Raising Hell

by Sharon Hannaford

  “Flora,” she called again. This time she allowed the essence of her wolf to colour her voice, the feeling of protectiveness and of family to flow from her.

  Flora stiffened.

  Trish moved a step forward, closing the distance between them.

  Ten feet.

  Nine feet.

  Flora dragged her gaze from the pit and looked at Trish.

  “This is over,” Trish told her.

  Eight feet.

  “We can go home. Please, come home with us.”

  Flora frowned, and her eyes were drawn back to the blackness.

  “They must pay,” she said, speaking for the first time. Her voice was rough and deeper than Trish had ever heard it. It was also emotionless, dead, and it made Trish shiver. “They have done horrible things. They deserve to be punished. I must punish them.” She turned slightly and lifted a hand, her eyes focusing on Julius’s wall of flames and the people inside the circle. Her eyes narrowed and her mouth pinched in anger as she flicked her fingers, and the circle of flame was broken. A section of the circle had simply ceased to exist, as though doused in water. The gap was wide enough to reveal the four individuals huddled together, sweat glistening on their faces, fear in their eyes.

  “No,” Trish breathed, trying to keep the horror from her voice. The two younger women inside the flames had fallen to their knees. The man had the look of one resigned to death. The woman, the Vampire, just looked pissed.

  Trish pulled her attention away from them; they weren’t important right now.

  Seven feet.

  “Not you, not like this,” Trish continued. She had to stay strong and firm.

  Six feet.

  “I am the one they took. I am the one they thought to control,” Flora thundered. “I am the one who can strike them down. And I will.”

  “It will change you.” Trish lowered her voice. “It will make you something—”

  “Evil?” Flora finished, shifting her detached gaze back to Trish. The coldness of the look almost broke Trish’s heart.

  “No, honey, you could never be evil.” Trish shook her head, holding Flora’s gaze. “And that is the crux of it all. If you touch this power, if you open yourself to what it offers, you will forever be at war with yourself. You will be condemning yourself to a life of conflict and misery.”

  Another step, she could almost touch the girl.

  “I don’t want that.” Trish could hear the tears in her own voice. “I couldn’t bear to see that.”

  The raised hand that had spread wide, keeping Julius’s flames at bay, twisted and clenched. There was a strangled scream as one of the women began crawling forward on her hands and knees, her face contorted in agony, tears running freely down her face.

  “You won’t need to see it,” Flora ground out. “I don’t need you. I will travel my own path.”

  One last step. “You may not need us, but we need you.” Trish had no idea what else to say. “We love you; you are family. We will never leave you to suffer on your own. We will always be there for you, no matter what.” She prayed with everything inside her that she wouldn’t be forced to watch Julius, Tabari and Athena find a way to subdue this precious girl, a daughter of her heart.

  “Even if I do this?” Time slowed. Trish’s wolf filled her mind; she saw the tiny muscle contractions in Flora’s hand, the slight widening of her pupils, heard the minute increase in the speed of her heart rate. And the woman on the ground screamed.

  Without thought Trish’s hand whipped out, fastening on Flora’s delicate wrist, staying the motion.

  “Trish,” she said sharply, not looking at her foster mother, “take your hand off me. Take everyone and leave. I will finish this.”

  “I can’t,” Trish said simply. “How would I face Breanna?” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “I made her a promise.”

  For the first time there was a flicker of uncertainty in Flora’s brown eyes.

  Trish pressed on, ignoring the keening cry of the woman still crawling towards them. “She misses you so much. Do you know she knew you were in trouble? Before any of us realised it, she knew.”

  A muscle ticced in Flora’s jaw, and she blinked, dropping her gaze for a split second.

  Trish gentled her grip on Flora’s wrist. “She has cried herself to sleep every night you’ve been gone.” The woman’s loud cries reduced to broken whimpers. “You know what Breanna is. You know what this is, this dark prophesy,” Trish pressed on. “You can choose a side. Right now. You have to make a choice. And if you choose this road, there’s no going back. Please come home with us.” Trish had no more words; it was now up to Flora. She was confident she had reached the gentle caterpillar inside this glorious, powerful new butterfly, but she couldn’t be sure which side would win the ultimate battle.

  Behind them the sounds of fighting had quietened, there were a few groans and some shouted orders, but Trish knew the Hunters were in control. The shadowy figures of Athena and Tabari still hovered worriedly nearby. The fire to her right still crackled fiercely, the heat beginning to warm the stone beneath her boots, while the pit to her left still spewed dark, insidious energy in Flora’s direction. But none of that mattered. The only thing that mattered was the emotion in the velvet brown eyes that held her own. The emotion that was bleeding back into them, softening them as the tension began to drain from the girl’s slender body. The clawlike rigidity of the hand that had reached towards the Vodun woman relaxed, and Trish released her. Flora’s hand returned to her side, and she seemed to deflate, her shoulders sagging, the effects of her ordeal setting in.

  Trish took the final step and pulled the girl into a hug, gently wrapping warm arms around her as relief coursed through her, almost turning her limbs to rubber.

  An inhuman yowl was the only warning Trish had before something warm and solid hit her left knee, half-spinning her off balance. She gripped onto Flora, confused, but instantly protective of the girl in her embrace. There was a roar of warning from someone in the shadows, and then pain blossomed in Trish’s back, just above her left shoulder blade. She gasped in shock as Flora pulled back and looked at her with panicked eyes. Together they turned to see Deshane standing framed by Julius’s flames, the movement of the Patrium’s dark, insidious energy reflected in the starkness of his eyes.

  Whatever had struck Trish was still in her body. It felt like some kind of blade, and the pain was beginning to radiate outward in agonising pulses. She gritted her teeth and spun back to Flora. She couldn’t lose her now, not after everything.

  “I’m okay,” she tried to whisper, but the words didn’t quite come out. Her knees began to give way as she heard the man speak.

  “Kill me, girl,” he taunted. “You know you want to. You have to. I may have missed her heart, but that wasn’t just a blade, it was tipped with poison. She will die in agony.”

  “No,” Trish tried to shout. No, no, no, no. The word ran through her mind as the world grew dark around her, and she felt hands grip her waist.

  “She won’t have to.” Kyle’s voice was barely recognisable, but her failing mind knew it was him. There was an almost cry, but it was cut off by a sickened crunch and then a dull thud.

  “Angel, angel, hang in there. We’ll fix this.” They were the last words Trish heard as a haze of mind-wrenching pain claimed her and someone screamed.

  Kyle had rounded the huge wall of Julius’s fire to see Trish with one hand gripping Flora’s wrist. Her hand was reaching towards one of the women who should have been contained inside the flame circle. The woman was crawling towards the Patrium on her hands and knees, clearly in distress. Flora’s gaze flicked back to Trish. Her eyes were cold and merciless, making Kyle’s breath catch in his throat and stopping him in his tracks. This was not Flora, not their Flora.

  Trish was talking, tears glistening in her eyes as she spoke. Kyle began to move closer, trying to keep to the shadows, but also to keep watch on the woman who had somehow escaped Julius’s fiery prison.

/>   He noticed the gap in the wall of flame, a gap Flora must have created. He didn’t think Julius would even know his wall had been breached. The Vampire and all the others were still on the far side, finishing off the last of the shadow warriors and checking the cavern for others.

  He glanced back at the woman standing on the dais, and he could see the change come over Flora. He could see the moment Trish’s words sank in, and the very second she made her decision. The tension fell from the girl’s shoulders, and her entire expression softened. The noises coming from the Vodun woman quieted, and then Flora was engulfed in Trish’s hug.

  A rush of air and a dark wisp of shadow to the left suddenly caught Kyle’s attention, and his wolf responded with a low growl, but when he tried to lock onto what had caused it, there was nothing to see. He spun to search the red-tinged cave, determined to find the source of the disturbance, when a distinct yowl split the air. He knew that sound, it was Razor’s battle cry. His battle axe was raised, and he was running in its direction before he even knew what was happening, leaping onto the rock dais.

  Time slowed down; he saw the dark blade leave Deshane’s hand as Razor ploughed into Trish’s left leg, knocking her aside. A desperate roar left his mouth as the dagger hit Trish’s shoulder. Athena’s and Tabari’s shouts echoed from the other side of the dais. Kyle couldn’t see Trish’s face, but he could see Flora’s as she gripped onto Trish, clearly confused. And then her eyes found Deshane, and the Boko began to speak, a cruel smugness in his expression. He was taunting her, telling her to kill him, knowing what it would achieve and prepared to make the sacrifice. Trish’s body was reacting to the pain, but she was desperately trying to regain Flora’s attention. The girl’s eyes had already gone flat with fury, her mouth drawing into a thin line.

  If Kyle hadn’t been so close, the Boko might just have got his way. But Kyle was that close; the axe was already raised. His head came off with one brutal blow; it was better than the man deserved.

  “Secure the others,” he yelled at Tabari, already rushing to Trish and Flora. The Vodun priestess was holding his Luna and staring at him with rage-filled eyes. The dark murky tongues of energy spewing from the Patrium had doubled in size and were licking closer to Flora as the dogs in the cage suddenly began to bay.

  And then Trish screamed.

  “She needs you, Flora.” It was taking everything Kyle had to not grab his Luna away from her and run. His wolf howled, scrabbling at his mind with teeth and claws. “He’s dead, and Trish needs you. You can save her. You made the choice once, I saw you, you can make it again.” He was trying to keep from yelling, trying to keep his voice calm, but his fear and anguish were leaking through. Just a short while ago he’d watched his best friend in the world lying in a pool of her own blood, had heard her heart stop beating, had seen the light go out of her eyes. It had nearly broken him. Losing his Luna would finish the job. “Flora,” he tried one last time, determined to reach her. “Now, before it’s too late.” He was vaguely aware of Athena approaching from the right. “Help her.”

  Flora suddenly closed her eyes, purposefully turning her face away from the beckoning energy of the Patrium, and drew in a harsh breath. Her arms fastened more strongly around Trish’s spasming body, and when she opened her eyes again, Flora was back. In an instant Kyle was taking Trish’s weight from her.

  Athena rushed forward, her face composed, but her eyes betraying her concern.

  “Let’s get away from that,” she told them, pointing at the Patrium as Kyle lifted Trish into his arms. “Don’t try to heal her through the Alpha bond,” Athena warned through clenched teeth. “That could be very dangerous. We don’t know what this poison is capable of; it could take down the entire Pack.”

  Kyle had been preparing himself to do just that, if nothing else than to help relieve her pain.

  “I’m serious, Alpha.” Athena touched his arm. “Let us do this for her.”

  As he carried her off the dais, he had to brace himself against the agony of her screams as the poison bled through her system.

  Even harder was laying her down on the cold, hard ground and backing away so that Flora and Athena could work on her. It could have been seconds or hours later that her screams calmed to whimpers, and Kyle became aware of Gabi’s hand in his, offering silent support. He immediately released his grip, aware that he’d probably fractured something in her hand.

  “I think she’s over the worst,” Gabi murmured and took a step forward, tugging him with her.

  Athena and Flora gently removed their hands from her body, Athena’s from her head and Flora’s from right over her heart, and sat back. Trish’s heartbeat was strong and regular; her breathing was calm like someone asleep.

  “The poison is negated; her body will do the rest. She’ll come around when she’s ready,” Athena told him. She looked pale but relieved.

  Flora looked up at Kyle, but it was clear she was finding it hard to meet his gaze.

  Wordlessly he held out his hand to her. It took her several seconds, but finally she put her hand in his and allowed him to pull her into a hug. As he allowed her tears to soak into his shirt, he took in the scene around them. Gabi was nursing her left hand a little as she tucked her balled-up jacket under Trish’s head.

  The cavern milled with bodies. Dogs were being led or carried away, bodies of fallen warriors were being moved to one side, and the two Vodun women who had been working with Deshane were sitting on the ground under heavy guard. Julius, Fergus and Tabari were conspicuous by their absence, and so was the Vampire Princep.

  ********************

  Trish roused from the relief of the nothingness to the pain of a sore throat and a headache straight from the pits of Hell itself. She cleared her throat and tried to sit up. She was disorientated; she remembered the stabbing pain in her back and then the agony of acid flowing through her veins, burning her cells, her nerves, her synapses.

  And then the blessing of the darkness.

  “Stay still, angel. We’re almost ready to leave.” Only Kyle called her angel. A hand appeared and brushed aside a tangle of hair from her forehead. It stayed for a moment as though checking her temperature. “She’s okay, just coming around.” Kyle clearly wasn’t talking to her.

  “What…” She had to swallow. “What’s happening? Where am…” Suddenly it all came flooding back. The cave, the knife in her back, Flora. “Flora?” She pulled away from Kyle’s restraining hands to sit up. “Where’s Flora? Kyle?”

  She was in the back of Kyle’s van, on the narrow bunk bed that filled one side.

  “I’m here, Trish.” Flora’s beautiful, if tired, face popped into view at the open van door. Right beside her Gabi’s face appeared as well. Her friend looked frazzled, wild curls of auburn escaping the bun at the back of her head, but a relieved smile lit her face.

  “You gave us all a scare,” Gabi told Trish. Razor’s furry face appeared at her knee, and Trish remembered the hit to her knee. The cat had probably saved her life. “Luckily the blade missed your heart, and we had an ace team of Vodun and Magi to deal with the poison.”

  Trish swung her legs off the bunk so that she sat facing everyone. There was no pain in her shoulder, though the spot where the knife had struck itched a little. She took a second to check on her wolf. Uncharacteristically the beast lay quiet in the back of her mind, relaxed and unperturbed as though she didn’t have a care in the world. Satisfied, she turned to look at Kyle. His forehead was still creased with worry. She reached out a hand to him.

  “I’m fine,” she assured him, “honestly. What’s happened? Is it all really over?”

  He took her hand in his, shifting to fold his lanky form onto the bunk beside her and wrapping an arm around her shoulders to pull her close.

  “It’s over,” he told her, resting his cheek against the top of her head. “The fighting was already over when…when Deshane…” He couldn’t finish the sentence, and Trish just squeezed his thigh in understanding. Her mate had had a ro
ugh night; watching both his best friend and his wife almost die had probably been worse than the silver-sickness he’d endured.

  “Athena and Flora worked together.” Gabi took up the story. “They were able to negate the poison in amazingly quick time.” She put an arm on Flora’s shoulder. “This young lady has many gifts.”

  Behind Gabi the sky was just beginning to lighten. Julius appeared at her shoulder, his face a mask of calm control, but Trish got the feeling he was just barely containing rage. The stormy emotions emanating from him made Trish bite her tongue. She would ask Kyle later for the grim details.

  “Everyone else has gone. We should get moving too,” Julius said. “A clean-up team will be here in a couple of hours to cover any tracks and remove the rest of the vehicles.”

  Taking a deep cleansing breath, Trish stood and climbed out of the van. Looking around, she realised they were back at the lower parking area. The other cars were gone except for one dark SUV. The sun was a sliver of fiery orange on the distant horizon. She took a moment to drink it in, the serenity and renewal of daybreak, as Flora came to stand at her left while Kyle warmed her on the right. Gabi and Julius stood entwined a few feet away, with Razor at their feet. They too watched the sunrise in silence. Trish knew that Julius would be able to withstand a few minutes of the early morning sun, but they would have to leave soon.

  Julius looked over, and his incredible blue eyes caught Trish’s. “Trish, you went above and beyond tonight. Gabi has always said that you have a spine of steel. She was absolutely right.”

  Gabi was grinning in what Trish could only think of as pride, and she felt her cheeks heat with embarrassment.

  “Go and get some rest now.” Julius glanced at Kyle. “We’ll debrief at the estate at sundown.”

  “Oh, that reminds me.” Trish suddenly felt very guilty as she looked at Gabi. “I…um…borrowed the McLaren to get here. It’s parked down at the tar. I do hope it’s still there; I left the remote inside it.” She felt awful.