Reckless Revenge: Book Four (Spellbound 4) (24 page)
Read Reckless Revenge: Book Four (Spellbound 4) Online
Authors: Sherry Soule
A few days after the big lycan brawl, the Paranormal Prodigies reassembled in the library of Craven Manor, which included my mom, who sat a little too closely next to Evans. Brittany was seated beside Kayla, and Ariana cuddled with Daniel. Only Trent and I stood in front of the fireplace. We’d gathered so I could apologize for endangering their lives. I never should’ve involved them. I’d allowed my driving need for revenge to override my actions. Vengeance had been like venom in my veins. Holding on to that resentment was like swallowing rat poison, and waiting for the rat to die.
The simple paradox of revenge was to find forgiveness.
As a result of this horrible ordeal, I’d learned one important thing…that most plans for vengeance failed because it was an attempt to change the past or right a wrong that could never be mended. Unfortunately, once the damage was done and the injury, insult, or loss had occurred, the clock could never be turned back. The cycle of retaliation could only spiral toward tragedy, and it was much safer for the heart not to take that rocky road. I found forgiveness for Regina while we’d fought in the cave. Now I needed to forgive myself and ask my friends to do the same. I might not be cured of the
Darkness,
but vengeance no longer made my blood run hot.
They were silent, waiting for me to speak. Finally, I got enough courage. “I shouldn’t have asked you guys to get involved. I wasn’t thinking. I’m so sorry. I only wanted to avenge my dad.”
I glanced at the couch where Brittany and Kayla sat, and stared into two sets of eyes gleaming with understanding. Brittany had been discharged from the hospital with only a few scrapes and a broken arm covered with a neon-pink cast. My gaze rested on a bruised, red-eyed Ariana sitting beside Daniel, who sported a black eye, but was otherwise okay. Evans sat on the leather sofa near my mom with a bandage wrapped around his head. Only a mild concussion, the doctors had said.
When I’d told Evans about Malphas and Raze in the hospital, I could tell by his tone that he was disappointed that he hadn’t gotten to see the winged-guys in all their glory. Then finally my gaze landed on Trent standing on my right. He had
no
visible wounds. Just green eyes that searched mine. I turned away.
Evans clasped his hands behind his back and addressed the room. “The
official
story told to the press and residents by Sheriff Boyd was that a pack of wolves had been released illegally by someone in Larkspur. He told them that the wild animals were responsible for the attacks, but they’d been recently captured. And the single fatality was covered up as just another mysterious missing person case. The boy’s body has been buried in an unmarked grave.”
My heart grieved for the family. They assumed their son had simply run away. Only Evans and my crew knew the truth. And Mayor Witheridge and Maxwell, of course.
“Once her wounds were treated, Regina was taken in a wheelchair by the DarkSide Detectives to an undisclosed location,” my mom said. “It’s a prison for paranormals. Because of her injuries, she might never walk again, but lycans can heal themselves from most injuries, so she should be fine in a matter of months.”
“What about the other lycans?” Brittany asked.
“Coach Ramírez and five of the boys are still in the hospital,” Evans said. “No use blaming them for what had happened, they were just victims, too. Regina had tricked most of the football team into joining her pack.”
Ariana hugged me. “Nothing to be sorry about. You saved my life.”
Had that been my sole purpose?
Not really. Regrettably, the outcome of revenge could never be predicted. The only certainty it brought was the devastation it caused in its wake. Revenge had blinded me and almost gotten my friends killed. I’d almost lost myself to
Darkness
, but Dad’s voice had saved me in the end. And though I’d always have special memories of my dad and I’d always miss him, he’d want me to move on with my life, and I would honor his memory by trying to do just that.
Mom cleared her throat. “I have spoken to the remaining teen lycans, and I’ve created a monthly potion for them to drink that should reduce their outward aggression. And I gave them a stern lecture on why bullying other kids is wrong
.
”
Okay, great. Finally some good news. I figured Mom’s potion would also stop them from sprouting teeth and fur every time something pissed them off.
Mom glanced at Evans and they shared an unreadable look.
“And we’ve given them a duty to perform while they reside in our community,” Evans said.
“Like what?” Trent asked.
Evans gazed at Daniel for a long minute. “Lycans, I mean Wardens, have protected certain areas like Fallen Oaks all over the world. All I’m going to say for now is that the remaining pack has agreed to safeguard something important for us.”
“What about the press?” Ariana asked.
“Sheriff Boyd will keep the details of the battle at Phoenix Lake obscured from the media. He’ll address the rumors about the football team and tell people that the players’ antics were from abusing steroids. Case closed,” Evans said.
Everyone bobbed their heads, then stood and started milling about, talking about Evans’s announcement. Brittany bemoaned how she still didn’t have a date to the winter formal.
Mom gestured with a wave of her hand for me to sit beside her. The instant my butt touched the sofa, she grabbed my hand. “I found a way to cleanse you of the
Darkness
. But I need a drop of angelic blood, ironically, to help reverse the effects of the demon poison to create the potion.”
More good news today.
“Oh. Wow. Any idea where to acquire it?” I asked.
“Actually, I do. Have you seen that strange raven loitering in town?”
“Oh, yeah—”
“It’s Malphas, general of the Forsaken. He can assume the appearance of a raven. We capture the raven—we have our cure.”
“That birdman?” I was dumbfounded. “You make it sound so simple.”
“It’s not, but it’s the only way to save you.” My mom released my hand and smoothed her skirt. “I will try to reason with him…or I’ll use force. If I’m successful, then I’ll brew the potion and we can meet again in a few days.”
“Be careful,” I said and hugged her tight. I stared into her eyes. No use pretending I didn’t know that she knew that Trent was the cambion, which her coven had been discussing. “Would his blood save Trent, too?”
She shifted in her seat. “Sweetheart…about Trent. He’s unstable and I think it might be best if you two spent less time together.”
Was she seriously telling me to break up with Trent?
“I’ve spoken with Darrah and Maxwell and we all agree that he might need to go somewhere for a while until he can get a handle on his darker powers,” she said. “Maybe stay with the DarkSide Detectives. They have this place—”
“No.
You
can help him, too. Find a way to cleanse his blood,” I insisted.
She patted my hand. “All right. I look into helping him. But I can’t make any promises, Shiloh.”
“Can I have everyone’s attention, please?” Evans paced in front of the desk. “We have one last thing to discuss. Um, what should we do concerning Kayla?”
The library crackled with tension. Kayla shifted uncomfortably. I studied her, tilting my head and seriously studying her.
“Kayla should choose her own fate. You don’t get to choose
for
her,” I said.
Evans glanced my way, his eyes wary. “She wasn’t meant to return. The summoning ritual performed by an unknown necromancer inadvertently resurrected her.”
Another mystery for my crew to solve. But right now, I had other worries and another friend to save.
“Evans, we’ve talked about this,” I said quietly. “We’re a team now. All of us. Fighting on the same side and Kayla’s part of that team now. This should be her choice.”
After a long moment, Evans nodded and touched my shoulder. I gazed around the room at the other faces, then stared at Kayla. “What’d you say, Kayla?”
“I stay!” Kayla said and grinned, I think
.
Hard to tell.
I smiled, too. The room consisted of books and furniture, but more importantly, a dubious group of individuals: a former cheerleader turned zombie, a paranormal investigator, a courageous best friend, a badass teenage lycan, half-demon hero, and outspoken frenemy. And me: a rebellious teen witch. I’d started the school year with only one friend. Now I had three new ones.
Choked by tears, Ariana threw her arms around me and I hugged her back. Beyond the turmoil, true friendship was the one thing that still made sense to me. I had found a bandage to put over the wound that grief and vengeance had torn through my heart.
Brittany threw her arms around Kayla. Then Ariana hugged Daniel, and Trent embraced me, then Mom joined the group hug, followed by Evans who wrapped his arms around us, and the room—
the very air
—felt lighter, unpolluted, and more pliable than it had in a long time.
My peripheral vision caught a maelstrom of shadows with gleaming eyes. Crimson orbs, open and staring. From the shadows, little bodies writhed, rough skin formed. Slender, muscled limbs sprouted. Bakaz, Kasha, and Zrekam hugged my ankles.
Everything seemed almost normal. For the moment, we had a slice of normal again.
But the peaceful feeling was splintered. Through the windows, I spotted Raze and Malphas in the garden. From behind him, Raze’s black wings unfurled, spreading with an impressive majesty. A shiver of foreboding rippled over my skin and I hugged Trent tighter.
“Your destiny awaits, Thirteenth Daughter,” Raze said, his inhuman voice penetrating the glass between us.
My scar pulsed like a heartbeat. I’d won a few battles, but the fight against evil wasn’t over. Far from it. I still had to cleanse my blood. Find a way to help Trent maintain a grip on his humanity. And still protect the innocent.
Whatever lay ahead, I wouldn’t have to face it alone. Because I had real friends. And I had enough hope and courage left within me to soldier on without my dad. It wouldn’t be easy. I’d just lived through the most grueling ordeal of my life and survived. That had to count for something. I’d battled a pack of lycans and lived. Not many could claim that. My first real test as the town’s protector.
And, by the looks of those winged-guys outside, the biggest test was still to come. But I felt better knowing I had friends watching my back. Human and otherworldly.
Hunting Demons is One Thing…Dating Them is Another.
Life sucks for Shiloh Trudell. And being a demon hunter who’s in love with a cocky half-demon makes things even suckier.
Especially when she discovers that Trent, her sinfully hot boyfriend, is hiding a few dangerous secrets. Like the fact that he’s losing his humanity.
To complicate matters, witches from the local coven are mysteriously turning up dead, and as Shiloh searches for answers, she confronts her worst nightmare…Trent is being blackmailed into becoming the next leader of the Underworld.
But Shiloh is still convinced that she can save him, even after the impossibly gorgeous, fallen angel Raze tells her that a relationship with Trent is forbidden now. Warned to stay away from the only boy she’s ever loved, she can’t ignore the sizzling attraction that ignites whenever they’re around one another. Especially after a swoon-inducing night of stolen passion.
As Shiloh’s world begins to unravel around her, it soon becomes obvious that her destiny lies in one of two choices: vanquish Trent or join him in the Underworld.
DESTINY DISRUPTED
(book 5) ASIN: B00OJQHU5O
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