by Quinn Loftis
He turned and headed back toward his home, back toward two males desperate to find their mates, back toward the newly mated wolves who would no doubt be driving the three healers insane with their overbearing possessiveness, back toward the empty bedroom he shared with his female. She would be home soon, he told himself, because he had to. If he didn’t tell his wolf over and over that she would return to them soon, his wolf would force them to hunt her. That would simply irritate her beyond measure. He smiled to himself. Maybe he should hunt her simply for that reason alone.
Chapter 17
“I’ve lost track of time. The days have run together, and all I know is pain. The hours are marked by how long I may rest until the next round of anguish. But Anna and I refuse to give up. We still talk about how we can defeat our enemy. But deep, deep down, I wonder if there will still be enough of me left to fight back once this is over. I hide it well, but the darkness that now lives in my blood is gaining ground. I fear it’s only a matter of time until my light is snuffed out.” ~Jewel
Volcan flashed into the room and smiled at the two women huddled on the floor. He was eager for them to continue his plan. He knew they would now be much more compliant.
“I do believe the message has sunk in,” he said, motioning to their stomachs where his fae blade had cut into their skin. “Though perhaps there is still something missing.”
He walked over to Jewel and held his hand out. As he raised it, her body rose until she was standing with her back against the wall. He shoved her shirt up and then pressed the palm of his hand to the flesh below the word that had been carved there into her skin.
“If something ever happens to me, not that it will, but if it did, you will have me forever with you, branded on your skin.” His hand began to glow a bright red just about the same time Jewel began to scream. To her credit, she didn’t beg him to stop, or even cry. When he was done, he pulled his hand away, and she crumpled back to the ground.
Volcan turned his attention to Anna and smiled. “Your turn.”
Anna didn’t cry either, she did, however, call him many unsavory things. Volcan didn’t care. It wouldn’t be much longer and his magic will have filled every part of them, leaving no room for their own light.
When he was done, both healers had a V burned into their flesh, forever marked as his.
“Now, there is something I believe we need to address before you resume your task—the task I’ve created you for. You blamed your previous pathetic attempts on your lack of knowledge. I’ve done some research, though my own historical texts are scarce since the Great Purge. What I’ve found is that the darker the soul of the female subject, the more effective the spell. And they must give a blood sacrifice for the ritual to be complete. I have not found anything that was documented indicating anything special other than this. That said”—he paused as he narrowed his eyes on them—“You are gypsy healers. Your magic is very, very different from mine. And as we’ve discussed, Jewel, magic is driven by its wielder’s motivations. Perhaps something in your magic is altering the spell. As much as I utterly loath admitting it, I do not know what effects the mixing of our magic will cause. That’s the burden of being the pioneer in a field.”
Anna chuckled, though it sounded weary. “So you consider yourself a pioneer? In witch making?”
“No, in gypsy-witch making. It’s never been done before.”
“That you know of,” Jewel said.
Volcan didn’t rise to her bait. “It’s never been done,” he repeated coolly. “I do have other news that I shall share with you. I am sure it will be very uplifting to you both and give you much hope.”
“Then why are you telling us?” Anna asked.
Volcan’s lips turned up in a smile that probably looked as evil as he was. “Because then I get to see the renewed sense of purpose snuffed out when I remind you that you will belong to me whether I am alive or dead.”
“Fine,” Jewel said. “Give us our hope, please.”
“There are some wolves knocking at my door. They’re attempting to blow my house in by the hair of their chinny, chin, chin.”
“Did you seriously just make reference to a children’s story?” Anna asked as she pushed herself into a sitting position.
“What wolves? Where?” Jewel asked.
Volcan smiled at her. There was the hope he was wanting to see. “They’re at the veil to this realm, attempting to undo my spell. They’ve even brought a djinn with them.”
“A who?” Anna asked.
“You’re full of questions for one who has been tortured for three months,” Volcan snapped.
“THREE MONTHS!” Anna roared.
“What about the wolves!” Jewel yelled at the same time.
“Never you mind, Jewel., Dalton is not amongst the group. I’m sure by now he’s given up on you. There’s that hope snuffing I was talking about. No bond, no word from you, for all he knows, you’re dead. But it is cute that they’ve sent out a little multi-species rescue party. They could be the poster group for interspecies relations.”
“Can we please go back to the part where you said we’ve been tortured for three months,” Anna said. “Don’t you think that was a little excessive?”
“Nonsense.” He waved her off. “I left all of you intact. I didn’t turn your brain to mush. Really, you got off easy.”
“Easy?” Jewel asked in a voice so soft he had to lean closer to hear her. “You think being carved like a turkey for three months is easy?”
“Jewel, my sweet, you’re going to be a full-fledged witch before too long. The light in you is fading so fast. You’re going to have to get past a little torture. There are much bigger things going on than you, Anna, and your booboos.” Both women started to speak, but he waved his hand and their mouths snapped shut.
He clapped his hands and rubbed them together. “Now, it is time,” he told them. He forced them to their feet once again and then, with a flick of his hand, they were in clean clothes and looked as fresh as if they’d just showered. He couldn’t have them traipsing around looking like death warmed over, now could he. “You are to continue your task. And I expect better results.” He stepped closer to them and enjoyed how they flinched a little as he reached out his hands. Pressing a palm to each of their chests he muttered a spell and endowed them with some of his abilities.
“You will be able to flash now. I need you to be able to travel quicker. You simply think of where you want to go, and you will be transported there. Example, if you want to go to a city, think of that city and then think of a specific place like a dark alley or an empty bathroom. You don’t have to know where the alley is or the bathroom’s location. Just give the magic an idea of what you want, and it will do the rest. You don’t want to simply pop up in the middle of a busy highway.”
He grabbed their arms and flashed them from the cell and then reappeared in a corridor. “Stay right there. You cannot flash from this castle until I lift my magic. You will be taking your guards with you.” Volcan flashed into the cell that held the two warlocks.
“Wakey, wakey,” he sang as he shot a small bolt of magic at each warlock.
“Damn,” Z cursed as he jumped to his feet.
“That really isn’t necessary.” Sly growled as he too rose to his feet.
“Necessary? Maybe not. Fun? Most definitely. I think you will find that I went rather easy on you considering what my girls went through. I won’t be as forgiving on you if I have to bring you back here again. You are to protect them, you are to assist them, and you are to make sure they are successful in their task. You will remember what is at stake. If you fail to do these things, I will rip her beating heart from her chest. Your sister and your mate will die.”
The two warlocks glared at him but gave him nods of understanding. He flashed them into the corridor where Jewel and Anna waited.
“Do. Not. Fail,” he said to the two healers and then snapped his fingers just before disappearing.
Volcan reappeared at the
veil to the draheim realm. He could feel his own magic holding the veil closed, but he could also feel other magic. For the past few months, his spell had held up against the magic of the most powerful djinn, along with the wolves, a pixie, and two fae. He had to admit he was impressed with their combined power but, so far, his spell was holding.
He raised his hands and ran them down the invisible web of spells, reinforcing them, and giving those on the other side a little jolt just to show them that he recognized their effort. He didn’t want the djinn to get his feelings hurt since his magic wasn’t destroying Volcan’s like it should be. But then again, Volcan had an ace up his sleeve that the djinn didn’t know about. It was quite brilliant if he did say so himself.
He laughed as he thought of something else he delighted in as much as crushing hope, making fools of his enemies. “They don’t even realize that they’re being distracted from the real threat.” They were so focused on breaking the spell that they hadn’t stopped to think about what he might be doing outside of the draheim realm. By the time they either gave up, or indeed broke his magic, it would be too late. He would have his army.
Jewel was still trying to come to terms with the fact that she’d essentially lost three months of her life. “Z, Sly, I promise I’ll get to you. Just give me a moment to process. Anna,” she said in a near whisper. “Three months, Anna. Do you know what can happen in three months? Scientists have found that it takes three months to heal a broken heart and get out of the recovery phase of a break up or loss.” Oh snap, she thought, was Dalton over her? In the three months that she’d been gone, despite the handful of phone calls, had Dalton been able to heal whatever the broken bond had hurt?
“I can see your wheels working, Jewel,” Anna said as she reached out and took her hand. “Dalton hasn’t mended a broken heart because his heart wasn’t broken. He still has you, and you still have him.”
“But three months, Anna. In three months, the first trimester of a baby is completed. That means every essential organ is formed. A baby in the womb has been more productive than we have for three months.”
“Okay, thanks for that,” Anna said, her lips lifting in a smirk. “I’m with you on the whole three-month thing. really Jewels, I am. Inside I’m totally freaking out, while maintaining an air of calm on the outside that I don’t feel. So let’s look at things from a positive view with respect to the three months. That way, I’m able to maintain said fake calm, okay?”
“Positive.” Jewel nodded. “Got it. Okay, so in three months, something positive,” Jewel muttered under her breath. After a couple minutes, she shook her head. “I got nothing.”
“How about this,” Sly spoke up. “In three months, you survived being in the clutches of a crazy, evil fae.”
She nodded. “I guess I can work with that.”
Jewel looked at Sly and Z and gave them a small smile. It was all she could muster. “Sorry about the mini freak out. I’m sure there are more to come. By the way, did you know that brain cells cannibalize themselves as a last-ditch source of energy to ward off starvation?”
Sly smiled. “Is that your nice way of saying you understand if we’re dumber than we were three months ago?”
“No, that’s her way of coping,” Anna said dryly. “But since we’re on the topic, did Volcan starve you for three months? And if so, how are you alive?”
Z shook his head. “No, he didn’t starve us. He gave us some of that fae bread crap and water that tasted like pi—”
“Z,” Sly interrupted him, smacking him on the chest.
“Oh, sorry. The water tasted bad, let’s just leave it at that.”
“And Anna’s right,” Jewel said, smiling. “Random facts are my security blanket. For instance, did you know that in New York it is illegal to sell a haunted house without disclosing the fact of the haunting to the potential buyer?”
Sly laughed, and Jewel decided it was a very welcome sound after everything they’d been through. Maybe some ridiculous facts were just what they needed in order to survive.
“I hate to bring this up,” Anna spoke up, “but I feel like we should let you two know that we heard what Volcan said to you. Is that why you’re working for him?” Anna asked. “We heard him threaten to kill someone. He said your sister and your mate?”
Z looked pained as he spoke. “My sister and Sly’s mate are one in the same. And yes, Volcan has her.”
Jewel reached over and squeezed his hand. “I’m so sorry, for both you. We’re going to get through this, and we’re going to destroy him.” She whispered the last part. They nodded, but she could tell that they weren’t so sure about her declaration. But then, she wasn’t so sure anymore either.
“Do you still have the book?” Jewel asked as she remembered what her mom had said to her before she died. She made it clear that it was very important that the book was kept safe and taken to Anna’s mother.
Z nodded and motioned to the bag on his back.
“Volcan’s given us the ability to flash,” she told them. “He wants us to be able to travel faster. He didn’t give us any helpful information with respect to our task, though. He said he was a pioneer in creating gypsy-healer witches, and because of that, he didn’t know how our magic might affect the spell.”
“We’re going to New Orleans, to see my mom,” Anna added. “She’s a gypsy, but not of the healer variety. Apparently, she might be able to help us with our book. When we get there, we’ll fill you in on what happened when Volcan brought us back.”
“Where in New Orleans?” Z asked.
Anna smiled. “To the Little Shop of Horrors.” She grabbed his arm at the same time Jewel grabbed Sly’s, and they both flashed from the corridor of Volcan’s castle.
When they reappeared, Jewel looked around and saw that they were standing inside of Anna’s mother’s store. The lights were all off, and it was dark outside. So, it’s nighttime, she thought, as she tried to orient herself to being, well, not in a dungeon.
“Anyone else feeling like they don’t belong in society after being stuck in a cell for so long?” Z asked.
“Have you ever felt like a member of this society?” Anna asked. “As in the humans. And yes, I feel like I don’t belong, to answer your question.”
“I’ve never had a problem blending in with humans,” he answered. “And I’ve always liked coming into the human realm. So I guess, yeah, I’ve felt a part of your society.”
“Glad to know that somebody has,” Jewel muttered. She was human, and yet she’d never felt as though she belonged. But then she’d met Peri, the other healers, and Dalton, and that all changed. Now she did feel like she belonged, and she wanted to hold onto it with both hands. But every second that Volcan’s magic flowed in her veins, it drew her further from the people she’d grown to love.
“We need to charge our phones,” Anna said, pulling Jewel from her thoughts and reminding her that she’d be able to contact Dalton again.
Anna headed toward the back of the store. Jewel and the males followed. “Then I can call my mom and find out if she’s in town, or maybe she’s hired someone to watch the place while she’s off being a gypsy.”
As soon as they entered the back room, they froze.
“Anna?” The woman who spoke jumped up from the table and hurried over. She wrapped Anna in her arms and closed her eyes as she squeezed her.
“Hi, Mom,” Anna said a little hesitantly.
Jewel could tell that Anna was not used to her mom being so affectionate. That made her worried. The presence of unusually affectionate mothers almost always meant something bad was going to happen.
When her mom finally released her, Anna stepped back and then motioned to us. “These are my friends. Jewel, Sly, and Z. Guys, this is my mom, Jezebel.”
Jewel tried very hard to keep her mouth shut, but once again her need to spout off facts when nervous got the better of her. “The meaning of the name Jezebel is chaste, free from carnal connection, which is ironic considering the woman Jeze
bel from the Bible and history was one of the most licentious women.” Jewel’s eyes darted from person to person as she watched their eyes widen and several mouths open and close as if they weren’t sure what to say. It was Anna who rescued her from her incredibly awkward comment.
“Sorry, but you’re going to have to dumb it down for us laymen. What does licentious mean?”
“It means wicked, immoral, shameless,” Jezebel answered before Jewel could.
Jewel felt her cheeks get warm. “It is very nice to meet you, and please ignore any random or tactless thing I say from this point forward.”
Anna’s mom smiled and then pulled Jewel in for a hug. “Jewel Stone, you are a rare gem, and I don’t just say that because of your name. And those random, tactless facts just might save your life and the lives of others one day.”
Anna was trying to absorb the fact that her mom was there, right in front of her. It had been so long since she’d seen her that it was hard for her mind to grasp that they were together. And the fact that she seemed so much less flighty than she had for all those years as Anna grew up was even more disorienting.
“Mom, we have some things we need to talk with you about,” Anna said as her mom released Jewel.
Jezebel turned to look at her, and the smile she gave Anna was one of sadness. “Yes, daughter mine, we do. But I’d rather we do it upstairs where prying ears won’t hear.”
“How exactly will going up stairs help prying ears not hear?” Jewel asked.
“Because I’ve warded it. No one can hear anything that goes on in the apartment upstairs,” she called out over her shoulder as they followed her.
Anna was trying not to trip over her jaw that had dropped open. Warded? Her mother used magic?
“How were you able to ward it?” Jewel asked the words Anna was unable to get her own mouth to say.
