by Cherie Marks
“How magnanimous of you. What will you do for me?”
“Do a few jobs for me, and I’ll let you raise Evie’s son. Wouldn’t you be a better parent for him than me or one of my men? If he couldn’t have his own mother, at least he’d have someone who’d take good care of him, right? You know what that’s like. Oh, wait. No, you didn’t have your mother or someone good to take care of you, did you? All thanks to me.”
“What? How were you involved?”
“Well, once your father reneged on his deal, I had to take the one he loved the most. That was your mother. She died instantly if that makes you feel any better.”
I couldn’t believe I was in this situation. So much of my misery had been caused by this man. I hated him in that moment. I wanted to get my hands around his neck. Maybe someday I would. But, I knew one thing for sure right now, if he did get his hands on Evie and Dane’s son—which I doubted he would—I might be able to find a way to escape with him. As long as we were together. And, even more importantly, the minute he set me free, I’d find a way to warn Evie and Dane to run.
“Fine. I’ll do it. When do I start?”
“Oooh. Eagerness. I like it. Didn’t figure gross was your kind of thing, but clearly you’re a little bit excited.
“Suck it, Gambrol.”
He showed his long, pointy incisors. “Don’t tempt me. Of course, maybe I should sample the goods before I put you to work. We could go to my room right now…or just get naked right here. The cuffs would be a nice touch.”
My stomach turned at the thought of him touching me. This had to be the consequence of the curse. It was too much to bear.
As he stood and began unbuttoning his shirt, the room rocked and dust fell from the ceiling tiles. He looked around confused as another explosion boomed around us and he lost his balance, hitting the floor hard. The cuff keys slid out of his pocket and were almost close enough that if I stretched, I could get a toe on them.
Unfortunately, Gambrol saw what I was doing and snatched them away before I could do more than get frustrated. I couldn’t catch a break. Maybe all of this was because of the curse.
“Are you doing this somehow?”
He was staring at me, and I didn’t know how to answer. The curse could be the cause. I certainly didn’t expect any rescuers to rush in and save me.
“We’ll just see what’s going on.” Gambrol walked toward the door and yanked it open. He cried out, and I turned to see him go down to the ground. I looked up and met the determined gaze of the last person I’d expected to see again. Finn had come for me. My heart leaped in my chest at the sight of him. I couldn’t believe it. But it was really him.
He stepped over Gambrol, reaching for the keys in his hand as he did so. His fingers made quick work of the cuffs, and the minute I was free, I threw my arms around his neck. He embraced me back, and when I pulled back, he was smiling down at me.
“What are you doing here?”
“I’m here for you, Cara.”
“Why? I lied about everything.”
“Everything?”
“Well, not everything, but I never had amnesia, and I should’ve told you sooner.”
“I know. It doesn’t matter.”
“Gambrol sent me to get the stone, but I’d decided not to give it to him even though he’d convinced me it would break my curses. I thought Wentworth, the bird familiar, worked for Gambrol. I chased after him to get the stone back.”
“It’s okay. I don’t care. I just want you. I want to protect…and…love you. I figured out a long time ago that you were my fated mate, and I’m just happy to have you back again. Now, let’s go.”
“Not so fast.” We swiveled together, and the breath left my lungs at the sight of Gambrol aiming a gun at Finn.
Gambrol’s lips were pulled back in a feral grin, and I watched in horror as his forearm tensed. I cried out and shoved Finn back as I leaned forward. He barely budged, but I flew backwards with the trajectory of the bullet as struck my chest. I went down to the floor hard, a sense of relief seeping into my cells. The curse had been satisfied, and I’d saved Finn.
As I lay on the floor, feeling my blood beginning to pool beneath me, I had a vague realization that Finn had shifted into his panther form and had pounced on Gambrol.
I lost consciousness to the sounds of Gambrol’s piercing screams that tapered to weak gurgles as he met his long-overdue death. His head rolled free of his body.
Only one regret haunted me. I should’ve told Finn I love him because surprising even me, I was capable of it, and I’d wanted it to be him. It had been him. I loved Finn. “Love you.”
The world slid to nothingness, and I was no more.
Chapter 16
“She’s waking up. Give her some space.”
Pain wracked my mind as I opened my eyes. Was I dead? Was this Heaven? If so, it was too crowded. Too many people surrounded me, and I wanted them to give me some room to breathe. It had to be Heaven because I should’ve been in tremendous pain, but I felt nothing.
One head leaned down to me and came into focus. I smiled and tried to reach a hand to cup Finn’s face, but my body wouldn’t cooperate. It felt like I was weighed down with lead.
“Welcome back, love.” He kissed my lips lightly, and I wanted more.
“Finn…” I couldn’t say anything else, but it was all that mattered.
He stepped back and another face came into view. The stalker…er…my father appeared.
“Thank the Goddess you’re okay, Cara. When Finn carried your limp body out of the building, I panicked. I thought the worst. It’s amazing what healers can do.”
I started to sit up, and many hands scooped in to help me. I was back in the hospital, and the room was packed, with all my recently-made friends and even my brother, but I focused in on only one person.
“You’re my father?”
He nodded. “At least I should’ve been. You were not the only one born under a curse. I was supposed to give you up to break my own curse—to Gambrol, ironically—but I just couldn’t. I thought if I walked away from your mother and you, it would keep you safe. Instead, your mother died, and you were lost in the system. It’s my biggest regret. If I’d stayed, maybe I could’ve protected you from a horrible childhood and from all of this.
“I tried to find you for years. The minute I saw you in that diner in Asscrack, I knew it was you. You’re the spitting image of your mother. I caught one of Gambrol’s goons trying to follow you, and I spelled him into a bar instead. There, he spilled the whole sordid story. I tried to warn you, but I only managed to scare you.”
“Didn’t know who to trust.”
“I thought maybe you’d listen to Wentworth, but he’s not the smartest bird.”
Wentworth piped up, “If I’m vinegar, then you must be baking soda. You’re making me feel all bubbly inside.”
“Thanks for proving my point.”
I couldn’t fight my curiosity any longer. “You were cursed just like I am?”
“Unfortunately, I passed it on to you. I would’ve done anything to save you from that.”
“What about the stone?”
Evie stepped forward and showed the bracelet firmly back in place. “My surefire way to keep my son in check is right here where it belongs.”
My father motioned for Evie to step up next to the bed. “When I did research on the stone, I found out something interesting. Turns out, if someone touches the stone and breaks the curse for himself, it also breaks the curses of all his descendants. All I have to do is rub the stone and both of our curses will be gone forever.”
“But you’d become an emotional zombie.”
“A sacrifice I’m willing to make to give you a better life.”
“No. I just got you back. I don’t want to lose you forever.”
“It’s the only way, Carrasandra. It’s how it has to be.”
His use of my given name was my undoing. All my hopes for a long-lost parent to swoop in and sa
ve me from my misery was nothing but smoke and mirrors. He would set me free, and break our ties forever. It was so unfair.
“Let me do this for you.”
I hadn’t allowed myself to cry for years. I’d toughened myself up until I didn’t even think tears were possible anymore. I was wrong.
He reached over and, before I could stop him, covered the stone with his hand. Like a coat made of heavy weights was lifted off my shoulders, I felt my birth-curse floating away. It was real. I knew it immediately, and I sobbed even harder. It was done, and as I looked at my father, I saw the hardening of his eyes.
“It’s done. Now, I’ll leave you to your life.” He edged around the bed and started for the door. Wentworth tried to follow, but my father turned and pointed him back. “I don’t want you anymore, bird. Stay with Cara. She might need you now.”
For just a moment, I thought his words signaled he still cared. Then he said, “Maybe as an ingredient for a good, hardy stew.”
But before he could get out the door, a cloud of purple smoke and sparkling, blue bubbles appeared, pushing him back into the room. Out of it stepped a beautiful witch, clearly lost in the fashions of the 1980’s.
She wore the tightest purple pants, a purple jacket with wide, padded shoulders, and a frilly, pirate like shirt. Give her curly, layered, black hair and bedroom eyes, and she’d be a double of Prince. Instead, it was clear by Evie and Dane’s reactions, she was someone important.
It could only be Baba Yaga.
“Why all the long faces? Everyone gets a happy ending. Isn’t that what you wanted?”
“Yes. Of course. But, now that he’s touched the Hale Stone, is there anything that can give him his emotions back?”
“What are you talking about? Do you dare doubt my power? You want him to have his emotions back, all you have to do is ask.” She snapped her fingers, and my father seemed to wake up.
He turned back around and shook his head slowly. “Carrasandra!” He leaped across the room and embraced me in a hug. He pulled back. “My daughter. I’m never letting you out of my life again.”
Baba Yaga dusted her hands. “I guess my work is done here. You’re welcome!”
“Um…Baba Yaga…can I make one more request?”
“I’m a very busy woman, so this better be worth my time. What do you want that I haven’t already given you?”
“I still feel the second curse. Do you think you could remove it?”
She glanced from my brother to me and back again.
I decided to add, “It’s okay. I get it. Someone has to pay the price. I’d rather it were me.”
With a wave of her hand, I felt the curse lift like a tumor being removed. I looked at my brother, worried it would settle in him, but he shook his head, seemingly unfazed.
“You might be surprised to know the explosions you felt in Gambrol’s compound were set by your brother. He didn’t abandon you. He came back for you. He risked his freedom for you. That tells me he’s learned to put others before himself. And you learned to ask for help and to rely on others. I think the punishment did its work.” She flourished and bowed low. “Again, you’re welcome.”
Oh, yeah, thanks for making my past year a complete misery. But I didn’t dare say that aloud, just smiled as sweetly as I could. I kind of liked my curse-free life and didn’t want to do anything to change that.
She turned toward my brother once more, “Now, keep your hands off my one-of-a-kind, Olivia Newton John headbands. Next time, I won’t be so lenient as to give the consequence to your sister.”
“What? You knew I didn’t commit the crime all along? Why’d you let me take the curse for him?”
“Hello! Weren’t you here like thirty seconds ago? Duh. You both needed to learn a lesson.”
“Oh.” I didn’t agree, but she was Baba Yaga, and I wasn’t, so I shrugged and let it go. What else could I do?
“Okay. Okay. I can’t hang around with you Asscrackers forever. Try to stay out of trouble for as long as you can. Otherwise, I’ll return and Jedi all your asses into prison. Don’t think I won’t.” And with that, she disappeared in another cloud of smoke.
“Did that really just happen?”
The tension left the air, and a few giggles could be heard in the room.
Dane spoke up, “I think we’re going to head out. I’m glad you’re okay, Cara, and you’re welcome to stay with us anytime.”
Evie came over and squeezed my hand. “Especially now that you’re no longer cursed.”
As she began to move away, I stopped her. “I’m sorry I jumped in front of your car. Thank you for being such an amazing person. Because you were so good to me, I’d decided long before Dane brought the Hale Stone to you that I would never hurt you. I meant it then, and I mean it now.”
“I know. Like me, you’re not as wicked as you think you are.” She stepped away, and I let her go. Once she started out of the room, I noticed Celia and Liz. They waved as they left with Evie.
My brother came over and hugged me. He was sporting a couple black eyes and a busted lip. Nothing new for him. “I’m glad you’re okay, squirt. You’ve been too good to me. I’ll never give up on you.”
“I’ll never give up on you either.”
He started for the door. “We’ll talk later.” And he left, hopefully to do good in the world, not to find his usual trouble.
My father was still standing next to my bed. “Carrasandra, I want to be a part of your life now, but I understand if you want nothing to do with me.”
I swallowed. So much history stood between us, but I couldn’t afford to be stubborn anymore. I needed people. I needed a father. “You’re always welcome in my life. You were willing to sacrifice your own happiness for mine, not once, but twice. I get that now.”
He swiped his hand under his eyes and leaned in for one last hug before saying something about finding the cafeteria.
Finally, Finn and I were alone.
“The doctor says you can go home anytime. But, you’re going to need some place to recover.”
“I don’t have a home.”
“Yes, you do. Your home is with me if you want that. We’re connected forever, but only if you want to be. It’s your choice.”
“You said something about me being your fated mate? What’s that all about?”
“Shifters get one mate for life. I sensed you were mine when we first met. But witches don’t have the same instinct, so I’ll leave it up to you. I love you, and I’d like you to be mine forever, but I won’t insist on it. You will always have a choice.”
“Well, if that’s the case, Finn Bryant, I want no secrets between us. There are a few things you should know about me. I’m fiercely loyal, Thai food is my favorite, I don’t roll the toothpaste container from the bottom, I like sex…a lot, I want children someday, but I also have a few things to accomplish first. I don’t like to share, and I might get moody sometimes, but you’ll never be loved harder. Can you handle all that?”
His crooked grin never wavered. “Bring it on.”
“Then, I love you, Finn. I wanted it to be you, and no doubt in my mind, I choose you.”
Robyn Peterman’s Magic and Mayhem Page
# # THE END # #
Note From the Author
Thank you so much for taking the time to read Show Me the Wicked!
All reviews are appreciated.
If you would like to read more from the Magic and Mayhem series, please click on the link below:
Robyn Peterman’s Magic and Mayhem Page
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Book List
Also by Cherie Marks
The Fae Next Door
The Vampire Next Door
Lost in New Falls
Into the Fire
Wicked Jackal (Woodland Creek Series)
Thief of Sanguardia (Skeleton Key Series)
Lost in Christmas (also in the Romancing the Holidays Christmas Anthology)
Shadow of Ruin (the Complex Series)
And writing as C. C. Marks
Edge of Mercy
Heart of Mercy
End of Mercy
Range of Mercy
Mercy
Out of Mercy (coming 2017)
About Cherie Marks
Twitter: http://twitter.com/cheriemarks
Facebook: Author Page
Website: http://www.authorcheriemarks.com/
It all started with an old fashioned typewriter. When my family brought it home, for the first time, I knew what I wanted to do. All those stories rolling around in my head could finally get out. The press and click of the keys were satisfying in their own right, but when I pulled out a finished page, I knew this was for me. Since then, I've graduated to a laptop, but the stories still find a way out.
I'm a breast cancer survivor, a teacher, a wife, a mother, and a writer. I continue to strive for less procrastination and more tact. The battle wages on.