Chapter 42
Dazed from the sudden attack, Cece didn’t react when the witch threw the fireball in her face.
The fire engulfing Cece’s face was ice cold, thanks to her protection spell, but it didn’t stop her brain’s immediate panic that they were on fucking fire.
With her magic a hot pulse in her veins, she waved her hands and said, “Dark magic, go away. Return to where you came today. My mind, body, soul are free, as I will, so mote it be.”
The flames died out, and she stared at her grandmother. Adora’s blue eyes were bright with madness, and she glared at Cece when she said, “Hello, grandmother.”
“Don’t call me that, dirt witch!” Adora snapped. “My son is dead because of you.”
“My father is dead because of you,” Cece said. “You murdered him.”
“Lies,” Adora hissed.
Cece glanced at Briggs, her magic pulsing bright when she saw him staring down the blond warlock. A blast of Adora’s magic hit her, and while she managed to stay on her feet, she could feel her protection spell weakening around her.
“Don’t worry about the shifter,” Adora said. “He’ll be dead soon.”
She suddenly ducked, narrowly avoiding being hit by the pine tree branch, before scowling at Cece. “Your magic may be stronger than I thought, but you’re no match for me. You and the shifter will die today.”
“Don’t be so fucking sure about that,” Cece spat, sweeping her hands in the air.
Adora dodged the branch easily before laughing. “Is that the best you can do, dirt witch? Using a tree against me? I will burn you and this entire fucking forest to the ground.”
She raised her hands and muttered an incantation that sent another beam of red light toward Cece.
Cece blocked it with her magic, her hands shaking as she fought against her grandmother’s spell.
She needed all of her concentration, but Briggs’s name was a steady drumbeat in her head, and she couldn’t help looking over at him.
Fear sent a powerful wave of magic through her, and she shot her left hand toward Briggs and her uncle, crying out with relief when the trees obeyed her magic and bent sideways in front of Briggs.
The branches stopped the deadly shards of ice before both trees snapped in half and fell to the ground.
Cece screamed when another ball of fire engulfed her body and threw her into the air. She landed hard on her back, cold snow slipping under her jacket to slide down her skin.
Adora cackled laughter. “Not much of your protection spell left, dirt witch!”
Cece jumped to her feet and spoke an incantation, triumph washing over her when this time, Adora couldn’t avoid the massive tree branch that smashed into her.
It hurtled her into another tree, and Cece prayed to the goddess that her grandmother’s back was fucking shattered as she stalked toward Adora.
To her dismay, Adora was already climbing to her feet, the red glow of her magic so bright it made Cece squint. She sneered at Cece, her blue eyes blazing with anger. “That hurt, you fucking little bitch. Stop making this so difficult!”
She shot another blast of magic at Cece, who dropped to her knees to avoid it, and returned her own blast of magic. She cheered inwardly when the green light washed over her grandmother, and Adora shuddered and staggered back.
“Now whose protection spell is weakening?” Cece said. “Maybe you should give up now and -”
Blue light enveloped her, destroying the last of her protection spell and sending agony racing up and down her spine. She screamed and twisted away, panting heavily as Alistair joined his mother.
Briggs! Where was Briggs?
She searched frantically for him, staring in confusion at the polar bear slamming its paws over and over on the suddenly frozen river. Who the fuck was that, and where was Briggs?
Another blast of blue light sent horrific pain through her body. She doubled over, gasping and clutching at her midsection as the light faded, and Adora laughed. “Stop toying with her, Alistair.”
“She deserves to suffer,” Alistair said. His eyes were just as mad as his mother’s, and Cece used her magic to conjure a barrier spell around herself. She was dismayed at how hard it was, at how quickly her magic was draining, and she took another glance at the river.
Briggs’s father, now in his human form, was yanking Briggs out of the river, and Alistair followed her gaze before sighing loudly. “For fuck’s sake.”
“Kill the shifter,” Adora snapped. “That’s all I asked you to do, and you can’t even do that.”
Alistair glared at her, his body pulsing a brighter blue. “It’s not my fucking fault there’s another one helping him!”
“Useless boy,” Adora spat at him. “Do I have to do everything myself?”
He curled his lip at her and marched toward Briggs and his father.
“No!” Cece cried, but before she could shout a warning, Adora attacked her again.
Her magic nearly broke through the barrier spell, and Cece backed away before muttering an incantation and thrusting her hands at Adora.
Green light shot from her hands, but it was noticeably dimmer, and Adora laughed as she met it with her own blast of magic.
“Half-breed dirt witch,” she said. “Did you really think you could beat me?”
Her body shaking, Cece half-turned toward Briggs.
Briggs’s father, now in his polar bear form, was standing protectively in front of Briggs as Alistair raised his hands.
With a shriek of effort, Cece used her magic to smash Alistair with a tree branch.
He slid across the frozen river as red light washed over Cece and sent another bout of agonizing pain through her body.
She screamed and fell onto her butt, her body shaking as she gave up on attacking Adora with her magic and concentrated the dying dredges of it on the barrier spell. The red light died, taking the pain with it, but when Cece tried to get to her feet, her trembling legs refused to support her.
She sat in the cold snow, repeating the barrier spell incantation over and over as Adora laughed shrilly and stood over her. “Give up, dirt witch. Your magic is weakening.”
“Fuck you,” Cece said.
Adora’s face contorted with anger. “After I kill you, I’ll skin your shifter and use his pelt on my fucking floor.”
Tears streamed down Cece’s face, and she desperately wanted to fight back, but her magic was barely enough to stop Adora’s magic from breaking through the barrier spell. She concentrated on the faint thread of magic in her body, even as the light surrounding her grew dimmer.
She could almost hear Briggs’s voice in her head, urging her to keep fighting, but she was so goddamn tired, and her magic was a barely detectable hum.
I’m so sorry, my love. She bowed her head and closed her eyes. I love you.
Adora’s scream of surprise brought Cece’s head up with a snap.
She stared in disbelief at the giant polar bear as he charged toward Adora, roaring loudly and his big paws flying across the snow.
The red light faded from Cece as Adora turned and threw a ball of fire at the polar bear.
It surrounded him for a brief moment before winking out of existence, leaving the polar bear unburned.
“Goddammit!” Adora shrieked. She backed away when the polar bear ran toward her again, throwing fireball after fireball at the massive beast.
She felt the warm bulk of Briggs’s bear behind her, his nose nuzzling her neck, before he shifted with a soft pop.
His arm slipped around Cece’s waist and lifted her to her feet, and she was pulled back against his warm, hard body.
Magic flickered to life within her, and she stared up at Briggs as he turned her to face him.
She touched his face as he smiled at her and said, “Hello, little witch.”
“Briggs,” she whispered.
He kissed her, his big hands sliding around her body to cup her ass and pull her tight against him. His tongue slid into her mouth, and she kissed him back frantically as magic flared within her in a glorious explosion of images of wild forests, rolling hills, and the sweet smell of wildflowers.
Briggs kissed her harder, his hands roaming over her body, reaching to cup her breasts through her thick jacket, squeezing her ass, gliding down one thigh to pull it up around his hip so he could grind his erection against her.
The roar of pain behind them broke them apart, and they both turned to see Briggs’s father dropping into the snow as flames licked at his thick fur, and Adora screamed triumphantly.
Alex rolled, dousing the flames as Adora stalked toward him, her hands raised and a ball of flame growing between her palms.
Briggs’s arm tightened around her waist. “End this, little witch.”
“Yes, my mate.” Cece raised her hands and chanted, “Circle of light, pure and bright, guard Alex now, both day and night.”
Green light shot from her hands to surround Alex as Adora threw the fireball at him. The fireball bounced off him harmlessly to sizzle out in the snow, and Adora shrieked with fury before turning to face Cece.
“Why won’t you just fucking die?” she screamed before stalking toward her. Her gaze flickered to the right, and she stumbled to a stop. “Alistair?”
Cece followed her gaze, gasping when she saw her grandfather standing over Alistair, who lay in the snow, a band of red light pressed against his mouth. His body was being wrapped in a glowing red rope of light, and Adora screamed again. “No! Werner, no!”
Her husband ignored her, his mouth moving soundlessly as he spoke an incantation, and more of the rope light appeared to wind around Alistair’s body.
Adora glared at Cece. “You fucking bitch!”
Grinning fiercely, Cece chanted an incantation, and green light surrounded Adora. The red light surrounding her grandmother blinked out as her protection spell was destroyed.
Quickly, before Adora could resurrect the spell, Cece said, “Out of sight, out of mind. Your wicked talk I now bind. Words of harm, now cease to be. Silence now, so mote it be.”
Briggs chuffed with surprise when the band of green light appeared around Adora’s throat. She tried to speak, surprise and then rage clouding her eyes as she clawed at her throat before opening her mouth in a silent scream.
“What did you do, little witch?” Briggs asked.
“A voice binding spell,” Cece said. “If she can’t speak, she can’t do spells.”
Briggs’s bear growled out a warning when Adora ran through the snow toward them, her hands hooked into claws and her face contorted with rage.
Cece waved her hands, muttering an incantation under her breath, and the branches of a nearby pine tree shot out and wrapped around her grandmother.
They yanked her back against the truck, and more branches wrapped around her struggling body.
Holding Briggs’s hand, Cece walked toward the tree, stopping in front of Adora’s writhing body and watching with cold detachment as the branches squeezed harder and Adora’s eyes bulged. There was a sharp snap as her arm broke, and Adora’s mouth opened in a silent scream of pain.
“Cecelia!” Werner joined them, his voice cracking with emotion as he stared at his wife. “Don’t kill her.”
“She tried to kill my mate,” Cece said as the branches tightened relentlessly, and Adora’s mouth gaped as she laboured to breathe. Her eyes rolled up in her head, and she slumped forward, her head hanging limply.
“Please, Nietita,” Werner said.
“Little witch.” Briggs’s voice spoke into her ear, and she stared up at him as his arm tightened around her waist.
“She tried to kill you, Briggs,” she said.
“This isn’t who you are, my mate,” he said. “Don’t let her turn you into someone you’re not.”
She studied him, her love for him washing over her in an intense wave that threatened to drown her. “I love you.”
“I love you, Cecelia,” he said.
She waved her hand, and the branches released Adora. She fell to the ground, and Werner crouched beside her, his fingers feeling for a pulse in her neck above that glowing band of green light before relief crossed his face.
His face solemn, he drew her unconscious body into his arms, whispering into her ear as he stroked her hair.
Cece studied the wound in Briggs’s side and the one in his leg. “You’re still bleeding.”
“They’re healing,” he said, stroking her hair back from her face. “You were so brave, my mate.”
“I was terrified,” she said with a broken laugh.
He kissed her. “I’m proud of you.”
She hugged him hard before studying her grandparents. “How the hell did they find us?”
“I don’t know,” he said.
Briggs’s father joined them. He was holding a fallen pine tree branch against his crotch, the thick pine needles on the branch covering him, and he grinned at Cece. “Figured maybe you wouldn’t want to see your future father-in-law’s junk up close.”
She stared blankly at him before starting to laugh so hard that it nearly bent her over.
Rubbing her back while she laughed, Briggs said, “Are you okay, Dad?”
“Just a bit of singed fur, my boy,” Alex said. He glanced at Werner and Adora and then at Alistair, still lying in the snow, before shaking his head. “Goddamn witches.”
He grimaced and glanced at Cece. “No offense, Cece.”
Still giggling, she said, “None taken.”
“Well,” his father clapped Briggs on the back with his free hand, “I’d better get back to your mother before she thinks I drowned during my swim. Love you, son.”
“I love you, Dad. Thanks.”
Alex winked at him. “Anytime.”
He shifted to his polar bear form and loped across the snow toward home. Briggs rested his forehead against Cece’s, and she took a deep breath. “I love you, Briggs.”
“I love you, Cecelia.”