The sound of a similar battle reached his ears from the other end of his property. He looked behind him to catch sight of Mark’s magnificent animal, the other two wolves still caught in the uncertainty of the transformation.
His party raced towards the sound only to stop short. Hundreds of those Made-Vampires littered the area, dying by the dozen as Julian, Marcus, and Dean, who had remained in human form, tore them to shreds. Three witches battled Ethel for control, the purity of the energy leaving their outstretched hands dissipating in the darkness she weaved around herself.
She laughed, her cackle as deafening as the shrieks from her army, unaffected by the immense power in the safety of her dark bubble. She flicked her wrist, sending all three witches flying across the compound to the once pristine forest around the property.
Her army diminished to a few stragglers, but she didn’t seem fazed.
“I can always make more.” Even more disturbing than the ease with which she’d infiltrated his mind was the extent of her power. She was a slip of a girl, her flowing dark hair, darker thanthe magic around her, her pretty features, the distinct quality of Water Witches enhanced by the confidence of her smile. It had been a mistake to underestimate her. The power she flaunted was a close match to the power Riley contained. Its effects tore at his skin, prickled his senses, but it was her comfort with its darkness that terrified him beyond words.
He heard Mark’s growl somewhere behind him, and he glanced at the Prime Alpha, who nodded his agreement. Mark advanced, Caster and Dean stood in his path, their combined strength the only thing holding him away from the futility of his goal.
Mark struggled against the immovable wall that was his brother and Caster. His growls grew louder the longer the witch smiled her contempt. Why were they doing this? She was right there. His jaw ached with the product of his imagined vengeance, but try as he might, he couldn’t move past them.
Dean’s influence invaded his mind, commanding his wolf to calm down. The struggle, the tension in his muscles, eased the longer the Prime Alpha commanded his wolf, but his human side fought his brother.
Fine. Transform then.
His wolf retreated to a mind he was losing control of, obeying the Prime Alpha in an instant. He was now trapped between Caster and Dean, each with a bruising grip on either arm.
“Hello there, my beautiful wolf.” Ethel’s voice was too calm, given the state of her army. “I’ve been waiting for you. Remember me?”
Mark tried to push past Dean and Caster, his frustration growing when his enormous efforts proved fruitless.
“You must. It hasn’t been that long, has it?” She continued to speak, her demeanor too calm for someone surrounded by powerful enemies.
Why wasn’t anyone attacking her?
She has a barrier of strong dark magic protecting her.Caster spoke into his mind.Look at me.
It took enormous effort to draw his attention away from the witch who’d taken everything from him.
Take a breath.
There was no ignoring the earnest command in Caster’s tone. The air invading his lungs was thick with the stench of death, causing him to gag.
Do you feel it? Her power?
He could only nod.
That’s why.
She was not devoid of fear after all.
Dean maintained his grip on Mark even as he bestowed hisundivided attention on the witch. “What do you want?”
“Give him to me, and I’ll stop.” She stared at Mark as she replied, her power now that he was aware of it threatening in its intent.
“Stop what?” Riley stepped forward, his power matching hers in intensity, but devoid of the toxicity.
She waved a hand over the green lawn littered with her dead army. “This. I’ll stop the killing.”
The silence persisted for what seemed an eternity. If he thought it would help, if he believed her for a second, Mark would give himself up. But that meant leaving Caster, and he couldn’t live with that, couldn’t imagine an existence without him.
Caster’s momentary squeeze of his arm signaled he’d heard that thought. But when he glanced in his direction, concrete determination aimed at the witch was all he saw.
Ethel’s sigh was dramatic. “Fine.” Her smile made her seem no older than a teenager as she held out her hand, but the voice that came out of her was otherworldly, deep, and male. It shattered the silence with tremendous force as she chanted in a language that didn’t sound like a language at all, but a series of growls. Her eyes rolled back into her head, the same dark void on her army’s faces replacing them.
The ground shook, and the screeching from her dead army returned. Mark couldn’t contain his gasp as the Made-Vampires they had vanquished rose from the ashes. The chorus of screeching and the witch’s chant mingled with shouts from the others as the battle they thought they’d won resumed with renewed earnestness.