Love's Protection (Passion Moon 3): (A Shifter, Supernatural Romance) (7 page)

“Yeah, boss, he's pulling into the cabins,” Vanessa reported.

“Don't get too close,” Forrest growled. “All responding units, we'll meet at the entrance and go in together.”

“What could he want at the cabins?” I asked.

“He's probably retreating to a secure place,” Penny said. “He'll have enchantments ringing around it.”

“That's why me and you are here,” I said.

“When we get there, Penny'll take the back and you'll work the front,” Forrest said. “I'll have Hank watch over you, Penny.”

“Gotcha,” Penny answered.

“And me?” Miss Maggie asked.

“You'll be at Kotie's side. Once the witches break whatever protections the bastard has, I'll lead my men in storming the cabin. Kotie, I want you to hang back with Miss Maggie.”

I folded my arms. “You'll need me against him.”

“And you'll be there to rush in and help us,” Forrest answered. “But what if he's got more than magic?”

“Like?”

“Guns.”

“He's not going to kill me. He needs me.”

“Accident's happen. This could get messy.” Forrest reached out and took my hand. “Let me and my men do the dangerous part. If we need you, trust me, we'll holler. Okay?”

His hand squeezed mine. I wanted to go in with him. I knew Forrest was just trying to be protective. That was his nature. “Fine,” I sighed. “You're probably right.” Probably. “But I'll be close in case something happens.”

“I know you will,” Forrest grinned.

“You have your wolf head medallion on?” I asked. I had made it with my magic and inadvertently imbued it with Love spirits.

“Always.”

I nodded. It would protect him. “And your bulletproof vest is in the SUV?”

Forrest's grin broadened. “I'll be protected. I'm not getting killed. Not before I've married you.”

The rugged mountainside rushed past us as we moved deeper into the mountains. Rocky slopes dotted with lone trees and covered in wire mesh to help prevent landslides blurred by us. Forrest took a left onto Circle Lake Drive.

“Damn!” Penny gasped in the backseat as Forrest raced down the gravel road, the SUV bouncing through potholes.

Forrest had both hands on the wheel as he drove, the SUV weaving on the road as he tried to avoid the worst of the holes and ruts that marred the road. The trees fell away on the left. A crystal-blue lake appeared, the rippling waves reflecting back the sun. In the distance, across the lake, a group of log cabins lay amid the towering pine trees. Docks jutted out into the lake. We passed the landing. A few boats bobbed on the lake as their occupants fished.

The gravel road curved around the lake before it pulled away from the water. In moments, Redrock Lake was obscured by trees and brush. Blue flashed through gaps between trees. Ahead, two cop cars waited, pulled off onto a grassy median before a sign that proclaimed:

Redrock Lake Cabins

Inquire with manager for rentals

Deputies Kiernan, and Bobby Ray were strapping on their body armor and checking their shotguns. Forrest pulled his SUV up. “Boss,” Kiernan nodded. He was a ruddy-faced man with intense, blue eyes.

Forrest climbed out and walked to the back. He opened the rear door so Miss Maggie could get out—the rear passenger doors could not be opened from the inside—and I did the same for Penny. The witch climbed out and stretched.

“Hey, Kiernan,” she said, a tight smile on her lips.

Kiernan shifted his shoulders and looked away. He and Penny had dated for a while. Well, dating wasn't quite the word since Penny insisted they were only having fun and not a couple, but they sure seemed like they had been dating to me. Whatever their relationship was, it had ended badly.

“Where's Vanessa?” Forrest asked.

“Farther up the road, boss,” Bobby Ray said. He was a tall man with a shaved head and mirrored sunglasses. “The suspect is in cabin 7.”

There was a map of the cabins carved onto the wooden sign. Cabin seven was the most remote at the end of the right branch and butted up against the forest. As Forrest studied it, I opened the back of his SUV and grabbed his bullet proof vest.

“Here!” I pushed it into his hands.

Forrest absently nodded as he kept studying the map. The velcro ripped apart as he pulled it on. The black vest made him seem even bulkier. Other deputies arrived, piling out of their cruisers, racing to their trunks, and pulling on their flack jackets before gathering around Forrest.

“Kotie, lovely day we're having,” Hank smiled. The redheaded werewolf had a pleasant grin on his face.

“Hank,” Forrest said. “You'll be leading the team that breaches the rear entrance. Penny will be with you for handling any spells.”

“Roger, boss,” Hank nodded, then grinned at Penny. “I'll keep a good eye on her.”

Penny winked, “There is a lot of me to watch.”

Hank's grin only broadened. I rolled my eyes. This really wasn't the time. “Remember, you're married, Hank.”

“Macy don't mind if I look.”

The last deputy arrived. Xavier rushed up. He was the youngest, and he had an eager gleam in his green eyes. There were ten deputies in total. “Bobby Ray, Smith, Curtis, and Xavier, you're with Hank. He'll be taking the lead on breaching the rear entrance. All these cabins have a back door.” Forrest tapped the corner of the cabin. “Should be there. Since there's no good way to flank it, we'll drive up in force and form a perimeter. The witches will disable his protections, then we'll breach the front and rear of the house at once.”

“Roger, boss,” his deputies nodded. They all grinned and shifted. They were excited. All of them were wolf shifters, and the hunt was on.

I wish I had their enthusiasm. I just wanted this to be over. I wanted to punish my father and then go back to my life. My insides were twisted. It took all my self-control not to tremble as the adrenaline roared through me.

“Kiernan, you'll have the battering ram for the front door. Arnie will take the back. We don't take chances. This witch is a terrible man. He's hurt Kotie. He's Burt's mentor.”

More than a few deputies snarled. They had lost three of their pack when Burt burned down the school gymnasium at the Policeman's Ball. Their excitement changed to snarling rage. The pack's eyes all gleamed. They were out for blood.

“So we put him down. You get a shot, take it. This witch is too dangerous to let live.”

I shuddered. A part of me, that good part that had always hoped to meet the version of my father that my momma believed in, wanted to protest. But the more practical part of me, the woman that had been beaten and abused by the men in my life, never wanted to be hurt again. My father was responsible for Wayne and Burt.

“You okay with that, Kotie?” Forrest asked.

“I'm not,” I answered. “But it has to be done. It'll have to suffice in place of justice.”

Chapter Six: Barbed Wire

Forrest's SUV led the convoy. The deputies had doubled up, leaving half their cars behind. They carried a mix of shotguns and, I was surprised to see, AR-15 assault rifles, the civilian version of the M16. The cabins rushed by us as Forrest roared around the winding roads through them. Ahead, cabin seven stood alone. Vanessa was standing behind her car, an assault rifle aimed at the cabin. She looked strange dressed in her street clothes, out of place with the other deputies.

Forrest drove onto the grass lawn before the cabin and turned his wheel so the driver side faced the cabin. He threw open his door, leaning behind it and aiming his shotgun at the cabin. I bailed out on the other side and, crouching, raced to the back of the SUV.

The other deputies flooded out of their cars. Hank and his team, with Penny at the center, rushed along the cabin while Xavier and Curtis moved to surround the cabin's sides, taking cover where they could find it.

Vanessa rushed over. “What's the plan, boss?” she asked, excitement burning in her green eyes.

“The witches will neutralize the spells, then we'll breach the cabin. I want you to hang back with Miss Maggie and Kotie when we breach. Cover us with your rifle. If we need help, you'll be there to cover Kotie and Miss Maggie as they run up.”

“Roger, boss,” she nodded.

My tattoo prickled. “There's definitely magic here.”

My cell phone rang. I answered it. “Do you feel the magic?” Penny asked.

“Yeah. It's strong. He must have ringed it with enchantments. He's bunkered himself in there.”

“We'll need to work together, hammer him from both sides.”

“Yep. Let's figure out what we're dealing with first.”

I put my phone on speaker and set it on the bumper of Forrest's SUV. I took a deep breath and focused my will. I hated dealing with Death spirits. They were foul and disgusting, but they were also necessary for divining. “Spirits of divination, reveal what wards the cabin before me!” I commanded.

Penny chanted something similar. Static burst out of my phone as dark shadows crept out of the earth. The spirits rose, surrounded by a nimbus of wan, purple light. The spirits rushed towards the cabin, painting the air with various hues of purple and lavender, revealing the spells that warded the cabin. There were a lot.

“I see a physical ward,” Penny said, her voice tinny over the speakers. “And illusions.”

I nodded, spotting those dotting the ground. “The illusions are covering something. Maybe pits.” One was right before the entrance.

“Yeah,” Penny added. “And on the door. It looks like a fire spell. It'll explode if the door's opened.”

“Windows, too,” I confirmed. “And there's one other spell. Look at it covering the cabin, almost like vines. It's Life magic.”

“Flesh control.”

I shuddered. Christian had tried to use flesh control on me. It was one of the most vile magics. Life spirits allowed you to control plants and animals. With them, you could turn someone into your puppet. It was among the foulest forms of magic.

“He must have it triggered to seize anyone that enters the cabin.”

“Yep,” Penny confirmed. “I think your father is an Imbuement witch. I can't imagine enchanting an entire cabin unless it was your affinity.”

“Well, that should make him poorer at combat,” I realized. Something worried at the back of my mind. It was important that my father was an Imbuement witch.

“Can you dispel the magic?” Forrest asked, knocking me out of my thoughts. “I don't want to be flesh controlled ever again.”

When Christian kidnapped me, he had tried to flesh control Forrest. It had half-worked, but my mate's willpower had been strong enough that he could still move, if barely. Luckily, I managed to break the spell.

“It'll be a piece of cake,” Penny answered. “Your fiancee's a Love witch. Dispelling is Love magic.”

I nodded my head. “I'll still need your help, Penny.”

“Let's start with the simple stuff. I think I can handle the fire and illusion spells on this side of the cabin. You take the other side. Once we have them down, we'll both throw dispelling magic at the protection and flesh control enchantments.”

“Okay.”

I peered around the SUV again. There were several patches of illusionary grass scattered about, created by Light spirits. Since Love magic was my affinity, I didn't need to cast a spell. My mental will was more than strong enough.

“Spirits of dispelling, disrupt the Light spells and break their enchantment!” Penny chanted, her voice distant.

My tattoo burst with energy as I channeled the Love spirits. The golden hearts that always loved to dance around Forrest and me, shot towards the purple-painted patches of grass, and the enchanted windows and front door. Golden light burst, bringing gasps from a few of the deputies. The Light spells winked out, revealing deep holes torn into the ground, probably created with Earth magics. Then the hearts crashed into the windows and doors. The fiery spells snuffed out in a shower of golden sparks.

“Spirits of dispelling, disrupt the Fire spells and break their enchantment!” Penny cast. Sparks flashed bright on the side of the cabin as my friend cast her spells. “Okay, Kotie. I'm done on this side. Ready for the big stuff?”

“Yes, I am,” I nodded.

“Get ready to breach,” Forrest ordered into his radio. “Once the witches break the last two spells, we're in.”

“Okay, Kotie. We need to be in sync,” Penny said. “We'll go for the flesh control, first. That's a nasty spell.”

“I'm ready. On three?”

“Sure. One, two, three!”

Together, we chanted: “Spirits of dispelling, disrupt the Life spell and break its enchantment!”

The force of this dispelling spell was so much more powerful than the first ones I cast. By chanting the words, I put more of my will into it. Only a Love witch could cast a dispelling spell with such force. Golden hearts streaked towards the cabin. There were hundreds of the Love spirits, answering my spell's call. I gripped the back of the SUV as I swayed. The energy poured out of me.

The Love spirits crashed into the purple-painted vines clinging to the cabin. Unlike the previous spells, this one had been imbued into the cabin. It was anchored by a physical object. Golden sparks flared. The cabin shook and wood groaned as the Life and Imbuement spirits resisted my Love spirits. Green and black energy clashed with golden.

“You can do it, spirits!” Penny shouted. Her Love spirits joined the fight. It was harder for the spell to resist the both of us. Penny's added energy was enough to split the spirits attention, distracting them so my spell could overwhelm them.

Golden light exploded down the lines of the vines. Life and Imbuement spirits sped away from the cabin, disappearing out into the world. The air hummed as my Love spirits danced about the cabin in triumph.

“We did it!” Penny screeched. I pictured her hopping up and down.

“Why isn't he doing anything?” Forrest growled. “He's letting the pair of you take down his spells. I thought he would have responded.”

“He knows I'm a Love witch,” I answered. “He knows he can't keep me from dispelling his magics.”

“Okay, that one was easy,” laughed Penny. “Boy, I thought it would be harder. I was worried that we couldn't dispel an Imbuement witch's enchantment.”