by K. A Knight
“You lost, girly?” His deep voice carries over the shouts of the crowd.
“Maybe she wants to play?” one of the others says.
I smile. Grabbing the full pint of beer in front of me, I down it as I watch them. They cheer and nudge each other which makes me roll my eyes. Men.
I slam the glass down and wipe my mouth with the back of my hand.
“Will you play with me?” I ask, making my voice velvety.
“Hell yes.”
Smirking, I lean down so my top gapes, and all their eyes drop to my cleavage. This time I manage to control my eye roll, but barely.
“Who here likes to hit women?” I ask conversationally.
“Huh?”
“What you on about, girly?” The anger in the guy’s voice makes me think this plan might actually work.
I stare straight at the bag of dicks who now squirms in his seat. I point casually at him. “Do you, baby?”
He swallows but throws his shoulders back with false bravado. “What’s it to you?”
I walk around the other men until I stop behind his chair. In a swift move, I land on his lap, leaning back against the table. I grab his junk hard and twist. “If you ever lay a finger on my friend or another woman again, I will chop off your little dick, stuff it down your throat, and sew it shut. We clear?” My voice is a purr at this point, and I let my eyes glow. I walk a fine line. If I push much harder, the darkness in me will want to come out and play.
He stutters out a response.
I yank to make my point. “I didn’t hear you.”
“O-ok-kay,” he groans.
I give one last twist for good measure, then stand.
I turn to the other men. “Now, boys, I don’t know if you knew our friend here likes to force girls and hit them, but now you do.” I look around at the anger on their faces. Just like I thought, they might be assholes, but they don’t support that shit.
The one from before stands. His belly stretches his shirt, and the oil stains on his jeans catch the light. He has a patch on his jacket that states, Pres.
“Don’t you worry, girly. I’ll make sure our friend here has a good time. Isn’t that right, boys?”
The others sound their agreement, and my smile widens.
I nod and then turn to leave.
“Any woman who can handle herself like that is welcome to come here any time, girly.”
Waving over my shoulder, I head out to my best friend.
As the door swings shut, the sound of fists hitting flesh reaches me. I grin evilly to myself.
Back in the car, I offer Lane a smile. I nip to mine to pick up Nev, then hop back in the car, driving to her place.
Once there, I help her inside and gesture for Nev to follow. I let her get in her pyjamas. Once she curls up in bed, I sit down next to her, stroking her hair away from her head.
She grabs my hand, and I squeeze it. “Nev’s gonna stay here tonight.”
When she goes to interrupt, I give her a stern glare.
“You need him, and it would be doing me a favour, actually.” I sigh and glance down at her pink bedding. It looks like Malibu Ken spunked on it. “Lane, I’m going to be busy the next couple of days. If it wasn’t important, I would stay here with you and watch all the Harry Potters. I promise you when it’s done, I’ll come back, and we can have a chill day. I’ll even do all that girly shit with you.”
She sits up and let’s go of my hand. “I don’t know what’s been going on or what you need to do, but I’m always here for you, okay? You hide things from me, and that’s okay because one day you’ll realise I’m not leaving. You can trust me.”
When the hell did she get so smart?
“I want to tell you...” For once, I’m telling the truth. I thought keeping her from this side of my life would protect her, but she’s already in my life so deep that it won’t make a difference. The lies and secrets chafe on me. “One day, Lane.”
She nods. “That’s good enough. Now, go will ya, and leave me with the demon.”
I laugh as Nev jumps up next to her. I rub his head.
“Protect her for me, will you?”
He barks. I leave before I crawl in bed next to her and pour out all my problems.
I head back over to the guys with renewed determination to find Mikael and end this.
28
- AURORA -
I let myself inside the house and, ignoring the darkness, make my way down the hallway. I hesitate when I spot Ben on the sofa. He bends over with his head in his hands, and his back shakes. I slowly pad over to him and sit in front of him on the coffee table.
I gently take his hands away from his face. “Benny?” I whisper.
He sniffles and lifts his eyes to me. They’re red, swollen, and filled with unshed tears. He wipes his hand across his face and sits back on the sofa. I stand and gaze at him. I hate that he looks so alone.
I sit down on his knee, and he stares at me in shock. Using all my courage, I grab his face in my hands and lightly press my lips to his. When he doesn’t stop me, I do it again until his lips slowly move against mine.
Leaning back, I glance at him again. His eyes are cleared of tears, and lust battles against the sadness in the blue pools of his eyes. I stroke my fingers across his cheek, and he closes his eyes.
“What’s wrong, Benny?” I ask quietly.
“I can’t lose him, Sunny. I already lost one, and it killed me. I don’t think I could survive losing him, too.” His voice sounds broken and heavy with tears.
I decide right then and there I will try a hundred spells, use all my powers, do whatever it takes to find Mikael and make this family whole again.
“I haven’t given up and neither should you. I will find him,” I promise.
His eyes fill with relief and trust.
“You mean it?” The vulnerability in his voice is my undoing.
I ghost my lips over his again.
“Whatever it takes.” I seal my promise with another kiss.
A breeze smelling of flowers and magic brushes against my neck, and a voice almost too quiet murmurs against me, “Έτσι θα είναι, ο απόγονος μου.”
I end up sleeping cuddled up next to Ben on the sofa.
It’s early when the rest come downstairs, not bothering with breakfast. Bags sit under all their eyes—I’m guessing no one got much sleep. They cluster around me in the living room.
“Ready?” Alexander asks.
I nod and lower myself to sit cross-legged on the floor. Blocking out any sounds and my thoughts, I clear my mind. Pushing out my awareness, I see all four of them positioned around the room. Their power calls to me, and I almost drop my awareness when I spot the small threads connecting us in this moment like coloured twine binding us to one another.
Following a green thread, it leads me to Jason’s power, and a sense of happiness and safety invades me. Shaking my head, I remember what I was trying to do. I let go of the thread and centre myself again.
I bring up the blueprints of the town in my head again. Making sure each and every house, restaurant, and road is on there takes time. My body weakens as I do it. Pushing more energy, I focus on my intention. When nothing happens, I stop.
I try again only for the same result.
I think of Mikael—his eyes, his lips, his smile—and suddenly a thread, worn and barely there, appears from where I stand. I follow it across the blueprint. It seems to take hours, but in reality, it’s probably only a few minutes.
I touch it as I go, and the calm and openness I feel when I’m with Mikael invades me. With no time for questions, I carry on.
I can sense I’m close when darkness blocks all my senses. A laugh sounds in my head, and the sharp pain that follows, like a vice closing in, makes me stop. Before I can scream, I’m thrown back into my body. With a gasping breath, I try to re-orientate myself. I’m sprawled on the boys’ living room floor, and four worried heads stare down at me.
“Something�
�s blocking me again.” My voice wobbles as I try to speak.
“What do you mean?”
My eyes blur, so I’m unsure who asks.
“I don’t know, but it feels like the same darkness I keep sensing. Last time, it spoke to me, this time, it attacked me somehow.” My voice grows stronger the longer I talk.
Jason offers me his hand and pulls me to stand. I sway on unsteady legs, and he rights me. I offer him a small smile in return. Alexander paces back and forth.
“You need to try again,” Alexander says with no emotion in his voice.
“I’m being blocked. I don’t think it will change anything—”
He spins to me, and I step back from the emotions on his face.
“You will try again, I’m not coming this close to my brother only to lose him to an inexperienced witch.” His voice is low and menacing. His beautiful eyes freeze over like the polar ice caps; no hint of my usual, charming, sweet Alexander remains. It’s like a slap, but I manage not to step back.
“I am trying. I’m still drained. I tried my hardest. Something is blocking me!”
“Try. Again.” He enunciates every word with a step closer to me until we are nose to nose.
“I don’t know—” I start.
“Try,” he growls.
“I’m helping you here, and you are talking to me like I’m the enemy,” I say quietly.
“Maybe you are,” he whispers.
I do fall back this time. Tears well in my eyes, but I refuse to let them fall.
“Fuck you, and fuck your family!” I shout and turn to storm out.
Ezra tries to block my way, but I dart around him.
“Wait, Aurora!” Not giving them a chance, I rush out the front door, not bothering to close it. They can close their own fucking door.
“He didn’t mean it. We’re just worried!” The shout comes, but I ignore it again.
“Leave me alone!” I scream.
I blindly throw myself into my car and spin out of their driveway. Gazing back in the mirror, I see all four of them looking lost on the front steps. Alexander looks like a broken man. I face the front window again and allow the tears to finally fall.
That night, I don’t sleep; instead, I replay Alexander’s words. Each time it’s like a knife to my withered heart. Worry and desperation leaked out of him as he spoke to me. His eyes might have been cold, but his aura swam with emotion. I was just too busy to notice. I can’t imagine losing your family and knowing they’re alive. If there was a chance to get my mother back, I would do anything. I rub my eyes. I can’t let this be how we end; even if after this is all said and done, we go our separate ways. I need to help them find Mikael. I owe it to him and to them. Decision made, I get up and shower.
29
- AURORA -
When the phone goes to voicemail again, I throw it across the room. My stomach rolls, and a bad feeling works its way into me. Nibbling on my lip, I make a decision. Snatching my keys from the side, I jog to my car.
The drive to the guys’ house seems to take forever, and my stomach twists in panic. When I pull up, I dash out of my car, leaving it running and the door open. I run up the stairs and pound on the front door.
Shifting from foot to foot, I wait for them to answer. When no one does, I pound on the door again. Still no answer. Starting to get really worried, I try the handle only for it to push open. Oh, that’s not creepy at all.
I face the hallway, but it’s still and silent. I step lightly into the hallway and call out for them. When no one answers again, I walk towards the living room.
The room is trashed. Couches lay over turned; the TV is smashed. Blood is sprayed around, and a few knives are tossed carelessly on the floor. The broken glass crunches under my boots as I lean and grab one. Putting my back to the wall, I close my eyes and reach out, searching for them. I don’t sense them in the house or the surrounding area, and I try again.
There!
A small amount of darkness lingers in the living room, but like a fog, it drifts away. I snap my eyes open. Fuckity McFuck. Pacing, I mutter to myself, trying to come up with a plan.
It’s clear whatever got Mikael is the thing hunting me, and now, it has the guys. I could try the tracking spell again. It’s worth a shot. Ignoring the blood and glass, I kneel on the floor.
Clearing my mind is hard and takes me a couple of minutes, but when it finally clears, I push out my senses. It’s like the blood in the room reacts to my power, and suddenly, I see them. I shoot up and race down the hallway, slipping as I go. Righting myself, I run to my car and jump in it.
I stop every now and again and close my eyes, picturing the town’s blueprints and where I saw them.
It takes me thirty minutes to reach a dirt lane which ends in the forest. I sit idle in my car, wondering if this is a bad idea. Probably. With a sigh, I hop out and head into the forest. Of course, the creepy bad guy has to be in the forest with no one else around. Ugh, I feel like I’m in a shitty horror film; all I need now is to fall over.
The sunlight streams through, heating my skin and reflecting through the trees. The birds chirp, and animals make their way through the bushes.
The sunlight dries up the farther I walk into the forest, blocked by the canopy. Stopping to catch my breath, I close my eyes once again and focus on my internal map. A new spurt of energy invades me as I realise how close I am, and I set off once again.
Fog now rolls through the trees casting everything into mist. The forest sounds stop until all I hear is silence and the crunch of my boots on the floor. No birds sing, and no wildlife is here. Why couldn’t he have taken them to an ice-cream shop or something nice? Instead, I trudge through the forest where something will probably jump out on me. Still, I carry on.
I reach a rockface and frown. Looking left and right, I spot something down the way, to my left. I make my way there and find a cave opening. Brilliant, I better get a bloody award for best actress at this rate. I mean, have you ever seen the film The Descent? It’s pretty much a step-by-step guide as to why the fuck you don’t go into caves.
I stand outside, frowning to myself. I glance around. The trees and underbrush are broken, trodden on like a walkway. Vines and plants that once grew around the opening are withering and dying. The whole forest floor before it is black. Where once nature grew, only death remains. I lean down and run my fingers through it. Power, but evil, pulses from the ground. I strain, feeling the earth’s pain. I straighten, knowing I’m in the right place.
The cave is pitch-black with the fog covering some of the entrance. I straighten my back and walk the few steps until I’m half in the darkness and half out. I guess I should go save them; I’m not likely to find anyone as pretty as they are. With one last glance back at the forest, my salvation and my home, I step into the awaiting darkness.
30
- AURORA -
I stumble over the rocks as I run my hands along the walls, pulling myself along the sides of the cave. I could magic a light, but I have a feeling I’ll need to save all my strength. I could try to use my reaper powers, but I don’t have complete control of it. I pull myself along, scraping my legs and hands as I go. I so need a spa day or cookies after this.
I go flying over a massive rock and land hard on my knees. With no time to waste, I push myself up as blood seeps from my cuts.
I squint as I spot light up a head. Only a couple of steps later, I stumble into an opening. I peer up at a hole in the cavern ceiling letting sunlight stream through. Facing the opening, two more tunnels greet me.
Fuck. I promise that if I get out of this, I will stop swearing as much. I wonder if eenie-meenie-miney-mo will work?
I glance from one to the other. I don’t have time to hesitate. I close my eyes and centre myself. Pushing out my awareness, I try to find anything to lead me in the right direction. Like I mean anything, smoke signals, notes in blood. I’m pretty desperate here.
Six weak threads all in different colours—green, gold, wh
ite, yellow, blue, and black—stretch into the left-hand side opening. I detected something similar before when trying the tracking spell, but the colours were barely distinguishable, and the lines looked ready to snap. They are thicker now, and the colours shine brighter. With a frown, I run my hand over them and gasp when I realise they trace back to me. Is this the pull they described? The feeling I used to track them? If so, who’s the sixth?
I file away my questions for later and open my eyes. Using the threads to guide me down the tunnel, which is shorter than the last one, it doesn’t take me long until I’m at another opening. The light in this one is fake and comes from two massive lights on either side, casting shadows around the room.
I look around when a booming laugh and clapping makes me jump.
“Well, well, little witch, I’m almost impressed at how quick you found us.” The cold voice seems familiar. I follow it to the far right side of the space. What I see makes my heart speed up and sweat bead on my brow.
My men sit tied to chairs, and in the middle of them, stands a lone figure. A man whose face is hard to make out. Darkness clings to him like a lover, and I can feel the evil from here. So, this is who hunts me.
I step farther into the opening, not glancing at my men for fear that they are dead. I keep walking until I stand a couple of metres away. Only then do I let my gaze land on them, one-by-one. They are alive. My breath whooshes out of me.
Alexander has a cut on his head and a few bruises dot his face. The left side of Ezra’s face is black and blue and covered in blood. Ben’s blood drips down from his hair line, Jason’s nose is broken and swollen, and Mikael? His whole body looks like a wound. Not allowing myself the weakness of running to them, I glare at the man.
“Who are you?” I demand.
