by Bianca D’Arc
She’d been going through what she would do since last night. She cast a much smaller circle this time, making sure John was close to her. He said nothing for the moment. He just helped as he had before, in spreading the salt and standing by, offering his silent support.
“Get your guys as far away from the beach as you can,” she told him as she cast. He was wearing a radio that would be useless once she closed the circle, but for now, he could still communicate with his men. She had to warn him that this time was different. “The leviathan is coming. It’s going to put up one hell of a fight and anyone outside this circle will be in very serious danger.”
“What about Cam?” John asked, already fingering his radio.
She shrugged, turning to him in confusion, letting her fear show for just a moment. “I have no idea what he’s capable of, but he said he’s staying outside the circle. I can only assume he has defenses of his own, but everyone else will be super vulnerable. Keep them well back. They can’t help when the magic starts flying anyway. Do it now, John. I’m nearly finished with the circle.”
She started moving again, knowing he was talking fast and low over his radio. She looked up and received his nod before she lay the last grains of salt and said the final incantation.
She had no sooner closed the circle before the leviathan became visible in the distance. It was closing fast.
“Sweet Mother of All,” she whispered, watching it approach, frozen for a moment. John stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He dipped his head close to her ear and spoke in low, urgent tones.
“Don’t let it intimidate you, honey. Often the biggest shows are put on by the weakest opponents. This is all designed to scare you and make you falter. Don’t let it get to you. It wouldn’t try so hard to stop you if you weren’t seriously cramping its style. Do your thing, babe. I’m right here, with you.”
She stayed one moment longer in his arms, gathering courage from his presence and his words. He was so good to her. He knew just what to say to bolster her.
Patting his hands, she stepped forward toward the ocean, meeting the advance of the creature with purpose in her steps. She positioned herself at the center of the circle and began to chant.
The words were ancient. Powerful. She had thought out each in advance and done all she could to craft the perfect sequence of prayers, benedictions, beseeching and commanding of the power that flowed through her by the will of the Goddess. She began to feel the power exerting itself through her, up into the center of the dome of protection she had spun, gathering strength and steam until it was ready to be unleashed.
As before, she felt John’s support as his magic came out to play with hers. They were even more attuned to each other than before, and she was able to take more of his raw energy and fashion it into what would become one of the strongest wards she had ever produced—if she could follow through and cast the spell before the leviathan did something to thwart her.
She felt the creature’s assault on her circle of protection. It battered at her, to no avail. She worried briefly for the men who were outside the circle, but she hoped they were all smart enough to know when to stand back.
All except Cam. She felt his presence behind her circle, moving swiftly around as the leviathan grew closer. What was he up to?
He came around the side of her circle closest to the sea, and she understood. He was the ace in the hole. The surprise to distract and enrage the creature. While Cam did battle with it on a magical level, she would have to act to protect the cove. Timing would be everything.
The creature seemed to stop in its tracks the moment Cam was revealed. And then, all hell broke loose once more. The creature seemed to jump up out of the water, trying to reach the fey warrior on the land.
It was hideous. All she could see were myriad tentacles and razor sharp projections. It couldn’t come completely out of the ocean, so all she saw were the parts it could project upwards and outwards, but that was more than enough. She’d be having nightmares about it for the rest of her life, she was sure.
She spent a moment worrying about Cam, but then, she realized the fey was more than equipped to serve as a diversion while she did her thing. She’d better get on with it, or all his daring would be for naught.
Urse concentrated on her spellcraft, drawing on the energy of the earth, the sky, the wind and even the water. She called upon the willing gift of magical energy from the Alpha and, through him, from his people. She didn’t take too much from them. They needed to be able to defend themselves, and there was still tomorrow to consider, when they would be called upon again to donate power to the protection of their town.
She took what she judged to be enough. She had a specific goal in mind for tonight. A geographical area she wished to protect with her spell that covered exactly half of the mouth of the cove. The other half would be done tomorrow—and then some. Tomorrow night, when she had the power of the full moon to call upon, and no spellwork to do the following day, she would create the biggest overlap she could to be certain the cove had as much protection as she could provide.
For tonight, she knew exactly how far to push herself and her helpers. She spoke the words, her confidence increasing as she felt the way John’s power merged so much more seamlessly with hers. It was beautiful, really, but she didn’t have time to sit and study it. Perhaps that would come later. When the danger was past.
When she was ready, she loosed the spell, only peripherally aware of Cam’s golden armor glowing just outside the circle as he faced the monster. Whether his armor manifested to everyone or if her ability to see it was a byproduct of the immense power she wielded, she didn’t know, but she was glad to see that mark of the Goddess as she flung her spell in the very teeth of the leviathan.
It…screamed. Although that word didn’t quite cover the intense cacophony of sound and evil that emanated from the creature as it fell back, hit by the power of her ward.
It crashed back into the ocean, water coming up in a mini tsunami, washing over the point of the cove on which they stood. Urse held strong, knowing her circle would keep her and John safe. She wasn’t sure about the rest of the men. She prayed they were far enough back to avoid being washed into the cove or ocean by the powerful wave.
Cam was another story. He glowed with golden light as the water parted around him. Encased in her bubble of protection, she could see Cam clearly. He was protected, too, though he had no circle. Perhaps it was his armor—blessed by the Mother of All—that was his shield. She would probably never know.
“Isn’t that something?” John whispered as the water passed over their invisible, magical dome. He was looking at Cam and up at the water sliding over and off the shield to wet only the area outside the circle.
“Pretty cool, huh?” she agreed wearily. The magic was spent. The ward had been placed. The leviathan had been run off. For now.
“I take it we’re done for the night?” John asked, coming up behind her again. He’d been a strong presence at her side throughout, but now, he put his arms around her, supporting her as she began to wilt.
“Yeah. The ward is up and running. We’re safe here for now. We just have to break the circle and make sure all your men are still with us. I’m afraid some of them might’ve gotten washed away by the wave.”
John walked her over to the side of the circle closest to Cam. The fey was watching them with a grin on his face. His hands were on his hips, satisfaction in every line of his body.
Urse broke the circle with a final prayer of thanks, and the magic dome collapsed back into the earth. Cam was no longer glowing with power, but the expression on his face was one of approval.
“That was beautifully done, lassie. Beautifully done,” Cam repeated, smiling from ear to ear.
Urse felt bolstered by the fey knight’s words, but she was weary to the bone. If John hadn’t been standing behind her, propping her up, she’d have slipped to the ground like a limp noodle.
Cam seemed t
o realize it belatedly and turned his attention to the ocean while John spoke into his radio, checking on his men. Urse rested against him, waiting to hear that all the shifters who’d come out to support them were okay.
“Everyone’s accounted for,” John said quietly near her ear. “Joe Nightwing is going to fly out and see how far the safe zone extends.”
“I wouldn’t advise it,” Cam said, talking directly to John. “That thing can reach pretty high. It’s not worth the risk.”
“I’ll call him back,” John promised, speaking quickly into his radio in a sort of clipped code that he and his men seemed to understand. It must be a military thing, Urse thought.
A few seconds later, they saw an enormous owl glide silently overhead. He dipped one wing as if in acknowledgment before flying off, over the forest, toward the town.
“Shall we?” John asked politely before lifting her in his arms. She felt foolish, but too weak to really argue.
He walked back toward where they’d left the vehicle, Cam at their side. The men spoke in low tones while she dozed in John’s arms. If he hadn’t been there to carry her back, she probably would’ve slept out on the point tonight. She was way too weak after that spell to walk out through the forest on her own.
Thank the Goddess she only had to do one more of these. She didn’t think she’d have the strength to do any more. But she was still a bit worried… Tomorrow night would be the biggest expenditure of magical energy of all.
*
“Wake up, baby. I know you’re tired, but you really should eat something. We missed dinner.”
John’s voice came to her, rousing Urse out of the fog of sleep. She discovered she was in his house, lying on the couch in his living room. He’d put a blanket over her at some point, and she figured she’d been asleep for a few hours at least.
Delicious aromas hit her nose, and her stomach growled a little. Someone had cooked. She heard John talking in low tones with another man, and then, she heard the door open and close, and she felt, from the drop in ambient magic, that they were alone. Her magical senses were more sensitive than usual after all the wards she’d been casting these past few days.
She padded into the kitchen and found a gourmet feast had been laid out on the big butcher block table.
“I asked Zak to cook something special for you. The man’s a genius in the kitchen.”
“You did?” She looked from the food up to his beloved face. “He did all this for you? For us?” She felt tears gather in her eyes. She didn’t know why she was so emotional, but it just seemed like such a big thing for Zak to do for John—and for John to arrange for her. “He must love you a lot to go to all this trouble after the day we’ve had.”
John actually blushed, looking down and busying his hands by setting out plates and silverware. “I might’ve asked, but he did it for you. All my guys know how hard you’re pushing yourself to safeguard our little town. This is Zak’s way of saying thank you.”
“Well, it’s pretty spectacular—and very welcome at the moment. I’m starved.” She moved closer, taking a seat at the table. “My goodness, is that Cajun rice? And beef stroganoff? Wow.”
John served portions of whatever she asked for, placing it all on her plate before making his own serving. He sat beside her at the giant table, and they shared a lovely meal, quietly, together.
It was a cozy feeling, being here with him, in the home he had built. She could feel the love and hope that had gone into every timber, brick, cut and nail. This was a place of potential. Potential for joy and for the future. A dream come to fruition, needing only a few more key elements to make reality.
Much like the town John had dreamed. He’d shared his dream with his men, and they’d built it into something real. Something beautiful. All because he’d dared to dream it.
John was a man who made things come to pass. He wasn’t a bystander in his own life—or in the lives of those he touched. The others had followed him into battle and now, into life as civilians precisely because of his ability to lead. To dream big and make things happen.
He was a hell of a man, and she greatly feared she was falling deeply in love with him. So deep, her love for him would change her for all time.
Uncomfortable with the direction of her thoughts, she broke the silence with idle conversation.
“So what happened to Cam? I almost expected him to be somewhere nearby, already planning the next event.” She picked at her food as she continued to eat. It really was delicious. She’d have to thank Zak specially, for going out of his way.
“He probably is already planning, but he’s staying in town tonight with the guys he brought in. Zak’s christening the new kitchen he’s almost finished building in the restaurant, entertaining everyone who’s off duty. Sounds like they have a little party going on down there with Red in town.”
“I can hear it in your voice, how much you like the guy. So you go way back?” She knew she was prodding him for information, but talking about the past was easier right now than thinking about the future.
John didn’t seem to mind. “Red and his older brother, Grif, are good guys. Both found their mates since the last time any of us saw each other, so I think the guys are having a little party in honor of that momentous occasion, even though Red’s mate is back in Las Vegas with the rest of the family.” John spoke calmly, eating between sentences. His steady words calmed her as well, for which she was grateful. “I don’t blame him for not wanting her here. What I’ve heard about her leads me to believe she’d be right out there in the thick of things, taking on the leviathan all by herself if she was here. I wouldn’t want that.”
That surprised Urse. She’d thought, underneath the excellent manners, John wasn’t a chauvinist. He was polite and opened doors, and the like, but he didn’t seem to think less of the women in town or their abilities. In fact, she’d never felt that he thought less of her power simply because she was female. Urse frowned.
“I thought you’d take any help against the leviathan,” she stated, pausing in her meal to await an explanation. He’d better have a good one.
“Normally, I would, but mates are special. I don’t even want Red out there, risking himself, but I know him and his abilities. I know he has good judgment and won’t take unnecessary risks now, because he’s mated, and that means his actions directly affect his mate. If he died here, he’d be breaking her heart, and he knows better than to do that when it can be avoided.”
Urse stopped frowning. That did sound like a good reason, but she said nothing, wanting to hear more of his reasoning.
“I don’t know his mate, Trisha, at all. I know her brothers, but not her. I can’t trust that she wouldn’t take one risk too many in seeking to defeat the leviathan, and none of us could back her up. She’s a water sprite. She can go right out there in the ocean and battle the creature in its element. None of us can do that. Even if it means we’re at risk a little longer here on land, I’d rather wait until her brothers are free to do the job. They, at least, can back each other up, and have years of experience battling things in oceans the world over. From what I’ve heard, Trisha has lived a much quieter life. At least until she met Red. He told us about their first meeting and all the havoc that followed.” John grinned as he resumed eating. “They had a rocky road to mating, and had to fight an evil mage along the way, but they prevailed. I’m happy for them.”
That sounded like a story—and really good reasoning for his stance on Trisha not being here. Faith restored, Urse went back to her meal.
“She sounds really interesting.” She frowned again as she speared a piece of beef with her fork.
“Yeah, Red got lucky. All the Redstone brothers did, actually. Red was telling us how they all found mates within a year or two of each other. Lucky bastards.”
Urse thought how different it was in the shifter world, where mating was considered the ultimate happiness. Many human men would’ve been saying how sad it was that the five brothers were leg-shackled�
�or some other unflattering expression. Shifters, she’d discovered, were genuinely happy about others of their kind finding mates and eagerly searched for their own special someone as soon as they hit adulthood.
“If mating is so important to you guys, why are so many of you single?” she asked, curious.
John put down his fork, his demeanor turning serious. “That’s because finding one’s true mate is a rare thing.” He looked straight at her, and she forgot to breathe for a moment. “You see, there’s only one for each of us, and we may search our whole lives and never find each other.”
“That’s really…” Why was she breathless all of a sudden?
“You’re mine, Ursula. My mate.”
And now her mouth was dry. Was her heart fluttering?
“I’m, um… Really?” She had to clear her throat of the frog that was suddenly there. “I mean… You really think so?”
John got up and walked to her side, taking one of her hands in his and tugged. She rose on unsteady feet to face him.
“I know so. My bear is in agreement. You’re mine, Ursula.”
Oh, wow. She couldn’t speak as his head descended, his lips capturing hers in a kiss of possession. His dominant Alpha tendencies were on full display, and something inside her melted and wanted to roll over and let him do whatever he wanted. He had that much power over her.
And she knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that he would never abuse his power. Which was why she gave it so freely. He would never hurt her. Never betray her. He would protect her and cherish her the way she yearned to cherish and protect him.
Maybe that’s what mating was all about? Could it really be that simple?
A part of her really wanted to believe that it could be so simple. A part that still believed in fairy tales and happily ever after wanted to think that she and John could be together forever.
Dare she believe it? Could she have her happily ever after? Would the other shifters let them?