Chapter 26
The plane landed, and it was finally time to depart. Olivier took his duffel bag from under the seat and walked down the aisle. He needed to find Evangeline, and hopefully Genevieve.
Genevieve had vanished, and even though Ty was called to help Neil at the cabin, they left before Ty could reach them. He just knew that Genevieve had gone to Evangeline’s with that piece of shit werelynx.
He should have ensured Neil’s death on his own. Maybe then he wouldn’t be in this predicament.
Genevieve was no longer a witch. Either Evangeline or Neil changed her. It was the only thing that made sense.
For whatever reason, Zariha couldn’t feed on wereanimals. And if he had felt Genevieve he would have been able to drain her from a distance. Unless she had been changed.
This whole thing was a mess. Olivier didn’t want Genevieve to die, but that was where the blade would have come in handy. And maybe she could have gained the ability to Dreamwalk.
Maybe.
Of course, she would have to get over the fear of Dreamwalking he invoked in her early in life to increase the distance between Evangeline and her. Then Evangeline was changed to a werewolf, which had worked in his favor. That created a gulf so wide Genevieve would never fully trust Evangeline.
Except, apparently, Olivier had made a grave mistake.
Genevieve was on death’s door after the last trip into the cave. Out of desperation to keep her by his side, he convinced Evangeline to come out, believing she’d never acquire the blade, but he had to do something.
And now that Genevieve was no longer a witch with magic, her usefulness had come to an end. He wasn’t sure what to do with her, but Evangeline needed to pay for interfering with his plans.
He’d arranged for Genevieve to marry into a witch family with ties to his late wife’s bloodline. He’d finally found a possible solution to Genevieve’s health, but that was all for naught.
He made his way to the rental cars to pick up his sedan, then plugged in the address to Evangeline’s home.
God, he wanted to kill her for ruining everything. Even now, he felt his power draining, because Zariha took from him, the same way he’d been taking from Genevieve, even though he provided the bastard the perfect meal in Étrange port.
And the shadow hadn’t stopped there. He drained the girl and Vanna. Then took from him. Claimed he had been weakened by Merova’s departure.
Too bad he couldn’t have just left and taken the bulk of Olivier’s problems with him. Okay, sure, he was still going to have to deal with his daughters for their blatant disregard for his expectations.
If he had possession of the dagger, he could finally find Merova and take her magic, and get rid of Zariha.
* * * *
The breeze, the crisp morning air, the splash of the ocean reached her in this nether-dimension stuck between worlds where Zariha could never claim what he believed was his. No, the bastard wanted to make her a slave who would craft objects for him to use. Or strip her magic from her altogether.
There was no way she’d ever help him. She’d kill herself before surrendering to him, or allowing him to take her magic. She already lost the one man who claimed her heart and soul.
And now, she waited until someone came along to get rid of Zariha. His death would free her to find her place in a world. Earth, Faery, wherever. Somewhere she belonged. Right now, all she knew was sadness and a sliver of hope.
Evangeline offered a light at the end of a very long tunnel. Her love for her sister, for her man—or a werewolf as the case may be—was a beacon of light in her darkness.
Finally, someone who might have the strength of will to ignore the power she could gain and fight for what was right and what she loved.
And she was smart. She hated her father with a passion and hadn’t chosen to go into the cave for power. She had been tossed in. She had witnessed the whole exchange.
One of Merova’s gifts was being able to watch those of her bloodline whenever and wherever they were. Of course, she was limited to those she had been in the presence of and seeing how only one other person in the last hundred years had wandered into the cave, it was no wonder she felt so lonely.
However, Evangeline changed all that. Her heart was in the right place.
She only hoped Evangeline could find her and release her. Together, with her friends, they could get rid of Zariha once and for all.
Last time she checked on Evangeline, the woman was trying to figure out where the lighthouse could be. That might prove harder than not, considering it was off the coast of France in a place that was unknown to most humans, thanks to powerful spells that surrounded the land and the lighthouse.
Things change, and it was, of course, possible that they find something out there to give them a clue. Hopefully, the dreams would be enough. If not, she was at a loss of how to get them there.
Shaking her head, she made herself comfortable in the room directly below the light at the top of the tower. How many nights had she spent in his arms in this place?
Too many to count.
They had been perfect until he nearly killed Zariha. He had died while Zariha managed to recover.
She let out a breath and decided to give it another night before trying to guide Evangeline and Bran back to her. No need to interrupt their dreams. She caught part of their conversation, and she had teared up realizing they had both lost loved ones in the past. She needed to find a way to protect them if they were going to help her.
Zariha was dangerous, and she didn’t want him to ruin whatever they shared.
* * * *
Neil bought Genevieve a new wardrobe full of clothes that fit her properly. He bought two cars. Nothing fancy, but they were useful and comfortable. They each drove one home.
And now, she was at her sister’s home and realized that the place didn’t have much personality. Either Evangeline hadn’t gotten around to adding her own personal touches, or she wasn’t interested in all of that, and part of Genevieve got it, but not completely.
In fact, she was sad for the life Evangeline lived before Bran. Hopefully, that man would make everything right for her, and he had potential to do that. Watching Evangeline with Bran warmed Genevieve’s heart, gave her hope. The bond may be new, but they were obviously in love.
Neil sat down beside Genevieve. “Do you really want to live in this house?”
“Don’t you?” Genevieve asked.
He lifted a shoulder. “Doesn’t seem like Evangeline made it her own. We could. It’s a beautiful home, and I have the money.”
“She’s not worried about that.”
“No, I suppose not, but that doesn’t mean she should give it away for nothing.”
Genevieve nodded, then frowned. “Why me?”
“So many reasons, my love. I’ve been drawn to you since we were kids.”
“I was too afraid of our attraction.”
He lifted a shoulder. “You aren’t now, and that’s all that matters. I’ll do everything in my power to protect you and show you all the things you’ve been missing all your life.”
“I love you,” she whispered.
“As I love you.”