Phoenixfall: A Reverse Harem Romance (The Rogue Witch Book 2)

by KT Strange

  Charlie moved up beside me during one of Eli's solos, his hands a blur over the neck of his guitar, fretting his way through the same chord progression as me.

  "Dude, chill," he said, glancing off-stage. We could see Darcy, in the shadows, the lights from the stage spilling over her curls and curves. Seeing her there made me relax minutely but I shook my head and, under the cover of the music, I spoke,

  "I'm not gonna relax until we're outta here and leaving this city behind."

  Charlie shrugged, nodding his understanding and spun away, going back to back with Eli as Finn hopped up on one of the stage risers as he rode the music into the final chorus.

  The lights cut, and my heart pounded in my chest as the crowd all around us, in front of us, broke into screams and applause. I reached out and felt Charlie grab my hand in the dark, squeezing my fingers and grounding me.

  We had this. We just had to get through this set, painful autographs, then cut out fast. Glory Rev would forgive us.

  Especially when we explained it all to them. I'd leave that up to Eli and Finn. Make them deal with it since they were constantly telling me I was too young to deal with the real wolf stuff.

  The next song was a blur, and when I bent forward over the crowd, hands skated along my legs, and almost up to my crotch. For a second, I thought I spelled wood smoke, ash, and the salt-thick taste of blood—

  Jerking back, my fingers stuttering on my bass, the touch and the scent of death making my skin crawl. My eyes bounced around the crowd closest to me, but I couldn't tell who'd touched me. I stuck closer to Charlie after that, my senses working overtime to detect anything, any other hint of hunters. Hammering away in my chest in time with Cash's double-kick on the bass drum, I swallowed as another gust of the hazy smoke-air came to me, clean and clear of any warning. It must've been someone that had brushed up against the hunters, I tried to reassure myself.

  We slammed into the last song, and as soon as the lights cut again, I hauled my bass up over my head and dashed off stage, ignoring the fact that the crowd was probably going to ask for an encore. I didn't want to play one. I wanted out of there.

  Darcy was where we'd parted, at stage left, and she hugged me tight.

  "I thought I smelled a hunter," I mumbled into her hair. She froze for a moment then nodded, pulling away to talk to Finn, who's stormy expression matched my inner feelings as he came off stage.

  "Let's load out the gear now," he said, and Charlie made a noise of agreement. In the near-dark backstage, lit by two small red lights, we clipped our gear into their cases. Cash was last off, with a few stage hands helping him with the drum kits.

  "What's the rush?" The stage manager was back, surveying us. "There's a huge line up by your merch table. You guys can leave your gear here and go do your thing."

  "Just like to be tidy," Darcy lied through her teeth, and I could almost smell the nerves coming of off of her. In the deep recesses of her voice, there was an echo of her powers, just the slightest hint, to make the stage manager back off. The woman frowned at Darcy for a moment and went back to her clipboard.

  "Suit yourselves," she said, dismissing us with a wave. Eli looked at the gear and nodded at the loading doors.

  "We'll get it in the van and then go," he said. None of us looked like we wanted to argue. Not even for the disappointed fans.

  "I can get Willa to ship the merch to our next date," Darcy said. We had a few days off between this show and the next one, because it was a bit of a drive and we needed down time. Especially after the close call Darcy'd had that night.

  "Solid," Charlie said, hauling one of Cash's drum cases in one hand, his guitar bag slung over his shoulder.

  Angry nerves itched through my veins as the cool air hit us, the night having blossomed while we were inside. That's the way it always seemed to be lately. I hadn't seen too many sunsets since we'd started touring. The sky was cloudy up above, the pooling lights in the parking lot flickering orange off the car windshields.

  The gear was half-stashed away in the van when it happened.

  Darcy's scream bounced off the plain cement walls behind the venue, as the scent of dry, old blood came rushing up on the breeze. I twisted from where I was helping Charlie fit one of our amp cases in the back of the van, in time to see Eli deck a guy who'd grabbed Darcy's arm. They'd emerged from nowhere, rolling in like they owned us, like they'd been waiting for us amongst the cars in the lot. Darcy ducked behind Eli, Finn wrapping her up in his arms. Another figure emerged from the shadows, a girl with short, red hair. She was so fast, a blur in the air, a glint of a long, cruel dagger flashing in the dim light.

  Her target was Cash, his back to her. My muscles went from melted wax into motion in the next second. I slammed into her, taking her down to the ground with a loud snarl that echoed around us. We hit the hard cement and she cried out under me. I rolled off of her, slamming my booted foot down onto her wrist. The knife was still in her hand, twelve inches long and sharply pointed.

  The sounds of fighting behind me were dim in my ears.

  "You fucking monster," she spat, tears in the corners of her eyes as she squirmed in my grip. My heart squeezed tight and I lifted my foot for a moment, bringing it down hard. I felt it, the dull pressure of flesh and then the snap of bone.

  Her scream split the air and she curled in, breathing out a whining sound like stabbed her instead. I stumbled back, the air stuck in my lungs.

  "Ace," Charlie's voice wasn't panicked, but it was a close thing. I turned. He was wrestling down another hunter, a man who towered over him. Charlie was strong though, and he snarled, lunging in and going for the throat. His hand whipped around, striking the man in the chest and shoving him backward. He slammed into Cash, who didn't think, just tossed him hard over his hip. The man hit the side of a car and rolled down to the ground, grunting. His legs twitched for a moment and he went still, although I could still hear his breathing, low and slow. He was alive. Just not a problem for the time being.

  "Who the fuck do you think you are?" Eli's low voice was dark and heavy. The soft sob of the red-haired woman filled the air behind me. Darcy was clinging to Finn, who's eyes were narrowed, flickering around the parking lot. Eli had one of the hunters pinned up against the side of our van, a smear of crimson blood staining the window behind the hunter's head.

  "I—" the hunter could barely breathe, his feet scraping the ground beneath him as he struggled to get purchase and gasp for air at the same time.

  I looked at Darcy and then at Finn. She didn't need to see this. Finn seemed to read my mind, because he turned away, pulling Darcy into his chest.

  "No, Finn, stop," she said, pushing at him. "Eli, stop!"

  Eli froze, still holding the hunter who was wheezing, a high-pitched sound emitting from his mouth and nose.

  "Is this Max's ex?" Eli asked.

  "No, it's not, none of them," Darcy paused as she looked at the girl, her eyes fluttering for a moment. "Where's Craig?" Darcy crossed over to where the girl lay, her broken arm curled into her chest as she sobbed quietly. The girl choked out a few words around her pain, something about who's Craig. "I mean Mack, the guy you were attached to by the lips earlier?"

  The girl just sobbed and shook her head, cringing away when Darcy leaned in closer. Cash walked up to her and grabbed the girl by the front of her shirt, hauling her in close.

  "Where the fuck is Mack?" Cash demanded. The girl shrieked when he jostled her arm.

  "Cash," Darcy's voice was strained. "Don't. Let her—let her go."

  "She tried to kill us."

  "Well she's not trying now—"

  Pain exploded at the back of my neck, and I hit the ground. A body, something, someone, was punching me. Voices echoed all around me and the weight was lifted off of me. A roar detonated on the inside of my head, and then a sharp crackle cut through the noise, deafening me and muting everything.

  White light crossed my vision. I lifted my head, blinded. The cement under me rippled, and the scen
t of burning filled my nose. A breath huffed out of my lungs, and two arms wrapped around my ribs. I inhaled.

  Cash. Always it was Cash, coming to get me. Saving me. The world upended and the scent of the van and pack surrounded me. The carpet on the floor of the van scraped against my hands, and I flopped over, my limbs giving out.

  "Is he—"

  "Stop it."

  "Now!"

  "—gear at the next—"

  Voices bounced everywhere, and I couldn't breathe. My chest expanded but I couldn't get any air. My parents, blood everywhere—

  "Dead, he's dead, Eli, I—"

  The dull rumble of an engine, somewhere, ramped up in the distance.

  Twenty-Two

  Darcy

  My eyes closed for a moment, but the lights zipped along the inside of them anyway as we drove through the sleeping city. Ace was sprawled out on the floor of the van, head pillowed on Cash’s leg. No one gave a shit about seatbelts right then. Not when we’d just had to fight for our lives. Eli was at the wheel, but his eyes flicked back to me constantly. Finn was pressed to my back, his arms wrapped around me. Charlie was on the phone with Dean.

  Explaining everything, or whatever we knew at any rate.

  "He's got our merch," he said as he hung up. "We left an amp in the parking lot too, just a head, but whatever. He's got it all. He told us to go to ground for a few days, and they'd see us at the next stop. No sign of our friends in the parking lot. They took off. Or were rescued."

  I let out a soft breath and shook my head.

  As if that was that.

  As if I hadn't killed someone that night.

  We all knew it had happened. When the hunter, a tall blond man, had crashed down on Ace, the lightning had come, answering my panicked call.

  It had burnt him up right in front of us all, nearly taking Ace with him. The hunter had gone black all over, and then he'd turned to ashes as we'd all stared. Cash was the only one who'd been able to move, pulling Ace back just in time and rolling into the van with him.

  In the silence, seconds later, Eli had turned to the man in his grip and tossed him to the side, telling him to take the survivors and get the fuck out of there.

  "Pull over," I said, a wave of something so primal making me shove away from Finn.

  Eli didn't argue, just jerked the van and trailer over to the side of the road. I stepped over Ace, Charlie flinging the side door open for me. Hot, acidic bile rose up in the back of my throat and I threw up, stumbling into the grass on the side of the road. Finn was out after me, his arm going around my waist to hold me tight as I shuddered.

  I'd killed someone.

  "Shhh," Finn soothed, rubbing my back as I spat out a mouthful of stomach acid. "Water," he called back to the van. Charlie hopped down, cracking open a bottle and held out it out to me. I stayed in the circle of Finn's arms and washed my mouth out, spitting again to get rid of the taste.

  "Ugh," I said, closing my eyes and letting my head thump back against Finn's shoulders. Finn held me close and Charlie took the bottle from me. My eyes opened when Finn brushed a kiss over my sweaty forehead.

  "It was self-defense."

  "I was out of control," I countered. "I could have hurt any of you. I almost hurt Ace."

  "But you didn't," Finn said, his blue eyes glittering with kindness and concern. He looked so trusting. I didn't deserve it.

  "I can't do this." Breathing was hard. My throat was so tight and hot. I turned in Finn's arms. "I can't, I can't do this. Finn—"

  "Are you running again?" His eyes were hard, and I swallowed. No. No, I was done running. I'd promised myself. No more running. No more episodes of Darcy the track star. I closed my eyes and shook my head.

  "No—I just, right now? It's too much." I felt gentle hands ghost over my back. Charlie. He put his head on my shoulder and snuggled in close, sandwiching me between their firm, muscled bodies. The pressure was good, and I relaxed, a little bit anyway.

  "That's our girl." Charlie nuzzled into my ear, his lips brushing the sweep of my jaw. "You're safe. It's okay. They attacked us. They took that risk. He deserved to die. He'd have killed us all, you included, if we'd given him the chance."

  Charlie was right. I knew it in my heart, but still it hurt. My body ached.

  "We can talk about how your powers are acting like a badly trained dog later," Eli called from in the van. A low groan pierced the air and I squirmed out from between Finn and Charlie. Cash was crouched beside Ace, who was leaning up on one elbow.

  "Oh, fuck that hurts," Ace hissed, holding his ribs, wincing. Then his eyes went wide, and he looked for me, relaxing when he saw I was there.

  "Ace," I breathed, "God, Ace I'm so sorry."

  He held up a weak hand and flapped it at me.

  "Did good. Didja’ get him?"

  "Uh huh."

  "Good," he said, then flopped back with a groan. "I'm good. Just need to whine for a few minutes. I feel like I got kicked by a mule right in the chest."

  "That's what happens when you get between a lightning witch and her prey," Cash said, sounding amused despite the seriousness of the situation. Ace flipped him the bird, and we loaded back into the car. I was pretty sure I wasn't going to vomit again. I just needed to forget about the feeling of calling on the lightning and watching it disintegrate someone in front of me.

  I curled up with Finn on the floor, Charlie sitting next to me, as Ace watched me through half-closed eyes. Eli kept the windows cracked, fresh air flowing through the van as we pulled onto the road again.

  "It's hard, your first," Finn said quietly in the dark as we rode, the pavement smooth as we moved onto the highway. I looked up at him. He cracked a dark smile. "My first was in France."

  Charlie made a snorting noise, and Cash lifted his head from where he was talking quietly to Ace.

  "World War Two?" I asked, my limbs feeling wrung out and exhausted. Finn nodded and sighed, holding me tight.

  "Yeah. We were young, basically pups, really."

  "We had no business being out there," Cash spoke up. "But we wanted to protect our country. Fight for what was right."

  "We were fucking idiots," Eli said after a moment from the front of the car.

  "Can't say I'm not glad you went." Charlie stretched and reached for a bottle of water, offering it up to Ace first. "You came back with a world of knowledge that saved all of our asses." I felt Finn shift and saw him glance at Cash.

  "Yeah, well, we all came back with something," Finn admitted. "Whatever it was, here we are now." He nudged me, and I sat forward. "C'mon. Seat-belts. I'm not losing you to a highway accident."

  "As if I'd crash," Eli commented, sounding vaguely annoyed. I clambered into my seat with heavy limbs, and leaned against the side of the van, eyes drifting shut.

  I woke to the spill of cool air in the van, and the smell of wet grass.

  "It's one of those free BLM camps," Charlie said when I sat up. "Nobody's around. We closed the gate up after us so hopefully no one will get wise to where we went. Hunters aren't great trackers, or we'd have been dead five times over."

  "That and we drove nearly three hours to get here," Cash said as he stepped out of the van, stretching. "I gotta take a piss."

  Finn shook his head.

  "Always so rude around our lady," he commented, but he followed Cash, Charlie close behind the two of them. Eli eyed me as he turned in his seat.

  "You hungry?" Eli asked. "We stopped for drive-thru but you were asleep."

  "Oddly enough, murdering someone kinda killed my appetite," I said. Eli's eyebrow hitched up for a moment.

  “You did what you had to do.”

  “Really? I had to fry someone so bad that they turned to dust?” The bile was creeping up the back of my throat again. I glanced over at where Ace was slumped in his seat, breathing softly as he slept. “I nearly killed Ace.”

  “He would’ve killed Ace if you hadn’t. He would have killed of us. These hunters? They don’t give a fuck about us as a
nything other than prey. You need to stop feeling bad for them—“

  “I don’t!” I stared at Eli, feeling betrayed. “I just don’t want to murder anyone.”

  “Well good, that makes you different from them,” he said, seemingly unruffled by my outburst. Ace grumbled in his sleep and curled up tighter, pulling his long legs onto the seat. Somehow, he was able to turn himself into a tight little ball despite being six feet tall. Eli glanced at him and sighed. “We need to talk about your powers though.”

  There it was. My breath caught in my throat and I shook my head.

  “I can’t.”

  “How much control do you have over them?”

  “I can’t talk about this.” I was caught, Eli’s gaze weighing me down. The fight, my exhausted sleep, the adrenaline, all of it had sapped any willpower I had.

  “You need to. I’ve never heard of a witch use her powers so little, and then when she finally does, she can’t control it.” Eli stepped toward me, his eyes soft and warm despite the edge of danger in his voice.

  “Nothing’s wrong with me! I’m just not, I can’t—“ I took a shuddering breath and swallowed hard. I needed to be calm. The now-familiar tingle of my powers was surging inside of me. This couldn’t happen again. I couldn’t lose control again.

  “Sweetheart,” Eli’s expression softened even more. “You need to tell me what’s going on. The safety of the pack, your safety? That means everything.”

  “I’m a bad witch, okay?!” I blurted it out and bit my lip, hard. The pain blossomed and seemed to tamp down the tingles that were racing along my skin. Eli stared at me, then blinked once, slowly. “I’m not good. I’ve never been good, I can’t cast like anyone else in my family, I’m terrible at spells, I’m just awful. I suck. Literally, I can’t cast magic—“