Authors: Quinn Loftis
Anna couldn’t believe how easy it had been for her to recognize the magic that Sally had described inside of her. She simply closed her eyes and did an inventory of her mind and there it was, a soft, humming, glow, waiting for a task, and so she gave it one. Replaying Sally’s words in her mind she pictured the light flowing into the stones. Peri had compared it to pouring liquid into a glass, but to Anna it seemed more like a roaring river, surging forward, crashing against the sides of its constraints and then flooding through the mouth into the open water. Her light seemed to cover the stones like overflowing water and then seep into them. It was magical, and she watched it in childlike wonder.
All those years her mother had told her that magic lived inside of her and Anna had blown her off. She had thought her mom was crazy or smoking weed when she wasn’t home. Now, standing there, named a gypsy healer, welcomed into the fold, and finally feeling like her
something more
was being fulfilled before her very eyes, she ached for her mother and for the relationship they never had because of her stubbornness. She hoped that her mom had kept the evil out as she always implored to Anna. She hoped she was safe and happy. Maybe one day, if they lived to see tomorrow, she could find her mom and tell her that she found her light and the darkness would never take her.
∞
Peri was silent, her breathing slow and measured. Her eyes were focused, but never still as they moved over the land, mentally marking obstacles to avoid. She looked at the wolves lined in what Lucian had called an arc, but she saw it as a half-moon and found it oddly appropriate. Volcan needed the full moon above them to make the power he was using stronger, but silently, unbeknownst to him a moon of another sort with deadly power was moving towards him.
“
Everyone is in position, beloved,”
Lucian’s warm rich voice rumbled in her mind.
“I’d say let’s light this bitch up, but since we are going in as silent as possible that really wouldn’t be appropriate.”
He chuckled.
“Perhaps you should say, when you can’t hear the wolves, that’s when the wolves are coming.”
“Profound, and so
mewhat badass, I’ll go with it,”
she teased.
“How generous of you,”
he growled back.
“What can I say
, wolf? It’s like a non-profit biz up in here. I just give and give and expect nothing,”
“Peri,”
he interrupted.
“What?”
“Give the order.”
Peri rolled her eyes at his bossiness. She made a motion with her hand and when she lowered it the entire arc moved forward as one. The wolves, even in their human forms were impressively quiet and fluid, their movements not even rustling a plant. Peri, Elle, and Adam
were fae—they were on a whole different level when it came to stealth mode. It was almost as if they became one with nature around them. They moved lithely, their feet not even leaving indentions in the earth beneath them. Peri could anticipate a dip in the ground, or a low tree branch that wasn’t visible until right up on it. As for their senses, well they had a trick or two up their sleeves. Few species knew that when the fae went into battle mode, their senses jumped into overdrive. Everything was heightened. It was a credit to the wolves that she could not even hear them breathing.
They continued forward and when they hit the second tree line Peri saw Costin slide into position as if it was choreographed. Peri felt her heart speed up as they continued forward, step, pause, step
, pause, it was a mantra in her mind. It felt as if they had been walking for miles when the first scream lit up the night. Peri threw her hand in the air stopping the males that would have reacted to the female’s cry. They may not know her, but she was theirs because somewhere in the world, there was a wolf waiting for her.
All heads swung in her direction and she was hit full force by their collective power. Their glowing eyes revealed just how close their wolves were to taking this mission over.
“Control your wolves, Lucian,”
Peri growled.
“If we go charging in there they might slit her throat the second they see us. We stick to the plan.”
She could feel that he knew she was right, but the protector in him didn’t like it. She felt Lucian’s power roll across her skin and saw all of the wolves, save Dillon, take one step back in unison. The frozen snarls on their faces said they didn’t like it, but he was more dominant than all of them and so they had no choice but to obey. She wondered why Dillon was able to resist the
order; she knew Lucian was dominate to Dillon regardless of his Alpha status. She decided maybe Lucian had been able to leave Dillon out of the command out of respect. Wise wolf her mate.
Once everyone seemed to be in control
, Peri motioned again and as one they continued forward. The screams continued, on and off as they progressed, and they grew louder as they drew closer to the clearing. She knew that Lucian was exerting a lot of energy keeping the wolves in check, but she knew he had to. Something in her told her that if they acted too soon they would lose at least one of the healers that were captured.
Peri covered her mouth as she gasped when the clearing finally came into view. Lucian immediately reacted and surrounded her with his comfort through their bond. But no amount of comfort was going to calm her down. She was glad in that moment that she had chosen to be on the far left side because she was the
only one who could see the altars. The trees were sparser in front of her, and heavier through the center where the others were headed. If any of the wolves saw what she was seeing, not even Lucian would be able to stop them.
Peri didn’t know there were tears on her face until the wind picked up and she felt the moisture cool on her skin. The tall trees began to sway as it built in force. She looked up
and suddenly the night grew a bit darker. Ominous clouds were building all around them. They billowed throughout the sky until the full moon was completely blotted out. They were plunged into complete darkness. She nearly smiled as she thought,
my girls got game
. She knew this change of atmosphere was no fluke. Sally and her two protégé were totally getting their magic on.
“Peri, we need to move, now.
” Lucian growled.
“Do you enjoy running head long into trees?”
He snarled.
“Of course not.”
“Then I suggest we walk quickly, not suddenly turn into a crazed pack of hyenas.”
“I can’t hold them all much longer,”
he said wearily, and she heard something else in his tone.
“Dalton is more dominant than he lets on. He isn’t superior to me, but something has him near feral. I can’t stop him much longer.”
“Fine, turn them loose. Let’s see what
Lorelle and her master can do.”
Thunder conveniently roared just as the wolves, still human, surged forward. It covered the sounds of their low growls, and pounding feet. Peri ran
, reaching for all of her senses to help guide her. The darkness abated when she finally reached the edge of the clearing. Lorelle had conjured fae light to hover above her prisoners, making them look like some sick horror show.
Peri started to step from the shadows but froze when
she saw Lorelle suddenly stiffen over the body of one of the healers. She jerked and her limbs curled in unnatural positions until finally a thick, black liquid seemed to leak from the bottom of her feet. It flowed faster and faster, rising on top of itself. Lorelle’s body slumped across the bloody mess of the healer, but Peri’s eyes were jerked back to the liquid that was now solidifying. Slowly a skeleton formed, nerves and ligaments came next, then muscle and tendons wrapped around the bones covering them completely. For a split second, it looked as though a pile of meat in the form of a person stood there. But then skin rippled over the form, starting at the head and flowing downward until every raw bit was covered. Hair sprouted from the head, a startling white that fell against the pale skin. The face began to take on an appearance as the nose slipped into a long narrow shape; the eyes were a little farther apart than seemed normal and almond in shape. The mouth was lined with thin lips that held a grayish hue. The final adornment was a simple cloak. It wrapped around the form and Peri’s mind finally registered what she was looking at―Volcan. All of this happened in less than a minute, but her mind was not processing it that fast.
Peri blinked when she heard a deep, scratchy chuckle and barely had time to block the red ball that he whipped around and threw straight at her.
“Perizada,” Volcan bellowed. “How long has it been?” He stared where she stood in the shadows. She could tell he was trying to assess the situation. Was she alone? If not, how many were with her? Is my power enough? When the wicked sneer stretched across his face, she knew he had decided he was more than capable of dealing with whatever she brought.
Fool
, she thought and lunged to the right when another red ball flew at her.
“Come out, come out, wherever you are,” he sung
, sounding every bit as crazy as she remembered him to be.
“It’s go time
, wolf,”
She told her mate just before she flew out of the cover of the trees straight at Volcan. She hit his body with such a force that she surprised even herself. Her goal had been to take him completely unaware, and the pitiful thing about magic users is that they never expect to be attacked any other way.
“Hey Volcan,” Peri chirped just before her fist connected with his face. “I’d say it’s good to see you, but you’re even uglier than I remember.” She hit him again and again in quick succession while he was still trying to figure out what the crap he should do. It didn’t last much longer. He put his hands to her chest and she felt a jolt slam into h
er and she soared away from him. She flew backwards through the air until she was abruptly stopped by a large pine tree. Before she could stand she felt bolt after bolt of his power crashing into her, pinning her in place. She wondered what the hell the wolves were doing, why they weren’t ripping into him, and when she was able to get her eyes open she realized they were all standing around the edge of the clearing, some human, some wolf, but all pissed. The males in their wolf forms were ramming their heads into an invisible barrier that, by the way they bounced off of it, was as impenetrable as steel.
There was a short reprieve in Volcan’s attack
that gave Peri the opportunity to glance at her sister, who was no longer slumped like a rag doll over the healer. She held her hands up muttering under her breath as she built the shield’s resistance. When she appeared to grow weak, her sister did something that made Peri scream at the top of her lungs. Lorelle, with a look of fierce determination on her face, turned and bit into the healer’s leg like a rabid dog. The snarls of the wolves drowned out the girls’ screams. Peri put her hand on the tree and pushed herself up. She was on her feet when she looked to see why Volcan wasn’t blasting her ass and lost her cool, if she ever had it, when she saw him hovering over the next healer. He hadn’t cut her yet, and Peri would be damned if she would let him.
“Not on my watch,” she growled as she gathered her power ran towards the barrier and slammed her fist into it. A crack, able to be seen, formed and began crawling across it like a piece of glass that had been hit by a rock. She pressed her hands to the place in front of her and was able to melt away a space large enough for her to get through. She ran hard and fast towards Volcan and purposefully yelled about ten feet away. She anticipated his attack and was able to dodge it
, giving her an opening. As she flew past him she landed another punch into the barrier and it weakened even more. When she turned to face Volcan again she was introduced to his fist as he slammed it into her jaw. She felt Lucian’s rage and saw, out of the corner of her eye, the barrier crumple.
Peri grinned as blood dripped from her mouth. She looked at Volcan who was using his magic to fling wolves away from him. “Uh-oh, you’re in trouble now.”
“
The Canis lupis have a saying for those who would dare lay a hand on their mates or their children:
Better had the offender never been born than face the wrath of the male he had crossed.”
~Sorin
When Lucian saw Volcan’s fist
connect with Peri’s jaw, a floodgate that he hadn’t even known existed burst open. Power—raw and savage—erupted out of him and then the barrier was gone and he was running. The only thing he could see was a dead man, because that is what Volcan was, only now that he had hurt Lucian’s mate, he would be a mutilated dead man. His wolf was hungry, and he wasn’t picky about what kind of meat he ate. The flesh of his enemy would satisfy him even more than the hunt of a worthy opponent.
He lunged for the sorcerer and barely missed his throat when he was flung back. Lucian jumped back to his feet and began circling his prey. Volcan was focused now on a new threat as more of the wolves attacked him, but it was apparent that the blood of the little healer he had devoured had made him very powerful. That power was only made more evident when he threw up his hands and yelled something in a language Lucian didn’t understand, and the mother of all bird attacks came raining down on them.
“Not this again,” Peri said as she came up beside him, holding her hands above them using her power to deflect the nasty birds. “They’re more annoying than dangerous,” she yelled as the noise around them rose with flapping and cawing.
Lucian watched as one of the birds dove at Lee,
its talons raking a huge gash in the wolf’s arm. Immediately the wound turned black and the skin around it bubbled as if acid were burning it. “I think they are more than annoying this time, beloved,” Lucian told her as they watched Lee hit the ground hard, his knee’s buckling beneath him. Lucian started towards him and felt Peri at his side still protecting him.
Adam’s scent whirled past him and he heard Peri yell. “SHEILDS
, ADAM! THE BIRDS ARE POISONOUS!”
Lucian didn’t turn to see
if the fae obeyed, he was too busy trying to figure out how he was going to tell Dillon that one of his wolves was gone.
∞
Dalton’s eyes bounced back and forth from the ruined mess that was once a healer, to the woman who had been the cause of her suffering. He didn’t understand the overwhelming urge to protect the healer; he didn’t even know if she was alive. He only knew that the minute his eyes landed on her, his wolf went feral. Had Lucian not already pulled him back, Dalton would have lost all control of him. As it was, he was hanging on by a miniscule amount of control. The other two healers where slowly sitting up, as whatever spell had been cast to hold them dissipated.
Dalton stalked his prey, deciding that he needed to neutralize the threat before he checked on the female. The one called
Lorelle didn’t even know she was being hunted, she was distracted by Crina and Elle who were holding their own pretty well against the hag. She was also battling the birds that her master had conjured—he must not want her if he hadn’t protected her from his spell. He and the others were no longer bothered by the birds because of Adam’s magic. So he was free to focus on his target.
He waited, watched as Elle threw knives and bolts of magic at her enemy. Crina, in her wolf form dodged forward just as Elle would strike against the fae, taking advantage of the distraction. She sunk her teeth into
Lorelle’s leg and then jumped away quickly, narrowly missing the spell fired at her. Finally his patience paid off.
Elle was hit. H
er body took the blow in the left shoulder flinging the small fae around to fall on her stomach. Lorelle turned then to face Crina. The she-wolf lowered her body, getting ready to pounce, while Lorelle being the vain witch that she was, taunted the wolf instead of attacking. Dalton made brief eye contact with Crina, but it was enough for her to understand his intent. Faster than most wolves, Dalton lunged, phased and landed on the back of his adversary. His huge muzzle wrapped around her neck and his teeth sunk deep into her flesh. He heard the satisfying pop of the spinal cord. She hadn’t even had time to scream. Blood coated his tongue, the taste and smell only serving to provoke his wolf further. He shook her still body violently, slinging blood all over his fur. She, who had hurt his little healer, was dead. He had destroyed her. With the wolf fully in control now, Dalton was unable to think of why it might not be a good idea to drag his kill’s body across the ground to next to the altar where she still lay in her own blood. It was a gift; it was nourishment that would make her strong again. Still holding onto the neck of the woman, he looked at the face of the girl he had killed for. Her eyes fluttered but did not open. He whined, imploring her to see him, to see what he had done for her. But she didn’t move. The wolf’s rage roared on and he sunk his teeth even deeper and shook his head hard, over and over, until Lorelle’s head ripped from her shoulders. The rest of her body hit the ground with a thud as her head rolled a few feet away. Now he didn’t know what to do. His wolf still wanted blood and death for the horrific things done to
her.
Dalton didn’t understand it. He was every bit as angry as his wolf, but the man was able to reason and therefore stop himself from killing anyone who came too close to the altar where she lay.
He turned his massive head back to look at her, but her face was distorted with blood. He didn’t know her, though he would protect her regardless of his feeling towards her because she was a healer. But as he gazed at her, he couldn’t deny what his
wolf was feeling.
Ours
, rumbled the wolf and Dalton agreed.
∞
Sally, Anna, and Stella were running full speed ahead through the thick forest. Sally held the red fae stone out in front of her and it blazed brightly lighting their path. They could hear the snarls, the shouts, and the birds and it only made them run faster.
Sally held back the scream of her mate
’s name as they burst onto the scene. It was not what she had been expecting. The first thing she saw was Costin and Crina in their wolf forms battling a man who she assumed was the infamous Volcan. Adam was throwing spell after spell at him and Dillon was attacking with hand to hand combat any time the fae was distracted. Behind the battle she saw two girls, one of which was Heather. Sally let out a small sigh of relief; they both looked to be in one piece. She watched as Anna and Sally moved past the two altars they had occupied, trying to get to the third but were brought up short by a massive grey wolf standing over the body on the altar. Every time the two healers took a step towards him, he growled and snapped his teeth. His muzzle was pulled back revealing wicked sharp canines and his eyes glowed a blue that made Sally think of artic glaciers.
She hoped that the two girls would take the hint and not move any closer to the wolf before she could get to them.
“We’re going to go to the left here,” she motioned to Anna and Stella. “I need to get a look at the injured.”
They hurried to a tree where
Elle was propped up. Sorin lay beside her in his wolf form, with his head on her lap as slow steady growls rose from his throat.
“Elle, are you okay?” Sally asked as she knelt down next to the fae and put her hand on her chest. Sally closed her eyes and pushed her essence inside of Elle
, searching for any damage. There was nothing physically wrong, but she had been zapped of her power. Sally pulled back into her body and opened her eyes. “Sorin will be able to help you once he’s no longer furry.” Elle nodded and then motioned past Sally. “Check on Lee,” she wheezed. “He’s been down along time.”
Sally nodded and then walked quickly in a crouch, attempting to stay as small a target as possible while Volcan continued to fight. Lucian was kneeling beside the still wolf. Sally looked closer and saw that his chest didn’t rise and fall. She put her hand on him but
Lucian shook his head and patted her hand softly. “He is gone; there is nothing you can do for him.” Sally felt the tears welling up in her eyes but quickly brushed them away when Lucian said, “Please check on Peri.” She turned to see where he stared and Sally saw Peri’s back as she leaned over yet another body lying much too still on the ground.
“There is nothing you can do,” Peri said the minute she knelt down.
“Why do people keep saying that!” Sally bit out in frustration. This time she let the tears fall. She didn’t know Lee or Phillip, but she was a healer, and when she couldn’t save wolves, whether hers or not, it hurt.
Peri stood up abruptly and suddenly her body was glowing as Sally had seen it do on several other occasions. Most of them were when she had moved past angry to downright homicidal, which was definitely the case now.
“ENOUGH!” She bellowed and her voice filled the air, overwhelming the snarls and shouts of the battle.
Peri stared past the wolves attacking Volcan and into his soulless eyes. He was too powerful for her, she knew it and so did he.
Bastard
, she spat inwardly. If she let this continue more would die before the night would fade and the light of day would reveal what was left of their battle scarred group. She had to make a decision. It wasn’t what she wanted. It wasn’t acceptable, but then neither were any more pointless deaths.
“Why couldn’t you just stay dead?” Peri asked. She saw Lucian slowly stand and then heard him in her mind.
“As soon as he finishes his sentence we converge on him. If we get him, we will dismember him and then burn his body. If we don’t, we will bury our dead, morn our loss and regroup to fight another day.”
Peri trusted Lucian to somehow convey the hastily made plan to the others around Volcan while she focused her power.
“I think your sister asked the same thing about you. You and I must have something in common if death cannot hold us. Perhaps you should consider that maybe you’re working for the wrong side. We could be great together, powerful beyond anyone’s imagination. And if you need me to console you after you leave your mutt, I can fill the role as your lover. It—,”
He didn’t get to finish his sentence before Lucian phased in the air as he dove towards his prey. Peri reacted a second later
, throwing out her hands, concentrating all of her power on Volcan. Then a victorious howl rang out from the direction she had last seen Dalton., It was so loud that Peri was forced to slam her hands over her ears. Suddenly, the pulsing, violent energy was gone and so was Volcan.
Lorelle
. Her sister’s name sprang to mind and she turned quickly.
Her eyes landed on the beheaded body of her sister and what little love there had been left for her caused a sharp pain in her chest. It didn’t last long because
Lorelle did not deserve her sorrow. She had seen Dalton attack her and had been about to help, but then she had caught the look in the huge wolf’s eyes and knew that he was feral.
“Dalton!” Dillon’s deep bark pulled Peri’s attention to the final threat among them. The impressive wolf stood on the altar straddling Jewel’s body. His head was lowered, ears flat and nothing short of ripping the face off of anyone who got close was in his eyes.
Lucian, still in his wolf form stood in front of her and pushed her, forcing her back away from the situation. She saw Sally heading slowly towards the enraged wolf talking in that sweet voice of hers. Peri could see the need in the healer to check on Jewel, to see if she could help her, save her. Costin moved forward in a dash and put his head in Sally’s stomach and pushed her back so fast that she stumbled, but the other healers were there to keep her from falling. Costin turned then and faced Dalton with his own teeth bared promising a fight if he snapped at his mate one more time.
“This could get ugly really, really fast,” Peri muttered as she watched Dillon take slow steps towards his wolf.
Peri knew there were several things in play at the moment, things that were making the normally controlled wolf a berserker. Her first guess would be that Jewel was his mate. She wasn’t of age so he probably doesn’t understand why he’s so protective of her, but his wolf completely understood, hence the standing over her bloody body and not letting anyone touch her. The second thing that was making the wolf lose control was probably the death of two of his pack mates, both of which had been above him in rank. This meant that he was now Dillon’s Beta. The need to prove his dominance would be strong, as would the pain of losing part of his pack.
“Dalton, if you don’t let them near her, she will die.” The deep inflection in Dillon’s voice told Peri he was talking wolf to wolf, Alpha to Beta. “Get control
now or I will get it for you.”
Dalton’s glowing stare held
Dillon’s until a rush of power from the Alpha had the feral wolf dropping it along with his head.
“Get down!” Dillon ordered and under the Alpha’s power Dalton could not disobey. He jumped from the altar, circled it once and then sat down next to Jewel’s face. He was so large that even sitting his head was still
above the top of the altar.
Dillon motioned for Sally to go to the girl but Costin would not move.
Peri huffed. “Bloody hell, do you damn fur balls want to hang out in this death trap all night?”
“Costin,” Lucian’s voice was soft, but powerful. Costin stepped a
side and let Sally past but stayed right next to her.