Witch Road to Take

by April M. Reign

  Witch Road to Take

  Title Page

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Book Two available now

  About the Author

  Witch Road to Take

  The Mystical Witch Series

  Book One

  April M. Reign

  Witch Road to Take

  Published by AMR Publishing

  Copyright ©2013 by April M. Reign

  Smashwords Edition

  www.aprilmreign.com

  Cover Design by: April M. Reign

  All rights reserved

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by an electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the permission of the author, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of this author’s imagination or are used fictionally. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead is entirely coincidental.

  Books by

  April M. Reign

  For current information on new releases visit:

  www.aprilmreign.com

  Series / Sagas

  Quest for the Keys: The Mystical Witch Series

  Bound to Darkness: The Turning Series

  Unleashed: The Turning Series

  Vampire Vengeance: The Turning Series

  HASH – Human Alien Species Hybrid: The Imprint Series

  HASH – The Secrets of Startech: The Imprint Series

  I.O.U.: The Mancini Saga

  Snap Shot: The Mancini Saga

  Christmas with the Mancinis: The Mancini Saga

  Dominic: The Disciples of the Damned Series

  The Vypers: The Disciples of the Damned Series

  The Slayers: The Disciples of the Damned Series

  Friend or Foe: The Disciples of the Damned Series

  Stand Alone Books

  Beyond Today

  Dividing Destiny

  Enticing the Moon

  2014 Release

  Trial by Fire: The Mystical Witch Series

  Still Born: The Mancini Saga

  War: The Horsemen: The Disciples of the Damned Series

  HASH – Queen of Ceren: The Imprint Series

  Vampire Cursed – The Pendant: The Turning Series

  Dedication:

  To my fantastic readers

  My sincerest appreciation to:

  Agustin Loya, Eve Paludan, my beta readers and my family. I always appreciate your support and encouragement.

  Praise for:

  Witch Road to Take

  The Mystical Witch Series

  From Authors and Readers

  "This book is amazing! April has shown us yet again what a talented writer she is. I fell in love with Dhellia and her friends and cannot wait for the next book."

  Heather McCowan – Reader

  “Dhellia is definitely a must read!! It's captivating and intriguing from the very beginning. April has a way with her words that she is able to pull you in from the beginning and keep you stuck in that book to the very end. I can't wait for the next book in this series!!!”

  Courtney Delollis - Reader

  “April M Reign's latest, Dhellia Has A Conscience. A brilliant plot with a superbly written host of misfit characters who are perfect for each other. It's a story that you never want to end, but fortunately, there is more to come.”

  Nic Taylor, author of A Plague of Dissent

  "Author April M. Reign nails the perfect balance of noir and humor with DHELLIA, the princess of the underworld who battles evil from within it. A fast-paced and fun adventure for paranormal fans!"

  Eve Paludan, author of GHOST FIRE

  “Dhellia is the paranormal fantasy novel of a young woman who just happens to be the offspring of Lucifer. This fast-paced, entertaining page-turner will leave you wanting more.”

  Agustin Loya – Reader and Book Cover Designer

  “This book is fast-paced and flows wonderfully. When I first started it, the concept amazed me. I have no problem thinking that the daughter of the devil being rebellious, but the fact that she is rebellious against her father threw me for a loop. I think this is a perfect beginning and I am very excited to know that there is more to come.”

  Jennifer Thomas – Reader

  “A hilariously fun paranormal fantasy that is fast-paced and full of twists and turns. I loved all the characters and their relationships with each other. Dhellia is sassy yet confident and I can’t wait to see what she does in the next book.”

  Desiree Dyers – Author of Paying the Price Series

  'Dhellia' is the fabulous new book from one of my favourite authors, April M. Reign. Dhellia Hunt is a brassed-off, kick-ass, red-headed fire-cracker who just happens to be the Princess of Hell. Dhellia, along with her new friends - Jonas, a vampire who is allergic to human blood (yeah, really!!) and a statistics mad wizard called Gavin - & her dark, brooding half-demon brother are an interesting, if eclectic, cast of characters who take us on a laugh out loud, fun & adventure filled journey that has a cliffhanger of an ending... I can't wait for the story to continue in book 2, Dhellia: Quest for The Keys.

  Tracy Meighan - Reader

  “I don’t belong downstairs. My home is here with the humans.” Dhellia Hunt

  Prologue

  The claws of Father’s hellhounds clicked against the asphalt somewhere behind me. That sound was enough to drive me crazy. It provoked the same shudder in me that a dentist’s drill caused in a human.

  I could hear them—no matter how far away they were, I could hear their sharp claws digging into the solid ground of the dimension they navigated. The sound of their labored panting prickled my senses and sent shivers up and down my spine.

  I had been running from those beasts for three months, and the only time I had been able to lose them was when I’d showed up in a densely populated city. Where there were many people, there were crimes—where there were crimes, the hellhounds would lose their focus on me and salivate on their playground of sin.

  I had lost them in Bangkok and again in New York City, but today, I resigned from being their quarry in Father’s relentless pursuit. Now, I simply waited for the hellhounds to catch up with me. It was time to turn myself in—time to stand up to my father and tell him that I wanted him to treat me like an adult. After all, in two weeks, I’d be twenty-one years old.

  I kneeled on the roof of the tallest building in Los Angeles and waited. While I watched the sun set behind the horizon, the sky turned orange and then black. The tingle in my body told me that Father’s hellhounds were finally closing in on me.

  I’m Dhellia Hunt, the daughter of Lucifer and Adana. I’m twenty years old, and this is my story.

  Chapter One

  The view from the top of the U.S. Bank tower gave me access to observe the entire city of Los Angeles. The twinkling lights of homes and buildings, streetlights and stoplights were nothing more than mere stars on Earth as viewed from this height.

  The Santa Ana winds blew my long red hair off my face and whipped it at my back. Winds like the Santa Ana’s were the natural pr
ocess that cleansed the polluted air of its toxins—in some corner of my mind, I also wanted that wind to cleanse the toxins from my existence. In my case, the toxins in my life were my origins of evil.

  I gazed down on the city below—the city I had come to love and in which I now waited patiently for Father’s faithful beasts to stand before me with his message.

  I was no stranger to the big city, nor was I a stranger to Father’s hellhounds. Both could be evil, yet intriguing, if I took the time to appreciate what they individually had to offer. Nevertheless, I wasn’t here to evaluate humans, nor was I here to evaluate beasts from Hell. I was here because I was tired of running—I was tired of dodging my father in order to have some freedom.

  I had run away from home against my father’s orders to remain under his watch—and his thumb—and although I was twenty years old, my father’s orders were the final say. His rules were somehow my constitution, though I disagreed with everything he tried to impose on me.

  Tonight, I’d confront my father and demand my freedom to navigate between both worlds. It was time for me to be able to spend part of my time on Earth and the other part at home, which I called “downstairs.” After all, in two weeks, I’d be twenty-one years old and that alone should guarantee me some freedom. At least, that was my desperate hope. And these days, hope was all I had to fortify me.

  The flap of a leather jacket and the smell of rawhide indicated that my brother had arrived. Damien stood to my left and although I didn’t need to look over to know it was him…I did.

  I hadn’t seen him in three months and to my pleasure, he looked the same—brooding and serious with cherrywood-colored hair that was long enough to sweep across the collar of his jacket.

  His left foot was perched on the ledge of the building and his tight fists lay at his side as he gazed into the tableau of twinkling lights that the city of Los Angeles served up like dreams. Although he hadn’t looked over at me, Damien’s lips twitched into a slight grin. I figured that he knew I stared at him. He was a sophisticated male demon with sorrel-brown, penetrating eyes and a complex psyche.

  My brother—my protector—was mysterious in any form, whether human or beast. Damien was a man of few words, but his body language spoke for him. Three years my senior, Damien’s wisdom far exceeded mine. He was a soul catcher and soul catchers were the pick of the litter. It took strength, speed and endurance to do the kind of work that Damien did. Father trusted him to catch and bring confused, disoriented souls to trial. He was perfect for the job and an asset to the family business. So far, I was not.

  I glanced away from him and back at the city below. The brisk breeze whipped my hair through the wind. I closed my eyes and listened to the ticking time bomb of their clicking claws slowing down as they approached me. The hellhounds were here.

  I was ready.

  I slowly circled around to face them. They hid in the shadows, but I could smell their pungent unwashed canine body odor and fetid breath. I took one step forward and stopped, firmly planting my feet on the ground like a cement statue. I refused to let them bully me the way Father had intended. They were my subordinates, even if their orders came from the master of the underworld. I was Lucifer’s daughter—they needed to respect my position, even if I was a fugitive from hell.

  Slightly nervous, I glanced over my shoulder to pull strength from my brother, but he was still gazing out at the city below. From his side profile, the veins in his neck pulsated with an eagerness to thwart Father’s hellhounds and protect me as he had always done. Like molten lava, I could see the anger creep through his body. Soon, it would surge. I had no doubt that I was safe with my brother beside me.

  When I turned my head and glanced back in front of me, Father’s largest hellhound stepped out from the deep shadows. Wolf stood firm on all four legs. He was six feet tall and seven hundred pounds of mass destruction. Black thick fur stood ruffled on his hunched, rounded back. His steady growl, which started at his gut, revealed razor-sharp fangs. But it was in his yellow beady eyes, narrowed at me, that I could see his raw irritation. He circled to my left.

  Zombie, his female counterpart, and Father’s prized hellhound bitch, circled to my right. She was a foot shorter than Wolf, but her bite was worse than her bark. She glared at me through yellow, slanted eyes, and I watched the foaming saliva drip from the tips of her fangs, landing like a corrosive acid on the rooftop.

  When we were kids, we’d named Father’s precious hellhounds with names we could pronounce and understand. The names stuck with them in the way that any human’s pet’s nickname would. They answered when called by these names, but Damien and I were the only individuals who called them Wolf and Zombie.

  I stood with both my feet symmetrically apart, ready for them to attack. Although they could not speak, they were able to communicate with us through telepathy and so, I asked the first question.

  “What do you two want?”

  Wolf took a step forward. “Dhellia, your father has sent us to bring you back.”

  “And if I refuse to go?” I knew that Father’s mutts would never take a chance of being at the short end of my father’s wrath. They’d drag me back to Hell before they’d let me walk away into the night.

  “You have no choice.”

  “I don’t belong downstairs. My home is here with the humans.”

  Wolf took another step toward me. “These chew toys are not worthy to be in the presence of royalty. You, princess of darkness, mock your father with such treachery.”

  “You’ve no right to talk to me this way.” I’d never been a treacherous person and I’d stand up and protect my honor at any price.

  Zombie stepped forward. Her voice was higher pitched but as cold as ice. “You’ve no choice. You’ve made us chase you around the world for three months and now you won’t get off this building without us taking you down.”

  “The only reason you caught me now, Zombie, is because I let you catch me. You can never outrun me, nor can you keep up with me.”

  She growled and took two steps forward. I stood still, my hands at my sides, my knees slightly bent, ready to play with these mutts. And play rough.

  “Tell my father that I’m upstairs if he wants me. Let him know that I’m playing with my chew toys.”

  Wolf began to pace, a low rumbling growl in his throat. He seethed, curled back his lips and exposed his razor sharp teeth. He was ready to attack. He leapt through the air toward me. I squatted down, swung my left arm outward in a sweeping motion, and sent him across the top of the roof. I quickly turned my attention to Zombie, ready for her attack.

  Zombie growled, “As I said, you’ve no choice. Your father has instructed us to bring you back…dead or alive. And dead is just fine with us.”

  A gust of wind hit my face as my brother flew past me. He had wrapped his hand around Zombie’s neck before I even knew what was happening. Blood dripped from the puncture wound made by my brother’s sharp nails, and dripped down her fur and into an acrid, steaming puddle on the ground, a puddle from which small flames briefly leapt on the concrete roof and then subsided. My brother, in all his glory, had transformed into his beast.

  Damien, as his beast, was both beautiful and terrifying. His eyes were a blinding red—a red so deep that it hurt to look directly into them. His nails were long and razor sharp and his already long hair had suddenly grown three inches longer. His facial features were rugged and dark, formidable. My brother—my protector—had not yet said anything, but everyone stopped and listened.

  Wolf took a step back. “Damien, it’s your father’s orders.”

  “Then my father can come claim his daughter, but he will not send his hellhounds here to threaten my sister,” Damien growled. His eyes singed Zombie with his demonic rage.

  Zombie yelped.

  As exciting as it was to see my brother change into his natural being—his inner beast released into an outer one—I knew I was pushing my luck. I walked up behind him and put my hand on his shoulder. He gl
anced back at me and read the plea in my eyes. He released Zombie from her yelping misery and took a step back.

  Zombie shook her head several times as she snapped once at Damien, being careful not to again cross that line with him by attacking me.

  Wolf stepped forward and stood side by side with Zombie. Both of them were silent, waiting.

  “Very well. I will go but only because I am ready. It’s time for me to face him. It’s time for me to demand my freedom and end this relentless pursuit of me.”

  “When you face Father, remember that he hates weakness,” Damien reminded me.

  I placed the palm of my hand on the side of his cheek and thanked him with a quick nod. He stared into my eyes, knowing that this was not going to be an easy feat. Father could be unreasonable, manipulating and stubborn, and Damien knew that Father always won.