Thea waved her hand in front of her, trying to make them fade again, but it took longer this time, and she couldn’t make them all disappear. One of the sparks exploded on her shoulder.
I stilled and the witch in front of me landed a nice sidekick on my ribs, robbing me of air. I didn’t know what I hated more: when witches fought with magic, which was hard to battle against, or when they came in for a physical fight. Because they shouldn’t rely only on magic, most of them knew how to fight—and that was my department.
Swallowing a scream, Thea stumbled back. She created a shield to protect herself, and to take in a breath—she looked as shocked by her injury as I was—but Morda’s sparks were too powerful now. On the fourth spark, the shield broke.
Morda threw more sparks, more flames, more bolts. Thea was doing her best to dodge them all while still sending out spells of her own.
Morda gathered her power and threw a big red bolt at Thea. I could see the shine of sweat on Thea’s forehead when she closed her hands into fists, then let her hands and arms open, breaking the bolt into two and sending them out.
The two bolts hit the balcony on the second floor of the ballroom, breaking the railing and some of the floor. The metal and concrete fell to the ground, shaking the room once more.
Everyone stopped for a second to assess what was going on, but Morda didn’t stop. She took advantage of the distraction and squeezed the heart again, summoning more of its power.
Thea bent over, gasping. Morda was taking the power, and in turn hurting and weakening Thea.
They exchanged more blows, but I could see it clear as crystal. Since she didn’t have the heart, Thea couldn’t sustain the power for long. Though I believed she still had a lot to give, she couldn’t fight forever.
The opposite from the rest of the fighting going on in this castle. The vampires and werewolves and witches were hurt, but with their enhanced stamina, their fight could go on forever.
We had to find a way to end this.
I stared at the broken pieces of metal and concrete on the floor.
Half distracted, I didn’t see a werewolf lunging at me. Hell, I didn’t have time to waste. I focused all my strength and grabbed the werewolf by its side, taking in handfuls of fur. With a growl, I threw the werewolf across the room.
Then I ran to Thea.
“Finish this,” I told her.
She cast a shield in front of us and looked at me. “How?”
This close, she looked even more tired, with clammy skin, dark circles under her eyes, and shaking hands. The wound on her shoulder was charred over, but there was a steady trickle of blood going down her arm.
Hell …
I pointed to the broken balcony. “Destroy the castle and we’ll flee.”
“But we have to finish this.”
I grabbed her hand and squeeze. “Live to fight another day, remember?”
Her gray eyes looked pained, but she nodded.
She turned to her shield and reinforced it.
Then, she took a long breath and raised her hands over her head. She shot blue sparks at the ceiling and the pillars across the room.
The castle shook …
Everyone stilled.
Then, it began to crumble.
A big piece of ceiling fell right between Morda and Thea, sending dust up in the air.
Screams filled the room and chaos returned as some fought and some ran.
I took Thea’s hand again and tugged. “Let’s go.”
Thea stayed put. “Morda has the heart …”
“I know,” I said. This couldn’t be easy for her. “We’ll get it back later. I promise.”
When I tugged again, Thea didn’t resist.
We weaved through fighting vampires and werewolves, fleeing witches, fallen bodies, and crumbling concrete.
Twice, pillars and walls fell inches from our heads.
We navigated the hallways and ran toward the foyer, where we halted.
The werewolves were there, fighting the rebel vampires.
The main stairs shook and a piercing noise echoed through the air when it broke and fell to the side.
A big black wolf transformed back into a human. “Retreat!” Ulric shouted.
The wolves ran.
All of them except for Luana.
She was in her human form, a lot of dust and blood covering her naked body, and a big piece of concrete on her foot.
“Help me!” she yelled. “Ulric, help me!”
Ulric paused and glanced at her. “Thank you for being a loyal wolf,” he said before transforming and running out.
“No!” Her screamed broke with a sob.
Two of the rebel vampires noticed her there, incapable of moving, and advanced on her.
I didn’t think.
I lunged at them and ripped their heart out in two seconds flat.
When I turned, Thea was kneeling beside Luana. “You’ll be alright.” She looked at me. “Help me here.” I frowned, but didn’t move. “Drake.” Thea’s voice hardened. “Help me move this stone.”
“Why should I?” I spat. “She betrayed me.”
“I’m sorry,” Luana cried. “I didn’t have a choice.”
“Drake,” Thea started. “We can argue about that later. Now help me because I won’t leave her here to die, not like this.”
Thea and her good heart …
I sighed and crouched down. The boulder was big and heavy, but I was able to lift it enough for Thea to pull Luana’s leg from underneath it. Like I had done before, I took off my shirt and handed it to Thea. She covered Luana’s body, then I picked Luana up in my arms.
A white blob appeared by my side, startling me.
“This ceiling is breaking,” Thomas said, pointing up.
“Thomas!” Thea cried, her eyes wide.
“Hi, Thea.” He smiled at her, but then stared back at me. “You have three seconds to get out of here before being squashed.”
With unspoken agreement, Thea and I took off with Thomas floating by our side and Luana half-dead in my arms.
We stepped outside the castle and the foyer came down in a wave of rumble and dust.
I glanced around us. Half of the castle was already gone, and the other half was following. Werewolves and vampires and witches ran rampant, some fighting, some fleeing.
“We should keep moving,” Thea said, her voice low. Defeated.
I nodded.
As swiftly as we could, the four of us turned to the woods and ran.
25
Thea
It was like Drake could read my mind. We both ran toward the cottage without even mentioning it.
But once we stepped into the clearing, my heart fell and my legs gave out.
The cottage was burned to the ground.
“No …”
Since only Keeran and Ebby knew about the cottage, I assumed it had been Ebby. Or Morda, after Ebby had told her about this place. Or both. Or all of the Silverblood witches.
Ebby had known I had stolen the coven’s heart, but I hadn’t told her where I had hidden it. Nevertheless, they had retrieved it, and in the process, burnt the cottage that had been a refuge for Drake and I.
I sank to my knees as tears filled my eyes.
Drake deposited Luana down and knelt beside me. He pulled the shoulder of my ripped gown down and took a look at my wound there. “This doesn’t look good.”
I glanced at my shoulder. The wound had stopped bleeding a while ago, but it still hurt. With the right healing and rest, I would be good as new, though.
I shifted my eyes to the charred wood mess in front of us. “We’re in big trouble,” I whispered.
Drake reached for my hand. “We’ll figure it out.”
“I’m glad you’re confident, because I’m not.” I sighed. “How can I be when Morda has the heart?”
“We’ll take it back.”
I rested my head on his shoulder. “Can I close my eyes and pretend this was all a dream? No, a nightmare?�
�
He kissed the top of my head. “You can take a few days to rest, but you know we can’t pretend nothing happened.”
Nothing happened … like the heart and me. “One thing I don’t understand though is how I didn’t awaken the heart powers before. As far as I know, a witch queen is born, not made. I didn’t suddenly become one. But why didn’t it connect to me until after we met? After I stole it from the vampires?”
“I don’t know.” Drake inhaled deeply. “Maybe it has something to do with our bond.”
“Our bond?”
“Yeah, well, I don’t know, but it has to be some kind of bond. I feel a pull toward you all the freaking time. Don’t you feel the same?”
“I do …” I frowned. I hadn’t given much thought to it. I thought it meant we were deeply in love, or even that we were mates, but I discarded that as vampires and werewolves only mated within their own species.
“I might be able to help with that,” Luana said from behind us.
By all that was sacred, I had almost forgotten about her. And Thomas, too. He was floating beside her. Drake had told me about him, but it was so weird seeing him like this.
“What do you mean?” I scooted closer to her and inspected her wounds. Besides all the scratches and cuts and blood, her ankle was twisted in an awkward way.
“I know someone who might know what it all means,” she said.
Drake stilled. “I’m not sure. Give me one good reason we should trust you again?”
Her hazel eyes filled with tears. “Why would I lie? I followed my alpha’s orders, and what do I get in return? I was abandoned by my pack and left as food offering to the crazed vampires.” A tear rolled down her cheek.
“Drake, give her a break,” I said, knowing he would listen to me. At least for now. “I think I can heal most of your wounds, but I’ll need some ingredients first.” I looked around. “I have no idea where I’ll get them though.”
“I know,” Drake said.
I frowned at him. “What do you mean?”
“Just come with me.” He picked up Luana again.
The four of us went down the hill, through a few miles into the woods, until we reached a back road. We followed the road into a small town. Drake left Luana with me at the edge of town while he stole a car.
“What?” He shrugged at me from the driver’s seat. He pressed the pedal and the car lurched forward.
“You stole a car?”
“I left my silver cross pin in its place,” he said, as if that made it all right. “The owner will be able to buy twenty of these now.”
I shook my head, but glanced out the window.
My mind spun with so many thoughts, so many feelings. I felt lost and broken and hopeless. I reached across the seats and grabbed Drake’s hand. At least I had him with me. And this time, I wouldn’t let him go.
Finally, a couple of hours later, Drake drove onto a narrow dirt road flanked by tall and thick trees. After a few minutes, the road opened into a small but neat garden. And beyond the garden, a white manor with a wraparound porch and tall windows sat at the base of the mountains.
He stopped the car in front of the house.
I frowned. “What is this?”
One corner of his lips curled up. “Our place.”
“W-what?”
“I bought this place right after we got separated a few weeks ago,” he said. “I thought … I don’t know. As much as I thought we would succeed, I wanted to be prepared in case we didn’t. In case we had to run.”
I couldn’t help the smile that took over my lips. He was something else.
“I think Luana needs attention now,” Thomas said from the backseat.
Luana was curled against the door, shaking and sweating.
“Right,” I said, opening the car door. “Let’s take her inside.”
I barely had time to acknowledge the place as Drake carried Luana to one of the bedrooms on the second floor. I followed. Then he brought a box with several herbs and ingredients.
“Is this enough?” he said, putting the box down over the nightstand.
“It’ll have to be.”
If I had the coven’s heart with me, I was sure I could heal her with magic, but since I didn’t, and since I had exhausted myself fighting Morda, I required the help of salves and potions.
Thankfully, none of Luana’s wounds were life threatening. The only risk was infection, but since I would take care of them, she would be fine.
She fell asleep after I treated her wounds and put her foot back into place. She was still dirty and bloodied, but she could take a bath after she rested for a while.
Thomas disappeared soon after, saying he had been holding on to his ghost form for too long. He would back later.
When it was all quiet, Drake slipped his hand in mine and guided me to the third floor.
The stairs opened to a small landing and white double doors.
“This is our bedroom,” he said, pushing the doors open.
I smiled as I took the place in.
On the right, a seating area with a small couch and two armchairs in front of a cozy fireplace. On the left, a four posted king-sized bed with white gossamer over it. Everything in white wood and beige and soft yellow cushions and accents.
A happy, comfy place.
Glass doors opened to a balcony where I could see wicker chairs and table. The sun was rising, warming up the place with a golden light.
I crossed the room and pulled the thin white curtains closed. It wouldn’t leave the room in total darkness, but I doubted it could hurt Drake either.
Drake sat on the bed and patted the mattress beside him. “Come here.”
He didn’t have to tell me twice. I practically threw myself at him, and we both fell back on the bed, our arms around each other.
“I could stay like this forever,” I mumbled, burying my face in his neck and inhaling deeply. His scent filled my nostrils and I sighed in relief.
“We could.”
I pulled back. “What do you mean?”
“We can stay here. Hide from everyone else. We can pretend nothing ever happened and live our own life.”
“But … a few hours ago you were telling me we should run to fight another day. That we would get my coven’s heart back later. What happened?”
“I changed my mind,” he said. “I think we should hide in here forever.”
“I can’t. You know that. I’m the Witch Queen. You know my coven will die without me.”
He sighed. “I know, I know. But do they deserve to be saved? Look at what they did to you? Morda played with you; Ebby betrayed you. They were ready to kill you.”
“It’s the same principle of when you wanted to go back to your coven and save the vampires from Alex’s clutches. I want to take out Morda, recover the heart, and start over. I want to give my witches and our servants a better choice, a better life.”
“I know.” He closed his eyes. “Now even my original plan has gone down the drain. Alex is dead and only hell knows what happened to the princes and the other vampires.”
I cupped his rough, handsome face. “See? We can’t leave everything like that. We are better people than they are. We care about others. We have to help.”
Drake locked his eyes with mine. “That’s one of the reasons I love you, you know? You always want to do good.”
“You too.”
He wrinkled his nose. “Not always.”
Of course he did; he just didn’t see it. But I wouldn’t argue about that now. “Besides, no matter where I hide, you know Morda will come after me now that she knows I’m the Witch Queen.”
“I know.” Drake groaned.
“And there’s our bond too,” I said. “Or whatever that is.”
“Okay, okay, you can stop with our long to-do list. I know we have plenty to do.” He tightened his arms around me, pressing my body to his. “For now, I want to forget it all and spend time with you.”
I brushed my lips on his. �
��Spend time with me? How?”
He spun us around, pining me to the mattress with his body over mine. “I’ll show you.”
Drake leaned over me and claimed my mouth with his. His kiss wasn’t soft, nor were his hands as he took off our clothes and touched me. But once he was inside me, I felt strong again. I felt like I was right where I belonged. I felt confident and sure. With him beside me, I could do anything.
We could do anything.
We would find out about our bond, we would save the vampires and the witches, and we would have a better future together. Or we would die trying.
Regardless, we would do it together. We would be together.
Forever.
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While USA Today Bestselling Author Juliana Haygert dreams of being Wonder Woman, Buffy, or a blood elf shadow priest, she settles for the less exciting—but equally gratifying—life as a wife, a mother, and an author. Thousands of miles away from her former home in Brazil, she now resides in North Carolina and spends her days writing about kick-ass heroines and the heroes who drive them crazy.
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