She smiled, patting her big Dolly Parton style hair. “Thank you. Thank you very much.”
“If it’s truly over, and my crap-ass dick of a sperm donor is truly gone, can we please check in on Daniel? I don’t want him to wake up and I’m not there.”
“Daniel will be fine, and so will you. I just have two tiny details to deal with here.”
She walked through the flames to Hux’s office, tapping the glass with one long fingernail until it imploded on contact. Stepping over the mess, she waved one hand and the locked drawer with the schematic and formula popped open.
“The Goddess will see to these, I’m sure.” A second wave had them vanish into thin air. “Lock, stock, and barrel.”
With a smile and a little hop, she turned for the smoking doorway. I followed her out of the building, and once we were clear, she snapped her fingers and the whole thing collapsed into a pile of embers and rubble.
“C’mon, killer. There’s one last thing I need your help with.” We walked toward the farthest shack, and I figured she wanted help freeing captive demi-witches, but I never expected what happened next.
When Carol knocked on the door, a child answered. She looked exactly like Samantha, only older, and more strawberry blonde than red. The girl’s eyes went wide at the sight of the Baba Yaga. But before the girl could open her mouth, Carol brushed her hair back. The child’s eyes glazed for a moment, and when they cleared, she squealed. “Auntie Carol!”
“Are you and your sister ready to go home now?”
She bobbed her head. “Yes, ma’am.”
A little face poked out from under her sister’s arm, and I gasped. She had the same face, the same eyes, the same hair…but it couldn’t be. She was the same girl Hux had projected into my mind.
“However potent, it doesn’t change the fact your sperm donor used appropriated magic to play his head games. He stole power from this little one.” Carol tucked a stray hair behind Kasey’s ear. “The image of her sister. The way she looked and spoke. What she told Sammy to do if bad people came. The fear she harbored from that awful man’s threats. Appropriated magic. But that’s all over, right?”
The girls nodded, and a new lump formed in my throat. A good lump. One I didn’t fight to swallow.
Babanotsobadafterall squatted so she was eye level with both girls. “Sweeties, I’m taking you to a new place. A new home in West Virginia where you’ll always be together.”
“But—”
Carol looked at me, and the girls’ eyes followed. “But what?”
“Uhm, all things considered, don’t you think the girls should be with family?”
Carol stood, hiking one eyebrow. “And what family would that be?”
“Me.”
“What about Daniel?”
I shrugged. “I guess I’ll have to ask him.”
“Ask me what?”
Daniel stood at the bottom of the ramshackle porch. I flew into his arms, and he hugged me like he never wanted to let go. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there when you regained consciousness.”
He exhaled a small chuckle. “From the look of things, you were busy taking care of business, and I’d say you did so in spades.”
“I did. Carol helped in the end, but I’ll tell you all about it later. The point is Hux is gone for good.” I turned for Carol at that point. “What about the vampires, and the techs coming with the other…girls?”
Carol dismissed my worries. “Don’t concern yourself with them. After today, the Goddess will be waiting with a battalion of silver. They won’t get far. As for that vile blood machine, the Goddess has custody of it and everything else.” She looked at the smoldering pile, and nodded. “On that note, I think our time on fantasy island is over.”
She handed us each a coral-colored stone. “Crush it in your hand and envision where you want to be. It’ll take you straight there, but I caution you, think together. The girls are children, they’ll go where you go.” She leaned in. “The Goddess cleared their memories, so it’ll be okay.”
“So you’re letting them come with me?”
She shrugged. “They’re your sisters.”
Two little faces wrapped their arms around my middle, their grins touching their little ears.
“So it’s home to Salem, then.”
Daniel didn’t reply.
“Is that okay?” I asked, forgetting for a second that Salem wasn’t his home. “I won’t force you to go with us, Daniel, and I won’t hold it against you. I know it’s a lot to take on.”
He shook his head. “It’s all good, Linz. In fact, it’s so much so, I think we need to make it official.” He sank to one knee. “I’m just sorry I don’t have a ring handy.”
Carol smirked. “I think I can fix that.” She pulled a silver, rhinestone star from her cow print vest and then closed it in her hand. When she opened her palm, there was a gorgeous diamond solitaire ring sitting in the center.”
“Think of it like Cinderella, but instead of the magic lasting until the stroke of midnight, I’m giving you a week.” She patted the empty spot on her vest. “After all, this is one of my favs, and I’ll need that star back.”
Daniel took the ring from Baba’s palm and held it up. “The ring may be temporary, but demons are forever, Linzie, and so are we. Will you marry me?”
The girls jumped up and down in a circle around us. “Say yes, Linzie! Say yes!”
Daniel held the ring poised, waiting for my answer.
“Yes, damn it! Yes!”
He slipped the ring on the third finger of my left hand, and then folded my palm in his along with the coral stones Carol gave us. “Home, then?” he asked, gathering the girls to us.
I nodded. “To Salem…”
Magic And Mayhem Universe
To check out all the side-splitting books in the Magic and Mayhem Universe, go to https://magicandmayhemuniverse.com/
And if you would like to read the book that started all the madness, Switching Hour is FREE!
https://robynpeterman.com/switching-hour/
Other books by Marianne Morea
The Cursed by Blood Saga
Hunter’s Blood
Fever Play
Twice Cursed
Blood Legacy
Lion’s Den
Power Play
Collateral Blood
Condemned
Of Blood and Magic
* * *
The Red Veil Diaries
Choose Me
Tempt Me
Tease Me
Taste Me
Bewitch Me
* * *
Howls Romance
Torn Between Two Alphas
Her Captive Dragon
Taming Their Tailfins
The Siren’s Mate*
The Wolf’s Secret Witch
The Demon Hunter’s Wolf
The Wolf and the Rose
A Little Mistletoe and Magic
* * *
Paranormal Women’s Fiction
Jeepers Reapers
* * *
Please visit Marianne’s website for the above listed books and more info! https://mariannemorea.com/
Demons Are Forever Page 9
