Tala Prophecy: The Complete Series

by Tia Silverthorne Bach

  “It wasn’t. It was me.” He walked over to Reagan and motioned for her to take a seat on the nearby bench. She felt dazed. Her emotions were all over the place. Before she could voice her feelings, or completely realize them, he continued, “Rafe pulled Sam out of the tent first and ordered another one of his cronies to pull you out, but we were right on top of them. Rafe ran with Sam, and I attacked the idiot who had you. Scratching you was an accident, although I have a sneaky suspicion all it did was awaken what was already inside you.”

  “Enough!” Papa’s voice boomed in the room.

  Rowan stepped back and hung his head.

  “Dammit, Papa, stop trying to protect me.” Reagan stood. “I need to know everything. It’s time. Tell me!” She wanted to stomp her feet and throw a fit, to scream and yell until someone told her everything.

  “I promise I’ll tell you tonight, but first things first,” Papa said, turning his attention back to Rowan. “The video footage wasn’t helpful. We couldn’t make out the dark figure, although I have a good theory. It seriously injured two of our best guards without so much as a struggle. I’ve got a crew heading over to our other safe house with necessary supplies while another runs a decoy mission to keep possible threats off our trail.”

  “What do you need us to do?” Rowan asked.

  “Gather everyone. We’re going to head out as soon as everyone is ready.”

  “What about Cheveyo?” Reagan knew finding him was a priority.

  “Do we even know for sure where he is?” Ricardo asked.

  “No, but thanks to Jackie, I have better leads. Hopefully we’ll have some clearer answers soon.” Papa turned to Reagan before continuing, “Speaking of answers, I haven’t forgotten my promise.” He gave orders to Rowan, Madeleine, and Ricardo suggesting they meet in the front hall in two hours with the necessary supplies and weapons, before readdressing Reagan. “Come with me.”

  Each new room she encountered was more impressive than the last, and the library was no exception. Two walls were lined with sturdy wood bookshelves reaching at least twenty feet up and filled with leather-bound books. She couldn’t help but wonder how book lovers reached the highest shelves. A few mahogany desks with ball and claw legs, which stood out in their finery, filled the inner circle of the room. All in a cave.

  “It’s so sad we have to abandon this place.”

  “It’s only temporary. We’ll leave it locked down. They want what we’ll be taking with us,” Papa said as he led Reagan over to one of the desks. He reached inside and pulled out two books. Both were old with weathered burgundy leather and gold accented covers with gold-leaf pages. He opened the bigger of the two and began to read.

  “Ancient Power rises, unfolding in the cusp

  Of a full moon, eclipsed in darkness,

  Foretold within a dream.

  She witnessed blood covenants,

  Hers and theirs converge.

  Sorrow one spills forth victory,

  Unleashing demonic rivalry,

  A new breed of soldiers,

  Hellsmouth pulses with blood thirst.

  Sorrow two fulfills the final battle,

  Merging creature and white blood,

  One of flame, one of night,

  At eighteen years it will commence,

  Spiritual warrior and power,

  Will bring an end to the lawless ones.

  If light encompasses,

  Those with wicked two,

  Will then have four for evermore.

  Those filled with love,

  Will find life everlasting.

  But if evil conquers,

  Life endless too shall be,

  Hell’s gates will burst open,

  And Satan’s army will spill out.”

  Satan. Evil. Final battle. Eighteen years. Each line rang in Reagan’s head, growing louder as she tried to understand.

  “I know it’s a lot to take in. These are the words of Cecilia, your great-grandmother. I feel like all I’ve done is create more questions for you. So, I also want to give you this.” Papa handed over the smaller of the two books. “It’s Cecilia’s diary. One of my many regrets is that I didn’t share this with your Nana before that night. I want you to read it, and I plan to share it with her when we see her. Her mother gave it to me for safekeeping. She’d told Jackie so much of what was in here and didn’t want it to fall into the wrong hands.”

  In the face of prophecies and diaries, Reagan’s mind now focused on something much more meaningful. “Did you say we’re going to see Nana?” She reached out to take the book from him. A jolt ten times stronger than static electricity shot through her, and she withdrew her hand for a moment.

  “Are you okay?” Papa asked, still holding the book.

  She eased her hand back out and took the small volume. This time the pulse of power was manageable, but her body felt warm like she had a slight fever.

  “Once we get set up at the new location and you get some more intense training, she and your mother will meet us there; escorted by one of my best.”

  “And who’s that?”

  “Madeleine.”

  Reagan winced at hearing the name yet again, but for the first time, all she wanted was the best for Madeleine. After all, she’d be protecting the women Reagan cared the most about.

  Loaded down with several bags, Reagan followed Rowan through dense woods and around boulders. She couldn’t help but think back to the times she and her family came to this area to camp and hike—memories that stretched back to when she was seven or eight and holding the hand of her sweet toddler brother, Sam. Every time she thought about him, her heart ached. It had been quite a while since she’d heard from him. So many times she’d thought about reaching out just to check on him, but she wasn’t sure how far Rafe’s influence had spread.

  “What are you thinking about?” Rowan’s voice caught her off guard, and she jumped.

  “Oh, sorry. I was just missing my brother. We always used to hike and camp in this area, so it got me thinking about him.”

  “I get it. I miss my brother all the time,” Rowan said.

  She searched his face for some clue about what he was really thinking. “Have you tried to reach out to him again? Maybe there’s still a chance for him.” Was she talking about Rowan’s brother or her own?

  “There’s so much about Rafe you don’t know. That guy, the one walking around in my brother’s body, isn’t my brother. He looks like him, but…” Rowan let the words trail off.

  Reagan thrust her hand in front of him to stop his forward progress. She meant for it to be a gentle stop; it was anything but. He stumbled and nearly fell as he came in contact with her. “I knew you’d be strong, and I’m sure glad I don’t have to fight you.” He capped his words with a grin that caused the side of his mouth to curl up.

  Pushing aside thoughts of kissing him, something she’d been thinking about way too much lately, she placed both hands on his shoulders and put on her take-me-seriously face. “Tell me about your brother.”

  Rowan’s face went from playful sexiness to darkness in the span of her five words. “I’ll tell you later. Not here. There are some that know my story, but many who don’t. It’s not something I want to be common knowledge.”

  Before she could push for more, she heard Papa say they’d arrived. A flurry of action resulted as everyone started into the cave, lugging in the supplies.

  He started barking orders, pointing to Rowan first. “Show Reagan to my room. She can get settled while you come back and help me get the command center up and running.”

  Every time she heard her grandfather talk like that, his voice commanding and demanding of everyone’s attention, she half expected people to snap their feet together and salute him. Or at least offer him a good, “Aye, aye, Captain.” Instead, Rowan gave a simple nod, and then turned and swept his hand in front of her. “After you.”

  How could she feel anger and frustration one moment, desperate for answers and for this new famil
y to treat her as one of their own, and then be fighting the urge to blush in the next? It’s not like she’d never been infatuated with someone, or thought she was. Hell, she wasn’t even a virgin, although she regretted wasting her first time on a jerk like Dex. Sure, he was the quarterback and a coveted prize in high school, but he never made her feel special or loved. She had to believe sex with someone you loved was better. After all, the entire industry of Hollywood had been built on the concept. Still, she didn’t want to throw around a word like love just yet.

  As she followed Rowan, she noticed the way his hair slightly curled at the nape of his neck. A few minutes of staring at him sent a rush of feelings. She was past the point of blushing, the heat having moved much farther down.

  “I miss you.”

  Jolted by the words, Reagan stopped mid-stride. Sam. “I miss you, too.” With every fiber of her being, she wanted to hug him and tell him it was all going to be okay. “How are you?”

  “Is everything okay?” Rowan asked.

  “Yes, sorry.” Everyone else held back, never telling her details until she begged for them. So she kept her reasons to herself. She wanted Rowan to go away for a while so she could have a talk with her brother. It was about time they exchanged more than just a few words.

  They turned a corner and Rowan stopped. “Here we are. If you’re okay, I’m going to head back and get to work.”

  “I’m fine.”

  With that, he left.

  “Sam, are you still there?” Reagan focused on her brother’s face, wanting to reestablish their connection.

  “Yes. I’ve been so worried about you.”

  “Me, too.”

  “We need to talk. In person.”

  She knew what Papa and Rowan would say about that. “I don’t know.”

  “Don’t you trust me?”

  The words cut her like a knife. This was her brother. “Of course I trust you. But I don’t trust Rafe. I can’t. He tried to rape me.”

  She knew she shouldn’t have told him like that, but she wanted her brother to know it wasn’t him she didn’t trust. Waiting for a response, she sat on the twin bed and began to pull off her hiking boots.

  Seconds stretched into minutes, and she’d still heard nothing back from him. “Sam?” She closed her eyes, leaned her head back, and took in a big breath trying to center herself; she wished she could conjure up visions instead of just voices. Seeing him again, knowing he was okay, would mean the world to her.

  “You must have something better to do than daydreaming.” Madeleine’s voice always seemed tinged with anger. “Time for training. Guess I’ve been put in charge of babysitting you again.”

  Reagan’s instinct was to fight back, engage in a war of words and show Madeleine that Reagan could give as well as she could take. But of all the stories she was so desperate to hear, Madeleine’s topped the list—just after Rowan’s.

  “Let’s go. What’s on the schedule of torture for today?”

  “The training room here isn’t as stocked as the one we left, so I thought it might be time for some real life training. Time to get you out in the woods.”

  Reagan was both nervous and excited—power coursed through her, pleading to be tested and controlled. She never would’ve wished for this life, but there were certainly some perks to finding your strength; even if it was in the form of a wolf.

  “Will we be training like this,” she started to ask, her hands lifting to the top of her head and sweeping down her body, “or in wolf form?” Like it was yesterday, she remembered when Rowan had uttered the words that forever changed her life. The moment when he called her Tala and explained it meant red wolf. He’d only called her that once since the hospital.

  “For now, we’ll start like this,” Madeleine said. Reagan forced herself to concentrate as Madeleine continued, “There’s an area up ahead where we can get started. A few others will meet us there. Keep up, if you can.” She took off.

  Even though they were under the cover of the woods, it was still mid-day. Huge wolves running around would attract unwanted attention. Reagan didn’t transform, but she did push her legs as fast as they could go. Unsure exactly where she was heading, she focused on Madeleine and realized it was possible to easily follow the beauty. It was like an internal GPS, with Reagan now locked onto Madeleine’s movements. As soon as Reagan connected, the symbol on her chest started to burn. It hurt so much it was all she could do to keep up the pace. She pulled back when she sensed Madeleine had stopped.

  “Not bad,” she said when Reagan arrived. “I didn’t make it easy for you to follow.”

  Of course she didn’t, Reagan thought. “It was weird. I could sense your movements. I knew where you were going. Can I do that with others?” She reached up to rub where the pain in her chest had originated.

  Madeleine tilted her head and studied Reagan for a moment. “Who are you trying to locate? Because the problem is once you connect, they can locate you, too. Or normally they can. I couldn’t quite get a lock on where you were. Like someone was blocking me from doing so.”

  Some revelations in life come slowly, but this one hit her with the speed and impact of a wrecking ball. She’d felt the place on her chest burning a few times since the necklace scarred her. When she felt the most intense pain, the time it almost knocked her out, it was the time they barely escaped Rafe.

  “Ah, your grandmother’s a smart one. Not that I expected anything less from the woman who holds Jed’s heart.”

  Madeleine was as quick to realize the power of the necklace as Reagan was. She smiled, feeling proud of her Nana and the blood flowing through their veins. She’d protected all of them, not just Reagan, with this gift. “She’s amazing. But, wait, why can’t the other wolves track us right to our cave? Is that how they found us?”

  “It only works in proximity. I’ve never tested it to know how many miles we can sense, and it gets confusing when there are a lot of us running in different directions. Plus, Jed had the cave protected. He runs in a lot of circles, and many people owe him a favor or two. Still, I’ve wondered if someone with less experience, a newer person in our group, had led someone to us.”

  “You mean me, don’t you?” Reagan felt the anger rising, although she knew it was an obvious suspicion. After all, the cave hadn’t been found prior to her arrival.

  “Doesn’t matter. Clearly it wasn’t you,” Madeleine said, hands on her hips. “Enough talk. Let’s get started. Obviously, we don’t want to shift in the exposure of daylight, so we’re just going to try out your jumping and climbing skills. There are a lot of areas around here where both of those will come in handy.”

  For hours, Reagan jumped between branches and scaled tall trees. Something took over when she dug deep and focused. She wasn’t sure what she’d be capable of if she was distracted or afraid, and she didn’t look forward to finding out. Thinking back to those few times Rafe took her out, making sure she was wasted on alcohol or whatever else he slipped her, she wondered if he was testing her skills. She hoped that’s all he was doing. Having those dark spots in her memory really bothered her.

  Chugging some water, she chatted with the others who came out to train with her. Here, and in the cave, she noticed there were quite a few more males than females amongst them. Except for Sasha and Madeleine, Reagan hadn’t met many other female werewolves. But today she got to listen to some of their stories, where they were from and how they came to be werewolves. One common thread united them all—they were now family.

  “You did great today.”

  Reagan almost choked on her water. Madeleine had said something nice. Her untold story intrigued Reagan and she was surprised at how much the compliment meant. Afraid there’d never be a better moment, she started up a conversation she hoped would lead to some revelations. “So how did you end up fighting on this side? Do you know Rafe?”

  Madeleine hesitated. Toying with a piece of tree bark, she sighed before beginning. “My story’s a long and complicated one. A ta
le I’m sure you’ll eventually hear. Let’s just say I loved a guy who turned out to be something I could’ve never imagined. When I wised up, he moved on to my sister. She never could see the truth. Not in time.” She stared at the ground while she spoke; only lifting her head on the last word.

  Reagan sensed Madeleine didn’t want to openly shed tears.

  Wiping away the evidence, she continued, “We really should get going. There’s a lot more training to do and other preparations to make.”

  Having grown up with only a brother, Reagan had always wanted a sister—someone who appreciated the girl stuff from makeup to falling in love. Madeleine understood loss and being a werewolf, and she was doing a lot for Reagan’s family. She appreciated it, but couldn’t escape the nagging suspicion that Rafe was the wrong guy Madeleine alluded to. Guess they had that in common, too. A burning sensation caused Reagan to drop her water.

  “Run!”

  She wasn’t sure if the command was said out loud, but she saw the members of their group scatter as Madeleine crouched into a warrior pose and looked around. Momentarily frozen, Reagan considered her options. It was fight or flight, and she was torn. Hesitating, however, left her with no choice.

  Rafe sauntered into the clearing, clapping his hands. “Well done, ladies. Madeleine, wonderful to see you. You look amazing, as always. Reagan couldn’t have a better trainer.”

  Reagan had to fight the disgust that rose in her throat like bile as he walked up to her. He reached up and stroked her face before grabbing the back of her neck and pulling her lips toward his. She struggled, but he was too strong.

  “Don’t touch her!” Madeleine screamed as she yanked him away.

  He backhanded her, sending her flying a few feet in the air before slamming into a tree. She landed on the ground with a thud.

  Rafe loomed over her. “Jealous? I’m happy to greet you in the same way. Just say the word.”