by CC Dragon
“Did you see this warlock?” I asked.
Lily shrugged. “White guy, dark hair and dark eyes. Tall. Scary.”
“Scary?” I nodded.
“It was his vibe. Really scary vibrations came off of him. The magic he had was savagely powerful. He put his hand on my shoulder, and I wanted to throw up.” She hugged her mom.
“You need to stay in the village,” Janice said.
“It’s him,” Mason said to me. “Was this before or after we arrived?”
Lily frowned. “I met him after. The bears said he’d been there before and warned them about Dot.”
I nodded patted her shoulder and got a picture of the warlock. “He’s taunting us. Following us.”
“Who?” Pete asked.
“He said he could save you, Mason. He could take you where you’d be safe and get more magic so no one could ever hurt you again, but you had to be far away from Dot.” Lily sniffed.
“He put a curse on you, dear,” Margo said.
“He didn’t,” Lily shot back.
“Lily, you will respect your elders,” Janice said.
“Shut up! All of you! He was scary, but he was trying to protect paras from human lovers like Dot!” Lily shouted.
“That’s the curse, right there. Lily, you’ve never acted like this.” Pete stood up.
Lily shoved Pete hard, but it wasn’t the physical attack that scared me. It was the magic Lily threw at the elder.
“No!” I grabbed her, but the damage was done.
Pete collapsed on the floor.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Margo knelt down and checked. “Pete’s dead.”
I didn’t let go of Lily, instead I pulled out her energy and powers—hoping I could suck the curse out of her.
Lily suddenly passed out.
“What did you do?” Janice demanded.
“She’s alive,” I shot back. “I had to take her powers out.”
“What do we do?” Mason asked.
I shook my head. “I don’t think I got the curse out. We have to heal that—reverse that.”
“Can you bring Pete back?” Margo asked.
I knelt down and touched Pete, trying to reverse what Lily had done.
“Sorry, I can’t. She really killed him.” I tried to pour Lily’s magic in, but it came right back.
A cold, dark sensation filled the room, and I turned around. I refused to let myself shake or back away.
Indigo.
Mason pushed his mom and Margo behind him. I stood between Indigo and Lily.
“What did you do to her?” I asked.
“I used her love of you and her possessiveness over her brother and turned it to hate for you. She wants power. She wants to know all of the magical and paras in Alaska and have them respect her.” Indigo grinned.
He launched a dark ball at me, and I deflected it with Lily’s power.
“You recovered well. I blocked the Fae lines for a bit, but you just find ways. You can steal powers from anyone. We need to work together.” Indigo grinned.
I hurled a fireball at him, but he dodged it.
“Get him out of my house,” Janice shouted.
Indigo rushed after Janice, but Mason attacked him, slamming Indigo into the ceiling. Indigo tried to get free and attack, but he was still recovering from the battle on the island. He had been the magical manipulator for the bears. Indigo wasn’t weak by any means, but he wasn’t full strength either.
We’d had more healing, and it was our only advantage.
I hurled magic balls at Indigo while shoving Janice and Margo toward the door.
Mason picked up his unconscious sister and ran for the bedroom.
“She’s no real use to me other than a way to get to you,” Indigo said.
“What do you want with me?” I asked.
He grinned. “You belong with me.”
“That’s as bad as the bear shifter saying Lily was his mate.” I slammed him with gravity.
He grabbed my ankle as he hit the floor hard.
I felt the pull. He was trying to drain my energy.
I kicked him in the face and used the gravity pull to knock his face into the floor. I stunned him hard with spells.
My magic wasn’t glitching now, but my guard was up for Indigo. He’d gotten the drop on me on the island.
He might want to steal whatever weird powers I had, but he was unconscious now. I knelt down and touched his neck. Sucking all of his power.
It never seemed to end, I filled up and began to get dizzy. The warlock was powerful—maybe he was something weird like me? Or his power was different from mine, and it affected me oddly.
Mason walked out of the bedroom.
“Dot, stop,” he said.
“Take some, heal your sister,” I said.
Mason shook his head. “I can’t take from others the way you do.”
I took his hand and shared the power. “It’s how you use it now, not who had it first.”
Mason disappeared to heal his sister. I stared at Pete’s lifeless body and wished I could trade Indigo’s life for the sweet old man who’d tried to help me.
I pulled more power from Indigo. I wasn’t going to waste a drop of space in me or a bit of power from him.
“Mason, I’m getting tapped out. I need to transfer some,” I said.
Lily burst from the room. “Stop! You’re killing him.”
“You should talk. You killed Pete,” I threw up a forcefield to keep her from me.
“I didn’t mean to. You made me so mad. I can’t help it. I hate you!” she screamed.
“You’re cursed by Indigo. He messed with you to get to me,” I explained.
Lily sneered. “Everyone wants you. Mason, Indigo, the bears, and everyone. You don’t know that.”
“You better watch your tone.” I grabbed Mason’s hand and gave him a big shot of power.
“Dot, be easy on her. It’s the curse,” Mason said.
“Take her outside, but bind her to the village. I’ll get a bit more from Indigo and finish him off,” I replied.
“No!” Lily grabbed for my and Mason’s still clasped hands. She broke our connection and shoved me back.
She fell on top of Indigo, which woke him up. I touched Lily and teleported us to general store across the street.
Mason followed us.
“How could you try to kill him? He’s different, like you. I want to learn about all magical beings, not just the normal ones,” Lily insisted.
“You said he was just a warlock before,” Mason countered.
I snapped my fingers and went back across the street to the house.
Indigo was gone. I searched the house to be sure.
“Search the village,” I said as I left the house.
“He’s gone,” Margo assured me.
“I’m not convinced. We need to go after him.” I grabbed Mason’s hand.
“No!” Janice ordered. “You’re both exhausted and don’t know what you’re dealing with. This is no common FBI case or magical being. It’s also not just about a clan of bear shifters or lynx shifters.”
“We’re fine. I stole Indigo’s magic. This is the time to go after him. He’ll be weak. I can’t believe he had enough energy left to teleport,” I said.
“He has friends too. They were probably working with him on the island and came for him the minute he was alone and weakened. He’ll go back to his safe place with those strong friends. It’ll be suicide if you chase after him,” Lily mocked.
I shot Mason a look that said I wanted to strangle the brat. “I don’t really feel safe here either.”
“I’ll bind her magic,” Margo said.
“No!” Lily insisted.
Janice shook her head. “Lily, It’s the only way. You hurt people, and you’re not in control. We’ll get the curse lifted, but until then, it’s best.”
“She tried to kill Indigo,” Lily accused.
“I did. He’s running a human trafficking ring. I think he’s a
powerful warlock because he’s sucking power from humans and para kids. That’s bad magic. Dark evil magics we have to stop. I’ll kill him and his whole group if I can, but you’re interfering.” I looked at Margo and Janice. “If you don’t bind her magic, I’ll take it.”
“You’re just going to suck out my magic every day?” Lily laughed.
I shook my head. “You’re much weaker than I am. I think I could suck out every bit of your magic and take your powers permanently.”
I had no idea if that was even possible, but I was weird enough that Lily eyed me and considered me a threat. Faking confidence sometimes worked better than magic or hugs.
“We can bind her magic until she’s older. She’s just full of hormones and compassion. She wants to learn, but we don’t restrict magic like others do. Traveling is definitely out of the question,” Janice said.
“Fine, if she’s confined to the village and her powers are bound, I guess we can leave her here,” I said.
Mason shot me an annoyed look.
“What? I’m not going back out there if I have to worry about her screwing us over again. We can’t stop and rescue her every other day when we’ve got a real case to work. She’s dangerous. I know Indigo used her, but if she had no powers, would he have bothered?”
Mason strolled out of the general store back to the house and closed the front door.
“What?” I asked.
“That’s my sister,” he said.
“I know, and I’m sorry. But she’s getting power hungry and playing with magic like it’s a game. Pete is really dead.” I pointed at his corpse still lying on the floor.
“I can’t believe that.” Mason sat on the couch and dropped his head into his hands.
“She is impulsive and dangerous. She could’ve killed you. All over a group of bears that didn’t have anything to do with our case.”
“That’s Indigo,” Mason said.
“What was?” I asked.
“I think he’s been following you all along—since you first stole his powers. He knew you came here. He knew you visited this house, and he worked on the weakest member of the family. The one person we pat on the head but don’t consider a threat or an adult,” Mason said.
“She’s not an adult. But you have a point. Indigo could’ve planted clues that made the bears seem like a threat, and she followed a false trail. He was waiting for the right time to strike and make it worse. To try and take me out.”
“Or take you,” Mason said.
“He’s not stronger than me. He and I aren’t exactly the same,” I said with confidence.
“We don’t really know what he is. Basic warlock—he’s stronger than that. Than me.” Mason sighed. “I think he might be a demon.”
I frowned. “A demon. I’m not sure that’s even real. He’s probably putting up an evil front. If he were a real demon, then where is the angel to fight him off?”
Mason looked at me. “I don’t know. But you’re not going after him.”
“The hell I’m not. I’m strong. I need to take him down while he is weak.” I stepped away from Mason.
Mason shook his head. “You must stay. He’ll go to a stronghold with other demons or warlocks. You’ll be outnumbered.”
“I was outnumbered today by bears. I can handle it,” I said.
“Don’t let the ego get to you. You’ll start to sound like Lily. If he has friends that are as strong as he is, you’ll be in over your head,” Mason said.
I laughed. “I can’t just sit here and do nothing.”
“Not nothing. Pete needs to be laid to rest. We need to make sure they can keep Lily under control. That my mom and Margo are strong and in control of Lily and won’t give in. No curses or games from Indigo. He could’ve done something to them too while he was here.”
“He can track us,” I said.
Mason nodded. “Which means we need to figure out how to track him. Better to do that from here with support. I’ll have Margo and the elders start a protective spell around the village. No strangers or magical intruders allowed. Plus, you need to eat. Magic won’t nourish your body—fatigue will set in soon.”
“Fine, I’ll stay for a while, but once we get a solid read on Indigo and the rest is under control...” I didn’t bother to finish the sentence. He knew what had to be done. Also, I’d be around to protect the village in case Indigo tried anything.
Mason nodded. “I promise, we’ll get him. Together. No solo crazy missions.”
“Lily will love that.” I smirked.
Keep Reading for a Special preview of Book 2!
Special Preview of Alaskan Bones
Chapter One
I SAT WITH A GROUP of Native women on the beach as they chanted. A freezing blustery wind whipped over me but the fire in the center kept us from chattering.
The goal was to blend our magics so they could decipher what the heck I was. Was I part Fae or some sort of hybrid? That was the best theory—Fae and something else had combined oddly to make me.
Whatever it was, hopefully it’d give me a better idea on how to handle my powers. Or a new group to approach to see if I sort of fit in there. I pushed the hopes down and let their chanting relax me.
Janice was among the women, and I was grateful she still wanted to help me. Lily hated that I was staying. Even with her powers bound, she was a handful. Her mother had had trouble keeping her contained during Pete’s funeral.
I avoided the little terror as much as possible, but Mason wanted to stay until the village had a handle on Lily. I’d say she was hitting puberty hard—maybe that was part of it, but I had my bets on Indigo for having bewitched her. A curse, we should’ve been able to lift by now. My powers were back to full force along with Mason’s.
Maybe Lily had a crush on Indigo or the bear? Power was intoxicating.
I couldn’t say that to Mason. He was beside himself worried about his family.
I should be meditating and looking inside myself, but my brain never quieted down easily.
“Stop helping her!” Lily shouted and ran into the circle and stomped on the fire.
Margo stopped the chanting.
I opened my eyes in time to deflect a kick from the rebellious child.
“You can’t use magic on me while mine is bound!” Lily insisted.
I laughed and levitated Lily off the group by the foot she’d tried to kick me with. “That’s not how it works.”
“You are a mystery,” Margo declared.
“Great,” I said.
“She’s a hybrid of things, that’s for sure,” someone else said.
The women began to talk and ignored Lily.
“She’s evil! Put me down, you evil witch!” Lily shouted.
I stood up and dropped her to the ground.
The women gasped, and Janice ran for Lily, but I stopped her just short of smashing into the ground and set her down gently.
“No, Indigo is evil. I took his power and use it for good. It healed you and Mason. Magic isn’t good or evil. It’s about the intent of the person wielding it.”
“But you said he used dark magic on me,” she countered.
“His intentions for the magic were evil. Controlling someone else with magic, that’s dark. That’s wrong,” I replied.
She grinned. “Then binding my magic is wrong.”
“No, you’re still a child and not using your magic properly. Running off and playing with bear shifters and evil warlocks—that requires parental intervention. It’s for your own good and the safety of your village.” It sounded so cliché and annoying, but I’d said it exactly to annoy her.
Grunting, she stomped away. “You can’t stop all of it. I hear him.”
Margo and Janice shared a look. I shrugged. “I hear nothing.”
“We will meet to see if we can cut that connection. She has no magic, but if he is projecting into her mind...” Margo shook her head.
“I think she can still use magic,” I said loud enough for Lily to hear.
“You’re so funny. This isn’t my fault.” She pointed to her head.
“Prove it.” I pinged her with little magical stings.
“Stop!” She acted like it hurt.
“Dot,” Janice said.
“I want to be sure she’s not holding onto to another magical avenue. Something that can channel magic or generate it without her being free to use her own magic. A gift or something?” I asked.
“Our magic doesn’t work that way,” she mocked.
I nodded. “But other magic does. Did Indigo give you anything?”
“I’ll search her room.” Janice dashed off.
Lily’s eyes grew wide, but not with panic.
I waved my hands up and down around her body, and a silver necklace floated from under her T-shirt. I felt the tingle so faint before, that we’d overlooked it.
Magically, I ripped it from her throat and isolated it in a ball of my magical protection.
“He’ll know you took it,” she said.
“Good.” I hurled the ball far from me and let it disappear. “Now only I can find it.”
“Bitch!” Lily screamed.
“Fool. Now let’s go tell your mother and Mason about the necklace.” I started walking back to the village from the beach.
When she didn’t follow me, I magically lifted her off of her feet and floated her in front of me.
“Put me down!” she insisted.
“You had your chance,” I reminded her.
“You’d be a terrible mother!” she shouted.
“I agree. Parenthood seems like torture. Be nicer to your mother.” I needed to get back on the case somehow. Indigo had left me a clue, but first I had to make sure Lily wouldn’t sabotage me or Mason anymore.
Staying at Margo’s was the only peace I got as Lily was determined to fight me at every turn. The village’s magical protection had been holding, but I couldn’t stay forever. I had to figure out what to do with the case and myself. The FBI wasn’t an option while I was suspended.
In the dead of night, there was a pulsing that shook me awake.
Margo pounded on my door. “That’s the magical alert.”
I threw off my covers and jumped out of bed. I shoved my feet into shoes and grabbed a jacket—not bothering with anything else. I followed Margo out and felt the dark wizards invading the village.