Chapter Eleven
Kadie blinked awake, and for a moment wondered where she was. Her journey had been long and scary. Hard to believe she finally made it and found Brinnah. Slowly, she sat up and winced as pain blazed through her head. She never got headaches and could honestly say she wasn’t a fan.
Glancing around, she realized she was still at the human medical center. The alpha wanted her to stay quarantined to make sure she wasn’t contagious, but she knew she wasn’t. The sickness took three days from the onset to death. She would never have made it if she was sick.
But the walls were closing in on her. She had to get out of there.
The pain in her head got worse, and she knew only getting outside would help.
It was an instinct. Staying as quiet as possible, something she had a lot of experience with, she dismounted the bed slash table and made her way to the door.
Opening it, she peeked around and saw no one.
The “exit” sign caught her attention, and something told her to go. Stay silent. Get out. Hide.
Hide. Hide. Hide.
She pressed a hand to her head. It was like the thoughts weren’t her own, but that had never been a symptom of the virus. Or had it? It was hard to think past the need to run. Hide. Why did she need to hide?
Run! Go, now!
Kadie adhered to the voice in her head. She hurried down the short corridor and opened the EXIT door.
An enticing scent surfed on the cool morning air, and it overshadowed the other voice of warning.
Her wolf rumbled, wanting her to follow the scent.
Spice. Orange. Warmth. It wrapped around her like a hug.
She followed the trail, until it led her to a small house-like office where a sign read Law Office of Corbin Leonelli.
Suddenly, the door opened and there stood a man, returning her perusal.
He was gorgeous. Olive skin tone. Dark eyes framed by long black lashes.
There was an intensity that made her feel seen.
Made her feel important. Like she was the only person in his sphere.
Her headache suddenly grew hot and she grabbed her head, crying out, before darkness rushed for her.
The last thing she saw was the man hurrying toward her.
When she opened her eyes some time later, she discovered she was on a leather couch in an office. Kneeling next to her and holding her hand, was the man.
She smiled. “Mate.”
“Mate,” he agreed. “My name is Corbin.”
“Kadie.”
“I heard of your arrival.”
“I’m not sick,” she rushed to explain. “I promise.”
“I know.”
“And I didn’t bring it with me,” she added.
“I know that, too.”
She smiled, relieved. “You know a lot.”
He returned her smile. “I’m a lawyer.”
Kadie knew his words were meant to be funny, but it only emphasized how different they were. He brushed some hair off her cheek.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“You’re just, um, smart,” she replied in a small voice.
He cupped her face. “What makes you think you’re not? You navigated a world you had no experience with. That takes courage. There will never be a time when I’m not in awe of that. Or of you. The High Luna truly blessed me.”
Just then the door opened. One man, whose powerful aura was so strong, he couldn’t be anyone else except Alpha Jericho, walked in.
She vaguely remembered him from when Brinnah held her.
He was followed by a man that made her headache flare back to life.
One look at him and she jumped off the couch, crouching in a defensive position.
Her fingers turned into claws, ready to rend him limb from limb.
“Kadie?” Corbin asked.
The man shook his head. “That’s not Kadie at the moment. She has an attachment.”
“A what?” Alpha Jericho demanded, looking from the man to her.
“Something has hitched a ride with her.” He held up his hand and a fireball formed, dancing on an invisible string. “Time to give her back, witch.”
****
Corbin stepped in front of Kadie to protect her. He’d be damned if he’d allow her to be hurt.
“You harm my mate and you won’t see the sunrise.”
“I’m not fighting you, shifter,” Niall said placatingly. “I only want to separate her from the witch.”
“You’re a warlock,” she spat, her voice sounding thin and hollow, like an echo. “Why would you help?”
“Because I have no war with witches or shifters. This plague will kill a lot of innocent people. Will you please let me help you?”
For a tense moment, she studied him. Then slowly the claws retracted and Kadie stood up straight. “All right. But one wrong move, warlock, and you’ll be singing soprano.”
“Understood,” he acknowledged.
Chanting under his breath, Niall closed his eyes and swirled his hands around.
Light dimmed around them and Corbin tensed.
The ground shook and the sound of thunder clapped just as Kadie fell.
He managed to grab her body before it slammed onto the hardwood floor.
Lifting her into his arms, it alarmed him that she weighed almost nothing.
When the light returned, he blinked, and his gaze zeroed in on a translucent, amorphic body.
Although he supposed there might be slight definition, it was hard to tell as the spirit undulated to an invisible wind.
“Hello, there,” Niall greeted. “I’m Niall. Who might you be?”
“My name is Elspeth,” she said, her voice still echoey. “I was once part of the Moon Temple Coven, until they killed me.”
“Your own coven killed you?” he asked, shocked.
“Because I disagreed with what they did. They brought back the red death.”
“Wanna tell me how this started and why I’ve lost two members of my pack?” Jericho demanded, butting into the conversation.
“It started with a kidnapping,” Elspeth replied.
“Who was kidnapped?”
“The alpha of the Moondust Pack kidnapped the High Priestess’s daughter, to use her magic for himself.
In retaliation, the High Priestess brought back the red death.
” She shook her head. “What he did was wrong. What she did was worse. Violence should never equate violence because no one wins. I knew about the cure, so I scried for a unicorn and it revealed he or she was in Sheridan. My actions drew the wrath of my coven, and they killed me for my disobedience. But before I died, I tagged the last unicorn, and my spirit guided her here.”
Corbin glanced at Kadie.
Jericho frowned. “Your own people murdered you?”
“Well, I was never the popular witch.”
“But there isn’t a unicorn here,” Jericho said. “At least I don’t think so.”
“You’re right,” Niall agreed. “There isn’t. I would’ve sensed the presence.”
“No, you wouldn’t have,” Elspeth insisted.
“Why not?” Corbin asked.
“Unicorns were hunted to near extinction, and the only way they were able to survive was to hide themselves. Because of their pure magika, they erased their shifter scent and lived as humans.”
“Magika?” Jericho questioned.
“Magika created shifters and it created witches. It’s why the two aren’t friends.”
“The High Luna created shifters.”
“And who do you think created the High Luna?” she asked. “Magika is the energy of the universe, with Earth as the epicenter. It has key points located across its grid, where it can be felt and absorbed, called ley lines.”
“Don’t warlocks use magic?”
“No,” Niall answered. “My abilities come from siphoning power directly from the infernal realms. I just assumed unicorns were shifters I could sense. Then again, I’ve never met one.”
Jericho held up a hand. “And you’re positive there’s a unicorn in Sheridan?”
“Yes,” Elspeth replied. “The good news is I don’t need their horn. I’ve created a spell that can use another form of biological secretion.”
Silence descended for a moment.
“You’re talking about semen, aren’t you?” Niall deadpanned.
“I could use semen,” she said. “I prefer blood. Look, I just want to make things right. The red death affects all shifters, not just wolves. This is a horrible disease that doesn’t need to be.”
“You were killed for your compassion,” Jericho said softly.
She nodded. “As well for the curing spell I created.”
“Creating spells takes a lot of power.”
“And despite that power, I still died, so what good was it?”
“All right, if you’re done with Kadie, I’m taking her to my place, so get the hell out of my office,” Corbin ordered. He glanced at the unconscious woman he cradled in his arms. “She’s been through an ordeal and needs rest. Wholesome rest that doesn’t include magika or whatever-the-hell-you-are.”
“All right,” Jericho said. “Niall, why don’t you take Elspeth to Savannah, and get this cure started. I have a feeling I know who the unicorn is, and I’ve got to be a little more forceful. Corbin, I’ll call you if we need Kadie.”
“I won’t let her be hurt or used anymore, Jericho.” He maintained eye contact and deliberately didn’t use the honorific. Which could be construed as a challenge for the alpha mantle, but Jericho didn’t say anything about it and Corbin didn’t even want the title. “I must protect her.”
“I understand,” Jericho said sincerely. “I feel the same about my own mate. I’ll check in with you later to see how she’s doing.”
He nodded and watched as they left, along with the ghost who just bobbed along behind the men.
Then he looked down into Kadie’s beautiful face.
A fierce desire to shield her from everything hit him right in his heart.
He never thought he’d find her, the one person meant to be by his side, and he vowed to never lose her.