He barked getting her attention. They needed to go. She quickly hopped on. Ezra barely waited for her hands to grip his fur before he shot off.
Vicious growls broke out behind them. Ezekiel had intercepted whoever was coming. Pained yips echoed across the woods. He wanted to turn around and rush to help Ezekiel but Cassidy needed him more.
Ivy’s head whipped around throwing off his balance. He growled. She hunkered down, closer to his body.
His ears twitched. Something was rushing behind them. Ezra’s gut told him it was at least one wolf even if he couldn’t scent them yet. He didn’t turn to confirm that though. He couldn’t with Ivy on his back.
Lawrence closed in until they were running nearly side by side. He sensed Lawrence glance back to sight whoever was chasing them. Ezra heard the snarl that came from deep in Lawrence’s chest.
“They’re Salici,” Ivy yelled over the sound of them crashing through the woods.
A tan body shot through the ferns. The wolf sprinted to Ezra’s unprotected side. Ezra caught the wolf’s scent. He nearly stumbled when he realized it was Holly next to them.
White teeth flashed as she lunged for Ezra. Ivy shrieked. He dodged before she could get a hold of him.
Lawrence ran around and slammed into Holly. He knocked her into a tree with a sick thud. Lawrence dropped back to keep an eye on Ezra and Ivy as they picked up the pace.
Another wolf ran through the underbrush. A sharp chuff told him it was Ezekiel. The scent of blood hung to him.
A howl went up behind them. A chorus of voices answered it. There were at least three wolves on their tails.
Ezra saw the tree line break up ahead. They were practically at the car but the wolves would catch up any second. He pushed to speed up and beat them to the clearing.
As soon as they hit the gravel Ezra dumped Ivy. There wasn’t time to be gentle. He waited just long enough to see her scramble to her feet before turning to face the wolves. Ezekiel and Lawrence skidded to a stop and barred their teeth. They formed a barrier.
Two wolves burst on to the road. They snarled when they saw Ezra, Ezekiel, and Lawrence in their way. Holly ran out of the woods suddenly.
Ezra was shocked to see that all of them were Pack wolves. The first pair were the Carson sisters. They owned a cabin ten miles from here. Ezra saw that Shelly Carson had fresh scratches along her face. He growled with satisfaction. Ezekiel had gotten a hit in.
A commotion from the forest had Ezra shifting to face the new threat. Anne came sprinting onto the gravel. When she saw them, her lip lifted in a snarl.
They’d gone feral. Every single one of them were ready to attack their own Packmates. Ezra tensed ready to fight like a demon. Feral wolves wouldn’t fight fair.
“Move!” Ivy yelled from behind them.
He didn’t have time to react before she sprinted out ahead of them. She held a canister of something in her hands. She sprayed the three wolves in front of them with whatever she was holding.
They started yelping and scratching at their faces. Ivy didn’t stop. She kept spraying them.
“Get in the van,” she ordered.
Ezra sensed Anne moving and lunged to intercept her. He moved fast enough that her teeth caught his shoulder, not his throat. He twisted and grabbed her by the scruff. He shook her until her teeth slid free.
She bounced right back up, hitting him in the side. He struck the ground. Anne landed on him and went straight for his throat. Another weight slammed into him, winding him.
Suddenly, all of the weight was gone. Ezra struggled to his feet. Ezekiel was ripping into Anne. He had a solid twenty pound on her. She couldn’t toss him off of her no matter how hard she tried.
“Get in the van you idiots,” Stella screamed. She had the sliding door open wide.
Lawrence dove into the van. Ezra turned to see Ivy running towards him. The three wolves were frantically rubbing their faces into the ground.
Ivy slid to a stop in front of Ezekiel and Anne. “Move,” she shouted.
Ezekiel jumped back and Ivy blasted Anne in the face. Anne howled and twisted to get away from her. Ivy kept spraying her.
“Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go,” Stella yelled.
Ezra and Ezekiel ran towards the open door while Ivy ran around to the driver’s side door. Lawrence slammed the van door shut, barely missing Ezra’s tail.
“Drive, drive, drive,” Patricia shrieked.
Ivy threw the van into drive and slammed on the gas. The giant bunk of metal jerked forward, fishtailing on the gravel. Ivy didn’t let up. They all bounced and slid across the floor.
“What’s happening?” Maggie yelled.
“We’re hauling ass back to Black Bird,” Ivy yelled back never taking her eyes off of the road.
Ezra shifted and caught the sweats Lawrence threw at him. Ezekiel hauled himself into the passenger seat. He had a massive claw scratch on his back. The left side of his face was already swelling.
“What the hell just happened? Those were our wolves!” Ezekiel asked.
“Fuck,” Lawrence punched the van. “They’re enchanted. The Salici Sacri are using them like puppets.”
“We saw Holly and Anne yesterday. They were fine!” Ezra argued.
“That was Holly and Anne?” Ivy’s voice was disbelieving.
“Is there any reason five of your wolves would go feral at the exact moment we woke up Benandanti magic?” Lawrence countered, ignoring Ivy.
“Someone better start making sense right now,” Patricia demanded.
“We found the altar and managed to release il cuóri annodáto. Then Cassidy, Ra and Zeke’s sister, called saying that the lady she’s staying with attacked her own husband. She’s barricaded in the bathroom right now, and we’re going to save her,” Ivy answered.
“What about the feral wolves back there?” Stella asked.
“They weren’t feral,” Ezra growled.
“The Salici Sacri are influencing them somehow. Those were enchanted wolves, not feral.” Lawrence snarled. “Fuck, I bet they tracked my magic when I did the dowsing spell.”
“I knew the air freshener would come in handy,” Maggie sounded relieved.
“That’s what you hit them with?” Ezra was impressed.
The van hit paved road with a thud. Everyone grabbed something. Ivy cursed but pressed down on the gas.
“Stay on this road. I’ll tell you when to turn. Just keep gunning it,” Ezekiel told her.
“How in the hell did the Salici Sacri enchant Anne and Holly?” Ezra ran a hand through his hair. “Or Carol. How did we not notice?”
“They’re good at what they do,” Lawrence said simply.
“Turn here,” Ezekiel pointed to a side road.
“Hold on,” Ivy warned.
She hit the turn hard. They slid into each other. Maggie grunted.
“So, the Black Bird Pack has been enchanted,” Stella mused.
“Yes,” Lawrence said. “No idea how many though.”
“Too many to nullify,” Ivy shouted back.
“Here, here, here,” Ezekiel pointed.
Pat’s patrol car was parked at Carol’s house. The front door was open. Ezra had the van’s door open before Ivy even slowed. He hit the ground at a sprint, Ezekiel right behind him.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Ivy slammed the car into park. She ran towards the house Ezra and Ezekiel had disappeared into. She heard growls coming from inside. She didn’t bother waiting to see what everyone else did. She had to get to Cassidy.
The house was trashed. Broken furniture was scattered everywhere with claw marks on the walls.
She ignored it all. She ran up the stairs towards the swearing and shouting. She saw Ezekiel run into an open doorway. She sprinted after him.
Pat Robbins was wrestling with a wolf. He had bloody scratches all over his body. He was straining to keep it from taking a bite out of him. Ezra jumped onto the animal’s back trying to subdue it. Ezekiel didn’t hesitate to div
e towards the beast’s mouth, wrapping an arm around its snout.
“Thank God you’re here,” Pat growled. “Carol has gone feral.”
The guys didn’t argue. They were all struggling to subdue Carol. She was like something possessed. Even with three men throwing all of their weight on her, she bucked and snarled.
They instant Ivy stepped into the room fully, Carol stilled. Her crazed eyes locked with Ivy’s. With an insane show of strength, Carol managed to throw Ezra off of her as she lunged for Ivy.
Ivy jumped back with a scream.
“What the hell?” Pat screamed.
Salici Sacri the il cuóri annodáto hissed.
Ivy’s hand went to the lapis. It was frozen. “She’s enchanted,” Ivy yelled over Carol’s snarls.
“We can’t hold her,” Ezekiel grunted. Sweat poured down his face.
Something flashed around Carol’s neck. Ivy paused. It looked like a necklace. It was so out of place all Ivy could do was stare. Carol stretched to bite Ezekiel. Ivy gasped when she got a good look at it.
Carol had one of Anne’s necklaces on. The chain should have snapped or choked her when she shifted. It hadn’t though. It hung around her neck perfectly.
Pietersite pietra di salice. You must destroy the stone to destroy the enchantment the il cuóri annodáto whispered into Ivy’s mind.
“The necklace!” Ivy pointed. “Get the necklace!”
The men’s heads all whipped down. Their expressions became confused but they didn’t ask any questions. Ezra slammed all of his weight onto Carol’s back. Her body flattened to the ground with a painful yip. Ezekiel pulled her head back as far as it would go. Pat’s hand shot forward, quick as a snake and grabbed the chain. He yanked but nothing happened.
“It won’t come off,” he yelled.
Ezra and Ezekiel both grunted as Carol began fighting them in earnest. Ezra drove a knee into her back as he wrapped his arms around her body. Ezekiel dodged her teeth as she snapped at his face.
Ivy drew magic from her core faster than she ever had. “Intermissum!” She threw the magic at the necklace and demanded that the chain break.
Pat’s hand flew forward as the chain broke. Ivy scrambled into the room desperate to get the necklace. Her lapis was so cold that it burned her skin.
“What do I do?” She asked il cuóri annodáto.
“How should I know?” Pat screamed.
Water and salt first.
Ivy frantically looked around the room. She spotted a door at the back of the bedroom. She sprinted towards it.
“Cassidy, it’s Ivy. I need you open the door right now,” she shouted.
She heard scrambling and then the door opened. She barely registered that it was Cassidy on the other side. Ivy burst in and ran to the sink.
“Shut the door,” she ordered.
Ivy plugged the sink and turned on the tap. Her hands were shaking, barely able to turn on the water. She threw the necklace under the running water. She started throwing open the cabinets under the sink, desperate to find bath salts.
“What are you doing?” Cassidy screamed.
“Salt. I need salt.”
Ivy threw aside bottles and curlers. A body brushed hers and her head snapped up. Next to her stood a red-faced teenage girl. She held out a glass jar of Epsom salt with flecks of rose petals mixed in.
“Thank you,” Ivy sent her a quick smile.
She dumped all of the salt into the sink. “Now what?”
Repeat this three times; non più controllato, non legato più, ti scagliare fuori.
Ivy held her hands over the water and began chanting the spell. Magic swelled to do her bidding. It was more powerful than she had ever felt it. A warmth spread at her back. The il cuóri annodáto added its strength to her casting. She felt the magic rush from her heart down her hands into the sink. The water began to boil and froth.
“Non più controllato, non legato più, ti scagliare fuori,” Ivy shouted a third time.
Under the water, the pietersite shattered. It splashed water into her face causing her to shriek. The girls screamed in echo.
All of the magic left her body. Ivy felt weak at the sudden loss of power. She braced against the sink, breathing heavily.
Once she was positive she wasn’t going to faint, she rushed to the door. She threw it open, body tensed ready to react if Carol jumped at her.
Pat, Ezra, and Ezekiel were holding Carol’s limp body. They all held still expecting her to attack. Pat let go first. Ezekiel lifted her head and checked her eyes before he set her down. Ezra slid off of her back.
“She’s out,” Ezekiel panted.
The new girl pushed back Ivy and fell next to Carol. “Mom,” she sobbed.
The brothers shot to their feet. Ivy moved out of the way so they could get to Cassidy. She stepped into the bedroom to give them some privacy. Pat was still on the floor trying to catch his breath.
“What was that?” He asked.
“Carol wasn’t feral. The necklace she was wearing enchanted her,” she explained.
“This gotta do with the witches in our territory?” He asked.
“Yeah, the Salici Sacri,” she said absent mindedly, already trying to catch a wild thought floating around her head.
Ivy’s mind went back to the woman who had attacked her in the hospital. She had been wearing one of Anne’s necklaces. Holly had bought one too. Same with Anne.
“It’s the necklaces,” she whispered. “That’s how they’re enchanting everyone. They don’t have to be here to do it. They can control people from a distance. Ezra! Ezekiel!” She called.
They came out of the bathroom with Cassidy. “What’s going on?” Ezekiel asked.
“I know how the Salici Sacri are enchanting people. The necklaces Anne just started selling. They’re able to control whoever wears them. We need to get to the Coven.”
All five shifters turned towards the window. Pat stood up and went over to it. He swore.
“We’ve got a problem,” he said ominously.
“How many?” Ezra asked.
“At least six,” Pat answered.
Ivy rushed forward. Her hands hit the window. There were wolves on the street moving towards the house. She could see the six that Pat had seen already on the street outside.
“The Coven is in the van,” Ivy gasped. She raced out of the room and down the stairs. She hit the main floor with a thud. She sprinted past the living room, ready to make a mad dash to the van.
“Don’t!” Lawrence came running out of the living room. He looked frantic. “There are half a dozen wolves out there.”
Ivy heaved a breath, confused to see him inside. She glanced around him and saw Stella, Patricia, and Maggie crouched around a fireplace. She shook her head trying to make sense of what they were doing.
“I hustled them in the house after you three ran off to be heroes,” Lawrence explained. “I figured it would be safer in here.” He nodded outside. “Did it in the nick of time too. Looks like we have company outside.”
She grabbed Lawrence’s arms. He reared back at the sudden contact. “The Salici Sacri. They’re using necklaces to enchant the wolves! They’re using pietersite as a conduit.”
“How did they manage that?” He asked.
“It doesn’t matter. I know how to break the stones but we have to figure out how to break them all at once. Unless you want to take them off each wolf one at a time.”
Lawrence grabbed his head. “What’s the spell that breaks the connection.” Ivy outlined what she had done upstairs. He scrubbed his forehead. “Let me think about it.”
“Quickly,” she urged. Ivy went over to where the Coven was working by the fireplace.
They had a fire roaring in the stone fireplace. Patricia was using a fireplace shovel to toss peridot into the fire. Stella was mumbling to herself, her fingers tracing something in the air. Maggie was swirling her hand over the fire keeping it roaring.
“Hello, dear, I hope you don’t mind tha
t we helped ourselves to the fireplace,
Maggie greeted like this was completely normal thing. “I figured there was no time like the present to curse those trespassers. Besides, Lawrence felt the need for better protection than our van.” She said it all with a smile like she wasn’t bothered at all by the Pack of enchanted wolves at their door.
“The Salici Sacri might not have stepped foot in Black Bird. They found a way to enchant people using necklaces. They’re getting the wolves to do their dirty work.” Ivy caught them up on what had just happened.
The Coven sisters shared a look. “That is alarming,” Maggie muttered. “What do you think?” She asked the other two.
“Dark magic to be sure. Even if they aren’t technically trespassing, I still want them out,” Patricia huffed.
“I don’t like a Coven that can remote control wolves. We need to get this curse underway and then we need to think about strengthening our protections,” Stella crossed her arms over her chest.
Maggie gave them a definitive nod, “My thoughts exactly. Will we need to change the wording of the curse now that we might not be casting physical bodies out of our land?”
Stella’s head bounce from side to side as she thought, “Yes.”
Lawrence came over, “We have to destroy the necklaces, fast. Could we change the wording of the curse to cast out the Salici Sacri’s influences while we keep them from entering Black Bird?”
Stella and Patricia looked at each other and raised their eyebrows. Patricia scratched her chin, “I’ve targeted specific bugs with my potion. That’s what’s going to keep the Salici out of our land. The peridot will keep it in place.” She thought about it for a second, “Could we combine the curse and the spell you used to destroy the necklaces?”
“What was the spell you used to break the first necklace?” Stella asked.
“It was simple. It used salt, water, and I said a phrase three times.”
“What was the phrase?” Stella asked.
“Non più controllato, non legato più, ti scagliare fuori,” Ivy repeated.
“No longer controlled, no longer tied, I throw you out,” Lawrence translated. “That worked? It’s pretty damn simple.”
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