by M. L. Briers
“Come on ladies,” Kirsty said. “Join hands and repeat after us.”
There was a buzz of nervous excitement in the group as they held hands and formed a tight circle around Nathaniel, Joe’s wolf, and the cauldron.
It was time to get Nathaniel’s wolf to show itself – if that was even possible.
CHAPTER TWENTY THREE
~
The witches led the chant, and the others followed. Twelve women in a circle who were desperately trying to set the stage, connect with the magical realm and call on Nathaniel’s beast to show itself.
Nathaniel watched with trepidation. He wanted to believe that the spell could work so badly he could taste it.
Kirsty could feel the connection between the women, the bond that had been formed, and the air was thick with the buzz of magical energy. The circle was working as one, the chant grew faster and more determined, and Mother Nature was listening.
The instant that Kirsty nodded at Nathaniel; signally what they had agreed upon, he lifted the ceremonial bowl and added the blood into the cauldron.
Hellfire! Not quite, but the wind had picked up out of nowhere, and it seemed like it was trying to force the makeshift coven apart – the flames licked at the cauldron, and the brew bubbled under the intense heat – and Nathaniel threw his head back and called out in pain as his body contorted.
Kirsty shot a look at Erin who was snatching glances back at her. Neither witch knew what to do – should they stop?
Was it too much?
Were the forces of nature and magic trying to punish them for daring to give a nightwalker back his beast?
“Keep going,” Nathaniel said, reading the doubt and worry in the witches minds. He could feel his beast’s fur just under the skin, and it was a feeling that he’d missed so damn much that if he died now, he’d at least die happy.
Joe’s wolf was getting anxious. It pawed the ground, cutting deeply into the soil with its claws. He could feel the magic all around them as it filled the night air, swirled on the wind, and lashed at the circle.
Joe could sense something else, a wolf, at least the spirit of a wolf, trapped, alone, and desperately seeking freedom. He used the psychic link that the pack shared to call the beast out, show it the way to freedom, and hoped he was doing the right thing.
A hard yell of pain tore from Nathaniel’s lips as he fell to his knees on the ground. One more contortion and he was on his hands and knees on the grass, his claws digging into the earth as he tore the patch of grass to shreds.
Nathaniel gave himself over to his beast, bit down on the pain that felt as if he were being apart, and allowed the witches magic to flow through every vein of his body. It burned deep, searing into his memory the agony of the forced change they were inflicting – and then – nothing.
The pure unbridled bliss of a long moment of feeling cut off from the agony he was going through before his body convulsed and his wolf burst free, and he shifted into his beast.
“Holy shi…” Erin bit out as the wolf tossed its head back on its neck and howled like its life depended on it.
Kirsty locked eyes with Nathaniel’s wolf. The beast snarled, and then he was running right at her.
Joe panicked, but his world seemed to slow down the moment that he sensed the danger for his mate. He pushed off on fast paws to block Nathaniel, but the wolf was just too damn fast – and a moment before the beast was upon Kirsty, she threw herself out of the way, breaking the circle and allowing the beast the freedom it was hungry for.
Erin rushed to Kirsty’s side, kneeling on the ground beside her as she watched both wolves take off across the grounds. “Are you okay?”
Kirsty lifted her head and watched the wolves go. “No good deed goes unpunished,” she said.
Catherine detached from the group and walked to where the witches sat, Courtney not far behind. “Well, it worked,” she said with a certain amount of trepidation in her voice.
“Guess he needed to run wild, run free,” Erin said, looking out after the wolves, but they had already gone.
“That’s not it,” Catherine said and tapped her temple.
“Nathaniel is going to kill Conrad,” Courtney said.
“What!” Kirsty spat out with disbelief as she pushed up from the ground and yanked Erin up with her.
“Well, we can’t catch them on foot,” Erin said, and they looked at each other. “Car!” they said together and started for the side of the house.
“Not without me,” Catherine said, following on after them. “Courtney!” she turned to find Courtney’s wolf bursting from within her. “Not you too,” she bit out.
“Not her what?” Erin asked, looping arms with the elder and bringing her along with her.
“She’s going to kill Tom,” she said.
“Never a dull moment with you guys, is there?” Erin said, yanking open the back door of her car before the engine sprung to life. Kirsty was in the driver’s seat, and that could only mean one thing – buckle up and close your eyes because it was going to be one hell of a ride.
~
“Are you trying to kill us?” Erin bit out as two of the wheels left the road, and the car leant to the right as they hit the bend at what she could only describe as stupid miles per hour.
“If we were to die I can assure you it wouldn’t be intentional,” Kirsty offered back, before biting down on a squeal as the back end of Erin’s little car kicked out and she almost went into a spin.
“Then in the event that we are headed to the afterlife, I forgive you,” Erin said.
Catherine slapped a hand on each of the front seats and yanked herself forward, her face appearing between the two friends. “I don’t, Missy,” she barked out. “I still have a whole lot of living to do, and I’m not ready to die without a fight – literally,” she added.
“Sit back and enjoy the ride, Grandma,” Erin said. “When she gets like this, there’s no talking to her.”
“If I were your grandmother…” Catherine said, but she never got to finish as Kirsty squealed like a banshee when Nathaniel’s wolf shot out in front of them on the road, closely followed by Joe.
“Motherfu…” Erin and Kirsty bit out as one, and Catherine wasn’t far behind them like an echo.
Kirsty wasn’t sure how she missed the first wolf, but she was doubly blessed by missing Joe’s beast as well, especially as she’d swerved and aimed the car right at him.
“Now will you slow down?” Catherine growled.
“Now we know we’re close to catching them?” Kirsty replied. “Not a chance!”
Erin turned a look back over her shoulder at the elder. “Ever heard the saying; these things are sent to try us?” she asked, and Catherine grunted a reply. Erin motioned with both hands to Kirsty. “Exhibit A.”
Catherine grunted again and threw herself back in her seat. “You witches are crazy,” she bit out.
“Thank you,” Erin said as sweetly as she could muster.
“It wasn’t a compliment,” Catherine growled.
“No, but it’s the thought that counts,” Erin said, chuckling.
“Hold on!” Kirsty bit out, hitting the brakes hard as she reached the alpha’s house.
“It doesn’t help,” Catherine tossed back.
Kirsty slammed the gear stick into park and was out of the car in a heartbeat. Erin turned a knowing look on the elder in the back. “Good news – you’re alive,” she said, popping the door and starting after her friend.
Catherine took a deep breath, shook her head, and pulled herself together. “Barely,” she grumbled, but she did have to chuckle. “Witches are definitely crazy.”
CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
~
Joe had tried everything he could think to head Nathaniel off, but the damn wolf was just too fast for him to catch. Now they were on pack land and heading for Conrad’s family cabins that were set back from the others, and Joe knew he needed to shift back into his human form, but the only chance he had of stopping Nath
aniel was if he stayed all wolf.
It hadn’t helped that his mate was on her way, or that she’d almost killed him with her car back on the road, but a witch who hadn’t been claimed as a mate getting in the middle of pack business would just be another complication. He hoped to hell that Catherine would explain that to her.
There was no time to think as Nathaniel’s beast headed up the cabin steps, onto the porch, and launch itself at the front door. That door didn’t stand a chance, and neither would Conrad when faced with Nathaniel’s wolf.
~
Courtney’s wolf was running for her life or running to take one. She had a score to settle with Tom, the traitor, and she wasn’t about to let her brothers have all the fun.
She saw the witches running across the grass towards Conrad’s cabin and knew that was where her brother’s were headed, but she had a bone to pick one cabin over from the elder’s.
“Courtney!” Catherine called, but she wasn’t about to acknowledge the elder. In her book; it was better to claim she hadn’t heard after the deed than listen to the elder before she got what she wanted.
Time was money, as the saying goes, and it was time Tom paid up with blood.
~
Joe followed Nathaniel into the elder’s cabin. He didn’t know what Nathaniel’s wolf was capable of, but he guessed he was about to find out.
Conrad looked surprised to see Nathaniel’s beast, alive and well, and with intent written in every movement. He started to push up from the chair by the fireplace, but Nathaniel’s wolf was upon him before he could get to his feet. With one massive paw on his chest and the other on his shoulder; the beast pushed him back into the chair, and snarled at his tormentor.
‘Easy, Nathaniel – we have no proof,’ Joe warned, using the pack link to try to talk his brother down.
‘I don’t need proof – I can scent the guilt on him,’ Nathaniel growled.
“What is this?” Conrad demanded, but he’d recognised Nathaniel’s wolf and knew exactly why they were there. “I’ve done nothing…”
‘Liar!’ Nathaniel growled his words. He wanted nothing more than to sink his fangs into the elder and end him.
“Whoa!” Kirsty said, getting to the front door and hitting a dead stop as Erin ran into the back of her.
“That’s awkward,” Erin said, starring at Nathaniel’s beast. “Did we come at a bad time?” she asked, nudging Kirsty inside and following her in.
“You two witches did this,” Conrad growled, just as the back door opened and his son, Blake rushed in.
Blake snarled his intentions the moment he saw Nathaniel with his father. “It’s me your looking for, not him,” he growled.
“I don’t know,” Erin said. “Nathaniel looks pretty sure your father had a hand in something hinky.”
“Time to pay the piper,” Kirsty said as Joe’s beast made a move to get between Blake and the witches.
“It wasn’t him, it was me – I sent the vampire after you,” Blake growled, he swallowed down hard when Nathaniel turned a slow glare on him. “My father’s only crime was to block you from pack land, but he would have done that anyway.”
‘Brother?’ Joe growled a warning. ‘If he’s telling the truth – you’ll be banned under the law for killing an innocent man.’
‘I know the damn law,’ Nathaniel snarled.
“Doesn’t sound like things are going well,” Erin said and took a couple of steps into the room. She stopped the moment that Nathaniel turned and snarled at her. “I might not be able to speak wolf but…” Kirsty yanked her back, and she squeaked in surprised.
“Now might not be the best time as we don’t know what being a vampire wolf might have done to his – you know – brain,” Kirsty said.
“Wait, look,” Conrad said, swallowing down hard. “I’ll take my family and leave pack land.”
“The hell are we going anywhere,” Blake growled. “My wolf to your wolf,” he growled at Nathaniel. “I challenge you.”
“Oh, that’s not a good idea,” Kirsty said, but Nathaniel’s beast seemed to like that idea just fine as he backed off Conrad and turned his attention on Blake.
“We’ll leave,” Conrad said again, pushing up, but one snap of Nathaniel’s jaws in the elder’s direction and the man caved back into the chair.
“Call the pack to witness,” Blake said. “Right outside – right now.”
“He’s either really stupid, or he’s got balls of steel,” Erin whispered out of the corner of her mouth, but of course, she was in a room full of people with really good hearing, and everyone overheard her.
“I’m going to go with stupid,” Conrad growled at his son.
“Yeah, that would be my bet too,” Kirsty said.
~
“What the hell?” Tom growled as he pulled open the front door to the cabin and ran right into Courtney’s wolf. He was flat on his back a heartbeat later, and her beast was standing over him.
‘It’s time for you to pay for what you’ve done,” Courtney growled. Her wolf’s face was right above his, and she had a murderous look in her eyes.
“Courtney, what the hell are you doing?” Tom growled. “I was on your side, and now my dad is going up against Nathaniel’s wolf…”
‘You claim you were on our side, but I know you were lying – you always lie…’
“That’s not true…”
‘You lie, you bully, you…’
“I don’t bully you, I’ve tried to toughen you up…”
‘Oh, yeah, throwing me into the river…’
“That was a joke…”
‘Was I laughing?’
“No, but you were pretty mad, and when you get that way, all red-faced and spitting nails – I don’t know – I like it…”
‘You little worm…’ she snarled.
“No wait!” he said, holding his hands up to his chest in mock surrender. “I mean, I like it because you get mad at me, and then – you notice me.”
‘Are you nuts?’
Catherine huffed and puffed her way up the stairs, and she leant on the railing to keep from slumping down onto her backside. “It’s his version of pulling pigtails,” she said and heaved in a breath. “Don’t you learn anything at school about boys?” she grumbled.
‘What?’
“He likes you.”
‘Torturing me, maybe…’
“No, it’s a precursor to him asking you out on a date,” Catherine said, and Courtney’s wolf pulled back. “Teenagers,” she added and shook her head, giving into temptation and dropping her backside onto the top step.
CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE
~
Courtney’s beast took a few steps back, and Tom sat up. Catherine reached out and slapped him around the back of his head, and he yelped in surprise. “Next time, just damn well ask,” she scolded him.
‘He’s not my mate,’ Courtney said, and Catherine shrugged.
“I’d say you won’t know that for sure for another year or so,” Catherine said.
‘He’d better not be my mate,’ Courtney growled.
“The feelings mutual,” Tom growled back.
Catherine sighed. “Quit while you’re alive,” she informed him, and he swallowed hard. “You, back off,” she warned Courtney. “And you,” she said to Tom, and then softened a little. “Don’t do anything stupid at the challenge between your father and Nathaniel.”
Tom looked a little pained. “If you think I’d be on my father’s side in this, you’re as crazy as Courtney.”
Courtney offered him a warning growl, but her beast just turned on its paws and padded off down the stairs, and then went in the same direction that everyone else was headed. There was a challenge to be met, and she wanted to see her brother kick Blake’s butt.
“No, I’m good right here,” Catherine said watching the teenagers walk away, Tom following on behind Courtney’s wolf. “Not vampires, not witches, not even a sudden illness or accident – unless I’m stupid enough to get in a car with
Kirsty again – will do me in; it’s those damn teenagers that are going to be the death of me,” she grumbled.
~
Joe knew this wasn’t a fair fight, and it didn’t take a genius to work it out. It should have been his wolf against Blake’s, but his brother was the one who had been so badly wronged by the man that there was nothing he could say against the fight.
The challenge had been issued and accepted, and that was the way of the pack. Blake had nothing left to lose but his life, and the shame he had brought on his family by his actions meant that a fast death was probably the only thing the man wanted now.
Joe knew from chasing Nathaniel’s beast that the wolf was fast – too damn fast for him to catch – and he didn’t think the only thing that had changed for his brother was his speed. Agility, response time, and strength would all have been heightened by his vampire side, and Joe had to admit that he wouldn’t want to be in Blake’s shoes.
How did you fight an alpha wolf with the added extras of a vampire?
Joe felt his mate sidled up to him as they stood in the large loose circle around the two beasts. “Is this to the death?” she asked, trying to ignore the fact the alpha was naked, but it wasn’t easy.
Joe winced at the thought of an outsider viewing their ways for the first time, especially one who was his mate. “That’s up to them,” he replied, and he was about to try to reassure her when the roar of intent from Blake’s wolf signalled his attempt to take down his brother.
Blake charged at Nathaniel’s wolf, but the beast did not attempt to move. His paws were planted firmly on the earth, and he stood his ground – at the last moment, the beast took a step to the side and swiped a massive paw through the air, knocking Blake sideways, but doing little harm.