No Witch Way Out (Maeren Series Book 2)

by Mercedes Jade

  Daemon locked the worry out of the thoughts he revealed to them.

  He had Dragomir to deal with first.

  “Elizabeth, may I call my familiar back onto you? I would feel better if he wasn’t loose to cause havoc when I’m trying to concentrate on keeping this connection over such a distance.”

  He had been able to call and direct Dragomir in Maeren without too much difficulty.

  Dimensional magic was an entirely different book with a lot of fine print.

  “I agree, kerashemeria. I don’t know what made Dragomir come out. You were simply in a trance and I held you, nothing more, then suddenly you woke and Daemon’s familiar was wrapped around us. There’s really not enough room for it in our circle.”

  George was actually keeping fairly calm for being within striking distance of Dragomir. George didn’t trust Daemon, so it had to be because he believed Dragomir would only protect Elizabeth.

  “Should George let go of me before I do any calling?” Elizabeth asked.

  “No, Dragomir is tired. It’ll be easy. Did you use his magic for something?”

  The dragon could be devious when he wanted out to stretch his wings, and the more he fed, the more sentient his familiar became.

  Daemon often had to remind Dragomir that one of them could not exist without the other, tied by the magic and wielded by the stronger will.

  Daemon had to ensure he was always the one in control.

  “Phillip had me trapped in the circle at the castle, in your bedroom.”

  Dragomir breathed fire, inflaming the whole amplification circle of lightning with blue streaks.

  George tucked Elizabeth into his body, covering her as much as he could, moments from shielding her.

  It would cut Daemon off from them if the amplification circle went down.

  He could feel the power, feeding into his own circle, a connection that only needed a few glyphs to pull him over.

  “Stop, George. Dragomir isn’t going to harm her. He’s just upset about Phillip. Seems our brother was feeding on our witch, drawing deep. Why was she primed when she was with Phillip?”

  “Elizabeth asked me to prime her, so she could contact you.”

  George got an elbow for his lie and then a knee to try to get him off of her.

  Elizabeth growled out something about ‘waking the dragon’ and ‘I told you it needed to hurt’ but her tumble with George as they both fought to be on top muffled most of the response.

  Daemon had to hear it through her thoughts instead, and feel the reluctant pleasure his witch had experienced under the hands and tongues of both Phillip and George.

  Daemon had some catching up to do.

  “Stop playing and please call Dragomir. The magic drain in the human realm is intense,” Daemon said to get Elizabeth’s attention.

  “Dragomir!”

  Her voice was strong. She finally elbowed George off her as she slapped her hand on her chest, over her chi.

  Daemon could feel the tug in his own chest and knew his familiar would not be able to resist her call.

  With one last fiery roar, Dragomir dove into her chest, settling around her hip and left leg, much smaller than the last time he had fed.

  “Thank you,” Daemon said.

  He let his pride come through his thoughts at her show of control. She was a fast learner.

  “How is my mother?” Elizabeth asked.

  Elizabeth’s concern was evident. He quickly raced through her thoughts of what had happened since she had been accidentally hit with a dragon and stolen by George.

  She had never stopped thinking of her mother, left behind.

  “She is fine. My father owes her his life,” Daemon said.

  “You brought the king to the human realm for healing? Are you mad?” George asked.

  George sounded apoplectic. It had been foolish to ever think that George was the one behind the attempts on their father’s life.

  George may be a hard asshole to get to know but he never traded his loyalty once he gave it.

  Their father wouldn’t have trusted George to take care of the espionage for the court unless he was incorruptible.

  “William poisoned him. It would have been fatal. William is the best healer in the castle and he did it right in front of our father, thinking he was so far gone that he would never report it. We escaped to a portal I’ve used before for the human realm.”

  “A portal you’ve used before?” Elizabeth asked, her voice turning sharp in his mind.

  Daemon hadn’t wanted to tell her like this, a world apart, and with her in another male’s arms.

  Kaila had told him to grovel and his mother warned that his secret crush was going to cost him.

  “I visit my mother whenever I can,” Daemon confessed, nonetheless.

  It was George that exploded first, still thinking through the first problem. He wouldn’t worry about Daemon stalking Elizabeth all these years, probably hadn’t even realized yet that it was a strong possibility.

  “You are in the human realm. The king is in the human realm. The Blue Queen, apparently, is in the human realm. Who the hell is taking care of Maeren?” George yelled.

  Elizabeth’s snarky thought that hell could take care of itself was ignored by the two vampires.

  “Phillip is in charge, I hope. If it’s William, then we’ll have to disabuse him of the notion that his attempted regicide was successful,” Daemon replied.

  “How long have you been visiting your mother?” Elizabeth asked.

  His clever witch.

  George’s thoughts were working through all the implications of that revelation and how this changed his perspective on the various suspects for attempted regicide and who really wanted the crown.

  Daemon wasn’t surprised that George suspected him, too, although the expected judgement was only due to how it could have affected Elizabeth if she found out Daemon was a traitor.

  George had been prepared for the possibility and angry on her behalf.

  Daemon wasn’t sure how to feel about George’s protectiveness over his witch.

  “I first came to see my mother when I was eight. Around the time you discovered the really big rat in your barn,” Daemon revealed.

  Elizabeth laughed.

  It wasn’t the reaction he had been dreading.

  “Just remember who tasted you first, kerashemeria,” George said.

  George’s jealousy wrapped his words in the challenge he was sending Daemon.

  They would see who came first.

  Daemon felt his connection to their minds waver.

  He opened his eyes and signalled to his mother to add the last glyphs to his amplification circle to modify it for transport.

  “George, I need you to change the amplification circle to pull me to your location,” Daemon explained.

  “I don’t know how. I have the one modified for fire,” George said, although it wasn’t a refusal.

  “It would be easiest if you let me help you,” Daemon said, knowing he was short of time.

  “George doesn’t like anything to do with mind control,” Elizabeth quickly told him.

  Daemon sighed. Elizabeth wasn’t going to forgive or forget what he had done to Jill and Victoria to fight off the vampires attacking them, despite the extenuating circumstances.

  He really didn’t have time to properly explain his limited options, the feelings that drove him.

  She already knew the struggle to use or hold their secret powers, but that didn’t mean she would understand.

  “Now, please, George,” Daemon prompted.

  George tickled the dragon’s inked tail on Elizabeth’s leg with his fingers. Daemon shrugged it off.

  When he got over there, he was going to punch his asshole brother right in the nose.

  “If I’m not here to play with our little witch, what’s going to happen to your mental connection?” George slyly asked.

  “I’ll keep her primed,” Daemon said.

  Daemon thought of
what Phillip had enjoyed. Elizabeth had too, from his glimpse of her memory of feeding his brother.

  Daemon wrapped his arms around Elizabeth from behind using lightning, not surprised to find her half naked. George had made his intentions pretty clear about her.

  No doubt, if she hadn’t ended up in Phillip’s trap, by accident, then George would have indulged himself on the witch he had so thoroughly primed.

  “Don’t you think you should ask me what I want first?” Elizabeth said.

  Daemon nipped her ear. He was kneeling and still had to bend his head. He got a good look down her half-buttoned shirt.

  She sounded prim and strict but his beautiful, hot witch wasn’t going to fool him.

  She wanted Daemon to push her buttons, got off on his natural dominance, and if there was something he did that she truly didn’t want, she would flat out tell him.

  “Quiet, I’m trying to focus on helping George draw a circle that took me hours the first time. Don’t move a muscle or I’ll be forced to bind you until we are finished,” Daemon warned her.

  He watched as her nipples pebbled against the thin shirt she wore, her breathing getting heavier.

  She was so beautiful, his stormy witch.

  His mouth ached to suckle her pebbled nipples until she screamed his name.

  He could play with her for hours in bed, drive her body crazy with need, make her beg, and this time, he wouldn’t hesitate to take her.

  She had been so close to surrendering to him. Once he had his hands back on her luscious body, he was going to use every wicked trick of seduction he knew to get her to submit to his full, intimate possession.

  He was never going to let her go again, chaining her by whatever dark desire he had to keep her.

  “Need to stay primed,” Daemon said, taking advantage of the situation.

  It was all the warning he gave her before he softly wrapped his hand around the front of her neck, his fingers tipping her chin up and head back.

  He kissed her forehead first, feeling her pulse fluttering against his thumb, just above her collarbone.

  He kissed her eyes shut, whispering against her lashes his love for her.

  He tightened his grip on her chin then, before she could voice a protest about his declaration, and kissed her mouth.

  Deep, drugging kisses that swept away every conscious thought but the feel of his lips dragging across hers, firm and determined to get her to open and let his tongue back in to familiarize himself once more with her taste.

  She was so sweet, so soft and giving under his lips that he nearly lost his hold on George’s mind when she suddenly bit his tongue.

  “I’ve been trying to get rid of your familiar. What makes you think I want you here?” Elizabeth asked.

  Daemon groaned at her less than beguiled tone. His work was cut out for him.

  He was feeling burnout approaching, his vision blackening as he looked down at Elizabeth’s sparkling, blue eyes.

  There were flickering glimpses of the witchy turmoil of her lightning and temper, deep within. A storm for him to overcome.

  He needed to be by her side.

  George finished the last glyph just in time, or perhaps, it was it already too late for Daemon.

  There were a hundred things he wanted to tell Elizabeth. The time for words was too short and he had to let their eyes do the speaking, sending one last thought as he cradled her back against his chest to lie over his heart.

  “If you ever really loved me, Elizabeth, then pull me to you.”

  It was up to her to decide.

  What did her heart wish?

  The End.

  Witch Darkness Follows

  Ready for Witch Darkness Follows? There will be dragons . . .

  Main Cast of Characters

  Provided for your convenience. Feel free to skip and come back here if you have forgotten some of our large cast of characters. Book two new characters are not included to avoid spoilers.

  Elizabeth Norwood - A lightning-air witch hiding in the human realm with her family. Slays demons and vampires that come over from Maeren.

  Jill Norwood - A fire-earth witch hiding in the human realm with her family. Works as a nurse in the human realm.

  Kaila Norwood - An earth-air witch hiding in the human realm with her daughters. She is rumoured to be a blood witch with the power to take and give magical souls, as well as unparalleled in healing.

  Keith Norwood - Father of Jill and Elizabeth. Fire lord and minor nobility. Presumed dead.

  Kenneth Norwood - Uncle of Jill and Elizabeth. Fire-air general and minor nobility. Presumed dead.

  King Nicholas - Ruler of Maeren. Fire king capable of lightning. He has numerous concubines and wives from all of the magic clans. He is reclusive and ageing.

  Kim - Blue Queen that is now outcasted in the human realm. She lost her magic soul to her son, Prince Daemon, and exists on a small piece of magic, given from Kaila’s own soul. She owns a dojo and has taught both Elizabeth and Jill at the local elementary school.

  Prince Daemon - Firstborn fire-air prince with lightning. Born a demon, due to a fetal injury. He supports his father’s rule as the dark enforcer.

  Prince Phillip - Second born fire-air prince, but was considered the first prince as his brother’s demon heritage made him less suitable. Charmer with a harem full of witches, and has been known to share.

  Prince William - Third born earth prince that is overlooked for the throne due to his lack of fire.

  Prince George - Fourth born fire-earth prince with a mother that will do anything to get him on the throne.

  Prince Victor - Fifth born fire-water prince and twin to Victoria. Protective of his sister and any witch in need of help.

  Princess Victoria - Sixth born fire-water princess and twin to Victor. She is the blood bonded Lasier to Elizabeth.

  Elemental Magic

  Classifications

  FIRE - Hottest to coldest fire for classification. Total destructive potential also used. Highly divisive class due to competition for nobility and military placement.

  Lightning

  White Hot

  Blue

  Green

  Red

  Orange

  Black (defensive only/can withstand lightning)

  WATER - Energy to form/Distance dispersed of water determines strength of power. Some forms only possible with paired fire.

  AIR - Speed of air/destructive potential used for classification. Consideration also given to stability when flying/levitation. Speciality sub-forms include storms.

  EARTH - Mainly split into healing arts and physical strength by amount of rock that can be shifted for classification. Can possess both types of earth, but usually one prevails as stronger. Blood witches are a rare subtype that may be able to heal lost chi.

  Glossary of Terms

  Maeren - Alternate dimension that is home to magic wielding elementals such as witches, vampires, and dragon shifters.

  Elemental - a species that is born with the ability to absorb magic to bind in their blood and can wield the power.

  Magic - Power divided into four elemental types: fire, water, air, & earth—with multiple subtypes and divisions.

  Chi - Magic storage in an elemental’s body that works like the lymph system in humans. Chi pools with the blood vessels to allow magic and magic-binding proteins to interact. The chi centers around the heart.

  Chi Incineration - The power stored in the chi can be released by physical penetration, such as by staking. This will release all the magic from the individual immediately, even pulling it from the protein bound magic, and transform the body shell into pure energy for transport between realms.

  Soul - Elementals have two souls. The first is similar to the soul of humans. The second is their magical soul, which also refers to the chi.

  Drinking ‘to the quick’ - Draining the chi of an elemental completely through blood drinking—taking a feed too far. Drinking ‘to the quick’ will destroy the drai
ned elemental’s power forever, although it does not always result in death. Demons are known to drink a witch ‘to the quick’ to steal a new power.

  Witches - Female elementals. Can be dragon shifters as well. Possess one to two elemental affinities; generally weaker in power than male elementals. Produce more magic-binding protein than male elementals. Often feed male elementals their blood to provide them with the excess magic-binding protein.

  Vampires - Male elementals. Can be dragon shifters as well. Possess one to two elemental affinities; generally stronger in power than female elementals. All male elementals do not produce enough magic-binding protein on their own to access their full power, and therefore, feed upon females to make up the deficit.

  Demons - Male elementals who have stolen extra power from the act of feeding on a witch until her chi is drained completely, transferring all her magic, along with her chi. Demons either increase their primary elemental affinity or develop a new one from the stolen chi. Can have all four affinities, technically, but often have two to three. The extra chi makes them chronically low on magic-binding protein as they have such high power demands to meet.

  Magic-binding proteins - A protein that binds free magic in the blood so that it can be activated and used. Free magic cannot be wielded. The proteins are specific to an elemental affinity.