“But—the storm? Prague? We cannot just leave…”
Spīdala shook her head. “Alexei, you have fought battles for others since the day your grandfather gave you the wolf pelt, but this is one battle you are too late for. Prague’s battle now is not for you to fight because someone else has just driven its enemy away.”
“Prague had others to come to her defense now,” Vakarė added. “It was for them, not you, to save the city. And the city has been saved.”
“Come with us,” Grete told him. “Come home and take your rest. We have been waiting here alongside the river, hoping that you would one day escape the prison of the troll. And now you have. Come with us now, husband.” She stepped forward and ran her fingers through his hair.
“Go with them, Alexei,” Beatrycze laughed as she cajoled him. “We do not need to tell you all the people you saved. You fought for them. For us.” She gestured at the other ghostly women standing with her. “Everything you’ve done with the wolf magic since you left Estonia has been in the service of others.”
“Come home, Alyosha,” his grandfather Edvin muttered into his ear, clasping one elbow from behind and pulling Alexei to his feet.
“Come home, Alexei,” his grandmother urged him, clasping his other elbow and kissing his cheek.
He felt a happiness he had never thought to know again.
Chapter 9: Epilogue
Timotej
(August, 2002)
Gaston had hardly slept in days. Timotej, being dead and having no need of sleep, drove the seal mercilessly in his obsession to get as far away from Jarnvithja and her underwater domain as possible. They had left Myska and Bara far behind, although Gaston had struggled with Timotej to allow him to remain with the other seals. But Timotej had overpowered Gaston’s mind and body, flogging the animal forward until the seal was far past exhaustion. They crossed into the river Elbe and entered German territory. Newscasters looking for a story of hope in the midst of the devastation of the flood heard of Gaston’s determined flight and joined the zookeepers in their pursuit of the seal.
But Timotej refused to let the seal be caught, terrified of the return to the zoo and the waters of the river that Jarnvithja commanded. Timotej seized control of the seal’s limbs whenever it seemed the seal might be caught in the nets of the zookeepers, contorting and twisting Gaston’s body to elude capture.
On Sunday, they passed Dresden and were nearing the town of Wittenburg. Looking over Gaston’s shoulder to monitor their would-be captors, Timotej did not see the small net ahead of them. Gaston, half-blind and semi-conscious with hunger and fatigue, dipped and swerved to one side and—before Timotej could realize what was happening—darted into the net.
Timotej screamed in frustration and rage.
“No! No, I will not be taken back to the river and to the servitude of Jarnvithja!” Timotej cried out from within Gaston.
“I can go no further,” Gaston answered with a simple statement of fact.
Timotej began to argue with the seal, but was suddenly aware of Gaston’s labored breathing, his racing heart, his aching muscles. Timotej could feel the life slipping from Gaston’s body.
“No!” Timotej screamed again. “I will not be trapped within your corpse, seal! I will not! I will not!”
Gaston gasped for breath and closed his eyes. He wanted only to rest.
Timotej slipped from the seal’s body and found himself standing on the riverbank, looking at the dying animal in the net surrounded by concerned zookeepers, vets, and newscasters.
Gaston opened one eye briefly. The seal and the dead man caught each other’s attention for an instant. Then the seal closed his eye and turned his head.
Timotej spat on the ground at his feet and snarled before turning and stalking away. He wanted to be anywhere so long as it was away from the river and away from Prague.
Dear Reader:
I hope you’ve enjoyed following Alexei on his journey from his home in Estonia, through Latvia, Lithuania, Silesia (Poland), and Bohemia (the Czech Republic) and that you get the chance to see each of these places with your own eyes someday.
If you’d like to know when my new books come out, visit my website to sign up for my new release email alerts or “follow” me at my Author Central page on Amazon. I hope you’ll leave a review with your thoughts about Storm Wolf on the site where you bought it – reviews help other readers find a book and I appreciate the feedback.
Happy reading!
Stephen Morris
www.stephenmorrisauthor.com
https://www.facebook.com/StephenMorrisComeHell
Show me more by Stephen Morris:
Come Hell or High Water, Part One: Wellspring
Witchcraft! Ghosts! Vampires! Tarot Cards! A historically rich page-turner set in medieval Eastern Europe.... Dark deeds of the past echo down through the years creating a monstrous memory that only an intrepid band of scholars can dispel. This gripping historic-fantasy trilogy erupts in 1356 as a witch’s curse rings out over Prague’s Old Town Square. As the old crone is bound to a stake and consumed by flames, her vengeful words set in motion a series of dark events that unfold across the centuries.
Come Hell or High Water, Part 2: Rising
The old witch’s curse continues to stalk the streets of 14th century Prague even as Magdalena, who has unwittingly reawakened the curse in contemporary Prague, brings the Dearg-due (a voracious Irish female vampire) and a dangerous Jesuit to Prague, each with their own nefarious agenda. They, and the professors attending a conference in Prague, race to find the four magical objects – a sword, a chalice, a pentacle, a staff – that together can either save Prague or destroy it.
Come Hell or High Water, Part 3: Deluge
It is the winter of 1356-7 and Nadezda, with the assistance of an elderly rabbi, confronts Lilith to discover the secret of the witch's curse. Meanwhile, in August 2002, George and Magdalena help carry out the witch's curse by conjuring the historic flood to wash away the Charles Bridge and its magical protection of the city, allowing them to unleash the devil Svetovit. Using the magic of tarot cards, the professors struggle to release the defensive magic buried deep beneath the streets of Prague. Finally confronting George, Magdalena, and Svetovit face-to-face, can the professors avert the doom that is engulfing the city?
Praise for the Come Hell or High Water trilogy:
"The exploration of various European myths and legends is the fuel that powers the storyline, and the understated use of supernatural characters (ghosts, trolls, etc.) throughout gives the novel a darkly magical but realistic tone.
This is a highly intelligent ... saga that will appeal to fans of folkloric fantasy and historical fiction." - Blue Ink Reviews
"Discover a dark magic and Bohemian mysticism in the brilliant Come Hell or High Water!" - Book Viral
"...a sprawling fantasy epic that takes the reader on an exciting ride through centuries' worth of Prague history and folklore....an intricate, tightly woven modern fairy tale (reminiscent of Sergi Lukyanenko's The Night Watch) that tells a fanciful story in a realistic, believable way." - Indie Readers Discovery Awards
"As eloquently told as it is informative and thought-provoking… worthy of standing on the shelf alongside acclaimed works such as those in The Vampire Chronicles and Mayfair Witches series penned by the mother of all things occult, Anne Rice." - Red City Review
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