Hexed With Sass

by Lia Davis

  She let out another laugh and fell silent. For a moment, he thought she was upset. When he pulled back to study her face, he heard her light snore. She’d fallen asleep.

  He kissed the top of her head. “Night, my mate.”

  ***

  Darkness surrounded her like a thick pool of smoke-colored jelly. No matter how much she tried, she couldn’t get out of it. The voice she heard each time she neared the demon curse journals called to her. “Margaret, open to the darkness. Be who you were born to be. A demon’s daughter.”

  Pepper shot straight up in bed. Beside her, Wes laid on his stomach lightly snoring. A dream. More like a nightmare.

  She eased out of bed and grabbed the robe from her overnight bag. In the hallway, she heard noise coming from the kitchen. Her heart skipped several beats and she almost went back to wake Wes, but she remembered how he said his family like to just show up.

  The smell of bacon reached her senses, making her stomach growl. She’d never heard of a burglar making breakfast before robbing the place.

  Stepping into the living room, she spotted Ruthanne over the bar top separating the kitchen from the living room. When the female lifted her gaze, she smiled. “How did you sleep?” As soon as the words left her mouth, she frowned. “What’s wrong?”

  Pepper forced a smile and tried to push the remnants of the dream and that creepy-ass voice out of her mind. “I wasn’t sure who was here. I’m not used to waking up to people…”

  She cut herself off and averted her gaze to scan the living room. It wasn’t a lie; she just didn’t want to share her delusions yet.

  Ruthanne rounded the corner from the kitchen. “I’m sorry. We’re so use to coming and going, I didn’t think about you.”

  Pepper looked Ruthanne in the eyes. She was beautiful like shifters tended to be. There was a glow about her that Pepper hadn’t noticed the night before. Was she pregnant? Would she be offended if Pepper asked? Deciding it would probably be rude of her, she instead asked, “What about Wes? Did you think he might want a little privacy?”

  Ruthanne’s blue eyes darkened and her nostrils flared. Uh oh. Way to go, piss off the wolf. Before Pepper could step back, the other female reached out and took her hand, her features softening. “He’s the baby. He doesn’t get privacy until he mates.” She winked and tugged Pepper toward the kitchen. “Come, help me make breakfast.”

  Once in the kitchen, Pepper’s eyes widened at all the food. “How long have you been here?”

  Ruthanne laughed. “I brought the pastries from my house. Plus, I always cook enough so Wes has leftovers.”

  “He can’t cook?” Pepper asked as she wandered to the counter with a variety of danishes.

  “I can cook.” A snarled growl-like tone came from the living room.

  Pepper glanced up and had to steady herself on the counter. Wes wore a pair of gray-and-black-plaid flannel pajama pants that rested on his hips. No shirt. No socks. And his hair was ruffled from sleep. Good gods, he was sexy as hell.

  “Don’t give her ideas that she has to take care of me. I’m capable of feeding, dressing, and protecting myself.” Wes met Pepper’s stare and stalked toward her.

  Heat flooded her from head to toe.

  Ruthanne’s cool reply drew Pepper out of her lusty thoughts. “I’m about to be a mother, I have needs.”

  “Yeah, to drive me crazy.” Wes entered the kitchen and kissed Ruthanne on the cheek before crossing to Pepper.

  He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly while burying his nose against her neck. A sense of belonging and security filled her. It seemed so natural, so right to be in his arms. It’d be too easy to get used to.

  A moment later, Ruthanne showed them out of the kitchen. Wes led Pepper through the back door to a large deck that butted against the forest. To the right was an outdoor kitchen area and the left was a sitting area with bench seating along the railing and furniture in the center that appeared to be handmade. “This is nice.”

  “Thanks. I just finished the furniture a month ago.”

  She met his heated stare and blushed. “You have a talent.”

  “And I can cook.”

  She laughed. “You’ll have to make me dinner sometime.”

  One side of his sensual mouth lifted and he stepped closer, caressing her cheek with his knuckles. “Does that mean you’re staying?”

  “Not so fast.”

  “I’ll go any speed you want. But I won’t let you go without a fight.” He waggled his brows and cupped her nape, drawing her in to claim her lips.

  Defeat washed through her. She opened to him, meeting his tongue halfway. An ache deep inside festered and spread to all corners of her body. Images of their love making the night before were still fresh, and damn if she didn’t want to go back to his room and lock the door. Close out the whole world.

  A clearing of the throat broke them a part. Wes jerked around and hid her with his body as if expecting a threat. She peered around him at a woman who looked like Ruthanne but slightly older. The guys must get their looks from their father. However, Pepper could see them in this woman who could only be their mother.

  “Don’t hide your mate from me, Wesley.”

  Pepper pressed her lips together as Wes flinched and stepped aside. “Mom, this is Pepper.”

  “Hi. Please call me Liz or Mom.” She reached out a hand.

  Pepper shook it. When their palms touched, a shot of power raced across Pepper’s skin and traveled up her arm. She knew it was the power of the female’s wolf, but the fear returned. Pushing it away, Pepper said, “It’s nice to meet you.”

  Liz narrowed her gaze briefly, then recovered so quickly, Pepper thought she imagined it. Her heart hammered in her chest and ears. Why the panic? She didn’t understand where it came from. Then the deep, creepy voice whispered in her mind. “They wish to harm you.”

  No. She refused to believe it. Trying to force the fear away, she straightened her spine. Suddenly, pain stabbed her temples. She crumbled and placed her head in her hands. Magic unwound inside, dark and heavy.

  No, not now!

  “I’m sorry. I have to go.” Pepper pushed away from Wes and darted down the stairs of the deck, running into the forest.

  Closing her eyes, she thought of home. A moment later, she was in her living room facing her father.

  Chapter Seven

  What the hell just happened?

  Wes chased Pepper into the woods until she vanished into thin air. He let out a roar. Where did his mate go? He whirled around at the sound of footsteps behind him and let out a growl. His sister and mom stopped and put their hands up.

  Ruthanne was the first to speak. “Her powers…started to unbind. It was like they were being forced.”

  Wes growled again. “What do you mean?”

  “I came to the door to tell you the eggs were done and felt…” She shivered and hugged her waist. “Someone or something was trying to force her demon half to wake.”

  Wes fisted his hands and lowered his voice. “How do you explain her vanishing?”

  “Could have been a demon.”

  Another roar ripped from his throat. “Are you telling me a demon kidnapped my mate?”

  He didn’t wait for an answer. He took off into the forest, shifting into his wolf as he ran to Pepper’s house.

  He made it to her home in record time. Sulfur and something else he didn’t recognize tingled his senses. He bared his teeth, snarling as he stepped closer to her back door. It was cracked open and dread slammed into him.

  Still in wolf form, he entered the kitchen and listened while he scented the air. It was too quiet. However, the coppery scent of blood pissed off and scared the hell out of the man and wolf. He followed the scent to the living room and stilled for a brief moment.

  Pepper lay on the floor, motionless. Shifting to his human form, he rushed to her and dropped to his knees. No. Fear froze his blood. He lifted her in his arms, cradling her to his chest. Then he heard her h
eartbeat.

  Thank God. “Pepper.”

  She stirred and opened her eyes. A weak smile lifted her lips then she drew her brows and frowned. Fear clouded her green gaze. “You need to leave. He’ll be back.”

  “Who?”

  “My father.”

  “The demon?” Upon her nod, he gently tightened his arms around her.

  Shaking her head, she wiggled and pushed at him. “What are you doing? He’ll just follow us. Go. Leave me.”

  “Never. I’m not leaving you to that demon who thinks he can just take off with a wolf’s mate.” The words came out as a growl. A fierce need to kill something, or someone, filled him. Pepper was his.

  “You have to. He said he’d kill you and your den.”

  Wes stilled and stared into Pepper’s frightened eyes. His chest tightened and for the first time in his life, he was unsure. His pack was his family and he’d die to protect them. So was Pepper now that he found her.

  After walking to the sofa, he sat down, cradling Pepper to him. She shook her head again. “Leave, please. I can’t live with myself if anything happens to you.”

  “I’m. Not. Leaving you,” he spoke through clenched teeth.

  “Why are you doing this?”

  “Because you are my mate. I protect what is mine.”

  A shade of a smile broke through her fear. He kissed her forehead. “We need a plan. Do you know what he wants?”

  She shook her head but before she could speak, the windows in the house shattered. Wind blew through the openings and the door flew open, crashing into the wall. A tall man stood in the doorway, his brows drawn together in one angry hairy line across his forehead. The corners of his mouth lifted in a snarl.

  Wes stood, easing Pepper to her feet and tugged her to stand behind him, meeting the demon’s glare with a growl.

  “You don’t want to stand between me and my daughter, wolf.” The demon advanced, then shot his hand out in front of him and slowly curled it into a fist.

  Invisible hands wrapped around Wes’s neck, restricting his ability to breathe. The demon flicked his wrist and Wes flew to the other side of the room. Pain shot up his spine as his back slammed into the bookcase and fell to the floor in a heap of arms and legs.

  Shaking off the pain, which was dulling thanks to his supernatural healing abilities, he pushed to stand. Once on his feet, he faced the demon who had Pepper in a chokehold, her back pressed to his front as if shielding himself.

  Pepper’s eyes were wide as she stared at Wes. His chest ached while fury ran red hot in his veins. “What do you want?”

  The demon cocked his head to the side. An evil smirk formed and he said, “My daughter by my side where she belongs. I can get top dollar for her in Hell.”

  Sick bastard. Well, he was a demon. “I don’t think so. She’s mine.”

  The growl that rumbled from Wes was fierce and rattled the walls of the house. He charged the demon. When Wes reached him, he was gone. And Pepper with him.

  Wes fell to his knees and roared.

  ***

  Pepper was dumped in a dirty cell with no windows and a bucket to go the bathroom in. As if. She didn’t remember much of her father besides his deep, dark voice. The same voice that spoke in her mind, coaxing her to kill people around her.

  Is that what he did to Mom? Or did he try to sell her for sex? Mom said she cursed him, but he was alive. Had he turned the curse on her? Maybe. A tear slid down her cheek and a headache began to throb in her temples.

  Her heart ached for a new reason. Wes. He would go mad trying to locate her. Even she didn’t know where she was. She did know she wasn’t in Hell. Somehow she felt the natural world around her, the trees and life beyond the walls of the prison her demon father dropped her in.

  Think, Pepper. She paced the small room. If only she had powers beyond spells…

  Wait. She was part demon. Her powers were bound and recently they began to come back online. She squeezed her eyes shut. As much as she hated dark magic, the only way out of here to stop her father’s evil plans was to open to the dark part of her.

  She had to get back to Wes and his pack. They had to be warned that her father was crazy. There was no way she’d let anyone harm her mate.

  Her mate.

  Wes was hers. No matter how much she tried to deny it, they belonged together. She’d felt it deep down the moment she saw the silver wolf in her backyard.

  She’d be damned if her father would sell her off like a whore! Fury swirled within, starting at her heart, spreading to every inch of her. Dark and light magic mingled in her blood. Her powers were there, she could feel them, but they seemed to be just out of reach.

  If only she could grab her powers and break the shield that bound them.

  The door crashed open and she jerked around to glare into the demonic gaze of her father. His dark power whipped around him like an inky cloud, licking at her skin. It was like the curse journals and when she met Carter. Now she realized the panic she felt was her father trying to invade her mind.

  Narrowing her gaze, she pointed at him. “You will not get away with this.”

  “Who’s going to stop me?” He laughed, the husky sounds scraping across every nerve ending. “Surely, not you. And your wolf is powerless against me.”

  Maybe that was true, but she had to try. She would not go down without a fight. “I see why Mom tried to kill you. You’re a bastard and evil.”

  “You are too kind.” He continued forward, forcing her to step back until she was pressed against the concrete wall. “You look so much like your mother.”

  The last statement was spoken softly, but Pepper didn’t miss the soured notes of anger laced in the words. Fear gripped her heart, squeezing. Run. She wasn’t sure the single word was her own voice or someone else’s.

  He stopped inches from her and snarled. “The bitch was going to leave me, take you girls from me. Even though Ruby wasn’t mine, she was coming of age and would keep a few demons happy for a long time. She had a fire I hadn’t seen in a witch in a long time.”

  “Ruby would have killed you.”

  He threw his head back and laughed, then grabbed her by the throat and lifted her feet off the ground. She wrapped her hands around his wrist and kicked her feet. This was it. She was going to die.

  The demon’s eyes changed from black to red. Swirls of magic brightened the depths. Power slammed into her, making her gasp. The thin barrier that bound her powers burst and she began to shake.

  He released her and she crumbled to the ground, gasping for air. Her body felt like it was on fire. Her last thought before she passed out was of Wes.

  Chapter Eight

  Wes paced his living room, fists clenched at his side and jaw working. The bastard took his mate and was doing who knew what to her. His wolf paced under his skin, wanting out to maul the demon.

  “We’ll get her back.” Ruthanne’s cool tone cut through his thoughts.

  He whirled to face his sister, his upper lip curled. “Damn straight, we’ll get her back. But you aren’t going.” He pointed to her mate and their brother. “None of you.”

  Rolan crossed his arms over his chest. “I can see Ruth not going, she’s pregnant. But Carter and I are not so we go.”

  Wes growled at his brother and went nose to nose with him. There was no getting his way this time. Rolan outranked him in the family. Besides, they would just follow him. “The demon is mine.”

  Rolan gave a short nod and turned to Carter. “Is there a way to track Pepper?”

  “Yes, but I need something personal of hers. A hair from her brush would work best.”

  A possessive need to keep Pepper’s personal belongs out of his brothers’ hands filled him. They didn’t have a right to be in her space. However, what choice did he have? He needed to find her.

  Grabbing his keys off the coffee table, Wes barked out, “I’ll drive.”

  Ten minutes later, they were standing in Pepper’s living room. Every window was blown
out and the front door was off its hinges. The living room was a mess. The bookshelf was destroyed and books littered the floor.

  He glanced at Carter and Rolan over his shoulder. “Wait here.”

  He advanced down the hallway to the bathroom. He figured he’d start there for her brush. It wasn’t there and he turned to cross the hall to her bedroom. The brush was on her nightstand beside her bed. After picking it up, he caught the slight soft rose scent, Pepper’s scent.

  His chest tightened. “I’m coming for you, Pepper.”

  Returning to the living room, he noted the guys were in the kitchen. With a low growl, he entered and said, “I told you to stay put.”

  Carter lifted his brows and coolly said, “I need a ceramic or glass bowl.”

  Whatever. They were in his mate’s space while she was being held captive by a demon. He offered the brush to Carter with a jerk. His brother-in-law took it, plucked a single hair, and added the strand to the bowl of water.

  A few moments went by and Wes grew more impatient. Nothing was happening in the water. Would he see what Carter would? Just then, the water rippled and an image formed. An old farmhouse surrounded by thick trees and brush.

  Carter lifted his gaze to meet Wes’s stare. “I know where this is.”

  “Where?” Wes clipped out.

  “About twenty miles west of here.”

  Wes didn’t stick around to hear any more. He grabbed his keys and rushed out the door to his old Chevy truck. He wasn’t surprised that Rolan and Carter climb in after him. The cab was crowded with the three crammed in but Wes didn’t give a shit. He needed to get to Pepper and bring her home.

  They were a few miles away from where Carter claimed the farmhouse was when a group of rogue shifters stepped into their path. Wes slammed on the breaks, making the truck slide on the narrow dirt road.

  “What the fuck? We don’t have time for this.” Wes climbed out of the truck and snarled. “You can get the fuck out of the way or I’ll run your asses over.”

  There were five of them and they all looked like they crawled out of caves and never bathed. The crazed, wild gleam in the eyes told Wes they were hyped up on something. Most likely a drug of some kind and bloodlust from killing humans.