He started to cast another spell and the energy from the curse radiated from him. I countered, praying I knew what the hell I was doing, as I flung the curse back at him, winding magical wards around him to keep it confined to his person, and sealing it within his body.
His skin mottled, then faded to gray, his eyes dilating as blood vessels burst. Blood dripped from his lids as he collapsed against the fridge and slid down, clawing at his chest.
Then he rolled to his side, throwing up red chunky liquid that stunk worse than anything I’d ever smelled.
Dylan pulled me out of the kitchen before the puddle of vomit, which was more blood than anything else, reached my bare feet. They were talking, but I didn’t hear a word as I stared in horror at what I’d done.
The death rattle between gasps for air and heaving tore at my conscience. Killing the witch wasn’t the goal. Making him stop the attack was.
His skin faded to a deathly pale as his veins burst, showing the black tracks under his skin.
“What did I do?” I whispered.
Dylan spun me around, captured my face, and looked into my eyes. “Protected yourself. He meant to do that to you.”
“I…but…oh my God.”
Sean clasped my shoulder. “Sierra, he would have cursed you.”
Blinking at my brother, I shook my head. “I killed him, though. He’s dead because of what I did.”
“He’s dead because you gave him back the same damned curse he tried to give you.”
“But it doesn’t work that fast.”
Sean gave me a grim smile. “No, but he doesn’t have your power. But now he can’t hurt Rachel. Can’t hurt Dylan, or the rest of the wolves.”
“He would have cast it at Dylan?” My voice squeaked at the end.
“Shh. Not just me. Sean too. We’re fine because of you.”
“I should call—”
Dylan slapped his hand over my mouth. “No. No calling the authorities. As a doctor could you explain what you just did?”
Shaking my head, I let the tears fall.
Sean explained, “Maybe this will get a message to our grandmother that their days of killing our pack are over.”
I could only nod. No words came to my lips. Dylan pulled me into a hug, kissing my forehead. “Don’t blame yourself. That was self-defense.”
Pushing him back, I shook my head. “I’m a doctor. I don’t hurt people. I heal them. That…you saw what I did. I destroyed him.”
“He deserved worse. Think about Rachel—about what he was doing to her. Consider what he might have done to her to get to you?”
I couldn’t catch my breath, I could hardly see. Then Sean gripped my shoulder and my body relaxed as everything went black. The last thing I heard was Dylan snarl at my brother, but I couldn’t catch the words.
Chapter 22
Dylan
“Jesus Christ.” I tightened my arms to keep Sierra from dropping to the floor. “What the fuck, Sean?” I put my arm beneath her knees and scooped her up, tucking her into my chest. Growling, I advanced on the bastard.
“Calm down.” He rolled his eyes at me, making me tense even more. “And back off the whole protection routine. She’s not going to take any of this well and before you deal with her inevitable freak out, we need to clean,” he gestured toward the kitchen, “that shit up.”
My focus was drawn from Sierra, and the putrid smell assaulted my senses. Fucking werewolf sense of smell could be a pain in the ass. It was the scent of death, even more rank than the smell from the victims of the curse. But, I continued to ignore it in favor of Sierra and her needs.
“You still could have given me one fucking second.”
“Trust me. She’s going to need more than five minutes and we need to take care of this. I’m not sure what she did, or if it can spread.” He turned his nose up at the discolored blood on the floor. “Better to get it taken care of now, before it hurts one of us,” his eyes darted to Sierra, “or her.”
I nodded, not wanting to admit he was right. My protective instincts were overriding any rational thought. Slowly, my brain got in line with what needed to be done.
“How long will the spell last?” There was no way I would leave her alone if she had a chance of waking up.
“About two hours. I couldn’t make it longer, she’s too powerful. Her body will fight off the magic.”
I smirked. “Jealous she’s stronger than you?”
Sean glared at me, dying to land a good punch to my arm, but holding back because Sierra was there. “Fuck you. I’m going to find something to clean this shit up with. Why don’t you take her upstairs?”
“I’ll be right back.”
Turning toward the stairs, I carried Sierra up to her room and laid her in bed. Bending down, I brushed the hair from her face and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. “You did what you had to, sweetheart, please don’t feel guilty. I’ll be back soon.”
Clamoring down the steps, I found Sean in the kitchen with rubber gloves, a mop, and a bucket.
“Okay, what the hell are we doing with Remy?” I asked, not sure where to start.
“We’re going to drop what’s left of the motherfucker right outside my grandmother’s store.”
“I am not putting that mess in Sierra’s car.”
“No shit. We’ll put it in a trash bag in the back of my truck.”
Taking the gloves Sean offered me, I held the bucket while he used the mop to push the goo inside. It was good thing I had a strong stomach, between the smell and the sloshing sound it made, most people would have puked.
We poured each bucket into a trash bag. The thought of that much liquid being in one person’s body seemed unreal. Once the bags and Remy’s body were placed in the back of the truck, we poured bleach all over the tile and mopped up the rest of the mess. The mop and bucket joined the trash bags in the truck.
Before we left Sean cast wards around the house, leaving Sierra protected while we were gone.
Sean was quiet on the way over.
“You’re awfully quiet over there. What’s wrong?”
“I can’t believe it’s been my own family this whole time and now I need to worry about Ashley’s pack.”
“Ashley will be fine. She’s got a few years and you know Sierra will figure how to destroy whatever is in the dais and then help Ashley’s pack.”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, it’s just hard to think about her getting hurt.”
“How long are you going to wait?”
He glanced over quickly and turned his eyes back to the road. “I don’t know. I want her to trust me. I don’t want to push while there is still so much going on.”
“Exactly why you shouldn’t wait. You don’t want to regret not having her as your mate if something happens.”
Sean shook his head. “No, I don’t. I’ll go see her after we’ve taken care of the dais.”
I laughed. “I think that’s the smartest thing you said all day.”
Sean sighed, exasperated.
The streets were dark, most of the stores closed for the day. One piece of luck was on our side. The last thing we needed was to get caught dumping a body. And how in the hell would we explain what happened to him. Sean parked right in front of the store. The moment I stepped out of the car, a chill ran up my spine.
“Grandma must have the place protected,” Sean sneered, searching the street for any kind of trap or someone waiting for us.
“I don’t scent anyone else in the area. The magic is thick, but that’s about it,” I said.
“All right, let’s get this done and get back to Sierra.”
Sean whispered a quick spell, my guess was to keep us invisible. The sound of her name made me want to turn and run back to her. I kept myself in control and helped Sean lift the bags from the bed. We dropped them in front of the store. When it came time for Remy’s bag to be left, Sean wasn’t going to make it so simple. Pulling a knife from his back pocket, he slit the top of the bag, the
n pulled until his body lay completely exposed on the ground.
“Oh, fuck.” I covered my nose. The smell had gotten stronger being contained in the bag.
Sean turned his head away. “God, you’re right. Let’s get out of here.”
Jumping in the truck and shutting the doors blocked out most of the smell.
“Fuck, I need another fucking shower,” I groaned. “I feel like that scent is branded into my skin.”
“You should have time before she wakes up.”
Once we got back to the house, Sean went for his room, while I went upstairs to check on Sierra. She was still under and I used the opportunity to jump in the shower. I stepped out feeling clean again, and after drying off climbed into the bed with her. There was one way I could distract her from everything that had happened. Not sure how powerful Sean’s spell was or if she might wake up halfway through me undressing her, but I did it anyway.
Her body was pure perfection. Not touching seemed impossible as I stared down at the beauty before me. Gliding my hand from her knee, up her thigh to her breast, I flicked my thumb across her nipple, loving the way her body responded to my every touch. A soft moan left her lips, and her eyes fluttered open. If I gave her any time to think about what happened earlier in the evening, she’d be upset and probably try to get downstairs to kick the shit out of Sean for putting her to sleep.
I didn’t give her a chance for any thoughts and covered her mouth with mine. Sierra plunged her hands in my hair, holding my mouth to hers. The beat of her heart pulsed against my hand, which rested in the hollow between her breasts. Her mouth opened and our tongues danced together. I could smell the arousal filling the room, her body responding to my simple touch.
“Dylan,” she moaned when my mouth lifted from hers to suck on the hollow of her neck.
While I wanted inside her right then, I also wanted to take my time and savor her. I stopped to lavish each nipple and was making my way down her body when she shoved on my shoulder, forcing me to my back.
“I can’t wait,” she said and straddled my hips.
The feel of her warm hand as it held my hard length up to slide into her was incredible. Its own form of torture until she slid all the way down, sheathing my cock in heaven. I placed my hands on her hips to lift her up a bit, but she batted my hands away.
“We’re doing this my way,” she practically growled.
It was the sexiest fucking thing I’d ever heard. Her body lifted off of mine only to come slamming back down.
“Holy fuck,” I shouted. “That’s it, Sierra.”
“Oh my God, I needed this,” she yelled as she rode me hard.
My fingers found her clit, flicking until she shot over the edge, taking me with her.
She dropped down next to me and cuddled into my embrace, our breathing still heavy. Our bodies slowly settled and the afterglow faded. I heard a soft sniffle and I knew my distraction was over. Tipping her chin up with my finger, I gazed into tear filled blue eyes.
“Talk to me,” I whispered.
“I killed him.”
Cupping her cheeks, I brushed away her tears with my thumbs. “I know you did, but he left you no choice. If you hadn’t killed him, he would have killed you or me or Sean.”
“But—”
“No buts, please don’t question whether you did the right thing. You did.”
“I don’t want to be a person who kills people.”
I kissed her forehead. “You’re not. You defend them and helped save a wolf pack from a curse. Tonight you saved a girl’s leg, when not many people could have. That’s who you are. Please remember that.”
She sniffled and her body shook with silent tears. The most I could do at that point was hold her. After a few minutes she settled.
“Better?” I asked.
She brushed the tears off her face. “Yeah, I hope nothing like that ever happens again.”
Sierra wasn’t delusional, or dumb. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew more would have to die, but if ignoring that fact made her feel better for the moment, then I was all for it. We were silent for a bit, lying there in each other’s arms when Sierra sat up suddenly.
“That bastard.”
My eyes darted around the room, looking for some kind of threat. “Who? What?”
“My asshole brother,” she sneered. “I’m going to kick his ass for putting me out.”
She jumped off the bed and moved to grab the door handle completely naked. Grabbing her hand, I pulled her back around, bringing my lips down on hers. Slipping my tongue into her mouth, I kissed her until she was boneless. The fight gone out of her body.
“Let’s wait until the morning to kick his ass, okay?”
She yawned, very likely exhausted after all that happened today. Part of me feared she’d ignore me and go beat the shit out of Sean. Instead, she nodded and let me lead her back to the bed. I wrapped my hands around her and held her tight to me.
“That fucker is mine tomorrow,” she whispered as she fell asleep.
* * *
Yelling pulled me from sleep.
“You asshole.”
Shit. Sierra hadn’t wasted any time going after Sean. Diving from the bed, I found my shorts and pulled them on. I ran for the stairs and found Sean in the kitchen ducking from Sierra’s swings. A bruise was already forming on his cheek. Looping an arm around her waist, I pulled her off her brother.
Sierra squirmed in my hold. “Let me go, Dylan.” There was a warning to her tone.
“No. Sean did what was best so we could clean up the mess.”
“I could have handled it.”
“No,” I said softy in her ear. “You couldn’t have.”
“Shit,” Sean said, rubbing his arm. “I’m sorry, okay, but wasn’t listening to you two have sex punishment enough?”
Damn. I hadn’t thought about Sean being in the next room over.
Sierra started laughing and I felt like it might be safe to put her down. “Yeah, I think that’s enough torture for you.”
Sean pushed his palms into his eyes. “I’m never going to get those sounds out of my head.” He shivered and walked toward the coffee pot, where some was already brewed.
He must have been up early worrying about Ashley, because when I took a good look around the kitchen, he already had breakfast made. Sierra leaned up and pressed a kiss to his cheek.
“Thanks for breakfast.”
We fixed our plates and sat down at her table.
“So what’s the plan for today?” I asked in between bites of eggs and bacon.
“We find whatever thing that’s hidden in the dais and destroy it.”
“Can’t we just destroy the dais itself?” Sean asked.
Sierra shook her head. “I don’t think so. I think whatever is in there, the curse will have to be taken from it. Similar to what I did to both of you to stop it from spreading.”
“And what do we put it in?” I asked. “You already used the crystal and the knife.”
“I don’t think the knife is one time use. I think it kills the curse every time. Why Mom never used it is beyond me.”
Sean squeezed Sierra’s hand. “Probably because Mom didn’t have the power you do. Her power level was stronger than mine, but nowhere near yours. She must have found the solution, but didn’t have the strength to complete it. What I don’t understand is why she didn’t tell us sooner.”
I rinsed my plate off in the sink. “So back home we go, I guess.”
“Exactly.” Sierra smiled, but I could see the nerves lurking in her eyes. She wanted to display confidence for us, but she wasn’t sure she could do it.
We finished cleaning up from breakfast and all hopped in Sean’s truck. Sierra had packed a bag to stay a few nights, including the knife, which she threw in the back. The witches were dangerous. Whatever they hid in the dais was powerful enough to kill wolves in twenty-four hours. I hoped Sierra wouldn’t be hurt in the process of destroying it.
We made it
home faster than I would have liked, my nerves only getting worse the closer we got. Sean stopped by my place to pick up my truck. We left immediately for the dais and hunting grounds. Sean wanted the curse dealt with so he could talk to Ashley, and for that I couldn’t blame him. We trudged through the woods for a few minutes, until we came upon the large dais built into the middle of the circle.
Sierra bent down next to it, pulling out the dagger and the small piece of paper that was in the box with it. The time had come to end the curse once and for all.
Chapter 23
Sierra
The field hummed with energy. Wild and feral. A dark energy vibrated from underneath, coming from the dais itself. My skin crawled from the intrusive sensation.
A wolf head sat atop the dais, carved from the same wood, resembling a podium. A cursory glance presented no knot, so I worked my way around the platform, searching for any sign of imperfection in the wood.
Nothing, the surface had been sanded and polished to perfection, leaving no discernible knot.
Stumped, I sat back on my heels, glaring at the gleaming wood. “There has to be something.”
Dylan ran his hands over the wood, searching.
Sean stood off to the side, scratching his chin like some wise sage. “What else could the knot be? Can we flip it over?”
Frowning, Dylan looked at Sean. “Maybe?”
“We could try. None of us can find any sign of knot in the wood. Maybe we’re looking in the wrong place.”
I stepped back to watch the two of them heave it up onto its side, holding it in place.
There was a rope knot in the very center, as if rope looped through the wood and tied on the surface.
Arching my brow, I pressed deep. The knot unraveled until the pieces came loose. The creak startled me, and I scrambled back as Dylan and Sean carefully lowered the slab of wood.
The wolf’s head now pointed to the sky, the mouth open as if howling at the moon. Light reflected back, but I couldn’t see what caused it. I reached in and pulled out a black crystal. The curse hummed within, my skin crawling as I set the blade on the dais.
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