I tilted the beer bottle up to my lips and let the cool liquid flow down my throat. Leaning back against the soft cushion, I thought about what he said and realized he was right. Each time had been getting easier. There were times where I thought she even recognized me.
"Well, thank you, Abram, for all your help. I didn't realize the voices were angels, but I knew they helped me find her and for that, I am indebted to you."
Abram's face went dark as he stared into space. His jaw clenched and I knew he was having a vision. I didn't know how long it would last, but it seemed to agitate him the longer it went on. As his hands turned into fists, I decided it was time for me to leave.
I set the beer down on the coffee table and stood. Abram shook his head as if clearing his vision. His face was paler than before and his face looked pained as he focused on me.
"I'm sorry about that. I get visions sometimes, and this one I didn't like," he said as he stood from his chair. "Callen, I know you are an honorable man and I know you will do anything for Heather. Trust me when I say I cannot tell you what I saw, but I need your help to ensure it doesn't happen."
"Anything, Abram. Whatever it is, tell me and I will do it."
"Never tell Heather any of this. Do not breathe a word of it to her. She doesn't need to know the sacrifice I'm willing to make for her."
"Of course. You have my word. What is it you need me to do?"
"Kill me," he said. "Make it swift so I won't feel much pain, but do it now. She needs this. We're doing this for her."
Present
I was thankful when the vision of my memory got cloudy, then dark. The last thing I wanted Heather to see was what I did next. Her knowing was bad enough.
Even in the darkness, I knew Heather was beside me. I squeezed her trembling hand and felt comfort when she squeezed back. The room slowly came back into view with Faith still kneeling in front of us but no longer holding our hands.
I turned to Heather, whose eyes were red with tears. With my free hand, I cupped her cheek and she leaned into my palm. She swallowed hard past a lump in her throat and tried to force a smile, but it only made the tears spill onto her cheeks.
I pulled her tight against me and wrapped my arms around her. She melted into my arms and cried. I kissed the top of her head and brushed the hair back from her face. Heather looked up at me and held up the ribbon that had been wrapped around our hands.
"I remember," she said. "I remember everything."
Chapter Twelve
Heather
I took a deep breath and dried my tears. Now wasn't the time to be sappy and sentimental. As I looked around me, I saw Ainsley and Bran together and remembered what was really important at that moment. We needed to do something to protect ourselves from Niall.
"So if I'm right, we can't defeat Niall," I said. "Gracelin needs to kill him."
"And that will never happen," Ainsley said sadly. "Despite how awful he was to her and her knowing he will never love her, she will not stop loving him."
"But then we're going to die," I said. "And I am not ready for that. I've done that way too many times. We need to get her here, now." I turned to Faith. "If she was able to bring you and Callen briefly to her, do you think you can summon her here?"
Faith smiled. "My niece Hannah is an expert at that," she said. "I'll get a hold of her and my sister Eliza and have them meet us."
"Meet us?" Callen said. "You can't do this here?"
"No, we need to be outdoors," Faith said. "Is there anywhere here that might attract Gracelin so we can bring her here faster?"
"No. She loves heather and it grows wild around her cottage," Ainsley said. "But I don't know anywhere around here that would have it."
"Pop's garden," I said. "He used it as a border around it. He said it was good luck to have so much purity." I left out the part where he said it reminded him of me.
"That's perfect," Faith said. "Let's get going now. It's best to do this in the moonlight."
***
When we arrived at my father's house, a beautiful woman with black hair stepped out of the car. She was just wearing jeans and a t-shirt, but somehow I couldn't take my eyes off her.
A motorcycle pulled up, driven by a man with sandy blond hair and a tight t-shirt that showed off his rippling muscles. His passenger was around my age but had long red hair a lot like Ainsley's, though it was not as wild. He helped her off the back of the bike then walked over to me. With a look in his eye like he knew me, he grinned and put his hand out to me.
"And so we meet again," the man said as his girlfriend joined him. "Hannah, this is Heather. I met Heather about six months ago when her asshole boyfriend left her on the side of the road."
I laughed "That was you? Caleb? Crazy naked man?"
"In the flesh. And it's such a small world here in Jersey that I'm here again if you need any help."
Callen stepped forward and gave Caleb a look, then stuck his hand out to him.
"You might not want to stay," Callen said. "Things could get rough here."
"If things are going to get rough, that's exactly why I would stay," Caleb said. "I'm not letting anything happen to my girl."
"Fair enough. I appreciate your help. I'm afraid we're going to need it," Callen said.
"Yes, like I said on the way here," Faith said as we walked to the back yard, "Since Gracelin and Niall are bonded, it's possible that when we conjure Gracelin that Niall will arrive, too.
We entered the backyard and Hannah gasped. "Oh, it's beautiful!" she said. She walked around the garden with her hand out, gently brushing the heather. "I think this is a perfect circle. I'd even bet your father had a reason for exactly where each of these plants are."
I nodded, thinking about Abram. I didn't miss him as much as before. Eventually I'd see him again, and I knew I'd hear his voice if I needed help.
"I'm going to cast a protection spell on the garden first. It should keep us safe," Faith said.
Faith, Hannah, and Eliza entered the garden. Hannah looked up and found the moon, then held out her hands for Faith and Eliza to hold. Hannah's lips moved but I couldn't hear what she said.
A chill filled the air and I folded my arms over my chest. Callen wrapped his arms around me.
Bran stood with his back towards Ainsley, holding his longsword high in front of him. He looked like he was ready for battle, and I knew that was how he felt. In just the short time of seeing him with her, I knew he would do anything for her. What they had was what my father said he wished for me and what I had with Callen.
The wind whipped past, howling through the trees. I looked back at the garden where the witches were at work when I noticed something glowing between them. I watched as it grew and once it filled the area inside their circle, it glowed so brightly I had to turn away.
The light disappeared and the yard was oddly quiet. I looked up, and Callen's green eyes met mine then looked towards the garden. A smile spread across his lips.
Still encircled by Faith, Hannah, and Eliza was an old woman in a black cloak. She was hunched over and her hood was up, covering her face. No one needed to tell me it was Gracelin.
A gust of wind kicked up and pushed Gracelin's hood back. She looked frightened for a moment, but as I watched, she changed. Red hair spilled out of the hood, and in the place of the old hag was a young woman. Her eyes were locked on something by the side of my father's house.
A shadow moved towards us, and then I saw him. Niall was much taller than I expected. Even taller than Callen and Bran. He had long blond hair that fell over his face. He had on a shirt that was the beige color of natural cotton and a navy tartan kilt.
Niall's face was frozen, emotionless. When he turned in the direction of Bran and Ainsley, he reached behind him and pulled out his heavy sword. His eyes flashed amber before turning to a glowing red.
Bran stepped back, pushing Ainsley out of the way. He held his sword high and planted his feet.
"Come on, ye bastard! You don't scare m
e," he said.
Ainsley moved to step alongside Bran, but Callen pulled his mother close then pushed us both into the garden.
"Stay here so I know where you are," he said.
Callen quickly undressed then changed into his wolf form. From the other side of the garden, a darker grey wolf appeared, bellowed a long howl, then stood alongside him. Hannah moved to step out of the garden, but Gracelin put her hand up to stop her.
"Niall holds no ill will towards your man," Gracelin said. "This is strictly about the clan's curse."
Gracelin stepped out of the garden. She squared her shoulders as she kept her eyes locked on Niall. He and Bran fought, but I could tell Niall was only toying with him.
"Leave them alone, Niall," Gracelin said.
Niall looked in her direction. His face contorted with pain, then his eyes glowed an even brighter red. Holding his sword upright, he swatted at Bran, causing Bran's sword to fall to the ground.
Bran's eyes flashed amber, but before he could change into his wolf form, another wolf pounced on Niall's back, surprising him. Niall turned and tilted his head as he looked at the wolf, then he started laughing.
"She will never be yours, Gavin," Niall said. "You will spend your days suffering. That is your lot in life."
Gavin shifted back to his human form and stared at Niall, unafraid.
"I was wrong to listen to you," Gavin said. "I should have never let you in. Heather deserves to be happy. I only wanted what I couldn't have."
"Fool," Niall said as he turned from Gavin with disgust.
Step out.
Are you kidding me? I thought, hearing my pop's voice. There was no way I was stepping out of the garden. I remembered every time I died. I wasn't going to willingly go through that. Especially not when Callen and I finally found each other.
Step out.
I sighed. Would my father tell me the wrong thing? No. He had to have his reasons.
As I stepped out of the garden, Ainsley tried to hold me back, but I pulled away from her.
"I have to do this," I said.
Ainsley stepped towards me, ready to join me outside the garden, but I pushed her back and shook my head. I didn't know what was going to happen, but I refused to be responsible for something happening to her.
"Please, stay in," I said.
Niall turned towards me as if finally seeing me and started laughing.
"Ahh, the pretty human," he said. "The most fragile of all. This will be fun."
Callen as the silver wolf attacked Niall, but he swatted him away as if he was a fly. The other wolves joined in, leaping and lunging at Niall, who pushed each of them away with ease, laughing every time.
I didn't know where to go or what to do. I waited to hear my father's voice again, but he said nothing. Niall grabbed me by the neck and lifted me into the air like a ragdoll. I pulled at his large hand, trying to free myself, but he was too strong.
His eyes continued to glow red, and he laughed as the wolves continued to rally against him in vain. Niall brought me closer, pressing his nose against mine. His eyes felt hot on my skin and I closed my eyes, not wanting to look into them.
Reach in. Reach in and pull the demon out.
Without thinking, I put all my faith in my father's words. I opened my eyes and pushed my fist towards Niall's chest, not knowing what to expect. My hand entered Niall and my eyes widened. Heat surrounded my hand as I felt something move away from me.
"No," Niall said.
He released his grip around my neck and I fell to the ground. But I wasn't afraid anymore. I pushed him like I did earlier and he froze on the spot. Looking up, I watched as his eyes changed from red to blue.
Heather.
I reached back inside of him and found what I was looking for, the demon. I yanked it out of Niall as he gasped. Then I spun around and threw the demon into the heather, knowing my father was saying the name of the flower.
A flash of white light consumed the demon. Ainsley stepped out of garden and wrapped her arms around me. Niall shrieked angrily and when I turned around, he was holding his sword up, ready to swing.
Everything went still. Niall collapsed to his knees, and for a moment I saw a smile spread across his face. He fell forward with Bran's sword stuck firmly in his back. Gracelin stood behind him in tears.
"He didn't leave me any choice. I had to choose who I love more," she said as she looked at Ainsley.
A golden glow overtook Niall, and his spirit rose from his body. He smiled as he saw Gracelin and bowed to her. From the heather, a woman who looked very similar to Gracelin stepped out with her hand outstretched to Niall.
"Rhianne, finally my love," Niall said.
Ainsley went over to Gracelin and held her close as she quietly cried. Niall took Rhianne's hand and together they disappeared into the heather.
As Callen shifted back to human form and pulled his pants on, I ran into his arms.
"Are you okay? You're shaking," he said as he stroked my hair.
I nodded, pressing my cheek against his strong chest as he held me tight against him. As the other men shifted back to their human forms and got dressed, everyone walked around to the front of the house.
Gavin, looking sheepish, walked over and took my hand. It was one of the first times I didn't feel like I needed to pull away from him.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I let my ego get in the way. After Niall left me, I realized what I had done, but I was too ashamed to return and apologize. When I heard Caleb's howl, I knew I needed to help and make things right."
"It's okay," I said. "I think we were all trapped in a vicious cycle. Fate played us, made us think certain things and do others. Hopefully the cycle, and the curse, is now broken."
"It is," Gracelin said quietly. "Ainsley and Bran and you and Callen will never be bothered by the the curse again. And now I need to return to the Otherworld. I've been away for too long."
Gracelin kissed and hugged Ainsley and Callen as they said their good-byes. Then Gracelin changed her appearance back to the hag, lifted her hood, and disappeared.
As everyone got into their cars, I couldn't help but think about what Gracelin said. She was very specific about us not being bothered by the curse, but what about the rest of Clan MacCulloch? If they were immortal, there had to be others that were still alive. What about them?
The sky lightened as the sun peeked up on the horizon. Callen waved to his parents as they left, then turned to give me a kiss. His lips were at first soft, but then more demanding.
I opened my mouth and his tongue entered, moving against mine. His hand moved roughly over my shirt, cupping my breast and making the nipple hard. I pulled him tightly against me, wanting to finally be alone with him. He picked me up and carried me towards the front door.
"Wait, Callen," I said.
"What is it? Am I rushing things?"
"No, that's not it at all. I just feel funny. That's my father's home."
Callen laughed and turned around. "Then I'll take you to our home," he said with a smile.
"Our home?"
"Yes, we built it after the first time I found you here in Leeds Point."
I was so tired that I almost fell asleep during the drive. Callen finally turned onto a long, winding road through the thick trees that opened up to a quiet village. As we drove past the village, large Victorian houses sat back from the street.
Callen turned into the driveway of a tan, Italianate Victorian with brick red accents. I smiled when I saw the old house. He was right, that was our home.
I entered the house and laughed, seeing everything exactly as I remembered it. I loved this house. And I loved all the others Callen and I owned together. They weren't all as grand as this one, but I didn't care. Callen and I could live in a shack and I'd still be happy. I just wanted to be with him.
I took Callen's hand and pulled him to the back porch. I opened the French doors and stepped outside. The rising sun glittered on the large lake behind the houses. Callen and I w
alked to the small pier at the edge of the lake.
One of my favorite memories was watching the sun set from the pier in Callen's arms. As if that memory was just yesterday, Callen stood behind me and slipped his arms over mine and hugged me against me.
"I love you so much, Heather," he whispered into my ear, sending goose bumps over my body.
"I love you too, Callen. I can say without a doubt that I loved you from the moment I first saw you. I just didn't realize we had spent so many lifetimes together then."
I released a long sigh as I leaned against him. As I stroked the muscular forearms that embraced me, everything was right and perfect. None of the gaps when we were apart mattered. I was finally with my one love and for the first time in many lifetimes, we would have our happily ever after.
Chapter Thirteen
Gracelin
I was back in the Otherworld, and nothing had changed. I didn't know why I thought freeing Bran and Callen from their clan's curse would make things different. Of course things were different, but only for them. Nothing had changed for me.
I clipped a large white lily from my garden. They were the only things I could get to grow, and I loved how they multiplied. Closing my eyes, I brought the lily close to my nose and breathed in its scent.
I was so consumed by the beauty of the flower and my love for Callen and Ainsley that I didn't notice the tremble of the earth beneath my feet at first. But as I entered the cottage and placed the lily in a pitcher of water, it became something I couldn't ignore anymore.
Boom.
I clutched my neck in surprise. Was it time already? I walked out of my home and through the heather towards the cliff and looked out at the glassy loch below. There was no breeze. The air was unmoving, and time stood still. I kept my eyes glued onto the lake as I waited. And waited.
Wolf at Her Door: BBW Paranormal Romance Page 12