The alpha wasted no time leaving us. As soon as he was gone, I turned to Manual. He frowned at me, obviously guessing that there was something I wanted to say without Malone hearing.

  “You could’ve dressed him with the snap of your fingers.”

  Waving away his correct suspicions, I lowered my voice. “I don’t want Malone to put himself in danger. If you could gather a few of your best wolves and head to the city, I would really appreciate it. I’ll text you an exact address when we find Drake.”

  Nodding once, Manual went to turn away.

  “Wait,” I called him back. “That wasn’t an order. I meant to ask nicely, you know, not force you to do it.”

  It was his turn to dismiss me with a wave and a shake of his shaggy hair. “You didn’t, don’t worry.”

  Without another word, he rushed to the door and left. My breath came short as Malone came back wearing ripped light blue jeans and a tight white Tee. He had chosen the wrong colour for bloodshed. Not that I would tell him that, especially as I was hoping that there wouldn’t be any fighting today.

  We had to stick to the plan to interrupt the Solstice ritual and help Drake to channel the magic if it somehow went ahead.

  The dot of blood was moving down the street near the Pavilion, faster than I would’ve liked. He must have been in a taxi.

  “We need to go.”

  Malone was beside me in a second, taking my hand when I offered it. His frown was gone as I pictured Drake in my mind and the room around us distorted, changing into a busy Brighton street with cars beeping on our left and the green grounds of the Pavilion on our right.

  “Where’s Manual?” Malone asked as I searched the people who wandered up and down the walkway.

  My stomach churned as I looked for the light eyes and mousey hair, for the face I had been protecting my whole life. Why would he risk his life? Didn’t he know that I would never cope without him? Life had been bearable with him in my life, but without him… I wouldn’t survive.

  “He’s gathering your best wolves for tonight.”

  Scowling, Malone took my wrist, pinching slightly. “Good. That bitch is going to get it.”

  I licked my lips and lifted my head to sniff the air. There… an extremely faint waft of Calvin Klein mixed with Drake’s smell slipped up my nose.

  Using my instincts, I turned towards the seafront and dodged several humans, apologising when I tripped someone up. They shouted at me, swearing when they saw me sniff the air again. No, no, no, I’d lost Drake’s scent.

  “Here,” Malone pulled me towards the roundabout. “I can smell him.”

  Ah, yes, it hit me again, wafting between the people who crossed the road alongside us, heading towards the pier.

  The chatter, music, and car engines attacked my ears. I had to clench my hands to stop myself from snapping at the two pretty women who dawdled in front of us, remarking on the way other women dressed in jeans all the time.

  Fuck me, if I had such trivial things to worry about, my life would be a bloody fairy-tale. Who cared if women wore jeans? Their funky print dresses weren’t exactly winning designer awards. Okay, I needed to pass the women before I got even more offended.

  My jeans were form fitting and practical. They were-

  “Della?” Malone hissed in my ear. “Are you with me?”

  The raspy depths of his voice broke me out of my stupid inner dialogue. Who the fuck cared what anyone wore? There were more important things to worry about. Like saving my brother, who appeared on the other side of the road, his profile recognisable straight away.

  My whole being quaked as he shot down the steps leading to the aquarium. Why was he going to look at fish?

  Pulling Malone, I dragged him across the next road and bumped everyone out of the way as I jogged down the steps. I ignored the moans, protests and even abuse. I had to get my brother before it was too late.

  “Drake!”

  I couldn’t see him in the swarm of people who entered the aquarium, but his smell smacked into me, letting me know that I was on the right track. If we hurried, we could stop him from… watching sharks?

  Malone squeezed my hand, stopping me as the queue stalled our progress. I couldn’t see over the heads of those in front of me to determine whether Drake had already gone inside.

  Looking up at my man, I raised my eyebrows. “Well? You’re a giant, can you see him?”

  Grunting in true giant fashion, Malone shook his head. “Nope.”

  “Well, that was helpful, Sherlock.”

  Holding my arm in the air, I whispered an invisibility spell. I didn’t want to raise suspicion, especially if there were any witches around. Once the light cloak of magic brushed our skin, I bounded forward like a mother-fucking bowling ball. Everyone frowned and gasped as we barrelled past, knocking them out of the way. Just a few more and I’d have a strike.

  “Sorry,” Malone said behind me when he trod on a man’s foot.

  As we came out of the other side of the queue, I looked back, smiling at my man. His big heart would melt mine.

  “We were invisible…” I bit my lip to prevent myself from laughing as I released the spell. “… That man would’ve just heard your floating voice.”

  Pulling his brows low, Malone tutted. “Bloody witches.”

  “Hybrid-witch, remember?” I joked back, gasping when I turned to see Drake stride up to Ertha just as she emerged from the entrance to the next chamber of the aquarium.

  Neither one of us spoke as we surged forward, following the others. Fear grasped hold of me, giving me the adrenaline to propel through the archway and into the next room.

  “Drake!” I called, halting when they both turned to look in our direction.

  Ertha’s eyes widened, her teeth showing in a sneer. She whispered something to Drake, who shook his head at me before turning and hurrying down the tunnel with the elder.

  Grief and anger sent me into a heated rage. Malone knew my intention before I’d made it, running forward and taking me with him. We had to get Drake away from Ertha, even though he’d clearly set up the meeting with her.

  “I’m going to kill that bitch,” I muttered under my breath.

  Malone’s super hearing heard me and he chuckled. He wouldn’t stop me, although it probably wouldn’t be a great idea to end the leader of a whole coven. They already hated me and wanted my blood. If I took down their precious elder, they’d gather all resources, including witches from other covens and take us all down. Best to try and keep my temper.

  Who was I fucking kidding? I was going to make her hurt.

  Heat singed my arms as we came into the entrance of the tunnel. Above us was shit tons of water with fish swimming around, happily ignorant to the paranormal creatures beneath them.

  Ertha paused halfway down the tunnel. Spinning, she grabbed Drake, bringing a dagger out of her sleeve and pressing it against his neck.

  My feet skidded to a halt as ice sweat dripped down my spine. I had to swallow several times to stop myself from throwing up. I wasn’t cut out for the action adventurer stuff. I liked love potions and chocolate before curling up to read a book.

  “Stay back, Della,” Ertha said, her voice shrill.

  Looking up, I licked my lips. I was a little afraid of water and fish. Water because drowning was my worst fear. Who would want to die that way? And fish because… they smelt so bad.

  “Ertha,” Malone said, “you need to let Drake go.”

  My brother’s face was pale, the skin almost translucent against Ertha’s dark-skinned hand where it rested under his chin. The fear in his eyes radiated into mine as I stared at him, shaking my head ever so slightly. My brother wasn’t usually the hero, but he would try hard to fix everything. What he didn’t understand was that he was a pawn in Ertha’s plan and it was too late to change it.

  “I will kill him if you come any closer.” Her threat was enhanced by the shuffle of her feet and the tightening of her arm.

  Drake wouldn’t fight her. Like most people with mental health issues, he believed that he deserved her wrath. But it wasn’t true. He was a victim.

  Biting my lip, I folded my fingers into my palm, pressing my nails into the skin. It was a habit I’d picked up when I was frustrated and unable to help Drake as a child. It helped soothe me so I could think clearly.

  “This is over,” Ertha called. “I will have my ritual and you’ll all be gone and leave us in peace.”

  “In peace?” Malone barked. “You’re the one who’s created this divide. For centuries, we’ve lived side by side, not needing to fight over our lands. Why has that changed?”

  Snarling, Ertha looked up at a shark as it swum overhead. “Your father antagonised me for years, even killing my own daughter.”

  My gasp echoed as Malone frowned. I’d known that Ertha’s daughter had died ten years ago, but we were told it was a car accident. Why had she kept the true cause of her death from the coven?

  “How was my father involved?” Malone’s throat bobbed as he swallowed.

  A tear dribbled from Ertha’s eye, flinging from her cheek when she shook her head. “He was chasing her in his car, all because she accidentally strayed onto his land when gathering herbs and plants. She was a herbologist. She never hurt a soul in her life and he ran her off the road on purpose.”

  “How do you know it was him?” The alpha was searching for any way to excuse his father. I understood, the man sounded like a brut, but he was still Malone’s dad.

  “I was in the car with her…” Ertha’s throat closed. “… I cradled her as she died and your father just laughed as he drove past in the car that had been chasing us.”

  My chest squeezed as a shaky breath released from the alpha. The truth bent his spine, giving the impression of a defeated man. He couldn’t argue with Ertha on behalf of his father. He just had to right his wrongs.

  “Malone isn’t Tom,” I said softly. “Drake isn’t Tom. Not all men are the same. We can overcome the past and move on with a fresh pact.”

  A hiss came from Ertha as she threw up her hand and shouted in Latin. As easy as it was for me to use magic now, I still didn’t know many of the traditional spells.

  The cracking of glass resounded overhead. My heart thrust into my throat as Ertha spun with Drake and pushed him out of the tunnel in the other direction. The crack started to grow bigger above our heads, quickly spreading in all directions.

  The sound of voices approached us from behind. Shit, there were people who could be killed by the water.

  Both Malone and I turned at the same time and ran fast in the opposite direction.

  “Run!” we screamed, waving when we exited the tunnel.

  A crash of glass was followed by a strange whoosh sound that puffed my hair in front of me as we all thrust into the room ahead of us.

  Malone grabbed my arm, trying to get me in front of him. The other people screamed at the realisation of what was happening. There was no way we were getting out with no injuries or worse…

  Ripping out of Malone’s grip as the sound of rushing water blasted behind us, I spun, holding my arm out and shouting a reversal spell. The mammoth funnel of water that had been emerging from the tunnel froze. The strength of it was heavy, pushing against my spell.

  Malone’s hand slipped onto my shoulder, his fingers pressing into me to give me strength. I recited the spell, over and over, forcing my magic to change the molecules of the water and pushing it back the way it had come.

  “You can do it!” Malone’s deep voice slipped through the noise of the screaming and into my ear.

  Lifting my other arm, I shouted the spell, smiling when the funnel spun backwards and sucked into the roof of the tunnel. As the glass floated up from the ground, it locked the water back into the tank and sealed together, looking brand new.

  “Come on!” Malone charged forward, dragging me with him.

  I found my feet and went with him, not daring to look up at the sharks above. Had the fish survived the magic? I didn’t want to know, I had to find Drake and stop Ertha.

  Sniffing the air as we came into the next dark chamber, I followed Drake’s scent to a door marked Staff Only. Of course, Ertha would want to get out of the public eye and save herself in the process. The water was no longer a threat, but I was.

  “They’ve gone through there,” I told Malone, who was already extending his leg to kick the door in.

  His boot bashed the lock off and the wood burst open, rebounding off the wall. Yep, Drake’s scent was stronger as we dove inside and came to a stop.

  “Err…”

  Rows of fish tanks made up aisles in the warehouse ahead of us. They were piled, one on top of the other, forming walls that divided the room. Fish of all shapes and sizes swum around, distorting the water and making it hard to look through to the other side.

  Ertha was in here somewhere. Would she use magic to disguise herself? Luckily, our wolf instincts would lead us to Drake no matter how hard she tried to hide him.

  Half tempted to magic the fish tanks away, I trod around the first one, checking to see whether Ertha or Drake were down the first aisle. It was empty, stretching away before halting at the wall on the other side.

  “They’re in here somewhere,” Malone whispered, his nose lifting into the air.

  I copied him, smelling the air and skipping two of the aisles. There, the scent grew stronger down one of them. We moved slowly, trying to see through the water to spot anyone on the other side. A quick movement of dark material made me catch my breath.

  We both broke into a run, spinning around the end of the passageway and into the next one along. Ertha’s black hair and floaty dress disappeared around the end. Drake wasn’t with her.

  “Please,” I called, “don’t do this.”

  Where was Drake? And why was the witch playing games with me? I just wanted to live a peaceful fucking life in my fucked up new world. Was that too much to ask?

  Malone was gone, his instincts kicking in as he gave chase. I paused, re-smelling the air and listening to the space on the other side of the room, where Ertha had just come from. A tiny puff of air made me lift my head. Someone was breathing. Drake?

  Ducking around several tanks, I followed and focused on the sound that had reached my ears. My nose sniffed, able to scent my brother.

  Just as I rounded the last corner, a crash blasted the tank beside me and I threw myself to the ground, covering my head as water and glass scattered all over my body. The sharp bite of glass as it shot into my skin was washed away by the cool water that followed it.

  “Della!” Drake’s shout forced me to my knees.

  He was tied to a metal beam, his arms stretched behind him. My heart pounded in my head as I surged forward, ready to save him.

  Fingers grabbed my hair, yanking me backwards. Ertha chuckled as I fell to the ground, bashing my head on one of the intact tanks. I gritted my teeth and thrust back up, diving for the elder, who held up her hands and pushed a gust of wind towards me.

  I flew back, crashing into Malone who was getting up from under the debris of glass and metal. Oh, so it was the alpha who had caused the destruction. Ertha must have thrown him also.

  “I admire your determination.” Ertha walked backwards, towards Drake. “I can see you won’t let me go without a fight.”

  Fury fired my insides, burning my stomach and making it churn. If she wasn’t careful, I was going to breathe fire all over her. Would my magic give me such power? Maybe I should’ve given it a go.

  About to open my mouth to try the spell, I froze, the fire inside me turning to ice. Ertha had drawn out a dagger, extending it towards Drake.

  Maybe she would kill him in order to end the threat to her life. She might think that if she was to murder my brother, we would be so distracted, we would let her escape.

  “Don’t do this to your own witches,” I said, frowning. “Just let us go.”

  “I can’t.” Her sob echoed around us.

  Inhaling loudly, she turned her head away to look at Drake. The next sob that erupted from her throat was strangled as Malone launched onto her in his wolf form. Snapping and snarling, he sank his teeth into her shoulder.

  Throwing her arms to the side, Ertha screamed so loudly, the force of it threw Malone off her and into another set of tanks. The water and glass crashed loudly, scattering to the ground as the alpha landed in a slumped heap.

  My legs wobbly, I stepped forward, ready to unleash all the pent up fear, anger and frustration on the one woman who was supposed to have looked out for us.

  “You… didn’t deserve your daughter,” I said, rasping in a breath as she paused, her eyebrows pulled low over her watery eyes. “She would’ve been ashamed of you.” Flicking out my arm, I extended my fingers.

  Before my restraining spell reached her, she flung her dagger behind her, aiming it straight at Drake.

  Slow motion kicked in, the world around me spinning at the same time as the blade as it headed towards my brother, whose eyes widened.

  I aimed my arm at the blade, knocking it off course with a flick of my hand. The grunt of something made me swallow, but I had no time to think about it.

  “Run, Drake!” I shouted, diving at Ertha as she turned towards me.

  The ropes on my brother’s arms released, dropping to the ground. I collided with Ertha’s legs, wrenching her down. She kicked my face and jumped out of my grasp, heading away from me. Something inside me pulled, a sadness and pain throbbing in my chest. What the…? Malone.

  “Della!” Drake didn’t need to tell me, I knew.

  Opening my mouth, I screamed as loudly as I could, stretching my fingers towards a nearby metal pole that had come off one of the tanks. It lifted in the air as my face screwed up.

  Swinging around and flinging my arm, I sent the weapon straight towards Ertha, who had reached the end of the aisle.

  The pole flew forward, the sound of its whoosh making the leader of the coven turn back to see what was happening. The sharp end plummeted through her chest and into the wall, pinning her against the brick.

  Tears dripped down my cheeks as the witch looked at me, scowling despite the blood spreading on her dress and the life leaving her eyes. No one hurt my brother, ever. And no one killed my alpha, either.

 

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