On Wicked Ground (Solsti Prophecy Book 4)

by Kay, Sharon

  Would Gin know if the Solsti had fertile times? She was a scientist, after all. The need for answers, plus her trust in her sister, pushed Alina to ask. “So, you know how Lash demons are fertile now?” She dropped onto the soft grass by a large oak tree.

  “Yeah?” Gin arched an eyebrow and sat next to her.

  “What about us?”

  “Us? I don’t know. I’m not sure if anyone knows.”

  “Hmm. I keep replaying the old stories in my mind, but I can’t remember if the previous Solsti had children.” Alina pulled a blade of grass from the ground and toyed with it.

  “Why do you ask?” A dying-of-curiosity grin played across Gin’s face. “Oh my god. Are you—?”

  “No!” Alina twisted the grass. “I mean, I don’t know. We…forgot to use a condom.”

  Gin’s jaw dropped. “Oh. My. God. Are you excited? Scared? What did he say?”

  “Yes to both, and he said he’d take care of me. Of us, if that’s how it turns out. But it’s too soon to tell.”

  “Oh my god, this is so exciting!” Gin whisper-squealed.

  “Don’t tell anyone. Not yet.” Alina bit her lip. “Well, I know you can’t keep it from Mathias.”

  “Nope, not a chance. Hey!” Gin sat up straighter. “I bet he can help you find out!”

  “How?” Alina scrunched her nose.

  “He has better hearing and a better sense of smell. Maybe he’ll be able to detect a heartbeat even when it’s teeny tiny. Or maybe he can detect a change in your normal scent. Or you could ask Ashina. I’m sure she’d keep it quiet.”

  Alina nodded. “You’re right.”

  Gin beamed. “I want to jump up and run around in circles. But I’ll be on my best behavior.” Curiosity lit her eyes. “So, it looks like things are good between you two. And I would have said that even before I knew you were potentially having a baby.”

  “Ha, ha.” Alina smiled. “Well, we like hanging out.”

  “He seems to adore you. He looks at you like you’re the only woman in the room.”

  Maybe a part of her had noticed that as well, but didn’t want to admit it even in her thoughts. Did she want that? That was a question she couldn’t answer and shouldn’t even ask. A sharp, brief pain lurched in Alina’s chest. “It probably has something to do with the time of year,” she murmured lamely.

  “Nope. If that’s all it was, his eyes would roam every unmated female’s body. But he only looks at you.” Gin’s tone was light and teasing and she had no idea how it was tearing a hole in Alina’s heart.

  “I wish he wouldn’t.” She cleared her throat to stifle a crack in her voice. “I’m not the right one for him.”

  “What? How do you know?” Gin swatted a mosquito away from her arm. “You just met, right?”

  “Yes.” Alina dropped her head into her hands. “It’s complicated.”

  “What’s complicated if you enjoy being together?” Gin asked. “Wait, do you have someone else? Does he?”

  “No.” A sudden need to confide everything in her sister crashed over her. So far, no one who hadn’t witnessed the regression spell knew about the price of her healed heart. A heart that hurt right now, acutely so, as the day’s events replayed in her mind. She and Caine made a good team, damn it. A team that could only exist to—

  “Alina? What is it?” Gin was entirely too perceptive.

  “I can’t fall in love.” Alina pushed the words out in one quick breath, then peeked at Gin.

  Her sister’s eyes narrowed. “What? You…don’t want to?

  “No.” Alina let out a huge breath. “I can’t.”

  Gin’s brows furrowed in confusion. “Why not? Who’s going to stop you?”

  Alina swallowed. “You know that the earth healed me.”

  “Yeah. Which totally blows my mind, and any scientific theory ever known to man. But yeah…what about it?”

  “You guys don’t know the whole story. Only my dad and Ashina and the witches.” Alina took a deep breath and explained the claim placed on her healed heart.

  “Oh…my…” Gin stopped and just stared at Alina. “Why…how…” She shook her head. “I don’t even know what to say. I’m so sorry.”

  “At least I found out, before I got too close.” Alina rubbed her exhausted eyes.

  “No.” Gin shook her head, dark hair swinging around her shoulders. “I don’t buy that. If you two are meant for each other, you can’t push him away. Especially if you turn out to be pregnant. He probably won’t leave your side.” Gin turned to face her. “I just don’t think you can stop the feelings. It’d be like trying to stop a freight train.”

  “That’s why I made a promise to myself to watch over him. He deserves a woman who can give herself completely to him. So, until he finds her, I’ll make sure he’s safe.”

  Gin sighed. “If you two have a baby, your lives will always be connected. And if you’re taking care of a child, that’s who your priority will be. Not Caine, as much as you’d like him to be. I’m sorry if that sounds cold. And I’m guessing he doesn’t know about this?”

  “No. And I don’t want him to know.”

  Gin stared at her for a minute. “If the roles were reversed, wouldn’t you want to know why someone you wanted was pushing you away?”

  “Yes. But I’m not pushing him away—”

  “Not yet. But what if he wants more? You can’t tell him no and then hang around doing whatever you plan to do to watch over him. And a kid.” Gin shook her head. “One thing I know about these guys is they are stubborn and perceptive. If you’re anywhere near him, your scent will give you away and he’ll come find you. Then you’re going to have even more explaining to do.”

  “What am I supposed to do? He deserves more than I can give him.” Alina’s shoulders sagged.

  “Maybe there’s a way around it?”

  “Maybe. I was too overwhelmed to ask.”

  “We have to find out.” Gin’s voice took on a note of excited determination.

  “What, just ask Whysper if she can counteract the power of the earth?” Alina huffed out a breath.

  “Why not? I haven’t seen much of Torth, but I know some witches are incredibly powerful. Let’s go find Whysper.” Gin stood. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that there’s always another way. Sometimes it’s just really hard to find.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  BROOKE’S DREAMSCAPE SHIFTED FROM BLACK and white into vivid color, images distorting and then coming back into focus. A small cottage on a bluff near the sea stood burning. Green-skinned demons stalked along a wavering magic perimeter around the front yard, snarling, fangs elongated and glinting.

  The air seemed to shift like a mirage, and where it wavered it gave off huge bursts of power. The demons could see through it to the center of the circle, to the one who maintained it through the force of her mind. Wind whipped through the small yard.

  Within the circle stood a petite silver-haired woman. Rosa. Brooke knew this in the way that dreamers simply understand facts about their dreams, without explanation. The witch’s flowing blouse and skirt were sooty, as was her face, which was pulled into a severe concentrated scowl.

  Rosa extended her hand and a flash of light pulsed in her palm, bouncing over the barrier to explode above three green-skinned demons. Their heads resembled those of snakes and Brooke instinctively knew they were Viper demons, though she had never seen one in person.

  The Vipers bellowed, but in one second they fell to the ground. Rosa turned toward another group of demons outside the barrier. This group had wings and grotesque distorted faces. The color drained from the dream, leaving Brooke only black and white images. The demons’ mouths were moving calmly, almost methodically. A spell? Suddenly a gap tore in the barrier. The winged demons poured in.

  Rosa’s eyes widened, then she raised her hands and began her own spell. The demons drew closer. A burning beam cracked free of the roof behind her and, borne on the gale, it sailed toward Rosa and the demon
s. Closer—

  “No!” Brooke screamed aloud, shooting upright in bed.

  “Sprite.” Kai’s strong arms held her. “It’s okay, baby. I’ve got you.”

  Brooke buried her face in the warm muscles of his chest. “Kai,” she gasped. “It was Rosa.” Her heart crashed against her ribs. Dread expanded through her limbs now that consciousness was taking over. This dream couldn’t mean anything good. “She was in trouble.”

  Kai sifted his fingers through her hair. “Rosa? Don’t think I’ve ever seen her in trouble.”

  “I know.” Brooke pulled back to gaze into her mate’s chocolate brown eyes. Kai’s love and concern poured through their bond, soothing her erratic pulse and calming her mind. “She can take memories, conjure food, zap herself around the realm, but…” Brooke shook her head. “She was under attack. Her house was on fire and different demons were clustered around.”

  “Was she alone? No one helping her?”

  “No one. She had one of those magic barriers, the ones where the air sort of looks like a mirage.” She sent him a mental image of the one she’d seen before. One she’d been trapped in, and that had been conjured by a powerful spell caster.

  “Ah, hell.” He gave her a quick kiss. “Okay, if she created that, that’s a pretty good defensive tactic.”

  “That’s the thing. Someone as strong as her should never be on the defensive. And the demons said a spell and broke through it.”

  Kai held her gaze as she described the demons who had changed the spell. “Shit. Ghazsul demons. What happened next?”

  “She was saying a spell back at them, but…” Brooke stopped trying to explain and sent him more mental images instead. She drew comfort from Kai, and also the calm, tactical logic of his warrior’s mindset. He was always there to dissect the details, to organize the snippets of action that flashed through her subconscious all too briefly. Her dreams, wild and vivid and frightening in their intensity, were prophetic.

  Rosa was the one who had discerned this fact about her.

  It wasn’t always clear if the dreams were literal or metaphorical, but the underlying warning was true. Brooke looked into Kai’s rugged, handsome face. “Why would different demon groups attack Rosa?”

  “I think the fact that it was two different groups who don’t get along, both attacking her, tells us exactly what we need to know,” Kai said grimly. “Elegia.”

  “Elegia would be threatened by Rosa, I guess. Maybe by any powerful witch. Any powerful creature in general,” Brooke mused. “Why not convert her? Dose her with lily extract?”

  “Maybe that’s what they were trying to do. Burning her house meant they forced her out,” Kai muttered. “Or maybe they knew the extract wouldn’t work, so they simply want to kill her.”

  “We have to warn her,” Brooke said. The witch was full of mysteries and reportedly didn’t take sides, but she had helped Brooke and Kai in the past. In fact, Rosa had met with Nicole and with Gin too, separately, and had provided encouragement if not outright aid. The sisters considered her an ally, even if their mates all regarded her with a healthy dose of wariness.

  “Agreed.” Kai shoved a hand through his short blond hair. “We just need to find her. Let’s start with the Elders.”

  “What?” Elegia snarled at Baul. “How can the coordinates be the same? This looks nothing like where we were last night.” Last night, they’d clearly been on the side of a mountain, with sloping hills and pines whispering softly in the wind.

  Tonight she stared angrily at a thick forest of deciduous trees covering flat land. An owl hooted and a raccoon’s tail flashed as it darted into a bolt hole. Probably sensed Razor and knew it would become dinner if it didn’t hide. “Check your device,” she ordered Baul. “I know we’re coming in from a different direction but still, the terrain can’t be that different. We were on a goddamn mountain!”

  “Yes, my queen. I’ll double check.” Baul busied himself with his phone, typing rapidly.

  “You.” She turned to the witch. She could never remember their names. They all looked the same to her: long hair and an expression that said they knew more than she did. The attitude used to piss her off, until she had a nice number of them addicted to her lily extract and eager to share their skills in whatever way Elegia wanted.

  This witch didn’t seem too old, but one could never tell with supernatural species. She turned toward Elegia but didn’t look her in the eye. Smart female. “Yes, my lady?”

  “Find out if magic is being used here. Any wards or concealment spells, anything at all. Then find out how to get through it.” She folded her arms over the many folds of her hooded cloak.

  The witch nodded and knelt in the soft dirt. She wore a cloak exactly like Elegia’s, with the hood pulled up. Her face was completely obscured as she pulled items from a leather pouch at her side.

  Leaving her to her work, Elegia stalked to her other companions on this journey, her two Serus guards. “Mendel,” she said to the nearest one, “show the pillowcases to the hound.”

  Mendel nodded and produced the two pieces of cloth. He extended his hand slowly toward Razor. The canine sniffed cautiously at first, then drew a deeper breath of each one. His nostrils flared and crimson eyes glowed bright with understanding. His huge jaws parted, he panted, and a line of saliva dribbled down onto the forest floor.

  Elegia pulled her hood farther down over her hair and waited. She had a lab full of high tech equipment, the brains to recreate the exacting needs of a once-extinct plant, and fifty thousand soldiers at her disposal. Yet she couldn’t find one vampire and one fae? Anger bubbled in her chest and she willed her mind to clear.

  Razor stamped a huge paw on the ground and lowered his wide nose. His breath huffed out, noisy and snorting, as he tracked something. He prowled ahead, nose down, moving faster—

  With a startled chuff, he stopped and skidded back a few inches. He shook his head, then proceeded forward again, only to repeat his halting movement.

  Elegia didn’t take her eyes off her hound. “Witch, what have you found?”

  “There is a barrier, my queen. It’s…it’s stronger than anything I’ve ever seen. I don’t know who has the ability to create such a thing.” The witch’s voice was panicked.

  As she should be. “You’re one of my oldest witches and you don’t know what’s blocking us?”

  “No, my queen, I-I’m so sorry. This is far beyond my skills.”

  Razor, rebuffed again, stood staring into the trees that he couldn’t seem to reach. He let out a piercing, ominous howl and pawed the dirt.

  “Mendel, go.” Elegia pointed in Razor’s direction.

  He nodded and jogged forward, and was stopped in the same way as Razor.

  Abruptly, her second Serus guard whirled to look up somewhere behind their group. “My queen, I believe we are being watched.”

  “What?” Alarm shot up her spine.

  “I heard a distinct whirring noise followed by a click. I strongly believe it is a camera, my lady.” The guard’s expression was sincere, his tone urgent.

  He was also one of her better trackers and she had no reason to doubt his superior hearing. A security camera and a heavy concealment spell? She hadn’t brought a large enough group to take on whoever lived around here.

  Goddamn it. That was a detail she’d figure out from the safety of her lair. “Everyone, regroup. We’re going back to the mountains. Now.” Everyone jumped to encircle her except Razor, who still snarled at what he couldn’t see. Elegia gave a shrill whistle and he turned to her.

  If it was possible for a dog to have a facial expression, he would have looked conflicted. “We’ll come back for them, Razor. Come now.”

  He trotted over and pushed close to her.

  “Witch, take us home,” Elegia ordered. Though she sensed they were so very close to something big, and to Sebastian and the female, she also knew not to underestimate her enemies. A lifetime of discrimination, of hiding from creatures who judged her based on
her species, had taught her that. Know your enemies, know their weaknesses, and outsmart them.

  Then defeat them.

  “Did you hear something?” Alina asked, looking around the huge training yard.

  “Yeah, an animal,” Gin said. “Like a wolf, maybe.”

  Alina frowned as a disconcerting feeling crawled up her spine. Well, the nights on Torth were full of nasty scary creatures, so who knew what lurked beyond the magic barrier of Arawn’s grounds. Ashina had assured her nothing could get through it, and she believed her. Still… “Let’s go inside.”

  They stood and headed toward the door. Fire bulbs winked on as they neared, and blinked off behind them. The air was moderate, as it always was in this part of Torth. The realm had no seasons. Whatever a region had for weather was simply the way it always was year-round.

  “I’m excited to talk to Whysper. I’ve only met her in passing,” Gin said as they stepped inside the building.

  “Do you think she’s still awake? It’s pretty late.” Alina glanced down at her clothes. “And I still haven’t showered. Ugh. I seriously need to do that before we talk to anyone.”

  Gin gave a low chuckle. “You’re right. If I had gotten sucked into the ground and then cracked it open to get myself out, I’d want a shower too.” She pointed Alina toward the rotunda. “I’ll walk you there and we can talk.”

  “Good because I’m totally turned around in this place.” Plus, she wanted more time with her sister. “You said you studied science?”

  “Yes, agricultural science. Soil and water, specifically.”

  “So, you might be able to understand whatever Elegia did to the flower?”

  Gin blew out a breath as they walked into the rotunda. “I wish. I did more water purification than gene splicing. And I bet she used a decent amount of magic too. Hey, Ana.”