by Linda Wisdom
“I know,” she choked. “But that doesn’t mean if Roan manages to win because he didn’t fight fair that I won’t go after him.”
“We’ll all help.”
A vow that was spoken by one, but Blair knew it would be meant by all. Her sister witches would help her in this cause if it came to that.
Blair winced when Jake yelped and leaped back with a tear in his shoulder. But he immediately flew back in and took a chunk out of Roan’s haunch that had the wolf snarling and snapping at him.
The battle could have taken hours. It could have taken minutes. For Blair it felt like forever.
Until Jake pounced on Roan, somehow rolling him onto his back and pinning him to the ground. Jake opened his mouth, sharp canines only inches from his throat. Roan stilled, knowing it would only take a second for Jake to rip it out. By all rights, it was his victory. Roan’s death was his due.
Blair wobbled to her feet with Stasi’s help. All she could do was wait.
For one brief second Blair’s eyes connected with Jake’s as he looked her way
Instead of killing Roan, he jumped back and shifted to human form.
“Why didn’t you kill me?” Roan also shifted back and slowly rose to his feet, unsure what would happen next.
“Because I limit my killing to rabbits and squirrels.”
“And if you’d destroyed me, you’d be a target for everyone in the Pack,” Roan pointed out.
Jake shook his head. “Didn’t even enter my mind. Blair already told you, we have our own Pack and I like it a hell of a lot better. Now you’ve had your ‘fight to the death.’ Accept this as the breaking of the bond, mate with Jen, and have all the cubs you want.” He spared his mother a brief glance. “Just do us all a favor and find new territory. I’d rather have neighbors I could like.” He limped his way back to Blair, who sobbed her relief and wrapped her arms around him.
“I’m building you a dollhouse,” he whispered in her ear. “One hex of a dollhouse.” He used his thumb to wipe away her tears.
“What does this mean?” Agnes cried out.
“Agnes, go home, have a glass of wine, and I promise I’ll be over later to explain it all to you,” Blair told her with a weary sigh as she pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders. “The same with everyone else.”
Agnes could be heard sputtering as Floyd hustled her away and the others slowly followed, keeping a wide berth around Roan and his group.
“Wicked fight,” Alberic congratulated Jake before he walked off.
Vera’s face was ugly and dark with fury as she swiftly moved into Blair’s personal space. “You have ruined everything. By the time I’m finished with you, my son will never even want to look at you,” she snarled. And Blair wasn’t missing that it wasn’t the least bit feminine. “It had already been decided that Jake would die, so that the bond would be properly broken and Jennifer would mate with Roan to begin a new dynasty. It’s up to the two of them to rule the new Pack. And it’s all ruined because of one witch slut and a dog that refused to die.” A manicured hand turned to a sharp claw as it lifted ready to tear Blair’s face off.
“Don’t even try it, Vera.” Jake’s voice was as steely as his hand flashing to grip her wrist in a hold guaranteed to crush her bones.
“Hey, I’m not the slut here!” Blair wasn’t about to back down and started the chant in her head. She briefly thought about turning the Were bitch into a toy poodle. Emphasis on the toy. She even started muttering the spell.
“You will do nothing!” The familiar voice rang out clear and strong with so much magick in the tone that the air grew thick with it.
They turned as golden light spilled out over the ground while a portal opened and a tall woman stepped through.
Blair wasn’t sure whether to mutter “oh shit,” or draw a sigh of relief that there was a chance Eurydice was coming to her rescue before Vera tried to turn her into pet food—although Jake was doing his best to keep the Were from removing her face.
Instead of being garbed in her usual emerald green velvet robes, the head of the Witches’ Council wore a wool suit that Blair guessed was Chanel. A gold and emerald pin on the jacket winked brightly and her dark hair was swept up into a French twist. No one would guess she was well over two thousand years old.
Eurydice spared Blair a brief glance before turning to the Were. “This is unacceptable, Vera. You will not threaten one of my witches, you will not do anything to cause more trouble here, and you especially will not stand in the way of Jake’s happiness. You maliciously toyed with his safety and you desired his death with no good reason but your own personal vindictiveness. Jake has rescued my witches more than once, and I have given him my protection.”
Blair looked around on the ground because she was positive her jaw was lying around somewhere. She was smart enough to keep her mouth shut.
Eurydice stared at the Were. “If you want something to do, work on your Pack before it splinters beyond help, because if you continue on the path you have blazed, that is exactly what will happen. And if it does, you know very well the Were Council will get involved.”
Vera’s eyes blazed with bloodthirst. “He is my son, Eurydice. A bond was struck, a bond he claimed was broken when he left the Pack. But there is only one way to break the bond and that means his blood.”
Eurydice’s smile wasn’t all that pleasant, and Blair was soooo happy it wasn’t directed her way. She was content to just stand back and watch the show. She wished she had some popcorn and a Diet Coke, not to mention a camcorder, because she was positive this conversation was going to be good, and no one was going to believe what was happening before her. She was betting heavily on Eurydice.
“You only say that because you wish it to be so, when we also know those terms can be renegotiated when a Pack member leaves of his own accord. And now he is part of a new Pack. An odd one at that.” Her gaze sliced toward Blair. “If you try to interfere again, I will have no choice but to bring you and Baxter before the Ruling Council.”
Vera’s eyes glowed pure yellow momentarily and her wolf soul surfaced but eased back under Eurydice’s power. The glance Vera shot toward Blair indicated she didn’t feel the witch had won. She turned on her heel and walked away.
Once Vera was gone and Blair had gotten her breath back, she looked at Eurydice.
“Why?”
The elder witch smiled, easily understanding exactly what Blair wanted to know.
“Sadly, Vera hates Jake enough to want to see him dead any way she can, because as long as he lives he is a reminder that he isn’t wolf and she sees that as her failure. I wouldn’t have allowed her to harm you when you only did what you felt was right. I realize you all think we are hard on you,” she said, continuing to smile at Blair’s expression. Clearly, that was exactly what the younger witch thought. “And we are, but with good reason. You witchlings were the best class we’d had for centuries. Even in 1313, you all had such potential that we knew you would go on to greater things. And in many ways, you have.”
“Yes, we have! So why have you been so mean to us for the last seven hundred years?” Blair blurted out then cringed. Way to go, Blair! Piss off the one who can control some aspects of your existence.
Instead of pronouncing a few hundred years added to her banishment, Eurydice smiled.
That scared Blair more.
“So you feel we were harsh with you, Eilidh?” Eurydice fingered her emerald ring. “We chose tough love, as they say, because we needed to ensure you thirteen witchlings never tried to abuse your power and that you survived your existence in this world. You all have crossed the line more than once, but I must say none of you have ever crossed so far that you couldn’t return to your proper place. The Council has watched over you carefully and noticed that your powers grew over the centuries, but you still continued to do what was right and never exploited what you could do. We have never seen the addition of years as punishment, but as a way to make you think before you leapt the next time.” She made a f
ace. “Not that it seemed to work with any of you.”
“We do tend to be pretty stubborn,” Blair agreed. “But it’s hard to believe you haven’t allowed any of us to return to the Academy.”
Eurydice shook her head. “Witchling, all any of you had to do was ask and you would have been welcomed back with open arms. But you were too content to be out here in the world.”
Eurydice looked across the way to where Jake stood uncertainly with Fluff and Puff trying to scramble out of his arms. Not that the bunny slippers would get too close, since the only being that frightened the wits out of them was the head of the Witches’ Council. “It’s the Weres that feel they shouldn’t interact with witches, but then none of you have worried about that. Go to your Were, Eilidh, before he thinks the worst will happen.” She snapped her fingers and was gone like that.
Blair looked over at Jake and ran to him, hopping into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck as the slippers chattered away in her face. He laughed and pretended to stagger under her weight.
“She gave us her seal of approval,” she told him with a big grin. “My place is closer than yours, plus I’d really like to get into some dry clothes.”
“Why, when you won’t be wearing them too long and I’ve got a washer and dryer?” But he managed to carry her all the way back to the building, then dropped her to her feet as Ginny ran up to them.
“I just got the news!” she exclaimed, hugging Blair and sighing over her wet cold clothing, then hugging Jake. “I always knew you were special.” She kissed him on the cheek.
“Wow, you’ve turned 180 degrees,” Blair teased.
Ginny almost danced on her tiptoes. “Dave was arrested for conning an island governor’s daughter. He’s in jail and not getting out any time soon,” she announced. “And he hadn’t had time to spend all the money, so we’ll all receive at least part of what we’re owed. I asked that my money be divided among the others.”
“That’s wonderful!” Blair exclaimed.
“And now you get inside and warm up.” Ginny shot Jake a teasing look. “And I know just how you’ll do it, too.” She practically danced back to her café.
“It’s turning into another great day.” Blair hitched the blanket up around her.
“Could get even better,” Jake said, gesturing toward the street.
The Cadillac Eldorado that pulled up to the sidewalk had once been baby blue; it was now more primer than paint and emitted enough nauseous gray smoke to be a smog hazard all on its own. The driver who stepped out looked just as nasty as his vehicle.
The troll facing them was about five feet tall with a stocky body and ginger blond hair… everywhere. His cross-eyed stare roamed in a haphazard manner.
“Mickey Boggs,” Blair said with the same distaste she’d use when describing a dung heap.
“Hey guys. I heard you all had some fun up here. Judging from everyone’s smiles it looks like everything turned out just fine,” Mickey said, walking up with a cigar jammed in his mouth that smelled so bad Blair almost gagged.
“No thanks to you,” she retorted, wondering how he’d look as a bobble-head doll, then decided he’d look just as bad as he did now.
“Good. Good. Well, I just came up to collect the rest of my fee, then I’m outta here.” He ran his stubby fingers down the front of his puke-yellow Hawaiian shirt with topless hula girls scattered across the fabric. His wispy ginger-blond beard looked to have half his meal still in it. He looked toward Alberic who stood further down the sidewalk with Agnes standing next to him. “Once you guys are done here, you need to pack up and get the fuck out. I’ve got a gig set up for you in Omaha.”
“They are not going anywhere, and you, sir, do not deserve one penny!” Agnes told him. “In fact, I have suggested that Alberic and his troop sue you for not paying them what is their due.”
“Hey, lady, you have nothing to do with this and if you don’t pay me, you’ll find yourself in court.” He took his smelly cigar out of his mouth and used it to stab the air.
Agnes glared back. “We’ll just see about that. You have cheated these poor men out of their rightful wages for many years now. That has got to stop.”
Blair looked up the street and smiled. “I think that’s just about to happen. I swear, the witch’s timing is always perfect.”
A beat up, dark blue crew cab pickup truck that looked as if it was on its last legs but purred like a panther rolled toward them and stopped. A familiar long-legged blonde in jeans, T-shirt, and denim jacket, with a straw cowboy hat perched on top of her head, climbed out. Magick seemed to seep from Maggie’s pores as she greeted them with a broad smile.
“Hello, Mickey, you’ve been a bad boy, haven’t you?” Maggie drawled.
The troll took one look at her and uttered a girly scream, his cigar flying into the air. “No! Not you!”
She tutted under her breath and shook her head. “You’ve been a very bad boy, Mickey, and I’ve got a warrant to take you in. I’m sure you’re not going to make this difficult for me, are you? If you go quietly, I won’t have to hurt you.” She pulled out a pair of enchanted handcuffs. Before he could try for a futile escape she snapped them on his wrists and hauled him to the back seat, pushing him inside and closing the door, which snicked with an audible click of the lock.
“You can’t let her take me! She’ll kill me with Barry Manilow music.” He pounded on the closed window as he pleaded with the others. “You know what that does to me.”
Maggie reached inside her truck and pulled out a CD. “I’ve got all his greatest hits. Mickey’ll have a chance to hear them all during the drive back to Texas.”
“Is she taking him to jail?” a wide-eyed Agnes asked Blair.
“Something even better,” she assured her. “So don’t worry about him trying to sue you. He’ll be out of circulation for some time, so he can’t do anything to the elves either.” She raised her voice. “Don’t forget to play ‘Mandy’ for him, Mags,”
Mickey’s moans and whimpers mingled with Maggie’s throaty laughter. “No problem there.” She walked around the truck’s hood and stood in front of Blair and Jake.
“You two look good together,” she said.
Blair grinned first at her fellow witch, then at the Were she loved. “We do, don’t we? Maybe you need to find someone, too.”
Maggie shook her head. “I doubt there’s anyone out there who can kick my ass and make me drool at the same time. Just remember that not only does Blair do revenge very well, she’s got friends.” She winked at Jake and climbed back into her truck.
Blair turned back to Jake. “What do you say, my sexy puppy? Wanna go somewhere and make out? You did say you have a washer and dryer at your place.”
He combed his fingers through her hair. “Sounds like a plan, hexster of my heart.”
Agnes watched them head up the road that led to Jake’s cabin.
“Don’t forget tonight’s the meeting to plan the spring frolic! The sooner we begin, the sooner we’ll be organized!” she called after them. She frowned as neither acknowledged her words.
Alberic walked up and stood beside her with a cigar jammed in his mouth.
“I don’t think you’ll see them for a few days. But don’t worry, we’ll be here to help out.”
***
Between Jake’s speed and Blair’s magick, they were in his bed in seconds. Clothes flew every which way even as they barely stopped kissing each other.
“My Alpha,” Jake intoned, sliding into her with ease.
Blair smiled as she arched against him. “Think you can handle it?”
“Something tells me we’ll be an unstoppable team.” He immersed himself in the witch he loved more than life itself.
She cupped his face with her hands. “Welcome home, my love.”
Afterword
I found this recipe some years ago and it was an instant hit and much requested among friends. I thought it only fitting that Hetty carry it in her
candy shop.
—Linda
HETTY’S Marbled Orange Fudge
1 1/2 tsp plus 3/4 cup butter—divided
3 cups sugar
3/4 cup whipping cream
1 pkg vanilla or white chips
1 jar marshmallow creme
3 tsp orange extract
orange food coloring
Grease 13x9 pan with 1 1/2 tsp butter. Combine sugar, cream, and remaining butter in a medium saucepan. Cook and stir over low heat until sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil, cook and stir for 4 min. Remove from heat, stir in chips and marshmallow creme until smooth. Remove 1 cup, set aside. Add orange extract and coloring to remaining mixture. Stir until blended. Pour into pan. Drop reserved marshmallow mix by tablespoonfuls over top. Cut through mixture with a knife to swirl. Cover and refrigerate until set. Cut into squares.
For a change, try chocolate and mint, chocolate and coconut and put coconut in the coconut part, lime extract and vanilla, peppermint, even cinnamon flavoring is great!
Acknowledgments
Many kudos to my agent, Laurie McLean of the Larsen/Pomada Literary Agency, aka Batgirl, who’s always there for me.
I’m so grateful for my editor, Deb Werksman, who loves Jazz and her witch buddies as much as I do. Her associate editor, Susie Benton, who climbs mountains—literally! Danielle Jackson, Casablanca publicist, who does a fantastic job of getting the word out on my witches. And thanks to Lisa Mierzwa who designed my wonderful covers.
My Devoted Niece, AshNay, who may not be my niece by blood but definitely from the heart, and Jordan, who I know will go far.
The Witchy Chicks, Yasmine Galenorn, Terese Daly Ramin, Lisa Croll Di Dio, Madelyn Alt, Candace Havens, Kate Austin, Maura Anderson, and Annette Blair. Your support is much appreciated and I love you all.
And last and certainly not least, the lil sis of my heart, Elaine Charton, who’s come so far with her writing and I’m very proud of her!
About the Author
Linda Wisdom was born and raised in Huntington Beach, California. She majored in Journalism in college, then switched to Fashion Merchandising when she was told there was no future for her in fiction writing. She held a variety of positions ranging from retail sales to executive secretary in advertising and office manager for a personnel agency.