Chapter 30 #2
Already, there was a glint of tears in Ronin’s eyes, and as he bent over Cece, another blast of red light shot off the truck, and fire struck the windshield of the car beside it. The windshield exploded, showering them with glass, and Mal took another look over the truck. “Fuck me, she -”
He dove back behind the truck as a beam of light shot directly at him. It hit the car, which flipped over and over, then smashed into a light pole at the edge of the parking lot, bursting into flames.
“I’ll distract her,” Ronin said from his spot crouched over Cece. “Let her waste time killing me while the rest of you make a run for it and -”
The witch rounded the truck, red light blazing from her eyes and her hands.
“Give me the dirt witch, and I’ll let the rest of you live,” she said.
“Fuck you!” Briggs snarled as tears fell from Ronin’s cheeks and landed on Cece’s forehead.
“You had your chance, shifter,” the witch said before she spoke an incantation and thrust her hands toward him. A stream of teal light met the beam of red light, and Briggs’s bear growled with relief when Monroe, his body lit up in bright teal light, stalked toward the witch.
He shouted something that the wind snatched away, and the teal light pulsed bright in his hands, breaking the beam of red light and hitting the witch squarely in the chest. She squealed, the light in her hands dying as she was flung backward and hit the ground with a hard thud.
Monroe ran past them without a second look, as the witch scrambled to her feet and screeched an incantation at him. Monroe dodged to the left, and the spell’s light hit another car in the parking lot, flipping it over and smashing it into another car before they both burst into flames.
People were starting to emerge from the restaurant, drawn by the fire and the noise, and Ronin waved his arms at them. “Get back in the fucking restaurant, you idiots!”
They screamed when a blast of fire hit the side of the restaurant and fled back into the building.
“Goddamn humans, am I fucking right?” Ronin said to Kat.
Briggs turned back to Cece, his bear chuffing in surprise when Clay appeared out of thin air.
“Thank Christ,” Mal said.
“Take Willow!” Kat shouted at Clay.
Briggs’s mouth dropped open when Clay pulled Willow against his body, wrapped his arms around her, and they both disappeared.
“What the fuck,” he said, his voice faint with shock.
“Clay’s got one fuck of a party trick,” Ronin said as Clay reappeared without Willow.
“Ava!” Kat shouted.
Bishop practically shoved the curvy redhead into Clay’s arms, and they vanished as Hudson kissed Rosalie. “I’ll see you soon, my mate.”
Clay reappeared, and he took Rosalie’s hand, pulling her into his arms and disappearing with her.
“He’s a teleport,” Briggs said.
“Fuck, yeah, he is,” Ronin said.
Clay reappeared and crouched beside Kat, reaching for her hand. She hissed at him. “No fucking way.”
“I told your sister I would get you to safety, too,” Clay said.
“Teleport me, and I’ll slice your balls off your body,” Kat snarled.
“You know she will, bud,” Ronin said. “Better not risk it.”
Clay rolled his eyes before peering over the truck. “Who the fuck is the guy?”
“Good witch,” Ronin said.
“She’s not waking up,” Briggs said to Ronin, new fear rolling over him.
Ronin squeezed his shoulder. “Give it a minute, she was hit with a blast of magic and -”
Magic suddenly flooded Briggs’s system, a bright green light that reminded him of hot summer days and freshly mowed grass. He inhaled deeply as Cece’s eyes opened and she stared at him.
“Briggs?”
“My mate,” he said as another burst of magic went through him. His bear growled with pleasure, and his muscles tightened pleasantly as a blast of energy replaced the lingering weakness from the witch’s spell he took.
“Welcome back, tiny tree witch,” Ronin said.
Briggs sat her up, keeping her body pressed against his as she said, “What’s happening?”
“Long story short - a blast of fiery dark magic hit you, Briggs saved you, and Clay teleported the ladies to safety while our friend Monroe is currently keeping that asshole of a dark witch occupied,” Ronin said.
Cece grabbed for the stone around her neck, staring at the small piece of rock that dangled from the chain. The rest of it had been shattered, and small bits and pieces of it clung to her skin and shirt.
“Rosalie!” she gasped.
“She’s safe,” Briggs said as Cece’s hands began to glow. “You need to go with Clay, my mate.”
“What? No! I’m not leaving you,” Cece said.
“You have to,” Briggs said. “Once you’re gone, the witch will stop the attack.”
There was a loud cracking sound, and Ronin’s jaw dropped when a thick piece of ice peeled away from the pavement and floated in the air. “Well, what the fuck is this happy horseshit?”
“It’s Monroe,” Cece said. “He’s a water warlock.”
All of them peered over the truck, watching as Monroe, his mouth moving continuously as he spoke an incantation, made a sweeping motion with his arms. The chunk of ice flew at the witch at deadly speed.
“Oh fuck, yeah,” Ronin shouted.
A blast of fire erupted from the dark witch’s hands and met the slab of ice before it could slam into her. It exploded, chunks of ice and water spraying everywhere, and the witch screeched with laughter.
“You’ll have to try harder than that, water witch!” She blasted him with another beam of red light, and fire engulfed Monroe for a few seconds before disappearing. He wasn’t burned, but the light surrounding him was noticeably dimmer.
“Is his light fading?” Briggs asked.
“Oh shit,” Cece said.
“What?” Ronin said.
“Monroe is losing.”
“How can you tell?” Mal took a quick look over the truck.
“Because Briggs is right. His light is fading, which means his magic is weakening,” Cece said.
She shook her head when Briggs tried to guide her toward Clay. “Stop it. I’m not leaving. We don’t know for sure that she’ll stop if I’m not here, and your protection spells will only help until she breaks them. She’s using dark magic. It won’t take long for her to break the spells.”
“The fuck are we talking about here?” Clay said. “I’ll just teleport all of you to the office. She can’t kill us if we’re not here.”
"I won’t leave Monroe to die,” Cece snapped.
“I’ll grab him as well,” Clay said.
“You don’t have a protection spell on you,” Kat said. “If the witch hits you with a spell, you’re dead, Clay.”
“And what if she goes after innocent people in the restaurant?” Cece said. “We can’t just leave, okay?”
Her hands were glowing a soft green, and the colour had returned to her cheeks. Her magic was feeding off of him, and Briggs pressed her even closer against his body, relishing the hit of magic it gave him as well, even amongst the chaos.
“She’s right,” Mal said. “We can end this right here and now.”
“How?” Hudson asked.
“The rock,” Mal said, glancing at Bishop.
“Holy fuck, is it still in the trunk of your car?” Bishop asked.
Mal nodded. “Yes. I forgot to talk to Monroe about it.”
“So you’ve been just driving around with a dark magic rock in your trunk? That’s some badassery right there,” Ronin said.
“If Cece and Monroe can break the protection spell the witch has surrounding her -”
“It’s a barrier spell,” Cece said.
“If they can break it, Clay can teleport up to her and -”
“Hit her with the fucking rock before she zippity zaps him with a spell,” Ronin said with a delighted grin. “Hell, yes.”
“You’re forgetting something,” Briggs growled as Cece yanked down the zipper on her jacket and shrugged out of it. “Cece’s magic isn’t strong enough to beat that fucking witch.”
“Not yet it isn’t,” Cece said, “but it will be.”
He grunted in surprise when she straddled him, gripped his head in her hands, and kissed him.