“If he ever does. What if we’ve done all this and he doesn’t show up? Are you sure your dad’s ready for him if he shows up at the compound?” Jake asked, helping carry supplies into the cabin.
“He’s ready; if I were Deacon, that’s the last place I’d show up,” Joslin said, taking the last of the bags into the cabin.
“I’ll go get the horses squared away if you want to get started unpacking. It shouldn’t take me long,” Jake said, giving Joslin a kiss.
When Joslin got inside the cabin, she looked around at the piles of supplies, then over at her saddlebag. Knowing that unpacking could wait, she went to her saddlebag and pulled out the little leather book that held all her spells. Flipping through it, she found the spell she wanted and began the process of laying down several layers of protection around not only the cabin but the clearing, then she attached a warning spell.
Satisfied she’d done what she could, she started to slip the leather book into her pocket, but changed her mind and instead opened it again and flipped through it once more. Each time she came to a spell she thought she might need, she stopped and studied it for a few minutes before moving on.
When she got to the end of the book, she was surprised to see that several pages had been added. She sat down at the table and looked at the first of the pages, her breath catching in her throat when she saw that it was a spell to summon a demon. But almost as soon as the realization hit her, the spell faded, replaced by a spell to banish the same demon.
This spell didn’t fade, so she turned the page, only to discover a different kind of summoning spell, one that would summon any member of the witch’s council instantly. She’d heard of this spell but knew that only members of the council had access to it.
At first, she thought that it was her father who had added the spells but then she saw a tiny set of initials on the bottom corner of the page. She smiled; apparently the council was very aware of what was happening, as the little MM on the bottom of that page was enough to tell her that. Feeling more confident than she had in weeks, she tucked the book into her pocket and began unpacking.
Chapter 19
***Jake***
Jake was grooming Joslin’s horse and talking to her as he worked. “Things might get a little scary around here pretty soon, Josie, but you’re safe here in the barn. You and Clancy need to just stay put, don’t go running off. Joslin and I will keep you safe,” he said, then straightened up, satisfied that he’d done everything he needed to.
He’d just stepped out of the stall when there was whooshing sound, and the barn began to vibrate. Suddenly Deacon was standing in front of him, two men behind him. His first instinct was to change, but he stopped himself, knowing that it wouldn’t help since he was trapped in the barn.
“Nice to see you again, shifter,” Deacon said, a wicked grin on his face. “Bet you didn’t think it would be this soon. Did you really think I’d be stupid enough to come after you on a horse?”
“How did you find us?” Jake asked, then started forward a step, his instinct to get his hands around Deacon’s neck.
“Stay right where you are. I have a little business with Joslin, and then you and I will talk. I could use someone like you on my team; a smart young man like you could go a long way with the right guidance. Joslin belongs to me, you might as well accept that right now; back out now and I might let you live,” Deacon said, stepping toward Jake.
“Over my dead body,” Jake said, his chest heaving with the effort not to change.
“That can certainly be arranged, but for now I think you should just take a little nap,” Deacon said, then raised his arms; words began to pour out of his mouth but none that made any sense to Jake.
In only seconds, he began to feel sleepy, and his legs began to go numb. He crumpled to the ground, fighting to keep his eyes open, but Deacon’s spell was too much, and soon the world went dark. But his last thought was of Joslin, of how much he loved her and how stupid it had been not to tell her sooner.
***Joslin***
Joslin had just put the last of the food away in the cabinet when she felt a tingling deep inside her. Instantly she recognized it as one the warnings she’d embedded in the protection spells, and she dropped the bag she’d been carrying and ran outside. She looked all around then headed for the barn behind the cabin.
“Jake, he’s here,” she yelled, searching the clearing for some sign of Deacon, not sure how he’d gotten past all her barriers so quickly or where he might be.
The sight that greeted her when she came around the corner of the cabin made her stop and suck in a frightened breath. Deacon was standing between her and the barn, a superior smile on his face, two menacing men standing behind him.
“Jake is well aware that I’ve come to pay a visit,” Deacon said, coming a few steps closer to her.
“What have you done to him?” Joslin asked, quickly trying to decide what to do.
“Well, for now, he’s in the barn taking a nap; what happens next is entirely up to you,” he said, shrugging his shoulders. “If you cooperate, he’ll live, if not, then I suppose I’ll have no choice but to eliminate him, as he’s already caused too much trouble.”
“You’ll never get away with this, Deacon; everyone knows you’ve been using black magic, even the council,” Joslin said, trying to stall for time while she quietly recited the summoning spell she’d just found, thinking about Annabelle and Justin in the barn.
Only seconds later, there was a flash of lightning quickly followed by the rumble of thunder, and Joslin knew that the spell had worked when Justin poked his head out of the barn doors. When he saw Joslin and Deacon squared off, he quickly pulled his head back in, but not before his eyes met hers.
Deacon looked up at the sky, which was a brilliant blue, then over at Joslin, his eyes full of hate and anger. “You’re lying; if the council thought I was using black magic, I wouldn’t be here. No, the council still thinks it’s your sister who’s been using black magic,” he said, coming a few steps closer.
“You won’t get away with this,” Joslin said, relieved to see movement in the woods behind them, large golden bodies slowly slipping closer to them through the trees.
“I already have,” Deacon said, a smile on his face. “The only thing still up for discussion is how you want this to go. If you agree to come along quietly, divorce Jake and marry me, I’ll let him live. If you decide to make it difficult, well then, I can’t guarantee anything. Either way, I’m going to win, so you’d better decide quickly. I’ve never killed a shifter, but it might be kind of fun. I’ll even let him wake up first.”
Joslin had heard enough; she felt her powers beginning to surge much like they had the night she’d killed the wolf-shifters. Deacon must have felt it too because for a second, he looked at her a bit surprised, but then the smile returned to his face.
“You’re a bit stronger than I thought you were; everyone always said that Annabelle was the stronger sister, but now I’m not so sure,” he said, coming a few steps closer.
Joslin put her hands up and began reciting the summoning spell, focusing on Minerva and the other council members. When she’d finished the spell, she focused on Deacon, searching for a weakness, anything that might give her the advantage until someone showed up to help her.
She could feel power building inside her, the elements of the Earth flowing through her veins, and again lightening flashed and thunder boomed. The ground shook, nearly knocking Deacon off his feet, but he stood his ground.
“Do you really think these theatrics are going to impress me?” he asked, flinging his hands into the air. The ground stopped shaking, and everything became silent. “Too bad your sister isn’t here; she could have done so much better.”
Joslin opened her mouth to reply, but there was a popping sound next to her and Annabelle appeared. “I’ll take that as a compliment, Deacon.”
Deacon staggered back a few steps. “What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be in Europe,” he sai
d, then turned to the two men behind him and said, “Look boys, twins; maybe I can have them both,” then laughed.
Annabelle hissed between her teeth raised her arms and sent a bolt of lightning zipping through the air toward Deacon. “Shit,” he yelled, barely managing to get his arm up in time to deflect the bolt.
It hit the ground behind him, knocking the two men off their feet. They lay still as death for several seconds, then scrambled to their feet, swaying slightly, and ran for the woods. They hadn’t gone more than a few feet into the forest when there was a chorus of screams and the sound of a mountain lion cry. Deacon, who’d just witnessed the swift death of his men, turned back to Joslin and Annabelle, his mouth twisted with hatred.
“You’re going to have to do better than that, Annabelle,” he said, then raised his arms into the air and began reciting the name of the demon Joslin had found in her spell book.
“Yestoph, Yestoph, Yestoph,” Deacon chanted over and over until the sky began to fill with dark clouds and rain began to fall.
Joslin watched horrified as a dark mist began to emerge from the pouring rain, then solidified and began to grow, fed by the rain that poured from the sky. It stretched its huge wings, shook its gigantic body, then opened its horrible mouth and let the rain pour in.
“I’d like you to meet Yestoph, the demon of water. He so loves a good storm; it feeds him, you see,” Deacon said. “We’ve been good friends for a while now, I had a feeling he might come in handy someday.”
***Jake***
Jake and Justin took advantage of the rain and slipped out of the barn; his legs were still a little wobbly, but he knew that it would pass. As soon as they were out the door, they slipped effortlessly into the form of a mountain lion and began to creep toward Deacon. They had no real plan in mind, were simply going on instinct, an instinct so deep and sharp that it guided them without conscious thought.
But nothing could have prepared him for the monster that began to appear through the rain, its horrible mouth stretched open to drink the rain. When the beast had fully appeared, Deacon turned his back on them and spoke to the thing in a language he didn’t understand. It stretched its wings and turned to Joslin and Annabelle, then seemed to study them, cocking its terrible head first one way and then the other.
Every instinct inside him screamed that he should protect Joslin, throw himself in front of her, and he tensed his body to spring. But before he could, Justin nudged him, and looked over to where Deacon was standing, a terrible grin on his face. When he looked back to Joslin, she had her hands up, fireballs erupting from the palms of her hands while Annabelle’s fingers glowed as lightning bolt after lightning bolt flew from them.
Assured that Joslin was safe for now at least, he began to creep toward Deacon, Justin right behind him. Vaguely he became aware that the other shifters had begun to emerge from the forest, moving stealthily through the rain to form a circle around Deacon. When he was sure that they were all in place, he morphed back into his human form.
“Deacon, it’s time we ended this,” he shouted over the rain.
Deacon whirled around. “Well, shifter, I should have known I hadn’t heard the last of you,” he shouted back. “Do you really think you have a chance against me? When will shifters learn that you’re inferior to witches? It makes me sick to see you with Joslin.”
Jake felt his anger growing, becoming impossible to manage, so he took a few deep breaths. “Here’s the thing, Deacon: I might not have a chance on my own, but I’m not on my own,” Jake said, watching as Deacon was quietly surrounded by the huge cats that were his friends and family. “I think maybe you’re the one who is on his own.”
Deacon looked around him, a look of panic on his face. “You’ll never defeat the demon; try if you want, but before this day is over, you’ll all be dead,” Deacon said, then he disappeared.
Chapter 20
***Joslin***
Joslin was beginning to get tired, and nothing they’d done so far had made any difference; the demon was still growing. She could feel it sucking the energy out of her and knew that they had to do something and quick or there was no hope of surviving.
“Try crossing them,” she shouted to Annabelle, holding up her palms.
“It won’t work; we have to do something else,” Annabelle said, looking around desperately.
Then Joslin remembered the banishing spell, and she understood what they had to do. “We have to get rid of the rain,” she said, then lifted her hands into the air and began to swing them back and forth, imagining a wind so strong, it would sweep the clouds and rain away.
The direction of the rain began to change, coming at them sideways as the wind began to blow. Softly at first, then stronger when Annabelle raised her arms and closed her eyes. Soon the wind was a driving force, making it difficult for Annabelle and Joslin to stand upright, then as the clouds disappeared and the rain stopped, it died down to a gentle breeze.
The demon began gasping as if it needed air; then its body began to shrink. Joslin knew that they’d beaten it for now, but wanted it gone for good so she began to recite the banishing spell. The monster began to scream, it’s chest heaving with the effort, and steam began to pour from its mouth, an acrid smell filling the air. Annabelle began firing lightning bolts at the creature, this time causing huge burns on its scaly skin.
As Joslin repeated the spell over and over, a giant hole appeared in the ground under the demon. Filled with a swirling black light, it began to suck the demon down, making it scream even louder. Then with a sucking sound, the demon disappeared into the hole, and it sealed itself up.
Annabelle and Joslin collapsed on the ground, too exhausted to stand any longer. Jake and Justin were on their knees next to them in an instant, the rest of the shifters not far behind them. When Joslin felt Jake lift her off the ground, she opened her eyes and looked around her; the sun was shining, and the gentle breeze brought only the smell of pine.
For a moment she could almost believe that nothing had happened here, but then she saw her sister in Justin’s arms and the mountain lions gathered around them and knew that it had been very real. “I think we’d better get you inside and dried off and then we’re going to talk about this; I’m not going to let you block this one out.”
“Oh, I don’t think I’ll ever forget today,” Joslin said, then looked around again. “What happened to Deacon?”
“He ran away, disappeared instead of facing us,” Jake said, “I’m sorry Joslin, we should have just taken him down, but I couldn’t resist baiting him.”
Joslin reached up and cupped his cheek with her cold hand. “It’s okay, Jake, I don’t blame you. Deacon won’t be back for a long time; he won’t dare after this,” she said, wanting to add and “I love you.”
Jake could feel Joslin beginning to shake in his arms and knew that he had to get her inside. “Let’s get you inside and out of these wet clothes,” he said, still feeling guilty for letting Deacon escape.
“Jake, we’ll find him; don’t worry. The council will be after him, and it’s almost impossible to hide from them. He’s gone, and we’re all still alive,” Joslin said, hoping he’d listen.
Jake thought about her words. “You’re right, but this isn’t over. I’ll let it go for now, but someday Deacon is going to pay, I can promise you that.”
***Jake***
Jake was as excited as a kid on Christmas morning, but who could blame him? After two weeks of sharing his wife with everyone, she was finally going to be his and his alone for the weekend. Before he’d even gotten her out of her wet clothes, the council had shown up demanding an explanation for what they’d seen, and they’d been back several times since then.
They’d begun an immediate search for Deacon, but he’d disappeared, not that anyone was surprised. Jake knew that he’d resurface one day; a man like him hated to lose and he’d lost big that day. He’d have a driving need to fix that, to make those who beat him pay; it was only a matter of time. They’d be rea
dy when he came, but until then he was going to live his life like Deacon didn’t exist.
Joslin had made that perfectly clear the minute the council had left for the last time yesterday. “Jake, we’re not going to live our lives looking over our shoulders; that’s no way to live. We beat Deacon once; we can do it again,” she’d said.
Jake knew that he had to let it go, but it wasn’t easy; he’d start tonight. Now that Joslin had recovered from fighting the demon, both her mother and his giving her a clean bill of health, they could have some time alone. Time to figure out what to do now that Deacon was gone, he knew what he wanted, but wasn’t sure about Joslin.
He’d planned the night carefully, including a trip back to the little cabin where they’d spent their first night together. Tonight, he was going to tell Joslin how he felt; it might be a mistake, but he couldn’t go on wondering how she felt any longer. They should have had this conversation a long time ago, but they hadn’t had a moment alone.
***Joslin***
Joslin smiled when Jake pulled up in the carriage; they hadn’t had a moment alone for almost two weeks, and she was desperate to be in his arms again. When he jumped down and opened his arms to her, she ran to him and threw herself into them. He spun her around, then set her down and kissed her, not the least bit embarrassed that everyone in the house was watching.
“We’re finally free,” Joslin said, jumping into the carriage. “Let’s go have some fun.”
“I have the perfect place in mind,” Jake said, climbing in next to her.
When they got to the cabin, Joslin looked at him and asked, “Are you ever going to take me someplace besides a cabin in the woods?”
Jake jumped out then helped her down. “What’s the matter? Afraid to be alone with me out here in the scary mountains?” he asked, nodding to the driver who turned around and drove off.
Fairplay Shifters Boxset Page 24
