Autumn Calling (28 page)

The rescuers crept into the pit finding
Jackson and Summer chained to the wall. “Aunt Myrtle, Hunter,”
Summer whispered “…and Morti?”

“Yes, child we’ve come to rescue you,”
Myrtle answered as the others freed her and Jackson.

“But how?”

“Nick and Tori,” Aunt Myrtle said.

“Nick’s here?”

“Yes, son. He’s on lookout upstairs.”

“But how did you get in?”

“Autumn let us in the back door, while
Marcus is distracting Yvonne and Juliette,” Hunter said as he
peered around the darkness in search of the dragon.

“Hunter, she’s not crazed. She seems
coherent. Just go slow, she’s a bit jumpy,” Summer said. Hunter
nodded acknowledgement but ventured on into the darkness of the
room and completely out of sight. Jackson rubbed his wrists at
their release.

“How are we going to get out of here?”

“We’re kind of playing that one by the seat
of our pants,” Morti said making everyone turn to look at him.
It was strange to see a man speaking to them with that same
voice when they’d always known it as coming from a cat
, Summer
thought.

Chains rattled from the inky blackness of
the room. Summer could only imagine Hunter had freed the dragon
from her fetters. A familiar sound of her wings stretching and
causing wind to rush past them was heard. She came into the light
for them all to see the enormity of her and that’s when they noted
the blue-green dragon emerge from the darkness showing all his
glory. How the two giant creatures could be obscured by the shadows
was unfathomable and only reminded them just how big the pit really
was. The two dragons paced passing one another and seeming to be
oblivious of the tiny humans keeping close to the walls and the
light and out of the dragons way. The red-black dragon screeched
long and loud in some kind of response to Hunter’s presence.

“Crap, do you think they heard that?” Morti
said.

The rattle of the door handle answered his
question.

* * *

Summer could only imagine the rage and
surprise that Juliette and Yvonne must have been feeling when they
found so many intruders in their dungeon, but the looks on their
faces and the predatory stances they took afterwards revealed much
of it.

Summer, Morti, Jackson, and Myrtle stood
before Yvonne and Juliette. Marcus moved in between the two groups
blocking any magical blows his family might take to kill his
daughter, as Autumn quickly took her sisters hand and held fast
against the two deadly matriarchs of the Macabre family.

“I have no problem going through you,
Marcus,” Juliette smiled.

“Then do so, for through my dead body is the
only way you’ll kill either of my girls,” he said defiantly.

“You don’t think we will, do you?” Yvonne
chortled. “We’ve killed before. It’s no different.”

“Except that I’m family.”

“Yes. A disappointing failure of the Macabre
masculinity. You’ve always been the weak one, Marcus. It still
amazes me how truly different identical twins brothers can be so
different. One brave and strong, the other weak and impotent. Too
bad it wasn’t you instead of Rene that died,” Juliette said. Yvonne
smirked at Juliette’s remark.

“She’s right, you know. I’m sorry to say,
Marcus, that though you were able to prevail in achieving our goal
in converging our bloodlines with the Midnight’s to acquire their
power, you failed miserably at just about everything else,” Yvonne
relayed.

Juliette continued, “It became clear you
would never off your wife of convenience for the greater good of
the family so the task became mine.”

“What? You killed Violet? But I thought it
was an accident during the fire,” Marcus uttered in dismay.

“Poor addled boy, that’s what I wanted you
to believe and your sister came through with flying colors,” Yvonne
said.

“You’re despicable,” Marcus said as if the
very words tasted bad. Morti nodded in acknowledgment.

“Could be, but I’d rather be despicable and
powerful than whatever you are Marcus,” Yvonne boasted.

“No doubt,” Morti interjected.

“Poor Mortimer. Still angry I never returned
your love? Such a waste of a man, all that amazing magic but so
easily manipulated. My little puppet on a string. So easily strung
along to do my bidding, with none of the repercussions of deeds.
Such good times,” Yvonne gloated.

“Finally we can rid our family of the
Midnights once and for all,” Yvonne said, waving her hand towards
the darkness of the pit. “Oh, dragon…I’d like you to crispy fry
these intruders.”

The red dragon moved nearer into the light
showing herself to the woman who commanded her.

“What about Autumn? Didn’t you train her all
these years to acquire the Midnight power for future Macabres?
You’re just going to let her die?” Summer asked.

“It’s true, we did have hopes for her, but
without the Midnights, Juliette and I will just find some other
magic to acquire from some ignorant unknowing witch. “Dragon, get
with it,” Yvonne demanded.

Suddenly Hunter appeared next to the
red-black dragon.

“Oh, good. Another dragon. I was thinking
this was going to be so boring. No magic. Just B-B-Q,” Juliette
said. “Now we can kill the Midnights with our own magic and let the
dragons duel it out. Kill the dragon,” she commanded their
dragon.

The red-black dragon turned from the people
in the pit to Hunter and screeched loudly as the Macabres armed
themselves with fireballs.

But before blows could be thrown by dragons
or witches, a bright light shone between the two families. Its
brilliance blinding all in the room, it morphed and formed into an
angelic being of such beauty all were stunned. Massive black
feathered wings spread wide showing their greatness and within the
arms of the angel was an egg so beautiful it seemed to have its own
luminosity. Daniel offered the egg to the dragon who had been
hypnotized by its presence. The egg floated towards the dragon,
high in the air.

Yvonne and Juliette screamed, “No” in stereo
and sent the formed fireballs in their hands towards the egg in an
attempt to stop it, but the air around it formed an impenetrable
cocoon of safety as it slowly fell into the reach of the dragon.
She delicately braced the egg in her teeth. Yvonne and Juliette
sent wave after wave of magical horrors towards the mother and her
egg when Hunter spit a line of fire in front of them that was so
tall and thick they could not see what they were firing at. The
mother dragon burst upwards breaking the roof with her body flying
off into the night sky while the others climbed upon Hunter’s back.
When all were aboard, he too took off in pursuit through the
unblocked ceiling with all the rescuers and prisoners.

Summer saw Tori and Nick on the ground and
she waved to her friend as they soared through the brisk night air.
Though flying had been something she had experience with on the
tricycle, there was nothing quite like holding on to dragon,
hearing its wings flap and soar effortlessly. All too soon, they
found themselves over the Midnight estate and dropping elevation
quickly upon their descent to safety. There on the ground they were
greeted by Sully’s excitement and licks.

* * *

Climbing off the back of Hunter and feeling
the ground once again beneath her, Summer realized just what an
amazing night it had been. Her sister and father had come to her
rescue despite their doubts. Morti and Myrtle took them in and
helped them even with their misgivings. Even with Nick’s
reservations about Summer, he stepped up and had a hand in the
rescue.

Summer recognized how truly lucky she was.
She had been an orphan most of her life and always wondered what
having a family would be like, but the reality of it is she’d
always had a family whether it was Sister Mary Louise and the nuns
at Holy Cross, Tori, Nick, and Dr. Stuart at Paws and Whiskers, or
her biological family of Myrtle, Morti, Marcus and Autumn.

It wasn’t your conventional family by far,
but what family is considered normal. She knew her family was
everyone who just climbed off Hunter’s back and a few others. She
even felt Daniel was her family now. Maybe it was an inclination or
some kind of magical intuition, but she was sure he’d be a very big
part of her future as would Marcus and Autumn.

Even Hunter seemed to finally have a
possible future where he had been so depressed in the past about
thinking he was the last of his kind. Now that he’d found it not to
be true, even if they weren’t to be romantically involved, they
would be a family of sorts and a means of support for their species
and the baby dragon that would soon arrive.

Just a year ago when all seemed so doomed to
war and death, now the future seemed to have unfolded in a
different direction. One that Summer was happy didn’t involve her
having to kill her sister. After all, she was sure that Tori and
Autumn would be great friends. Even Morti might have a happy future
if he could show that the Macabres had a hand in his deeds.
Wouldn’t that be something, an uncrabby Morti? It was almost
unfathomable.

Though today had started out not so great,
the future looked pretty damn good for Summer and her extended
family. It was time to embrace the possibilities that lay ahead and
be grateful to those who helped them get there. Summer smiled at
the thought and Sully greeted her with unconditional love as all
hounds do. He was taking full advantage of everyone’s willingness
for pets and licks alike.

While observing all this, Summer found
herself fondling the necklace she’d taken to wearing—the one that
was locked in the little Japanese puzzle box. As a gift from loving
parents, the sun imaged trinket made her feel like her mother was
with her when she wore it.

From across the yard, Autumn noted her
standing alone and went toward her. “What are you doing here all by
yourself?”

“Nothing. Just taking it all in.”

“I see,” Autumn said directing her gaze to
the necklace Summer was stroking. “You’re wearing yours too,” she
said pulling its match out from under her shirt. “I’ve been wearing
mine since we had our little cave adventure.”

Summer laughed. Autumn reached under her
hair and unclasped the moon charm from her neck. At seeing this,
Summer did the same. Without speaking a word, they combined the two
pendants, forming one lovely charm of a sun and moon embracing.
Summer and Autumn found themselves embracing soon afterward.
Witnessing this, Marcus came over, pulled his girls to him and held
them tightly in his arms. After all the horrendous folly between
the Midnights and the Macabres, their little family had survived
and ascended into one large mosh-posh of friends and kin alike.
Life was good.

The end.

T. Lynne Tolles can be found most days,
juggling one of two cat muses and a laptop, tripping over an
ancient Newfoundland dog and washing a never-ending pile of
laundry. When life doesn’t get in the way, she writes paranormal
romances for new adults.

Her passion for witches, ghosts, and
vampires together with a light-hearted wit are reflected in her
loveable characters and the adventures of mystery they unravel to
find their happily ever after.

Website:

http://tlynnetolles.me

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