“And if not, you can always just rip out her heart,” stated Lizzy evenly.
“That is always a viable option,” agreed Charlie.
Michael shook his head, the room suddenly clouding over in an abundance of emotion pouring out of his brother. It wasn’t emotion he expected though. It told him that for whatever reason, suddenly Charlie would agree with anything Lizzy suggested.
“What the heck happened while I was gone?” Michael mumbled. He hadn’t meant to say it aloud and cleared his throat. Charlie heard him though and shot him a severe stare.
“And what about the Feyk?” asked Michael, changing the subject. “How do we kill them?”
“They’re easy enough to kill,” informed Jack. “Bodies are similar to humans in that regard... but that’s only if you can catch them. They’re fast. They can pop out in a flash and pop back in behind you a blink later. Their popping out gives off a smokescreen for cover. We were actually just trying to find some sort of spell, or potion, that might slow them down. Give us a better chance.”
Charlie’s phone beeped, buzzing at the same time.
“I can hear it, I can’t see it.” He rifled through the mess trying to find it.
He couldn’t believe he’d let it get so buried when they had so many people they were waiting to hear from. Charlie found it, read the screen, time halting instantly.
“It says it’s from Eva,” he exclaimed breathlessly.
Everyone froze, wondering if Jack Howard would be proven correct, and Eva and the Feyk were finally making contact with their demands.
“It’s another video,” he advised them. Charlie hesitated to push play.
The previous one she’d left, next to Emily’s dead father, was horrific and candid.
How did they prepare to watch this? Even aware that what they were about to witness might be disturbing, there just was no preparing for it. Charlie and Michael both felt great doubt that they had waited, rather than just rushing in to save those held captive.
“Stay strong, no matter what you see,” warned Jack as firmly as possible. “We cannot allow them to get into our heads. They will try to goad us into hasty action.” He looked at each of them, waiting for their agreement. “Push play, Charlie.”
He held his breath and obeyed.
Melinda’s form came onto the screen, shaking, dirty, frightened, with her hands bound behind her back, her legs wobbly, her eyes swollen from sobbing, a look of utter terror filling her eyes… falling to her knees… Charlie thought he might crush the phone, and Lizzy had to reach up to soften his grip.
When Eva turned the camera to William…
“Oh. Fuck.” Lizzy fled to the sink, doubling over.
Michael fled the room unable to manage the emotions raging out of everyone. It filled every part of him to the point of bursting. If emotions could blow up, he was about to.
Charlie dropped the phone onto the island.
His mind could not digest what he was seeing. His brain shut off for a moment. Incapable of any reaction other than utter petrification.
The video played out.
He barely heard Eva’s warning.
The world slammed back into his mind all at once. Too many emotions manifesting themselves simultaneously.
“We shouldn’t have waited.” He braced himself against the counter afraid he might fall over. “We shouldn’t have waited,” he repeated breathlessly.
They should have attacked last night. Prepared or not.
Instead, they’d pussyfooted around like fucking idiots, and now... the cost...
William…
Melinda…
Fuck…
Fuck…
Fuck…
I’m going to break Eva Jordan’s neck.
No, I’m going to tear it off with my fucking teeth… one excruciating inch at a time.
And where were Emily and Lucas? They were not included on the video.
It was so much worse than any of them imagined possible. They knew Eva was capable of great evil, but this... this was sick. Twisted. And sadistic.
Jack reached out to Charlie but dropped his arm before it reached his son, complete doubt taking over. He’d made the wrong choice. He’d doomed his dearest friend and his only daughter to suffer terribly and die.
He should have just given in and gone to White Pines and opened the door. He should have known when they’d not responded as expected, they’d do something to retaliate and force them into taking action.
Still… in all his days… never something like this…
Fury welled up inside Charlie, begging for release. Both the wolf and the witch consumed with violent intent. He wasn’t sure even the Guardian’s ring could rein it in.
He stumbled through the back door stumbling down the stairs into the grass, clambering up to his knees.
The pain and anger was too much. Too massive. It expanded, stretching him to his limit.
He lifted his head peering into the afternoon sky, silver storming into his eyes. Wrath building with every heave of his chest.
“I will kill them all,” he gushed venomously. “Every fucking last one of them.”
The wolf tore out of his skin. With a snarl he was on his feet and threw his head backwards into the air, an incensed howl erupting.
His torment bellowed hauntingly across the entire island.
At the police storage locker, Mack nearly dropped a box of fireworks. The locals went silent, listening to the dreadful cry.
“I think we’d better hurry,” she stated.
Something terrible had happened. She could feel it in her bones.
She looked down at the locals. At this moment, looking frightened, but still resigned.
“I ain’t sure fireworks is going to be enough,” declared Grace.
Mack was afraid she might be right.
##
In White Pines, Eva Jordan lifted a brow and grinned. “Message received.” She spun around eyeing the Feyk. “Hope you’re ready, Stricker. Because they’re coming. And I do believe this is where our agreement comes to an end.”
“You’re leaving us then?”
“Actually, I might stick around for a little while. See the finale. It’s much more fun than I anticipated.” Eva was on a high she’d never experienced before.
The vampire was near death, her mother’s and father’s deaths were avenged. She didn’t plan on staying on the Isle, but something about seeing the Feyk dethrone the Howards sent thrilling tingles crawling down her spine.
“So this is the entrance to the Heart of the Isle,” said Stricker, standing in front of the roots of the old tree in White Pines. “So unassuming, and yet brilliant,” he spoke. “Eva,” he called out absentmindedly. “If you’re going to stick around for all the fun, and I assume by fun you mean finish off the vampire, would you mind telling anyone left in the gully that I request their presence here. And have them bring our leverage as well. It’s time to bait this trap.”
“With pleasure,” replied Eva.
“Keep the two in the cage for now. I have other plans for them. Well, for the spirit vessel at least. I think she’ll come in quite handy.” He reached into his pocket taking out the ring he’d slipped off Emily’s finger.
##
Jack Howard steadied himself in the doorway staring out into the yard, dumbstruck over seeing his son in full werewolf transformation. So much had changed…
“I’m going to kill them all,” Charlie’s growl promised.
Jack stepped down into the grass looking up at his son. “You cannot rush in like this, you’re not thinking straight. It’s what they want, Charlie. What they expect. They’ll be waiting for you.” He argued this point, although no longer confident he was still right about it.
“They’re torturing William.” Charlie’s voice growled back. “He might already be dead. And Melinda… they’ll kill her. They’ve already killed Emily’s father.” Charlie turned to leave.
Jack didn’t know how to stop his son. H
e did the only thing he’d ever done when he needed to get his attention.
“Charlie. Devin. Howard! You will stop this instant and listen to me.”
He did.
“I realize it is difficult! And it feels wrong! But we must Stick. To. The. Plan. Our plan. Not their plan. It will work...”
Michael came out to join them. He wanted to both agree and disagree with his father. His thoughts all mingled together in bewildered exhaustion. “Will it always be like this?” he asked in a low whisper. “Was it like this for you and Mom? I… I don’t remember it being like this...”
“There were terrifying moments we feared we might not survive,” said his father. “But this is... this Eva, is a monster unlike anything I’ve ever seen.”
“A monster we created,” groaned Charlie.
“We didn’t create this,” said Michael.
“Didn’t we? When we killed her mother…” he snarled. “I’m not saying she didn’t deserve it, or that William was right or wrong in doing it. But when she died here on the Isle, it set off the chain of events that got us here.”
“It’s a brutal lesson,” said Jack. “Our actions do have consequences. But we can overcome this. It’s not always about being ahead, or getting the upper hand. Things will always catch you off guard. The key is how you react and handle these unpleasant surprises. When this battle is done… I won’t lie to you. You will never be the same again. Things will change. But you’ll be better men for it. Better witches. Of that I can be certain.”
“I’ll never let this happen again. Ever,” stated Charlie. He looked at Michael.
“I’m with you.”
“This is more than anyone should have to handle,” Jack lamented. “And I cannot promise this battle will be the biggest, or the hardest you’ll ever fight. Always stick together, no matter what.” He stopped, struggling to continue. “I’m so proud of you. Both of you. You’ve grown into the men I always knew you’d be.”
Charlie let the rage go. Resolve and focus returning. In a few blinks, he sank into his human form again. His naked human form. Something he didn’t notice or care about in that moment.
Lizzy had taken over filling the doorframe and turned back into the kitchen. She didn’t look, or say anything when Charlie came inside and headed upstairs to get dressed. He stopped just at the foot of the stair and called back to the kitchen.
“Lizzy, will you call Mack, please. Tell her we’re almost ready.”
“Okay.”
“Let’s get packed up,” Charlie told everyone.
Michael took a focused breath and followed his father inside.
Jack caught Lizzy just before she dialed the Mack line.
“Thank you for your help,” he told her. “I’ve misjudged you Lizzy Deane, and for that, I am sorry.”
“It’s not the first time around here,” she spoke flatly. “I don’t hold it against you.”
“You’re very gracious. Not a quality you see often enough anymore.”
“Gracious is not what I’m feeling right now,” professed Lizzy. She dialed the Mack line. The sheriff answered right away.
“What happened?” Mack questioned immediately.
Lizzy faltered for a moment. “Something that’s required us to move up the timeline a little. Are you ready?”
“Just give the word.”
“Then light up the sky, Mack. We’re going in.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Riley had awakened after being knocked unconscious by the Feyk and was kneeling in front of Melinda. She was bound, closely guarded, and sitting on the pyre in front of William. She listened for any sign of life, but heard nothing. Not a groan. Not a raspy breath. No indication he was still with her.
No more tears streamed down her face, she had none left.
“I have to kill him,” explained Riley, calmly. “It’s the only way we can be together and for you to forget all about him.”
Melinda didn’t bother begging. Or arguing. Riley, the real Riley, wasn’t home. She just stared into his vacant eyes, giving up. Resigned to William’s demise. Resigned to her own demise.
Riley got to his feet. “It’s almost over now. In just a few minutes, it will be like the vampire never existed.” He strolled away from her, spinning around, a fireball forming in his hand.
“I’m with you, William,” Melinda whimpered, hoping he could still hear her, and she could offer some comfort in his final moments. Over four-hundred years of life, over a hundred serving the Howards and this is how his life would end... it didn’t seem fitting or fair.
Eva strode over the wooded shoulder down into the gully. “Hey Boys,” she called out, getting the Feyk’s attention. “Stricker requests your presence.” She stepped over to Melinda. “He wants you to bring her.” She pulled Melinda off the pyre and pushed her towards the direction of the old tree.
“Hey, stop that,” shouted Riley, his anger surfacing again.
“You know what?” toyed Eva. “You guys go ahead. Tell Stricker I’ll bring his leverage along in a few minutes. I think we’ll stay and let rager over here finish off the vamp. I’m sure Melinda doesn’t want to give up her front row seat.”
The Feyk roared in demonic laughter as they exited, leaving Eva alone with Riley and Melinda.
The moment had finally come. No more stalling.
Riley would kill William. But she didn’t have to make it easy for them.
Melinda stubbornly refused to turn and move when Eva nudged her.
She wouldn’t go willingly.
Eva shoved her harder and Melinda fell over, unable to maintain her balance. It hurt and she winced, biting her lip.
Before Eva knew what hit her, Riley had flung himself on her like a mad man. “I told you to leave her alone! She’s mine!” He pinned Eva on the ground, sitting on her back, banging her head against the hard earth, repeatedly.
Eva may have been on the mend, but she still wasn’t quite up to speed yet. She tried to shift, shouting profanities when she remembered she could not. With a ferocious snarl, she pushed up against the ground, throwing herself and Riley into the air.
She landed on her feet, but the expulsion of energy drained her and she staggered. Riley’s head pounding took a quick toll as the vampire blood wasn’t quite out of her veins yet.
Riley stared her down, his molasses eyes taking on an untamed wildness. He ran straight for her. She lunged into the air, grabbing hold of a branch in the tree overhead, letting go and dropping on him when he reached the spot she’d been.
They crashed to the ground. Eva straddled him, looking smug.
She reached down to strangle him but he swiped at her, grasping her arms. He forced them out to her sides and pushed her off him. His rage empowered him, making him much stronger than he was normally. His shove shot her into the tree trunk with great force.
Eva got to her feet, but with difficulty, and fell a moment later cursing when she realized she was going to pass out.
Riley breathed heavily, staring her down. Satisfied she was unconscious and on the ground, he spun, his wild gaze on Melinda.
She gasped, holding her breath when he approached her, kneeled down, and removed the tie from her hands, unbinding her.
Was Riley back? Had the spell worn off?
“Are you hurt?” he asked her. He wiped a dribble of blood off her chin from where she’d bitten her lip.
“Riley?” she questioned, her voice uncertain.
When he looked at her, it was obvious he was still not himself. The spell had not been removed, but for some reason he’d been compelled to free her.
I’m free of my bonds… I can use magic again…
She had little feeling in her arms, but adrenaline burst to life inside her.
Did she try to knock him out? Did she free Lucas and Emily from the cage? What about William? Poor, suffering William? And her family was about to walk into a trap...
She raised her arm, her palm facing Riley.
Her spell hit him head on
, sending him flying backwards where he thudded hard against the ground. It didn’t knock him out, but knocked the wind out of him. She wanted to feel bad about it, but for some reason, she did not.
Melinda made her way to William’s pyre and started to climb. It wasn’t easy, and she nearly fell, her limbs weak and not cooperating. William groaned as she got closer. She ignored the smell. She ignored his charred, flayed skin and searched for his bonds.
They were barely even holding him up. They’d been burnt as badly as him.
William was so weak, he could do nothing with his own body but hang there in complete agony.
“I’m sorry,” Melinda cried. “You’re already in so much pain… this is really going to hurt.” There wasn’t any way around it. She could not carry him.
She put her palm against his bonds and used magic to cut them.
William’s body collapsed atop her own. He was too heavy for her to lift and they toppled down the pyre to the ground.
Melinda could not fathom how excruciating it had to be for him.
The only sound escaping William’s lips was a thick, coarse breath.
Melinda got to her knees and crawled to him. She reached out and put her wrist against his lips.
“Are you fucking serious?” a voiced accused from behind her. Riley was back on his feet again.
“Don’t make me hurt you, Riley. Stay back,” she warned.
“You’re going to let him drink you. I can’t allow that.” Riley lifted his arms, a fireball forming.
This close, Riley’d hit William for sure. And her.
She could not allow that.
She raised her palm to blast Riley again, wondering how many blasts his body would take before permanent damage was done. She closed her eyes and did it anyway. This time, Riley hit the ground harder, landing near the still unconscious Eva.
Melinda turned back to William.
She placed her wrist on his flaking lips and pushed gently, telling him to drink.
“Refusal isn’t an option.”
“No,” he exhaled.
“Don’t speak,” she said, unable to think about the misery this act caused him.
Bite Me Baby! (Wicked Good Witches Book 7) Page 6