37. Cherry
Cherry
“Who are they?” I ask through the bond, looking at the three strangers in our yard. Worry and fear start to spike.
“Cherry,” Maddox says out loud, beckoning me over to where he’s standing with them. I continue to clutch Gage’s hand as I move over, stepping up against Maddox’s side as his arm comes down around my shoulders, holding me tightly.
“I’d like you to meet our neighbors, Leonard, Janet, and their son, Craig.” He points to each of them and I say hello, my fear easing away when I realize they aren’t a threat.
“They came over to help the others when they heard the commotion.”
“Thank you for helping us,” I tell them with a small smile.
“Of course. I’ve never heard of a coordinated rogue attack before. Certainly never here,” Janet says as she glances around at all the dead bodies littering our yard.
“Well, we’ve taken care of the man responsible for it.”
“Mage?” Leonard asks.
“He wasn’t a mage, but he used magic somehow to aid him.”
“Is that his car parked out front?” their teenaged son, Craig, asks, gesturing over his shoulder.
Maddox frowns as he looks in that direction. “What car?”
“The rusty blue Toyota. I didn’t see it earlier, but I noticed it there a few minutes ago when I was checking the perimeter.”
Maddox’s eyebrows raise in surprise as he gently presses me to Gage’s side. “Cherry, stay here with Gage.”
“I’m coming too.”
He frowns down at me and I shrug. “Blaze is dead. What are you worried about?”
“His car could be booby-trapped.”
“We can help with that,” Philip says as his coven approaches.
“Cherry!” Erica gasps, pushing through and throwing her arms around me. “Thank Goddess you’re okay!”
I smile and hug her back. “I’m glad you guys are okay too. Where’s Lexi?” I ask, not having seen her yet.
“I’m here and uninjured, thanks to you!” she says, hugging me tightly.
“I think I may have had something to do with keeping you alive,” Alaric says with a pretend glare aimed her way.
“Of course you did!” she says, turning to hug him, which then makes her other mates demand hugs too.
“Let’s go check out that car,” Philip says, leading the charge with Jon and Maddox down the side of our house to the front.
I see the car instantly. It sticks out in this neighborhood and would be better at home in a junkyard. Bain places an arm around my shoulder, placing himself between me and the car as we move closer. He stops us twenty feet away as the three mages and Maddox approach.
They glance in the windows and shake their heads. “I don’t see anything,” Jon says before carefully opening the back door. Nothing happens.
“I think that’s the car Blaze took me in,” I tell them, recognizing the interior. Just then, a loud banging starts coming from the trunk, and Bain lifts me up, stepping backward as I wrap my arms around his neck, holding my cheek against him as we both watch the others approach the trunk.
Jon steps up to it, making sure the others are ready before he grabs the handle, throwing it open and stepping back. Several gasps fill the air, but I can’t see what or who is in there from here.
“Philip?” Jon asks in confusion.
Philip frowns, stepping closer so he can see inside the trunk. I watch as his eyes grow wide in shock, his jaw dropping open as he gasps, “Edwin?!”
He lurches forward toward the trunk, reaching in as I whisper, “I recognize the name. Who’s Edwin?”
But I don’t need Bain to answer as Philip helps his twin brother sit up. Edwin is like a skinnier, paler, dirtier version of Philip.
“You’re alive!” Philip gasps as he helps him out of the trunk and pulls him into a huge hug. “I thought you were dead!”
“So did I, brother, so did I.”
“Did Blaze have you this whole time?” Maddox asks, stepping closer as he hands him a water bottle. I’m not even sure where he got that from, but Edwin doesn’t seem to care as he drinks the entire thing without stopping, clearly having been dehydrated in that trunk.
I wonder how long he was in there for?
“Yes, he ran from the facility and took me with him.” He holds up his hands, and I only just notice he has magical cuffs on his wrists. “I didn’t have much choice but to listen to him.” He looks at Maddox as he adds, “I’m really sorry about all the problems I probably caused.”
Philip places his hands on the cuffs and mutters a few words, then they click open. Edwin quickly tugs them off, throwing them in the trunk behind him before rubbing his wrists in relief.
“Thank you, brother.” He glances around at the crowd of us and gives a humorless laugh. “I’m guessing a lot happened today? Just tell me, is he finally dead?”
“Yes,” Maddox says. “Blaze is gone for good.”
“Thank Goddess,” Edwin says with a sigh as he loses his balance and starts to fall backward. But Philip is there before he goes far, wrapping his arm around him in support.
“We need to get you home.”
“Home,” Edwin says with an unamused laugh. “I don’t even know where that is anymore.”
“Well, you can stay with my coven as long as you need.” As if thinking better of it, he lifts his head toward the others as he asks, “Right, guys?”
“Of course, he can stay with us,” Jon says, stepping up to his other side and helping move him away from the rusty car.
“As long as you need,” Zack adds with a nod.
“You’re family now,” Erica says with a smile as she steps forward.
“Edwin,” Phil says, gesturing to her. “This is Erica, my—”
“Mate!” Edwin gasps the moment his eyes rise to meet Erica’s. She gasps, then simultaneously they both lunge forward, throwing their arms around each other.
“Awe,” I whisper quietly to Bain. “He’s her mate too!”
“So it would seem,” he replies, his large hand moving up and down my back in a soothing motion.
I watch as Erica cries happy tears, and more hugs are exchanged.
Her guys don’t seem upset about the addition to their coven and I’m pleased.
Not only for Erica, because she’s getting another mate, but also for Edwin.
He’s clearly another survivor of the facility and Blaze, and to know he gets his own happy ending just makes today that much better.
I realize that Blaze has had Edwin at his beck and call this whole time.
It explains all the strange things we couldn’t explain.
Like both rogue attacks and his invisible car.
His hidden scent and how he was able to get into our house.
We were pretty sure he didn’t have any magic himself, but now we know where he was getting it from, using Edwin to create charms and potions.
I suppose when Blaze died, the spell keeping his car invisible died with him.
“Has anyone called Cody?” Chase asks, glancing at the car. “This seems like something the sheriff should deal with.”
“Didn’t you hear?” Finn asks and Chase shakes his head. “He's gone.”
“What do you mean, gone?” Maddox asks.
“I went to see him this morning, to see if he was coming to your pool party, but he’s gone. Dr. Jahan is gone too. Looks like Cody packed a bag and drove because his car’s not there, either.”
“Why wouldn’t he tell someone he was leaving?” Gage asks in confusion and Finn shrugs.
“Do you think this has something to do with Casper and Dante?” I ask, knowing they are still missing along with the security guard from the sanctuary.
“I don’t know,” Finn answers. “But wherever they all are, I’m confident they can take care of themselves. Besides, it’s not like any of them have mates to protect.”
Something in my gut tells me that isn’t entirely true. What else would cause Cody to suddenly pack up and leave town?
Soon, the guys make plans to get rid of all the bodies and Blaze’s car, and I find my eyes drifting shut as I snuggle against Bain.
The next time I open my eyes, I find myself lying in bed, the scent of all my mates surrounding me.
As I snuggle into Maddox’s chest, it suddenly hits me. There’s nobody left to come after me. I’m finally free from all my monsters.
Thanks to my men, my mates, I no longer have to look over my shoulder. Thanks to them, I can be myself and live the life I’ve always wanted.
One filled with happiness and love.
And hopefully…
Lots and lots of sex.