Which Witch is Which? (The Witches of Port Townsend)

by Kerrigan Byrne

  Claire jerked her gaze up in time to see the hardened soldier close the door, trapping her inside. She no longer sat in Sandy’s car, but in the luxurious leather, front seat of his Hummer. Cold fear hardened her veins, and she yanked her hands, trying to free them. Her bindings were no longer soft red yarn, but rough twine tied expertly around her. The more she struggled, the deeper the fibers cut into her skin.

  He opened the driver’s door and climbed in, bringing with him the tantalizing sent of gunpowder and leather. He studied her with careful, calculating eyes. “Fighting will only make this worse for you. Already, you’re bleeding.”

  Several crimson smudges marred her wrists, and she wished desperately that she could strike out and hurt him in return. “You bastard. Let me go.” The illusion he’d created had been so real. She’d never had a chance against him. Her assumption that they’d been on an even playing field had been a costly mistake.

  “I told you we could do this the easy way or the hard way. You chose hard.” He jammed the Hummer into gear as though her pain angered him, before he sped off into the chilly evening.

  Chapter Four

  Claire watched through the windshield as misty miles slipped away, leaving cars and her chance for rescue on the darkened roads behind them. Warm city lights gave way to cool, forested wilderness, and the time between passing vehicles grew longer and longer.

  She wasn’t sure how or why, but she knew without a doubt this man was a danger to the very fabric of her soul. If he could, he’d keep her from reaching her destination. If he succeeded, there would be no reason to keep breathing. She needed to get home, much the way salmon needed to return upriver in order to secure the survival of their species. Someone waited for her. Someone who needed her as much as she needed him…her…whoever. She yanked again and struggled against the seatbelt that held her in place until the wounds on her wrists began to sting again.

  Damn him.

  She glared at the arrogant soldier, sending a multitude of hateful thoughts in his direction. Dim lights from the dash illuminated the hard planes of his face, enhancing his formidable, yet attractive appearance. Who was this warrior who’d waylaid her from her destiny? “What’s your name?”

  He remained silent.

  “The least you can do after kidnapping me is tell me your name. If you don’t want to tell me your real name for fear of retaliation, then make one up.”

  “I fear nothing.” His deep voice rumbled with certainty, and she envied his position. She wished she could say the same. She had in the past, but the thought of never learning the truth left her distraught and willing to take desperate chances.

  She twisted in her seat until she’d made room to maneuver, and then aimed her bare foot at his midsection. He caught her calf with an iron grip before she ever made contact, but his swift action made him jerk the wheel of the Hummer, sending them screeching across the road. The vehicle swayed as he over-corrected, leading them back into their lane and off into the small ravine at the side of the road.

  The Hummer jerked to a stop, dust flying up around them. He turned to her with a deadly gaze that stunned her. Without saying a word, he exited the truck and strode to her side. Frantic, she tried to climb into his seat as he opened her door, but her bound hands made it difficult. With a snarl, he gripped her thighs and hauled her out, her feet smacking against the hard ground.

  Her heart pounded fiercely as she struggled to be free. “You’re going to regret it if you don’t let me go.”

  He gripped her bindings with one hand, stopping her blows, and caught her face with the other, holding her as he stared into her eyes. “I’ll tell you once again, this will be better for you if you don’t fight me. I’m not going to hurt you until you make me, and I can’t let you go.”

  She sagged against him, forcing him to hold her entire weight, hoping he’d drop her and she could run. It was a futile attempt at best, but she’d gone far past the point of desperation.

  Unfortunately, he lifted her and tossed her over his shoulder while he opened the backdoor. With seemingly very little effort, he dumped her on the seat and once again secured the seatbelt around her. He returned to the front seat and removed something from the glove compartment before he shut the door. She struggled to release the seatbelt.

  He pulled her abraded hands back onto her lap. “Don’t forget you asked for this. I gave you the opportunity for compliance, and you declined.” He lifted a black cotton bag with a drawstring closure and widened the opening. It wasn’t until he moved it toward her face that she realized his intent.

  She shook her head violently, trying to escape his grasp. “No!”

  He captured her head between his hands, smoothing her hair away from her face. “It’s for your protection and mine. Your stunt a moment ago could have ended tragically.”

  “I hate you,” she said. Frustrated tears welled in her eyes as she tried to fight him off with her tied hands.

  “That was bound to happen,” he said as he wiped the moisture from her cheeks. “This will be easier if you remain calm. Deep breaths.”

  Darkness descended over her, and she tried to breathe through the suffocating blackness.

  “Deep breaths,” he reminded her.

  She tried to still her panic, knowing it was to her advantage not to let him confuse her senses with his military tactics. No doubt, he intended the hood to do more than subdue her. He might have her tied up, but she still owned her thoughts. She needed to stay alert and wait for an opportunity for escape. If it came, she’d be ready.

  The unexpected feel of him securing her feet startled her. She kicked at him, making things as difficult as possible. One of her attempts, quite possibly a knee to his face, left him cussing and her smiling. His hands grew rougher as he bound her ankles, but satisfaction warmed her spirit and encouraged her to keep fighting.

  When he’d finished, he shoved her squarely against her seat. “You haven’t heeded my warnings so far, but I’ll give you one last opportunity. Sit here and be quiet. Anymore attempts at escape, and I’ll put you in back with the suitcases. Don’t think I won’t.”

  Her door slammed shut, and she flinched at the sound.

  She remained quiet as he entered the vehicle and closed his door with equal force, not doubting he’d do exactly what he promised. The engine fired with a growl, and they were soon moving down the road again, the bumps all the more obvious now that he’d removed her sense of sight.

  “Taking me is a mistake,” she said after several minutes. She might not be able to use physical force to get away, but she still had psychological opportunities. “Someone will be looking for me.”

  “Quiet.”

  “You know I’m right, and these are people you don’t want to piss off.” Honestly, she had no idea what waited for her, but whoever had beckoned her must have some kind of power to get a message from Port Townsend, Washington all the way to her in Bali. His continued silence seemed to corroborate the fact. “There’s no way I can be that valuable to you.”

  No response.

  “If you let me go now, I’ll convince them not to retaliate. I won’t even mention all the nasty things you’ve done since I first laid eyes on you.”

  He tapped on the brakes, making her stiffen in response. “One more word and you’ll be in the back with tape across your mouth.”

  She pressed her lips together, imprisoning the curses simmering on her tongue. As much as she’d like to release them, she had no desire to have him stuff her into an oxygen-deprived space. She wished she’d turned away the moment she’d noticed him at the luggage carousel. If she had, she’d be well on her way to Port Townsend right now.

  Even as she thought it, she knew it wasn’t true. Whoever this man was, whatever he wanted from her, she couldn’t deny the powerful link between them. He knew far more about her, and she had no doubt he would have found her and taken her one way or the other.

  Her only hope was to be patient, watch for opportunities, and wait for him to
reveal his intentions. Until then, she was at his mercy.

  ****

  Dru cursed the silence screaming from the backseat. She’d finally shut that beautiful mouth full of taunts and questions he couldn’t answer. He’d thought he’d be relieved. It wasn’t until she’d quieted that he realized the sound of her voice was preferable to the condemnation echoing in his thoughts.

  Why hadn’t he dispensed with her already?

  Why hadn’t he taken one of the isolated dirt roads leading off the main highway, pulled her from the vehicle, and slit her throat? A soldier did not question his mission. He took aim and squeezed the trigger without a second thought.

  Yet, here she was still in his backseat as he drew closer to his cabin outside Port Townsend, one of the many places he’d collected over time.

  A seasoned warrior like him shouldn’t pause to explore his curiosity, to wonder what ticked behind compelling eyes the color of amber ale. Hell, he was one of the big dogs, not a tender pup. He’d schooled others in the most vicious warfare tactics. In days past, he’d wielded his mighty sword with controlled precision, never bothering to look at the carnage in his wake.

  Unfortunately, his assignment during the last days of the world was more complicated than he’d originally anticipated. He should have known something this important would be. The sizzling flares of energy that had bored deep inside him the moment he’d captured her gaze had caught him unaware. Surprisingly, red-hot barbs anchored a part of her to some unknown dissident hidden these many, long years in a dark and desolate part of him.

  He’d never considered something as dismissive as the sweet honeysuckle scent of her hair or her spicy cinnamon breath to be a threat. Never expected they could deter him from his mission so he could indulge another minute of pleasure. Innocuous tactics at first glance, but torturous nonetheless.

  He cursed the gods, past and present, though truly his failure to complete his mission in a swift and certain matter fell on him. A lifetime of war should have taught him never to underestimate his opponent. That he’d thought he could carry out the singularly most important task of his life without a bloody battle had been a mistake on his part. The gods had sent him a formidable adversary, one with unexpected, subtle, yet effective tactics.

  A warrior in her own right.

  She deserved a better death than a slit throat on the side of an unnamed dirt road. He hated that her life would soon end, and that he’d be the one to dispatch her demise. She was the first soul beyond his immortal buddies who challenged his mind, a feat he couldn’t easily ignore.

  He would see that she died an honorable death, befitting a samurai or one of the ancient berserker warriors of the past. He was also certain the right to spill her blood would come at a painful price to him. Such a cost was only befitting a battle of this proportion.

  So be it.

  He was prepared.

  For now, he’d take her home and interrogate her so that he might devise a precise plan. Only a fool would proceed without one, and he had no doubt the gods had placed more, as of now, unseen obstacles in his way. He’d need as much detailed information as he could get in order to wage war and emerge victorious.

  Chapter Five

  Claire jerked when the Hummer suddenly stopped. Bouncing along the roads surrounded by quiet darkness had lulled her into a semi-conscious state. She didn’t know how long or how far they’d traveled, but apparently, they’d arrived at their destination.

  Her captor shut off the engine, and she braced herself for what might come next as he exited the SUV. A few seconds later, chilly air swept in around her when he opened her door. She stiffened, wishing she could catch a glimpse of what waited for her.

  A weight suddenly pressed against the top of her thighs, securing her to her seat. She reached out, her fingertips colliding with his solid flesh. She considered lashing out at him with her hands until she realized he’d bent over her, probably to keep her from fighting as he removed the bindings from her ankles. When her feet were free, he released her seatbelt and pulled her from the vehicle.

  A thousand needles stabbed her feet as blood freely rushed back into her veins. She stumbled when her bare feet hit the ground, but strong arms captured her before she fell.

  She tried not to cling to him as she sucked in a breath, shocked once again by the intense current his proximity generated. “I’m fine. My feet fell asleep because some asshole bound them too tight.” She pushed him from her with chaffed hands, and then immediately missed his solid body and the way he’d grounded her. For all she knew, she stood at the edge of a cliff, and she might tumble to her death if she moved.

  “Why didn’t you say something?” he asked.

  She turned her head in the direction of his voice. “You threatened to put me in the back if I did. Numb feet were preferable.”

  A deep rumble of laughter filled the silence around them, and her heart opened to the sound despite her resistance.

  The hood tugged at her hair as he slipped it from her head, and she blinked, quickly taking in the towering trees surrounding them. Pines blocked any light that might have slipped from the slice of moon she glimpsed in the inky sky. Behind her captor, stood a structure, a house, she guessed, but the light from the Hummer’s interior didn’t reveal many details.

  “You could have asked me to loosen them,” he said. “I’m not a completely heartless bastard.”

  “All evidence to the contrary.” Once again, his impressive stature thrilled and intimidated her, but she refused to shrink from him. “If I ask you to set me free, will you?”

  “No.”

  She turned from him then and focused on her surroundings instead. One way or the other, she’d find her freedom.

  Beyond the house, a small shadow moved, crouching beneath a pine. She stared until she could make out the shape of a dog. It darted again, deeper into the trees, but she didn’t miss the longer nose, the fluffy tail.

  A fox then. Not a dog after all.

  Dru closed the passenger door before taking hold of her elbow. She purposefully dragged her feet as he guided her toward the house.

  “Are you going to continually make this difficult?” Irritation scraped at his words.

  “As long as you insist on holding me captive.”

  He stopped and turned to her. “Aren’t you afraid I might decide you’re not worth the effort to keep alive?”

  A shiver raced through her. “I fear nothing,” she said, mimicking his words, the lie coming easier than she expected.

  His gaze burned through the darkness as silence claimed the seconds. “Liar,” he said after a moment, and then he leaned forward and tossed her over his shoulder again.

  She cried out in protest. “Bastard.”

  Each stride bounced her stomach against his rock hard shoulder in an unpleasant way, stealing more of her resolve. He was right. She feared everything. She feared he’d kill or torture her before she could flee. Worse, she feared she’d never escape and find her way home.

  The soldier’s feet clomped up wooden steps and across a wide porch as he hauled Claire toward the door. He opened it and stepped inside, kicking it shut behind him.

  Once again, darkness and silence shrouded her. He moved forward like a lithe predator, her weight and the lack of light not slowing him at all. Unknown objects hulked along the walls, seeming like furniture, but she couldn’t be sure. The building smelled of pine and a hint of lemon cleaner. The heavenly sent of freshly burned wood flirted with her senses, making her long for her comforting fire back in Bali. “Who else is here?”

  “No one.”

  But someone had been recently. What she smelled was not a lingering scent, but from a fire that had burned within the last twenty-four hours. If he’d been on the flight from Bali with her, which he must have been since he’d taken his bags from the same carousel as hers, then someone else had been there. “Where are we?”

  “An isolated cabin in the woods,” he said with a matter-of-fact tone.

/>   He would kill her then. Probably rape her first. The other possible occupant of the cabin might try, too. Why else would he bring her to such a place? Her only hope was, if he tried, he’d become vulnerable to her power. Then, once she controlled him, she’d use him until he was a hollow, useless shell.

  Karma would come back to bite him in the ass.

  Perhaps she should encourage him and get it over with before anyone else showed up to strengthen his forces.

  She wiggled in his grasp, trying to unbalance him, hoping he’d put her down. Instead, he raised a large hand and slapped her on the ass. “Stop,” he commanded.

  She growled from the sting and from the frustration of him holding her against her will. She bucked and pounded her fists against his back instead. This time, he dropped her, and she landed hard on the floor with no hands available to break her fall.

  Before she could right herself, he grabbed her elbow and pulled her to her feet. She faced him again, heat radiating from his solid chest, telling her what she couldn’t read in his expression.

  “Is this to be the war then?” Aggression vibrated from deep within him as he gripped her shoulders. “Not a fight based on physical strength, but battle of the minds? Did you come to Washington to needle me until I either kill you or you drive me insane?”

  The force of his words startled her, and it took her a moment to answer.

  “I’m not here to do anything. I’ve come looking for my family. That’s all.” She had no desire to be involved in any kind of war. “It’s obvious you’ve kidnapped the wrong woman.”

  “No.” His answer came swift and sure. “I can sense it in you. Tell me you don’t feel the magnetic clash between us. That can only be for one reason. Not to mention you look like her.”

  “Her?” His statement put form to the presence that had summoned her, giving her a new piece of information to focus on. “My mother? My sister?”

  “Fuck,” he whispered harshly before he grasped her bound hands and pulled her forward. She stumbled along, trying to keep up with his long strides as he proceeded through the darkened house.