by Reders, E. M
Hell, this was all we needed, a domestic, when the demon could break through the wards at any moment and slaughter us all. “Jennifer we really need you to come out of there. We have to get downstairs and find out what is happening, and I get the feeling that Frankie isn’t going anywhere without you.”
After a few moments silence, we heard heavy footsteps stomping towards the door. “Alright,” she yelled, pulling the door open and slamming it shut behind her. Turning, she locked eyes with Frankie and informed him, “but this doesn’t change a thing,” before storming on ahead without us.
“What was that all about?” I asked Ethan as we continued on our way.
“Long story. I’ll tell you about it later.” If there was a later.
When we reached the ground floor, we pushed our way through the throngs of people gathering there to await instructions from the Alpha. Just as we made it to the front, a deafening crack filled the air and the windows shook in their panes as the floor trembled beneath us. As shouts and screams of panic surrounded us, I felt my whole world break apart.
The trembling continued but it was no longer the building but me that was shaking. I knew what that sound meant. I knew what was going to come through that door any moment if I didn’t do something about it first.
Looking around at Ethan, my friends, my pack, I knew I had to do everything within my power to stop the demon from hurting them. Sure, I would do my best to survive his attack, but even though I had now bonded with Ethan and had the Earthstone in my procession, I was no match for the demon… not without the other Elementals.
Turning to Ethan, I pressed my lips to his, the kiss all too brief. “I love you,” I whispered against his lips as I took the wooden box from his hands and darted for the door, whispering a silent pray that I would survive to kiss his lips again.
~
Ethan
The demon had lousy timing, I could say that for him. Just as I was about to make love to my beautiful mate, he decided to come a knocking.
Stupid, bastard scum!
When the building was still once more, I looked around for my father. Hell, even the Crone, Grace, would do right now. We needed to get the pack to safety straight away, find some way to slow the demon down enough to get them, and Kaia of course, out of here.
Looking to Kaia, I noticed that while her body was beside me, her mind seemed to be was elsewhere. Blinking rapidly, she looked around the room before settling her eyes on mine, a small smile touching her lips as she moved to kiss me. “I love you,” she whispered as she took the wooden box from my grasp and fled out the door.
“Kaia, no,” I yelled, chasing after her, the many feet of my friends following quickly behind. “What are you doing?” I asked, reaching out and pulling her into my arms as the heavy door behind me slammed shut.
“The only way anyone is going to get out of this alive is if I face him now. With him distracted, you can get the pack to safety.”
“But what about you?”
“It’s me he wants, Ethan. I would have to face him eventually anyway.” Framing my face with her hands, she smiled. “You’ve given me so much, Ethan. Love. Acceptance. And more importantly… a reason to fight. Let me do this.”
Could I? Could I let the mate of my heart face off to fight against a demon that is said to be so powerful that it is written that only the four Elementals together can stop him?
My wolf didn’t think so, he was all for chucking her over my shoulder and hightailing it out of there. But the man in me knew better. If anyone stood a chance against this demon it was Kaia. She was no longer weak – not that she had ever been. She was mated now, bonded with me as her protector, giving her full access to her powers.
And she had the Earthstone. I still couldn’t believe that it had been here all along, waiting for her arrival. I would have to have a word with Isaac one of these days to find out how he knew to get me to look at the other table. How he knew it was me that would be chosen. Because it was obvious now that he did.
“Okay, but with me by your side.”
Her eyes widening in panic. “No, Ethan, it’s too dangerous. And what about the pack? You need to get them out of here.”
No, I didn’t. From inside the house, I could hear my father shouting orders, directing the entire pack to head down into the tunnels below the building. “My father will look after the pack, and I will look after you. You’re my mate, Kaia, and wherever you go, I go.”
I could see that she wanted to argue with me, demand that I get my ass back inside, but she knew there wasn’t time for that. Walking over to the steps, she passed me the box and looked out into the distance.
As we watched the line of trees in the distance, I heard the door behind us open and close, and the scent of my friends and their mates drifted through the air to reach me. “Get back inside,” I growled, not even bothering to turn back around. It was bad enough having my mate out there about to face off with a demon, never mind having my two best friends and their mates in the firing line also.
“Don’t think so, dude. Our mates are determined to be out here with her, and there is no way in Hell we are going to leave their sides,” Frankie said, taking his place beside me.
“Just so we’re clear,” Jennifer snapped, turning to Frankie, “I'm not your mate.”
“Yes you are, and you better get used to it,” he growled back at her. “And once we tell this fuck where to go, we are going to have a long talk about what that means and doesn’t mean.”
I tuned out the rest of their bickering and turned to Zak and Dyanna. “Any chance I can get you guys to change your minds and go back inside?”
“Hell no! I'm not leaving my best friend at a time like this. And there has been a few things I have wanted to say to this fucker for some time now, and there is no time like the present.” A wicked smile curved her lips, an angry gleam lighting her eyes. You could really tell that she had Wereblood in her at that moment.
Zak didn’t look too pleased about it but kept quiet. I hadn’t known Dyanna long, but the one thing I did know about her was that she wasn’t one to hold back. Zak may have to gag her before this was over to keep the demon from adding her to his list of targets.
We waited out there for what felt like an eternity but it was only around two minutes before we spotted movement, something creeping through the darkness of the trees towards us.
The man that exited was not what I had expected at all. From a distance, he looked normal, human. But as he approached and I got a better look at him, I spotted things. His skin was ashen as if no blood flowed through it. His hair moved in a non-existent breeze. And his eyes… well, his eyes shimmered silver as a wicked, evil smile formed upon his face.
“How nice, a welcome party,” his strange voice echoed through the air. “Allowing someone to attempt to summon me wasn’t the best of things to do now, was it, Kaia?” Seeing the surprised upon all our faces at knowing her name, he laughed. “Oh yes, I’ve known about you for a long time. Earth is always the easiest to find… and the easiest to kill.”
“Not this time,” I growled, stepping closer to Kaia and putting my hand on her waist. We may not be able to kill him, but there was no way I was going to let him kill Kaia like he had all those before her. She was stronger, more powerful, and she wasn’t alone.
Chapter Twenty Two
~
Kaia
It was so strange, standing before the demon that had haunted my dreams for years and not feeling afraid… much.
Obviously, there was some fear, a worry that I would fail and everyone that was depending on me would perish in the aftermath. But the crippling fear that had taken me over in the past when I thought of this moment never came.
It was because of Ethan. With him by my side, I could do anything. He was my rock. Together we would face this evil, and together we would either rise or fall. Though, I was desperately hoping for us all to come through this in one piece.
Facing the demon, Ethan’s arm arou
nd me, lending me strength, I readied myself for the attack I was sure was only moments away.
“So you have found your protector. I admit, I never anticipated that, but it matters not. I will still destroy you.” His eyes glowed brighter and a smirk spread over his face as he added, “All of you.”
Everything happened so fast that I'm not sure who made the first move. Zak and Frankie grabbed their mates and pushed them to the floor just in time to miss the blasts of evil magic that Abaddon sent towards them. At the same time, I had sent my power down into the ground at his feet, pulling vines from the earth to wrap around him, bind him in one place – at least for the moment – while I dropped out of the way and indicated for Ethan to open the box and place the Earthstone around my neck. The moment the stone settled against my skin, I felt the power pulsing within it.
Avani. She had been the last to wear the stone and I could still feel a part of her power locked within it.
Snapping the vines in annoyance, Abaddon yelled, “Is that all you’ve got? All you can do? Even the others fought better than that.”
Standing up, I turned towards him, a wicked smile of my own forming on my lips as the smirk fell from his face and rage replaced it as his eyes caught sight of the stone around my neck. “What’s wrong, Abaddon, didn’t expect me to have this?” I yelled out to him, caressing the stone.
“You may have the stone, but that doesn’t mean that you yet know how to use it,” he screamed. Blue energy built up between his palms and he sent it flying towards me. Ethan made to pull me out of the way but there was no need. With just a thought the ground before me rose up, absorbing the impact before falling back down. The demon repeated the move again and again, each time directing his hits at a different person, trying to catch me out as I pulled up the earth to protect them.
“Is that all you’ve got?” Dyanna laughed, fully enjoying herself as she watched the rage on his face increase. “I mean, I thought you were meant to be unstoppable? Don’t look like it to me.”
“Babe, shut the fuck up,” Zak snarled as he pulled her back down to the ground out of the way of the energy blast heading straight for her face. I swear that girl had no self-preservation.
I couldn’t keep doing this. I needed to fight back, to attack him, instead of spending all my time and energy blocking his attacks. “Guys, I'm going to try something new. Hold on.” Pulling giant mounds of rock up through the earth below, I blocked the demons view of my friends, hoping that they would be protected long enough while I made my move. It was surprising how easy it was to do. The stone really did make all the difference.
“What are you going to do?” Ethan asked, never taking his eyes off the demon, ready to spring at any moment to get me out of the way.
“Crush him.”
~
Ethan
I didn’t know what that stuff the demon was throwing our way was, but with the devastation it was leaving behind as it hit the walls of earth Kaia was putting in its way, it wasn’t good. Every time he sent one at Kaia, I had to fight my wolf not to shift and drag her out of there.
Blocking the others from attack, she left herself in the open. Raising her hands with a look of pure concentration on her face, she worked her magic and her order to hold on made sense. The earth began to shake and crack as the ground on either side of the demon raised up high. Looking to the side, the demon spotted what she was doing and instead of the blue energy he had sent our way before, he began building an energy of the darkest black I had ever seen between his palms.
As the ball of dark energy grew, my pulse started to race, my claws breaking through as I began to lose the battle with my wolf. As far as he was concerned I wasn’t doing a good enough job protecting our mate. I knew and understood that she needed to do this, though, I didn’t like it one bit, but the wolf just didn’t get it.
“Make it fast, sweetheart,” I urged as I readied myself to push her out of the way should I need to.
A quick flick of her wrists and the walls she had built either side of the demon fell, collapsing down on him before he could send his evil energy our way, covering him completely. Before he could break free of the mountain on top of him, she clasped her hands together tightly and the mound pressed together into a sphere around him, quickly turning to solid rock.
“Do you think that will keep him?” Jennifer asked, stepping around the rock Kaia had placed to protect her and Frankie to get a better look at what she had done.
“No,” I said deadpan as the rock encasing the demon began to crack and splinter. Within seconds the whole thing broke apart, crumbling to pieces and a small ball of dark energy came flying towards us. Diving, I wrapped my arms around Kaia, taking her to the ground with me, trying my best to break her fall. Looking back, I saw Frankie diving forward, pushing Jennifer out of the way as a second ball came towards where she had been stood, just in the demons sight.
As Jennifer fell towards the ground, Frankie took a blast to the chest, his eyes rolling back as he fell to the ground unmoving. “No!” Jennifer screamed scrambling to his side, tears flooding down her face.
Anger blazed within me as I turned to look at the demon, laughter escaping him as he watched Jennifer crying over Frankie’s still body. “Well, I think I have proven my point.” He laughed wickedly as he turned to leave.
“You’re leaving?” The shock we were all feeling at his statement was clear in Kaia’s voice as her eyes darted back and forth between her enemy and her friend.
“Why waste my time and energy killing you now. I only need to kill one Elemental… just one to stop the prophecy from being fulfilled. One little witch bonding with her protector doesn’t worry me. And anyway, why would I want to kill you now, when I am so close to finding a way to steal your powers for myself?” Flashing her what I could only describe as a smile of pure evil, he gave a little wave. “Goodbye, Earth. I'm sure we will meet again… soon.”
With a sudden flash of light he was gone, the lingering smell of sulphur in the air. I quickly checked Kaia to make sure she was uninjured, even though I already knew through the bond that she was physically okay. Mentally, though… not so much.
“Jennifer, I'm so sorry,” she cried, kneeling down and placing her hand on the young girl’s shoulder. “I'm so, so sorry.”
“You told me not to apologise for… her, so don’t you go apologising for this,” she cried. Once a wolf was banished, their name was never to be spoken again. “It wasn’t your fault.”
“Come on,” Dyanna said softly, trying to get both of the girls to their feet.
“I never gave us a chance. I just let my fears control me. I knew he would never try to make me do anything I didn’t want to, that he would go along with whatever I said just to make me happy, but I still refused him. Now he’s gone and I will never get to tell him how I feel.” She broke down completely, clutching onto Frankie’s body tightly. As she did a moan escaped my dead friend.
Hold on… the dead don’t moan.
“Frankie?” Falling down to my knees, I checked his pulse, finding it beating weakly. Removing his shirt, I looked at the burn mark to his side where the energy blast had hit. It was raw and nasty looking and seemed to be getting infected very quickly. “He’s alive, for now, but judging by the looks of it if we don’t get him help soon he not be for long.”
Chapter Twenty Three
~
Ethan
Together, Zak and I carried him inside, Kaia telling us that we needed to find Grace. “That injury has been caused by magic. No pack doctor or medical practitioner is going to be able to make a blind bit of difference. It’s going to take magic to save him.”
The house was practically empty now, my father having evacuated everyone to the tunnels below, making it easy to move him quickly. The tunnel entrance was located in the basement, hidden behind a false wall and racks of shelving.
Laying Frankie down on the cold hard floor, Jennifer placed his head in her lap. Running to the hidden access panel that would
open the hidden door, I entered the combination. The lock clicked and I heard the whirl of gears moving as the door began to open, revealing Grace waiting for us. “What happened?” she asked, rushing to aid my friend.
“The demon hit him with some kind of energy. It seems to be spreading, like some kind of infection.”
Lifting his shirt and looking down at the injury, Grace’s hands shook and her face went pale. “Not an infection… a curse.”
Fucking perfect!
“What do we do?” Kaia pleaded, tears swimming in her eyes. Moving over to her, I pulled her into my arms, pressing my lips to her forehead, trying to give her the comfort she needed. She blamed herself, as always.
“There is nothing we can…” Grace began to say, only to stop, her eyes going wide and mouth agape as her stared at Kaia. “Where did you get that?”
“Get what?” Kaia asked, looking at the elder woman in confusion.
“The stone, Kaia. Where did you get the Earthstone?”
“Oh, Ethan had it. He found it down in the vault before the ritual and chose it as my gift.”
Smiling warmly, Grace nodded, holding her hand out to Kaia. “Fate really is shining kindly on us today.”
Releasing my hold I allowed Kaia to join the Crone kneeling beside Frankie. “It will take very powerful magic to counter this curse. If left to fester, it will kill his human half and destroy the kind spirit of the wolf within, leaving a wild, uncontrollable wolf behind. But I believe that together, along with the Earthstone and his mate being present, we can pull him back and rid him of the curse.”
“We’re not mated,” Jennifer mumbled sadly.
“Not yet, but you are his mate. He and his wolf have already accepted that. The question is, have you?”
She hadn’t before, her mother’s relationship with her stepfather affecting her. Could she do so now?
“Yes,” she sobbed. “Yes, I accept it.”
