by Ruby Raine
“What are you making?” he asked, handing them over.
“I was going to make an explosive, but then I decided it might be more prudent to have some cover in addition to the fireworks. So I’m making a cloaking potion.”
“I’ve never heard of that. But I definitely agree with explosive. I can make those.” There was an impassioned eagerness in his words.
She nodded, but with a smirk on her face.
“What?”
“Men... you’re always so excited to blow things up.”
“Yes. Well. Me, Man. Like things go BOOM!”
She laughed lightly, shaking her head.
“So what’s the cloaking potion?” he asked curiously.
“It’s for us. We drink it, and for about six to maybe seven minutes, you can’t be seen.”
“I had no idea that even existed.”
“It has its drawbacks.”
“Like?”
“Like no one can see you, including the people you want to be seen by. You’re invisible, but not impenetrable. You can still get hurt. And you have to work fast because the magic wears off fast.”
“So we can be heard?” he clarified.
“Yes. Another major drawback, if you happen to be heavy footed, or a mouth breather.”
Charlie snickered at her lack of eloquence in explaining. “Still, I can see the advantage of it.”
“I think so as well.”
They each kept at it, assisting each other when possible, filling vial after vial with potions for the upcoming battle.
After a couple hours, Lizzy noticed Charlie looking away, just as she made eye contact with him. It was obvious he wanted to ask something, but didn’t dare. After a while, when he didn’t, she got annoyed and stopped what she was doing.
“What’s on your mind, Charlie?”
“Nothing,” he insisted poorly.
“Right...”
He let out a sigh. “It’s about something you said earlier, it shouldn’t bother me, and it’s not that it bothers me, exactly, I just can’t wrap my brain around it.”
“You’re talking about the Melinda and William thing,” she guessed.
“I thought she liked Riley. I guess I’m confused.”
“She’s young. You fall in love a lot when you’re young. And sometimes you love more than one person at a time when you’re young.”
“I’m not that much older than her.”
“Ah, but you’re a man. Men fall hard. And once they do, that’s it. First true love equals final true love. At least that’s what my father told me. And my fiancé.”
“I forget you had this entire life that you lost out on. But you can’t be much older than Melinda, either?”
“Is that a sneaky way of asking me how old I am?
He shrugged in a, you caught me manner.
“Twenty-five, in human years, and yes, I fell in love quite a few times before I met my fiancé.”
“I’m sorry you didn’t get to live out your life as you should have, Lizzy.”
“I’m all about the future now.”
Charlie shook his head, sighing. “I’ve never seen William act like he’s in love with Melinda.”
“You’re not going to let it go, are you?” she groaned. She didn’t wait for his reply. “Sometimes it’s hardest to see the things happening right in front you. And just because he loves her doesn’t mean he’ll ever admit it, or act on it. In fact, I think he means not to. Ever. But would it be so bad if he did?”
“I... I don’t know what to think about it. And to be honest, I kind of, maybe thought, you and William might be,” he didn’t finish. “You seemed to be hitting it off. You’ve both got that you’ve been around a really long time thing going on.”
“I won’t admit to anything either way,” she replied, with a wink. “But there’s love, and then there’s the need to... not feel alone. And William is lonely. That’s something I do understand.”
“He’s got us,” argued Charlie.
“And I have my new brothers, but sometimes that’s not enough. Sometimes you need someone who understands where you came from; like you said, we’ve been around a long time. And sometimes you need a more intimate connection. Even vampires need to get...”
“Don’t finish that sentence,” appealed Charlie. “Not a picture I need in my head. Especially if it involves my sister.”
“Everyone needs release, Charlie. It’s just the facts of life.”
He did understand that. He’d been seeing the Guardian, Nina, in secret for years, before Eva killed her. And he’d been sleeping with Eva, unconsciously, because his wolf craved it.
“Love and lust are definitely two different beasts,” he decided to agree.
“You’ve never been in love, have you?”
“No. Not if it really does happen like your father and fiancé spoke of.”
“Ever been close?”
“No.”
“Being too picky are we?”
“No. Definitely not, just haven’t met the right woman, I guess. I have not had that, wow, I just fell hard, moment.”
“She would have to be someone extra special, wouldn’t she? I mean, you are Charlie Howard, after all.”
Charlie let out a flustered huff.
Lizzy was right though, even though she was teasing him.
She would have to be someone special. Someone extraordinary. Someone he could trust implicitly. Someone that understood what being married to him meant. He wasn’t sure that woman existed.
Her life would not be easy.
It would also be dangerous; not only because he was a witch, but also because he was a werewolf. He might be protected with the Guardian’s ring, but not her.
A single, accidental bite would change her life, forever.
Who would take on, or be able to handle, such a volatile relationship?
And having children, he didn’t even know if it was possible. It was his responsibility to carry on the family bloodline. But if that wasn’t safe for him to do, could he ask that of a woman? A life without children...
“Apparently, I’ve brought up a sore subject,” said Lizzy, apologetically.
He shrugged. “It’s a subject that’s been on my mind.”
“Because of Eva,” she guessed perceptively.
“Yes and no. Eva... when she told me she was pregnant, I freaked out. Closed down. Thought I was going to have to choose her over my family. Thought for sure I’d doomed her to a painful death. A werewolf baby... I just can’t imagine it, and I thought Eva was human. There’s just so many questions I don’t have the answers to.” He was surprised that he admitted this to Lizzy. But it felt good to get it off his chest. “Of course now I don’t give a shit what happens to her, and would prefer a very painful death.” His eyes widened in disbelief over the whole situation.
Lizzy agreed. “I can’t answer many questions on the subject, Charlie. However, I can tell you if she’d actually been pregnant, she would have survived it, being that she was a wolf.”
He pulled a Jack Howard, getting tongue-tied, the words getting all jumbled together. He wanted to ask what she meant, and how she knew this.
“Back when I was a human, so long, long ago,” she explained as if reading his mind, “my family was friends with a clan of werewolves. They were a peaceful clan, no idea if they still exist or not. And it was not here on the Isle, obviously. I was young when I visited them, maybe nine or so. I don’t remember a lot. But they had children. I played with them. Of course, both parents in that case were werewolves. And so were their children.”
“Hm,” was all he could answer, his mind reeling. “We’ve done so much research on the subject, and yet I did not know that.”
“You mean, William’s done a lot of research,” she scolded, playfully.
“Yeah.” He frowned. “There’s so many things I don’t know. Sometimes, I feel like I really suck at my job.”
“You live in a small world here, Charlie. But you’ll be please
d to know there is a solution to that problem.” He waited for her explanation. “Pick up a book now and then.”
“Right. Books...” murmured Charlie, his eyes glazing over.
Lizzy grinned.
“I usually leave the heavy reading to William. I prefer the hands on work. And speaking of that,” he turned off the stove, another explosive potion ready for the upcoming combat. He slid it to a cold burner to cool.
He let out a cleansing breath. None of this future talk mattered right now. Not until he was certain they all had a future. The night’s impending battle rattled its way back into his brain.
He glanced at the clock. Just going on ten-thirty in the morning.
He looked down at his cell phone. Not a single call. From anyone. No sign of William.
Charlie didn’t care whether he’d ever fall in love.
Or if William loved his sister, or she, him.
Right now, he’d give just about anything to find out they were safe. And if together, he knew without a doubt that William would see to it nothing happened to her.
The pit in his gut returned, knotting, and tightening.
He leaned against the kitchen island his arms holding him up, letting out an uneasy breath.
“We’re going to find them,” comforted Lizzy. “Luckily, they have us, and we aren’t the giving up types.”
“It’s just the not knowing. Not knowing if Eva is hurting them. What if they are...” Lizzy reached across the island and placed her hand on his, her gaze still focused on her potion in front of her.
“Get back to work,” she ordered him kindly. “We can’t help them by standing around worrying about it. What’s done, is done and,” her head flicked upward as Charlie let out a robust exhale.
“What?” she asked, concerned.
“Sorry. Nothing. You’re right.”
He felt like he’d just been in a head-on collision.
No, more like the ground had been pulled out from under his feet.
Lizzy had sounded so much like his mother just then.
It brought an instant deja vu of her standing in the same spot, saying the same thing. His mind’s eye almost saw her there, next to Lizzy, comforting him, at the same time passing along a very loud, very clear, message.
Message received, Mom. He had to say it. If even in his mind. It almost brought a tear to his eye. The meaning of it digging into him, creating a new pit, this one deep inside his soul.
He looked up to see his father in the doorway. He’d heard it too. Although Charlie was sure it meant something different to him.
“Hey, Dad. Did you get some rest?”
His father nodded, entering.
Lizzy saw him and grinned. “Don’t you look dashing all cleaned up?”
Charlie noted in his father’s demeanor that he’d warmed up to Lizzy.
“It is sort of miraculous, what a hot shower and a shave can do. So where are we at in here?”
Charlie caught him up, while brewing up a new potion.
“Looks like we’re coming right along,” said his father. “No contact with anyone I take it?”
“No. Nothing. They haven’t made contact with any demands. What if something else happened to them? Something completely unrelated,” said Charlie.
“I suppose it’s possible. It’s just not likely,” replied Jack. “Still, I thought for sure we’d hear something by now. That they’d offer some sort of trade, or deal.”
“They don’t know we’re planning on attacking tonight,” reminded Charlie. “We could be working on two different timelines. Or maybe like you thought, Dad, they did expect we’d go rushing in last night.”
“And if that is the case,” said Lizzy, “we’ve thrown them off, and hopefully they don’t suspect an attack tonight.”
“I just hate to think what Eva might do if we don’t live up to her expectations,” insinuated Charlie. “If she hurts any of them...” He had to fight the urge to rush out right that minute to see what exactly was going on. They only assumed they were at White Pines, but they were not even certain about that.
No. They wanted the power source. It’s where they’d be.
“Let’s just keep at it,” encouraged Jack. “Day’s ticking away.”
“Yeah, it is,” agreed Charlie. “Too bad William isn’t here he’d whip through all these in minutes.”
“You depend on him a lot,” noted Lizzy.
“He’s good at what he does. He’s got hundreds of years of knowledge at his disposal. He doesn’t sleep. He likes a good challenge. I don’t know how we’d get through a day without him. Hell, an afternoon...”
Jack nodded, understanding. Feeling more confident by the minute that he’d made the right request in his letter to William.
MORNING HAD COME, AND with it clouds and drizzle. It also arrived without rescue. Melinda sniffled in exhausted despair. She’d thought her brothers would have come for them by now. Why hadn’t they?
She’d obeyed William’s last words and kept her eyes shut all night. When it had started to lighten through her lids, she dared to open them, but kept her gaze down at her feet.
She had not heard any sounds coming from William in hours and wished desperately his voice would enter her mind again, so she’d know he was still alive. At the same time, wishing they’d just let him die and end his torture.
She shivered uncontrollably, fighting a level of cold she’d never experienced before. Her hair had never quite dried after Riley’s icy bucket of water, and it now matted to her face.
Her voice was nearly gone from screaming and sobbing throughout the night. Her eyes swollen and head pounding incessantly. Her arms and legs had gone numb from exposure and being bound to the stake.
You deserve every bit of it. It’s nothing, nothing compared to William...
She’d taken a chance glance at the iron cage and noticed Emily had awakened. She just leaned against the bars of the cage looking as weary and dead as Melinda felt. She’d heard when Lucas awakened, a few hours earlier. His shouts had momentarily drowned out William’s, begging his brother to stop. Calling out to Melinda.
She did not reply. No words would form when she tried. Shouting would take such effort if it wasn’t just mindless desperation.
Lucas had gotten so desperate to get out and stop his brother that he attempted to use magic. It hadn’t worked. Not because he failed, but because the cage he was imprisoned in was a magic-proof cage.
Melinda had listened to the Feyk named Stricker, explaining it to Eva. It was a creation he was quite proud of. Magic could get in, but not out. Any spell Lucas tried fizzled and died.
Riley ignored his brother’s pleas, and Lucas was forced to give up after Stricker threatened to knock him out again. Lucas decided he’d rather be conscious.
But they were all helpless.
Stuck.
Unable to do anything to help William, or escape. Or reach out for help.
INSIDE THE CAGE, LUCAS rubbed Emily’s arms, trying to warm her.
“No one knows we’re here,” she whimpered.
“Someone will come,” he tried to comfort.
Emily leaned against the cage bars, staring into nothing. Her eyes a blank slate. The beautiful, light in the room, Emily... broken.
He sucked in, sitting down on the ground next to her.
There was nothing else to do.
But wait.
And watch.
And listen.
All things that drove him mad.
He couldn’t believe that his brother was capable of such terrible acts. He knew it was a spell, but how could magic turn him in such a horrific manner? And not just towards William, but Melinda, too. Riley was a lover, not a fighter.
And yet he’d left her bound to that stake all night as he tortured William.
Lucas thought he was having a nightmare. When he’d first regained consciousness after getting knocked out by the Feyk. To awaken locked in a cage, his brother shooting fireballs at the vampire. Feyk ha
nging around watching like it was an afternoon sporting event. Eva Jordan, goading his brother, delighting in every strike.
Try as he might, he had to look. After, it had taken everything not to hurl. How was William even still alive? How did evil like this exist? If this is what magic did to people, he wanted nothing to do with it.
He’d turned his attention to keeping Emily awake and conscious. She was in shock, and denial, he guessed. He was also growing more concerned about Melinda with each passing hour. Even from his cage, he could tell she needed serious medical attention. She’d been out in the cold all night and was wet, exhausted and traumatized. And if like him, had a nasty gash on her head from being knocked out by the Feyk.
If only Riley would speak to him. Alone. Maybe he could talk him into freeing her. But Eva Jordan and Stricker were always just a few steps away.
Emily looked like she needed medical attention as well. She was in shock over what Eva had done to her father and he wasn’t sure how else to help her, other than talk to her and try to keep her warm. Emily hadn’t been able to tell him what had happened. However, Eva made sure to rub it in on more than one occasion.
Now that day had come, the summer heat would return.
“This is why I despise magic,” Lucas uttered from inside the cage. If he ever got out, he was taking his brother away from this place, for good. Coming to The Demon Isle had been a mistake.
MELINDA’S EYES CLOSED, her head dropping fast. The movement startled her awake. She didn’t think she was actually falling asleep. More likely passing out. Maybe, if she was lucky, she’d just slip into a coma and live her remaining hours unconsciously.
She had no one to blame other than herself. It was her fault she was bound to a stake. It was her fault that William was being tortured, barely clinging to life. He suffered beyond imagining because she loved him, and Riley knew this, which sparked a jealous rage thanks to the Feyk.
No, thanks to me. Because I didn’t tell him.
Melinda jumped when Eva Jordan’s cutting voice taunted William. Her hatred for this woman was much deeper than anything she ever thought possible of herself.
