With my mates surrounding me, our forward progress was slow. But we made it to the edge of the standing stone circle. I encased us in a protective shield as I fired star shine like missiles at the killers. How dare they murder innocents? They forced the children to watch as parents, family, loved ones were slaughtered at their feet. Demanded they watch as if their fear was a spice to flavor the blood when it spilled to the ground. None of them would be leaving. Not alive anyway. I made it my mission. As more balls of star shine rose to my hands, as more damage was dealt to the invaders, I could feel him. He was scratching at the edge of my soul. Trying to find purchase to invade my inmost being. He would not succeed. Not this time. Not ever again. Let me in, Star Mistress. We can rule this world together. We can make all of humanity bend to our will. His voice was raspier somehow. Not quite as strong. Not quite as seductive as before. This time I wasn't alone. I was s
Jeremiah grabbed Jonathan, took the knife from him. "You're coming with us." He waved his hands in the air, making the hole reappear. "We'll see you back at your penthouse. We need to get him out of here before he calls anything else. Be safe." He stepped through the portal, five or six of his men with him. The rest stayed behind and joined us. "What do we do?" Stretch asked. I shook my head as another wave rushed under our feet. I braced myself, my legs wide, my knees soft. I held Stretch against me, gave her something to hold onto as the world fell apart around us. The children's shrieks of fear and panic battered at my ears. The sounds of war would follow me into my darkest nightmares. I had a better appreciation for Tag's horrors and this had only been one day. A couple of hours, at most. How he survived a total of four years of this was beyond my comprehension. Stretch pulled from my arms. She ran to the kids. "Is there no one left?" she asked.They looked up at her,
"What do you want, Merlin?" I asked. We were in some kind of odd shimmering place. Specks of light danced in every direction I looked. I had no idea where I was, but I knew who had stolen me away. "The same thing I've always wanted. I just have enough power to force it from your body this time." He stepped out of the shifting lights. A solid form among the drifting colors and dancing stars. He was a handsome man-if I were to consider average handsome. Medium height, slim build. Quite a crown of brown curls on his head. It was his eyes, though, that made him captivating. A glowing amber hue that swirled with golds and bronzes as the light shifted. His lashes were long enough to make any girl jealous. I crossed my arms over my chest, prayed he couldn't see the terror that sat just below the surface. "And how do you intend to do that?"His mouth twitched slightly. It was thin and pinched. As if it would physically pain him to smile. "In whatever way best suits me, of course." H
I watched as dragons slammed against the wooden fence. Had it actually been real and wooden, it would have already been reduced to dust under their trampling feet. But we were stuck. Stuck in this stupid Valley.I feared for Tag's mental health as he curled himself tighter and tighter around our girl. He wasn't even letting Ari near her at this point. But without her magic, we were fucking stuck in this awful place. None of the Wardens could get through. Not even teamed up with the guys from the other world. Not even with all the dragons shooting whatever they could at. Be it fire, ice, acid, or lightning. Until Hols woke up, we were stuck.Come back to us, Hols. We're waiting for you. We need you back. Tag's going full-on crazy mode. Thane's busy trying to rip through the Valley's magical barrier. I'm trying to keep your grandmother from ripping holes in the universe with her displeasure. We need you back. You're our glue. Our reason. Our heart. Come back to us, Hols. We lov
I looked up at the trees. The night sky. It shielded my tears from the prying eyes of those around me. I curled around the lifeless body of the love of my life. She was gone. Had been gone for hours now. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't let anyone take her from me. I'd almost shot Thane in the chest before I'd been disarmed. He'd tried to take her. Tried to put her body in the ground. Said we needed to bury her. I'd shoved him away. Carried away the shell that used to hold my soul. My heart. No one was taking her anywhere. And they certainly weren't putting her in the fucking ground. That was for damn sure. I knew what death looked like in a human body. I'd seen it. Smelled it. Watched it deform with decay and rigor mortis. None of those things happened to Cheeks. Not a single one. Her bowels didn't void. Her limbs didn't become rigid as granite.No. She was gone. But her body wasn't dead. At least not yet. I would stay with her until her body died. Then I would fo
I jolted awake. Shivered in the freezing air. Where the heck was I? I raised my head, winced at the pounding. I lowered it back down to the ground. Floor? I shifted to look to the left. Even the smallest movement unsettled my stomach. But I knew where I was, at least. I would always recognize these boards. Back in my Village shack. Naked, if the breezes were anything to go by. I waited until I could no longer count the beats of my heart in my eyes before I sat up. I groaned. Held my head to steady it. My head had never hurt like this. Ever. Before I could think about it, I rolled over to my hands and knees, emptied my stomach onto the floor. Again, I waited for my eyes to stop throbbing. It felt like they were trying to force themselves from their sockets. Or my brain was. Either way, it felt awful. The stench of my own vomit made my nose run and my breath back up in my throat. Naked, vomiting, and probably dying of a headache. Not even my life when I actually lived in t
A sob pushed at my chest. Tore at my lungs. Ripped at my throat. She was gone. She was somewhere I couldn't follow. Somewhere I couldn't bring her back from. I coughed to cover the sob. It came out wet and brittle. Even to my own ears, I could hear the sorrow. No one else was going to be fooled. I buried my face in the curve of her neck and shoulder. Shook as the next wave of tears and grief swamped over me. I sank my hands into her long, cool strands of hair. Gripped her head tight. "Come back, Hollyn. Please come back," I whispered against her neck. Someone stumbled through the forest next to me. I cringed back. My grief was still too raw to allow others to see it. To show it to anyone else. "Hollyn." It was practically toneless. Nothing more than an exhalation of anguish. The person stopped as if I'd shouted at them. I laid still in the grass. Waited for them to walk by. I tried to cover as much of Hollyn's skin as possible. As if the moon were trying to caress her sk
I was barely holding myself back from ripping Stretch from her grandmother's arms. I knew I wasn't the only one hurting, but damn, did I need some one-on-one time with my girl. I'd almost put her in the fucking ground. Only Tag's stubbornness had led to this moment. That and his uncanny ability to walk around fully armed without alerting anyone. I was indebted to him for the rest of our natural-and supernatural-lives. Shame ate at me. Ripped through the joy of having our girl back. In our arms. Alive. The only thing I could keep thinking of was my demands to bury her. To put her body under the soil so it would no longer taunt me with the reminders. To have it removed from my sight. My heart. My memories. I'd known I wouldn't survive her loss. Much like with losing Charlie, I needed to put it behind me as quickly as possible. Shovel as much fake normalcy on top of the yawning cavern of grief and pain as possible so I could continue to put one foot in front of the other. I