The Seal of Solomon

by Nadine Travers

  “You heading off?”

  “Juniper, you made me jump. Yes, I am. I was able to heal and catch a little sleep, but I’m heading to Vancouver now. That’s where the call came from. You haven’t received another call yet?” I ask as Juniper throws herself onto my bed.

  She shakes her head. “No, not yet.”

  I smile. “You should be resting. You never know when that call will come, and you need to recover after the backfire in your magic from the stone.”

  She winces at me. “You’re not my mother, Lilandra, you’re my mentor. Don’t treat me like a child.”

  I poke her forehead with my finger. “I may be your mentor, but I’m also your friend, and that backfire in your magic was huge. I know it’s affected your ability to fight and protect yourself.”

  Juniper jumps to her feet. “Maybe, but I don’t like sitting on the sidelines.”

  I smile. “Youngsters, always on the move, never slowing down. You need to learn to pace yourself. You need to regroup in case of another call. Have you forgotten everything you learned at Paranormal University and with me?”

  “Stop the lecture. I know what I’m doing. I...” She jolts on the spot.

  “Well, I guess you’ve got your wish with another call.”

  “Yeah, I know. Fuck.”

  I look at her. “What?”

  She sighs. “I need to go to Scotland.”

  “That call is rare, what do you think it is?”

  “I don’t believe it, but they’re going after another stone.”

  “Which one?”

  “The stone of destiny, the one that can help a person on his quest to influence everyone’s choice.”

  “That’s not good, if they obtain both of the magical objects we’ve been called to, they could control the demons and influence people to elect the wrong person with that stone. I think someone within that organization is getting smarter and faster.”

  I see Juniper jolt again, harder this time. “Your case is worse than mine.”

  She nods and hugs me, leaving without uttering another word. She will be on a plane to Scotland very soon, which means I have time to prepare and head to Vancouver.

  Another sharp jolt makes its way through my body.

  “I see you’ve received another call.”

  I jump at the voice behind me and spin. “Carl, yes, I have. I need to head to Vancouver, the Seal of Solomon’s security is jeopardized.”

  Carl is the head of the coven, and even though he isn’t a warrior witch, it was decided to put him in charge to bring balance to our group. His main job is to keep track of our calls and support us on our quests. He also has the ability to help us prepare and get our magic up to one hundred percent, even more in some cases.

  “This situation is becoming difficult.”

  I lift my bag. “Maybe, but we both know I don’t have a choice in the matter.”

  He pinches his nose. “I know, but it’s not normal. Things are becoming chaotic, which isn’t good for any of us. I’m unable to track all the summonses we’ve been getting, and some calls are harder than others to complete. There isn’t enough of us to answer all the calls.”

  “What do you want me to say, Carl?”

  “Nothing, I guess, but as I said, this isn’t normal. Most of you warrior witches are tired, and you’re only getting a limited amount of time to heal and recuperate. Something bad will happen, and soon, if none of you are at the top of your game.”

  “I have to go, Carl.”

  “Fine, Lilandra, but I need some time to help you with your magic. You’ll need it more than you know. I need to balance you.”

  Another jolt shocks its way up my body, even stronger than the last. “No time for that, Carl. I need to get going.”

  I head outside, our preferred method of travel is with our personal summoning circle, which stay with us until we die. Apart from ourselves, the only other person that can see them are our fated mates. They aren’t always practical though, depending on where we’re heading. If it’s to an overpopulated area, then we’ll use normal human transport, like what Juniper is doing for her trip to Scotland.

  I put my hand on the ground. “Peregrinatione pergrinatione adducere volo me esse.” I cast the spell, and my magic circle appears. Jumping in, I transport directly to where my call is pulling me.

  VANCOUVER

  I reappear in a wooded area beside a church and receive another jolt which tells I’m close. I know the church is one of the ancient ones in Vancouver. The people who founded it came directly from Jerusalem, where the Seal originated. Legend says warriors of that time bought several different objects here. Some were magical, others more religious in nature. I touch the ground, and feel the Seal is here somewhere, hidden deep underground.

  I head to the church and enter to discover it’s empty—probably due to the time of day—and take a seat in one of the back pews. It was getting late, and most people are headed home for the evening.

  “Can I help you? We’ll be closing soon.”

  I look at the priest walking toward me. “Yes, I’m looking for the Seal of Solomon.” I figure it’s better to be upfront and honest with what I’m after.

  The man moves closer, and I notice a strange look on his face. I get the feeling that he’s not what he appears to be.

  “Why?”

  I sigh. “Are you its guard?”

  “You shouldn’t know anything about the Seal. Speak! What are you, and what do you want with it?”

  As I stand, I can see he isn’t a priest like others think. “I’m not the enemy here.”

  He tries to grab me, but I move too fast for him. “You’re one of them! The ones who came here earlier today.”

  Well, that’s not good, it means the people I’m supposed to protect the Seal from are already here. “No, I’m here to protect it. It called to me.”

  He laughs. “That’s not the first time I’ve heard that. The Seal is not only sacred, but it can’t fall into the wrong hands. I’ve sworn to protect it with my life, and no one will have it.” He removes his overtunic, and I notice he’s way too built to be a part of the church. He’s probably a bodyguard or a special guard for the Seal, but there’s no way that he prays all day, trains yes—prays no.

  He leaves me no choice, so I begin to cast a spell. His stance lets me know he’s ready to fight to the death if need be. “I don’t want to hurt you. If you just listen to me, we can discuss it. I’m not here to fight you, you have no idea what’s coming and why I need the Seal.”

  He smirks at me and I cast a gun and shield. His eyes widen in surprise at seeing my weapons before he smiles. “No magic can touch me.” He charges at me, and I slam him with my shield, scorching the shirt on his back.

  “I can do more damage if I want, you’re attacking the wrong person. Have you ever heard of a warrior witch?”

  He flinches a little but continues his charge. I block him again and my spell pushes him hard this time, but he remains on his feet.

  “You’re not human. I can tell.”

  He smiles. “I’m immune to magic. It might slow me down, but you’re never going to hurt or kill me with it.”

  Instantly, I know what he is. I’ve never fought one of those bastards before, but I know they’re hard to kill. “You’re a fucking half-giant.”

  “You’ve done your homework. Now, tell me why you’re really here.”

  “I already told you, the Seal called to me. I need to bring it to safety. A new clan has formed and is trying to retrieve it to use against all of us. We don’t know all the details yet, but a lot of us are working hard to uncover who they are.” I keep my distance from him. I can see him thinking over what I said, but if I don’t convince him I’m safe, he’ll catch me in a few minutes.

  He starts to grow. “That’s what the others told me, that they wanted the best for it. His lies almost cost our priest his life. Now, no one will get close to it. No one.” He charges again.

  This fucker needs to understan
d I’m not a threat. Dodging him, I create a big blast so I can take him down and follow my call. If the other group has already tried to retrieve it once, it only means they’ll try again. I need the Seal and I must bring it back with me. Luckily, my teleport circle is close to the church, but without knowing exactly where the Seal is, it will take me time to search for it. The half-giant tries to punch me, but I block him with my magical shield and push him back. “The more you hit it, the more it’s going to push you back.”

  “That’s a wicked spell, but it doesn’t hurt me.”

  “I can see you’re immune to the harmful effects of the magic, but not the force of it. I’m here to help, not to fight you. I don’t want to hurt you and I know your actions are pure. You want to protect this place and everything that’s inside.”

  He snarls at me. “I’ll protect it until my dying breath. You may be able to push me back, but you can’t stop me.”

  Again, he takes his stance, and I need to figure out a new plan, I’m certainly not going to defeat him with magic. I’ve read about half-giants, but I’ve never encountered one. With time, maybe something will spark in my memory on how to defeat him but for now, I need to find a way to knock him down so I can grab the Seal and get to my circle. That way I can be back at the coven in no time.

  Looking around, I see a support beam and it gives me an idea. It would be a physical attack rather than a magical one. Hopefully it will knock him out, but then again, I don’t know how hard their heads are. I begin to cast with my other hand, picking a beam that won’t cause the church to collapse.

  “Stop, Roan!” a male voice yells.

  I glance over to see a priest heading in our direction.

  Roan stops in the middle of his charge, and I stop casting my spell. “Why, master? She’s one of them.”

  “No, Roan, she’s not. Stop this right now.”

  I finally take a deep breath. The relief courses through me that the man has control over the half-giant. I was running out of options. Turning, I get my first look at the man, he’s short and hunched over, giving away his age.

  Roan goes to stand beside him. “You shouldn’t be out of bed.”

  He smiles at Roan. “Stop being a worrywart. I’m good.” The priest turns his attention to me. “Now, you said you were part of the warrior witch coven?”

  “Yes.”

  “Prove it.”

  Grabbing my long black hair, I show him the tattoo that every warrior witch has.

  “See, Roan. A real warrior witch has the mark. Each of them has it in a different place on their body, but that’s how you can tell.” He smiles at me. “Make it glow.”

  I grin at him, amused. To humans, it looks like a tattoo, but those that know us, know it’s alive and moves on our skin. I comply with his demand and mine glows, lighting the dark room before it waves at Roan.

  “Come with us and we’ll talk.”

  Releasing my warrior magic, I return to normal. As I sidestep the half-giant, I can tell he doesn’t know what to make of me, and I try to reassure him. “Don’t worry. I’m with the good guys.”

  Chapter Four

  Donovan

  “Fuck, that was close. A half-giant. I thought they were legends.”

  I wince, my wound pulling as I look at my mate. “I know, mate, but we know legends exist, let’s just hope there aren’t any more surprises and we don’t run into any other creatures we thought were long gone.”

  She continues to lie beside me, her healing magic surrounding us. Werewolves are strong, but that half-giant was way stronger. I’ve battled half-demons, which are badass but this guy was strong on a whole other level.

  “We need that Seal. The Lady must have it. That’s our mission.” Her smile is weak. The battle with the half-giant took a lot out of both of us.

  “I know. We can’t go home until that artifact is in our hands, but I’m pretty sure one of the warrior witches is on her way and could already be here. We need to scout and get more information.”

  “You can’t do it. Jeremy will have to go tonight. The people in the church know our faces, but they don’t know his, and, there’s no way we can get past those elf traps.”

  I snarl at her. “I don’t trust that fucker, I know he’s a vampire, and he was with Damaris, but he didn’t succeed in rescuing him. I’m pretty sure Alto is having fun with him, if he’s not already dead.”

  My mate kisses my lips quickly. “I know, but we have to work with what we have, and he has to carry out this mission to repay his debt to Damaris’s memory.”

  I give her a look that conveys how unsure I am. “That will only work until he discovers what really happened. We need to be careful with him, we need to keep him in the dark and use the fact it was Damaris’s wish that he join us to get him to do what we want.”

  Looking at my wounds, I can tell I have a few broken ribs and some internal bleeding. Lucky for me, my mate is a fire witch and has the ability to heal. We need this mission to succeed in order to remove the factions that are against us. The paranormal community has started to find more and more mates outside their own factions. That brings its own set of problems, as the only place mixed-species couples can be together is the neutral zone, and it’s getting overcrowded there.

  “What are you thinking, love?”

  “The mission. I want to spend my life with you. I want to be free to go where we want. I want the pack to see you as one of us.” She takes my face between her hands and kisses me in acknowledgment of my words. “We can’t stay in the neutral zone forever. I have a pack to run, and you need to be with your coven. My wolf and I can’t go on like this.”

  “I know, love. I sometimes wish I was human and could fully be your mate, then we wouldn’t have a problem with the factional zones.”

  I lift a strand of her hair, which is a fiery red. We’re in the wild, and my wolf is close to the surface, approving the fact that she’s our mate. Werewolves mate for life and I’ve already marked her. It’s a good thing most of the witches haven’t seen it and can’t smell us on her, but within the werewolf faction, everyone that meets her knows she belongs to me. “I’ve never regretted marking you, you belong to us. We will succeed in this, and we will be together for a very long time and have some pups in the process, but now is not the time.”

  Sadness shows in her eyes, we want to give her everything we can. “I know, my love, we have to put that aside for now, but one day we’ll be able to do everything we’ve dreamed of and be at peace. You know that with each revolution there is chaos before harmony and peace returns. We need to shake those rules that have been intact for centuries.”

  I kiss her slowly. I know I’m not fully healed yet, but I will be before morning.

  She pulls back and raises an eyebrow at me. “It’s the middle of the day. We can’t do this now.”

  I smile at her. “You know us werewolves. We’ll do it anywhere we can, and we don’t care about the time of day. I need you, my beautiful mate. We need you. We were close to being separated forever, and I don’t want to waste time because of this shyness you have.”

  Before she can answer me, I crush my lips on hers. I need her to feel whole again, to be one with her. My wolf will tell me if anyone gets close to us. She moans at my kiss as my hands move over her body. Her lush curves are turning me on as they always do. I want it all, to be able to wake up beside her, to watch her belly get round with my child, to live where we want, but because of those stupid rules, we can’t.

  “Please.”

  “What, mate? Tell me.”

  She mewls. She can be such a wild cat with others, but she becomes a kitten in my arms. I love everything about her. Opening her blouse, I play with her big, round tits, and suck them slowly like I have all the time in the world. I find her zipper and work her jeans down her legs.

  “Donovan, stop teasing me!”

  I smile against her skin as my fingers make their way inside her underwear and find her pleasure center. She moves her hips against my ha
nd, I can feel how wet she already is for me.

  “You’re so ready, my mate.”

  “Make me come, my love,” she whispers to me.

  Starting to kiss her again, I whisper, “Come for me and I’ll reward you with my dick.” I crush my lips against hers. She places her hand on my bicep, and her nails cut into my skin. I love this. My wolf is howling inside my head with pleasure.

  She moves her head and screams my name, squeezing my fingers as she comes.

  She’s fully exposed to me with her legs spread wide and I can see her pussy glittering with her come. My dick is so hard right now. We need to be inside her. Unbuckling my pants, I push them down. Opening her legs further, I push my dick inside her, her heat surrounding me as I enter her. I almost come right there, it’s been too long since we were like this.

  “More,” she says.

  My need to satisfy my mate takes over. I have to give her everything she wants. I move my hips, finding a rhythm that gives us both pleasure. She follows my lead and tightens around me each time I’m seated fully inside her. I increase my tempo, I’m on the verge of coming, but she needs to before I can.

  “I’m almost there. Love, I need it.”

  Both of us are I want to say, but I kiss her again and increase my pace. I must possess her, her need to be filled is just as great as my need to satisfy her.

  Her sweet inside walls are closing on my dick, gripping me like a vise. My wolf wants to mark her in a place where everyone can see it, not where it is, hidden away on the inside of her thigh. We know we can’t right now though, but I need to mark her. To make us come at the same time. Her walls squeeze me harder letting me know she’s right there.

  I bite her under her arm, hard, and increase my tempo.

  “Donovan!” she screams and comes.

  I howl as I come with her. Her pussy keeps me inside as we try to catch our breath.

  I kiss her, and she smiles at me. “I love you, my love.”

  I kiss her tenderly. “We love you so much, my mate.”

  Now we will wait for night to fall so Jeremy can help us. We need that Seal if we ever want to succeed in our mission to have a life with each other.