“Nonsense.” The old woman tucked Elise’s arm into hers. “Come. The ceremony is about to start. You’ll be right up front with us, his family—where you belong.”
Confusion fogged her brain and her heart, which was why she allowed the duchess to drag her along, all the way to the front of the ballroom. There was a small dais set up where five men were standing with Reed. He had his back to her, so he didn’t see that she was there. When the dowager pulled her to stand with the rest of the family, Eleanor beamed at her, but said nothing. It dawned on Elise that both the dowager duchess and Eleanor suspected that something had been going on between her and Reed.
In her time, during the ascension ceremony, the would-be Alpha made their vow to protect their clan and their secret by gripping the blade of the ceremonial dagger and sealing their vow in blood. It seemed the ceremony was pretty much the same now.
“… to show your commitment to the position,” the man in front of Reed said. He was likely the head of the Lycan High Council. “You must make your vow with blood.” He raised something metallic in the air. She couldn’t see the dagger clearly, but she saw Cross and Julianna take their place on the other side and the younger woman nodded, signaling that it was the same dagger Lucas had used.
Reed reached out, then turned to the rest of the people in the ballroom as he held the blade with his hand. He didn’t even flinch as he gripped harder, staining the dagger with his thick, bright red blood.
“The vow has been spoken and sealed with your blood. And now—”
A loud, crash of thunder interrupted the head of the Lycan High Council. Another one came, so loud that it shook the glass panes of the windows in the ballroom.
Eleanor glanced around. “What in the world?”
A deafening boom filled the room as the wall behind Reed and the High Council exploded, sending chunks of the brick wall and debris flying everywhere. Elise instinctively covered the dowager’s body with her own, wrapping her arms around the old woman. Smoke and singed wood assaulted her senses, but she forced herself to look up.
“Well, well, it seems my invitation got lost in the mail.”
Three figures in red hooded robes stood amidst the pile of rubble created by the flaming, gaping hole in the wall.
“Get everyone to safety,” Jeremy said to Eleanor.
His mate nodded. “I will. I love you.”
“I love you, too.” Jeremy pulled her in for a quick kiss. “Go now, my love.”
Elise unwound her arms from the dowager. “Go with your granddaughter, Your Grace.”
The older woman nodded. “You take care of him.”
“There’s no time to waste!” Eleanor already had William in her arms. “Let’s go, Grandmama, Elise.”
“I’ll be staying,” she said. Before Eleanor could protest, she put a hand on her belly. “I’ll be safe. You know it.” She wasn’t 100 percent sure right now if she was pregnant with Reed’s baby and that she was invulnerable, but at least that would make them leave without her.
Eleanor gasped. “You’re already … all right. You take care of yourself too.” And with that, she led the dowager away toward the exit doors just as they had planned. The rest of the guests were already on their way out as several Lycans began to surround the dais forming a protective wall between the mages and the escaping guests.
Julianna and Cross were already at her side. “Three mages?” Julianna exclaimed. “How can there be three of them?”
“How dare you?” Reed shouted, his voice full of power and authority. “You dare come into my home and territory, mage?”
The hooded figure in the center of the trio stepped forward. “It seems your visitors have told you about the existence of my kind. Did they also tell you where—or rather, when—they are from?”
“Who are you?” Jeremy said. “Stop being a coward and show us who you are.”
The man laughed. “I wasn’t planning on keeping that a secret. After all, you should know who your future ruler will be.” He pulled the hood down.
“Lord Daly?” Reed said. “I don’t understand.”
Elise felt like she’d been struck by lightning. Glancing at Cross and Julianna, they seemed confused too.
"That’s not the mage who attacked us,” Julianna whispered. “He’s way older.”
Elise thought back to the man who asked her for a light on the street. No, it couldn’t be! That man was about their age. Who was this, then and who were the other two mages with him?
“Yes, I’d expect you’d be confused.” But he wasn’t looking at Reed. He was looking right at Julianna, Cross, and Elise. “I was a much younger man when you met me. About thirty years ago, at least for me.” He laughed.
Her skin crawled as she recognized his voice. ‘Lord Daly’ dropped his British accent and now it was clear who he really was. Malachi. The same mage who kidnapped her and attacked them at Lucas’s ascension ceremony.
“Funny thing with unintentional time travel. I arrived in England in 1790, right in the middle of the docks. A press gang kidnapped me and put me to work on a boat on the way to West Indies. Of course, as soon as we got to the Caribbean, I escaped. For years I survived, building up my power as best I could. Then fate brought along these two.” He motioned to the two beside him.
The two figures shrugged off their hoods, revealing Simon and Beatrice. “Hello, Your Grace,” Beatrice purred.
Reed’s face went white. “You …”
“I found them being held on a sugar plantation by the native workers there. Their mother was some doxy in America and gave them to their father, a sea captain, who took them to live aboard his ship. When the father died in the islands, the children were left abandoned.”
“We were begging for scraps when Beatrice accidentally unleashed her power,” Simon continued. “The natives were so scared that they captured us and kept us tied and locked up.”
“They thought them witches,” Daly guffawed. “They were right. A blessed witch and warlock.”
“Father found us.” Beatrice looked adoringly at Lord Daly. “And freed us so we could get our revenge.”
“As they got rid of the workers, I disposed of the plantation’s owner and took over his identity. Now,” Daly nodded his head at the dagger in Reed’s hand. “Hand that over to me, Your Grace.”
“This?” Reed held up the dagger. “What do you want with this?”
“He needs it to go home,” Cross said.
“Home?” Daly laughed. “Are you kidding me? I have three estates, a fleet of ships, a sugar plantation in the West Indies, and a palace in India. Why the hell would I want to go back home to the shit hole that is New York?” He shook his head menacingly. “I have much bigger plans. I already have one artifact of Magus Aurelius which will allow me to create portals to travel through space.” He grinned. “And I know the location of the other two as well, not to mention,” he turned toward Reed, “a supply of double Alpha blood to magnify their powers. Beatrice!”
The witch raised a hand, sending a small bolt of lightning from the sky straight at Reed. His body convulsed, and he fell to the ground, sending the dagger skittering across the floor toward Daly.
Elise cried out, but when she tried to run to Reed, Julianna held her back.
Daly picked up the blood-soaked dagger. “When I have all three and I have drained His Grace’s body of every drop of blood, the world will see a darkness like it never has.”
“I won’t let that happen,” Reed growled as he struggled to get up. “I’ll die first!”
“No need to be dramatic, Your Grace,” Daly mocked. “Besides, if you don’t come with me, I will hunt you down and kill every last one of your clan and your family. You can’t run anywhere I won’t find you. My children will burn London down to rubble to get you.”
Simon raised his arms, a fireball forming in each palm. Beatrice waved her hand and a bolt of lightning sent a piece of the ceiling crashing down a few feet away from them.
“I’m not going
to run,” Reed said. “We will fight you and defeat you.”
“If you come with me now, Your Grace,” Daly said. “I won’t kill your family.”
“You’ll kill them anyway,” Reed shot back as he got to his feet. He signaled to the other Lycans. “Change. Now!”
“You can’t—” She struggled as Julianna held on to her tighter. “Please, let me go! I can’t let them kill him. Or anyone else.”
“We can’t change the past,” Julianna said. “We stick together and grab Daly— or Malachi or whatever the fuck his name is—while you fire up the dagger.”
“What about Beatrice and Simon?” she asked. “Will we let them kill the others?”
“When we take Daly with us, they won’t be able to do anything,” Cross said. “They haven’t begun their transition into mages yet. Plus, with over thirty Lycans here, they’ll be defeated in no time. We already know what will happen, Elise. I’m sorry, but we can’t change it.”
Helplessness and despair made her heart ache. “I—”
A streak of lightning sent more of the ceiling crashing around them. Many of the Lycans in the room had already changed into their wolf forms, but Simon’s fireballs were keeping them away while Beatrice’s lighting strikes scattered them before they could come any closer.
“Get the hybrid!” Daly screamed, pointing to Cross.
Simon turned his attention to them as a giant fireball formed between his hands. In a split second, Cross disappeared with a soft pop before reappearing behind Simon. His hands wrapped around the man’s head and snapped his neck. His eyes rolled up and his body crashed to the ground.
“You bastard!” came Beatrice’s anguished cry. “I’m going to tear you apart!” She raised her hand to bring another streak of lightning down, but Julianna jumped at her, sending both women to the floor.
“Give up, Daly.” Reed approached the mage. “Powers or no, we’ve got you outnumbered.”
“Never,” Daly snarled. “I still have you and I have this!” He raised his arm and sunk the end of the dagger into Reed’s chest. Daly’s face twisted into hate as he held onto the dagger and began to chant some spell and the air around them began to shimmer and distort. Reed grew pale as he sank to his knees.
“No!” Elise tore her gloves off as she dashed toward the mage. “You monster!”
The power building up inside her burst from her fingers, firing streaks of electricity at the mage. His body contorted but he held on, and Elise could feel the power from the dagger emanating like waves.
“Julianna!” she heard Cross scream. “Let’s go.”
As Reed’s body collapsed to the floor, Elise let all her rage flow through her, sending thousands of volts of electricity into Daly. The stench of burned flesh permeated the air as he let out a long, blood-curdling scream.
Hands wrapped around her arms, and a familiar feeling washed over her as the floor seemed to disappear beneath her feet. She directed the electricity coursing through her, keeping it steady as she felt the force pulling her body back before releasing her into the dark, cold, endlessly spinning vortex. Her last thoughts were of Reed and his limp, lifeless body.
Chapter Seventeen
The bright light and the sharp ringing faded away as the feeling came back to her body. Surprisingly, she landed on solid ground, unlike their previous trip through the tunnel that had sent them sprawling across that field.
“Elise!”
She heard someone call her name. Someone familiar, but whose voice she didn’t expect. A sob escaped her mouth.
Lara’s arms wrapped around her. “Elise. Oh, Elise, I thought you’d …” She trailed off as she choked on her tears.
“Cross!” Aunt Meredith also came running at them and embraced Cross as she began to bawl. “What are you wearing?” Her tears halted as she cocked her head at her son’s formal evening wear. Then she glanced at Elise and Julianna, who were both wearing satin ballgowns. “Wait, what are you all wearing? And Julianna—your hair!”
“What happened?” Lucas Anderson’s voice was calm, though it had the unmistakable power of an Alpha. Elise’s heart sank, as her thoughts once again went to Reed.
“It’s a long story.” Julianna sighed and scratched at her scalp. “A very long story.” When she met Elise’s gaze, her expression turned sympathetic.
Grant Anderson pulled his daughter into a fierce hug. “But you were only gone a minute or two.”
“Like she said,” Cross said. “It’s a very long story.”
Daric came forward and untangled his wife’s arms from his son, then pulled him into a hug. “Then perhaps you should begin.”
Cross began to tell them all that had transpired in the last two weeks—at least it had been two weeks for them, because apparently, no time had passed for the people in the present. Elise sank deeper into her mother’s arms, trying to stop herself from crying out in agony as she thought of Reed. I’m sorry, my love, she said silently. I couldn’t change the past, and I couldn’t stop time.
“That’s incredible!” Meredith exclaimed. “So, he’s dead? You’re sure?”
“Elise burned him up.”
Lara suddenly stiffened, and she pulled back from her daughter. Her expression changed as she looked down at her and Elise’s linked hands. “Darling! You’re not wearing gloves!” Lara’s hands tightened around her bare hands. “Oh my … you’ve done it. You’ve learned how to control your powers.”
Elise didn’t even realize it. “Mom,” she whispered as she touched her cheek to Lara’s. It felt so good, feeling her mother’s bare skin. “Oh, Mom. I have something I need to tell you.”
“Whatever you want, darling.” Lara was crying, tears streaked down her smooth cheeks. “Tell me. What is it?”
“There was someone—”
A loud growl interrupted her, and every single Lycan in the room went on full alert. They all turned to the source of the sound—a large, gray wolf slowly padding toward them.
“Who the hell is that?” Lucas asked.
Beside him, his mate, Sofia frowned. “He’s not one of yours?”
He shook his head. “I don’t recognize him.”
“I thought …” Sofia’s expression turned serious. “He was outside, begging to be let in, so I let him inside!”
“You what?” Lucas’s eyes began to glow as he turned toward the unknown wolf. “Get him!”
Several of the Lycans approached the wolf, but stopped as it began to shift. Slowly, limbs began to shorten and fur receded into skin.
When the man stood up, Elise felt her heart slam into her chest.
She was dreaming.
This wasn’t real.
It can’t be.
He died.
“Reed?” The name came out like a rasp.
Brilliant onyx eyes turned to her. “Elise.”
She broke away from her mother’s arms and began to walk toward him. Everyone was talking around them, but she didn’t hear anything. The only thing she could focus on was Reed standing right there in the room. As she drew closer, her eyes devoured the sight of him. She recognized his handsome face, though half of it was covered with a thick beard. When she was inches away, she focused on his chest and let out a gasp. There was a large scar on his chest that wasn’t there before. She reached out to touch it, feeling the long, raised bump under her fingers. “Is it really you?”
He smiled. “Yes, love, it’s me.” He sucked in a breath and wrapped a hand around her wrist. “I’ve been waiting so long for you.”
The ache in his tone was so real, she had to believe it. “Reed.”
Strong arms came around her and pulled her to him. His firm lips came on top of hers in a desperate kiss, like he was a man drowning and she was his only source of air. His scent, oh his delicious scent, tickled her nose, and her wolf came alive knowing their mate was here. “I love you,” she whispered when he pulled away for a second. “I only said I didn’t because I knew you were going to die.”
“Ahem.”
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They turned and saw Lara with her arms crossed and a delicate brow raised. “Will one of you please explain?”
“Hello, Your Grace,” Cross said as he approached them. “Welcome to the future.”
“I believe ‘welcome back’ is more appropriate at this moment,” Reed replied. “And please, you don’t have to call me that. It’s just Reed now. Reed Wakefield.”
“I don’t understand,” Elise said. “I saw you. You died. And now you’re here!”
“I’m not sure what happened myself,” Reed began. “I felt the dagger in my chest and then the lightning—er, electricity—flowing through me. Then I was going through this tunnel and then I landed on the street. Little did I know I was in the East Village.”
“You arrived in New York with us?” Elise said. “How did you come here so quickly?”
“Elise, love.” He took her hands in his. “I landed in New York all right. About three months ago.”
“Three months?” She felt her jaw drop to the ground. “Why did you just come now? What have you been doing? Why didn’t you get help from the clan?”
He chuckled. “Can you imagine how that would sound? That I was a Lycan from two hundred years in the past? No one would believe me.” His voice turned somber. “I didn’t believe you.”
He was right, though. If Reed came to her months ago, she would have thought he was a crazy person. “But, all this time …”
“It was worth it,” he said, beaming at her. “It was the middle of winter when I found myself on the street, bleeding to death. These kind gentlemen saw me and brought me to the emergency room. After I got patched up, the same people helped me get to a homeless shelter. I’ve been living there ever since.”
“A homeless shelter?”
He chuckled. “I know, it’s a far cry from Huntington Park. But I realized that you were telling the truth. About traveling through time and such … and so my new friends at the shelter showed me this wonderful tool. It’s called Google.” Elise laughed, and he continued. “I tried to remember all the details you told me. I found the website of the animal shelter where you worked in San Francisco, and I had a detective get more information on you, which led me to the New York clan.” He looked over at Lucas. “Please forgive me for hiding out in your territory.”
A Witch in Time Page 20
