UNDER HIS SPELL (20 page)

“Yes.
 
The wizard.
 
Protecting his woman.
 
How quaint.”
 
Sabrina flowed across the damp ground, pausing in the middle to sweep a
look around the area.
 
“I have a feeling
we’ll have visitors tonight.
 
Increase
the guards and make sure you pay attention.
 
Fail me and you fail all of us.
 
Well, that and I’ll have to kill you if you don’t die in the
ambush.”
 
Waggling her fingers over her
shoulder, she sailed off toward the forest.

***

Skye didn’t have to ask if Rane was angry.
 
The set of his shoulders spoke more loudly
than words ever could.
 
She watched him
check on Emily and give her a hug.
 
Then,
he rounded the bushes and approached her.
 
Skye braved herself for the brunt of his fury.
 
Instead, Rane took her hand and began
walking.

Skye debated whether or not to remain silent.
 
For the longest time, she walked along beside
him hearing nothing but the crunch of leaves beneath three sets of feet.
 
She felt the warmth of his palm against hers,
the brush of his arm and caught the masculine scent of his skin.
 

A part of her wanted to reach out to him.
 
The other part wanted to hit him.
 
His overbearing attitude was starting to wear
on her.
 

“You’re slowing down,” Rane pointed out in what Skye considered a
pompous tone of voice.
 

“Can I help it if I don’t trot as fast as the animal next to me?”

“Here we go again,” Emily sighed aloud.

“This animal,” he said through gritted teeth, “just saved your
life.”

“Saved my life?”
 
Skye
spluttered.
 
“I was handling him just
fine.”

“He’d only shown you half of what he could do.
 
If I had not shown up when I did, he would’ve
killed you and taken Emily.”

“I think you underestimate my abilities.
 
Just because I’m not fully familiar with my
magic doesn’t make me totally inept and…” She stopped abruptly.
 
“Wait a minute.
 
Take Emily where?”

“To the witches.
 
They want
her.”
 
Skye noticed Rane lowered his
voice so Emily couldn’t hear the last of his words, but Skye heard every
one.
 
And an invisible fist captured her
heart.

Skye grabbed his arm.
 
“Why do
the witches want her?”

“That I don’t know.
 
I do know
that troll was sent for you.
 
To kill
you.
 
That’s what I meant when I said you
have a price on your head.
 
It seems your
enemy has decided to include every monster in the animal kingdom to bring about
your demise.”

“There has to be a way I can end this.”

Rane snorted.
 
“There is.
 
Kill Sabrina.”

“We’ve already discussed this.”

Rane stopped walking, snatching her arm to catch hold of her.
 
“Well, it’s time you got a dose of reality,
Skye.
 
Sabrina isn’t stopping.
 
So you’re either going to have to oblige her
by dying or you’re going to have to kill her.
 
Now, I’m here to do that and I certainly don’t mind taking care of this
for you, but you really need to come to terms with what you’ll be next week.”

Skye gave him a mutinous look.
 
“I don’t want to be anything other than what I already am.”

“Too bad.”

“What’s wrong with you?”

Skye knew she’d asked the wrong question.
 
Suddenly, the man disappeared before her
eyes, replaced by the wizard.
 
The wind
whipped causing his hair to swirl around his face.
 
His eyes darkened, his jaw tightening.
 

“What is wrong with me, Skye, is a witch who will not follow
directions.
 
Because you cannot listen to
me, you almost got your sister killed and while you may not care about your own
life, the very least you should be is concerned about hers.”

Skye matched his anger.
 
“I
didn’t almost get us both killed.
 
I had
the situation under control.”

“You can’t control any situation because you can’t control your
power yet.
 
You have no idea the amount
of magic you possess and you’re doing simple tricks like levitating.”
 
He snatched her and dragged her closer to his
body, hands curling around her shoulders.
 
“It’s time to wake up, Skye.
 
In
this world, it’s kill or be killed.”

“Then maybe it’s time I took Emily out of this world.”

“Actually, I think it’s time you paid attention,” came Emily’s
voice, a miniature version of her normal voice.

“Yes.
 
Why don’t you listen to
your sister?”
 
The other voice hissed
out, a wicked combination of danger and sin.
 

Skye clutched Rane’s arm and turned slowly.
 
“Sabrina.”

Sabrina held Emily tight to her bosom, one arm bracketed across her
neck.
 
“We meet again, Skye.
 
So good to see you.”
   

Skye cursed her own inattention.
 
“Let her go, Sabrina.
 
Your fight
is with me, not with her.”

Sabrina tilted her head to one side as if considering Skye’s
suggestion then she smiled, pure evil.
 
“No, I don’t think I’ll do that.
 
Right now, my fight is with your wizard friend.
 
I don’t believe we’ve met.”

Rane held tightly to Skye’s arm.
 
“We do not need to meet.
 
I know
you.
 
Now, let Emily go and I will think
about killing you quickly.”

Sabrina held up one hand.
 
“Actually, I was going to make you a deal.
 
It’s a simple task really.
 
Kill the witch and I’ll let Emily live.”

Rane shoved Skye behind him.
 
“That is exactly what I intend to do.
 
You are a witch, are you not?”

Sabrina’s lips thinned.
 
“Cute, but I’m not interested in games.”
 
She pivoted slowly, drawing Emily with her.
 
“Skye, the decision is yours.
 
Sacrifice yourself to save your sister or
watch her die.”

As Skye watched, Emily’s face began to turn purple.
 
“No, don’t!
 
Don’t hurt her.”
 
Skye took a step
forward, but Rane stopped her.
 
“Let go
of me,” she commanded.

If anything, Rane’s grip increased.
 
“Do not make the mistake of thinking your death will save Emily.”

She tried to tug her arm free without success.
 
“Rane, I can’t let anything happen to her.”

Sabrina chuckled with glee and bounced a fireball on the palm of her
free hand.
 
“Now this is what I like to
see.”

Skye stared up at Rane.
 
“She’s going to kill my sister.”

“No, she will not.
 
She is
more concerned with your death.”

“And that is exactly what I’ll get if you ever want to see your
sister alive, Skye.”
 
Sabrina all but
shouted.
 
“Here are the rules.
 
Deliver yourself to me by midnight tomorrow
night or I’ll deliver your sister’s body to you one piece at a time.”

Skye sucked in a sharp breath.
 
“If you harm my sister, I’ll destroy you and your entire Coven and if
you think I can’t, I know about Ostara.”

Sabrina paled slightly but stood her ground.
 
“You have to make it to next Friday first.”

“Let the girl go, Sabrina,” Rane inserted.
 
“That is your last warning.”

“I’m not afraid of you, wizard.
 
I have something you will never have.
 
Knowledge.”
 
She directed her
fiery eyes toward Skye.
 
“Midnight
tomorrow, Skye.”
 
With those final words,
she and Emily disappeared.

Skye cried out and raced forward, but even the particles in the air
had disappeared.
 
“She’s going to kill
her.”

Rane came to her.
 
“No, she’s
not.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because she wants you.
 
She
knows what will happen if she kills Emily and you make it to Ostara.”

Skye’s shoulders hitched as she fought back a wave of tears.
 
“She wasn’t even afraid of you.”

Rane touched her cheeks with his fingertips.
 
“That does not surprise me.”

“Aren’t witches supposed to be afraid of wizards?”

“Yes.”

Skye took hold of his fingers.
 
“So tell me what I’m missing then.
 
I mean, Sabrina is a witch.
 
You
are a wizard.
 
Where is the fear?”

Rane brought his other hand up to cup her face.
 
Gently, he kissed her before resting his
forehead against hers.
 
“I am not so sure
all of the players were here.”

Skye raised her head slightly.
 
“I’m not following you.”

“You did not notice anything strange about Sabrina?”

“I’ve always thought Sabrina was strange.”

“Skye, look at me.”
 
He waited
until their eyes locked before he spoke again.
 
“That version of Sabrina was not the real thing.”

“You’re sure?”

“I know witches and that was not a witch.”

Skye bit her lower lip.
 
“Then
what was she?”

“Not she, it.
 
It was Unger.”

Skye’s blood ran cold.
 
“It’s
taken over Sabrina’s body?”
 
She looked
upwards.
 
“And it’s taken Emily.
 
Rane, it’ll kill her.”

“Not if I can help it.”

“And what if you can’t?”

“I don’t live in what-if land, Skye.
 
When something needs to be done, I get it done.
 
Now come on.
 
We should get back.”

“We’re going back to Mystique?”

“Where else would we go?”

She held fast to his arm.
 
“We
need to go after Emily.”

Rane rubbed her hand.
 
“We
will when we are ready.
 
When all of us
are ready.
 
We cannot make a move until
we know Unger’s plan.”

“How can we know his plan when we don’t even know him?”

“We have to find out and we have to do it quickly.
 
Our deadline is midnight tomorrow night.”

Skye shivered as the words sank in.
 

***

Unger began to doubt his decision to take the little brat shortly
after taking her.
 
She hadn’t shut up
about Rane and her sister.
 
She talked
continually about how they would take great pleasure in killing him.
 
Even his threats to shut her up permanently
hadn’t fazed her.
 
She said Rane would
only make him suffer more.
 
What was it
about the wizard that commanded such allegiance?

Leaving the loud-mouthed teen, he stormed across the grounds, his
steps loud and fearsome.
 
The witches
turned to watch their leader sweep by and not for the first time, they wondered
what had happened to Sabrina.
 

Unger made himself at home in Sabrina’s cabin although he couldn’t
really say much for her taste in life’s amenities.
 
She’d kept the walls bare and except for a
simple, black rug, she’d followed suit with the floor.
 
No evidence of any worldly goods anywhere.
 
Her refusal to use the tower made little
sense to him.

Unger stomped toward the mirror hanging over a rattan vanity and
stared at his reflection, the witch’s reflection.
 
She really was a striking female.
 
Seemed a shame her life would have to end so
tragically.
 
He could have made good use
of her powers had she only managed to follow instructions.
 

He touched his fingertips to the cool glass and slid it along
Sabrina’s jawline.
 
“It must be
devastating to know that no one mourns your disappearance, my sweet.
 
Well, if it helps, I mourn you.
 
I miss what we could have had together had
you been the witch I needed you to be.
 
I
miss the power we could have achieved together.
 

He stepped away from the mirror and sat down on the edge of the
bed.
 
In the end, he believed Sabrina had
been cursed with a conscience, that still, small voice that bespoke of the
horrors
,
which would befall an evil
child.
 
He chuckled to himself.
 
Thankfully, he’d been spared that inner
voice.
 
Nothing spoke to Unger, at least
not without his permission.
 

***

Emily curled into a small ball, drawing her legs up close to her
chest.
 
She hadn’t shown Sabrina her fear
and now she was glad she’d held it inside.
 
The witch had seemed frustrated, especially when she’d threatened to
kill her.
 
She had to believe that Rane
and Skye would save her.
 
They’d found
her before.
 
They could find her
again…couldn’t they?

***

Rane didn’t waste time the instant he entered the Assembly
Room.
 
“It was Unger.”

Nexon’s eyes swept past Rane’s body to where Skye stood behind
him.
 
“Her again?
 
Why do we not we just make her an honorary wizard?”

Rane’s cold eyes swiveled to stare at the wizard’s face.
 
“Did you just hear what I said?
 
We saw Unger.”

“Only it wasn’t Unger,” Skye inserted, coming forward to stand
beside Rane instead of behind him.
 
“It
was Sabrina with Unger inside, if that makes sense.
 
Rane seems to think Unger has taken over
Sabrina’s body.”

Jaxon walked toward his brother.
 
“Are you sure of this?”

“Unger could manage a body possession,” Falcon put in from the back
of the room.

“He has Emily,” Skye added solemnly.

Nexon leapt to his feet.
 
“You
should have said so in the beginning.
 
We
must help the child.
 
She is innocent and
should not be left to Unger’s devices.”

Rane stared at him.
 
“We
cannot go after Unger without a plan.
 
By
now, he has absorbed Sabrina’s powers.”

“There is a chance she could still be alive, though.
 
Maybe she’s fighting him,” Skye suggested.

“She is not alive,” Nexon scoffed.
 
“Even a witch cannot withstand a bodily possession.”

“Some might,” Falcon said.
 
“We shall soon see.”

“If she is not dead, she must die anyway,” Jensen finally spoke up.

“No!”
 
Falcon said the one
word quickly and with enough force that the room fell silent, all eyes turned
toward their former leader.
 

“Falcon?”
 
Jaxon voiced the
question on everyone’s mind.
 
“Is there
something you would like to say?”

“No.”

Jaxon and Rane exchanged glances and at Rane’s urging, Jaxon
continued.
 
“We cannot protect
Sabrina.
 
She is not innocent.
 
What might be a bloodbath will be on her
hands.”