“Who are you?”
“Rika. The succubus, silly.”
I let this creature in my house. She had my son. Now she had me.
Brody, help us. Please.
“Theo? Theo?” I glanced around wildly, but all I saw was snow. It fell from the sky; it whirled around me. Beyond a few feet, it was white-out conditions.
No answer.
Theo, please be alive. I’ll find you.
“Where is he?”
“That part was a fib. I don’t know. I can’t smell him. Usually, I can smell wolves a mile away. I know his scent from that day at your house. Did you kill him?”
I’d scrubbed Theo up in my soap. That’s why she couldn’t smell him. I prayed Brody and Gabe would find him before harm came to him. I wasn’t a monster like her. I’d never harm my son. However, she was another story.
I launched myself at Rika. I would’ve knocked her over, but she waved her mittened hands and I smashed into an invisible wall. My hands flew to protect my face—too late. My fingers came away bloody. Even with my eyes closed, stars danced before me.
The fall knocked the air out of my lungs. I gasped for breath, crawling forward, then stopped. Pain wracked my nerve endings. I tried to speak but the breath had been robbed from my body.
“Wh-why?” I managed.
“Why what, dear? There are so many things to wonder about, a simple why doesn’t begin to cover it. Let’s start with a what instead. I’m going to level Sleepy Briar.”
I gaped at her.
“As a human, you are my witness. You will tell the world that I have reclaimed Sleepy Briar. Now that those horny witches looking for their mates are long gone, the place is all mine once again. With no goods and services there, no one will come to town. Its ruination will serve as an example for those that dare confront me.”
“You don’t want my son?”
“I want him dead, just as my children are. I want you to know he’ll never grow up. Now get up or you’ll freeze here. Moving will keep you warm. We’ll move higher up the slope so you can have the best view.”
Chapter11
BRODY
We found Theo chasing small snow rabbits along the edge of a cliff. The young shifter was so intent on his game, he didn’t notice our approach until the wind changed, carrying our scent. A hungry adult wolf could easily have killed Theo for sport as much as food. But, thankfully, we found him when we did. By then we were out of the two-way radios’ range and couldn’t notify Willow. We three hurried back to Sleepy Briar with Gabe and Theo on my back. I was not risking that little shifter wandering off again.
As soon as we reached the edge of Sleepy Briar, the sulfur odor hit me.
Dark magic. It grew more potent as we approached Willow’s place.
It couldn’t be.
No.
I skidded to a stop outside Willow’s back door. Fuck! The place reeked of dark magic and that bitch succubus.
The door wasn’t latched when Gabe entered. Sensing the dark magic, Theo slid off my back and fell between my front paws, whining.
Gabe returned shaking his head. “She’s gone. It’s Rika. The odor is the same. No sign of a struggle.”
With Theo missing, Rika could easily convince Willow to join her in the search. But what did the succubus want with Willow? Human females weren’t of interest to the succubus since they were immune to glamour. From what my cousins told me, this succubus always had a plan.
I took off, leaving Theo and Gabe at Willow’s house. No harm would come to them now. If I tracked the scent of dark magic, it’d lead me to Willow. I know the demon bitch is setting a trap but what other choice do I have? I lost Willow once before, and never again would I fail to act regarding her.