Chapter 21
Despite the threat, I noticed how swollen Fane’s lips were and that his hair was tousled. He and Lucy must have been together when the call came for her to know this information before the rest of us.
Maybe there was more to why he’d agreed to let us stay than just me being his sister. I’d realized there was an odd tension between him and Lucy, but I hadn’t expected that. And there was no way I wanted them to go through what Raffe and I had—not that they were fated.
Raffe jumped out of bed, bringing me back to the present.
“Did they specify where the perimeter was breached?” Raffe slipped on his sneakers at the bottom of the bed.
I shook my head, trying to wake up and clear my mind. If I didn’t get my act together, I wouldn’t be helpful to anyone here, especially if Olwyn—she wasn’t worthy of me including her title anymore—had found us.
Olwyn.
Had my power fritzing the other day allowed the Veiled Circle to find us? And if so, what sort of numbers were they bringing this time?
“Uh … I … I don’t know.” Fane blinked, his brows pulling together. “I mean … they didn’t specify. They said to come down there.”
“Can you ask them?” Raffe snapped and hurried past him and down the hallway.
When I got out of bed to follow, Lucy appeared at the bedroom door behind Fane.
“Yeah, I’ll call them.” Fane removed his phone from his pocket, his hands shaking. “We need to get down to the coven houses. That’s where they want us.”
He should’ve learned by now that Raffe wouldn’t do something because a coven member wanted him to.
Stay here with him and get answers from him and Caroline, I linked as I slid past Lucy, heading to the front door. He doesn’t understand our world enough to know what to ask.
Where do you want Dave and me? Josie asked as I reached the stairs.
The door shut behind Raffe as I took the stairs two at a time.
Meet me out front, Raffe replied. We’ll go from there.
When I opened the front door, Adam and Keith were coming up the stairs from inside.
I almost stopped in my tracks as cold, wet air assaulted me, catching me off guard. Luckily, it helped wake me, and I hurried to the spot where Raffe stood in the center of the gravel driveway.
Darkness from thick rain clouds enveloped us. No light from the stars and moon filtered through, which made Raffe’s glowing blue eyes like a beacon to me.
He’d tapped into his wolf to listen for the people who I hoped had accidentally broken through the perimeter. His eyes snapped to me as I rushed toward him, and he frowned.
You’re exhausted. You need to stay inside in case we have trouble. Raffe tensed, ready for battle. I know the witches want us down there, but for all we know, they could be behind this.
Unfortunately, he wanted to wage war for me and keep me safe in the house.
I shook my head. If we’re under attack, I need to be part of the fight, especially since my little show yesterday could be how they found us.
That wasn’t your fault. Raffe’s nostrils flared. That’s on the coven since they decided to upset you like that. None of this is you.
I reached his side and looped my arm with his to calm him. Though I wouldn’t hide, that didn’t mean I wanted to put myself in any danger. Let’s figure out if we’re actually in danger and go from there.
Raffe closed his eyes for a second but nodded.
The front door opened, and Josie and Dave joined us. The wind picked up, the rain hitting my face and forcing my dark hair to cling to me. I took a deep breath, ignoring the way my shirt and pajama bottoms molded to my body.
He got hold of the coven, Lucy linked. The breach is from the main road, coming this way. There’s a big problem, and it’s why they want us to come down there. They felt coven magic when the perimeter broke.
Dammit. This confirmed everything. Olwyn had sent people after us. If I’d gotten control of my power before yesterday, none of this would be happening. Our safe haven wasn’t safe anymore, and it was all my fault. I’d gotten the people I cared for the most back into trouble.
Wake Dru and Octavia, and get them and Fane down to the coven. I needed to make sure none of them got hurt, especially since they hadn’t been at risk until Octavia had decided to show up on EEU’s campus.
And you should help her, Raffe added, placing a hand on the center of my back and pushing me toward the front door. You need to go down there with them.
And what are the rest of you planning to do? I arched a brow, refusing to be bossed around.
The rest of us will sneak ahead and let you and Lucy know what we see. Raffe turned toward the threat that would be here soon. That way, we can get an idea of numbers. If there aren’t many, we can take them out before they get close to the house.
Then I’m going to help. Dave should help Lucy since he can’t link with the pack like I can.Raffe clenched his jaw, so I added, I swear I’ll stay next to you the entire time. And I can sense their magic if they use it nearby.
I could see his resolve bending.
Not to state the obvious, but they could be here anytime. We need to shift and scout before it’s too late. Adam removed his shirt and tossed it to the ground. So, make up your mind and stop arguing, or we’ll have a fight on our hands before we even get to the coven.
You stay right next to me. His blue eyes glowed again.
I nodded, removing my shirt, readying to shift.
He moved, blocking me the best he could from Adam’s, Keith’s, and Dave’s view as I stripped down and let my wolf free.
She sprang forward, not waiting for an invitation. She and I had gotten to know each other better, and she’d been eager to be released.
My skin tingled as fur sprouted, and Raffe linked as he called his own wolf forward, Josie, tell Dave to head down to the coven since he can’t link with us.
Uh … he can link with me now, Josie replied over the sounds of bones cracking. We completed the mate bond and …
If my bones hadn’t been breaking to adjust to my animal body, I might have gasped. No wonder it had taken them a little longer to get out here with the rest of us.
Raffe’s shock filtered into me, but after a second, he replied, Fine. Keep us updated on anything he sees.
Once we were all in our animal forms, we took off toward the line of thick firs.
Everyone, stay in groups of two, Raffe linked, leading me to the right, away from the road.
Dave and I will stay together, Josie replied, not shocking anyone.
I heard them all split off, with Adam and Keith opting to cover the middle.
A quarter of a mile in, we heard the doors to the house open and close, informing us that Lucy was getting the others down to the coven house.
Good. They would be safest there.
Raffe and I kept pace with each other, and after another quarter mile, the sounds of other animals reached my ears. The smaller animals were scampering off, sensing the threat of an incoming predator.
We were getting close.
The wind rustled branches, and the rain pelted the ground, so I had to strain harder than normal to hear the sounds.
When they came, my heart galloped, and I stopped in my tracks.
I didn’t sense magic, but I sure as hell heard at least fifty sets of paw prints just from our angle. Mixed in were the sounds of about five sets of footsteps, which could be coven, vampires, shifters in human form, or a combination of all three.
The fur on Raffe’s nape rose, and he spun around, nodding for us to head back in the direction we’d come from. We need to get to the coven.
Not wasting time arguing, we took off running as quickly as we dared while trying to remain silent. Adrenaline pumped through my body, burning off whatever fatigue was left.
We found a group on our side—at least fifty supernaturals are heading our way, Raffe linked with everyone.
With the ground muddy from the rain, I had to focus more on my steps to make sure I didn’t fall or make a noise. I didn’t want to send our location out like a damn beacon; they’d stumble upon our scents soon enough.
Well, that fucking blows because we found a group of thirty, half in wolf form and the other half gods know what sort of supernatural. Keith’s voice popped into our heads, giving us further bad news.
We were dealing with over seventy-five attackers that we’re aware of.
There are forty this way. Dave and I are heading to the coven, Josie linked.
That makes it over a hundred, and there could be more behind them. My heart sank. The situation was far worse than I’d thought possible. But they wanted me dead, so the numbers didn’t surprise me.
My power jolted, the severity of the situation waking it from its slumber. I needed the very essence I once feared to become stronger if we were going to make it out of here alive.
More of the perimeter has been breached. Lucy’s voice popped into our heads. The area about half a mile from the back of the house.
The house was now in view, so we pivoted and ran close to the edge of the woods, not wanting to risk coming head to head with the enemy. Raffe and I panted softly, and even then, we could hear at least twenty more people coming toward us from the left. They were closing in.
A wolf howled loudly less than half a mile away.
They must have heard us. We shouldn’t have run out here, but I’d never imagined we’d be up against these numbers. For all Olwyn knew, there were only seven of us, but she’d brought a literal army.
They’ve picked up our scent, Raffe linked, his panic slamming into me. Avoid the house and move your asses, he informed the other three running in the same direction.
With each step closer to the coven, it felt like the distance somehow grew farther away. The wolves were closing in on us, the wolves behind us speeding up, desperate to catch us.
We ran down the slight hill toward the coven.
The houses came into view with Priestess Caroline, Faith, and Avalon standing at the edge of Caroline’s property. They stood ten feet apart from one another, and more coven members continued along the side for as far as I could see, forming a circle around the neighborhood.
They waved us in just as two wolves appeared on our left. A large brown one charged toward Raffe as the smaller white one leaped at me. I dug my paws into the ground, stopping short, allowing the wolf to land right in front of me. I lowered my head and steamrolled it in the side, shoving it into a tree trunk with as much force as possible.
The wolf whimpered just as a dark wolf ran past my right side.
My breath caught as the black fur flashed past me. The wolf’s jaws opened and ripped out the white wolf’s throat.
Keith.
He’d saved me.
He darted past me, racing toward Raffe as the white wolf’s body fell limp, and the sound of more wolves rushing toward us filtered in.
Adam reached my side just as Priestess Caroline called out, “Get behind us. We need you in the perimeter so we can keep them out.”
We couldn’t do that until everyone was here.
As if there was a higher being that didn’t completely hate me, Josie and Dave came into view. Then, four more wolf shifters ran between two trees. Okay, I took that back. Clearly, I’d pissed someone off, and this was their retribution.
We needed to eliminate them while we waited for Josie and Dave to catch up.
All four wolves locked their eyes on me and snarled.
Dammit, Sky. Get behind the coven, Raffe linked as he ripped out the throat of his first attacker.
Adam pawed at the ground. You heard him. Go!
I hunkered, readying to fight. I’m not leaving you to fight four wolves on your own.
Get in front so we can protect her, Raffe commanded as he moved in front of me, blocking the four wolf shifters’ view of me. Adam and Keith flanked him with their fur raised on their backs.
The sable wolf lunged for Adam while the largest gray wolf ran straight at Raffe. The wolf on the far end attacked Keith, leaving the blond-furred wolf to push through the fight to get to me. The blond wolf stood on its hind legs, extending his claws. I rolled onto my side, landing in prickly brush as the wolf crashed onto its feet.
My flesh tore, stinging, but I jumped up as more wolves ran into the clearing. Holy shit, we had to get behind the coven line, or we were going to die out here.
Fire streaked the sky as Priestess Caroline used her magic on the enemy.
The blond wolf snarled and opened its mouth wide, lunging at me. I swiped my claws at it, hitting its snout. The enemy wolf stumbled back a step, whimpering and wiping its nose off.
We’re here, Josie linked as she and Dave joined the fight.
Huffing, the blond wolf rushed forward and bit into my left leg. Hot, stinging pain flooded me, but I lowered my mouth and sank my teeth into the side of its neck. My stomach churned as I again hurt an animal. All my life, I’d wanted to be a vet to help animals, and now I’d become part of nature, killing to protect myself and my pack mates.
The wolf whimpered, his jaws slackening, and he stumbled back. The gushing blood told me I’d hit the artery. He’d be dead in seconds.
“Get back here now,” Priestess Caroline yelled, “before we can’t hold them off!”
Raffe sank his teeth into his opponent’s side, bringing the enemy wolf to the ground. Adam and Keith fought together, defending against the sable wolf while more wolves raced inward.
Come on, Raffe linked, his gaze landing on me.
I didn’t want to leave our pack out here without us. But everyone—
Once you start running, we’ll all be behind you, Keith shot back. Get your ass to safety so we can too.
I took off. Each time my left paw hit the ground, that leg wanted to crumple. I pushed through the pain and ran like hell.
Priestess Caroline, Avalon, and Faith were using their powers to keep the wolf shifters back. It was the only reason we hadn’t been taken over completely.
Raffe and I ran past Caroline, and I spun around. I almost cried with relief as Adam, Keith, Josie, and Dave followed us.
More wolves poured into the clearing where we’d been seconds ago. Wolf after wolf lunged, trying to reach us, and the coven members closed the gap between them, filling in and using their magic to hold them off.
“Priestess, how are we supposed to perform the spell when we can’t stop using our magic to keep them at bay?” the white-haired man I’d seen on the first day asked through gritted teeth as wind blew from his palm, throwing a wolf shifter into the top of a tree.
“We can’t,” Priestess Caroline groaned. “We can only do our best since we can’t put up a barrier between us and them.”
My stomach sank. Their magic would drain eventually. I understood that all too well because of how my own power worked. I needed to help them.
I closed my eyes, searching for the power inside me. It jolted, but I needed it to be a damn strong hum to get these wolves back so the coven could perform whatever spell they planned to.
Raffe, what do you want us to do? The coven can’t handle this much longer, Adam linked.
Get ready to fight when the wolves break the circle, Raffe linked. Lucy, where are you?
Heading your way, she replied, I got Sky’s family into the priestess’s house.
If my magic was vibrations, I could cause chaos and make trees fall on them and the earth push them back. According to Priestess Caroline, since that was a wide scope, it wouldn’t be nearly as hard as targeting a small object.
I just needed to ignore the chaos and focus.
I’d never been able to purposely make my power stronger but now seemed like a good fucking time to try. I imagined what it might feel like if I lost Raffe and remembered the day the coven held a dagger to his neck, forcing me to believe they’d kill them.
My power sang inside me, the agony of the threat causing the power to flare. I kept envisioning exactly what I wanted to happen. Instead of merging together, the power spread out within me, but it didn’t have a chaotic feel as it had before.
Power pulsed from my paws into the ground, and the earth began to quake. Branches swayed.
It was working.
“What’s going on?” a woman asked from my left. “Is that the arcane-born?”
A tree crashed to the ground, and a wolf yelped.
“It’s working, Sky!” Priestess Caroline yelled. “Keep it going.”
Then the ground under my own feet began to shake, and a magic I’d never felt before surged with it.
My eyes opened, and I looked to the right, where I felt the magic coming from. A woman who had to be close to my age stared back at me with her palm raised.
Then, a hole opened underneath me, and I dropped as my power stopped.