona had learned many times over that there was only one being in this world whom she could trust: herself.
Otherwise, things were moving along quite splendidly. Maybe not as quickly as she would've liked, but then Rome didn’t come crashing to the ground in a day, did it? The healers no longer had the protections of the males, though they were still with the Fae, and were heading toward the Veil to cross into the Fae realm. She wasn’t worried about them making it through – she had a surprise for them.
Mona smiled to herself. Yes, everything was going according to plan, and soon, very soon, she would be the most powerful of the supernaturals. None would stand against her and all would fall.
“It’s dark and cold. I can hear him. He’s calling out to me, he’s telling me over and over how sorry he is. Why is he sorry? What has he done?
I’m here
, I tell him.
I’m here.
He’s weeping and the anguish I feel through our bond is crushing me. I can’t breathe; I can’t move. Why can’t I move? Fane, I’m here. Please, Fane, I hear you. He thinks I’m dead. Why does he think I’m dead?” ~ Jacque
The trees towered over them as they trekked through the Carpathian Mountains. Perizada kept an unforgiving pace. Night turned into day and yet the skies did not lighten. Clouds rolled in ominously above them and thunder crashed. The wind cut across their skin like a knife.
“This tastes of black magic,” Rachel ground out through her teeth.
“Mona has been busy in the mountains,” Peri agreed.
A sense of dread settled over them and as the day dragged on, Sally found herself growing more and more depressed. The despair seemed to be reaching into her soul and she couldn’t fight it off.
“I feel it too.” Jen reached out and took Sally’s hand.
“It’s Costin,” Sally whispered. “Something is very wrong.”
Jen reached out for Decebel through their bond. She could feel him, feel his loss, his fear – his suffering. She longed to tell him she was alright, that their baby was alright, but the more she pushed on their bond the harder it was to reach him.
Crina stumbled as she walked and Elle too seemed to struggle under the weight of their shared desolation.
Peri finally came to a stop, hours later, before two huge trees that stood several feet apart. Their branches hung over the space between them, creating a canopy.
“We’re here.”
Just as she stepped forward and raised her arms to open the veil, Jacque sat up. Her eyes were open, but they were empty. Sally and Jen stepped toward her but Peri held up a hand to stop them.
“Perizada of the Fae.” Jacque’s voice came out in a raspy whisper, low and distorted, causing them to take a step back in surprise. “Alina Lupei, mate to Vasile, Alpha of the Romanian Pack. Jennifer Anghelesco, mate to Decebel, Alpha of the Serbian pack. Healer Sally Morgan, mate to
Costin, Beta of the Serbian pack. Crina, mate to Adam of the Fae, member of the Romanian pack. Rachel, mate to Gavril, Beta of the Romanian pack. Elle of the Fae, mate to Sorin, Third in the Romanian pack. Cynthia Steele of the Romanian pack.” There was a frightening pause – a demon-like croak forced itself out of Jacque's mouth.
“I have named you all – I have named you and so I bind you.”
“Cover your ears! NOW!” Peri yelled as she threw up her hands and began to chant:
“Trees of the forest, air on the wind,
Your help now I ask you to lend.
Grant your power into my care,
Cover these children, their burden you bare.”
Meanwhile, the group did as Peri told them, slapping their hands over their ears though they weren’t sure why.
The evil voice coming out of Jacque’s body continued speaking.
“I bind you to this realm, you cannot pass through.
I bind you to this realm, caught if I named you.
Cross through the Veil, if you dare,
Cross through the Veil, see how you fare.
I bind you now with magic black as night,
I bind you now, forever in my sight.”
The air around them grew cold and the wind continued to pick up speed. Jacque’s hair whipped around her face, her eye glowed an eerie shade of green as she looked upon the group.
“GET OUT!”
An ear-piercing scream escaped her lungs just before she collapsed.
The silence was deafening for a moment. Peri lowered her arms and looked at the women.
“Everyone okay?”
Sally and Jen rushed over to Jacque’s limp form and checked to see that she was still breathing.
“Obviously this was the work of that bitch – I mean, witch.
Desdemona
,” Jen growled. “But that last scream, that sounded like Jacque.”
Peri nodded. “She was fighting it. She pushed Mona out.”
Sally wiped a tear away. “That’s our girl,” she sniffed, “a fighter.”
Rachel approached the two trees that Peri had indicated as where the Veil was supposed to be. She reached out her hand, but the Fae stopped her.
“No, healer,” she told her somberly. “If we cross, we die. She had indeed bound us to this realm. I can feel it.”
“What does that mean?” Sally asked, trying to keep the tremble from her voice.
Peri stepped back from the Veil and observed their group. The fear and weariness was written in their tear-streaked faces, the fall of their shoulders, and the broken look in their eyes.
But she had no good news for them.
“It means that for the moment, we are stuck.”
The group grew still at her words. After a minute of listening to the wind and the defeated silence of the women, Jen stood up. She narrowed her eyes and let out a low grumble.
“I guess it’s a good thing that well and truly screwed is a place I’m familiar with.”
The group snorted out exhausted laughter; Jen took it.
“Pull your shoulders back and put your heads up. She may have won this battle, but the war is just beginning. And just so you know, this is the only battle she will win. I’m tired, my mate is in hell, I’m pregnant, and some disembodied entities have decided they want my baby.” Jen shook her head menacingly. “Oh, they've all messed with the wrong bitch.”
Her eyes glowed brightly as she looked at Alina. “You ready, Alpha?”
Alina nodded, determination steeling her eyes.
Now Jen looked at Sally. “What about you, healer?”
Sally stood, brushed off her pants, and pulled her chin up high. “I’m ready. I want my mate back.”
Each of the others stepped forward.
“I’m ready,” Rachel spoke in her quiet, strong way.
“I’m ready,” Elle added.
“I’m ready,” said Crina.
And, last but not least, Cynthia announced, “I’m ready, too.”
Jen smiled at them, a wicked gleam in her blue eyes.
“Do you hear that, Desdemona, last of the witches? I have so named you! Hear me now,” Jen yelled into the dark forest, the wind and thunder still rolling around her. “Your time is drawing near! We are coming. Throw back your head in your tiny victory, laugh at our short-lived defeat, but we
are coming. The night will be filled with our howls, the ground will shake with the stomping of our feet! We are coming. We are coming for you, Desdemona, and death follows!”
Jen lifted her head and let out a howl worthy of an Alpha female. The others joined. And as their howls died down, for a brief moment before the silence took over, they heard howls beyond the earthly realm, howls filled with grief and triumph, pain and fear, anger and love – howls from those caught in the jaws of the In Between. They had heard their females' cries and they had answered.
~
“The Veil has been bound from the other side,” Cyn informed the Fae High Council.
The council members sat in their great hall, staring at the female guard before them. The air around them began to shimmer and in a single breath, standing beside Cyn, was the Great Luna.
The six council members instantly stood and each took a knee before the goddess. Cyn, whose eyes had widened and mouth had dropped open, sunk quickly to the ground.
“Great Luna, you grace us with your -” Alston began.
“Swallow the lies you are about to spew, old one,” the Great Luna growled.
Alston’s mouth snapped shut.
“I am here to ask why my children and the other supernaturals in the human realm are suffering alone, why they are preparing for a battle for earth
alone,
while you sit at your table, lazy and fat with power.”
She began to circle the Fae, who were still kneeling on the ground before her.
“I am here because I have united your race with my children and yet here you sit while one of your own lays imprisoned in the In Between.”
A sharp, collective intake of breath rippled across the room.
The Great Luna raised her brow. “You did not know that your brother Adam had been taken?” She paused, and the feeling in the room was that of children being lectured. “Could it be because you have wiped your hands of the problems of others? You, who are more powerful than you deserve.”
“Luna, we -” Nissa bega.
“Silence.” The Great Luna did not have to raise her voice – the power behind it did all the work. “You will hear me and you will do as I say. A war is coming. There are laws I must follow and there is only so much in which I can interfere, but a war is coming that I cannot prevent and the world needs you. You can no longer take comfort in the safety of your realm. Desdemona’s power has grown and she has bound Perizada from crossing the Veil.
“It is time, Alston, High Council of the Fae. It is time to stand against a threat that will destroy the world if it is not stopped. I charge you with its safety. Join your people, the supernaturals, and lead them. There are beings who straddle the line of good and evil – do not let Desdemona sway them. Do not let laziness and an inflated sense of entitlement be your legacy. Stand up and be worthy of the responsibility you have been given.”
Alston and the other Council members looked up the moment the Great Luna finished speaking, but she was gone. In her place was a white stone.
Cyn picked it up delicately. “Moon stone,” she announced.
Lorelle’s mouth dropped open. “She wants us to call the packs.”
“Which packs?”
Alston’s eyes narrowed as they fell upon the large white stone in Cyn’s hands, “All of them.”