Page 103 of Tethered Magick
“I love you,” I told him, and his gaze locked on my lips.
“And I love you,” he mouthed back, holding up his thumb, pointer finger, and pinkie in the universal sign for ‘love.’
I took one last glimpse at Jolon, who was obviously dealing with the earful that Chayton, Axel, and Dason were giving him while Kota just looked distressed. “I can’t stop her. I can’t even reach her…”
Kota shook his head a million times before banging his fist on the ward. “Alright, go. Run. We’ll instruct you from here. Run and don’t stop. Get the grimoire and dash that pretty little ass back across this ward.”
Tears spilled down my cheeks. “Thank you.”
The creatures watching me didn’t move until I stepped away from the ward and invaded their territory. They tracked the blur of motion I became as I tapped into my new vampy powers and speed.
I sliced through the air, and the wind whipped my hair back, the strands flying behind me.
Snarling intensified as the shadows shifted off to my sides, the glowing eyes growing in number until I was sure whatever lurked in the dark was stalking me in a pack. Shivers raced up my spine, and I ran faster, pushing myself harder with every footfall.
I aimed for the grimoire, hoping to snatch it and make it back across the shimmering gate in record time.
“Watch your left!” Kota shouted.
A black beast emerged from the cloak of shadows, and I screamed as it lunged for me, knocking me off my feet. I rolled into the fall and was back up in a flash. I sprinted for the podium like I was an Olympic athlete, the pull of the grimoire an unbreakable chain, dragging me closer.
When I was almost there, I dove for it. A jolt of magick seared through me when I made contact, light bursting from where I touched it. A sense of ownership came over me, the magick a tether, and I knew I was now responsible for theBook of the Keepers, my mother’s grimoire.
Just touching something that had once been hers made me tear up, but I didn’t have time to process the gravity of what this meant.
I rounded the podium, tucked the grimoire close to my body, and prepared to race back to the ward when I heard my men’s warning shouts.
The beasts emerged from the shadows to block my escape, and there were at least twenty pairs of glowing red eyes locked on my every move. Their skin and matted fur barely clung to their bones, and in places patches were totally worn away to show the gleam of ivory ribs beneath.
My men screamed for me, their pounding matching the rapid pace of my heartbeat.
“Nice doggies,” I soothed, hoping to stave them off while I came up with a plan to get out of here. My magick burned hot in my fingers, and I flexed them, ready to attack. However, my odds weren’t good. No matter which way I looked, there wasn’t a path that led me back to the ward exceptthroughthe pack of hellhounds boxing me in.
Deciding I couldn’t wait, I made my move, and when the first hellhound attacked, I let my magick fly. The scent of burnt fur stung my nose as I aimed at another and released a second blast.
It was difficult working with only one hand, but I had a death grip on the grimoire, and I had no intention of letting it go.
Vicious snarls filled the shadow realm, the entire forest coming awake as the battle commenced. I pivoted and dodged one after another as they charged, my superhuman speed helping me evade their attacks. Their skeletal maws snapped at me as I fled for safety.
“That’s it, baby! Give ‘em hell!” Jolon called, and while I couldn’t take my eyes off the fight for one second, the relief that I wasn’t alone was sweet.
I could do anything, defeat anything, for my mates.
The importance of extracting the grimoire only served to make me hyper focused, but I was so outnumbered, I couldn’t keep them at bay for long.
Sharp teeth ripped into my leg, and I screamed at the same time as Kota and my other mates, their shouts becoming a cacophony of anger and worry in the background.
Shifting my hold on the grimoire, I squeezed it tightly and swung, using it as a weapon against the hellhound trying to drag me to the ground. It yelped, flying sideways from the impact, my vampire strength lending a helping hand.
For one blissful second, I had a path through the horde, and I ran as fast as my legs would carry me, my gaze locked on my three beautiful men on the other side.
They waved me on, pounding on the ward that was impenetrable to them, ready to catch me when I careened through the shimmering surface—but I never made it.
A set of razor-sharp canines sank into my thigh, the stench of rotting meat making me want to puke as much as the pain did. I cried out as the beast took me to the ground, its head shaking as it deepened the wound it’d inflicted. Three more joined it, blocking my sight of anything other than bloody fur and bones.
I screamed as they ripped at my clothes and tore at my skin, and I realized this was a fight to the death.
Deep inside of me, my primal spirit surged, and I called on my welling power, channeling it until my body burst into purple flames, singeing the creatures who’d been intent on killing me slowly and savoring their meal.