The Seven Year Witch: That Old Black Magic, Book 2 (28 page)

Envy screamed. A brilliant white glow leached the darkness from its irises and slowly spread throughout the sin. Its remaining siblings writhed beside it, their own bodies radiating the same blinding refulgence. The creatures distorted, bending out of proportion before snapping together as one and rocketing into Seven.

The mighty beast bellowed, its tentacles whipping through the air. It lunged at her, bursting into a white glare of flame. For one dazzling moment, the sky became a canvas of luminosity.

Seven’s thrashing carcass toppled into the water, sending up a massive wave that ruptured the darkness. A gurgle discharged from the lake, and the ooze began swirling, siphoning toward the epicenter of its belly. Thousands upon thousands of souls launched from the receding waves, shooting skyward.

She felt herself flying suddenly, soaring toward those luminous, twinkling lights. The coven house stood amongst the tapestry of stars. Her fingers closed around the doorknob, but it wouldn’t budge. Heavy pounding shook the other side, and she could hear Logan calling to her.

Clarissa
. The voice wasn’t his. She floated sideways and noticed a vibrant, golden tree. It reminded her of the one she’d first glimpsed upon waking in this place. Only this oak shimmered with endless life. A woman emerged from the trunk, her face more ancient than the bark. Gaia—mother goddess of all.

“Your family awaits, Clarissa. Both within that house and here.” Gaia gestured to the illuminated tree behind her. “It’s time for you to make your choice.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

The sound of joyous crying and chatter jerked Logan back to his body. He rolled closer to Clarissa on the bed, his palm curving around her cheek. She was still unconscious.

Why hadn’t her soul returned? He’d felt her on the other side of the door, trying to—

No spirits will be able to pass through the barrier, including hers.

Mama Heloise’s pronouncement ripped through the confused tangle of his thoughts. Sweet Jesus. The bed. They had to get her body out of here.

Frantic, he scooped her into his arms, plowing toward the exit. One of the guild members knocked into him, and he growled as Clarissa’s limp limbs jostled within his grip. “Fucking
move
.”

Finally everyone seemed to get their heads out of their asses and cleared a path. He gently settled his mate on the carpet and hugged her tight. “Baby, come back to us. We need you.”

A hush fell over the room, the silence almost unnerving. Each tick of the bedside clock felt like an eternity. Felt like a torment.

She lay motionless, her body defenseless and vulnerable. Misery howling inside him, he clutched her hand, pressing it to his thudding heart. His throat vising, he buried his cheek in her hair.

Another lifetime passed before he felt it. The almost imperceptible flex of her fingers.

He froze.

Her hand moved again, seconds before a shudder rippled through her body. He jerked his head back, the air jamming in his lungs as her dusky lashes fluttered. She opened her eyes, her unfocused gaze landing on him. Blinking, she lifted her hand to his jaw. “You called me back.”

Tuning out the excited clamor surrounding them, he bent his head and kissed his mate. Moisture filled his eyes, but he didn’t move to hide his emotions. “Welcome home, baby.”

The rest of the day was like a surreal dream to Clarissa. Compared to that nightmare world she’d left behind, the love and friendship encompassing her from every direction felt like a comforting cocoon. Never in her wildest imaginings would she have expected to be the recipient of all these people’s thoughts and prayers. Their light still resided within her chest, humbly reminding her of everything she’d almost lost.

Her tummy rumbled suddenly, calling attention to the fact that she was once again in possession of a stomach that required sustenance. Logan’s palm smoothed over her arm. He’d looked for any excuse to touch her for the past two hours. Not that she was complaining. She’d looked for any opportunity to touch him too. “I’ll get Gloria to fix you somethin’. Be right back.”

Her fingertips brushed his cheek. “I’m not going anywhere.”

He rested his forehead against hers before he stood and left the parlor. As soon as he was gone, Tanner and Constance came and sat next to her. While her coven sister clasped her hand, Clarissa offered Tanner a tremulous smile. “I’m glad you and your mom are with us.”

The boy swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing. “Me too. And I’m glad you’re okay.”

Footsteps scrunched on the carpet, and Clarissa looked up as Willa approached. She still didn’t understand what the young witch had been doing in Seven’s horrific realm or how she’d gotten there. But the weariness and exhaustion in Willa’s eyes stalled her from making any mention of it. No doubt the guild had been grilling the girl endlessly for the past several hours. She wasn’t about to add to Willa’s frustration. Instead, she stood and wrapped her arms around her. The hug felt right. Natural. She would never again be afraid of letting anyone close. Not after everything she’d almost lost. “Thank you. For everything.”

“I-I’m just sorry I couldn’t help Logan save you before those bastards extinguished your light.” She sniffled. “I hope that ugly son of a bitch burns in Hell.”

Her mind flashed back to Seven’s thrashing form. “I don’t think there’s any question of that.”

Fiona, Marabella, Jade and Peach joined them, adding to the already crowded conditions around the sofa. She was almost glad that Jemma and Griffin were still off on their honeymoon, clueless of the drama that’d unfolded the past few days. Much as she loved having all her coven sisters within arm’s reach, she was beginning to feel a little overwhelmed by all the attention.

And truthfully, as selfish as it sounded, the one she most wanted at the moment was currently in the kitchen, trying to round her up a snack when what she really longed for was the comfort of his arms.

As if he’d received a direct transmission of her thoughts, Logan suddenly appeared in the doorway. Their gazes crashed and the world around them faded to the background. She watched him stride forward, his sole focus on her. He swept her up and pivoted toward the doorway. Fortunately no one detained him as he strode for the stairway, otherwise the unlucky offender would have likely received a chunk taken out of their hide.

They reached her bedroom, and he kicked the door shut before locking it. A second later, she was sinking into the fresh bedding, her fingers sifting through Logan’s hair as his tongue glided along hers. The kiss was drenched in heat and passion. Love and tenderness.

He cradled her close, his hands touching every inch he could reach. Soon clothing became a hindrance, and they removed that last barrier to each other’s bodies, their fingers, lips and tongues relearning the precious plains and valleys of the other. Logan’s mouth slid between her legs and suckled softly on her clit, his loving worship driving her to a shattering climax. He left her just long enough to fetch a condom from his wallet.

Remembering his oath not to get her pregnant until she wore his ring, she nibbled along his jaw while he smoothed the latex over his rigid shaft. “We need to get married. Soon. So we can start filling that nursery.”

His motions stilled and he looked at her, the joy on his face almost more blinding than the glow residing in her heart. His lips parted, but rather than responding to her announcement, he kissed her again. Their tongues tangling, he eased over her, his cock rubbing along her labia. She undulated her hips and he took the hint, nudging into her slit. He bore down, filling her in one luscious stroke. She countered his thrusts, the rhythm of their love as ancient as time itself. Their fingers twined, an unbreakable bond.

Almost.

There was one last step to seal their union. One that she longed for with all her soul. But for the first time in many, many years, her longing wasn’t something to be ashamed of. Or to run from.

She turned her head, exposing the vulnerable arch of her neck. A shudder racked Logan, and she could sense his wolf straining at its leash. She whispered the words that would free him. Free her. “You are my mate. Always.”

Groaning, he buried his face against her. He placed a tender kiss on her pulse, and a moment later his canines pricked her flesh. She instinctively tensed, not knowing what to expect. Would there be pain?

His teeth punctured deeper. But there was no agony, only the most exhilarating, intense pleasure she’d ever known. It swept over her, radiating inward and outward until she was submerged in pure sensation. She swam in the currents of his energy, their essences merging into shimmering threads of lavender and gold. There was no beginning and no end to their unity. No weakness in their link. She opened her eyes to the shining light of her and Logan’s love.

One word sang in her soul.

Home.

Epilogue

Twenty-nine was too damn young to be suffering a midlife crisis.

And a mental breakdown.

Shaking her head, Willa Jameson parked her Taurus outside Tybee’s Sugar Shack. The only thing that’d talk her down from the ledge she was straddling right now was an Oreo Cookie shake. She stepped inside the building, the smell of vanilla and chocolate like a tranquilizer dart to the jugular. Her sigh of contentment floated free. Now if only this illusion of tranquility and normalcy would last.

Jenson was manning the counter today. He gave her a friendly wave. “Hey, Willa. The usual?”

She wasn’t the least bit surprised by the question. God knows, she came here often enough everyone knew her and the fact that Oreo Cookie shakes were her personal crack. “Yep. Extra heavy on the cookie today, please.”

Jenson’s eyebrows lifted, but he didn’t say anything. A few minutes later, her liquid therapy in hand, she left the Shack and returned to her car. She took a sip of her shake and groaned in appreciation before turning the key in the ignition. The radio popped on, and she listened to the DJ rambling about the top story that’d been featured on every news channel for the past two days—the mysterious and completely spontaneous recovery of the coma victims who’d been under close monitoring at St. Joseph’s. Everyone was calling it a miracle.

If they only knew the real story. Not that the truth was any less miraculous. And a whole lot weirder.

Plunking her shake in the cup holder, Willa lowered the volume on the radio and pulled onto the street. But rather than turn inland and head to her duplex apartment as she’d intended, she found herself driving in the direction of the north beach as if she didn’t possess control over her hands—which were gripping the steering wheel as if the thing might suddenly rip off and go flying out the window.

Oh hell. Now what?

Her foot accelerated on the gas, speeding her past the clusters of rental cottages hugging the shoreline of the Atlantic. The Tybee Island Light Station popped into view and she decelerated. Just as she was about to exhale in relief that her psychosis had apparently decided to give her a break, she careened into the lighthouse’s parking lot and braked to a stop. No one was around since it was after normal operating hours. Good thing, because with that
Dukes of Hazard
stunt, she probably would have wiped out an entire line of cars.

She stumbled from the vehicle and staggered across the steaming asphalt. Instead of heading toward the light station, she staggered toward the dunes in the distance. As she stared at the whitecaps cresting on the horizon, she started to get a sinking feeling where she was headed.

Pleasenopleasenopleaseno.

The puppeteer controlling her body refused to listen to her desperate pleas. She tumbled through the sand, the waves growing deafening in her ears.

Other than that dip in Seven’s fiery lake, she hadn’t physically stepped foot in any body of water bigger than a bathtub in almost twenty-two years. As she neared the rolling tide, the horrible memory of her parents sinking beneath the waves crashed into her.

Terror and despair clawed within her all over again.
Oh God, no
.

Warning bells screamed in her head, but her legs continued moving, increasing their pace. Before she knew it, water crashed over her, dragging her under. She tried to kick against the currents, but the tow was too strong.

Something curled around her ankles and gave a vicious tug. Within the murky depths, red demonic eyes appeared. “
I know what you are.
” The sibilant voice snaked into the cortex of her brain.

She screamed, right before the world went dark.

About the Author

At the ripe age of seven, Jodi Redford penned her first epic, complete with stick figure illustrations. Sadly, her drawing skills haven’t improved much, but her love of fantasy worlds never went away. These days she writes about fairies, ghosts and other supernatural creatures, only with considerably more heat.

She has won numerous contests, including The Golden Pen and Launching a Star.

When not writing or working the day job, she enjoys gardening and way too many reality television shows.

Currently residing in Michigan with her husband and overgrown lapdog, she is a member of RWA national and Greater Detroit Romance Writers of America.

She loves to hear from readers. You can email her at [email protected] and visit her online at www.jodiredford.com.

Look for these titles by Jodi Redford

Now Available:

Taking Liberty

Light My Fire

Vanessa Unveiled

That Old Black Magic

That Voodoo You Do

The Seven Year Witch

Thieves of Aurion

Lover Enslaved

Resisting two magical mischief makers definitely wasn’t in the job description.

Vanessa Unveiled

© 2011 Jodi Redford

Vanessa Darby, a bounty hunter and tracker for the Veil Alliance League, figures things can’t get any crappier than her car breaking down on a deserted highway. Until the two dimension-hopping renegades she’s been assigned to capture lure her to their magical love nest in the woods and entangle her in a web of seduction.