by Eve Langlais
The light in Colin’s eyes dimmed and his smile no longer beamed with arrogance. Ellie wished she had the superhuman perception necessary to read him.
“It wouldn’t be if you could see in the dark.” He tried to tease, but his voice lacked the conviction. “I need your eyes, Ellie. I don’t know this land like you do. You’re our guide.”
“Me?” It was true, she’d walked every square inch of her landlocked prison again and again over the years. “Are you sure you want to trust me? I know the land, but I was obviously too stupid to figure out the terms of my own curse.”
“You’re not stupid,” Colin replied. “Don’t ever say that. You just didn’t know what to look for. We’ll figure it out. Together.”
Ellie smiled. “Teamwork?”
“Exactly.”
“Okay, then.” If they didn’t leave now, Ellie would be hard-pressed to leave at all. “Let’s get going before I change my mind.” She went up on her tiptoes and kissed Colin once.
He let out a contented groan that helped to boost Ellie’s own ego. “Honey, you sure are a beautiful distraction.”
Would it really be so bad to go to Stanley with Colin? Ellie was beginning to wonder if her wanderlust would cause her to overlook what could be the greatest adventure of her life.
CHAPTER 12
Colin needed to stay focused on the problem he had a chance of controlling and not the one he was helpless to effect. Mia’s help, though invaluable, had been superficial at best. They were operating on assumptions. What-ifs. Without knowing where to find the witch who had cursed Ellie to begin with, they were flying blind. Hoping the legends were accurate and they would in fact find four seemingly mundane objects that had been enchanted to create a sort of invisible fence to keep Ellie trapped within its confines. The only certainty in this scenario was that a witch would definitely need ley lines for her spell to work. Colin could sniff out the invisible trails of magic with ease. It was what happened after he did that worried him.
They started at the easternmost boundary of Ellie’s territory. The spot just past the Sourdough that she’d first tried to pass. Colin parked his truck in the graveled lot and began to unload. Supernatural strength came in pretty handy on treks like these. Colin could shoulder the bulk of the weight, enabling Ellie to hike longer before she felt fatigued.
“Okay, you’re in charge of this excursion.” He handed Ellie her pack and she slung it on her back. “You know the general location of the boundaries. Know the land. I’m just here to be your bloodhound. You lead; I’ll follow. If I catch the scent of magic, we’ll follow it. Deal?”
Ellie studied him. He’d never get tired of the rush he got from her intense scrutiny. He welcomed it. Wanted to lay himself bare to her. Anything to keep her attention. “You can smell magic?”
Gods, he loved her curiosity. Colin put his worry to the back of his mind and simply reveled in the pleasure of her company. “Not exactly. But I can sense it. Magic tingles along my skin and sort of burns my nose.”
Ellie grinned. “So I don’t smell like magic?”
Aside from the faint trace of residual magic that lingered on her as a result of the curse, Ellie’s particular magic was unique in that she was Colin’s mate. It tingled along his soul. “No. You smell like the river in spring and wild lavender.”
Color stained Ellie’s cheeks. She looked up at Colin from lowered lashes and her mouth curved into a sweet smile that tugged at his chest. “Well, you don’t smell too bad either.”
Colin snorted. “Thanks.” He hoisted his own pack on his back and secured the strap across his chest. They had rations and water to get last them for a couple of days. With any luck, they’d find the ley lines and break the curse before their provisions ran out. If not, they’d be back at square one, filling their packs at Ellie’s house. “Ready to get this show on the road?”
“Yep. Let’s do this.”
Colin made sure to adopt a pace Ellie could keep up with, but he was pleasantly surprised that he didn’t need to slow too much. Ellie was fit and agile, able to negotiate the trails and steep inclines that led to the high ridges with ease. Thanks to last winter’s snow and a fairly rainy spring, there was still plenty of late-fall foliage that proved to be both an annoyance and a challenge. Whereas Colin wanted to stomp straight through the brush and leap over the taller bushes, it wasn’t quite so easy for Ellie and she opted to circumvent those obstacles.
“Sorry. It’s just too hard to navigate the brambles.”
Colin didn’t want her to apologize for a damn thing. He’d walk whatever crazy, winding route she wanted as long as it meant one more minute of time with her. An hour passed. And another. Time seemed to slip through his fingers, faster than it ever had as they climbed higher to the top of the first ridge. Ellie stopped to stretch and drink some water. “I love the view from here. You can see so much of the river canyon below.”
There wasn’t anything nature could conjure up that could compare to Ellie’s beauty. Colin’s wolf let out a low whimper and he cocked his head, focused his senses. Faint, but enough magic to stir the fine hairs on his arms. According to Mia, the items imbued with magic to create the invisible fence corralling Ellie in would likely be located at the four corners. Which meant the ley line he was tracking would have to run due east.
“Colin? Everything okay?”
He looked over at Ellie. “Magic. It’s pretty faint, but it’s there.” He brought up his hand and pointed. “This way. Check your compass.”
Ellie dug a compass out of her pocket. Since electronics interfered with magic and vice versa, they were going old-school on this one. No GPS, no Siri to lead the way. She held the tiny compass up and turned toward Colin with a wide, excited smile. “East,” she replied. “Dead on.”
Colin stepped up beside her. “Stay close to me from here on out.” Not only were they close to Ellie’s boundary, but also he had no idea what to anticipate moving forward. He didn’t expect the witch to have gone through so much trouble to curse Ellie and not protect her magic. Colin was an expect-the-best-but-plan-for-the-worst sort of male. He’d come well armed, and he didn’t count on running this gauntlet without getting into a fight or two.
Ellie didn’t question or argue with him. She stepped up beside him, her expression wary. The sound of her racing heart distracted Colin from the magic he was trying to track. If he’d had it his way, Ellie would still be at home where he knew she’d be safe.
Ellie watched the compass as they walked east. With every step taken, the tingle of magic intensified on Colin’s skin. They were definitely headed in the right direction. His wolf let out a warning growl in his mind as adrenaline dumped into his bloodstream. Something watched them from a distance. Not an animal—well, not exactly—and definitely not friendly.
“Get behind me, Ellie.” Colin’s right arm jutted out as he swept Ellie behind him. He brought his nose up and sniffed the air and then cleared his nostrils with a snort. The magic burned and put his wolf on edge. From the cover of trees fifty paces ahead, glowing red eyes zeroed in on them. Shit. To his left was a tall Douglas fir. Colin turned and lifted Ellie in his arms. He hoisted her up to the nearest branch and she let out a surprised squeal. “Stay up here. Don’t come down for any reason. Do you understand me?”
Ellie stared at him, wide-eyed. “Are you freaking kidding me?” Her tone was half incredulity, half indignant anger. “I couldn’t get down if I tried!”
Good. Then there’d be no chance of her trying to help him. Colin dragged his gaze from his mate and forced his attention to the threat directly in front of him. The creature that emerged from the cover of trees snarled, ready for a fight. Colin had never seen a hellhound, though he’d heard stories. The witch who’d cursed Ellie had certainly dabbled in some serious black magic. Only the darkest witches could create such a creature.
In this case, the witch had used a coyote. Much like she’d cursed Ellie, she’d changed the animal by infusing him with magic. Colin could at
least be happy she hadn’t chosen a timber wolf or bear. The coyote was relatively small, though now he had the benefit of supernatural speed, strength, and stamina. The damned thing had been roaming these woods for two centuries. It was a wonder Ellie had never come across him. Colin said a silent prayer of thanks that she’d avoided the borders of her landlocked prison. He’d be doing the animal a favor today by killing him. He deserved to be freed from the magic that bound him as much as Ellie did.
Colin hadn’t been challenged in a good long while. And he was more than ready to prove himself to his mate.
* * *
Ellie’s heart leaped up into her throat. She’d never seen anything like the animal stalking toward Colin with slow, precise steps. He was a creature that didn’t exist in nature. Something out of a nightmare. Dark fur, red glowing eyes, teeth bared in a snarl. Colin shrugged out of his pack and drew a long knife from a scabbard at his back. Ellie didn’t know which one of them looked more menacing as they squared off, circling each other warily. God, if he got hurt … She never should have let him help her.
She opened her mouth to shout out a warning and promptly snapped it shut. Her words would only serve to distract him, and Colin needed every ounce of concentration he could get. The animal, which looked remarkably like a coyote, growled and Colin responded with a growl of his own. Bright gold swallowed the blue of his eyes and once again Ellie was given a glimpse of that wild part of him that lived just beneath the surface of his skin.
The coyote was the first to attack. He was unnaturally fast, but then again, so was Colin. Ellie had never seen anything like it. The fight was too quick for her simple human eyes to track. Smears of color. Blurs of movement. The glint of light off the blade of Colin’s knife. A loud whimper rent the air and Ellie started. It echoed around her, off the surrounding hillsides, and faded into silence. Her heart beat against her rib cage as though it wanted out, and her hands shook. She craned her neck to see past a large granite boulder that blocked her view, desperate to know who had been hurt. Her breath raced in her chest and she let out a cry of relief as Colin rounded the boulder toward her.
“Oh my God!” Ellie squirmed on the tree branch, ready to launch herself to the ground below. “Colin, are you okay?”
He cleaned the blade on his pants and slid the knife back into the sheath before positioning himself below the branch. “I’m okay. Hop down. I’ve got you.”
Ellie didn’t have to be told twice. She pushed off from the branch and Colin caught her by the waist to set her feet gently on the ground. She threw her arms around him and swallowed down a sob. “Did you kill him?” She could barely hold back the tears. “Are you hurt?”
He kissed the top of her head. “Shhh. I’m okay. He’s dead.” Ellie’s shoulders shook as she tried to quell the fearful tears that didn’t want to stop. “Try to calm down.” Colin’s hand stroked reassuringly down her back again and again. “It’s over. You’re okay. It’s going to get worse before it gets better, so you need to prepare yourself. Just breathe.”
She took several moments to compose herself and let Colin’s arms around her be her anchor. Ellie hadn’t known fear like this in a long time. The thought of losing Colin had her more shaken than that of him simply being hurt. The intensity of emotions confused her. They barely knew each other and yet she knew not having him in her life would be a million times more crippling than the lonely isolation she’d experienced over the past two centuries.
“Ellie?” His soft voice in her ear coaxed a shiver to the surface of her skin. “You okay, honey?”
She let out a shuddering breath. “I’m okay.” She eased away from Colin and dusted herself off. “You’re sure he’s dead?”
He responded without elaborating, “You have nothing to worry about.”
“Okay. Good.” If she never saw anything like that creature again it would be too soon. But Colin was right. It was likely to get worse before it got better. She had no doubt there were similar, nastier creatures in her future and she counted her blessings that she’d never encountered any of them while out here hiking on her own.
“Do you still have your compass?”
Ellie couldn’t believe how quickly Colin was able to shift gears. One second he’d been in a dangerous fight with the supernatural animal; the next he was calm, cool, and back to business. “I do.” She retrieved the compass from her pocket and held it up in front of her. She shifted until the needle swung due east to get them back on track and pointed. “That way.”
They walked in a straight line until a large pine tree blocked their path. The tree was the largest in the stand of surrounding pines and Douglas firs. A large natural bole hollowed out its center and Colin turned to Ellie, his expression a strange mix of excitement and worry. “My teeth are practically chattering from the magical energy here.”
He reached into the bole and felt around for several tense moments. Ellie held her breath and her muscles tensed. Colin’s hand emerged and in his grasp was a delicate teacup.
“That teacup belonged to my mother,” Ellie said with wonder as she let out a breath. “It was part of a set.”
Sarah had stolen that teacup from her. Ellie’s anger crested, as fresh and hot as it had been when she first realized what had happened to her. She took the cup from Colin’s hand and without even thinking about the repercussions for her actions smashed it against a nearby chunk of granite. The delicate cup shattered and a palpable wave of energy crested over Ellie. She drew in a gasp of breath as her knees buckled. Colin reached out to support her and she gripped his arm.
“Did you feel that?”
His brow furrowed and he did nothing to hide the worry in his expression. “I did. And I think you just broke through the eastern wall of your boundary.”
Her anger drained and was replaced with excited elation. Ellie stared at Colin for a quiet moment. She let go of his arm and rounded the pine tree to continue on the eastern ley line. She knew how far she could and couldn’t go on every inch of this land. When she reached what she knew was the border, Ellie closed her eyes. Lifted one foot. And slowly took a step.
Her eyes flew open and she turned toward Colin. Joy bloomed in her chest and she smiled wide. “No pain! Not even a tickle! We did it!” She rushed back and flung herself at Colin, wrapping her arms around his neck. She pulled back and placed a long, fervent kiss on his mouth.
“One boundary down, three more to go!”
CHAPTER 13
One boundary down. Three more to go.
Ellie’s elation settled like a stone in the pit of Colin’s stomach. The hellhound the witch had created to guard the first boundary had been easy enough to kill. He could only hope any other guards set to watch the remaining boundaries would have been created with a human foe in mind rather than a more powerful supernatural. However, Colin wasn’t about to underestimate a witch with enough dark magic at her disposal to conjure the sort of curse that had made Ellie indestructible. Mia’s words came back to haunt him and Colin’s wolf let out a forlorn howl in the back of his mind. If the curse has kept her alive all this time, breaking it could kill her in an instant.
She’d given his own fears a voice and solidified them. Nothing was certain except Ellie’s desire to be rid of this burden that had kept her alone and isolated for so long. Colin would have to broach the subject with her eventually, but until then he’d keep a close eye on her and look for any signs that she might be weakening or changing.
“Is it weird that now I know I can walk as far east as I want, I sort of feel the urge to take off and walk until my legs give out?” Ellie turned to Colin and graced him with a brilliant smile.
She deserved every ounce of happiness she felt. Colin wasn’t about to squash that with his own worries. They’d face any obstacles in their way when they got to them. He refused to worry until there was something to worry about.
“You can walk as far as you want, honey.” Ellie’s joy buffeted Colin’s senses in gentle waves that calmed the animal in
side of him like nothing else could.
She reached back and grabbed his hand. “Watching you fight that thing … wow. I didn’t know anything could move that fast or be that strong. You’re amazing.”
Again, that she was pleased with him infused Colin with warmth that pulsed pleasantly through his body. He wanted to impress her. To prove himself to her. To show her he was worthy of her. The mate bond demanded it of him and he was helpless to fight it.
“We can keep walking east if you want,” Colin said as he tried to brush aside her compliment. “Or we can head north and find the next boundary.”
He knew Ellie’s answer before she gave it to him. “North. But now that I know what we’re up against, let’s be more careful, okay?”
Totally fine by Colin. The hellhound had been an easy opponent, but there was no guarantee the remaining boundaries would be guarded by creatures as easy to defeat.
Ellie held her compass aloft until the needle pointed to true magnetic north. They set off through the brush, careful not to veer off course until Colin’s senses could once again identify the next ley line. With any luck, they’d reach the second boundary before sunset and they’d camp for the night. So far, they’d been walking for just under four hours, with another four or so more to go.
“You said you were in law enforcement,” Ellie remarked as they walked. “But you never told me what agency you worked for.”
Colin was grateful to have some conversation to distract him from his nagging thoughts. “It’s a new appointment,” he said. “With the Sawtooth Mountains Territory’s sentry. Sort of a supernatural equivalent of the state police.”
“Wow.” Ellie shook her head. “I mean, I knew magic was real … but I still can’t believe there’s this whole other world that exists and no one really knows about it. So you’re a supernatural cop?”
Colin laughed. “More or less. But like I said, the appointment is recent. I haven’t had a single day on the job yet.”