Witch Infernal (Infernal Hunt Book 3)

by Holly Evans

  "We must rest. We are no good to anyone in this exhausted state. Finish your tea, then go to bed. All of you," Elise said, looking pointedly at Quin.

  Quin gave her a crooked smile before he licked his fingertips and turned the page of the old tome. Elise hadn't explained where it had come from, and I felt it wasn't my place to ask. There was much hidden; I had to trust her. I stroked Lysander's hair and enjoyed the refreshing taste of the gentle white tea. My worries slipped away, and I couldn't help but wonder exactly what my old friend had put in it. The relaxation washed over me and hid any concerns I may have had. There was much to do, to discuss, but first I needed to sleep.

  The last thing I remembered was Lysander's arms wrapping around me, the scent of hot metal and petrichor swirling around me in a comforting haze.

  Twenty-Three

  I woke up in my bed with Lysander wrapped around me, his arms holding me close to his chest, his legs tangled in mine. His head nuzzled against my neck, his warm breath curled around my throat. I wriggled against him, enjoying his presence. His soft lips brushed my tender skin as he woke and stretched against me.

  "Good morning, Evelyn."

  I ran my foot up his calf. "Morning, Lysander."

  He nuzzled against my neck and whispered, "We should talk."

  I scrunched up my face trying to remember what I'd done wrong that time. The memory of the witch fight flashed in my mind. The sensation of being distant. The pleasure of the pain I inflicted. The desire for more blood. It felt like an iron fist around my heart, my chest constricted.

  Lysander whispered soothing nothings in my ear as he stroked my wrists. "You're safe."

  I took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of him. I was safe.

  "What happened?" I managed to choke out.

  He pulled me a little closer to him, wrapping himself more thoroughly around me. Protecting me from the world. From myself.

  "You experienced what a hound feels during the thrill of the battle."

  "You... you feel that?"

  He buried his face in my hair while I eased my breathing, trying to understand.

  "I do. I control it, though. I am not that creature anymore, Evelyn."

  He pleaded with me to understand. To believe him.

  I rubbed my foot against his calf once more and played the memories back frame by frame. I believed him. I had to.

  I rolled over to face him. I wrapped one arm around the back of his neck and tucked the other up against his chest.

  "What's happening to me, Lysander?"

  I couldn't help but run my fingers over the smooth silver collar, the sensation of what it meant crystalising in my mind. He sighed softly, putting his arm over my ribs and wrapping his legs around mine.

  "I haven't had this sort of bond before. The bond between demon and slave... is different."

  I frowned. "Am I becoming one of you?"

  His thumb brushed over my cheekbone. "No, Evelyn. You're not becoming a hound, you're a human. You do appear to be taking on some of my skills and attributes, though. I hope the bond will settle soon. It's solidifying. The bond between hound and master is different in every instance. Ours is particularly strong."

  He couldn't help but smile as he said that. I chewed on my bottom lip, trying to figure out what exactly it all meant. The bond between a human and a hellhound was unheard of. He nuzzled against my neck, his lips brushing over the sensitive skin, sending shivers down my spine. I soon found myself arching against him, relishing the tender barely-there contact. His warm breath unfurled against my skin; my own breathing became shallower. I swallowed hard and pulled back. It was too soon. I couldn't do it. I wasn't ready.

  Lysander held me firm, a small smile on his lips. "Don't run away, Evelyn. I won't push any further."

  I narrowed my eyes at him, feeling uncomfortable at being held there. His hold was gentle; I pressed against it a little to find that he did give to me. I relaxed knowing that I could go if I really wanted.

  He tilted his head and whispered, "Please don't run."

  The wrinkles formed between his eyebrows, his mouth tugged down in concern. I wriggled closer to him. I wasn't going to run. He had respected my boundaries, that was what mattered. Our breathing soon settled into a steady rhythm, the world outside forgotten. Until Quin called through.

  "Come on! We have things to do today!"

  I curled my lip and shouted back, "Like what!? I'm not an alchemist. I am not stalking around the city on the off chance of finding the celestial."

  A tapping came from the door.

  "Come in," I called back.

  "Is that really how you feel, Evie?"

  A frown marred his face. His hands were restless at his sides. I sighed. He tilted his head and surveyed me, in the embrace with Lysander.

  "You're more than that, Evie," he said softly. His frown deepened. "We're close to something. You can help us. Both of you."

  I chewed my bottom lip and considered it.

  "How?" I eventually said.

  His mouth lifted into a hopeful smile. "We have some reading to do, and maybe you can offer some ideas."

  "Thanks."

  His shoulders loosened and he shut the door behind him when he left. I hadn't realised how much I'd missed working closely with him. How much everything had changed. I kissed Lysander's forehead without thinking before I pulled on some clothes, careful to keep anything too intimate hidden from the hound.

  "So... reading, huh?" I said to Quin with a lopsided smile.

  He grinned back at me. "You might even find it interesting. It's about how to kill stuff."

  I laughed, and Lysander soon joined in. "Am I so one-dimensional? So... simple?"

  Quin frowned again. "No. You just have different focuses. You're the protector."

  I smiled and gave him a nod. We headed out the door in reasonably high spirits; progress was being made. I didn't relish the idea of being lost in books all day, but having my twin close at hand again and sharing laughter would be worth it.

  Twenty-Four

  Kadrix was himself. He bounced on the balls of his feet while Quin cleared a space for Lysander and me to work. The elf muttered something under his breath. He soon rushed off and began scribbling varying symbols down on a scrap of paper. It made about as much sense as sanskrit to me. Quin peered over his shoulder with two vials in each hand; he tilted his head and gestured at the second line.

  "What if you change that to Esorel?"

  The elf pursed his lips before his face lit up.

  "Yes, yes, then this becomes Karin, and then from there we slip into Gaty and Hru."

  He nodded enthusiastically.

  Quin grinned and finished clearing the space while Lysander and I sat on the wooden stools, waiting patiently like school children. We'd been told not to touch anything unless Quin or Kadrix handed it to us. The temptation to run my hands over everything increased with every passing second.

  Quin placed a slim red leather-bound book in front of me, and quickly followed it by a lurid green wooden-bound book, and a deep purple textile-covered book.

  "Start here," he opened it to pages that had been marked with small metal disks. "You're looking for anything on celestial apparition, lifeforce, or essence."

  The small scrawling text swam before my eyes. I forced a smile when Quin grinned at me before he went and joined the elf again. Lysander gave me a wry smile before he leaned over the book and began reading. I'd never been a particular fan of reading, unless it was something directly relevant to my interests. The book in question was talking about matrices and how they interacted with crystalline energies, particularly when elven magic was involved. The words soon blurred into black wobbly lines. It meant nothing to me.

  I took to skimming the pages looking for key words and reminded myself that it was making Quin happy. I was close to my twin, and it was would help us track down the celestial. Still, my mind wandered back to more interesting things, such as the feeling of Lyander's firm body pressed against
mine. A happy warmth bubbled within me; Lysander flashed a grin at me. I cleared my throat and focused on the task at hand; it was bizarre having him know that I was thinking about him that way. I wasn't ready. My body was more than ready, but my mind wasn't.

  The hours crawled by. We called Quin over to read a number of passages, but none of them were quite what they were looking for. Kadrix was growing increasingly excited about his formula thing, though; I hoped that meant one of us was making meaningful progress. Elise slipped in not long after dusk with lots of food and tea. Kadrix glared at her when she set up a small picnic on one of the workbenches; she smiled sweetly back at him. We tucked into freshly made sandwiches. The break was more than welcome.

  The overall mood was quite buoyant; the elf spoke in riddles about celestial auras and how the matrix was the key. I nodded and smiled while looking for another sandwich. I hadn't realised how hungry I was.

  Zair appeared just to the side of Elise. She spun on her heel and had her hand around his throat before any of us had even fully registered who or what he was. Tiel was soon behind me, and Ioel snuck up behind Quin.

  "What do you want?" I snarled.

  "We want you to do as you were told,” Zair snapped back.

  Elise squeezed his throat, she dug her fingers in deep and managed to draw blood.

  "Enough!" Ioel shouted.

  "Yes, we have had enough,” Quin said.

  Ioel glared at Quin who met his look with one of his own. Tempers flared.

  "You were given a perfectly simple task. Find a witch, who, I may add, is so powerful that we're concerned about her, and end the problem. It's like finding a lighthouse in the dark," Ioel said with contempt.

  That was all it took. After all of the bloodshed and anger that the celestials had brought about, there was no patience left in the room for their bullshit attitude. Lysander and I turned as a unit. Tiel flashed me a grin and focused on me as I drew my blades; his mouth turned downward in a frown once he realised what they were made of. He went to step back, but Lysander kicked the back of his knees; the crunch was incredibly satisfying. Tiel's face rippled with golden energies. We were just getting started. The celestials were going to learn their place in the pecking order.

  Translucent blades formed in Tiel's hands; they shone blue and silver when they caught the light. I kept my eyes on his face, which flickered between amusement and rage. His eyes never left mine, giving Lysander the room to land a heavy punch to the celestial's lower back. I heard the other two scream in rage. Bottles shattered. The tinkling sound of glass shattering formed the treble of the cacophany. I danced around Tiel, keeping his focus on me while he idly spun his blades, trying to distract me. I'd seen and practised with escrima sticks; I was familiar with the method and openly laughed at him. His grip tightened on the blades. Lysander punched him in the back of the neck. I lunged forward and sliced his tight stomach with my left hand before I sank my other blade into his upper thigh.

  Tiel didn't stand a chance. Lysander and I were a perfect pair. We each knew what the other was going to do. Still, the celestial roared. He sliced through empty air. The blade brushed the arm of my shirt, slicing open the fabric, my skin untouched. I laughed once more, mocking the old warrior. His nostrils flared. He went to focus on Lysander, who remained behind him, keeping him off balance. I dove in and slashed at his ribs, drawing his attention back to me. Lysander landed a spinning kick on his other ribs. The sharp intake of air and shock on Tiel's face sent a thrill through me. We weren't just silly little humans. He put his hands up in the air. The blades vanished.

  "Enough."

  I glared at him while spinning my blades. He kept his hands up in surrender. Lysander came and stood at my side. I risked a glance around the room to see the other two celestials were bloodied and furious, but they also held their hands up in defeat.

  I took a deep breath and took half a step back, giving Tiel room to recover himself.

  Elise smirked and said, "Now. Where were we?"

  She picked up a small plate of sandwiches and offered them to Quin. "These are local ham, they're quite delightful."

  Quin took two sandwiches and handed one to Kadrix; no one acknowledged the fuming celestials.

  Zair huffed and said, "You're quite something, for humans."

  I raised an eyebrow.

  "You all surrendered, did you not?" I said.

  He shot me a look filled with a lust for blood.

  "You were quite impressive, really. Had we have actually tried, you would have lasted minutes instead of seconds," Tiel said with a grin.

  Lysander punched him in the stomach. I stroked the hound's hair and smiled.

  "What brought you here? I assume it wasn't Elise's fantastic sandwiches."

  "Or to apologise for the shit you rained down on us," Elise snarled.

  Zair and Ioel both became consumed with the need to brush imaginary dust from their suits and to try and straighten any wrinkles that may have been formed.

  Finally, Tiel said, “We came to check on Evelyn. We felt some changes within her."

  As if on cue, the fire burst from within me. I didn't even look for the invisible flames that time. I glared at Zair and embraced the sensation of burning from within. Images of him slowly burning and begging for mercy made me smile. He narrowed his eyes at me and went to step closer. Quin and Kadrix blocked his path, stopping him from coming anywhere near me. Lysander ran his hand down my back and nuzzled against my neck. I took a long deep breath and focused on his calming, soothing presence. The fire subsided. I leant against Lysander, suddenly feeling exhausted. My muscles shook from exertion. Elise took my hand and led me to the closest stool. She plied me with pie and pastries.

  "Here, sugar will help you."

  The others surrounded me, forming a barrier between me and the celestials. I felt weak, but still grateful for their presence.

  Finally, Quin growled, "There is nothing wrong with Evie. Leave us."

  Zair smirked at him and gave a little shrug before he said, "So be it."

  Tiel ran his tongue over his lips and blew a kiss before he vanished with the others. I leant against Lysander and let it all slip away. There was nothing but sugar and the comfort of my little family.

  Twenty-Five

  Once I'd stopped shaking and my head had cleared, Elise pushed Kadrix away and said quietly, "Talk to me, Evie. What happened?"

  Kadrix tried to lean over her shoulder, a pen and pad in his hand. I glared at Kadrix.

  "I am not an experiment. Elf."

  He huffed.

  I took a deep breath and simply said, "I felt as though I was on fire. Apparently the bond with Lysander is getting deeper and that's a less-fun side effect."

  I shrugged, hoping that I looked nonplussed. Elise's frown suggested that I failed.

  "Can you not help her, Lysander?" she asked.

  "I do what I can, but the bond will settle in its own time," he said.

  "Fascinating," Kadrix squealed.

  I sighed heavily. "Really, Kadrix?"

  "Oh come along, Evelyn. No human in recorded history has bound to a hellhound before. The opportunities here are boundless!"

  I shook my head. "You are not experimenting on me. Lysander is going to take me home. I am going to sleep. Then tomorrow you are going to tell us how to find and kill that celestial."

  He pouted and put his pad down on top of the heap of books. I didn't understand the elvish muttering under his breath, but it made Quin smile.

  Elise hugged me tight. "I'm going to help these boys out. Sleep well."

  Lysander's arm wrapped around my waist and held me close. He rested his chin on top of my head while I said goodbye to the others. He refused to leave my side and remained firmly within two feet of me the entire journey home.

  I kicked off my boots and said, "Relax, Lysander. You're fretting is tiring."

  I yelped when he scooped me up in his arms.

  "Then I'd best carry you to bed," he said with a roguish grin.


  I rested my head on his chest and went with it. I didn't even make it to the bed before I was asleep.

  Quin hadn't come home, or if he had he'd slipped out before I crawled out from under my nice warm blankets. I was rubbing the sleep from my eyes and looking for something resembling breakfast when a rapid tapping from the door. I glanced back at Lysander who gave me a shrug. The tapping became a loud knocking. I grabbed my blades and approached the door cautiously. The knocking stopped when I got within a few feet of the door. Lysander had tensed and flexed his fingers; the claws of his hound form started coming through. I opened the door slowly, unsure what to expect. Felix, the lycan, stood in the hallway with the hood of his black hoodie pulled up.

  "Subtle," I said.

  He looked around the hallway before he stepped forward to step into my home.

  "You're not even supposed to know I live here," I said as I blocked his entrance.

  "Please," he said with a low growl.

  I stepped back and allowed him in. A flutter vaguely resembling guilt formed in my stomach when I saw his scarred face. The witch or healer they'd gone to had done a remarkable job, but he'd never be pretty again. I reminded myself that he'd started it, and he was still a lycan.

  He froze when he saw the large windows on the far side of the living area, with the little table sat beneath one of them. He stepped back, hiding behind the wall near the front door.

  "We are being hunted," he said quietly, a tremble in his voice.

  I looked between the window and him. Lysander's arm slipped around my waist once more, his eyes never leaving the large lycan.

  "Hunted?" I said, disbelieving him.

  He pulled back the hoodie and paced around the small area in front of the front door. "Yes. A celestial has been seen around the pack homes. It keeps pushing."