Hadley Werewolves, page 25
What the hell am I doing? Panic sucked her in when she couldn’t stop herself.
It all came together in one swoop: The siren call was gone. The dinner bell had rung. Nothing could stop her from touching the box. She had to touch it. Run her fingers along the curves and edges to see what secrets they held.
Drew stepped into her path. “No!”
His hands snaked out and he caught her in a tight bear hug. “Fight it, Neve! Fight it.” He flung her to the ground and pinned her there.
Deep within she fought. She scratched, kicked, and bit at the strange compulsion that pulled her toward the box, but her efforts were in vain. The moment her hand came in contact with her leg, she drew another glyph. Her body scorched the dead grass as the temperature on her skin rose higher and higher. The disgusting scent of burnt flesh and clothing filled her nose.
And yet, Drew didn’t let her go. “I’m not letting you go. Don’t give up, baby.”
She was burning him. Roasting him every second he persisted. The skin along his arms darkened to a crisp—only to lighten again when he healed just as quickly. Again and again.
She refused to let him suffer for her.
As she lay there struggling for control a memory from Ophelia flicked in her head: I expect you to be the last person to go willingly down the steps. I suppose, though, in time, we all succumb to the call. Some just have more will to fight than others.
Suddenly, her legs stopped moving first. Whether it was from inner strength or something else, it didn’t matter. She had to help the others control Vanessa.
With the side of her face held onto the ground, she caught sight of Kyle and Trenton tackling Vanessa. They briefly had her down before she tossed them away with a flick of her fingers. They landed far off in the field beyond the house.
The older witch was almost to the box. Charly scrambled after her next—only to have her mother pin her to the ground with magic. “Mom, don’t do it!”
Vanessa snatched the blade from the sheath at Charly’s waist and made a beeline for the box. With glee, she reached the house and snatched the box from the ground.
The end had finally come for them all.
Chapter 14
Vanessa dropped the box to the ground with a heavy thud. She shuddered, and her eyes rolled toward the back of her head. Everyone gasped and shuffled backwards.
“There’s not much time,” the witch said when she glanced at Nevena. “T-they’re all in me…” With shaky fingers, she took her knife and plunged it into her own chest. Nevena’s mouth snapped open, unable to take it all in.
The older witch twisted the blade to the right. The only sound coming out of her mouth was a choked gasp. “L-let me b-bleed out…”
“No!” Charly screamed as she watched her mother yank out the metal blade.
Everyone rushed toward Vanessa, except Drew who pulled back Nevena. “Can you still hear them?”
“No…” The air in Nevena’s lungs grew heavy. All she could do was blink as the pool of blood in the dry dirt around Vanessa grew. So wet and dark red. Nothing like the pool of blood around her parents as they were ripped apart. Charly tried to reach for her mother to stop her from cutting herself again, but Vanessa swatted her away with the knife. Just moving her arm resulted in tossing her daughter across the yard. A taste of telekinetic power from the blood demons.
They had to be taking over. She’d never witnessed a possession before. If she couldn’t perform a binding spell this time, they’d have to abandon the town.
Vanessa collapsed, only to stagger to stand again. Her lower lip trembled as she stared down Nevena. Why the hell did she stab herself?
The werewolves were coming. Running toward the house from where they’d been tossed.
It was time to act or die trying. Nevena slipped out of Drew’s arms.
Not far from her, Vanessa’s trembling right hand drew on the back of her left hand. Her scribbling turned into a frenzy. She drew on her arms, her shirt, anything she could. There were so many spells Nevena had never seen before. All the while, Vanessa snapped to her daughter. “Stay back, damn you!”
“Mom, you have to fight them!” Charly’s voice broke. “Can’t you send them back to the box?”
“It’s b-broken, sweetheart.” Her gaze never left her daughter’s. Her voice had weakened. “But you…and I don’t have to be that way. I hope you’ll forgive me someday.”
Vanessa’s face quickly darkened to a mottled brown. Then the skin around her neck down to her arms. She cackled. “What a clever little bitch,” she struggled to whisper.
The older woman’s hands stiffened as her face locked into a grimace. Instead of more taunting, Vanessa fell backwards onto her back, seemingly frozen with her arms bent at her sides. What had once been a flesh and blood woman was now nothing more than what seemed like a wood carving.
The heavy silence in the air said it all and realization hit Nevena hard. “Other measures,” she whispered.
“What did you say?” Drew asked.
“She used her blood for one final spell. She became a vessel. Like the jewelry box.”
“Has anyone done that before?” he whispered.
“Not that I know of.” The finality of it stunned her.
I want to make things right, Charly, her mom had said. One thing I haven’t forgotten is how much I love you.
The wind whistled through the brush. No siren call. No voices in her head. No more possessed witches. Vanessa had accomplished what none of her sisters ever could do. She had shut the doorway forever. Shame filled Nevena. She should’ve trusted her.
“What do we do with her?” Drew asked. “Do we need ‘help’ from the witches?”
“No, we bury her deep in the ground,” she replied. “With respect.”
Charly collapsed against Trenton, her heavy sobs squeezing Nevena’s heart. She recognized Charly’s pain and wiped away a few tears of her own. Time was so precious and it could be taken away in an instant.
Nevena didn’t stop Drew from drawing her into his arms. His large hands cupped her face as he pressed his warm forehead against the top of hers. Just feeling him breathe brought her comfort.
“I thought I lost you,” he whispered.
“I almost lost myself.”
From her cheeks his hands descended to check her for injuries. His touch was gentle and unhurried.
“You’re still pretty tough,” he remarked.
“Like always.”
He searched her eyes, and she wanted to fall into them but told herself not to do it. Everyone was safe now. When he nuzzled her neck, she wanted to savor the feelings she had come to miss, but fear crept in. She wrestled with the reasons why he deserved better: she led such a crazy life, she could die at any time from her hemophilia while he’d likely live forever, the reasons went on and on. As his arms wrapped around her waist, she tasted the promise of happiness. The delicious feeling of being loved was far sweeter than any experience she’d had with Kasim.
A voice called out Drew’s name. She turned to see the alpha limping out of the field behind the house with his mate at his side. One of Kyle’s legs didn’t look too good.
“You should go to him,” she said, her voice thick.
He stared at her for a moment, his mouth a straight line.
“Go on,” she urged. She had some thinking to do.
He reluctantly let her go and strode over to the pack leader. Her heart tugged just thinking about the possibility of letting him go.
They were out of earshot, but based on Drew’s gestures, he’d offered to check out his alpha’s injuries. Kyle brushed him off and pointed to what was left of Vanessa. It would be up to Drew to explain what happened.
Just thinking about Vanessa made Nevena sigh. She was now the only witch in Hadley.
She was also a witch who was pretty far away from her werewolf.
Drew continued to talk to pack members. Another man joined them from a car off the street. He was more than one hundred and fifty feet away. They both should be writhing in pain by now. Yet she didn’t feel any. She glanced at the Vanessa’s still form. Vanessa had given her a final gift, too.
“I’ve always been with you, Tsvete…” the demon had said not too long ago.
But now the demon that killed her parents was with her no more.
“Mama, Papa…I’m free,” she whispered.
Her gaze immediately shifted to the van they used to come here. Her fingers twitched. It would be so easy to sneak away. Drew could help his pack rebuild Hadley and he’d never have to see her again. He’d be free, too.
Drew left the other werewolves behind to make a few phone calls to friends in town. A few stubborn souls remained behind after the last evacuation. Most of them had an arsenal as big as Ben’s. Since he’d been gone for a few days and needed to make sure they were safe. With a sigh, he glanced at the house, guessing that the distance was good enough. He hadn’t felt sick yet so Nevena must’ve been hanging around. After he spoke to a friend or two, he hurried back to the house.
He’d most likely find her sulking in the backyard. What he didn’t expect to find was her with keys in her hand as she marched toward the van.
He stepped into her path. “Where are you going?”
“The demons are gone. It’s time for me to go.” The yard separated them.
“And how did you plan to get there?”
She jiggled a set of keys in her hand. He’d figured that part out already.
He took a step toward her. “And what about the curse?”
She shrugged, not looking at him. “Something happened to me when Vanessa sacrificed herself. I guess I got a reprieve. You don’t have to follow me around anymore.” Her smile was fake—just a front to make him think he’d be okay with her leaving.
“It looks like this town could use help to rebuild. You should be here for that,” she added.
“And what about you?” He took another step.
“I’ll find another coven. I’m sure I’m needed somewhere.” She had no idea how just saying that hurt him. She was so damn casual about it.
“What about here?” He was closer now. If he had to, he’d close the distance faster than she could blink.
“Do you honestly think these people would want me around?”
“I want you around,” he said. “I don’t give a damn what others think. If they got a problem, they can challenge me.”
The keys jingled as her fist clenched and unclenched. Her frustration floated off of her in waves. “Why do you keep trying? Don’t you get it? I’m trying to save your ass, Drew. Every man who loved me has died. My father, Kasim. Do you want to be next? Especially with the life I lead?”
He shrugged. “I’ve faced two witches, a blood demon possession, and the fall of mankind in a tiny town. You’re worth it.” He closed the distance until her breath fanned his face. He gently took her hand and squeezed it. Didn’t she like how good this felt after being alone for so long? It felt perfect to him. “I want to be the man to love you, Neve.”
“Don’t,” she whispered. Her resolve was melting away, folding under like a sandcastle getting hit by waves.
“Don’t what? Fall for you? It’s too late for that one.”
Could she see he gave everything he had to her? He had nothing left. His mission to help Trenton was done and now he was just a guy standing in front of a girl hoping she wouldn’t walk away from him.
His grip on her hand tightened.
“You’re not gonna let me walk away, are you?” she said with a hint of a coy smile. He liked the challenge of her resistance.
“No chance.” He tilted up her chin and took in her beautiful yellow eyes. His hand drifted across her cheek to the curve behind her head. He refused to let her go. She was his now, no matter what. He was hers.
When he reached in to kiss her, she didn’t pull away this time.
* * *
THE END
Epilogue
The warm Michigan wind off a nearby lake fluttered against Nevena’s face and she welcomed it. The air here was so different compared to the desert. Far more humid.
All of her life she’d lived in or near a major metropolitan area. Living in the woods was a change that required an adjustment period of sorts.
For the past hour she had sat on a picnic bench waiting for Drew to return from his time in the woods. He’d discarded his clothes so he could shapeshift and had left them on the bench. The evergreens and pine trees extended into the distance, obscuring any sight of him.
She glanced toward the woods. No Drew.
Once she left Hadley with Drew, Trenton and Charly, everything changed. And not just the landscape. On their way to the cottage in Michigan she could practically sense the excitement in the werewolves. Charly wouldn’t sit still while Trenton and Drew kept chattering like a bunch of witchlings.
“Aren’t you sad you don’t have a pack anymore?” she had asked Charly in the car.
“In a way, yes, but we’re starting our own pack now.” The woman offered Nevena a rare grin. “You’re in our pack, too.”
As much as she tried to be nonchalant about it with a short nod, a feeling of contentment filled her. She didn’t need a coven anymore.
Soon enough they reached a beautiful, two-story cabin with bright red shutters and a green door. Based on Charly saying that no one had lived here for a few years, she expected to find an overgrown lawn, broken-in windows, and little critters hiding here and there.
“Is this the place?” Nevena asked.
“It’s not much, but Mom made sure someone took care of it,” Charly said with a wistful expression.
“So this was where you lived for a brief period with your mom.” Trenton rubbed Charly’s shoulder.
Charly nodded, not saying much afterward.
They settled into the house. There were plenty of rooms, at least three of them, and a caretaker had diligently kept the home tidy over the years. Everyone explored and Nevena chose a room of her own. Drew didn’t follow her into one though. Matter of fact, he disappeared not long after she settled in.
After searching upstairs, she headed to the kitchen to find Trenton going over their food supplies.
“Do you need help?” she asked.
He pushed a box of canned goods across the thick oak table toward her. “Sure, we bought a lot of food for the pantry.”
As she worked she tried to find a way, that didn’t sound too clingy, to convey she wanted Drew.
“Have you seen Drew?” she finally asked. Fuck it, straightforward still works.
“The last time I saw him he was headed toward the woods,” Trenton said with an easy grin. “He wanted to check out a few things so you’d feel safe here.”
She nodded, feeling a tad foolish for looking for Drew. Hadn’t she been alone for so long that she didn’t need to depend on someone?
A trip to her room for a nap didn’t last long. Too many questions made rest damn near impossible. Would they share her bed tonight? Or would he decide to sleep on the couch to give her space?
Just the thought of having him sleep in the living room bothered the hell out of her. She didn’t want any space between them so she went straight to the picnic bench and waited for him. And she was prepared to hang out until nightfall if necessary.
The afternoon passed far too quickly into the twilight. Crickets and fireflies kept her company. She waited patiently. A part of her wished she had gone with him. Being alone with Charly and Trenton still made her uncomfortable at times. Even though Charly had welcomed her as the new pack member, she was still an outsider.
Her wait finally came to an end when she thought she could linger no more.
Without a stitch of clothing on, he quietly emerged from the woods. Somehow he stepped on the brush along the ground without so much as a crackle or snap.
Their gazes locked and Nevena couldn’t hold back the swallow caught in her throat. He had such wild aquamarine eyes. She took him in from his tussled dark hair down to his lean waist. A patch of hair below his bellybutton led farther south. Once she caught herself staring at the thick member between his legs, she diverted her attention elsewhere. And failed. The tight muscles along his legs flexed as he strode to her. There was a confidence to his step—almost as if he moved with a purpose—toward her.
His pile of clothes sat no more than a few feet from her hand. By the time he reached the table, words stirred on her tongue, but she couldn’t find the means to say them. Just having him so close made every part of her skin hum. Her lips tingled, thinking of their last kiss. He slid his hand across the worn wood toward the pile. With a sly grin, she tossed the clothes to the other side.
Oh, those belong to me now.
“Neve, what are you—”
She softly placed her index finger against his lips. The warmth from his rapid breaths heated her hand. Discussing their relationship wasn’t necessary. She preferred actions instead of words.
His nostrils flared as he took her outstretched hand. “I want you badly, but I can wait.” The edge in his voice carried a warning. He was giving her an out, an opportunity to walk away if she wanted to do it. As an answer she pulled her shirt over her head.
“I want you, too.” She didn’t want any more barriers between them. To make her point clear she wrapped her arms around his neck to draw him closer. Heat radiated from his skin.
Drew didn’t speak or move for a moment. Only the muscles around his shoulders tightened. Had she done something wrong?
Suddenly, he captured her lips in a searing kiss. He didn’t even break off contact as he lifted her in his arms. Somehow he carried her into the woods. If they ran into a tree she’d be fine. All that mattered was her lips pressed against his, the way her arms wrapped around his wide shoulders.
Once the evergreens hid them from the house, he gathered her in his arms on the cool grass. With the canopy of trees overhead, she couldn’t see much except for hints of shadows. All she had left was taste and touch. He nestled his long body next to hers, revealing every hardened inch. She sucked in a breath as her core clenched.
