Forever Changed (The Mystic Wolves) (20 page)

“And who says wishes don’t come true?”

Dread broke over me, followed quickly by the realization that the voice of the stranger standing behind us, watching our festivities, was none other than Julian Blackwell, himself.

Chapter 21

“So nice of you all to be in one place,” Julian greeted, acting as though he was a welcome guest who’d arrived late. “As much as I enjoy new experiences, I was getting a tad weary hunting you down.” His focus rested solely on me, his eyes scanning my body hungrily. “Yes, you’ll do perfectly. I can almost taste your magic from here. I believe I’m going to enjoy this.”

Everyone broke into action, each person reaching for weapons—Mason and Daniel responding to the threat by rapidly starting the shifting process. A dagger sizzled through the air, narrowly missing Julian as he ducked to the side, the blade embedding itself in the wooden frame of the house.

My own wolf howled, sensing the time we’d anticipated and dreaded had arrived, the call to war thrumming through her. I was ready for this. I’d prepared for this moment; and if Julian thought he’d take me without a hitch, he was as delusional as I believed him. Settling into a fighting stance, adrenaline coursed through my veins.

“Oh, how quaint. You truly are like some Scooby gang, the way you think you can stop me.” Julian pushed away from where he stood, a confident air about him. He studied our small group like we were children standing up to an adult and it fired hope within me. Already he was underestimating us. That kind of arrogance would definitely work in our favor.

“We won’t just stop you. We will destroy you,” Devlin promised, righteous anger burning from him. “You fooled me once and it cost me my sister, I won’t allow you to do it, again.”

I cast a quick sideways glance, wondering why it felt like we were posturing. I wanted to eliminate the threat now—attack and be done with it. I could see Christina and Devlin were just as eager. Everything was happening swiftly and in a few more seconds, Mason and Daniel would be in wolf form. There would be no stopping Mason once that occurred. He’d been thirsting for action since everything was revealed; and the first move he’d make would be to rip out Julian’s throat.

“Ahhh, Elynor. She was delectable. Such soft skin, so easily bruised.” He licked his lips, cruelly contorting his face into a smirk. “I wonder how long it will take for me to break Darcy.”

“Bastard!” Devlin roared, racing forward. Mason howled in all his Alpha glory, leaping toward Julian at the same time. This battle would be over quickly. He had enraged the wrong t
wo people.

“Enough!” Julian blasted out a wave of magic, the first sign he’d shown signaling his power. The energy was crushing, pressing against my chest, and forcing me to my knees. I couldn’t breathe as a vile, nasty flavor coated my tongue. Even though I was still new to my witch nature, the bitter tang of dark magic was different to anything I’d ever experienced. It made my stomach heave, my own abilities recoiling with disgust. “I tire of this. Come, Darcy.”

Rising to my feet, I noticed something had gone horribly wrong. In the surprise of his arrival and with the response of my friends, I’d been partially separated from everyone, giving Julian the perfect chance to strike. We hadn’t planned on this scenario—deciding the best strategy was to come at him as a team; but in the commotion, I’d misjudged. Now, I was on the other side of what looked like a force field, Julian’s magic shimmering as if it mocked me.

“What did you do?” I screamed, trying to reach Mason as I pounded on the barely visible wall.

“A simple spell, my young novice. You’ve just proven that your education is somewhat lacking. A child could perform that with ease.” He’d yet to approach me, enjoying the way he’d disabled us already. Devlin and Christina searched for weaknesses they could take advantage of, while Mason and Daniel slammed their bodied against the barrier.

There was no way I was going to let this happen. I would not be reduced to a willing captive, a toy for this deranged lunatic. It was up to me to act, to put an end to this, once and for all. Forgetting about fighting or using my own growing gifts, I inwardly stepped aside so my wolf could spring forward. There would be no holding her back while I searched for another way to avoid the inevitable. My skin tingled as I felt myself shift, impatiently urging her to hurry.

“Uh uh, shame on you.” Panic struck hard and fast as I lost instant contact with my wolf. One minute she was there, snarling in preparation, and next she was muzzled as whatever spell Julian blasted me with took me over completely. I tried reaching her, taking threads of my own powers, trying to undo the constricting binds. In my mind’s eye, his magic resembled thick tar, sticking and hardening around her spirit body. My wolf snapped and growled, trying to shake it free to no avail. He’d single-handedly stopped her, leaving me human.

“Release my wolf, you monster,” I yelled, reaching for the dagger Devlin had given me for my birthday. Disappointed, I remembered it was on the other side of the force field on the table. I curled my fingers into fists and began running at him. If I had to tear his beating heart out with my bare hands, so be it. I dug down deep for my magic, ready to give him a taste of his own medicine with a power-soaked punch.

“But this is much more fun. Such pathetic displays of strength. I’ll enjoy making you submit, Darcy.” He softly began chanting and my body froze, my feet securely planted halfway through my attack. Smiling at his success, Julian finally approached me, his arrogance showing in his casual steps. He acted as though he had all the time in the world all while everyone else fought for a way to thwart him. “Can I say how disappointed I am by this? I expected more.” He had the nerve to trace his finger down the side of my cheek, making me desperate to recoil but unable to.

“You’re a coward!” I snarled, snapping at his fingers with my teeth. “You have to resort to this to win.”

“No, it’s what makes me smart and how I’ve managed to survive all this time, while waiting for you to surface. I had no idea how far forward my dear, dead wife sent my powers into the future.”

“You mean my powers.” I glared.

“No, I was correct the first time. You belong to me. The fact you’ve lived this long has merely been an irritating consequence. I didn’t foresee your abilities being bound. It was quite the nuisance; but, as they say, all’s well that ends well.”

“You won’t get away with this.” I tried twisting my body, willing my limbs to obey my commands and fight against his influence.

“Oh, but I have.” Dismissing me, I watched as Julian waved his hand in front of the barrier and I could hear Devlin yelling and Mason’s repeated pounding against the barricade.

“This is between me and you,” Devlin fired. “Face me as a man, you bastard!”

“Ahhh, but you’re not a man, are you? You sold your humanity for revenge. I must say, I didn’t see that coming, either.” Julian took a gloating stance, chuckling at his captive.

“For vengeance. To make sure I could protect my family from you and your obsession with immortality.”

“And how has that worked out for you?” Julian retreated enough so he could lift a strand of my hair between his fingers and bring it to his nose, inhaling deeply. “I can almost smell the similarities between your sister and niece. Elynor had this unique fragrance that made me hard every time I abused her. It literally permeated from her pores, filling the air with its arousing scent. Tell me, Darcy, will you have the same effect?” He grabbed his crotch, licking his lips obscenely. “I sure hope you do.”

“I’ll kill you before you get the chance!” Devlin threatened.

“Then take your best shot. Oh, wait, you already did. Two failures, dear brother-in-law, however will you live with yourself?”

Mason had given up trying to break through and shifted back, ignoring the need for clothes as he thundered at Julian with all the authority
he possessed. “No-one takes what’s mine. Lower this now, and let’s settle this. I promise I won’t hurt you . . . much.” I’d never seen him so bloodthirsty; but what sent chills over me, was how ruthlessly calm Mason was. He fully believed Julian was living on borrowed time—he just needed a fraction of an opening to exploit it. Christina moved behind him and I could see her discretely chanting, not wanting to alert Julian to her efforts.

“You are insignificant—as feeble as your attempts to keep me from entering your property.”

“You killed them all?” Bile rose up into my mouth as I thought about the pack members who’d been patrolling, my heart aching over their loss.

“Let me ease your mind, Darcy. Deactivating your warning system and overpowering your
guards took no time at all.” His last word dripped heavily with disdain.

Mason’s fist balled up, his jaw clenching, as fury blazed across his features. There was no denying it. Julian was a dead man walking.

“Your pack is fine.” He waved his hand through the air as though it was a mere thing. “Consider it a belated wedding and thank you gift.”

“Thank you?”

“For your wife.”

“Over my dead body,” Mason growled, impatient to reach me and destroy his enemy.

Immobilized, I took my focus off Julian for a moment and concentrated on calming myself. I needed my magic, and I needed it to work. There was no room for error and I desperately tried not to panic as I worked to channel all my powers toward him. There was energy thrumming inside me, ready to be fashioned into a weapon suitable for my intent. Dipping my hands into the fiery white glow of my magic, I scooped up the largest ball I could create, ready to throw it outwardly.

Just as I was ready, a loud crash echoed through the garden as Christina sent a shock wave of energy through the barrier, causing it to flicker dangerously. Devlin and Mason both charged at the same time, almost shattering the force field and leveling the playing field. A triumphant war cry broke out as Christina repeated the spell, rushing at the barricade as well, with her dagger extended. Distracted by what was happening, I dropped my own magic.

“Bitch.” Julian cursed angrily, revealing his true emotions. “You will not destroy all my plans with your trivial incantations.” Pushing his hand through the barrier, he viciously grabbed her wrist and effectively pulled her through it, leaving the others muted again.

“As long as I have breath left in me, you will never win!” Hurling her arm back, Christina’s knife sizzled with raw power.

“So be it.” Without remorse or hesitation, Julian discharged such a violent blow that the sound of Christina’s body breaking before she crumpled to the ground caused me to gasp.

“Christina!” I screamed, Devlin mouthing the same.

“I wonder.” Julian sighed, picking up Christina’s weapon as he crouched down beside her. She was slowly moving, groaning in pain, but I could still sense her reaching for her magic. “I’ve never killed a vampire before. Is it true that piercing your heart works?” He drove the blade deeply into her chest, purposely missing the target. Tears streamed down my face as I watched Christina struggle to swipe his hand away. Her body was already beginning to heal; but it wouldn’t be fast enough. Julian twisted the blade, brutally laughing. “Let me try that again.”

“Please . . .” I begged. “Please, don’t.”

“Asking for favors already?” He glanced up at me, a sadistic smirk curling his lips. “As much as I like to reward good behavior . . .” He removed the dagger and without looking at Christina, he rammed it back into her body, this time a fraction over and striking true. I screamed as she began deteriorating, bursting into ash as Julian pulled the knife out. Even though I’d only met her recently, I was excited about our growing friendship; and now she was gone. My mind couldn’t comprehend what my eyes had just seen. It had to be a trick; but, unfortunately, it wasn’t. The young Enforcer was gone.

All hell was unleashed on the other side of the barrier as grief consumed me, adding the needed fuel that made me believe in the impossible. My mind had said there was no breaking Julian’s hold over me, but my heart refused to accept it. There was no way Christina’s death would go unavenged. She’d sacrificed her life for mine; the atonement she so desperately wanted, achieved.

“I think I’ll keep this as a souvenir.” Wiping the blade against his pants, Julian casually tossed it into the air, before smiling at me. “Okay, play time is over. While this has been entertaining, there is much to do. If I let you move, will you obey?”

“I’ll rip your throat out,” I threatened.

He almost looked disappointed. “Just as I thought. Rendering you unconscious it is. Say goodbye to your loved ones, Darcy. This is the last time you’ll see them.”

I had to act quickly. This was the point of no return. No pause to focus, or meditate, or even think. My magic boiled beneath the surface, encouraging me to set it loose to do its worst. It had been so unreliable lately, my brief lessons with Christina merely a sample of what it would take later to master my abilities. I’d proven I could harness it. I needed to do it again—just one more time—throwing everything I had at him before it was too late.

Summoning my witch nature, taking one deep breath in, my power surged forward and upward. Any restraint I’d used trying to control it snapped and fell to the wayside. My hair dancing in the wind and the air crackling around me was the only warning Julian received before I struck.

Raw, intense energy exploded from me. In an endless torrent of pure, volatile magic, I directed my attack at Julian, screaming
loudly as the power ripped through my body and knocked him off his feet, throwing him backward. I didn’t stop there. Hitting him with everything I had, it continued even when his own spell crashed, releasing me to move. The barrier dropped as well, Mason and Daniel instantly shifting as Devlin roared his own ruthless, gut wrenching scream.