Hexes and Hellfire: Kyra Bell: Book One

by Brittany Rose

  One of Sally’s wolf shifters cracked the back door and looked out. He sniffed deeply and tilted his head.

  “No one is out there, Sal.”

  There was a loud explosion and the sound of ice falling and breaking behind us.

  Sally’s shifter opened the door further and stepped into the breach.

  Crack!

  A loud retort of a sniper rifle went off, and the shifter fell back, and the weighted door slammed shut. Serin had several hunter teams in the warehouse, so he must’ve only left one or two in the front or back, at a great distance, to snipe anyone that managed to get past the infiltration team. Far enough away for a shifter to not get a scent.

  He was bleeding, profusely, from his chest. Not healing.

  Silver.

  Well, I might’ve been weak, but I was an earth witch, and the only one in the room. I couldn’t move boulders, or shake the ground, but a bullet was very small. I moved forward, the short arcane spell falling from my lips, and the shifter gave another tortured scream as the bullet was torn from his flesh and slapped into my palm. I pulled out a healing potion, and I poured it down his throat.

  “That should keep him alive, until his magic can recover from the shock and shifter healing kicks in.”

  As if to call me a liar, the shifter started to convulse wildly on the floor, and let out an agonized scream, that turned into a death rattle. He went still, his eyes glassy, empty.

  Fuck.

  It should’ve worked. I’d seen death before, more death than anyone should see, much less a twenty-year-old, but this failure felt personal. What if it’d been Vic?

  I looked at the bullet again, then tossed it away like it was a live snake.

  “Poisoned, I’m sorry,” My voice throbbed with it, and I felt a little lost. It was a selfish prideful thing, it hadn’t been my first death, but this shifter had been on my side, and I’d failed.

  Damned council.

  Not that it was my fault, even if I’d realized it sooner, it was far too fast acting to do anything about. It would’ve taken time to identify the poison, too long, and chances are none of the antidotes I had prepared would’ve been the right one.

  We were also screwed, it’d been a good ten seconds since the ice wall had been breached. The room would be flooded by hunters any second, and we were pinned down by a sniper. Couldn’t go out, couldn’t go back.

  Abby said out of thin air, “According to what Stan said I still have a couple of minutes before his invisibility spell wears off. I’ve got the sniper, hold this room until I get back, and don’t kill.”

  John looked upset at that plan, but he held his tongue as the door opened a crack and then closed again.

  I turned back toward the hallway which the enemy was coming down. There was little relief to be found, except in the fact Serin was in the back. He’d sent his hunters through first.

  Sally started to cast, but I had no idea how long her spell would take, or what it would do. She also looked murderous at the loss of her shifter, and I hoped that grief and hatred hadn’t been involved in picking her spell.

  I lifted my hands theatrically as I spoke arcane words without putting any magic behind them, and the loud booming retort of cracking cement filled the room. The cement vibrated and churned, then a solid cement wall rose up to block the end of the hallway. It was impressive, something a very powerful earth witch might pull off.

  Of course, it was total bullshit, and nothing but a glamour. The new cement wall was an illusion they could simply walk through, as were the sounds and vibrations. However, I did see eyes widen, and the shifters in the lead slowed down warily as the wall went up before I lost sight of them. It’d buy us at least a few moments before they realized they’d been duped.

  Illusions were easy, didn’t take much magic at all, it was literally a magic a fae child could do. Turning invisible was much harder than what I’d just done.

  I could’ve started shooting instead, but I feared that would just turn their pursuit into an all-out blitz as fast as they could move. A delay, even a short one, was better. They’d been moving cautiously, knowing we were pinned down by the sniper, and I’d just made them more cautious.

  It worked for about ten seconds. It was also rather comical, as one of the shifters tried to bash through it, and he hit nothing. So, he appeared through the illusion without resistance, and face planted into the cement floor while wind milling his arms. Really, I wished I’d have been recording it with my phone, and a snicker escaped my lips.

  I wasn’t the only one, Vic snorted a laugh, and a couple of Sally’s people snickered too.

  I casually shot him in the back before he could recover, and he passed out. I’d hate to be him at the office tomorrow, he was in for some ribbing.

  It’d also been long enough of a delay, Sally’s liquidly flowing arcane words finished with a shout, and the pipes around and above us burst. The water rushed in toward Sally from multiple directions, surrounded her in a whirlpool of flowing water, that was then directed down the hallway like a fire hose. It looked… graceful, like the water was dancing around her. The force of the water must’ve been something else, because I could hear the screams of outrage, and they were definitely getting farther away.

  I dropped my glamour, when a wall of real ice replaced it at the end of her spell.

  The warehouse door opened, and Abby’s voice floated in, “The two snipers that were watching the back door are down, for at least a few minutes, but there might be another two out front, so be careful. It might be better to just flee on foot. We’ll be too exposed near our cars.”

  That sounded like good advice, and Sally thought so too. We ran out the back and went straight. The building in the way of the other snipers, and we flowed into the dock area. It was only a few minutes later when I used my earth magic to pop the lock on a van plenty big enough for eight, and also took care of starting it without a key. Ironically perhaps, it had a locksmith ad on the side.

  I hoped Stan had made it, we had, our two groups, save one.

  But… what now? We were fugitives, we hadn’t killed, but we’d resisted and fled from council authorities. It wasn’t like they didn’t know where we lived…

  Chapter Thirteen

  Sally echoed my thoughts from the passenger seat, “What now?”

  Abby sighed, “I think our best bet is to surrender, but on our terms. Otherwise it’s just a matter of time until they hunt us down.”

  Sally said, “That’s desperate, but I suppose we are in a desperate situation. What are you thinking?”

  There was a brief pause.

  Abby replied, “This wasn’t a bust. It was Serin covering his ass. The only reason we escaped is because there were no witches, which means he feared they’d see through his bullshit. He wanted to put us down to cover his misdeeds, and he waited so long to do it so he could get in one more good score when he took all the money brought in tonight. I can’t say why he thought he needed to do it, but he obviously thought he’d lost control of the situation, or perhaps regained control with Adele’s death? I don’t know.

  “Point is, if we can get inside the council chamber and surrender there, they’ll hear us out and question us before coming to a decision. If we’re lucky, we’ll survive, and Serin will be punished, or if not that far, he’ll at least lose influence and authority in the city.”

  Sally sighed, then nodded, “If we can convince them to investigate on our word alone. I might be able to help with that. I have Adele’s records, including weekly payments to SN in her ledger for two thousand dollars. The first and last letter of his name. It’s thin on its own, but if it’s enough to get them to investigate, Katrina can read the warehouse floor to gain proof of him accepting the bribes, and they can check his bank accounts for matching deposits.”

  Abby nodded, “Either way, our little enterprise is over. Our council is a pain in the ass, but they’re not as corrupt as most. They’ll cover for Serin with the humans, to save face, but they won�
��t let it continue. Anything we missed?”

  I cleared my throat, as I thought of something I hadn’t considered before.

  “Only three of the four groups participated in the new setup. What if greed wasn’t the only reason Serin waited to raid us until late, what if he went somewhere else first? Gabe went his own way, but he was still someone that knew about Serin’s corruption. Wouldn’t he want to clean the slate, destroy all the outsiders in the Chicago area? He couldn’t afford to leave that loose end. He wouldn’t have the excuse of a rogue attacking to kill Gabe and his people, but then a Nephilim is more than a match for a vampire and a few more supes by himself.”

  Sally cursed vociferously, and then pulled out her cell phone, while Abby looked at me in shock.

  It wasn’t all that long, before Sally lowered her phone.

  “It didn’t even ring, went straight to voicemail. Either his phone is off, or it’s destroyed, and Gabe never turns his phone off. I think she’s right, Abby, we’re down to three groups now and on the run. We need somewhere to lay low until morning. We also need a plan to get into the council chambers. We can be sure Serin will give orders to kill us on sight, in the hopes we’re taken down before any questions can be asked.”

  Abby nodded, “I agree, and we can’t kill any of them to get by either. We should’ve just let it go, and came to some arrangement personally for our shifters to challenge each other.”

  Sally shook her head, “That would’ve been even worse. Then we’d all be dead, he’d have picked us all off separately tonight, all by himself.”

  That was a good point.

  “So where do we go tonight?”

  Abby said, “We can’t go home until this is done. We’ll stay in the city, get hotel rooms for all of us. John can use compulsion and make sure whoever checks us in doesn’t get overly curious or suspicious, doesn’t report us.”

  Sally nodded, “Alright. I’ll let Stan know about our plans.”

  She lifted her phone again, this time a conversation started a few moments later and she laid it all out. What we were thinking, and what we were planning to do about it.

  The whole plan made me a little nervous, breaking into the council chamber and submitting to being questioned seemed risky. We’d all be at their mercy’s whim. More so for me, than anyone else, considering my past and what I was. Still, I had no intention on running, I could always run for it if they discovered the truth that had to remain hidden.

  Vic asked, “Are you okay?”

  His question surprised me, not just the words but the concerned tone in his low rumbly voice, and the way he looked at me in that moment stole my breath. It took me a few seconds for my brain to kick back in.

  “Yes, adrenaline crash, and I’m worried about tomorrow, but okay.”

  Yeah, that adrenaline crash was redirected in that moment, and I felt more than a little breathless as heat flushed my body, which grew oversensitive. Delicious tingles moved from my stomach further south, and my heart started to race. I told myself it was just chemistry, natural, and I wasn’t a slave to my body or its needs. That I could control myself.

  I just wasn’t sure if I cared in that moment, not even the fact John and the other shifters in the van probably scented my wanton desire. Vic’s eyes told me he wanted to devour me, and I wanted to let him, so it was damned lucky there were six other supernaturals in the van in that moment. Better to wait, until I was sure I was welcome long-term, and until he was sure I wasn’t leaving.

  Even then, I wanted a date first, not a wild escape from council killers to push us into bed on pure chemical passion. A desperate need to validate we were alive.

  Damn, it would be delicious though, wild, and… I pushed it out of my head, but my body wasn’t listening to my head.

  Sally hung up and said, “He’s in. He’ll meet us for breakfast in the hotel restaurant at eight. He also suggested he can sneak us by the outer guards with glamour, but we’ll have to figure out a way to get past the internal guards between the council room and the building wards.”

  Well, we had a plan, or at least the beginnings of one.

  “Can we ambush one of the council members on their way into the building? If we surrender, unarmed, they can order Serin and his teams to stand down and escort us in unopposed. He’ll be in a corner, damned if he attacks, damned if he doesn’t, at that point. It may make him hesitate long enough to let us pass.”

  Abby smirked, “It’s risky, but I like it. We’ll call that plan B, if we can’t think of a better way. It’d be safer if we could surrender to the whole council at once, it plays them against each other. Your plan could backfire, if Serin already got permission to kill us on sight, without questioning. Also, one councilor, outside the inner protective wards where he or she is vulnerable, could allow fear to dictate their response.”

  Yeah, risky. But like sally had said earlier, we were in a desperate situation.

  “What about John?”

  He obviously couldn’t come with us to the council in the morning, nor would he be in an underground safe room.

  John said, “Most hotels have vampire friendly rooms now, windowless, or with steel shutters that bolt down. I’ll be fine.”

  We dumped the van a half a mile from the hotel. Between my fae glamour and earth magic and Sally’s water magic, we were able to obscure the cameras, clean out any DNA left behind, and wipe away fingerprints. I felt a little guilty about it, but the owner would get it back unharmed, and when you’re on the run from death most rules go out the window.

  The hotel was a decent three star, nothing to write home about, but it was clean, had room service as well as a hotel bar and restaurant for breakfast in the morning. There was only one snag, or perhaps I should say temptation. We only rented four rooms. Abby of course, roomed with John, and Vic and I weren’t about to room with Sally or one of her people who paired up as well.

  I talked to myself sternly about self-control on the elevator, and I imagined the scents and pheromones my body was putting off by then wasn’t helping Vic at all. The idea of being in a hotel room with him all night had my mind all over the place, along with the adrenaline crash, the exhilarating danger of earlier, and our natural chemistry and attraction, it was all rather heady.

  I wasn’t sure I could say no, so half of me hoped he didn’t try, and the other half hoped we wouldn’t even make it to the bed for our first time.

  Of course, Vic could scent that conflict, so chances were that my shallow lurid fantasies would go unrewarded. Which was a good thing, right?

  It was also right around one in the morning, and we had to be up at seven.

  The room was a basic room. One large room with bed, desk, small table, and a television. The art was simple landscapes, and there was an attached bathroom. The bed was a king-sized monstrosity, surely big enough for two adults to share without compromising ourselves. One thing I was sure of, even if I felt a little overwhelmed in that moment, I did feel safe alone with Vic. Which really, wasn’t like me at all.

  The door clicked closed behind us, and Vic set the sliding deadbolt.

  We both took in that large bed, then shared a glance. I couldn’t help the nervous smile on my face, at seeing the war on his.

  Vic grunted, which made me giggle.

  “You’re a man of few words.”

  Vic snorted, which made me outright laugh as I put my bag down next to the bed.

  “Window side.”

  I raised an eyebrow.

  He growled, “I need to be on the outside, closest to the door.”

  Oh. My eyes widened at that. He wanted to protect me, be the first obstacle to overcome if Serin found us. We didn’t think the bastard would, since it was kind of a rogue operation on his part he couldn’t go to the human authorities and check for credit card usage, but it was possible.

  I sighed, “Picky,” and grabbed my bag and rounded the bed. I pulled out a pair of old yoga pants and a comfortable light t-shirt. I usually slept in the buff, but that w
asn’t going to happen that night, and I moved into the bathroom to change, intensely aware of his eyes on me the whole time. It was just a good thing I hadn’t put all my clothes in the closet at Abby’s ranch, I had plenty of old stuff I just didn’t wear anymore, after my wardrobe upgrade from high school fashion to adult.

  I overheard him on the phone ordering a seven o’clock wakeup call while I changed, brushed out my hair, and my teeth. When I opened the door the light was out, he was in bed, and his pants and shirt were thrown over one of the chairs. Which meant, he was just in boxers.

  I slipped into the bed, there was plenty of room between us, but I was painfully aware of his respiration. My mind flitted over his muscled body which was mostly naked right now, not to mention all the ways he looked at me.

  He sighed, “Your scent is driving me nuts. No, you’re driving me nuts.”

  “Sorry?”

  He barked a laugh, “Not what I meant, nothing to be sorry for. You saved my life, you’re an amazing woman, and so beautiful and sexy, Kyra. I want you more than you know, too much, so I made the decision to hold you at arm’s length until I was sure you were staying with us past the trial period. It seemed like a bad idea to get involved before that. I didn’t want to lose myself if you left us. Yet, I looked forward to our rides together every day. I’m regretting it now, but I want to spend time with you as soon as possible.”

  I bit my lip, anticipation, pleasure, and joy flushed my body. I really had been worried he didn’t want me, and that he’d just been lusting after my body. Even John’s assurances earlier hadn’t fully erased those doubts. That said, he was right about the regret part, we really didn’t know each other well enough yet, despite this situation. I’d never been one for a one-night stand, and the thought of having one with a man I may have to share a house with for years in the future was a horrible idea. I wanted to get to know him first, to see if the promise of our chemistry had more potential first.

  Otherwise my fears and doubts would ruin the moment, if I couldn’t give my body to him without reservation.