by S. L. Morgan
The roaring engine of the vehicle sped through the mountainside, and I focused on breathing my magic away, knowing that I had two witches at each of my sides. God only knew if they were powerful enough to sense my internal energy.
After we left the Rossi’s secluded estate, the vehicle kicked it into another gear as we flew through the forest of trees. It was so not like me to sit still, knowing I had the power to escape, but I was not going to let my sorry butt get hauled back to that prison of a school—even worse, leave Dominic with his dad, knowing that when I saw him again, everything would be different. Something in me told me to remain calm, whatever happened.
It was evident from that vision that Mark would still do everything in his power to keep Dominic safe and away from me. Shouldn’t I want the same for him, knowing I am bound to end up like my mom one day like Mark said I would?
Granted, Dom took down that demon I’d locked in my mind, but after a glimpse of knowing what happened to my mom, I had no chance of the darkness not following my ass until it finally got me.
There was no way I would let history repeat itself and end up like my parents. My mom was a mixture of every freaking supernatural race out there except for a shifter. Throw my butt into the middle of this hybrid supernatural soup, and who knows what I’d become if the evil managed to take over. There was no way I was going to let Dom fall into the same trap as my dad. There was no way I was going to let Dom become a victim if I went dark and killed him.
Damn it. Now, I had to agree with Mark Rossi. The man was protecting himself and his family from a hybrid immortal who had the destiny of evil taking over her life and killing immortals everywhere.
I shook my head. I couldn’t think like this. I couldn’t think at all.
My thoughts were interrupted when the car slid sideways and practically rolled over as it came to a halt.
“Get this car out of the way!” one of the guys next to me yelled at the driver.
“There’s a man out front,” the driver yelled back. “He doesn’t look like someone I’ve seen before.”
“What?” the man to my other side said. “Well, he’s about to learn the hard way that he just stopped the wrong car.”
Both men jumped out along with the driver and front passenger of the SUV.
Really? Four immortal men are about to jack someone up for getting in the way of their mission?
As stupid as their plan was, it was perfect for me to escape without anyone being the wiser. I closed my eyes and mentally tapped into my magic. I focused on the skin of my throat becoming so hot that it would melt this paralytic device off my neck. I felt my body seize with the power that felt like it was going to explode my head into a million pieces.
Crap! I still don’t know how to use this shit! I thought, right before I blacked out. I wasn’t out long. It was almost as if the wolf lent me her strength so I could get the hell out of here, and then I was wide awake.
I jumped out of the car to see two men on the ground and one man taking on the others. He was like a magician of skill and battle as he fought the three supernaturals taking him on now. One man got him from behind, though it didn’t stop him from dropping and turning to throw a hard jab into the witch’s groin, making him fall to the ground. The mystery man turned in a blur of speed and was taking on the two supernaturals who had already lunged in the air at him.
Is that a vampire?
The man shifted to the side, using his left hand to connect with the back of the IA specialist’s head, and he slammed the supe into the car behind him while using the other hand to block the punch coming from the other specialist. He gripped his throat, and with a resounding crack, the IA specialist was temporarily knocked out with a broken neck. I should have been running for my life, but I was stunned by this man who had just finished off the guy he sent to the ground with a groin kick, and I sensed Dominic was near and not in good shape.
“No, he’s not in good shape,” the man said in response to my thoughts.
Holy Shit. It’s the Guardian commander who came to the school…Harrison!
“Get Edgewater taken care of,” he shouted at two men who jumped out of a sleek black vehicle that had just pulled up to the scene.
“What the hell?” I said, running after the Guardian commander. “Where’s Dominic?”
He ignored me while he stormed up to the vehicle that had been trailing the SUV I was in. The two men who followed the badass commander each went to a door that opened to reveal an IA specialist, and the commander went to the door where I was hoping Dom was.
“You’re like an annoying insect that just won’t go away, aren’t you?” the commander’s voice said in annoyance as he reached into the car and pulled the dean out by his hair. The dean’s arms flailed as he tried to wiggle out of the commander’s grips, but from the size of the guy’s biceps, Edgewater wasn’t getting out of this very easily. “Newsflash, your supernatural nonsense has no effect on me,” he said as Edgewater seemed to be pulling off some weird-looking magic trick on the commander.
“You’d be wise to let me go now!” Edgewater snarled.
I watched the commander eye the dean. “You could use a little nap while I talk to the kids,” he countered before he broke the dean’s neck, giving him a supernatural immortal knock-out. The commander dropped him and reached into the car. “Come on, kid,” he said.
“These are all taken care of, Commander,” one of the men said as he gripped my arm, sending me immediately into defense mode. I jerked out of his light grip and used my elbow to thrust into his body of steel. That plan backfired. Now, I was in a stronger and more vulnerable rear choke.
Think, Jenna! Dominic taught us how to get out of this.
“Let her go, Justin,” Harrison said as he pulled Dominic out of the car. “She’s not going anywhere without lover-man here,” he said as mine and Dom’s eyes locked, Dom paralyzed by the same type of restraint on his neck that I’d had. Dom’s features were deathly pale.
“What’s wrong with him?” I ran up to where the commander was steadying Dominic on his feet while studying the paralytic device.
“Care to inform me what they did to you before putting this ridiculous dog collar on?” he asked Dominic, touching the device and trying to figure it out.
“They got…” Dom’s voice was weak, and he almost sounded stoned out on the pixie dust. “It was a needle.”
“Rossi let this happen to his own son?” he turned back to where Edgewater was starting to come around. “Restrain that chump and throw him in the trunk. He and I are going to have a little chat once I’m done with these two shifters,” the commander said to one of the men approaching him. “Wow, your dad seems pretty desperate these days,” he said, turning back to Dom.
“Jen,” Dom looked at me with a pleading expression. “I can’t heal with this restraint on,” he slurred out the words.
Dominic’s eyes rolled back, and his legs buckled. He reached for the device at his neck, and I knew I could get the thing off. My fingertips were burning, my magic begging me to help Dom, knowing I could safely do this.
“Not a very classy drunk, are you?” the commander said, then looked at me. “Hey, are you going to stand there all day or use that magic and get this off of him?”
“Right, you’re a damn mind reader,” I snarled, walking up to Dom.
I held my hands up to Dominic’s neck, and the magic left. I watched the teal and blue swirls of energy ignite the black device, and then it was transformed into particles of dust. Dom reached one hand to his throat, and after the commander released him, he was in my arms.
“I’m so glad you’re safe,” I said, kissing his cheek.
“Aren’t you two adorable,” the commander said with a laugh. “While I love happy endings, your little love bird story just got kicked into full gear, and now you’re leaving with me.”
“Only if you take us far from that school,” I said.
“And leave your friends behind?” the commander questioned a
s we turned to face his folded arms and illuminating eyes.
“Are you a fairy? Be straight with me,” I asked.
The commander’s eyes widened like I’d just insulted him in the worst way possible.
“First of all, you have a lot to learn about who and what I really am. Second of all, I’ve been accused of being many things, but a fairy? Really? Do I seem that ridiculous to you? Of all the names I’ve been called, that’s got to be the worst.” The commander looked at his two men who stood next to their car, trying to conceal their amused expressions. “If either of you tells the emperor that I just got accused of being a fairy, you’re dead to me.”
“What do you need from us?” Dom interrupted the laughter coming from the commander’s men. Dom’s voice was weak, but I could tell his alpha shifter genetics were fighting off whatever serum he was injected with. “We’re not going with you. We’re going back to that school and helping our friends get the hell out of there.”
“Wait! You will help us get them out of that school,” I demanded. “Get that look off your face, does any of this look funny to you?”
“Nate,” the commander called out to one of his men. “Tell the emperor I’m going to take a joyride with the ones I told him about. I’ll be in contact with him once I get wheels in the air.”
“The emperor has already contacted me on my device,” the man answered.
I watched Harrison pull out some transparent tablet and start interacting with it. I watched his eyes illuminate more, they looked almost like a gemstone would if the sun shone directly on it.
The commander dropped the device in his back pocket and smiled at Dom and me like this was the best day of his life. “Change of plans, kids,” he said before he walked down to the car he’d used as a roadblock.
Who the heck was this guy? What the hell did he just use to communicate with this emperor guy, and how was it they didn’t say a word before the commander changed his mind about the plans that he had for us?
I had so many questions, but something inside me told me I could trust him. I wasn’t getting bad vibes off him at all. He’d also mentioned Mark Rossi’s name, and he knew Dom was Mark’s son. Maybe we had a hope to save the kids at the academy after all?
“Is there a speed limit for that little mind of yours?” the commander asked, pulling me out of my thoughts. He grinned. “Come on, let’s get you both out of here. There’s a lot to be planned, and the emperor is delighted to finally meet you both.”
I swallowed hard. Please let these people be ready to help us battle that school and save the kids from it. This was not the summer vacation I had planned for at all, but it was turning out that this vacation might be what finally ends the menacing threats from Immortal Academy.
A horrible thought hit me as I sat next to Dom in the car, and he held my hand. We may be able to save the school from the darkness, but how the hell would we save me if what Mark Rossi said about me was true. I was some hybrid cross of all the supernatural races—something that got my family, House Silvers, killed off. I had no idea if there was even hope for me at this point.
Chapter Eleven
I squeezed Dom’s hand as the car moved at the speed of light, and yet it felt like we weren’t moving at all. I sat in the middle seat, giving myself a full view of the Guardian commander, who was paying more attention to watching his device than the road in front of him.
“Does this car drive itself or something? What the hell?” I let go of Dom’s hand and gripped both headrests of the front two seats when the car didn’t follow the turn in the road. I kept barreling straight toward the edge of the cliff. “Holy shit!” I screamed when it seemed we were teleported at the last possible moment.
“What the hell just happened? Where the hell are you taking us?” Dom barked, fully alert now that whatever they’d injected him with was out of his system.
The commander gripped the wheel as the car sped along a glistening white paved road. “We just went through a vortex. I’m taking you to my realm, wolf,” he said before he brought his attention back to the device. “Oh, and yes, the car pretty much drives itself,” he added indifferently.
I was absolutely speechless. The color of the silver water in the river flowing to our right was illuminating, and it was freaking dark outside. I felt a wave of peace wash over me, and I sank back to my seat, taking Dom’s offered hand again. His energy was as peaceful as mine was—what the heck was happening?
I peered out of the window to my left, seeing bright yellow, green, and orange leaves glimmering on the trunks of golden trees in the forest. These colors mimicked that of the Fae enchantments, but there was something much more majestic than any fairy could conjure up. The vibrant colors glowing everywhere—and without any sun to brighten them—should have been giving me a colossal headache like the fairy colors always did, but it had the opposite effect on me.
“Hey, zippy thoughts,” the commander said, meeting my eyes in the rearview mirror. “Can you kindly stop comparing everything you see in our realm to the fairy world? It’s bad enough to insult me by suggesting I was a fairy, but have the decency to keep my home out of it,” he said with a smirk. “Also, you can call me Harrison. I must say that listening to you refer to me over and over in your head as the commander is making me feel like some weird old man.”
“Then get out of my damn head!” I snapped only to have Harrison grin widely in response.
“Can we get back to my original question now that you’ve finished communicating on that device?” Dom asked.
“Right,” Harrison guided the car toward the rapidly flowing silver water where a road magically appeared, and behind that, a shimmering rock opened up to reveal more cars and motorcycles parked in it.
Harrison was out of the car and opening the door where Dom sat with me glued to his side. “All you need to know right now is that you’re quite lucky the emperor chose to meet you in his realm instead of him venturing to Earth himself. That impossibly ridiculous school isn’t the safest place for either of you for the time being. You’re safe here, and that’s why permission was granted to bring you into our realm.”
Dom stepped out of the car, and I followed right behind him. It was apparent we were both rendered speechless after we inhaled a lighter, crisper air than ever before. My inner wolf sent peaceful vibes to me while my own mind was calming further with each breath I took. It wasn’t some weird, lightheaded feeling I was experiencing. The best way to describe the atmosphere of this realm was what one would consider tranquility and contentment for the mind, body, and soul.
Harrison’s silvery-blue eyes stopped that strange illumination as he rubbed his forehead. “Alright, Dominic is mentally wondering how to kill anything and everything that is a threat to you, and he’s not too thrilled about the misunderstanding he and his father recently had.” He laughed and slipped his hands into his pockets, “You remind me a lot of the emperor. You two should get along great.” He grinned at Dominic’s questioning expression. Then his eyes were back on me, “Thanks to you, I’m done reading thoughts to ensure that we aren’t bringing two shifters who might go rogue on us into this realm.”
“Just tell us why we’re here,” I demanded.
“I would think that with all the inward thinking you do, you’d have that part figured out by now.
“Answer her question, Commander,” Dom insisted.
Harrison rolled his eyes. “Follow me and quit trying to bring out that alpha wolf of yours. That tone wouldn’t work on me in a million years. You’re here for your own protection and to give some details to our emperor.”
Harrison stepped past us and casually walked over the road that only appeared when the car pulled up to it. Dom glanced at me and held me back instead of following the lighthearted commander.
“We’re not taking another step until you let us in on your and your emperor’s plans,” Dom argued.
Harrison turned around, and that’s when I saw the warrior in his eyes. “Listen, kid, it’s fa
irly simple, but since I despise repeating myself, I’ll do you a favor and dumb it down a little more. You and your girl are marked for the bad guys to take under their mind control and deliver you to an enemy we’ve yet to understand. The emperor has honored you by allowing you into his realm. If we had left you on Earth, I would have inevitably ended up coming to get you both anyway. This was easier.”
“How long do you plan on keeping us here?” I asked.
“As long as it takes for my men to, once again, clean up messes that Immortal Academy has caused and send you two back to school where you’ll be safe. Right now, that’s not going to happen until we are certain we have fixed the issues you two created.”
“We didn’t create shit!” Dom argued. “That school—”
“Exactly,” Harrison narrowed his eyes at Dominic. “That school is the reason you’re here.” His features softened. “I think we can all agree that since I’m not harming either one of you, you’re better off here for now.”
“Where’s the emperor?” Dominic wasn’t in the mood for Harrison’s conversation anymore, and it was obvious.
“Awaiting your arrival. Now, can I get you two out of the outer boundaries of our realm so you are safe? We can iron out all of your issues when you’re at Pasidian Palace.”
“We’re not safe here?” I asked. “You just said we were.”
“You’re on the outer boundaries of my realm. Anyone can come through the portal we just drove through and snatch you two up. Once we get you over our impenetrable defensive barriers, you’ll be safe.” He looked at Dominic, “You might want to take pleasure in the fact that you can walk around without worrying about your dad injecting you with some serum to try to keep you away from your girlfriend.”
“Have you been in our thoughts the entire time?” Dom growled as we turned to walk on a glittery road.
The pathway seemed to go on and on through shimmering rocks and trees. “My God, can’t we just shift? If we’re traveling along this path with no end in sight, I’d rather get there sooner than later.”
