The Wild (Book Four The Hayle Coven Novels) Read online

  “I have a gift for you,” she hissed at him. “As a thank you for your fine hospitality.” She caressed his cheek with one fingertip. He flinched from her like she’d struck him. A warm red glow started in the spot she’d touched, spreading outward slowly before picking up speed, taking over his face, his neck and down under the collar of his shirt. I watched in horror as his eyes changed from pale blue to glowing amber, his pale skin flushing red. As his finger nails transformed into hard, sharp claws, two tiny black horns popped out of his hairline.

  “You made him a demon?” How could she? Would he have demon power now?

  But she just smirked down at him. “Not hardly,” she said. “I only made him look like one of us. Permanently. Now let’s see how your faithful followers treat you.”

  Giant tears spilled down his trembling cheeks as he huddled there, sobbing. Sunny helped Quaid out the window, then my demon. I was the last to go, glancing over my shoulder at the crushed and altered form of the former leader of the Chosen of the Light.

  And while I refused to feel sorry for him, for everything he’d done and the countless witches I knew he’d killed or converted, as we raced across the compound to the safety of the forest, I couldn’t help but wince at the sound of splintering wood as his people reached him, his sudden screams, cut off just as quickly as I could only imagine the Chosen did to him what they did best.

  ***

  Chapter Thirty One

  The race through the forest back to the motorcycle went much more quickly now that we didn’t have to worry about the Chosen. I was panting and feeling bruised and a little battered when Quaid pulled up and stopped, but just so grateful I was about to be whole.

  I continued on, reaching for my demon as she settled on the ground next to Sunny. The look she gave me made me hesitate, pause, finally stop in front of her, my arms dropping to my sides.

  She continued to glare at me while I tried to understand what was wrong.

  “We don’t have much time,” I said, my voice trembling from the need I had to have her with me.

  “I agree.” She looked up at Sunny. “We have to hurry.” My demon rose from the ground, her magic spinning beneath her in a soft whirlwind.

  “Maybe you’d like to know where to go?” Quaid’s voice was low, but full of sympathy and I hated it was aimed at me.

  “The site,” my demon said even as the wind supporting her stilled and she settled on the ground.

  “No,” Sunny said, her own brand of loving compassion in her face as she looked at me. “The site is no longer viable.”

  What? Since when? Her blue eyes fixed on me. “Your mother had to strip it clean,” she said. “The magic of it was tainted by what happened with Demitrius. The site no longer has power.”

  Then what was she trying to prove, telling me I was forbidden… oh, she was so sneaky. And so very clever. My heart leaped. “She knew that when she ordered me to stay away! But why?” I was pretty sure I knew, but needed someone else to voice it for me to believe it.

  Quaid filled that need. “She knew you’d never stop looking,” he said. “And she really couldn’t risk another war. She had to let you do this on your own.”

  “You knew?” I spun on him, furious. “All along?”

  “She asked me to help you.” He shrugged. “And I did.”

  “You could have told me.” I felt my anger returning. How could she do this to me? Make me think I couldn’t go home, that I would be banished? Oh, she’d ordered me to stay away from the coven site, to keep clear of family business. But there was no power at the site anymore. And there was nothing, no command of hers, keeping me from going home, the new center of her power. Which was exactly where Mom wanted me to be.

  Contrary, conniving, and all together manipulative. She’d been holding back not only because of the coven, but to force me to act. Damn her, why did she have to be right, in the end?

  Sunny obviously knew where my mind was going. “She couldn’t tell you,” Sunny said. “Had she, your fear would have held you back. We all saw it happen to you, Syd. When you lost your demon.” She glanced at the other half of me, sullenly watching us with her amber eyes that rolled in irritation. Sunny went on anyway. “We saw how hopeless you were. Lost. This was your task. And I am honored I could be a part of it.”

  No way was I letting her flattery and years of being my family soothe this wound. So how come it worked? I couldn’t be mad at Sunny. Whatever. I’d have a talk with Mom when this was all over and make sure she knew how unhappy I was with how it went.

  My anger snapped like a weak thread when I remembered if we didn’t hurry we wouldn’t get a chance to see her let alone help. And it was very likely even if we did make it, I wouldn’t be having any kind of argument with Mom about anything before we all died at the hands of the Wild Hunt.

  Moving on. Good then.

  A patter of rain drifted through the trees, a few drops hitting my face. I looked up, only then noticing the rolling clouds racing by, heading toward Wilding Springs.

  “I’ll take Syd.” Quaid was already on his bike, tossing me a helmet. “You two get back as fast as you can.”

  Sunny nodded, my demon rising beside her. She deliberately turned her face away from me and rose into the air beside the flickering shadow of the vampire.

  Within moments, they were gone.

  I scrambled on the back of the motorcycle, holding back tears of rejection and wondering what was happening. This was supposed to be a happy moment, a reunion, not another heartbreak.

  “Where are we going?” I had to shout over the sound of the motor and the rising wind as I realized I hadn’t a clue where the new site was.

  “The only other place with a big source of power,” Quaid called back to me as he gunned the engine.

  Source of power? Of course. Only one other place in town was warded to the hilt.

  My house.

  All that time Mom and Dad spent in the basement. It had nothing to do with him. And everything to do with re-channeling all of the family power into the foundations of our house.

  Rain came and went in sudden downpours, forcing Quaid to slow at times, though I felt the steady thrum in his body and knew he used his magic to keep us safe. Still, at this rate it was going to take us too long to get back. It was just shy of one in the morning, and with the way the storm was growing, I knew we were cutting it very close.

  I needed to convince my demon to come back to me. And figure out what the source of Sidhe magic meant. Was that what kept me shielded from my power? Where did it come from? Had Galleytrot done something to me? And how could I get rid of it? So many questions spinning in my head, I felt wrung out just from the emotions behind them.

  The bike shuddered under us as a giant fork of lightning struck up ahead. Quaid leaned low, pushing the engine hard as a thick tree, snapping and blazing fire, slowly toppled toward the road. The stink of ozone and burning wood choked me as I tried to scream. The bike skimmed under the falling oak, leaves and twigs just brushing my back before we cleared the wreckage and sped on.

  Way too close for comfort.

  The protective net in my mind spun tighter again, pulling my magic close, closing me up to the power around me. I jabbed my hand into my pocket and grabbed the crystal, refusing to let this happen to me again. Green magic sprouted, releasing the hold of the net just enough I could feel again.

  It would have to be enough.

  Wilding Springs was under full storm attack by the time we roared into town. Quaid poured most of his magic into keeping us moving and in the clear. I could feel that, at least, and the heaviness of the approaching, gathering magic in the very sky itself. I hugged him hard, tried to feed him more, but he didn’t take it, just pushed harder. The last bout of rain came to an abrupt halt as we spun down my street and to my driveway.

  I gulped air in my anxiety, trembling all over with the need to get inside. I could sense the tightening of the family wards and knew we were just in time. I leapt from the back of
the bike, Quaid right behind me and slid inside the kitchen door just as I felt Mom slam the wards shut behind us.

  The kitchen was chilly and dark and very empty. I tried using the green magic to feel around the basement, but it was also empty. How could that be? I knew they were here, could sense Mom.

  “Backyard.” Quaid and I said it together, jostling each other to get there first.

  I won, pounding around the staircase and down the back hall to the door. I burst out onto the grass just as a giant roll of thunder knocked out the power and the whole town went black.

  I could see them, the coven, rimmed in green, all of them standing there. I held onto the crystal, forcing my way through the family. It took a moment for me to register the entire family was present. Sandra and Patrick Crossman stood nearby with their young daughter, Eliza in their arms. I spotted Gram huddled next to Mom while Dad held Meira against him.

  I was shocked to see her, and Sassy too. The other kids of the coven all gathered together with the family. What happened to sending them away?

  Meira spotted me, squirmed out of Dad's grip and ran. I lifted her into my arms.

  “You’re here.” I kissed her cheek and cuddled her against me.

  “Nowhere is safe,” she whispered. “Not anymore.”

  I nodded and moved on, not slowing my forward advance until I stood in front of Mom. Her eyes were grim but filled with shock as she looked over my shoulder.

  “We made it,” I said, knowing who stood there next to me, wondering where my demon and Sunny hid while I made the first move and realizing it didn’t matter.

  Mom hugged me hard. “I knew you would,” she whispered.

  Rather than get mad, I set Meira down and squeezed her back.

  Dad and Meira joined us, one big huggy circle. Like we had time for this. Still.

  I pulled away, listening to the muffled sound of the storm around us, feeling like my ears were stuffed with cotton, realizing the wards kept the yard quiet and still.

  “Now what?” I squared my shoulders, ready for whatever happened.

  “Now we face the Wild Hunt together.” Mom smiled at me. Glanced at my demon. “Really together.”

  I turned to her, catching her glowing amber gaze with mine.

  “It’s time,” I said. “The family needs us.”

  “You just don’t take hints very well, do you?” She snarled at me and crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m done with you and I’m never coming back.”

  ***

  Chapter Thirty Two

  This couldn’t be happening, not now, not after everything I’d gone through to rescue her. I stood there, feeling like she’d hit me physically, unable to act or react.

  Luckily, Dad spoke up for me.

  “You must return,” he said, voice soft and low. “You need to be whole.”

  She snarled at him. “You should talk.”

  Dad flinched. “I’m trying at least,” he said. “I know how important it is to return to where I belong.”

  She looked away from him, a deep scowl on her face. “I’m tired of being told what to do,” she said. “And I’m tired of her not wanting me around. I saved all of you and gave her what she wanted. And what thanks did I get for it? That man used my power, just like she did, kept me a prisoner. And no one came for me.”

  “I came for you.” I took a step toward her. “We did.” I gestured at Quaid and Sunny.

  She shrugged. “Took you long enough.”

  Seriously? There was no making her happy. Now I really knew how Mom felt.

  The wards around us shook. I could feel the vibration, had a jab of terror sharpen my resolve.

  “Please understand,” I said. “I searched for you because I realized how much I needed you. I never gave up.”

  She glanced at me, glowing eyes softening around the edges. “You just want your power back. Not me.”

  Was she right? I made sure she saw I was thinking about it. Was it just my power I longed for? I looked at her, stared at her, felt around inside myself and realized the gaping hole wasn’t just from my missing magic, but the fact that I really was nothing without her.

  “I need you,” I said, meaning every word, each coming from the depths of my heart, “more than anything. Even if we never use our power again, if you coming back means letting you have control too.”

  Her arms uncrossed, amber eyes staring into mine. “I don’t want to disappear.” It came out in a whisper I barely heard over the sudden baffle of the shields as the wind slammed against them, but I understood her fear. “You say all this now, but as soon as I return you’ll force me behind those walls again and never let me out.” She looked away. “Or worse. You’ll absorb me at last and I will be no more.”

  How could I convince her when I had no idea what would happen?

  She shook her head, scowl returning. “I will live this life I’ve gained, as crippled as it is.” That was the first time I realized she suffered from my loss as much as I did from hers.

  “And the family?” I only had one card left to play. “Without us, they could fall.” Again, I didn’t know that for sure and was actually more than certain we’d fail anyway. But it was all I had left.

  She turned away from me. “You should have thought about the family a long time ago.”

  I heard a soft snort and looked down, seeing for the first time that Sassy sat at my feet. He caught my eyes, everything in him telling me he told me so. I stooped and picked him up, hugging him, knowing he was right.

  “You have to be sure.” Sassy’s paws touched my cheeks. “She feels your indecision, we all do.”

  I looked around me at the coven, my parents, Quaid and Sunny. It was the first time I really paid attention. The vampires of the DeWinter blood clan were there as well, filling out the perimeter, Uncle Frank and Anastasia holding the line. And as much as everyone’s focus was on supporting the shields, every pair of eyes was on me.

  I shuddered. There wasn’t time for this. The crystal gave me enough access to the Sidhe magic I could feel the pull of the Wild, the surges of power the riders threw out as they struggled to wake at last. And yet, this was the only time I had left.

  I let the thin thread of power under my control reach for my demon and touch her, put all of my need and hope and fear into it. As soon as the magic encountered hers, I felt a surge of rightness quickly smothered by the protective spell struggling to keep her out.

  She spun back to me. “There, you see?” She pointed at my heart. “You don’t want me, even now.”

  Tears welled. “That’s not me.” I knew it now, as much as I’d privately doubted at times. The part of me resisting her was foreign, a piece of the protection wrapped around my mind. “Please, it’s not me.”

  She glared before slamming her power into me. I tried to accept it, to welcome it home, but the net jerked tight and shoved her back. She howled in rage, smoke curling out between her lips.

  “I swear to you,” I choked on tears as I struggled to speak, “whatever is keeping us apart has nothing to do with me.”

  She paced around me, fury pouring out of her in waves even I could feel. I heard the family groan as the pressure above them increased, felt them sway as one.

  “Syd,” Mom whispered, face red from effort, “if you’re going to do something, you need to hurry.”

  I was trying. But there was nothing I could do.

  Before I had another chance to act, the coven shuddered around me, shuddering as the magic thread connecting them shattered. Only for a moment, but long enough to allow someone through.

  And that someone wasn’t the girl I knew, wasn’t my friend Pain any longer.

  Fury in every inch of her, Cydia entered the coven circle with murder in her eyes.

  ***

  Chapter Thirty Three

  She would have reached me far more quickly if her passage hadn’t finally triggered what had been building inside her for years. I watched with fear for her as the walls built around her shattered in
a visible explosion of light. The pieces, still containing some energy, ricocheted from the inside of the family’s wards. Pain/Cydia staggered and almost fell. But when she gained her balance again, I knew I was in serious trouble.

  Her power hovered around her like a tangible spirit, pale gold mixed with green. Her body vibrated with the release of her magic and she laughed once, so loud it was almost a shout.

  “This is what it feels like!” That was Pain. “You will die another death, sister.” Cydia. “One from which you will not return.” Her power lashed out at me but Mom was there, her shields protecting me. Pain/Cydia hissed at her as the magic was absorbed this time, retained to strengthen the coven.

  “Syd,” Mom whispered in my ear, “tell me.”

  I did, as quickly as I could. “The dreams,” I said. “We’re both connected to the Wild somehow, Mom. I think…” No, I knew. “We were sisters once. In another life.”

  Reincarnation. There was no other way to explain it.

  “Show me.”

  I offered Mom my hand while her power lashed out and engulfed Pain. My friend/sister cried out from the contact as Mom drove us both into the dream. Only this time it was shared by everyone.

  ***

  He loves me. His beautiful green eyes watch me with adoration. Cydia, my older sister, pinches my arm as I smile back at him.

  “The likes of him is not for you.”

  But are we not both princesses of the Sidhe? Is he not a noble among us?

  With my parents’ consent, my love for Gwynn ap Nudd grows stronger by the day. He is destined for greatness, and I will be his mate.

  Cydia tries many times to change my mind.

  “He is so much older than you.” My love knows no age and are we not the ageless? “Surely you would prefer someone with more humor?” When I look in his eyes, I see all the world of laughter and joy I could ever want. “He is only using you to curry favor with our royal parents.” Then so be it. My love for him is stronger than her arguments.