A Demon's Witch

by Tena Stetler

  Her nostrils flared as the scent of magic filled the room dissolving the stench of burnt flesh and wood.

  “No change in the witch.” The same voice stated flatly as the door closed again.

  Rezar burst through the door. “She’s no good to me this way.” Grabbing a fist full of the protective globe, a turquoise light gathered at the point of impact and shot a bolt of white-hot electrical current through the air. “Shit.” Propelled backward, he crashed against the wall and slid to the floor, his up turned palms singed and wisps of gray smoke curling from the blackened holes in the heels of his charred shoes.

  The bubble bounced lightly around the room, leaving blue phosphorescent smudges in its wake, forcing Angie to return her body to a horizontal position inside the bubble without rupturing the sphere. The globe came to rest against the wall opposite Rezar. Angie lay motionless inside the orb.

  In the reflection, she watched Rezar’s eyes narrow and lips contort into a nasty sneer as he got unsteadily to his feet.

  He watched her closely. The slow rise and fall of her chest indicated she was still alive, if barely. Or maybe she was just pretending. He couldn’t tell with her back to him. “So…you are our exalted Overlord’s flavor of the month and Tristian’s sister to boot.” Laughing maniacally, he rubbed his hands together, leaning back against the wall for support. “What a find!”

  He turned toward the door and snarled. “Get Malic in here. I want to find out what she knows without killing her…yet. For that, I want an audience, her brother and our exalted Overlord will do nicely.” Rezar staggered through the door, leaving it wide open.

  Angie turned slowly opening one eye to glance through the door into the adjoining room. A well-worn wooden table and chairs sat directly across from the open door. The wooden floor creaked as the men moved around the room.

  In the far corner, a long handled, double-sided axe leaned against the wall. Gold metallic ropes wound around the shiny silver blade securing it to the ebony handle. Rubies, emeralds, diamonds and sapphires inset on the upper portion of the handle winked in the fire light. She’d seen that Labrys before, but couldn’t recall where, or to whom it belonged, certainly not this rag tag group of creatures. The aura of power it gave off just sitting there worried her. Who could wield such a weapon?

  Chapter Nineteen

  Bruce paced across the room. “Why can’t we see her on your almighty screen?”

  “Because only her essence or spirit has been stolen, her body remains here,” Matiah said in a soothing voice.

  Andre nodded solemnly. “The jet is fueled and waiting on the air strip should we need it. But you, my son, must stay behind with Angie.”

  His mother nodded in agreement with her husband.

  “Like hell,” Bruce said furiously, his hands balled into fists at his side. He took two steps forward and carefully shoved his father aside.

  Andre stepped back in front of Bruce. “Son, you don’t want to do this. Control your temper and think. You’ll need to bring her spirit and soul back to her body once she is released from the dream world Rezar has captured her in. If she gets lost between the worlds, she is lost to you forever.” Andre stood between Bruce and the door.

  Bruce turned on his heel and paced the room like a caged animal. “Ok, ok.” He took a deep breath and tried to settle himself and formulate a plan. “Tristian should have a team assembled ready to go by now.”

  “Good choice,” Andre agreed. “His blood connection to her and magic abilities in addition to his assassin training will serve him well. But he is also a target…”

  “I’ll suggest he send his team in first.” Bruce drew in another breath and ran his fingers through his hair. “He is the expert in these types of situations, the best of the best, so I’ll have to leave the plan execution up to him.” Bruce shook his head, uncomfortable with leaving his mate’s life in someone else’s hands, even her brother’s. “I hate not being there. I’ll remind him what’s at stake.” Bruce pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and touched in the number two, speed dial for Tristian.

  Tristian picked up on the first ring. “We moving out?”

  “Yes.” That one short word said it all. Bruce filled him in on the recent events and warned him failure was not an option.

  “Don’t tell me how to do my job,” Tristian growled. “We’ll get her back safe and sound. You have contact with her?”

  “Yes.”

  Andre watched his son. A rough road to getting there, but he was a great leader, even facing one of the worst trials of his life. Matiah’s eyes glistened as she looked from father to son, finally putting aside their differences, when it counted. She lowered her eyes and turned to look out the window. They had created an extraordinary individual, in spite of her banishment and dire heavenly predictions. Smiling, she lifted her eyes to the heavens and sighed. “They were all wrong,” she said quietly.

  ****

  Stefan, the Vampire Council’s assassin, peered in the dirt-streaked window, his dark eyes searching the dimly lit room, there it is, he willed his body to relax, he’d found it, finally. In the far corner leaning against the cracked plaster wall was the Harbinger Labrys of Power stolen from the Vampire Council’s chamber a few months ago. Ordered to find and retrieve the Harbinger at all costs, Stefan Talltree, the council’s enforcer, followed whispered leads from fearful informants in dark alleys for the better part of a month. They recounted encounters with a once high-ranking demon in the service of the underworld’s guardian now looking for vengeance on those deemed responsible for his fall from power. Word on the street was that the demon was insane, caused by his attempted escape from the collar that imprisoned him and his return to the mortal world. All of Stefan’s investigations led to this isolated cabin in the backwoods of Cherryfield, Maine.

  Stefan checked other windows for changes in inhabitants from his previous surveillance. The cell phone vibrated against his thigh. Shit. In a whisper of movement, he positioned himself a mile away from the cabin and yanked the phone out of his pocket. “Your timing sucks.”

  “Mind your insolence, Stefan.” A commanding female voice chided.

  “Sorry Lady Rose. What can I do for you? I’ve found the Harbinger.”

  “Then retrieval is imminent?”

  “Yeah, but there is a problem.”

  “Then solve it and return with the Labrys.”

  “It’s not that easy. The renegade band of creatures led by a demon they call Rezar has an innocent. There is a ghostlike woman captured in a phosphorescent bubble floating in one of the rooms. If I take down the group, chances are she’ll be killed.”

  “Really? Now that’s fortuitous.”

  “It is?” Stefan said incredulously, his brow creasing. Lady Rose could be ruthless when the circumstances warranted, but as a rule, she was a fair individual and rarely allowed harm to come to an innocent.

  A soft laugh came through the receiver, then Lady Rose cleared her throat. “I mean, the reason I called, was a request received from Lord Bruce, his mate was snatched, and he’s looking for information leading to her whereabouts. Since you’ve covered a lot of ground recently, the council thought you might be in a position to help. And we were right. You may have found her. Is this innocent small, with long golden hair and violet eyes?”

  “Petite with long blond hair, yes, but her eyes were closed, I can’t confirm the color. So what do you want me to do?”

  “Send me your location. Can you sit tight until I contact Bruce?”

  “Yeah, I can hold off, it doesn’t appear they are going anywhere soon. If things change, I’ll improvise. They won’t leave with the Harbinger, regardless. Find out how soon the Overlord’s force can mobilize and get here.”

  “Certainly. Good work, Stefan.”

  “Thank you, my lady.” He touched the screen and disconnected the call, shaking his head. More complications, just what I need. The tall blades of grass near the cabin’s foundation swayed in the light breeze as twilight descen
ded. Stefan crept closer rounding the corner and stood next to the window where he’d first seen the filmy figure captured in the bubble. This time he paid closer attention, she was small and lithe with miles of blonde hair streaming down her back. As he peered in at her, she opened large violet eyes and stared at him for a moment. He backed out of her line of vision and away from the cabin.

  Phone in hand, he crouched down in the underbrush and touched the screen to redial the last number. “It’s her,” he whispered into the phone. “I’m positive. Those haunting violet eyes are unmistakable and the magic signature is barely discernible, but one of a witch.”

  “Good job, Stefan. I’ll be in touch.”

  The phone call disconnected, Stefan sat back on his heels to wait.

  Suddenly the cabin door banged open, illuminating a wide arc in the darkness. A body sailed out the door and landed with a thud on the damp forest floor. The male lay motionless on the ground within fifteen feet of Stefan. Nostrils flared as he sniffed the air. Vampire and demon.

  A rail thin demon with an uneven gate walked over and viciously kicked the body. “You lied. You can’t wield the magic of the axe any more than I can.” Light flooding from the open door glinted off the silver collar encircling the demon’s neck as he shuffled back inside, slamming the door with a loud bang. The body twitched and a low moan carried back to Stefan’s ears.

  Chapter Twenty

  “I can’t sit here and do nothing,” Bruce said loudly, frustration seeping into the deep timber of his voice. His large hand wrapped protectively around her tiny limp one. His cell phone vibrated on the dresser, skittering across the surface announcing a new e-mail. Long sweaty fingers grasped the phone and touched the lit screen. He scrolled down and highlighted the e-mail from Lady Rose. Heart thundering in his chest, he read the message. Bruce bent over and brushed his lips lightly over the knuckles of Angie’s hand then released it and strode through the bedroom door, closing it softly behind him.

  The hallway was empty. Bruce ran his fingers through his hair for what seemed like the hundredth time as he hurried down the hallway in search of his parents. Seeing their silhouettes against the rising full moon, he shouted. “I received an e-mail. Lady Rose thinks her enforcer has found Angie. We need to leave right away.”

  With a rustle of wings, his mother met him in the entrance to the veranda. “No my son, your father is right. You must stay with Angie and help bring her spirit back to her body. We can’t afford to lose her between. Let her brother go, his magic will be able to release the spell…safely.”

  “Where is she?” Andre asked urgently as he came to a quick halt behind Matiah.

  “Held captive at an isolated cabin in the forest just outside Cherryfield, Maine. Several weeks ago, the vampire council sent their enforcer in search of a stolen weapon, which is in Rezar’s possession and Angie is sequestered in a room in that cabin. Bruce handed the phone to Andre so he could read the e-mail for himself.

  “Have you called Tristian?” Andre asked.

  “Not yet, I just got the e-mail.” Bruce touched the screen, shifted from e-mail to phone, and said, “Call Tristian.” He raised the phone to his ear and waited impatiently.

  Tristian answered on the first ring. “We’re ready. Owen said your jet is fueled and the pilot is awaiting instructions on the runway. Where are we going?”

  “I just received an e-mail from Lady Rose, it includes the coordinates. I’m sending it to you now. The council’s enforcer, Stefan, is waiting your arrival. Apparently, Rezar has something that belongs to the Vampire Council and they are anxious to get it back. Stefan’s orders are to terminate the thieves and return with the weapon. Angie is captive in the cabin.”

  “Rezar stole the council’s Harbinger? He’s got bigger balls than I thought or that collar fried any brain cells he had left. No one can wield that Labrys but a vampire of true blood. What a fool. Fortunate for us, Stefan will insist on terminating Rezar, so I can turn my full attention to releasing Angie. It’ll be fine.” Tristian assured Bruce. “You’re going to wait there to help her across, aren’t you?” Tristian said, more of a statement than a question.

  “Yes,” Bruce bit out, knowing his place was here with Angie, but wishing he could get his hands on the demon that snatched her.

  A gentle hand rested on his shoulder, his mother spoke softly in her melodic soprano voice. “Son, revenge is not something you need to exact. He will get what’s coming to him by the vampire council’s assassin. Stefan was trained by the most ruthless assassin the vampire realm has ever known.”

  Bruce patted his mother’s hand and nodded hoping she was right, before turning his attention back to Tristian. “When you get the coordinates, head out and keep me in the loop.”

  “Just got em. Already assembled the teams, we’ll leave now. I’ll be in touch.” Tristian broke the connection.

  Bruce dropped the phone into his pocket, slid a sidelong glance at his parents, and stalked back to Angie. His mother followed silently in his wake, his father spoke softly into his cell phone a short distance behind her.

  ****

  Outside the cabin, Stefan waited, watched until he sensed Tristian’s men encircle the perimeter giving wide berth to the structure. Tristian touched in the phone number provided by Lady Rose and waited.

  “Stefan.” The assassin grunted into the phone.

  “We’re set. My team has the place surrounded, magic barriers are up, and I’m just outside the bedroom where you saw Angie. There is nowhere for Rezar and his men to go once you storm the front of the house. On your signal, I’ll enter Angie’s room at the same time you enter through the front. Correct?”

  “Yeah.”

  ‘Sure you don’t want some of my men to back you up?”

  “No, they’ll just get in the way. Rezar’s men will flee. They aren’t loyal to him. That’s where your men will come in. Terminate the enemy as they scatter. I don’t want anyone to escape, take no prisoners. Got it?”

  “Got it.”

  “Then GO.” Stefan said tossing the phone in the bushes outside the cabin door. He kicked the door open and had the Harbinger in his hand before anyone in the room realized he was there. From the corner of his eye, he saw Rezar do a belly slide across the floor toward Angie’s holding place. Two werewolves dove for the window, a vampire ran for the door behind Stefan, and various leather-winged demons flew toward the fireplace. The black handle felt warm in his palm as he swung the doubled bladed axe taking aim for Rezar. Bursts of blue electrical current flowed from the head of the axe as its golden glow of protection surrounded Stefan.

  Its shining silver blade sliced through the bodies it connected with, Stefan cut a wide swath through the room then bringing the axe full arc, terminating any remaining creatures cowering in the corners. Blood curdling screams filled the crisp night air, blood spatter covered the walls and pooled next to detached body parts of the offending werewolves and vampires. Ash rained down from the ceiling from the incinerated demons who attempted escape. With satisfaction, Stefan rested the Harbinger on his shoulder and nodded. He strode across the bloodstained floor and pushed open the door to the room that held Angie.

  Tristian stood transfixed, eyes closed, leaning against the wall of the empty room. The warlock who stood guard over Angie splayed in the middle of the floor. The rise and fall of his chest told Stefan he was still alive. The phosphorescent bubble was gone so too was the ghostly woman it detained. Rezar was nowhere to be found.

  Stefan stepped over the warlock and nudged Tristian with his elbow. “Everything all right in here?” He moved the Harbinger from his shoulder and took aim at the warlock on the floor.

  Tristian’s eyes still glazed, but his hand flew out to block Stefan’s arm. “No don’t, not yet.” Suddenly, Tristian’s face contorted and he screamed. “Noooooo, Bruce watch out.”

  Stefan crouched as he whirled around on his heels, the axe stretched out in front of him. There was no one there except the warlock on the floor. Stefa
n looked back to Tristian, the vacant look in Tristian’s eyes telling Stefan that Tristian’s mind wasn’t in this room.

  ****

  At the same time Stefan busted through the front door, Tristian had materialized inside the room, raised his hand to the warlock guarding Angie.

  Don’t hurt him, Angie’s voice pleaded inside Tristian’s mind, if not for him, I wouldn’t be alive.

  Tristian muttered words under his breath, palm still facing the guard as he slumped to the floor. He’s not dead just incapacitated for now. I’ll deal with him later. Tristian’s words drifted through her mind. “Now for you, you gave us quite a scare, but I think I can return you to your worried demon.” Tristian sneered, determined not to show his true feelings. “I need you to concentrate on Bruce, your room in Tahiti and don’t let anything break your concentration.”

  Tristian raised his voice in chant and a smoked filled layer surrounded the bubble. “You realize I’ve never done anything like this before,” he said gruffly to Angie.

  She nodded, her violet eyes watching him intently. You can do it. You have always taken care of me, even when it wasn’t easy. Angie smiled. I love you, big brother.

  No, you don’t, or you wouldn’t have given yourself to a demon and not just any demon, a Territory Overlord, and my boss. Nor would you be in this mess.

  Tristian’s disgruntled voice faded from her mind. You know as well as I do that it was meant to be. Now get on with it. Stefan can’t hold them off forever. Angie closed her eyes following Tristian’s instructions.

  Tristian cursed, then held his palms flat to the outside protective shield he’d created and murmured several words in cadence, pushed his hands through the first barrier and through the bubble taking hold of the essence of Angie with both hands at her waist and shoved. The bubble closed in around her. As she faded, a gnarled hand caught hold of the blue phosphorescence tail attached to her filmy dress and before Tristian could reach him, they were gone.