by Cara Wylde
“We must find her,” he said.
Skye wiped her tears and sat up in bed. She looked at him with red, puffy eyes.
“I’ve no idea where she could be,” she moaned.
Aiden closed the space between them, sat next to her, and took her hands in his.
“Think, Skye. Think. You know your sister better than anyone.”
Skye bit her bottom lip.
“And when we find her? What then?”
“I’ll think of something.” He furrowed his brows. “It won’t be easy to convince the demon to leave her body. As long as she is possessed by the creature, Nina is very, very dangerous.”
“Why… why did the demon do that?”
It was hard for Skye to wrap her mind around everything that was happening. She had just found out about the existence of paranormal creatures and the Arcane Affairs Agency. It was all too much for one day.
“Demons can possess anyone they want. If they possess a human, there’s little evil they can do. Start fights, make the host behave strangely, maybe kill someone… But when they possess another paranormal being, they get access to his or her abilities. The demon stayed with Carter for so long because he was a wolf-shifter, and the creature enjoyed Carter’s heightened senses, shifter speed, and possibility for violent murder. Now that he has Nina, he’s even more powerful. She’s a witch, and witches can do many things, on many levels.”
Skye moaned in pain. She felt as if Aiden’s every word was hitting her in the stomach.
“Will he kill her, too?” she asked. “Like he killed Carter?”
Aiden shook his head. “We can never know. Sometimes, demons kill their hosts. Sometimes, they don’t. It depends on what’s in for them, I guess. If they believe a host will suffer more if he or she is left alive, then they abandon the body without hurting it. I think that’s why Harriet McBride is still alive. The pain of having killed her own husband will eventually drive her mad. For real. In Carter’s case… Carter had nothing else to lose. I think…” He made a pause to put his thoughts in order. “I think the demon killed Carter to hurt us. To hurt me.”
“How?”
Aiden sighed. “Since I started working for the Arcane Affairs Agency, I have never lost a civilian life. Carter was the first one I couldn’t protect. I think the demon sensed that about me and decided to kill the werewolf right before my eyes. My first loss was his victory.”
“Oh God…” Skye was starting to see the implications.
“I… I’m the reason why Carter is dead,” Aiden whispered defeated.
Skye crawled closer to him and snuggled against his chest.
“No, you’re not. Don’t blame yourself for this. The only ones to blame are Nina and I. We brought the demon to Misty Falls.”
Aiden froze. “What do you mean?”
Skye pushed herself away from Aiden, took a deep breath, and looked him straight in the eye.
“Two weeks ago, Nina and I summoned a demon. Actually, she did it, because she’s the witch, but I helped. All I was supposed to do was stand with her in the circle so she could channel some of my energy. Summoning demons requires a lot of energy, and she had no one to learn from. She can get exhausted pretty fast when she tries a complicated spell. This was her first summoning.”
“Why on Earth would you do that?!” Aiden almost yelled. “Do you have any idea how dangerous demons can be?”
Skye looked down at her hands. “We… didn’t know. It all sounded very exciting then, and I was sure Nina knew what she was doing. Before this, I had helped her with many small spells. Sometimes they failed, but it was only because Nina never had any kind of training, and she sometimes didn’t understand the rituals in her Spell Book. We thought summoning a demon would be no different. To be on the safe side, we chose a lesser one.”
“You couldn’t have summoned a higher demon even if you wanted to,” huffed Aiden. “It’s a good thing you didn’t try.”
Skye swallowed heavily. She understood now that what they had done had been terribly wrong and reckless.
“What happened next?” asked Aiden. He tried to calm down and use a more pleasant tone of voice. He could see Skye had shrunk away from him, and it hurt him that his anger had hurt her.
“Nina asked him a couple of questions, demanded that he proved his skill, then did the banishing ritual.”
“His skill?”
“Yes… Each demon has a specific set of skills.”
Aiden rolled his eyes. “I know that, baby. What skill are we talking about here?”
“Oh… Well, Solas can find lost treasures.”
“Solas,” Aiden whispered. “Is that his name?”
“Yes.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. I remember it clearly.”
Aiden grabbed her shoulders and made her look into his eyes. A smile grew on his face.
“Skye, that’s amazing! Knowing a demon’s name gives you power over the creature! It won’t be enough to banish him, but it’s a start.”
Skye smiled back at him. Hope sparked in her blue eyes. Maybe they still had a chance to save Nina. The only problem was that she now knew Solas had the power to kill her before leaving her body. A thought took shape in her heated mind:
“Aiden, do we have to make him leave the host to banish him?”
“No. A demon can be banished while he’s inside a host. But in Nina’s case, we kinda’ have to.”
“Why? Why would it be different?”
“Well, she’s the only witch we have. I thought of asking for a witch from the Agency, but there’s not enough time. We have to act now, today. It would take a while for me to call my supervisor, then go through all the bureaucracy so Arcane Affairs would send another agent to Misty Falls. Nina is our best shot. We just have to figure a way to trick Solas into leaving her body so she can use her magic to banish him.”
There were so many holes in Aiden’s plan that Skye didn’t even know what question to ask first.
“How do you know it will work this time? I mean… I have no idea why she couldn’t banish him the first time. At the end of the ritual, we both thought we did everything right.”
“My guess is both Nina and you were depleted of energy. This time, it will work because I’ll assist her. I’m a wolf-shifter, Skye. I have more energy than a human. It will work.”
“All right,” Skye said. “All right. I believe you. It will work.”
Aiden gathered her in his arms and kissed the top of her head.
“It will be fine, I promise. Nothing will happen to your sister.”
Skye closed her eyes and let his warmth envelop her. She felt safe in his arms, and she never wanted him to let go. How had she gotten to this point? It was supposed to be a one-night stand, not a crazy adventure with shifters, witches, and demons. And, most importantly, she shouldn’t have fallen in love with Aiden Ashwood.
CHAPTER SIX
Skye rummaged through Nina’s clothes, throwing shirts, skirts, and panties onto the floor until she found her Spell Book. Her sister always changed its place and protected it with spells that made it impossible to find for anyone other than her and Skye. Once Skye touched it, the book became visible to Aiden as well.
“Here it is,” she said.
Aiden took it from her slowly, reverently. He had leafed through Spell Books before, but his reluctance to handling them had never diminished. It might have had something to do with a shifter’s inborn impulse to avoid witches and anything that had to do with them, or he was simply too aware of the damage a Spell Book could do in the wrong hands. He turned the pages one by one until he found the banishing ritual.
“We have the demon’s name, and we have the banishing ritual,” he said.
“Now all we need is a witch,” Skye finished his train of thought. “Nina.”
They both sat down on the edge of the bed. Aiden closed the book and held it in his lap. Skye was staring intently at an indefinite spot on the opposite wall.
“
What are you thinking about?” asked Aiden.
Skye smiled. It was strange that a man was asking her that. Usually, women were the ones who asked their guys what they were thinking about, only to get vague answers. Aiden Ashwood sure wasn’t like the other guys she knew.
“I don’t know, really,” she said softly. “Everything. I’m thinking about everything. Three days ago, I was just a small town girl looking to have some fun with a stranger. Life was easy, and I had no intention to complicate it. If things had gone my way, you would have never found me after that one night. You would have taken care of your business in Misty Falls, then left and forgotten all about me. I would have forgotten all about you, too, found a nice guy, married him, and lived happily ever after, blissfully unaware of shifters, vampires, and whatnot.”
Something ached inside Aiden’s chest. It was scary how much control Skye had over his heart.
“Would you have truly liked that kind of life?” he asked.
Skye thought for a second, then turned to look him in the eye. “No. It would have bored me to death. In less than a year, I would have cheated on my husband with some random bad boy, and ran away with him on his motorcycle.”
Aiden laughed.
“Do you have a motorcycle?” asked Skye.
He laughed harder. “As a matter of fact, I do. I just didn’t think it would be appropriate for small, quiet Misty Falls.”
“Good.” She bit her bottom lip, trying to stifle her laughter. “I guess there’s nothing we can do about it.” She sighed loudly, fakely. “You’re my Prince Charming. I tried to fight it. I did.”
Aiden took her face in his hands. “Why would you ever fight me, Princess?”
“Look at you! You’re all dressed in leather, your chest and arms are covered in tats, you walk and talk like you own the world… You’re no husband material.”
“And you’re wife material?”
“Hell no! I hope you won’t expect me to cook and clean.”
“See? We’re perfect for each other.”
Skye’s eyes fell to his lips. She leaned in, and Aiden pulled her closer to him. They kissed passionately, their tongues seeking each other, tasting every crevice of the other’s mouth. When they almost lost their breath, Aiden placed small kisses all over her cheeks and temples. She let her head fall on his chest and moaned contently when Aiden started threading his fingers through her long black hair. They both wished they could stay like that forever.
“I know how to make the demon leave Nina’s body,” Skye said.
“How?”
“We convince him to enter mine.”
Aiden’s muscles tensed. He pushed her at arm’s length so he could look into her eyes.
“That’s crazy! I’d never let you do that.”
“It’s the only way, Aiden. Do you see any other volunteers around?”
“No. It can’t be the only way. The demon doesn’t necessarily have to possess someone so we can banish him. We only need to make him leave Nina.”
“And why would he leave Nina? So he could float about in the air and wait for you two to send him back to wherever he came from?”
Aiden furrowed his brows. She had a point. On the other hand, he had a better question:
“Why would he possess you? Nina is the witch who summoned him. She’s his best option.”
Skye shrugged. “I don’t know. To hurt me? To hurt her? She’d be devastated if anything happened to me.” She thought about any other reason. “To hurt you, maybe? You said he killed Carter to hurt you. He wouldn’t miss a chance to do it again.”
Aiden’s eyes widened with realization. Skye was right. She had no idea how right she was. Her plan might actually work. It would put her in great danger, and he would never forgive himself if anything happened to her, he could never live without her, but… her plan was the soundest so far.
“What?” she asked. “What happened?”
“You would really do this for Nina…”
“Of course I would! She’s my sister.”
“Foster sister.”
“It doesn’t matter. It never did. Not to my parents, and most certainly not to me. If this can save her… If I can save her, then I’m ready to let that bastard take control of me until you guys figure out how to get rid of him for good. I trust you. I trust her, and I trust you to help her.”
“She failed once…”
Skye shook her head vigorously. “That was different. You said it yourself: we were both exhausted. You’ll make a better witch’s assistant than I ever have.”
Aiden nodded.
“Then, there’s one more thing left to do.”
Skye looked at him with confused, innocent eyes.
He traced her lips with his thumb.
“I have to claim you as my mate.”
“Your mate?” Her heart fluttered and her stomach did a weird flip. “As in… your soul mate?”
“Yes.” He smiled. “If you allow me, of course. I would never do it without your consent. For shifters, claiming a mate is much more than… say, marriage. The bond is stronger, and it’s forever. I know you’re my mate. I’ve known since the moment I sat down at your table and bought you the first drink.”
“But… how?”
“It’s something shifters simply feel. If we’re open to it, it’s clear from the start. Sometimes, it takes longer to accept, but it all depends on the shifter and his past experiences.”
“And you all have soul mates?”
Aiden laughed. “Don’t be silly, Skye. Everyone has a soul mate. It doesn’t matter if you’re human or paranormal. The only thing that’s different is the way you feel it.”
“Oh.” She couldn’t explain the emotions that were building inside her. A combination of love, lust, hope, peace, and relief washed over her, and she felt like she could melt right on the spot. “And I’m yours?”
“Yes.”
He said it so simply, so matter-of-factly that it took her breath away. She swallowed heavily and tried to make her vocal chords work properly, so her voice wouldn’t tremble when she said: “Then, yes. Claim me as your mate.”
Aiden pushed her on the bed and climbed on top of her. He would have loved to take things slowly, undress her carefully, and lick every part of her body before he entered her and bit her neck, but there was no time for that. He kissed her feverishly while he unbuttoned her jeans and pulled them down her legs.
Figuring out this was the way a shifter claimed his mate, Skye let him do as he pleased. In seconds, he had his own leather pants around his knees, and he was pushing his hard cock inside her, stretching her to the limit. She moaned when he was fully sheathed, then moved her hips to let him know he could move. It didn’t last long. She wrapped her legs around him and tangled her fingers in his dark hair. She screamed when he came inside her and his teeth pierced the soft skin on her neck. Her own orgasm was quick, powerful, and nothing like she had ever experienced before.
***
Skye stepped carefully through the doors of the orphanage. Her heart was in her throat, and her palms were sweating heavily. She regularly wiped them off on her jeans. The silence was deeply eerie and unnatural. She had never been to a place so silent. What scared her most was that she knew this wasn’t how it was supposed to be. She had walked past the only orphanage in Misty Falls countless times and had stopped to watch the children play or study in the backyard. This was a place that was never silent.
She gasped when she saw the first petrified figure in the middle of the hallway. It was a girl, around 13 years of age. She was brown-haired and petite, and her brown eyes were filled with surprise. She didn’t move or blink, but Skye did feel a pulse in her thin wrist. The girl was breathing, albeit shallowly. Skye let out a breath of relief when she realized she was alive, just frozen mid-step, as if some sort of curse had caught her unprepared. The demon was making good use of skills Nina didn’t even know she had, apparently.
It made sense. Aiden had told her that Nina was a powerful
witch. She just didn’t know it yet because she had had no one to guide her and help her discover her powers. Solas now had access to everything Nina was capable of. Even though he was only a lesser demon, he had enough energy to use her skills without exhausting himself. As she continued down the hallway, Skye thought maybe it was better that Solas had petrified everyone inside the orphanage. It was better for them not to see what was about to happen. Aiden was outside, waiting for her to accomplish the first part of their plan. Together, they had figured out where the demon had taken Nina. Initially, Skye tried to think of places Nina liked, but then Aiden reminded her that her sister had no control over her body. Where would the demon take Nina if he wanted to torture her? To the only place she hated with all her heart: the place where her real parents had abandoned her. The petrified children, teenagers, and teachers she was currently avoiding in the hallway and inside the dorms told Skye that Aiden had been right.
She found Nina in what she guessed had been her old room. It was a sad, cramped space where six single beds had been shoved. Her sister was sitting on the edge of the last bed, the one by the window, looking outside.
“Nina?”
The redhead turned to Skye. A smirk grew on her face.
“I told you she’s not here. What do you want?”
Skye gulped. That voice again… The voice which sounded like Nina’s but wasn’t quite hers. It made goosebumps rise on her skin.
“I… I want you to take me instead.”
The girl cocked an eyebrow.
“I don’t want you.”
Skye stepped carefully between the beds. She stopped at the foot of Nina’s bed.
