“What the—” Baer started, but Clay was already talking over him, issuing orders.
“Go to the back of the house. See what the problem is. I’ll go check on Dane.”
Baer looked over at Wiley, frozen beside the Jeep, the book clutched to his chest. “Go up to my room and lock the door.”
“But—” Wiley started to argue.
“Do it! And protect that damn book!” Clay shouted before Baer could say anything. He didn’t wait around for additional comments from Wiley. He charged up the front porch stairs and threw open the front door, shouting for Dane as he went.
“Please, Wiley,” Baer begged. He was already balanced on the balls of his feet. He needed to check on his brothers, but he couldn’t pull himself away from Wiley until he knew the young man was going to be safe.
Wiley flashed him a bright, reassuring smile. “I will. I’ll be safe. Go!”
Baer was off like a shot, running around the side of the house while Clay handled the interior. An attack on the plantation house was supposed to be impossible. The aunts had clearly said that the pestilents couldn’t step on the grounds, thanks to the protection spell, and that spell was going to be in place until all six of the Weavers had their powers. Two Weavers were still missing.
Was the protection spell weaker now that both Flo and Jo were no longer holding powers for the Weavers?
Or was something else attacking them?
Baer was halfway around the house when the first snake reared up. It was a corn snake with bright orange and red bands. It lunged at him. Baer barely had enough time to jerk away, hopping back. He jumped around it and started to run again, when a brown snake darted at him.
Snarling, Baer tapped his powers and leaped into the air at the same time. The image of a large red-tailed hawk filled his mind. He spread his wings and pulled higher into the air. With incredibly sharp eyes, he scanned the ground. It looked as if the earth was wiggling. Their yard was covered in snakes of all breeds and sizes.
It was just like the rats in the cemetery. This freaking pestilent witch had found a way to send the snakes to attack them.
Frantically flapping his wings, Baer hurried around the house to where he found Lucien and Grey standing together. They were only a few yards from the house, but Lucien had them standing in a small circle of fire to keep the snakes at bay while Grey was whacking any that made it through the flames with a shovel.
Baer let out an ear-piercing screech as he circled his brothers. Both men looked up at him.
“Baer, that better be you!” Grey shouted.
“Do something about these fuckers!” Lucien snarled.
Circling lower, Baer prayed he had the timing right as he shifted into human form again. He dropped from the sky above his companions, landing neatly into the circle of flames without crushing either of them.
“What the fuck is going on?” Grey demanded.
“I was going to ask you that.” Baer winced at the waves of heat buffeting him. Yeah, they were safe from the snakes, but they were going to get roasted alive if they stayed in there much longer. Both Grey and Lucien were already drenched with sweat. There was also an ugly bite mark on Lucien’s leg.
“They just came out of the woods in this giant swarm,” Lucien said.
“At first, we thought you were playing a joke,” Grey added. He viciously stabbed the head of the shovel down as a snake bravely darted between the flames. He cut the thing into two halves and shoved it into the flames.
“And then the fuckers started biting at us.”
“Not me,” Baer said, but he wasn’t really paying attention to their story. He’d reached out with his powers. If he could get into their minds, he could redirect them into the woods and away from the plantation house.
But it was like hitting a brick wall.
He couldn’t touch a single mind of the snakes.
Fisting his hands at his sides, he pushed harder and harder until pain screamed through his head, but he was making no progress. He couldn’t control the snakes so long as they were under the power of the pestilent.
“I can’t…I can’t reach them,” Baer panted. He gripped his head with both hands, swaying a little on his feet. It was all just too much.
A strong hand grabbed him, steadying him on his feet again. Baer dropped his hands and blinked to find Grey staring at him.
“The witch?”
“Yeah. Just like with the rats.”
“Then we have to kill them one by one. What eats snakes?”
“Coyotes, raccoons, hawks,” Lucien quickly listed.
“Nice job,” Grey murmured.
Lucien looked over his shoulder at them and winked. “I’m addicted to those animal documentaries on Netflix. Mongooses and wild boars eat snakes too.”