Storm Witch (Wolf Ridge Chaos Witch Book 1)

by Jayne Hawke

  “So, what are you thinking here? Isaac’s working with the fae to secure them land on this plane in return for siphoning off their magic? That doesn’t sound like something the fae would agree to.”

  “Lady Silvera has been pushing and fighting to get a parcel of land on the earth plane for two centuries, possibly longer. There must be something here she desperately wants. So maybe she’s desperate enough to hand over some magic. These are fae - she’ll likely steal another lord or lady’s magic,” Greyson said.

  I took a big gulp of my coffee and thought about it all.

  “Does this tie back into the solitary witches?” I asked.

  “Maybe? If they’re screwing around with the veil between the planes, maybe they accidentally allowed the creatures from the between through? Isaac’s hatred of solitary witches means they could be intentionally targeting them. There’s a small chance they cut a deal with the creatures.”

  “They have people, though, don’t forget they tried to take Gideon and me.”

  “But they were also possessed, or something similar.”

  “So, you’re thinking that Isaac let them through and didn’t realise he’d done it? Then the creatures started possessing solitary witches? Why haven’t we heard about sightings?” I asked.

  This wasn’t quite adding up. I could see Greyson’s line of thinking, but we were missing something still.

  “What about Quinn’s role in all of this?” I asked.

  “Who says he’s connected to this at all? He might not have been involved in the theft of the artifact at all.”

  “Someone remind me why I don’t have someone handle the contract stuff for me?” Gideon said as he strode into the room.

  “Because you’re a control freak who doesn’t trust anyone to handle the business of war for you,” Greyson said with a smirk.

  Gideon sat next to me and put his arm around my shoulders.

  “I hate when you’re right,” Gideon said to Greyson.

  “Greyson thinks Isaac’s working with the fae with the artifact and he accidentally let the creatures from between through,” I said.

  Gideon thought it over for a minute.

  “Isaac is a snivelling rat, I’m surprised he hasn’t pulled something like this sooner,” Gideon said.

  “I do think that Isaac’s most likely involved. However, he’s a good businessman; you’re only viewing him as a rat because he’s your biggest rival. We can’t be blinded by that fact. We need to look at the facts,” Greyson said.

  Gideon went quiet and thought that comment over. I’d never come across a coven where lower members would dare speak to the leader like that, and yet it was natural between the two of them. I loved it.

  “Ok, I admit I might be looking for something to take Isaac down,” Gideon said.

  “Can we all admit that he’s up to something though?” I asked.

  “He’s just a Mercury witch,” Ella said.

  “We knew that,” Gideon said with a laugh.

  “No, I mean he’s a thieving rat bag. Everything Sky took a photo of was stolen from another witch. Every piece of art, weapon, everything. We suspect that the spears lining the hallway Sky mentioned were the ones taken from the Mars coven in Charlotte earlier this year,” Ella said.

  I was a little bit disappointed. Yes, theft was serious, especially from other witches like that, but I didn’t like the man and had quietly hoped to pin a bigger crime on him.

  “So, we can take Quinn off the playing board?” Greyson asked.

  “It looks like it,” Ella said.

  “Now we just need evidence that Isaac’s tied into something illegal with the fae, and the solitary witches,” I said.

  We were getting so close now.

  46

  There wasn’t much we could do until we had more information on the stolen artifact and Quinn. Gideon took that as the perfect opportunity to get me to himself.

  “You need to relax, a nice hike will do you good,” he said.

  I couldn’t say no to those beautiful emerald eyes. I changed into a clean pair of jeans and my armoured leather jacket. Snow was supposed to be just around the corner.

  Gideon drove us out past the boundaries of Wolf Ridge, past the familiar trails where we might run into Rosalyn and her pack. The forest felt older out there. The trees were broader with heavier foliage. The leaves were truly turning now. The golds were turning into deep umbers and the leaves themselves were starting to fall, leaving some of the boughs dark and bare. I loved the beautiful canopy when the leaves were full of colour, but having them fall brought a sadness with it.

  We headed along a quieter trail that was overlooked by the tourists, giving us plenty of peace and quiet. Gideon held me close with his arm around my waist, and I saw no reason to fight it. Being around him was the most natural thing in the world. His magic wrapped around me, giving me a sense of comfort and belonging. The coven was fantastic, too. I’d expected Greyson to be aloof and a little odd. Witches of primordial gods had a reputation for being odd, but he was a lot of fun to be around.

  It was so completely unlike my time in the Morrigan coven. I really enjoyed my time with Gideon’s little coven. Somehow, the different witches just fit together. I’d never had a family, not really. The coven raised me, but it was made clear I wasn’t blood, I was just another little warrior. Gideon’s coven, though, they could be family. I got a warm fuzzy feeling at the thought of moving in with them and becoming one of them.

  We walked through the woods, enjoying each other’s company without the need to talk. The trail meandered through the woods, gently inclining as it did so. The trees gradually thinned, and large rocks formed on either side of the trail. We were reaching the peak of a small hill, which would give us a stunning view. I breathed in deep and thought about how long it had been since I’d relaxed. Truly relaxed.

  I couldn’t remember the last time I had. Normally I’d head to the gym to burn off any frustration, or maybe a club. That wasn’t relaxing, though, it was just burning off the excess energy. Walking through the forest with Gideon washed away the bone deep weariness and left me feeling fresh and alive. I was content for the first time.

  We reached the crest of the hill and were rewarded with a view overlooking what seemed to be the entire state. The forest stretched out all around us, coating the landscape in coppers, bronzes, and flashes of garnet. Nestled in the forest were small collections of buildings and the occasional glimpse of the black ribbon of a road.

  Gideon turned to me and caressed my cheek.

  “I don’t know what I did to deserve such an incredible woman, but I’m glad of it,” he whispered.

  My heart hammered in my chest as he leaned into me, his strong arms holding me close. His lips parted, and my breath caught in my throat. I’d kissed other men, but it had never been like this. My feelings for him had grown so quickly and were already running so deep. There was more than the protective streak, there was the deep flush of happiness that bloomed whenever I saw him smile or heard him laugh. His joy was mine.

  I allowed myself to melt into him, to feel vulnerable as I looked into his eyes. This was the man I was going to spend the rest of my life with, and as his lips brushed against mine I knew that no one could ever have compared to him.

  Closing my eyes, I dug my fingers deep into his hair and pulled him into a real kiss. He was soft and gentle as his lips caressed mine, and I held him tight to me, never wanting it to end. His magic wrapped around me, removing any traces of the world outside of that moment. For the first time in my life, I felt complete.

  47

  Gideon had had an ulterior motive for taking me out into the forest where no one would find us. And it wasn’t what I’d assumed.

  “You need to really connect with your Set magic,” he said as he formed his shield and spear.

  “I was expecting to connect with you in a very different way...”

  He grinned mischievously at me.

  “There’s plenty of time fo
r that, not that I wouldn’t be very happy to explore every pleasure with you right here and now.”

  He was giving me time and space, and I appreciated that. The kiss had been out of this world, but I wasn’t ready for more. It would have been too easy to fall into that with the knowledge we were made for each other, but I wanted it to mean something. It shouldn’t have been just because it was inevitable.

  Sighing, I called down my short swords from Set and felt the crackle of electricity around me as I did so. The euphoria was so close I could almost taste it. All I had to do was let go of my bindings and allow that storm to run wild.

  “Set’s a protector, a warrior. Show me what you’ve got,” Gideon commanded.

  I went in with an aggressive attack, moving around to his side to get away from that shield. Gideon easily moved with me. His feet stepped over the small rocks on the ground beneath us with grace and ease. He moved his shield around to block the incoming blow from my sword. A clang echoed around us when my sword collided with that infuriating little shield.

  “You’re leaning on your Morrigan training. Use what Set gave you,” he said.

  I gripped the swords tighter and dug into the magic within me. Looking past the storm and electricity, I tried to find the warrior magic. The storm flooded my veins and made me gasp as I felt the clouds start to form in the sky above us. The high was like nothing else. Swallowing hard, I released the clouds and drove the magic back down where it belonged. I was not weak, I would not be consumed by this magic.

  There, beneath the tangled chaos and the rolling storm, was the warrior magic. I tugged on the thread and nudged it into my system. Grinning, I felt the speed and strength bloom. Gideon matched my grin and thrust his spear at me. It was a quick and sloppy thrust just to test me. I easily stepped around it and practically danced over the rocks and brush around us. My feet knew exactly where to step without my having to pay much attention.

  Now the fight could begin proper. Gideon’s grin widened, and I felt the intensity grow in his magic. I surged forward, trying to get in past his spear and around his shield. Of course, he saw that move coming. He easily twisted around blocking my movement with a sharp jab of his spear towards my side. I side-stepped but felt the head of the spear cut through the air barely an inch from me.

  The grin never wavered from his face as he pushed me, constantly moving and keeping me at arm’s reach so he could jab at me with that damn spear. I really thought I had him when I feinted to the left and shot in to the right. I was almost within slashing reach when he slammed that damn spear down on top of my head. Groaning, I moved away before he could stab me with it. My head ached and my ears rang, but I wasn’t giving in that easily.

  I tried a different tactic and shot forward, getting in close enough that he couldn’t poke me with his spear. I attacked with as much strength and speed as I could muster using both swords to try and get around his shield. Going high with one sword towards his throat, I thrust the other sword down at his newly exposed stomach. He was too damn quick. He deflected the first sword with his shield and caught my second thrust with the edge.

  Rolling my shoulders, I pushed on, continuing. The magic was there, making me faster and stronger than I’d ever been, but he had similar magic courtesy of Mars. We were evenly matched, and that felt incredible.

  I was enjoying testing him and feeling him test me in return. I’d never had the deep pleasure of really sparring with someone like that before. The Morrigan witches were well trained, but none of them had ever pushed me the way he was. Not that I appreciated the thunks on top of my head when I got in too close for him to stab me with that spear.

  Licking my lips, I was starting to tire, and I refused to let him beat me. I plucked on a thread of lightning magic and felt it arc into my hands, sending sparks running down my swords. The euphoria was right there, waiting for me, but it hadn’t flooded my system this time. I needed to learn how to make this magic bend to my will rather than running rampant.

  Gideon grinned at my now sparking swords. He became more aggressive, thrusting the spear at my torso, trying to drive me back against the rock formation. I side-stepped around him time and again, slowly pushing him where I wanted him. It wasn’t that easy to make him go where I wanted, though.

  Eventually, I was growing truly tired, the magic was draining. I took a deep breath and called down a single bolt of lightning. The storm rolled through, me coating my tongue in the addictive electricity of it. Gritting my teeth, I focused on the bolt and directed it to land next to Gideon’s feet.

  He laughed in delight.

  “Now you’re really starting to work with your magic!”

  I grinned at him and released the swords and magic. Groaning, my head spun and the world went blurry for a moment. I should have known better than to work with so much magic for that long.

  48

  Gideon had come prepared. He produced protein bars, which quickly removed the lightheadedness. Unfortunately, our quiet hike back through the forest was interrupted by his phone.

  “I’m sorry, Sky, I have to go and deal with this,” he said softly.

  “Don’t worry about it, drop me off on the way. I can walk home.”

  His jaw tightened at that. I crossed my arms.

  “I’m a big girl, I can walk home in the dark.”

  He smiled and nodded.

  “Sorry, of course you can. I’ll drop you off at the head of the trail near the bakery.”

  That sounded perfect. It was about a thirty-minute walk back to the apartment from there, but I could jog. It would do me some good, as I hadn’t been to the gym in too long.

  We walked back to the car at a brisk pace, and I found that I didn’t want to go back to the apartment. It was small and would never be a home. I toyed with the idea of asking him to take me to the coven house. I did have an invite to stay there, after all.

  We were pulling up by the bakery in what felt like barely a blink. I’d been lost in my own head thinking about nothing and hadn’t even noticed.

  Gideon brushed his fingertips over my cheek.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “I look forward to it,” I said.

  And I meant it.

  The bakery was already closed for the day, which was reasonable given dark had fully descended. Still, I wouldn’t have minded picking up some of their muffins. They were absolutely incredible: soft, light, and absolutely decadent. I had no idea how they did it. There were rumours that the bakery owner was a brownie, a very friendly welcoming type of fae. Some people thought that she added just a touch of magic into her baked goods, just enough to bring people back for more. I wouldn’t have been at all surprised if it proved to be true.

  I settled into a steady jog and made my way through the smaller alleys and roads towards my end of Wolf Ridge. The shadows seemed deeper than usual as I passed the closed businesses.

  I knew before I saw them that there were going to be possessed witches making another move. It was far too quiet. There wasn’t a single soul walking down the sidewalks or any cars making their ways to the hotels and restaurants. A part of me was looking forward to it. After the hard, emotional, technical fight with Gideon, it would be nice to get back to some casual bloodletting. Or rather, to free some possessed witches from the horrors of their existence.

  When they all stepped out of the dark in eerie unison to form a circle, I was prepared. The lightning came easily. The magic flickered within me, eager to be free. A miniature lightning storm rose overhead and provided me with well-timed flashes of light. In them, I saw a dozen or so apparently unarmed assailants, all bathed in unnatural shadow and all carrying weapons of the same material with various degrees of expertise. I had hoped to see my opponents dazzled by the bright flashes of light but was disappointed to see that they seemed to draw their sense of the world from whatever dark corrupt magic had replaced their natural essence. Still, there was something to be said for a good show.

  I drew two knives from eithe
r hip and threw them at the most threatening looking of the lot, a short but broad black guy with a blank face and tense stance. He had seemed unarmed at first, which was concerning in itself, but as he raised his hands to block I noticed that each was covered in a rather globular imitation of a cestus, as if he had dipped his hands in midnight and let it partially dry. His right hand blocked one dagger, sending it off to his right with a clank of steel on stone, but his left came up slow and failed to block the other. It caught him in the cheek, splitting the left half of his face open and passing on, leaving him with a clean line of black blood that quickly began to film his chin and neck. I smiled a little, feeling Set’s disapproval at my carrying my own blades and watching a flicker of outrage cross the broad man’s face. It wasn’t exactly the clean kill it could have been, but it didn’t need to be.

  Unfortunately, there was little time to enjoy the sensation as I felt as much as saw the ring of assailants begin to close in in shuffling unison. I drew my blades from Set’s domain and, holding them in an aggressive high guard, rushed the line in front of me. The black man and the taller claymore wielder to his right both braced for my impact, but there was enough room between them for me to pass through. As I did, I brought a blade down on each side, deep and extremely fatal wounds opening beneath them as their impossibly sharp edges made easy work of the stolen bone and muscle carrying the between creatures into our world.

  A few paces beyond, my cloud and I slowed and turned. I had hoped to see the possessed shaken by the display, but I should have known better. What fear did they have for bodies that weren’t their own? In the strobing blue of Set’s light show, I saw indifference and focus. Set’s amusement and happiness at my finally giving in to this side of my nature was almost palpable. A personal inventory showed me tiring faster than I’d have liked. Protein bars were a poor substitute for a night in bed and a half dozen pizzas, and Gideon had already given me a fight I wouldn’t soon forget. I debated simply running, but I knew I wouldn’t. My conscious reason was that these people would go on to create havoc elsewhere, given the chance, but the truth was I wasn’t going to leave a fight half finished. This was my little pile of ugly, and until they all fell and returned to the black puddle of personal failure that was their sole birthright, I was going to have to sit on it.