Storm Of Magick Part 9

"I think it's Sat.u.r.day night," I replied, "I'm not good at keeping track of days." I neglected to say that I lost track of days when s.h.i.+t was. .h.i.tting the fan.

I heard a heavy metal door being unlocked. The sc.r.a.ping of metal as the door slid open was an ear ringing pitch. The light from the hallway flooded into the room, making me squint my eyes. We were in the Warehouse District, I realized, in one of the many empty buildings. I had been here before during another investigation.

A beautiful, tall, exotic woman glided into the room. With the grace of magick, she stalked towards me. From the buzz in my head, I knew she was a powerful lycanthrope. It was weird, she smelled like honey. She walked and stopped in front of me, very close. Too close, invading my personal s.p.a.ce.

Her straight deep brown hair hung to her waist and her eyes were so pale green they appeared to be white. Her deep bronze tan and high cheekbones screamed Brazil, maybe, and I don't know how I knew that. She wore a long silver gown that went to the floor. From what I could tell, she didn't have shoes on. But, I was more interested in the man that entered the room with her. To my surprise, it was White Hair. Apparently, he was her toady. It made me wonder if he held a grudge. You know, over the whole blowing out his knee thing.

"Ah... Logan Wolf, so good to have you here. I have a couple of questions. You will answer them or things will not go well for you. Where are the other scrolls?" she asked in a sultry voice.

My stomach tightened. I wasn't sure if she saw anything on my face. I tried to keep an 'I don't give a s.h.i.+t' look on. I cleared my head before I opened my mouth. It doesn't happen often.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," I said like I could really give a s.h.i.+t. I guess we'll see how good my acting was. "Plus you didn't say the magick word." All of a sudden, she backhanded me so hard and so fast that I thought my eye was going to explode. "Now you're going to have to say pretty please." I said, trying to get my hair out of my face and not succeeding.

A couple more back hands to my face. I ran my tongue across my lip and tasted blood. Just before she could hit me again, White Hair stopped her.

"Palmira, stop! We can turn up the heat and in about twelve hours she'll talk," White Hair said with a grin. He looked at me. "Maybe I can repay you for our fight earlier."

"Oh, I sense hard feelings," I chimed in. Oh yeah, I'm a glutton for punishment.

He too gave me a backhand, but I guess I deserved it. Some days I was my own worst enemy. They walked out and the slide of the mechanism told me they locked the door. My hair hung in my face and stuck to the blood and sweat. I leaned my head back, hoping to get my hair out of my eyes.

"Logan, we need to get the h.e.l.l out of here. Are you able to help?" Rafe asked.

"I'm fine. Let me try something," I said.

I was going to try a spell that would turn the silver into gold. Because of the lycanthrope being allergic to silver and the pain of his skin burning and raw, there was no way he could break the chains. Gold would be a lot easier. It's not one of my favorite spells, because it's in Latin, a language I struggle with. I started out slow and the more I repeated the spell, the faster it came, which is the norm. The chains warmed and vibrated, but the problem was that if it kept getting hotter at this rate it would burn us before it came off. Rafe would heal after a s.h.i.+ft but for me it would take a lot longer.

"Rafe, can you break the chains now?" I asked in a low urgent tone. What was I suppose to say, 'get these the f.u.c.k off me'?

I felt the chain tighten around my wrists and a second later, they fell to the floor with a heavy thud. I pushed my hair out of my face and got up. I rubbed my wrists. They hurt like h.e.l.l and were burned from the chains heating up. I moved round to Rafe and lifted his head, holding his face in my hands. I didn't notice until now, but I was having a hard time breathing. I must have broken a rib in the accident, but I would have to deal with it at a better time.

His was badly beaten, his eyes swollen, and there were dark bruises all over his face. I ripped the amulet around his neck off and stuck it in my pocket. We wouldn't want it to get back into Palmira's hands. It would come back and bite us in the a.s.s, things like that always do. Besides, it may come in handy at some point.

Looking at Rafe, I knew that he wasn't in great shape. But, he was coming with me. There was no way in h.e.l.l I was going to leave him here to take more of that sick b.i.t.c.h's abuse.

"Are you going to be able to do this?" I asked, looking at him with nothing in my voice. I was in survival mode. There wasn't any time for feelings.

"If I s.h.i.+ft I'll be fine," he replied. One thing I could say for the werefox King, she couldn't break him.

"As long as you don't eat me, go for it," I said and stepped back.

Without a word, he stripped off all his clothes and went down on all fours. In the dimly lit room, I could see his silhouette, and he was well built. If he got noisy, I didn't think it was going to be a problem. This room seemed to be soundproof, but I could be wrong. Not that I expected Palmira to come check on us. I don't think she gave a s.h.i.+t if we were in pain.

Watching a human s.h.i.+ft into an animal always horrified and fascinated me all at the same time. At first low moans came from Rafe, then his spine bowed. My eyes got used to the dark again and I could just make out the extra ribs appearing under the skin. What really got my attention was the popping, cracking, wet sounds that made my stomach turn. Rafe's arms and legs elongated and fur sprouted out all over his body. Last but certainly the most gross, the nose and mouth formed the snout, including sharp teeth. From the pointy ears to the long bushy tail, he was a large eight-foot long fox. His coat was a beautiful shade of rusty brown, his eyes amber.

I sensed no threat, walked to him and touched his head. He was so soft as my hand sank into his fur. I really didn't pay too much attention to the tingling in my head. I'd learned to control my listening to it. Kind of like a teenager with convenient hearing. My plan was to make it out of here without being killed or the s.h.i.+t knocked out of me.

I looked at Rafe. "I hope you have a plan for what we're going to do after I open the door." He used his head and pushed me towards it.

I walked to the door and raised my hands. I said an unlocking spell, just like that the mechanism clicked, and I opened the door. It was nice of them to leave the light on in the hallway for us. I stood there for a second trying to let my eyes adjust to the light. It was wide enough for us to walk down it side by side. We cautiously walked a little further and came to a fork in the hallway.

"Which way, Rafe?" I whispered in such a low tone that if Rafe weren't an animal he probably wouldn't have heard me.

He looked right than left, and finally resorted to sticking his snout up and snorting the air. He stood there for a moment, and then slowly headed left. I followed him. He could sense the outdoors, or more than likely, he could smell it. A couple more turns, right then left. We couldn't be far from the exit. Could we? The only problem was this was excessively easy. I put my hand on Rafe's back and stopped.

"I'm going to send out a sensing spell." I put out my hand as if I was feeling the air and I focused. I scanned the area, making a complete circle. "There's three coming towards us. Two coming at us from the front and one from the rear."

Rafe got in front of me so he could take the two and I only had to deal with one. I could kick myself in the a.s.s for leaving the Realm without any weapons. Apparently, I was a m.a.s.o.c.h.i.s.t. I looked around and saw a short steel pipe that lay near the wall. I quickly picked it up and moved back to my position. We continued. Maybe, just maybe with the G.o.ds luck, we'd make it out of here before we ran into White Hair.

At the end of the hall was the best thing I'd seen since Rafe. The exit sign. As if on cue, White Hair and a dark-haired man appeared at the end of the hall. I heard something coming up behind me. I turned just in time to see a boot coming at my face. I dodged it at the last second, stepped back and swung the pipe like a bat.

I hit him square in the chest and knew that I had to keep swinging. I heard growling and deep chirping barks behind me, territorial sounds from Rafe. When I believed that my opponent was going to stay down, I stopped swinging. The blond lay on the floor with blood coming out of his ears and nose.

I turned to see that Rafe had ripped out the throat of one fox and White Hair was nowhere to be seen.

"Do you know what we're going to do when we get out of here?" I asked Rafe. "Because I have no clue. My car's trashed and the snow is going to make it hard to reach the Realm. The only thing I can think of is walking." I was not thinking happy thoughts. I was thinking Donner Party. I couldn't stop myself.

Chapter 12.

We went to the exit, opened the door and walked out. A burst of cold air hit me in the face and at first, it felt good, but after a couple of seconds, the cold hurt. I wore only my leather coat. I zipped it up, turned up my collar and stuck my hands in my pockets. I really needed a heavier coat.

Trying to walk against the wind and the deep snow was a b.i.t.c.h. At first, it wasn't too bad. I kept my eyes on Rafe and followed him, trusting him to find his way to the Realm. We trudged through one snowdrift after another. It made me walk even slower.

"Okay, all I have to do is just keep walking," I said, quietly to myself.

My legs felt so heavy and we weren't even halfway to the Realm. The first hints of doubt that I would freeze to death popped into my head. I was having a hard time concentrating, my body didn't want to move, and all I wanted to do was go to sleep. Never a good sign.

My feet got tangled up in each other and I went down, face first into the snow. I just lay there, p.i.s.sed that we were in this situation. I didn't attempt to move or get up. I felt sorry for myself and wanted to give up. After a second, I could feel Rafe nudging me with his snout.

"Just leave me here and get help," I said through chattering teeth.

Rafe wasn't going to leave me and he tugged at my arm. I got to my hands and knees then slowly rose to my feet. Every movement was painful. I held on to Rafe's tail as we pressed on but our progress was slow. Rafe pulled me along more than anything. For a while, I concentrated on the softness and warmth of his bushy fox's tail. As my hand warmed just a little, it pushed away the frozen haze of confusion.

I stopped, reached out to my magick in Ronan. I even opened up to Alex and Paris, hoping I could reach someone - anyone. I was too unfocused to know for sure if I reached anyone. I threw out one unfinished thought after another; just praying to the G.o.ds that one of them heard my pleas for help. Would anyone be able to make sense of the jumbled mess that I threw at them?

Rafe pulled me along but I was so cold and I didn't want to walk any more. I was in horrible pain with every step I took. I stumbled several times but I was determined to stay on my feet.

"Rafe, I need a break," I said, slurring my words, "or I won't make it." I walked to the closest store alcove and sat down. I hugged my knees to my chest and Rafe sat in front of me, trying to break some of the wind.

"I don't think I've ever been so cold. If you go get help, it would be faster. I'm too cold to move and I can't even feel my feet anymore." I leaned my head against the door and just wanted to take a short nap. I closed my eyes and could feel sleep falling over me like a veil. Rafe licked my cheek. I opened my eyes and looked at him. He ran off towards the Realm and I was alone. I had the strangest urge to say 'what is it La.s.sie? Did Timmy fall in a snow bank?' I busted out laughing. It just bubbled up and I couldn't control it.

All of a sudden, I got a vision and all I could make out was people wandering the streets. It wasn't uncommon but there wasn't anything around that looked modern. Things looked to be from well over one hundred years ago. As quick as the vision came it was gone, and then I dreamed of the murdered women in every horrible detail over and over. It was as if I was there examining the bodies all over again. I could feel the cold organs in my hands and again the smell of perforated intestines nauseated me.

I opened my eyes to find that I was still sitting in the storefront alcove. It took a couple of tries to get my eyes to stay open but my body didn't want to work. What was taking Rafe so long to get help? Did something happen? Time seemed to move so slowly.

I wonder if I could reach down the link I had with Ronan and actually make contact with him this time. I stared at the wall in front of me and focused, trying to reach out to him but I couldn't get a clear connection. My body tingled and jasmine filled my head. Ronan. I actually welcomed the scent. I got a sense of him and some of the others riding in Paris's SUV. They were on their way to get me and all I had to do was just hold on a little longer.

I finally realized that the alcove that I huddled in was lit. I looked into the store's window. It was a Wiccan store with a beautiful Yule display. A small evergreen was decorated with silver pentagram. Holly branches dotted the boughs of the tree with tiny red and green lights. I heard tiny bells jingling; it had to coming from the display. I sat there just starring at the splendor of the tree and the season. I had been so busy since Halloween, my Samhain. I hadn't realized Winter Solstice was so close.

Magick tingled along my skin. I could sense the Dracae close, which p.i.s.sed me off. The creature rescued me only to turn me over to Palmira. Was he working for her? I would say that was a definite yes. If he thought I was going to help him after he turned me over to the psycho witch from h.e.l.l, he was nuts.

I was finally angry. h.e.l.l, I was p.i.s.sed off, and p.i.s.sed was good. I tried to use a sensing spell to see just how close the Dracae dared to come. My magick locked on to someone but something was wrong. I couldn't break the hold they had on me.

I felt my muscles start to spasm. I knew this feeling I'd had it before. Whoever it was, was trying to give me a power overload. I raised my hands and whispered a spell. I sent the jolt back times three, than silently said another spell, which put up a protective field around me. This spell would use a lot of my energy and I didn't know how long I could hold it.

I heard a vehicle in the distance. Slowly it made its way down the unplowed road. I guess the road crews didn't bother trying to keep up with the storm any longer. This storm seemed to be driven with an endless supply of magick. I was already sick of snow and technically winter hadn't even started yet.

Everything was covered in a blanket of white and it sparkled like glitter. The air was so fresh and clean. I have to say it did make the night seem peaceful and I wished it were true, but looks are deceiving. There was definitely something brewing in Little Rock and we had to find out what.

At long last I could make out the outline of Paris's SUV. I dropped my s.h.i.+eld and felt all my energy drain away. I put my hands down to help myself get up. They sank into the cold snow. I tried to get up, to be ready, but my body was numb. No matter what I did, my muscles failed to respond. All I could do was sit there and watched the dark form drive closer.

In the dark Paris's Explorer looked black, but I knew it was a deep green. The SUV pulled up next to the store. The smell of exhaust cut the crisp clean air. Alex drove and Rafe sat in the back, still in fox form.

Paris jumped out of the vehicle. Without a word, he scooped me up and carried me to the Explorer. Ronan helped him get me into the back seat. I ended up sitting on both of their laps.

"You're ice cold. We need to get you warmed up, but slowly." Paris was stating the obvious but he had some basic medical training, which was a good thing.

"Is Rafe okay?" I said, my teeth chattering so hard it hurt.

Rafe laid his head against mine over the bench seat. We stayed like that for a few moments. My body slowly began to warm up. I felt nauseated and my muscles started jerking uncontrollable. The men elected Alex to drive back to the Realm. He drove as quickly as the weather would allow. For once he was keeping his mouth shut, I guess there is first time for everything.

With every jerk of my body came a moan. I was so cold it hurt to move. Paris and Ronan held me close, as if trying to cus.h.i.+on my body from the violent spasms that made me feel like a Mexican jumping bean. Doc probably would be at the Realm when we arrived, more to tend to his King than me.

"Why is she jerking like this?" Paris asked, panic in his voice.

"I believe it is due to being in the freezing temperatures for such a long time," Ronan answered, sadness in his voice I'd never heard before.

"I've never heard of anyone reacting like this," Alex said. "They usually go into shock and fall asleep."

"If you don't have anything constructive to say shut the f.u.c.k up and drive," Paris yelled. "It's your fault she left in the first place."

Silence hovered in the air like a heavy fog. It was Alex who opened his big mouth and broke the silence first. I never thought he was too smart. "It was Logan with her magick... thingy. That's how all this s.h.i.+t started."

Anger and heat filled the air like a hot summer night, and it smothered out the silence. I lay there, my body still jerking, but the spasms were becoming less frequent. Ronan and Paris held me close. I could hear Paris's heart beating so fast. He was p.i.s.sed about the comment.

"We can discuss this at a more appropriate time," Ronan said. "Alex, please control yourself. Or I will be forced to help you."

"We're almost at the Realm, Logan. Just hold on a little longer," Paris said, rubbing my head.

I closed my eyes and tried to let the tension out, allowing myself to sink into both the men's bodies. I listened to the mantra of breathing and the drumming of Paris's heart. I grabbed a handful of his s.h.i.+rt, concentrating. I could hear the rhythm of everyone's body in the SUV. The sound was musical and actually soothing to my ears.

I noticed that Ronan too was rubbing my leg. I wasn't sure if he did it absently or not but I let it go. Ronan had his own demons to worry about and I had mine. I could still feel Alex's anger and disgust over what had happened but there was more to it than I could read.

Rafe stayed close, just watching me with concern and interest in his eyes. I hovered just above the dream world. Every time I came close to a deep sleep, my body would spasm. I guess it was my subconscious's way of warning me not to fall asleep. Finally, the Explorer came to a halt, the doors flung open and everyone quickly got out. It was like being in an emergency room with its orderly chaos.

When I went back into the cold air again, my body jerked uncontrollably. Paris hurried me down the stairs to Ronan's living quarters. I heard people shouting all at once, and they sounded far away. I could feel movement around me and I opened my eyes to see an older man standing next to me. The scent of pipe tobacco hung in the air and I knew it was Doc. He had treated me once before.

"Tend to your King first," I whispered.

"Rafe is fine, but you're not. Put her down on the floor and I'll get my bag," Doc said, walking out of my view.

Again the talking between Doc and Paris started. Paris laid me on the floor gently as he talked. He and Ronan knelt next to me and with their hands on me, it dulled some of the impact my body was taking, but not much.

I was in and out of consciousness so I didn't catch everything that was going on. I opened my eyes again and saw Doc. His long hair hung past his shoulders, white with dark streaks on the sides. His beard and mustache was a nice mix of salt and pepper. Doc looked like he should have been on a Harley, with his blue jeans and a black faded Grateful Dead t-s.h.i.+rt, not tending to the wounded and sick.

"You need to get her out of those wet clothes and then we have to get her temperature up slowly," Doc said, looking at Paris. There was a look in his eyes as if he were trying to say something without actually saying it.

I don't do naked very well, but if this was going to warm me up I could bare it. No pun intended. I could hear fabrics ripping and hot hands against my skin. They felt warmer than they should have. Again, darkness took me, but I didn't care who saw me naked anymore. The dark was like a living thing that moved and pooled around me, but there wasn't any way I could free myself of this blackness.

Then there was the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel and I reached the end of the darkness. I peered out and it was a bright sunny day. I walked into the daylight. A warm breeze blew my hair and I took in deep breaths of heather. Somewhere deep inside, I kind of remembered being here before. It was one of those de javu moments. I walked through the tall gra.s.s. The land rolled in its emerald brilliance, trees dotted the land here and there. In the distance, I could see two people having a picnic. I walked closer. I couldn't believe my eyes.

Ronan sat laughing with a woman. He was dressed in the clothing that I'm accustomed to seeing him in. My best guess said it was from before he was magickally turned into a vashon. Most vashon refuse to talk about being turned. Some didn't even remember.

I stood about ten feet away from them, but still I went unnoticed as if I were but a ghost in their time. The woman's black hair was done up in extensive ringlets on her head, her skin was pale white under the bright sun. She wore a pale yellow gown with the skirt spread out around her. They laughed, talked and ate, but mostly they enjoyed each other. I didn't have to see her face. I knew it was Katherine, me. It was disconcerting as h.e.l.l.

All of a sudden, I was ripped away. Now I was back in my own jerking body. I opened my eyes and I was sitting in a large, deep tub. It was big enough to fit at least four people comfortably. I leaned against someone's chest. I didn't have to look to know it was Paris. No one else made me feel so safe.

I felt like I was going to lose my cookies and tried to stand so I wouldn't puke in the water. Anything would be better than having floaties in the water I was sitting in. I got to my feet but I wasn't very steady, my legs refused to hold me and I started to fall. Paris grabbed me around the waist, but it was Ronan who appeared in front of me with a waste-can.

I puked until my stomach ached and my eyes watered. Paris slowly sat back down into the water. I leaned against him; feeling like a Mack truck had hit me. I was so tired. Sleep called to me and I didn't fight it. I didn't want to.

Once again, I stood in Ronan's time as if I had never left. The darkest clouds I'd ever seen rolled in and it started to pour with rain. The storm had the familiar feeling of magick, vashon magick. Ronan and Katherine ran into what looked like a castle. I followed. Maybe a stupid move on my part, so here's hoping I don't die in my sleep.

I walked through the door. The smell of dust and a hint of mold clung to everything. The castle looked like something you would see on some doc.u.mentary about haunted castles. As it goes, it wasn't Windsor, but it was a nice size. I didn't follow Ronan and Katherine immediately. I wandered around from one amazing room to another. The things I saw would be in museums today, all ancient and priceless even back then.

A woman screamed and I ran toward the noise. There was a charge of vashon magick in the air. When I got close enough, I heard shouting. I tore into the room to find several vashon. A couple of large men were dragging Katherine - 'me' - outside. Ronan was on his knees pleading with who I thought to be the leader.

"If you kill her, I will not willingly become a vashon. I will create as much trouble for you as I can," Ronan said, his accent the strongest I'd ever heard it.

Again, the woman screamed in the distance and Ronan echoed her in his anguish. The vashon dragged Ronan in the same direction as Katherine. The leader wanted Ronan to see what was about to happen, which screamed not good. Scientifically this was very interesting, to view things from a spirit's point of view. But, to see my past self being killed was too much. I tried to follow but I could feel my projected self pulled away again.

I opened my eyes and looked around. All the men I had touched with my magick stood or sat around the room. The air surrounding me was filled with such an overwhelming sadness; I had a hard time getting a deep breath. I could sense all the men and each one had their own scent from floral to woodsy.

"Who died?" I asked in a scratchy voice that was barely audible.

Everyone jumped as if they had been shot. The men gathered around the large bed and looked at me like I had just appeared or grown a second head. I couldn't decide which.

"Can I have some water? What happened and the complete story, please," I muttered.

Alex walked out. Maybe he thought I wasn't going to like what I was about to hear, and he wanted out of firing line. I slowly raised myself. I could feel my body slide along the white silk sheets. Something told me that I didn't want to be laying down for this.