by Martha Woods
Tessa looked to her sister in horror, “Drop him!” she tried to demand.
“No, Tessa. I won’t. I know I had once told you that you could go back to them at any time, but this is different. They are attacking us! This can’t be forgiven,” Bethany stated firmly. Kristian was lifted even hire, “Tell me how many and where they are. Now!”
Kristian’s eyes dulled. “I’ve accepted my fate. I’m not betraying my family… unlike some.”
Those words cut right through Tessa, making her wince. They weren’t going to kill him, Tessa wouldn’t allow it. “I’m sorry… I didn’t…” Tessa tried to speak.
“You vampires are such pests,” Bethany hissed to Kristian. “So prideful for absolutely no reason. You’re the filth of this planet. And we can’t seem to eradicate you things, no matter how much we try.” Then, Bethany’s hateful demeanor shifted. An eerie smile dominated her face. “I’ve got just the thing to cure you of it.”
What was she talking about? How could she “cure” him? Tessa pleaded with her sister again, “Bethany… Please…”
“Oh shut up,” Bethany snapped. “This is what is best for you. You’ve pined over him for far too long. I want this over with.” Bethany moved Kristian over the pool, keeping him hovering a few feet from the water. His eyes were closed. Bethany began chanting a different spell. That time, with the worry and panic in Tessa, she was more mentally alert and could followed chunks of what she was saying. Take this beast… Cleanse him of his impurities… Correct nature… Make him the human… he has always been…
She was trying to turn him human?! How was that even possible?! Tessa tried her best to pull her hand free of her sister’s grip. “Let go of me! Stop this!”
Bethany hardly glanced to Tessa, motioning a hand in her direction. With the single wave of that hand, Tessa no longer had the strength to even hold her own head up. She collapsed the rest of the way, falling forward into the dark water. The only thing keeping her face from the water, was her sister holding her up by the hand. There was no way Bethany was this powerful of a witch… Then, reality crashed upon Tessa like a tidal wave. How could she not have seen it before? How did she not realize until that very minute, that Bethany had been building Tessa up, just to drain her of her powers? What would turning him human do? Human he has always been? Did… Did that mean he would become his actual age? He was over a hundred… Kristian let out a pained groan, before he started screaming in pain. Tessa couldn’t even lift her head to look.
Tessa shrieked, “No!” at the top of her lungs, painful to even her ears. Lightning burst from her like confetti, spreading out in random directions. The white hot energy blasted a few nearby council members, their old bodies falling to the floor. Tessa’s chest heaved, despite the fact she didn’t need to breathe. Bethany only took a break from her spell for a moment, staring wide-eyed down at Tessa before turning back to Kristian to continue the spell.
Gritting her teeth, Tessa began focusing her mind on the warmth she had once felt in her hand. If Bethany could draw her power, then maybe Tessa could draw it right back. She didn’t know what she was doing, but it was all she had. She was too weak to move, and from the sounds of his cries, Kristian didn’t have much longer. The witches all just stood around in a stupor, not seeming to know what to do.
There was a sudden crashing noise, and she could hear the hisses of witches and the sound of fire blistering. Bethany was zeroed in on her spell though, not budging from her spot as she chanted as loudly as she could. Tessa urged her mind to tune out the chaos around her and focus on her task at hand. She could still feel her energy being siphoned, there just wasn’t much left. Focusing on the sensation, she tried to imagine what it would feel like in reverse. Feel it in her fingertips, all the way to her chest, filling her being with warmth and power. The power she had spent weeks obtaining through their strange, dark rituals. That she had mastered with little to no effort.
Then, she actually felt it. She could feel the exact same warmth traveling up her arm, only it was much hotter than before. Within moments, Tessa had some of her strength back. She was weak, but no longer did she feel like a stone statue sat at Bethany's feet. Tessa managed to pull the power from her more quickly, and it got Bethany’s attention. “What do you think you’re doing?!” Bethany screeched, pulling Tessa up from the water by the neck. “You’re going to ruin my entire plan, you brat!”
“I’m not going to let you kill him!” Tessa exclaimed, locking eyes with Bethany. Bethany’s eyes were solid black, and the skin around her eyes was wrinkled and saggy. Was the power really aging her that quickly? Tessa didn’t care. She focused on the same sensation, drawing her powers back from her sister. Then, Tessa could feel Bethany trying to pull it back her way, making it into a tug-of-war of some kind. Bethany’s grandest disadvantage was needing Tessa alive and holding her hand to draw her powers from her. Tessa didn’t have that setback. She wound back a fist and punched Bethany in the face, able to feel her vampire strength returning to her.
Bethany howled in pain and stumbled back, holding her face, though still didn’t free Tessa’s hand. Bethany’s eyes narrowed at her, and a vicious grin pulled to her face. She then continued with the spell, loudly, annunciating every letter of every ancient word—knowing that if she could kill Kristian in time, it would be enough to take the wind out of Tessa’s sails. Tessa looked to him with a panic, seeing that he was still okay, but was in excruciating pain. Glancing around the room, she saw complete madness as vampires, Calder, and Firehaven fought tooth and nail. Tessa wondered if they had came to save her… or kill her. As soon as the thought crossed her mind, she knew that it didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered was saving Kristian.
Enough was enough, Tessa drew in her powers one last time before using the same hand to conjure fire, burning the shit out of Bethany’s hand. The witch finally drew her hand back, and instantly, Kristian began to fall from the air, directly into the pool. Without waiting, Tessa dove in the direction of him. She landed in the water, the black liquid filling her mouth and nose as his weight then fell on top of her. Her body became pinned to the bottom of the shallow pool, her head screaming in pain. Tessa managed to roll his body off of her, and sat up in the water. Her eyes opened and fell on him. He was unconscious… Was he alive? Fear coursed through her, she laid him in her lap, trying to wake him. “Kristian…” she breathed.
“You stupid fucking bitch!” Bethany screamed. “I will gut you and take your power the old-fashioned way,” she hissed, inching toward her in the pool. “It’s a pity, really. I thought about letting you live, as some husk of a witch, but alive nonetheless. Yet you had to go and play hero. This is what that gets you.” She raised her hand, lightning so hot that it was blinding to look at. Then, as Bethany hovered over them to strike, Kristian suddenly lunged forward and sent an iron dagger directly through Bethany’s chest.
He pushed it in even further, until only the handle was left sticking out of her chest. Bethany stumbled backward, black foam starting to ooze from the wound. Tessa took the moment of opportunity to pull herself and Kristian from the pool, managing to drag him a few feet away from it. He was conscious, but weak. How he had even managed to attack her was out of Tessa’s understanding. “You… You think a little iron is going to kill me?” Bethany laughed dryly, stumbling around the pool, grasping the handle of the blade to pull it out.
“No, just slow you down,” Kristian called hoarsely.
Before Bethany could question what he meant, a pair of legs appeared around Bethany’s ribs. In a blur, Veronica had leaped onto her back. Then, in just one clean turn, Veronica broke Bethany’s neck. With one tug, the skin ripped, and the head was pulled from the body. Veronica jumped back, letting the body fall into the water with a thud. She stared at the head for a long moment, before letting it drop into the water and disappear into the blackness. Tessa was in awe. One moment, her and Kristian were as good as dead, and the next, Bethany was decapitated. As soon as the head was out of sig
ht, Veronica’s eyes fell on Tessa. “Now, get away from my brother.”
“Veronica, stop... I want to talk to her,” Kristian grumbled, his green eyes going up to Tessa. Tessa stared down at him with doe-like eyes. There had been so much she had wanted to say to him in the last couple of months, but none of it came to mind now that she was face to face with him. “Why did you leave?” he asked her again, seeing as how he never got an answer earlier.
Tessa’s mouth opened, and nothing came out at first. “I… I…” she stammered, but her voice died out. She shook her head. “It doesn’t matter… You won’t believe me…”
“Try me.”
Tessa nibbled her lip. “Bethany… She… She showed me this vision. That if I were to stay around you without getting the training I needed to contain my Calder magic… Then you would all end up dead. It… It sounds stupid—”
“Because it is!” Veronica exclaimed. “You were gullible and fell for a trick you never should have. It doesn’t make anything you did any better.”
“I… I know,” Tessa mumbled. “I was… I was scared. I had already attacked Calla and Selena, and while I know that was because of the vampire side, I was afraid the the Calder would come out and be just the same. I couldn’t live with myself if I hurt you,” Tessa explained to him. “I know I was stupid for believing it…”
“It isn’t her fault,” a voice called from the background. They all looked over to Benjamin, who was being restrained by Dustin and Pryce. “Bethany had been planning for months before you even got here to do what she did. She used enthrallment on you the moment you met. She used the story of you being sisters to cover it up. That’s why you trusted her so easily. Bethany was already a strong witch, it makes stuff like that undetectable. She wanted to kill you for your powers, to make herself unbeatable.”
Tessa stared at him with her mouth agape. That’s what had happened? Story of them being sisters? “Are… Are you saying we aren’t sisters? Cedric isn’t my dad?”
Ben shook his head, “You’re Cedric’s daughter. Leticia and Cedric had a daughter as well, but she died as a child during an attack from the Wyrd. It was right after Cedric’s death, and the clan was vulnerable. Bethany was Cedric’s niece, and next in line for power. I guess she figured sister would be more convincing than cousin.”
“Why are you telling me this now?!” Tessa snapped at him. “You knew this entire time, and didn’t say anything at all?!”
“So much for caring for her,” Kristian chimed in, just to get a dig in toward Ben.
Ben looked to the ground. “She had made a promise that if I helped get your mind off of him,” he said, meaning Kristian, “then my family would gain an extra seat at the council. It’s not something I could pass up. It guaranteed Mimi and important role when she was ready for it… But then, when I realized how kind you actually were, I tried to warn you to back off her.”
Tessa recalled the strange conversation. She had brushed it off because of the way she had been feeling. So… Ben was trying to look out for her? “Don’t be fooled, Tessa. I heard him telling his brother he wanted to be married to you as a High Priestess to get power,” Kristian added.
“It’s not entirely like that,” Ben tried to defend. “I… I do care for you. Just…”
“Save it,” Tessa bit. “You were in on it. If you actually cared, you would have done something. You stood there while she was draining me, and hurting him.”
“I was surrounded by witches. What exactly could I do?” Ben questioned.
Tessa shook her head and looked back down at Kristian. He was already gazing up at her. “I… I can’t believe you moved onto that guy.”
“I didn’t move on,” Tessa stated simply. “I went on dates with him, but only because… I suppose it did ease my mind of you for a while. And I figured you hated me…”
Kristian lifted a hand and put it against her cheek, “No matter how hard I’ve tried to hate you, I never have.”
Her heart soared, but then, she became very aware of something. His hand. It was… It was warm. Her eyes practically popped out of her head. “Kristian…” she breathed. “Your… Your hand… it’s… it’s… warm…”
“Wha…” was all he could get out, not understanding.
Tessa lowered her head to his chest. Thump. Thump. Thump-thump.
If she would have been standing, her legs would have given out. She sprang up, covering her mouth with a hand. “Oh my god…”
“What?” he asked, staring up at her, just as confused.
“You’re… human.”
The bustle around the room as the vampires and witches tried to clean up the bodies of all those fallen stopped on a dime. Kristian didn’t move at all, paralyzed by the sudden realization. He lifted his hand and stared at it. He didn’t know the ancient language and had no idea what Bethany had been trying to do. At least she hadn’t aged him…
“Guys, I’m sorry, we don’t have time to figure this out,” Morgan said, pacing over. “There’s a swarm of witches making their way down the hallway. We’ve got to go, and we’ve gotta go now.”
Tessa helped Kristian to his feet. He was silent, and couldn’t stop staring down at himself. He rested a hand over his heart, feeling it beat for the first time in over a century. “Oh my god…” he murmured.
The Firehaven witches hurried to a clear spot on the floor and began drawing a bunch of symbols, spilling even lines of yellowish powder, and organizing crystals in a design. Then, they stood back, linking hands, chanting. It was so quick, reminding Tessa of stories she heard as a child about elves and how they worked. Once the spell was done, they then took turns, two by two, walking into the circle. Then whoosh. They would be gone in the blink of an eye. How… How did that work? Tessa didn’t question it, and gripped Kristian’s hand nervously.
“What do you want us to do with him?” Pryce called over, gesturing to Ben.
Tessa turned and looked at him, “Bring him along, he may have more information for us.”
“Who put you in charge?” Veronica spoke up. When Kristian shot her a look, she groaned. “Alright, fine.”
Rapidly, the crowd disappeared. Tessa and Kristian were near the end of the line, only a few Firehaven witches behind them. She looked to Kristian before they stepped onto the symbol. “Do you… Do you still love me?”
He nodded, “I do. Very much.”
Tessa squeezed his hand, but did her best not to hurt him, since he was human. “I love you too.”
He then leaned over, brushing wet strands of hair behind her ear, and pressed a kiss to her lips. She could feel the heat of his lips, and could hear his pulse. It was still Kristian though, and it melted her in ways she had forgotten. They peeled back and shared a smile before stepping onto the symbol together. In the blink of an eye, they were in a small cellar, with the folks that were just with them crowding the room. The Firehaven had made a portal of some kind? They moved to the side to make room for the final witches. Tessa glanced around and saw Veronica glaring hard at her, making her swallow a lump in her throat. Tessa knew that being back with them wasn’t going to be easy, or perhaps even possible. She had hurt them all by leaving, and she understood the hatred. Her eyes went back to Kristian, who in turn wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in. She laid her head on his chest and closed her eyes, enjoying the sound of his beating heart. “I don’t know what the hell we are going to do now… But we’re going to get through it together. Please, please… Don’t just leave me again. I can’t take it.”
“I swear to you, I won’t,” Tessa breathed, clutching his damp shirt. They stood in the corner of the room, embracing and tuning out the roar around them. There was still so much to figure out. Kristian was human, Tessa wasn’t sure how much of her power she had managed to keep, the family might not want her back, the council of elders and Bethany were dead… All of it would have overwhelmed and perhaps would have broken her just earlier. But then, standing in Kristian’s arms, knowing he didn’t hate her, and tha
t he loved her—Tessa was ready to face it all. She never wanted to leave his arms again.
Click To Read Book 6!
Bonus Book 1
The Alpha’s Return
Martha Woods
© 2017 Martha Woods
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All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
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Chapter 1
The darkness was his friend, keeping him hidden from sight as he sprinted through the woods. Gigantic paws hit the ground with thuds, muffled by the soil. The wind brushed against his thick, gray fur. He felt free. This was the only time he felt this way, running in the night in his wolf form. At times like this, he could temporarily forget about his responsibilities and simply be a part of nature; a part of the night. Smaller animals scurried to their hiding places, avoiding the huge predator zipping through the forest.
The wolf inhaled long and deep as it ran. Liam smiled within as the fresh air filled his lungs. This was what he had missed about Boulder Junction: the acres of forest, the freedom to run wild, and the fresh air. Other than that, he wouldn’t mind never seeing the place again. It was where he had grown up and the place that he had finally escaped when he was old enough. Family duty had forced him to return and it seemed there was no escape this time.
