Josh and Cole were head to head, snarling and growling at each other. Their skin shuddered in ripples like disturbed water, and it looked as if it was melting away, becoming transparent, until all that was left of them were skeletons locked in combat.
Vampires, fine. Witches, believable. Amelia would even have been okay with finding out that werewolves existed. But this, this was not okay. Another scream ripped from inside her, and two sets of glowing yellow eyes, which seemed to be floating in mid-air with no skin or muscle to hold them in place, snapped towards her.
Josh’s husky voice came from the bones on the left, “I’m sorry.” He stepped towards her, and with each step, his skin reformed over his bones, and by the time he was crouched in front of her, he was whole again. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Amelia scampered back until she was lodged in a corner with nowhere else to go, and Josh pressed on with caution, inching closer, as if he was trying to trap a scared puppy and didn’t want to move too fast in case it bolted.
“Josh, you broke her arm,” Cole snapped, and for just a second, Amelia looked over at her cousin’s tear-stained face and limp wrist which Cole held loosely in his hand.
“So fix it,” Josh said calmly and continued to move slowly in Amelia’s direction.
Amelia frantically pulled on the energy that had begun to build in an anxiety-filled knot in her stomach, gnawing away at her as if she had swallowed a rat that was trying to break free. She put up her hands, and the gleaming power balled in her palms. “Stay away from me,” she said, although her voice was so small and scared that she hardly recognized it as her own.
Millie, don’t, Megan’s voice penetrated her jumbled brain, and for a second she hesitated.
Josh noticed her moment’s hesitation and suddenly his hands were on her cheeks and waves of sweet honey suckle filled her lungs. He leaned in so close that she could taste his sweet breath as he spoke, “No one’s going to hurt you, sweetheart.”
“Wha…wha…what are you?” Amelia stuttered. The balls of burning energy dissipated, and her muscles relaxed against her will. She knew in her gut that she shouldn’t relax. Something was wrong. But that scent. It flowed over her, washing away the panic and erasing her fears.
Josh smiled and brushed a loose curl from her forehead. “Immortal,” he whispered. “I’m what you get when witches and hunters hook up.” And then he rose, pulling her up with him. He pointed to a lime green loveseat and said, “Sit.”
Amelia instantly plopped down, her body responding to his command immediately, even though her brain was urging her not to listen. He’s using magic on us, her brain registered. Things suddenly started to make sense. Hunters and witches together. “Cole promised her to me.” Josh’s words rang loud and clear. Had he been insinuating that she was to be his breeding mule?
Amelia thought she was going to be sick. Her gut was telling her to play along, but her skin crawled. And Josh’s massaging hand on her thigh was seriously not helping. “Why us?” she blurted before she could stop it from coming out.
Cole laughed. “It’s all in the writings. You two are the key to ending the curse.”
“What curse?” Amelia asked, trying to stall. Her head was swimming as she struggled to make sense of what she had seen.
Cole scowled and then focused on Megan. He started running his finger around her wrist, and a hushed murmur that Amelia could not make out slipped from his lips. As he spoke, Megan’s wrist straightened, the swelling vanished, and she sighed. “What did you do to your mark, Megs,” Cole asked, continuing to rub her wrist in a gentle massage.
Megan’s eyelids drooped. “Amelia did something to the bond,” she replied in a monotone voice.
“Are they dead?” he questioned.
“No,” she said faintly, and her body sagged deeper into the cushions.
The air in the room became sparse and cold and Amelia struggled to breathe as she watched in horror as her cousin mindlessly spewed out the answers.
What have I done? Amelia had made many stupid decisions in the past, but this one was definitely the worst. Mitchell had warned her not to go. He had tried to make her see reason. He had known all along that they were stronger together. But would she listen? Of course not. Instead, she had gone ahead with her plan, putting on the best act in history with her family and forcing him to play along.
This was supposed to be simple. Leave Mitchell. Find the hunters. Get rid of them and protect her family. It had seemed like the only way to get on the inside. But now that she was on the inside, it wasn’t looking so simple.
Amelia needed to come up with a plan, but she realized she didn’t have much time. If Megan didn’t shut up soon, any bit of advantage they had would be lost.
“Here’s the thing,” Amelia said, before Megan could say something they would most likely regret. “We tried to kill them, but we just couldn’t do it. I want to hate him but…” She dropped her gaze to the ground and pinched the inside of her leg as hard as she could until the tears started to bead up in her eyes.
“Don’t cry,” Josh said, wrapping an arm around her.
Amelia cringed away from his touch before she could stop herself. Think, a voice in her head screamed as she frantically searched for something, anything to say that would justify the flinch. Megan moaned, just a soft small sound, but Amelia could still make out the name that escaped her lips. Eric.
Amelia looked at Josh, pleading for him to understand. “I can’t stop myself from loving him. We need your help.”
“What did you have in mind?” Cole asked.
“There’s a fair…” the lies she tasted in her voice cut her words short, and she pinched herself as hard as she could to get her dried up eyes to water. Typically, Amelia could cry at the drop of a hat, but of course, when she actually needed the tears they wouldn’t fall.
“Are you actually falling for this crap?” The girl’s voice was just as squeaky as Amelia had thought it would be.
“Stephanie,” Cole said. He pushed her off him and glowered. “Let her speak.”
“I know Mitchell,” Amelia blurted in an excited frenzy. She took a deep breath, forcing herself to stay cool. “He’s too damned proud and sure of himself to cancel it. It’ll happen, and it’ll be the perfect place to launch an attack. Besides, you can’t expect me to believe that you were just going to leave town without cleaning it up first.”
Cole seemed to consider it for a second. “How do I know I can trust you?”
“You don’t,” Amelia answered honestly.
CHAPTER 29
Cole took his time responding, and Amelia was sure he was deliberately trying to make a point by making her wait. But the joke was on him, because her nerves were so fried that whatever point it was he was trying to make, Amelia was far from cluing in.
Stephanie stood behind him. Her face was wrinkled in a scowl as her apprehensive gaze darted between Amelia and Megan, who had finally stopped moaning and seemed to be coming back to this reality.
At long last, Cole raised his head, and his sterling silver eyes sent a shiver down Amelia’s spine. “We’ll help you kill them, but we do it tonight.”
Amelia swallowed hard. “But…”
“You said it yourself,” Cole cut her off belligerently. “I don’t know if I can trust you, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to give you time to warn those bloodsuckers.”
“I broke the bond,” Amelia protested. “How am I going to warn them?” Did he hear the defiance and challenge in her voice? Amelia was sure it was there, and she forced herself to keep breathing, slow and steady.
Cole arched an eyebrow and snorted. “It’s not broken. I can smell it.”
Smell it? Amelia sat there speechless. Cole held her captive in his gaze, and then he smiled, just a small curve of his lips, and folded his hands in his lap.
“It’s a hunter thing,” Josh explained. “It’s the smell that leads us to a vamps nest. You smell of death.” He patted her hand and gave it a little sque
eze. “But don’t worry, after tonight you’ll never have to worry about that again.”
Crap! Crap! Crap! This was so not working the way she had planned. Heat flooded Amelia’s cheeks and sweat broke out across her forehead. It trickled down her back. She just nodded her head and kept her mouth shut, terrified of what would come out if she dared to open it.
“It’s settled then,” Cole said. “We’ll strike tonight in their stronghold.”
****
Amelia wished the rain would let up. She needed to open a window, get some air, but when she had tried, Josh had barked at her, claiming that the water would damage his precious leather seats.
His scent—although not as wonderful as Mitchell’s—was intoxicating in its own way, continually threatening to clog up her brain. It took every ounce of energy she had to push the charm away and keep herself focused on figuring out what to do.
While the hunters had rummaged around the cabin, grabbing weapons and tools, Amelia had had a few seconds with Megan. They quickly decided that during the drive Amelia would focus on undoing the damper she had placed on the bond, and Megan would work on getting through to Eric. Now that they knew magic was what was screwing with them, it was easier—but far from easy—to counter it.
Cole and Josh had come to the decision that Megan and Amelia needed to be divided until they reached the house, so now here she was, stuck in a truck, in the pouring rain, with a guy that smelled delicious, and she hated to admit it, but he wasn’t at all hard on the eyes.
“You said you were immortal, like you can’t die?” Amelia asked, seriously needing a distraction.
Josh cut her a quick look and smirked. “Everything can die.”
“Doesn’t that defeat the whole definition of immortal?” she asked, trying to only sound curious when what she really wanted to do was scream, how can you be killed?
“You’re bloodsucker is consider an immortal.”
He had a point. Amelia couldn’t deny that, but for most, it was impossible to kill a vampire. Come to think of it, the only things she knew for sure that could kill them were decapitation (Amelia could thank Erin for that), fire, or a stake through the heart.
They turned off the long dirt road from the cottage and onto a two-lane highway, following closely behind the truck that held Megan and tailed by the twins, the kid, and Stephanie. Between the nonstop rain and the thick fog, Amelia couldn’t see much more of the other vehicles other than their headlights and taillights. And she couldn’t help but be glad that they hadn’t brought her car, because she knew she would have been a nervous wreck and probably would have driven the whole way at a crawl.
“Sorry,” Josh said, breaking the awkward silence that had fallen on them. He reached over and rested his hand on her leg. “I shouldn’t have snapped like that.”
He had snapped? Amelia had hardly noticed. She almost laughed out loud at the apology. Once she got her giggles under control, she asked, “So what’s so special about Meg and me?”
“You’re the Caldwell girls,” he said, as if it was a given and everyone knew it.
“And…” Amelia pushed, rolling her hand in a please explain kind of motion.
“You’re all that’s left of the first coven.”
“So…”
Josh shot her a hard look and held it so long that Amelia ended up pointing to the stormy road ahead, unable to make her voice work. After another long second, he finally looked back at the road and asked, “What’s with all the one word questions?”
Amelia didn’t let his question hang in the air, and she shot him one of her own. “Why couldn’t Meg and I go in the same car?”
“Why do you think?”
“If you guys are so strong, then why are you scared of us being together?”
“We aren’t.”
“Seems like it,” she said knowingly.
Josh laughed. “Keep it up, sweetheart, and I’ll charm you again until we get there.” His tone was patronizing.
Amelia almost begged him to do it. If he thought he was charming her, then she’d be able to focus on contacting Mitchell. She had gotten in a few words here and there, but so far, she hadn’t had much luck. Instead, she sighed and said, “Sorry,” in an attempt to keep up appearances.
Rapidly, the air became too thin and too hot. Amelia stole a quick glance at Josh. His whole body was tense, gripping the steering wheel way too tightly, and she could see the slight ripples of his skin.
“So…you and me, huh?” she asked, hoping to clear the air between them and get him to relax, because she seriously didn’t think she could handle seeing him as a skeleton again.
He sighed, long and loud. “Yup, once this mess is over.”
“You get that I’m going to age and die, right?”
“Yup,” he answered, not even bothering to glance her way.
“Wow, don’t sound too heartbroken over it or anything.” Amelia tried to sound hurt, but her voice sounded more bored than anything.
Josh shrugged. “It’s your destiny, and you’ll come back.”
“I’ve heard that before,” Amelia said with a strangled laugh. “Hence the whole soul’s mark and Mitchell.”
“That’s not destiny,” he snorted. “That’s just a screwed up curse. Your destiny is to help create a new breed of immortals. You were meant to be more than a walking blood bank.”
“What’s the point?” Amelia snapped. She was seriously getting sick of running into crazy supernatural men who claimed that they were her destiny. Especially since she had finally made peace with the first one, and frankly, she would give anything to be cuddled up in Mitchell’s arms right that very moment.
“What do you mean?” He raised an eyebrow in her direction.
“Why make a new kind of immortals?”
“Because.”
Amelia noticed the clenched jaw and the rippling shudders, but she couldn’t stop her next statement from pouring out snidely. She obviously wasn’t going to get anything useful from him, and so far, her only plan was to flirt. She had to face it; she sucked at the whole flirting thing.
“You don’t know why, do you?”
“Enough questions,” Josh growled, and an overpowering scent of cotton candy mixed with honey suckle filled the cab.
Amelia sighed, not from the heavenly scent, but grateful for the small talk to have finally come to an end. She let her eyelids drop, and tried to mimic the way she had seen Megan look on the couch. After a few moments, Josh turned on the stereo and started tapping the beat on the steering wheel.
Meg? Amelia called in a whisper, and she almost laughed out loud, because no one else could hear them.
A hum shifted through her brain, and the voice she heard in return made her heart soar. Amelia, love, where are you? Are you okay?
Mitchell? Megan’s voice broke through, and Amelia realized that she must have been projecting.
Mitch, the plan didn’t work, Amelia sent hurriedly. She had no clue why she could hear him now, and she didn’t know how long it would last.
What do you mean it didn’t work? Eric joined in the mental conversation.
Megan said, We’re coming home and bringing company. You guys found the flyer, right? They wouldn’t wait for the fair. She paused for half a second before blurting, I love you, Eric.
How long? Mitchell demanded, clearly ignoring the little reunion.
An hour tops, Meg chimed in with a sharp edge to her tone, and Eric’s chuckle vibrated through the bond.
Amelia quickly filled them in on their findings. There’s something else. Two of them are different. Half breeds. Witch and hunter, and they’ve been able to manipulate us. We’re fighting it, but it’s exhausting.
They called themselves immortals, and they can change into skeletons, Megan added.
Nothing is truly immortal, Mitchell said dismissively. Try to figure out their weaknesses.
I’ve tried, Amelia sent. All I got was that everything can die. You need to evacuate everyone. Run and hide. r />
I’m not going anywhere without you, Mitchell tossed the words at her with blinding force.
Mitchell. Amelia didn’t know what else to say. But as it turned out, nothing she could have said would have mattered.
No, Eric shouted. We stay and fight.
A blistering heat rushed into Amelia’s brain, and she felt a sudden pull on her energy.
The connection snapped shut.
Amelia didn’t have to wonder what had happened. She could feel it. Her own magic working against her, wielded by someone else. Mitchell. No wonder why it had been such a struggle to lift the damper. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fist. If they lived to see tomorrow, Mitchell Lang was going to get an earful.
CHAPTER 30
When they reached the iron gates that closed off her street from the rest of the town, Amelia wanted to jump out of the truck to do a happy dance. Joe was nowhere in sight. The only thing that stopped her from squealing out in excitement was the sudden tug around her heart that signaled Mitchell was close by, and her heart filled with dread.
Josh gently squeezed on her thigh and said in a husky voice. “You ready for this?”
Amelia let her head loll to the side on the leather headrest, trying to look groggy as if she was just coming out of the delirious state. She forced her lips into what she hoped looked like a surreal kind of smile. “Ready for what?” she murmured.
“We’re here,” he said, and then he reached across her, popped the lever on the door, and shoved it open. “Get out.”
What? Amelia almost screamed out loud. She hadn’t come up with much of a plan, but not one of her ideas had involved her getting out and waiting. Amelia started to protest, but Josh quickly cut her attempts off. “You need to lift the spell.”
“Oh, yeah, of course,” she said, and relief swept over her.
Josh must have read her relief for something else. “It’ll be okay,” he said, taking her hand before she could jump out into the rain. “I promise it’ll be over soon.”
Not able to think of anything to say that would make her sound like his words were actually encouraging, Amelia just squeezed his hand and then got out of the truck.