Mystic Hallows Harem Box Set Episodes 1-4: Paranormal Reverse Harem Romance

by Nikki Landis

  “You’re all in agreement? Is that right?”

  Three wary sets of eyes met mine. “Yes,” the cowards answered in unison.

  Maybe that was harsh, but my guys meant the world to me. In the short amount of time since we’d met the four of us had grown close. Protecting the Howe family was my responsibility as well as the original Salem thirteen. The danger I was in was unavoidable.

  “What if I said I don’t want you all to sacrifice yourselves for me? What if I said that this is foolish?” Emotion churned in my stomach like a rusty pound of nails.

  Ryder stepped forward. “Cassie, this isn’t a negotiation.” He was probably the only one who could have said those words without hostility. The other three were entirely too aggressive.

  “Your ancestors chose us for this purpose, my love.” Gabriel strode forward and palmed my cheek, his keen senses picking up on my surging emotions as he inhaled. His nose pressed against my hair briefly before he dropped a kiss on top of my head. “We’re your Cosan. Allow us to do our job.”

  “That’s the reason we’re here.” Kayde tilted my chin up until our eyes met. “You belong to us as much as we belong to you. None of us are willing to lose you.”

  Damian had already said the same exact sentence. Is that what they thought? Was there doubt that I was strong enough to bring Roman down?

  ‘No, my precious. There’s doubt that the evil you face won’t try to destroy you completely. You’re too valuable.’ I felt his strong urge to give in to rage. He tried to hold back but the bond between us was too strong now to hide Damian’s feelings. ‘You are precious to me, vallah.’

  Damian’s chosen endearment was my favorite. A vampire’s beloved. Vallah.

  Ryder pulled me into his comforting embrace as he pressed a kiss to my forehead. “We all care for you deeply, Cassie, in our own way. For us, that’s a game changer.”

  “Meaning?”

  He smoothed several long strands of ebony hair back behind my ear. “We’re the first line of defense. We stand before you, not behind you. Period.”

  Blinking, I processed what he was saying.

  “We face Roman and the damned once the time comes. He’ll have to get though us all to reach you. We’ll ensure that doesn’t happen. No matter what.”

  “Shit,” I cursed, knowing nothing I could say was going to change their minds. The conversation with Dmitri in the cemetery threatened to surface and I squashed it down before Damian could hear my thoughts. Blocking him as much as I was able, I knew that his brother was right, and I should have listened. My Cosan wouldn’t survive the necessary trip to Hell. Dmitri wasn’t lying. He was simply stating the truth, despite the cocky self-assured way he disclosed the information.

  Once I was alone, I would try to summon him, although I wasn’t exactly sure how to go about it.

  ‘You’re blocking me, pet.’

  ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’

  Damian roared, causing everyone in the room to jump. I was in his arms in the next second, forced up against the bedroom wall as he hissed, baring his teeth. Fangs elongated quickly as Damian’s eyes burned crimson with a mixture of pain and seething anger. “This is about my brother. There’s no other reason you would attempt to block me from your mind.”

  I gave no indication that he was right or wrong, keeping my thoughts and emotions neutral.

  Through our bond, I could feel his wrath increase and combine with anguish so fierce that I flinched. ‘I’m sorry, Damian.’

  ‘Not good enough, precious. You can lie to all of them but me.’

  We stared one another down, neither willing to break first. Two stubborn souls clashing with a passion that ignited like a match to dry kindling.

  “Leave us,” Damian ordered, refusing to move a single inch.

  The room cleared as the door shut with a slam, Gabriel complaining so loudly I nearly smiled.

  ‘Tell me. Now.’

  I remained silent.

  “You don’t want me to fuck you while I’m angry, my witch.”

  Smirking, I didn’t answer and enjoyed the surge of lust that pulsed from his body into mine.

  ‘Cassandra, please.’

  Carefully, not letting a hint of my thoughts or feelings through the bond, I slipped from his grasp. “I need a nap.”

  Damian trembled. For the first time, I was witness to the ferocity and feral base instincts of a cornered vampire. Slammed down on the bed, I didn’t fight Damian as he yanked the clothes from my body, stripping me so fast that I barely blinked before he shoved my thighs apart and his head lowered. Fangs elongated to sharp points, he sank them into my upper thigh and began to drink as I jerked, shoving him away by the shoulders. From this position it didn’t have any affect. Gulping loudly, he drained my body much faster than I would have thought possible. The femoral artery was punctured, and I knew Damian chose this location on purpose because he could consume a large quantity of blood within a short period of time.

  Dazed, I fought to keep a tight rein on my thoughts.

  ‘You can’t fight me forever. Sooner or later you’re going to slip up, my dear.’

  “I won’t,” I vowed aloud, my senses dulled as I felt unconsciousness creep in.

  In his anger, he’d taken too much too fast.

  Damian cursed, licking the wound closed as he slowly pressed kisses upward. His warm breath, heated from my blood, fanned out over my chilled skin. He skimmed the apex of my thighs and pressed a series of kisses onto my stomach and chest before he eventually reached my lips. The kiss he gave me was full of desperation and remorse, longing and fierce protectiveness as his body covered mine in a swift declaration of ownership.

  “Damian,” I whispered, my vision fading out. “I forgive you.”

  “My stubborn little witch.” His voice broke and it was the last sound I heard before I was unconscious.

  Chapter 4

  My fingers twitched as coherency slowly returned. My lucidity was sluggish but eventually I was awake enough to realize that something tiny, hairy, and altogether creepy crawly was moving across my skin. There were two things in this world that terrified me. Losing anyone I loved. And spiders.

  Yes, it was highly ironic given that I was a witch. Even so, I let out a bloodcurdling scream and sprang from the bed the exact moment my bedroom door opened. Kayde’s shocked gaze locked onto my trembling body as we both realized two things. One, there was at least a half dozen spiders crawling over my mattress and headed in my direction. Two, I was completely naked.

  Damn vampire.

  Damian didn’t bother to redress me after he drained me to the point of passing out. I would normally be furious, but the eight-legged freaks put a damper on my reaction. Kayde ran in my direction and scooped me into his arms, backing toward the door as the arachnids surged forward and dropped from the mattress, scurrying in our direction.

  Kayde chanted a few words and they instantly stopped, twitching and hissing like snakes as the fat demented spiders rolled onto their backs and their legs jerked up in the air at odd angles. After a few more seconds, they were silent. A few still convulsed as I shivered, burying my face in Kayde’s neck.

  “Tell me I’m not crazy and that a bunch of Black Widow spiders attacked me while I was asleep.”

  “Well,” he drawled, turning to nuzzle my cheek. “I don’t know about the crazy part, but those spiders did seem to be attacking you.”

  Very funny. I lifted my head with a frown, but he pressed a quick kiss against my lips as a distraction. Smart. When we parted, his smile seemed forced.

  “Damian is pissed. He’s throwing around furniture and cursing under his breath almost nonstop. Gabriel is frustrated with Damian. Apparently, he wasn’t fond of Damian’s bright idea to weaken our witch. When you passed out, he was pissed. Ryder is drinking heavily, burning off the liquor faster than he can consume it. There’s no more whiskey or vodka which puts a serious damper on things. He’s pissed, too.” Kayde’s eyes narrowed as his b
rows drew together. “And, just in case you’re wondering, I’m also pissed.”

  “I don’t think that’s fair,” I announced haughtily, “after all, I’m the one that’s naked with eight-legged monsters attacking her. I’m fully traumatized.”

  “You seem recovered enough.” His gaze slowly raked across my skin as I shivered, my nipples sharpening into little points against his chest. “If I wasn’t concerned that you’d already lost too much blood, I’d tie you down and keep that old promise of mine, little witch.”

  Oh yeah, I remembered the exact day he declared that I was flirting with disaster and his temper. Kayde was a bit of a dominant personality and his detailed descriptions of bedtime activities were repeated often. He liked to shock me. I wasn’t really the least bit intimidated. In truth, I was excited by the possibility of being tied up and at Kayde’s mercy.

  “You better lose that look in your eye, Cassie. I’m already fighting my urges, and this isn’t the time.”

  “Why?” I asked with more than a little snark. “Afraid you’ll enjoy it?”

  “No,” he contradicted as his voice deepened with husky promise, “but we have a lot to discuss. Your Cosan is waiting.” Kayde walked to my closet and let my legs drop, his fingers brushing across my cheek with affection. “I’ll get rid of our visitors while you dress.”

  As I stepped into the walk-in space, he slapped my bare rump. “Hey!”

  “Such a sexy little ass,” he murmured, chuckling as he headed into my bathroom.

  I quickly donned a clean bra and underwear and heaved a sigh. The house was too quiet. I didn’t even hear Damian in my head. Slipping on a pair of yoga pants and a long t-shirt, I emerged from the closet to find Kayde waiting. Alone. It occurred to me at that moment that despite my scream, no one else came upstairs or into my room to investigate. Not even my aunt or Gypsy. Strange.

  After brushing my teeth and pulling my long hair back into a high ponytail, I followed Kayde out into the hall. My gaze swept the room, satisfied that none of the arachnid corpses were hanging about on my floor. I did not want to accidentally step on one of the little demons later.

  The floor creaked as I walked through the hall and down the stairs. The fifth step from the bottom made an awful squeak that seemed to reverberate through the eerily silent house. Howe Manor was never this quiet, even in the middle of the night. The grandfather clock usually ticked consistently as the familiar windchimes whistled by the back door. Gabe snored loud enough to wake the dead and Ryder couldn’t fall asleep unless there was some kind of noise. Ceiling fans were almost always on. Damian didn’t need to sleep much so he spent his nights in the study, surrounded by books and maps, classic literature and magical volumes competing for any available space. Kayde was a restless soul and often could be found practicing anti-magical spells or watching horror films on low volume.

  Tonight, the air was filled with expectation and the silence proved more than a little disconcerting. It was purposeful and I felt a twinge of anger leak through my bond with Damian. He was fighting to keep himself in check and failing as I heard a chair scuff along the stone floor.

  Kayde pushed the door to the kitchen open and I followed him in, pausing when I saw my Cosan, Aunt Gwen, and Gypsy sitting around the center island and dining table. They weren’t alone. Sebastian Wildes, Kane and Karter Bishop, Autumn and Willow Scott, and Drake Martin had joined in on the obvious fun. I couldn’t remember the last time Drake joined us.

  Folding my arms across my chest, I lifted a brow. “Is this an intervention?”

  Sarcasm noted, Gypsy rolled her eyes as Seb squeezed her hand. Kane and Karter didn’t crack a smile, but I could tell they were uncomfortable and mildly amused. Willow was seated next to my aunt with a disapproving frown on her face. I’d seen that more often than I cared to admit. High school had been one disaster after another. Howe women were always full of drama. I couldn’t help it. I came by the genes naturally.

  Aunt Gwen sighed, her pale face drawn and showing her wrinkles in a way I had never noticed before. I was about to open my mouth when the big guns arrived. Shit.

  “Hello, Cassandra,” my Uncle Tom announced, entering the room from the side entrance with a confident smirk as he pressed a kiss to my aunt’s cheek. He remained standing, gesturing to a single chair in the center of the room I hadn’t noticed until now. “Please, have a seat.”

  Switching from foot to foot, I lingered a minute longer before I obeyed, plopping down in the hot seat with a soft sigh. “This was hardly necessary.”

  ‘We tried it your way, Cassie.’

  I shot a glare in the vampire’s direction, not bothering with a reply.

  ‘You knew this would happen.’

  My uncle’s smile was grim. “The council has been notified. We’ve agreed to the corpus operandi strand –”

  “What!?” I blurted, rising to my feet so fast the chair smacked against the stone flooring.

  “You’ve left us little choice,” my aunt replied calmly. “If you won’t agree to our terms then we have no choice but to magically restrain you.”

  Shaking my head, I held up my hands, violet sparks igniting along my palms. “This is insanity.”

  What were they thinking? I had to stop Roman English and the damned, not sit here idle under lock and key while everything went to shit. Not to mention the taint on my soul. This didn’t make any sense. Something was terribly wrong. Nothing about this meeting felt right.

  Shocked and hardly able to inhale breath, I realized none of this was real. It couldn’t and wouldn’t happen this way. My family, Cosan, and fellow witches would never place me in a witch’s equivalent to prison. There was too much at stake. All of the Salem thirteen were in danger which proved this devastating and confusing moment was nothing more than a farce.

  Lifting my hands, I closed my eyes and immediately tapped into the power of my ancestors. My shields were being hammered with magical vibrations and constant spells which weakened but didn’t destroy my ability to fight back. I hadn’t noticed the effort to break through until now. Drawing from deep within, I latched onto Damian’s aggression, Kayde’s anti-magic, Ryder’s firm resolve, and Gabriel’s strength until I could hear their voices shouting and encouraging from beyond the veil.

  A furious roar echoed in my head as my eyes opened and I sat upright in bed, staring at my Cosan who just helped fight off Roman English in my dreams.

  “Welcome back, precious.”

  Chapter 5

  October 9th –

  “Are you sure about this?” Gypsy was watching for my reaction, pausing with the makeup sponge in her grasp. “We don’t have to go out tonight.”

  “I’m pretty sure Roman will show up after that dream. I beat him far too easily. My gut says he’s looking for the right moment to strike. I can’t hide from him forever, Gyps. I need to end this before someone gets seriously hurt.”

  “I know,” she whispered, blinking back tears. “I don’t want to lose you, Cass. Roman is bad news. He wants to harm you and that scares me.” She finished the last application of color, staring at her reflection in the mirror entirely too long before turning my way. “You know I love you, right?”

  “As much as I love you, Gyps.”

  She nodded, swallowing hard.

  I didn’t elaborate on the fact that Roman wanted to harm all Salem witches. This was why my decision to act alone with Dmitri Rockcastle was the right course of action. “Babe, it’s going to be fine. Remember that sexy Cosan of mine? They’re pretty handy to have around.”

  She snickered, dipping a pair of tweezers into clear lash glue before lightly touching a silver rhinestone shaped like a teardrop to her skin. We were both finished with our traditional skull makeup but kicked it up a notch by adding colored gems and rhinestones around our eye sockets and the center of our forehead. Glitter was brushed across our dark upper lids. The effect was stunning. Adding a vibrant lip color, we each completed our signature look. Her colors were warm – shades of bur
gundy, amber, and gold. Mine were cool – indigo, silver, and violet.

  Our hair had been twisted in triple mini buns and stuck up at precise angles off our head. Gypsy wove large black and red roses and marigolds into her own while she added black and indigo roses into mine with silver accents and a short black lacy veil. We each wore a simple gauze tank dress with a black leather corset and black leggings. I added a pair of matching fingerless gloves in indigo to compliment my ensemble along with my spiky ankle boots with the silver studs.

  Aunt Gwen insisted on snapping a thousand photographs before we left Howe Manor and it took a few minutes before the residual flashes began to recede. Blinking, I linked my arm through Gypsy’s as the streets filled with party goers and flashy costumes. Day of the Dead skulls and masks could be seen everywhere, both a blessing and a curse. Roman could blend in easily and I wouldn’t be able to pick him from the crowd until it was too late.

  My Cosan had already thought of this and strategically placed themselves so that Gypsy and I were followed from every angle and direction. The chilly night air was the perfect reason to grab a floor length black cloak from the closet before I left the house. I had everything I needed to deceive my cousin and Cosan. They wouldn’t know what happened until long after I was gone. Gypsy paid little attention to the garment as I carried it with us, laughing at my jokes and spouting off plenty of her own.

  The streets were full of people dancing in celebration. Some held skulls attached to long sticks that bobbed in the air while others rushed around with marigold and black rose leis, tossing them around the neck of anyone who agreed. Loud music blared from the front of all the shops and mixed with spooky and haunting wails that whispered on the back of the generous wind. As was custom, no artificial lights were on within the city limits of Mystic Hallows. Candlelight added to the festive atmosphere and added a hint of melancholy to the otherwise carefree vibe.

  Two skeleton clad men jumped in front of us and Gypsy squealed, laughing when Kane and Karter lifted their masks. I shook my head, amused by their playful antics. More skeletons, most with glow-in-the-dark bones, weaved in and out of the crowd. Autumn danced her way through the bodies and was soon teasing the twins as she tugged on Gypsy’s arm.