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  She turned towards me. “You should have completed the binding and made her your Coven mate.”

  “You are too blind with power to see what’s right in front of you,” Zarrick said with a smile. “That Demon will kill you.”

  “He will give me a kingdom where Witches are in charge and no one will challenge it.”

  Zander took a step towards her. She held out her hand and he froze in place. “This will be completed.”

  I felt the power of the circle rise through me. I screamed as it raced faster and harder through my blood, through my veins. The pain came in large doses intertwined with the magick. I fell to my knees and held my stomach. In my mind I was ripping apart, but knew I was still sitting in the heap of myself over my sigil and waiting for the Demon that wanted to kill me to appear.

  My ears rang and my head pounded as the power burst from my body. The release was welcome and the pain subsided some. My skin burned with the power still inside me somewhere.

  I opened my eyes to the ground around me charred and burned. The green that once surrounded me was now black and smoking from the magick I’d just released. The circle was a burned spot in the ground and everyone around it was ash.

  My eyes slid to the sigil at my feet. It still glowed an orange red. It was just like my dream and that meant that I wasn’t alone in this circle.

  I turned slowly to see the Demon I’d tried so hard to ignore. The one that wanted to have me to rule his new world. The first thing I noticed was his eyes. They were brown with red flicks. It wasn’t scary to see, but I knew there was power behind them. More power than any human or Witch could hold. His dark hair was slicked back with no hair out of place. He wore a grey suit with a red pocket square perfectly in place. His face looked familiar somehow. I’d seen him before, but couldn’t place where.

  My eyes focused on something behind him or more accurate someone. Zane was standing in front of Zander and Zarrick with his hands up. A soft blue shield in front of the three of them.

  “You are the usher of Gods. The killer of men. You are the power that consumes all things.” He reached his hand out to take mine. “You are mine.” He took my hand.

  I felt it before I saw the light that flashed between our hands. The power forced his hand back with a sharp snap.

  “What is this?” He demanded. He glanced at Alda who was still kneeling.

  “She is bound to this Coven and should be free from their connections,” Alda said standing.

  Zarrick’s laughing caught everyone’s attention. “I’m sorry. It’s just so funny.”

  “You did this,” the Demon spat.

  “That’s what you get when you leave a beautiful woman in my house,” Zarrick said looking at me instead of the Demon.

  I realized I could tap into Zarrick’s powers just as though they were my own. I closed my eyes and thought of him and all the things about him I loved. His wicked smile and his ability to get me to do things I never thought I’d do. I thought about the night we shared and how much I cared for all of these men. I wasn’t just their pet or someone they wanted for power. I was more than that.

  I opened my eyes and held my hand up. The earth responded with rumbles deep inside. It cracked between myself and this Demon I’d just let into this world. The power traveled from my feet to my hand and built like an earthquake.

  I looked the Demon in the eyes as the power flooded through me. He smiled and exploded into fire just before my power reached him. It hit Alda’s house, blowing the wall in and destroying her home.

  “This isn’t possible,” Alda said.

  “Anything is possible with Cat,” Zarrick said as he grabbed Alda. She pulled away from him and waved her arm, disappearing in front of him.

  “Damn it,” Zander said.

  Zane was there first with his hands on my shoulders. “Are you alright?”

  I nodded, but wasn’t truly sure if I was nodding because I was okay after the Demon or the power surge.

  “Now that you’re a part of the Coven, the real fun begins,” Zarrick said as he walked to me.

  “You knew somehow, didn’t you?”

  He shrugged. “I had my suspicions.”

  “You could have shared them with the rest of us,” Zander said with a bite of anger.

  “She’s safe isn’t she?” He said.

  “We still have a bigger problem.” I looked around us at the burnt circle and the destroyed house. “The Demon still came here. I let it happen.”

  “It wasn’t your fault,” Zane said. “We’ll worry about that later. You need rest.”

  We made our way through the busted building and to the car. Zane was right. I was tired and my body felt like it had been hit by a train. All I wanted to do was sleep.

  Eighteen

  I opened my eyes to two men laying on the floor of my bedroom. The light was streaming in from the sun and everything felt surreal.

  “Did you get enough sleep?” Zander said from my chair across from me.

  I smiled. “I think so.” I rubbed my arm. It still ached but was bearable.

  “Good. Magick of that magnitude can be pretty draining,” he said glancing at the men on the floor. “They didn’t want to leave you alone. Frankly, neither did I.”

  “So you had a campout in my room?” I smarted off.

  “Get used to it, Sweetheart,” Zarrick said sitting up. “You won’t be alone now.”

  My breath caught at the thought.

  “Have you looked at your eyes?” Zane said with a smile.

  I shook my head.

  I turned my head and looked in the mirror across from the foot of my bed. Sure enough, my once dark eyes had a blue hue to them. Even my hair looked a shade of blueish purple. I smiled.

  “You’re in the club now,” Zane said with a slight laugh. “I think this is also yours.” He held up the Oleander Necklace and smiled. “I saved it from Alda for you. It still works to protect you.”

  “Except from us,” Zarrick said with his wicked smile.

  “We still have to bind this coven,” Zander said. “Zarrick had his time, now it’s mine.” He gave the other two a death stare and they groaned.

  “Why do you get her all to yourself?” Zarrick said not moving.

  “The New Moon was last night. Don’t we have to wait,” I teased.

  “The Full Moon and New Moon are three days long,” Zander said with a smile.

  “And we honor every one,” Zarrick said with a wicked smile.

  The bed moved with the entry of Zander and I raised my eyebrows at Zarrick. He didn’t move.

  Zander pulled me to him and leaned over me. “I’ve waited a long time for this, but you have to say one thing before we begin.” His ran his hand down my thigh and his thumb toyed with my panties. “You have to say yes,” he whispered in my ear.

  There was no hesitation.

  “Yes.”

  ***

  Caleb sat in his circle with his eyes closed. He had felt the shift in the energy when the Demon had taken form. He knew the power was shifting. While the rest of his Coven slept, he reached out with his mind, reached out for help from the one person that could give it to him.

  “You thought I’d hide at a time like this,” the man said before Caleb opened his eyes. “I am a part of this Coven from the time it was created to the time of its end.”

  “I have never forgotten that,” Caleb said, not moving.

  “You want the power the Demon can give?”

  “I want the power to end Zarrick and everything he loves.”

  “That includes the woman,” the man said watching him at the outskirts of his circle.

  “I would like to do more than that. I’d like to induct her into my Coven, but to do that the others have to die,” Caleb said locking eyes with the man.

  The man’s red and brown eyes watched him until a smile formed on his face. “Then you will have all the power you need.” The man put his hand on Caleb’s shoulder. Caleb felt a hot burning sensation as the
power surged into him. He closed his eyes and fell to his knees.

  The power was all consuming. It extended from his shoulder to every part of his body. It burned into his skin and flesh until it sizzled and dissipated.

  Caleb caught his breath and opened his eyes to the man. He took a step back and watched Caleb. “Now you have more power than all of them combined.”

  Caleb glanced in the mirror at his feet and looked into his eyes. He could see the power as they flashed red before him.

  Catch what happens next in Bound.

  Coming July 13th.

  Need something to tide you over till then? How about a sneak peak of…

  Dark Magick

  Reading Lists

  Phoenix Rising

  Inside Demons

  Fae Lands

  Dark Magick

  Betrayed

  More to come…

  Lynn

  In the near future

  The sun was a bright contrast to the dark, which lingered for the last few days. She lay on the ground, absent from the surrounding chaos. Lynn’s ears heard only a low hum from the grenade that blew several feet from her.

  She slowly registered the fight going on around her and rolled onto her stomach. Everything was drifting, there were lifeless bodies everywhere. Pain brought her back to reality.

  War.

  It wasn’t always like this. There was a time not long before when she was more worried about making rent than the possibility of getting her head blown off, a house, and a car, those were her priorities, before everything changed.

  Many died.

  More suffered.

  Sometimes she wished she died too, but she didn’t. Lynn was one of the chosen, which pissed her off even more.

  “Come on, get up.” Two big hands grabbed her arm, pulling her to her feet. They belonged to a big man with dark short hair. She glanced up to him and caught the concern on his face and Fear in his deep blue eyes. “You can’t just lay there. We have to go.” She took a moment to realize who it was commanding her like a child.

  Miles.

  The pain was searing, but she got to her feet and ran. Gunshots were ringing through the air, the high-pitched sound almost making her Fear run rampant.

  Miles pushed Lynn behind a tree and shot one bullet at the surrounding soldiers. They huddled for cover behind a tree as it spat bark on the other side from the bullets. Lynn could feel her heart pounding in her chest, her Fear being pushed away by what she had to do to stay alive.

  “I lost my gun. What do you have?” She said, coming to her senses.

  “Four shots left.”

  “Who else is out there?”

  “I don’t know, everyone has scattered. I think it’s safe to say we’re on our own.”

  “Then help me up.” Lynn pulled herself up, using the tree for support. Miles raised his hand in objection.

  “Do you want to die?” Lynn asked. He looked down and shook his head no. She grabbed his offered hand to help stand up and peeked out from behind the tree. The bark splintered, again, and she pulled herself back behind it.

  There were twelve government soldiers.

  They were dressed in bullet-proof armor, but had no defense for what she could call. They were unfortunate soldiers of a war most didn’t understand. Lynn breathed in deeply and closed her eyes. She felt the earth below her and connected to it in her mind, the heartbeat of the element, the smell of the dirt, the feel of the cold ground beneath her. It shook and rumbled. A crack began from the tree they were hiding behind and aimed at the soldiers. The crack continued until it was at their feet and took the ground beneath them.

  Lynn opened her eyes and peered around the tree as she heard their screams. Dust flew everywhere, and the soldiers were gone. Lynn’s heart was beating fast, her vision tunneling in around her. Miles caught her arm as she fell.

  “Are you okay?” His voice became an echo in her head. She couldn’t answer before all she saw was darkness.

  ***

  Lynn opened her eyes to dark skies. Miles was working on building a fire. She turned her head and realized they were in a clearing not far from the home they created when the war started.

  The shooting pain in her side caught her attention and she gritted her teeth. Lynn pulled her blood-stained shirt up to survey the damage. The wound was larger than she expected, but it wasn't bleeding as badly as before. She took a deep breath as the air hit the wound, but it wasn't painful. It felt like a gentle touch, she smiled. The Elements seemed to always come through when she needed them. She let the feeling fade and glanced at the surrounding people. Lynn needed to know how many survived.

  They left the retreat with almost twenty people, and now only a few were left. Lynn rolled to her uninjured side as she watched the fire dance in front of her. Across from her, Miles was talking with two other survivors from the fight. She pulled herself up and sat on her legs. The last thing she needed was for them to lose faith in her or the mission.

  “How are you feeling?” Miles said across the fire.

  “Better. Are you two all right?” She asked, nodding to the people sitting next to Miles.

  One of the survivors was a young woman, only around twenty-five, her brownish red hair a mess around her face. She looked at Lynn with a blank stare. The war had taken its toll. Sitting with her was Jarod, another survivor they picked up in Surry, Canada a few years back. He was checking the ammo in a black AK 47 he held in his lap. His brown hair had grown out since then and hung loosely in his face. Most of his friends were dead or missing. Lynn suspected the man she’d saved a few years ago, figured out what the war was really about instead of being optimistic.

  “We shouldn’t stay here,” Lynn said, looking around the clearing. “If more show up, we’re sitting ducks.”

  Miles nodded and picked up his gear. “We’re not far from home now.”

  “What did we even get done here?” Jarod asked, staring at Lynn with irritation on his face.

  “We did what needed to be done. That’s what we do.” She changed tone to convey who the leader was.

  “Did that mean all those people had to die? I mean come on. Is a name that important?”

  “It’s more important than you will ever understand.” She got to her feet even though the pain made her want to sit back down. “Coming to get you was important, too. You remember that, don’t you?”

  Jarod watched Lynn for a moment before flicking his gaze back to the fire. “I remember and I also remember my friends dying.”

  “This is war. People die all the time.” She didn’t look away from him. This was a fact of the world they lived in. People got hurt every day, and some died. Lynn hoped they didn’t all die in vain. “Get your stuff together. I’ll be right back.”

  “You going to do some of that weird Witch stuff again?” Miles asked, tagging along behind her.

  “Yes, I suppose I am. You may just want to stay here,” she said, turning her back on him and the others. This would hurt, with her side already injured and all, but she needed to let Rhea know. It was important, what if she didn’t make it?

  She sat on the cold ground at the edge of the clearing and concentrated. Lynn thought only of home and the one person she needed to tell this secret to. Her body tingled as the Magick rose inside her. The world around her faded away and there was only her and the one woman she trusted with her life.

  I have a name for you.

  What is it? The woman’s voice echoed in her head.

  Tara. I’ll be there soon.

  See you then.

  The voice trailed off, and Lynn opened her eyes.

  Now was the hard part, getting back alive.

  Rhea

  The Retreat

  Rhea opened her Grey-blue eyes

  Tara.

  That was the name of the girl who would help stop the mess they were in. Rhea blew out her candle before standing, she was glad Lynn was safe and on her way back. Rhea stretched her body up to the ceiling joining her han
ds above her head; she gave a brief look around the room.

  The hut that was her home was made of pine tree logs. They used mud and grass to fill in the gaps of the logs that made the walls. The ceiling had two logs going across it as support beams, and the roof was covered by pine needle branches and tied down with long grass. A rickety wood door covered the entrance to the small hut, behind the deer hide that hung inside the room to keep the cold out.

  Her daughter slept on a homemade cot, which kept her off the dirt floor. A fire burned in the middle of the room. Local herbs hung from the rafters and on a warm day the aroma was inviting. Never in a million years did Rhea think she would live off the land like this. It became vital to use every part of an animal and the vegetation, for both mundane and magical purposes.

  Rhea smiled as she looked at the large cot set against the west wall, opposite her daughters. Her partner was sleeping; his brown hair had gathered silver from the lifestyle change. Rhea stroked his hair as she thought about how young they were when they met, that was about the time the government started The 'Unified Cities Program'. It was a way to trick people into grouping together so they could divide them and place them in camps if they weren't compliant.

  Rumors spread fast in the Magical community, some died trying to warn others. Rhea was not in the business of being bought by those in control. She heard of some who did what the government wanted and they had all the material things, and Magickal powers they could ever wish for. Their job was to hunt down those referred to as freedom fighters, people like Rhea, Lynn and everything they stood for. Rhea and Lynn knew they weren't the only ones who set up camps like this; there were seven Gateways all over the world opening to the planes of existence that coincided along with earth. Some of the Gateways had high beings come out of them, while the others had lower beings come out of them. Rhea didn't know which level Yellowstone was, but she did know it was a lower level. Nothing good came from it.