What had happened?
One minute Joel was about to be overwhelmed, then something hit him… he wasn’t sure what it was. It had to have been magic, right? Whatever it was, it was unlike anything he’d ever experienced as magic. Instead of the icy sensation of someone shoving ice chips under his skin, it was warm. The magic wrapped around him, like a blanket right out of a dryer, chasing away the chill of a frigid winter’s night. It encased him, but wasn’t smothering. Just the opposite. He felt loved and safe. It was the most amazing sensation Joel had ever experienced.
When the warmth subsided, Joel opened his eyes. He stared down at the ground beneath him. Instead of paws, he saw hands. His hands! No, it couldn’t be? He was human again? He was human again! Joel couldn’t believe it. He was back in his human form, but how? Li
The man shifted back into what Gail thought was her dog, Bruiser. It was gross and horrifying to watch, but she could not look away. Gail almost felt sorry for him, but there was that little fact he’d let her believe he was a dog. God, she might never live down the embarrassment!Bruiser, or Joel, or whatever his name was, started growling and snapping at her feet. He wasn’t close enough that she feared he would bite her, but it was enough to convey his anger. “Why are you angry at me?” she demanded, taking a step back. “No, you know what? I am the one that’s mad!”He growled and chuffed at her, and then she remembered what he was saying before he shifted back. Gail crossed her arms and looked down at him. “I didn’t make you change back.”Somehow, he nailed
Gail closed her bedroom door and leaned against it. Despite her best attempts, the guilt flooded her. The witches had all but declared war on the werewolves. Worse yet, it seemed they were winning. Gail had no doubts that the coven controlling all werewolves in the area, or possibly the country, wasn’t a good thing. But what could she do about it? She took down the box from the closet with the idea to toss the charm in there, but when she saw the pictures, she hesitated. Gail plopped down on the bed next to the box. She picked up one photograph.It was of her and her parents on one of their many hikes through the forest. Her mother loved being among the trees. She said it made her feel connected to the world. Gail looked about eight or nine in the picture, making it one of the last pictures her parents had taken before their murder. They died not too far from that location.
Pain ripped through Gail’s head, waking her up from her sleep. She held her head, waiting for it to pass. Something jumped on her bed, making her scream and jerk back against the headboard. It was only when Joel barked several times, did her sleep fogged mind realize it was him. “Owe,” she said, rubbing the back of her head where she'd hit the headboard. “What’s wrong?” Gail reached for the charm and wrapped it around her wrist. ‘They’re here. The witches. They’re right outside.’ That explained the sudden headache that woke her up. “Already?” She threw back the covers, rubbing her still aching temple. In the living room, Gail peeked out the window. “Crap,” she breathed, seeing a large group of, most likely, witches on her small front lawn. ‘I don’t think they’ve gotten past your spells.’
Gail’s mind raced as she drove. Her hands shook and her ability to not think about what had just happened was slipping. She needed to find a place to stop, and soon. Gail was also aware of Joel watching her as she drove. Thankfully, he didn’t ask the dumb question ‘are you okay?’ yet.She shook her head, focusing back on the road. They needed to stop, but where? Gail saw the interstate and had an idea where to go. Turning on to the interstate, she drove for almost twenty minutes before getting off again to pull into the parking lot of a hotel. “Ready to take a breather?” Gail asked as she leaned over and opened the glove compartment. Inside, she took out a white envelope. Aunt Rose had always insisted Gail carry it in the car, just in case one day she had to make a quick getaway. She opened the envelope and took out some money and a fake ID with the name Melony Staton on
As Joel neared the door, he smelled it. Witch. It was a witch at the door. His muscles tensed, preparing to take the witch on his own. Gail hadn’t yet recovered from using her magic back at her house. She wouldn’t be able to help, and he didn’t want her to push herself farther than she already had.When Gail reached his side he said, without looking away from the door, ‘It’s a witch.’“A witch?” she whispered. “Are you sure?”He bobbed his head in reply.“Damn, how did they find us already?”The witch knocked again.“Okay, right. Well, they must know we’re here so…”
“You need to focus,” Aunt Rose told Gail, and not for the first time that morning. Gail blew out a breath, giving up on trying the simple spell her aunt told her to work on. She was focused. So focused, Gail had a headache coming on. “I’m trying.” Her aunt gave her a closed lip smile. “Yes, but you’re easily distracted and don’t bother denying it. Magic needs singular focus, Gail. You can’t let anything else occupy your thoughts or else it won’t work.” Again, Gail sighed and nodded. Her aunt had also told her that several times already. “Yeah, yeah.” “Let’s try again. Your magic takes its power from the moon. Focus on the glass ball in your hands. Your intent is to fill it with the light of the moon. That is all you must think about. Keep your eyes on the ball, look
Exhaustion pulled at Gail, forcing her shoulders forward. She stared at the mess that was her aunt’s backyard. Her latest attempt to control her magic led to every animal in the surrounding area to come to her. It looked like a zoo gone wild. Deers were peeling bark off her aunt’s crabapple trees. Birds filled said trees, chirping or squawking down at the deers. There were squirrels and raccoons everywhere, getting into everything within reach, which turned out to be quite a lot. A family of possums were making themselves comfortable under the picnic table.The only one mildly amused was Joel. He laid out on the porch, watching the cha0s. He was the only reason the boars did not overrun her aunt’s vegetable garden. Aunt Rose’s flower bed wasn’t so lucky. They destroyed it, eating the tulip bulbs.“This is a disaster,” h
Joel growled, ‘Open the door. I’ll deal with them.’ “No, there is no need,” Gail told him, watching the witches approach. ‘But-’ “My aunt has protections in place,” she told him. “And hers are much better than mine. They’ll never get through them before she comes back. We’ll be okay.” ‘Okay,’ he huffed, but not an inch of him relaxed. “Any minute now they’re going to realize their mistake.” She held her breath as she watched them get closer… and closer. Her stomach tightened. “Odd.” ‘What? What’s wrong.’ “Oh, nothing. It’s just… I must have miscalculated where my aunt placed her spells.”
The order of the alpha soured the party for Gail, so she left her plate and go back inside. Where was she going to go? She had about twenty-four hours to figure that out. Going back through the house to her room, Gail thought about her plan to go east. Perhaps she should keep that plan. It was better than nothing, anyway. She almost reached her room when she heard Joel call her name. He hurried up to the stairs, toward her. “Hey, you okay? Why did you leave the party?” She knew Joel wouldn’t have liked the warning the other alpha gave her. So she gave him a small smile with a nod. “Oh yeah, I’m fine. Just wasn’t feeling very festive.” “Right,” he said, walking over to her. “That wouldn’t have anything to do with the talk you had with Christopher, would it?” Gail’s ey
Gail woke up in a strange room. Her heart raced with panic until she noticed a note on the nightstand next to her.Gail, don’t freak out. You’re in Alpha Christopher’s pack house. When you’re ready, just tell the first person you come by to get me. Love Joel.She smiled as she read the note and looked around the room. It was minimal, but tastefully decorated. Perfect for guests, she assumed. Throwing back the covers, Gail got up out of the bed and looked at the window. She expected to be surrounded by woods, but she saw a neat little neighborhood. It reminded her a lot of the cul-de-sac she lived in before Ricinius blew up her house. By the sunlight, she assumed it was early afternoon.Still wearing the clothes she had been before, Gail ventured out of the room. Sounds of a party greete
“No,” Aunt Rose said, lifting her chin. “I’ve worked too hard, made too many sacrifices for this. You will not ruin this for me!”“You’re insane,” Gail said, not only to her aunt but to herself in an attempt to ease some of the pain of her aunt’s betrayal. “Whatever you are trying to do, you’re going to do it without me. I’m not your slave or your pet.” When Gail took off the leather from her wrists, her aunt screamed and threw her hands towards Gail.The wave of magic knocked Gail off her feet. She hit the floor hard, knocking the air out of her. The threads of magic that formed the charm tried to weave together again, but Gail called up her magic and with the boost from Joel, she tore through the remnants of the charm. Getting up, Gail ripped the bands of leather off her wrists. &ld
Pain thrummed through Gail. Her head pounded as if someone had hit her over the head with a hammer repeatedly. Sweat ran down her face, pebbled all over her body, but she was cold. So cold the blood flowing from her nose felt hot against her skin. Joel’s resistance surprised her. After how easy the first alpha had been, like snuffing out a candle, she expected Joel to be the same. But he fought, and at first it gave her hope. Maybe he might stop this. Perhaps he was strong enough to break the charm.As they fought, Gail realized that the only thing that would break was her. Before all this, using her magic always exhausted her. Gaining control over her magic and all that practice didn’t change that. Despite the magic and life Gail stole from Ricinius, Gail had used most of her energy already. Controlling Ricinius’ werewolves, fighting with Joel had been too much. He was really a true alpha, but the charm wouldn’t allow her to giv
“Everyone, but Joel, took a collective step back as Christopher laid where he’d fallen. Ice slid through Joel as he stared up at Gail. He had no idea how she did it, but Rose was controlling her like Ricinius had controlled the werewolves. How could Rose do something like this? To her own family? He looked over at Gail, searching for something that would tell him what kind of spell her aunt had her under. As soon as he saw the braided leather on both her wrists, he knew that was it. If he took those off Gail, would she be free of the spell? That sounded like it would be much easier said than done. “How could you do that to her?” Joel demanded, tearing his eyes from Gail to Rose. “She’s your niece. You were supposed to protect her!” “She is protected,” Rose said in a matter-of-fact tone. “Gail will nev
It took much more time than Joel would’ve liked for Christopher to organize his people and get them moving; and then their numbers weren’t even close to what Joel suggested he take with them. With what was left of Joel’s pack and what Christopher was bringing, they were only twenty-five strong. From what he’d seen from the attacks on Gail and her house, Ricinius had a lot over twenty-five.He tried to convince the alpha to bring more wolves with them, but Christopher was completely underestimating the threat of the coven. When Joel tried to push the matter, he only reinforced the alpha’s stubbornness. Afraid to make things worse, Joel dropped it and left the pack house with the others. They left in six cars. Joel, his mother, and friends got in one car together.“This isn’t good,” he told the others as they
Gail sat in the passenger side car of her car as her aunt drove. Aunt Rose wrinkled her nose as she sat down. “I don’t see why you clung to this vehicle so much. It’s a piece of junk.” Her aunt smiled over at her. “But that’s all about to change. You’ll see, Gail. You will be living life more fitting of your station.” Though she could only sit there motionless, Gail would’ve scowled. Fitting her station? It seemed like her aunt had been reading too many of those periodic romances.
“What do you think he’s going to do?” Elijah asked as they drove back to Christopher’s territory. “The witches are on the move,” Joel told him, his stomach twisting with worry and fear. Gail was under another spell. Was it her aunt or was it the coven? Was there even a distinction between the two? Had her aunt always been working for Ricinius and biding her time until Joel was no longer there to protect Gail? “How can you be so sure?” Lucas asked from the back seat. “I’m sure because Gail is missing. If she had gone back willingly, Gail would’ve never left that house. She understood the other witches would drain her. Gail would’ve stayed. They have her and they’ll drain her so the leader can steal her power and use it against us. We need to act before they do.” “Or p
“Wait,” Joel’s mother called out to him. She hurried behind him, trying to catch up.“What? Why?” he asked, stopping and waiting for her.“If something did indeed bad happen to her, then you shouldn’t go off running in blindly,” she told him. “And you most certainly shouldn’t go alone.”“I doubt the alpha would help me find her.”“Oh, there is no chance of him helping you there,” his mother agreed. “However, there is your brother and your friends.”“Elijah?” Joel repeated skeptically. “He thinks I’m being stupid worrying about her. I should focus only on the pack.”