by Jaymin Eve
Which was the emotional manipulation I hit her with next: “Plus you have two little dragon babies to think about. And yes, knowing you and Braxton, your children are definitely going to be all-powerful, natural dragon babies which could take on the world … but just in case they aren’t, you need to be more careful.”
Jessa started to growl, but she also reached across and hugged me. “You’re probably right, sister.” She pulled back a little to meet my eye. “And you’re going to make an amazing mom. I haven’t told you that enough. I’m so proud of you. Your strength is admirable.”
Don’t cry. I ordered my tear ducts to dry the hell up. We were in the middle of a situation here; this was no time to fall apart. I pulled Jessa back in for one last fierce hug, and then both of us focused fully on our surroundings.
“Should we just take the risk and see if we can dive through the barrier?” Jessa said as we inched our way closer to the right side of the wind tunnel. As we stepped closer the wind whipped across our bodies and I could feel the strength of it. “Or should we go into the cake house and see what we find?”
The wind cut us off on all angles except for the direction of the house. Which didn’t seem like a great thing. “I’m sure we both realize now that this is a trap to lure stupid supes or humans in with the candy and then blow up the tornado. Now we have no option but to go into this quaint, surely not dangerous at all, perfect cottage.”
My sarcasm was on point.
Jessa sighed, just a little exhalation, but I could feel her annoyance. “I’m not great with patience, and despite the fact that I’ve called through the bond for Braxton, he’s still not here.”
“Maybe this wind thing is more than just a physical barrier. Maybe it’s also a magical one that’s blocking your call?”
My twin straightened and took a few steps closer to the whirling vortex around us. Her hands drifted along the edge, the way a mime’s would during a performance.
“It’s odd,” she finally said, without turning away. “Generally I can sense magic with ease, and while there’s something threaded through this wind, it’s not like any magic I’ve known before.”
Great. Weird, unknown magic. Just what we needed. As Jessa continued creeping along the edge of the wind, her hands brushing up and down in a sweeping manner, I followed closely behind. Like Jessa, I had always been able to detect magic.
In the human world I’d never understood why these weird, almost static electricity-like sparks would trigger between me and certain humans. Now I knew why, of course, and also why those sparks had filled my blood with energy. Magic. So foreign to my understanding, but at the same time starting to feel pretty normal.
Jessa’s pace picked up and we were soon standing in front of the house. She had that “cake glazed look” again as she stared up at it. She was totally trying to figure out how to get some of the icing off the roof.
“We shouldn’t go inside,” I said, nudging her to bring her back to reality. “Every instinct I have is telling me it’s a bad idea to go in there. People go in there and never return.”
“What are you basing this information on?”
I was probably grasping, but something about this scene triggered a memory. “Mom has always watched the news, every night without fail. Now out of habit I find myself flicking it on. While you were in Faerie, we had a lot of human news stories about hikers going missing in this state, and other weird things with animals. No one in Stratford seemed to care. The supes had much more important things to worry about with Larkspur, but now that I see this here, it’s all starting to make sense to me.”
“We don’t interfere in human problems unless there’s a supernatural element,” Jessa mused. “Normally, though, something odd this close to Stratford, on our outer territory, would definitely be investigated. The whole Larky thing left everything a mess. No leaders. War across the councils. This slipped through the cracks somehow.”
That bothered her. A lot. Surprisingly, I felt the same strong sense of anger and annoyance. I was really starting to feel as if Stratford, and the supernatural community, were my true home and family. I didn’t like that someone was trying to take advantage of the recent conflict, and I kind of wanted to rip their heads off and shove them up their own butts.
“Even if this is targeted mainly at humans, it’s clearly still supernatural in nature. So we need to investigate it, right?” For the first time I was the one to step closer to the building. “We can’t let them prey on humans, or others. What if it’s Kristoff or the bear shifters and they’re using them as sacrifices or something.”
Jessa’s head shot around to me. I could see the thoughts firing through her mind also. “Ever since Giselda went on that extended visit to Italy – which kind of bothered me at the time but I was actually really happy she left – I’ve been thinking that there was something extra weird up with her.”
Giselda was my sister’s arch-enemy, a witch who was the daughter of Kristoff. What if his daughter was the one helping him with whatever plan he was trying to enact?
“Giselda might never have left America either,” I said. “Despite her getting the all-clear, she’s probably helping her father.” The witches had used some sort of spell to clear her of anything to do with Kristoff and his crimes, but that wasn’t totally foolproof.
Jessa growled, picking up my last thoughts. “If anyone knows how to get around those truth spells, it’s the Krass family. There was a reason they refused a shifter be in the room. They wanted only magic users dealing with the issue. And since Giselda never technically committed a crime, she still had the right to refuse other races be present.”
I was slowly learning how our world worked. I should have been taught from birth, but circumstances being what they were … I was way behind. I was taking the most basic of classes, and some private lessons to try and hurry my progress, but was still pretty ignorant to the ins and outs.
From what I knew, supes didn’t have that many “real” laws. The races seemed to keep track of their members, and make sure they didn’t go around causing too much chaos. For the larger crimes, then the Book of Guidance passed judgment, and criminals could end up in one of the supe prisons. There was no death sentence unless you fought in the field, but with our long lives you might wish you had been put to death after hundreds of years locked in a prison.
The howl of the wind increased and I found myself spinning around, my back to the candy house. Jessa and I had been so busy talking that we’d missed the sweeping wind closing in on us. It was so close now that if I took a single step forward I’d have been swept up into it.
“Any ideas?” I said, as we both slid back as close as we could to the house. My heels were against the front step; if I moved back any further I’d been up through the peppermint railings and onto the chocolate deck.
Before she could answer, I noticed movement on the other side of the wind wall. Shadows moved into view, large and distinctive.
“Braxton,” I heard my twin say with an exhalation of air. “We stay put until the boys figure out how to break through this.”
Of course, that was a brilliant plan. Except for the fact that the house must have heard her and decided it was not okay with that. The wind exploded around us. My feet left the ground and we were swept up into the gale. I reached out and grasped onto Jessa’s hand, covering my stomach with my other as I fought to protect my child from whatever was going to happen.
The front door of the house slammed open, and I swear as we were sucked into the unknown beyond, multiple roars ripped through the wind. The Compass shadows disappeared when the front door slammed behind us, enclosing me and Jessa in darkness.
Maximus Compass
My head was a mess. My heart was a mess. But my vampire instincts never let me down and neither did my brothers. I was heading south, chasing down our prey; the boys were spread out across the forest. The distance between us was great but I could sense them strongly through our bond. The quad bond. It was also thro
ugh this that I kept tabs on Mischa, via Braxton and Jessa.
The dragon shifter’s attention never strayed far from his girl, which was exactly how a mate bond should be.
The twins hadn’t exactly remained where we left them, but the area around them was still clear of danger. Which was a relief, allowing me to immerse myself fully in the chase. My vampire side was amped, the bloodlust riding me hard. I had not fed properly in a long time, and the faint life in human blood was dull and tasteless compared to supes’.
Unlike other vamps, I could go a long time without feeding, but the time was nearing. I would have to find a donor, or settle for bottled blood. The thought of feeding from a female supe just wasn’t sitting well with me. Humans had been different, they were not my kind, but when vampires fed from female supes, there was something intrinsically sensual about it.
So it looked like it was bottled blood for me. Almost as bad as human.
Scents crashed into me as I closed the distance between me and my prey – one of the four supes who had been stupid enough to try and stalk my steps earlier. I had zero tolerance for any being who thought they could threaten my pack. And with Jessa and Mischa pregnant … well, let’s just say my brothers and I would be asking questions later.
We protected what was ours.
Mine’s a shifter. Tyson’s magical essence was strong. His words cut off as he confronted the male. I could see through his eyes if I wanted, but there was no need. Shifter bear, Tyson finished.
He would call for us if he needed help, so I pulled my focus back to the one I was tracking. A flash of black caught my eye, clearly not part of the natural landscape around me. Asshole was going down, and once I found out who sent him, he was going to find himself in Vanguard, where the guards might pay extra close attention to him.
My senses were firing hard, and I followed the scent I had locked into my brain. I could pick this supe out in a crowd any day, but I still had no idea of their race. The muddiness of it suggested demi-fey.
I kicked up my speed another few notches and the black came into sight again. It was a cloak shrouding a small, hunched form. The figure moved fast, almost at the same superspeed as me, which ruled out ninety percent of the demi-fey.
After another minute, I was starting to get the picture of what I chased. Harpy. These bird-women had leathery skin, beak-like noses, and a penchant for war and violence. What the hell was she doing near Stratford? Actually, what was she doing on Earth? I’d never seen one in the human realm – especially not outside of the prison system. They mostly stayed in Faerie where their unusual looks and vicious nature was less noticeable. Jessa and Braxton had had a recent run in with them, and I knew if my brother caught up with this demi-fey first, she probably wouldn’t make it to Vanguard.
The figure hunched over further before ducking beneath some small bushes. There was no easy way for me to follow that path, but I could see where those bushes ended. I dashed around the side just as she darted out, and grabbed the back of her cloak.
The material was smooth, silky even. Not what I’d expected from the coarse-looking thread. Definitely a Faerie garment, which made it that much easier to slip through my fingers.
“Shit!”
My curse had her speeding up again. This was not my day. I needed about a hundred hours to sleep, feed, and time to catch up with my family and appreciate the gift of Mischa and the child she carried. I also had to look into this Cardia fake mate and fake dragon marked thing. I did not need a goddamn harpy leading me on a chase through the wilderness.
A twinge of unease crept along my spine then, and almost in the same instant I felt the spiciness of Braxton’s worry in my blood. Surely he hadn’t run into any trouble with his prey? Not even worth worrying about, which meant his concern was … Jessa. There was no other explanation.
We’d left Mischa and Jessa back in the clearing, secure in the knowledge that the four of us had our pursuers on the run. But what if we’d missed one? What if this was all a trap to leave the girls vulnerable?
Braxton. Are the girls okay? He had me locked from his mind now; my footsteps slowed as I waited for his reply. The harpy was disappearing again, but that was the least of my worries. Braxton’s deep tones came back at me hard. Maximus, fall back. Jess is blocked from me.
I didn’t hear anything more, I was already gone. The world blurred around me as I ran; the entire time I prayed to the gods, to the fey, to anyone who would listen. I could not just find out about the pregnancy only to lose Mischa and my child so soon.
I could feel my brothers close behind but I was going to get to the clearing first. Breaking free from the trees, I zeroed in on where we’d left the girls. It was empty. As I ground to a halt, I forced myself to slow my breathing. I needed to get my shit together so my senses could work to their full potential. As the blood pounding in my veins eased, I was able to scent the path the girls had taken. The trail was strong; they’d only just recently left.
I charged into the forest, Braxton right behind me. He was in human form, the forest too dense in places for his dragon. There was an odd thrashing sound in the direction we were heading, almost like a tropical storm, but it was still clear skies above us.
“Can you feel Jessa?” I asked when Braxton reached my side.
“Yes,” he said, that one word brimming with fury. “She’s worried. She hasn’t actually called for me yet, but I can tell she’s in trouble.”
Whomever had touched them was going to die. Plenty of places to hide a body out here. Wouldn’t be a problem. “I’ve got their trail. No time to wait for the others, they can catch up.”
Braxton didn’t say any more. Locked on with laser focus, both of us crashed through the shrubbery and dense foliage. The light, foresty scent of Jessa was strong. She always reminded me of new life, swirling winds, and the strength of nature. It was almost as if her scent were part mother nature, part sexy nymph. Mischa, on the other hand, had some elements of Jessa’s earthiness, but with a slightly sweeter undertone – floral even. Hers was the real deep, rich aroma of the first blossoms of spring, and I could follow that scent across the world if I had to.
The path we strode showed clear signs of damage from others who’d used it before us. Many more than just the twins had followed this trail. It was well-used, leading us right into the densest part of this pocket of forest, toward the mix of storm and machinery noises.
“What the fuck?” I cursed as we dashed into a clearing.
Braxton was already growling, both of us grinding to a halt. The storm noise made sense now. The entire clearing was filled with a massive tornado, twenty feet high and thick enough to almost obscure the objects it surrounded.
“This is magically created,” Braxton said. “So what the hell is it doing all the way out here? There are no magic users in this area.”
None registered to our town anyway, which meant this was probably dark in nature.
As we stepped closer I could just make out the shape of a small house nestled in amongst the trees, and standing before it seemed to be the twins. Or at least twin-shaped shadows.
“Have you ever seen anything like this before?”
Braxton swiveled to meet my gaze. “Never.”
Great. I stepped as close as I could, trying not to flip the hell out. Just the knowledge that something which was clearly dangerous and magical in nature was separating me from Mischa ... I was on the edge of losing it.
“It’s not attacking them,” I said, my eyes darting at vampire speed to try and discern everything from the scene. “But I think the house is made of … candy … which is all kinds of screwed up. Is the house holding them hostage?”
Braxton snarled, very dragon-like, and when I turned toward him I could see the yellow splashed across his eyes; his features were getting that lizard look about them. Most of the quad bond was disabled at the moment, just enough connection remained so Tyson and Jacob could find us, but I still picked up the animalistic nature of his mind.
&
nbsp; Braxton’s words were guttural. “The boys are almost here. I’m going to drop the rest of our bond and shift.”
I stepped back. In a flash Braxton was naked and then he was dragon. Stepping to his side, I waited for him to charge the wind barrier. If anyone could break through the magic of this unnatural tornado, it was the dragon. And he wasn’t going in without me.
“Max!”
Jacob’s shout let me know he was almost there, Tyson right behind him. Which was good; I wanted us at full strength. We’d take no chances with the girls or their babies.
My baby. Fuck. Heads were going to roll when I got to the other side. The dragon launched itself toward the wind, but just before his snout crashed through, a filtering of magic washed over the area, slamming into the four of us, knocking us back a few yards.
What the hell? Magic rarely acted so strongly against us like that, especially not the dragon.
Braxton was already moving again, Tyson and I close to his right, Jacob on his left.
“That was dark magic,” Tyson rumbled. That explained the strength. “Someone is casting a spell using demon energy.”
The wizard raised his hands, and as he started to murmur under his breath, I felt his own potent brand of energy zip away.
“Can you tell where it’s coming from?” I asked.
Braxton had paused. One wrong move with dark magic and we might make the situation a lot worse for everyone. Demons were not to be messed with. It was only their inability to live on Earth without a host that gave us any advantage against them.
Tyson took a few minutes to answer, by which time Braxton’s rumbles and fiery breath had increased exponentially. Finally the wizard said: “The darkness originated in that house. Strong sorcery, mixed of so many energies, but … fuck … I’m getting a whiff of the Krass family.”
Those words were an accelerant to the fire inside of Braxton. The dragon tilted his head back, roaring and letting his huge plume of flames spring free. He then took off at a crazed run.
