Her Guardian Series Box Set

by G. Bailey

  “Males are rare here, the very opposite to the wolves. Many women decide to dedicate their lives to magic instead. The women here are amazing fighters,” Dabriel moves closer as he speaks. “Just what we need in the times ahead,” he whispers close to my ear.

  Atti takes my hand as Dabriel leans away. We walk away from the women; more and more stop to stare at us, but Atti puts his hood up. I guess he’s done with talking. Dabriel moves behind us as we walk through the many stalls. I stop when I see a stall full of wands. Actual witch wands, Freddy would love one. I nod my head, and the guys follow me as I walk over to the stall. They stop on the path as I approach it.

  "Charming lady, how may I help you?" the woman behind the counter asks as I look at the wands. I glance up at her, she looks around thirty, but looks can mean nothing when supernaturals have a longer life span. Her hair is wrapped in purple cloth which matches her purple dress that has a corset at the top and fans out underneath into a dress. Atti lied, witches do wear corsets, and now she just needs a spiky hat.

  "Do they do anything special?" I ask when I snap out of my own thoughts.

  "They are used for directing and holding magic, the colours of the wands are a representation of the element they help. For example, the blue wand is for water and the green for earth." She waves a hand over the green and blue wands.

  "This one?" I ask as I point at a white one.

  "Spirit," she says, and I nod as I pull out the stone Atti gave me and offer it to her.

  "Is this stone okay payment for the spirit wand?" I ask.

  "A deal, thank you very much, my lady," the woman nods and takes the stone from me. I pick the wand up, and she offers me a paper bag for it. I accept and look back at Atti and Dabriel who are watching me curiously.

  "Ah, to win one prince’s heart is a gift, to win two is a true prize. I'm sure the queen who wins all four shall be the truest winner of all," the woman says, and I look at her quizzically.

  "Thanks," I utter as she offers me the bag.

  "My future queen," she bows. I quickly make my way back to the guys, wondering about the woman’s strange words.

  "A wand?" Atti asks with a small smile as I reach him.

  "For Freddy. He loves Harry Potter, and I thought he'd like it," I say.

  “Here, give it to me a sec,” Atti holds out a hand. I take the wand out of the paper bag and hand it over. He holds it in both his hands, and it glows white until I can’t look at it anymore. I blink, looking up at Atti when he is finished doing whatever, and he holds out the wand to me.

  “I added some magic, usually it would allow someone to see a close family spirit, but that is very rare and old magic. Freddy will just be able to shoot white, harmless sparks out of it for a while,” Atti says with a grin.

  “Awesome,” I say and put the wand away in the bag.

  "That's nice of you, but is it safe to give to a child?" Dabriel asks.

  “It’s harmless, D,” Atti laughs.

  “Can I see the trees?” I ask Atti, and he nods as he takes my hand. Dabriel takes the wand from me and slides it into one of his pockets inside the cloak.

  "Wyatt and Freddy aren’t getting along," Atti notes as we walk towards the gates to the trees.

  "It must be difficult for them both. Freddy hates vampires; they killed his mum and his uncle. They have constantly battled with them, and now one is living in his house, talking to him all the time. Wyatt and Jaxson don't believe it's best to tell him anything yet," I say.

  "Poor kid," Dabriel shakes his head.

  "It's a fucked up world," Atti says, and I squeeze his hand.

  "I think Freddy is lucky in some ways. He doesn't know it, but he has a father who would die for him and three uncles who would protect him at any cost. I love Freddy and would do anything for him as well," I say.

  "Not many people have that many people in their lives that love them," Dabriel agrees with me.

  "You’re kind of his stepmother now that you’re mated to Wyatt and his aunt-in-law to boot," Dabriel tells me.

  “You’re a MILF,” Atti chuckles, and I laugh. Only Atti would call me that.

  “Do I want to know what that means?” Dabriel says.

  “It means mother I’d like to fu–” Atti goes to say,

  Dabriel whacks him on the back of the head, “Changed my mind.”

  “That hurt, fucker,” Atti mumbles, rubbing his head.

  “You should learn to be polite around a lady, then,” Dabriel says. I may not be able to see his face, but I know he’s smiling.

  “I’m sorry, my lady, might I kiss the back of your hand as a sweet apology?” Atti says in an over-the-top, posh accent.

  “Nope,” I say, and they both laugh with me.

  We stop at the gates; it’s white and has flowers and vines shaped into the metal work. Thoughts of Freddy and everything else float away when Dabriel pushes the gates open, and I walk behind him.

  A warm feeling fills me just before I hear the singing. The song is sweet and light as the childlike voice sings of peace. The voice reminds me of the one I hear in my dreams; it could be the same person. I look around, but no one else is in here, and the singing is getting louder.

  "Do you hear the singing? So lovely," I say in a daze, and they both look at me like I’m nuts.

  "No, it's quiet, Winter," Dabriel eventually says.

  I ignore their questioning stares and walk to the nearest tree as the singing gets louder. I place my palm on the wood, and the voice sings in my mind.

  I sing the words, like I've known them my whole life:

  Peace is coming, like war shall rise. Winter months will see the change.

  Winter shall make the princes fall,

  For Winter is the peace of all.

  Shall the princess who will be queen bring us peace?

  The trees welcome the ancient one’s child,

  We welcome you,

  We welcome you,

  You, my goddess, we have waited a while.

  I sing all the words, my eyes closed, and when I finally open them, I see I have a crowd of people watching me. All the witches have their hoods down, and they look shocked. I look back at my hand on the tree. The tree is glowing blue where I'm touching it, and I feel like it's alive.

  "Our queen!" one woman shouts, and I look over at her as she falls to her knees and bows. The rest of the crowd fall to their knees like a wave until only Atti, Dabriel, and I are standing.

  "My queen," Dabriel says and kneels in front of me. I watch as he undoes his cloak, and it falls to the ground letting his wings stretch out. A few gasps can be heard in the crowd, but no one says anything about the prince of the angels in the witch’s city.

  "My queen," Atti echoes loudly as he falls to his knees next to Dabriel.

  “No, you are both my equals,” I say to Atti and Dabriel. They both stand and move to either side of me. The crowd whispers the word ‘true queen’ around in my mind until I can’t hear how many people say it.

  The trees express their happiness, and it fills me with joy as I watch everyone.

  This is my future, with my men at my side.

  Fifty-Two

  Winter

  “You need to get this right, Winter, again!” Leigha shouts at me as she pins me on the floor for the seventh time today. She jumps off me and stands.

  “I can’t beat you,” I wheeze and roll over to push myself up. I’m glad we came back to the pack to train because I’m sure the witches would lose any respect for me when they see army brat kicking my ass.

  “You’re the daughter of a half goddess. You are part demon, and you are also part vampire. You can do this,” Leigha tells me. I know she’s right, but I just want to throw things at her. The past week has been like hell. Leigha demands me for training in the pack at five in the morning, every morning, then she doesn’t give me even a water break until ten.

  “Yes, but I can’t,” I pant out.

  “Stop whining. Do you think your enemies are going give you
a chance to whine about your problems?” she says while charging towards me with her sword. I have just enough time to deflect her blow with my own sword as I pull it off the floor. My arm shakes as our swords clash, she’s circling me, and landing hit after hit with her fast speed. My part vampire side is slowing her down in my mind so I can, at least, see her attacks. My forehead is lined with sweat, and my power builds up like an inferno inside me. I try to stop it, knowing Leigha wouldn’t really hurt me, but my power doesn’t listen. My body glows blue just before the blue wave escapes. It goes in all directions, looking like a wave of blue smoke as it hits everything in its way. Leigha goes flying, smashing through the training room door, breaking it off the frame, and disappearing from my sight. I quickly drop my sword and run into the room. Harris is pulling Leigha up, both of them staring at each other like there isn’t anyone else around, not noticing the ten people in room. Luckily for Harris and Leigha, they aren’t looking at them, they are all looking at me. I raise my hand to see I’m still glowing.

  “Let’s try something else,” Leigha says coming over to me.

  “You okay?” I ask, and she waves a hand at me. I see the slight cut on her forehead, and I wince. I didn’t mean to do that. My power keeps attacking her and anyone nearby us. That’s why we were training outside in the first place.

  “Nice to see you, Winter,” Harris comes over and gives me a hug. I watch in fascination when I see Freddy fighting another boy his age. Freddy has two long swords that look too big for him to hold, yet he does—and fights well with them. The other boy has long blond hair that stops around his shoulders, and he is just using one large sword to fight against Freddy’s two. They circle each other, hitting hard and moving even faster. They don’t take their eyes off each other as they fight.

  “They are both very impressive. The other boy is called Mich, he’s the only person around their age who can keep up with Freddy.” Harris tells me. Mich jumps into the air and somersaults over Freddy’s head; he lands perfectly and places his sword at Freddy’s neck.

  “That was incredible.”

  “Yes. They will both be strong wolves when they are older,” Harris says. Freddy and Mich shake hands. When Freddy spots us watching him, he puts his swords down and runs over.

  “Hey, little wolf, awesome job in the fight,” I say as he gives me a hug. I hug him back and notice that Mich has followed him over to us. The boy has really strange eyes, so I tilt my head to the side to look at him. His eyes look like someone has swirled blue and grey paint together, and it hasn’t mixed. It’s really nice.

  “Hello, Mich, your fighting was really good,” I say over Freddy’s shoulder. Freddy lets me go and grins at me.

  “Mich doesn’t speak. He’s deaf, but he understands you,” Freddy says and taps his head.

  “How?” I ask, but Mich answers.

  “I can speak inside minds, like witches do. Thank you for your words,” he says, his voice deeper than I expect from a boy his age.

  “Oh, well that’s a cool power,” I say, and Mich nods.

  “Let’s go for a run,” Freddy nudges Mich’s shoulder, and they both run towards the doorway, where there used to be a door. I watch them both chuck their tops off and shift, ripping their trousers. Mich is a grey wolf, the one I saw before when Jaxson was crowned. Both the tops of his ears are missing. Freddy’s wolf is much bigger than the last time I saw him, at least half the size of me now. They both quickly run off out of sight.

  “Everyone, your queen needs your help,” Leigha says loudly next to us as Harris moves to her side. I see his hand gently brush hers. It’s so sweet, and I have the urge to help them be together. I know it’s not accepted, but isn’t Freddy proof enough that two races can be together?

  The wolves all stop what they are doing to come over and bow to me.

  “Please stand in a line by that wall,” Leigha says, and I glance at her with a “what the fuck” expression. Harris joins the others until they are all lined up, around a metre apart.

  Leigha walks off and grabs a belt that has a line of throwing stars on it. She hands it to me, and I slip it over my head. I know where this is going, and she is bloody mad.

  “I want you to throw one star at each person, just above their heads,” she says, confirming my thoughts.

  “Are you crazy?” I whisper harshly, and she just looks at me with a blank, unimpressed face.

  “No. Just do it, Winter,” she says and steps away. The distance I’m standing is at least ten metres away and every one of the wolves looks nervous. I try to give the first guy a reassuring smile. If anything, he looks more nervous afterwards. I pull a star out of the belt; it’s light and made of black metal in the middle. Each end of the five star points is silver and looks very sharp.

  I pull my arm back and try to calm myself. I close my eyes and open them just as I throw the star. The star hits perfectly, just above the man’s head with a little of his hair caught around it. Harris starts clapping and grins at me.

  “Again,” Leigha says. I move down the row of men, throwing star after star until I run out. I turn, and Leigha smiles at me as the men clap with Harris.

  “That is a power of yours. Proof that you are strong and in control. If you weren’t, you would have killed one of them. When we are fighting, you need to let your senses and mind take over. Stop thinking about how to beat me, and trust that you will. Like you trust your power to make those hits perfectly,” Leigha says. She chucks a sword at me from off of the wall as I put back the star belt. I think about her words, I need to trust my powers.

  “Come on then, princess,” Leigha says with a nod, and we face each other on one of the mats. I watch her closely, knowing when she is going to attack, and I move to deflect her. I pull the calm feeling to me that I used when I threw the stars. I feel myself move–faster than I thought I could–and I finally understand what Leigha means. I can’t think about every move or plan the fight. I have to feel it and trust myself. I move quickly towards Leigha as we battle, but she pushes me back step-by-step with each hit. I feel myself getting close to the wall, so I throw a hard hit to her sword. I turn and run towards the wall, Leigha quickly following me. I jump, using the wall for momentum to push off, and land behind Leigha, kind of like how I saw Mich go over Freddy’s head. I pull my sword up and point it at her back, not enough to cut her, but enough so she knows I’ve won.

  “About time,” Leigha turns and bats my sword away. I lower it with a grin and wipe the sweat off my forehead.

  “I won’t say this again, but you were right,” I tell Leigha. She simply smirks.

  “Why do I never hear you tell me that?” Jaxson says behind me, and I grin, turning to see him walk through the doorway. He glances at the door on the floor and back at me.

  “Guys are never right, man, best learn that quickly,” Harris says walking over to us. “Can I have a word?” Harris asks Leigha.

  “Outside,” she says and walks away with Harris following her. I walk over as Jaxson picks up the door. It’s really hot to watch him carry the door like it’s a bag of potatoes to the doorway and rest it near the wall. He goes into the cupboard and brings out a large toolbox.

  “I'll fix this, lass. Dabriel wants to see you in the main cabin,” he says while I watch him as he slowly pulls his shirt off…like a teenager discovering her hormones for the first time. I’ve seen him without his shirt plenty of times, but hot damn, he gets me all flustered every time.

  “Err yeah, I’ll get to that,” I blurt out. Jaxson merely smirks at me and slaps my ass as I pass by him. I find Dabriel in the dining room, books all over the table he’s sitting at. Just the top of his white wings and white hair can be seen as he leans over a massive book. I walk around the table and rest my hand on his shoulder. He takes my hand in his and kisses the tips of my fingers as he speaks.

  “I missed you this last week,” he whispers.

  Dabriel went back to the angels to find a way to kill demons or anything that can be used on them. The
angels apparently have a large library and many records; if anything could be found, it would be there.

  “Me too,” I sigh. Dabriel pushes the chair back with his large legs, his wings hanging over the back and spread slightly out. He wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me onto his lap. I wrap my arms around his neck, resting my head on his shoulder. We don’t say a word for a while, just enjoy being near each other.

  “Did you find anything?” I eventually ask as he runs his large fingers up and down my back. The effect is soothing.

  “No, well, not really,” he says.

  “Not really?” I ask.

  He sighs. “There was one book, about a bundle of weapons that could kill demons. The writer says they were Fray-touched,” Dabriel says, his voice sounding annoyed.

  “Fray?” I ask, having no clue what that is.

  “Fairies. The writer believed that fairies exist, and that they can place their magic in weapons. These weapons can kill demons,” he answers, but his tone is laced with frustration, suggesting he doesn’t believe it.

  “Do fairies exist?” I ask.

  “No, my little wildfire. I don’t think they do,” he says, and I stay in his arms for a long time. If only I knew how to speak to a fairy.

  Fifty-Three

  Winter

  "Hello," I shout through the trees that greeted me when I opened my eyes. This place is nothing like I've ever seen. Large purple trees stretch into the bright blue skies, and the grass is a yellow colour instead of green. This place is spectacular. I watch as a butterfly the size of a cat flies past me, the wings filled with bright colours. This is a dream, but I don’t see Elissa anywhere, or anyone for that matter. There is nothing but the purple trees and yellow grass.

  "You called me?" a woman asks with a little laugh as she walks out of the trees to my left. She stops dead in her tracks when she sees me, giving me time to look at her.