“He looks like he’s going to take a bite out of anyone who makes the slightest move,” Stella whispered to all the girls that were sitting huddled together.

“Adam is keeping a close eye on him,” Kara added.

“How are you two holding up?” Heather asked.

Stella rubbed the ache in her chest. It was getting worse. “I’ll be honest, at the moment, the whole mate-bond thing is kinda sucking.”

Kara nodded. “I have to agree. Although I don’t think the ache I feel is as intense right now.” She looked over at Crina. “Do you know why that is?”

Crina nodded. “Gypsy healers don’t usually know who their mates are going to be until they turn eighteen. There might be attraction, but there’s no pull and none of the mating signs. It’s surprising that you feel the pain of being separated from him already. Granted, it’s weird that any of you are feeling it considering you haven’t even met the males. Perhaps it’s because magic is stronger here than in the human realm.”

“Things have been changing a lot,” Crina said. “The meeting of Fane and Jacque was a miracle that seems to have set many things in motion. Since then, many wolves have found their true mates, more than at any other time in history that I know of. And two new children have been added to the Canis lupus numbers, a very rare occurrence. Something is clearly happening to our magic. Maybe it is evolving with us.”

“And to think, not too long ago, my biggest problem was dealing with a particularly strong-willed dog,” Heather said and then laughed. “Perhaps that isn’t really going to be any different from this new life.”

The others joined her laughter. “Remind me to keep her and Jen apart,” Crina said to the group.

“On a serious note,” Kara said, “I know I’m beating a dead horse, and I feel like a kid asking, ‘Are we there yet?,’ but if I ask enough, the answer will have to change eventually. So, are we ever going to get out of here? It’s not that I have anything against pixies. I’m totally pro-pixie.”

Heather laughed. “They have been quite hospitable. I’m saying that like I’ve been able to see the accommodations they’ve provided,” she added dryly.

“I wish I had an answer for you,” Crina said. “Peri will never stop trying to get us out, of that I can assure you. Not to mention your mates. They will continue, even it takes years.”

Kara frowned. “Let’s go with, ‘It’s not going to years for one hundred, Alec.’”

“You watch that show?” Stella asked.

She shrugged. “Some of the foster homes I stayed in had caretakers who were less than enthusiastic about doing a ton of work. They watched the game show channel twenty-four, seven. Quiz shows were a favorite. And they usually had the TV turned up really loud, so it was hard not to listen.”

“Silver lining,” Stella said with a smile, “you probably learned quite a bit from that show.”

Kara nodded. “Tons of useless trivia. If I had Jewel’s memory, I’d totally kick butt on quiz night.”

At the mention of Jewel’s name, everyone grew silent. They had no idea what was going on outside of the pixie realm. They had no idea if their friends were safe, or if Volcan had somehow taken over the world. Stella imagined him taking over the broadcasting stations in New York, because that’s where bad guys always take over them in the movies, and having his face plastered across the huge screen in Times Square. It was ridiculous, but it was either laugh at ridiculous scenarios or worry herself sick over all the other horrific scenarios her mind could come up with.

Heather rubbed her hands together like an eager child and finally broke the heavy silence.

“So, who wants to play I Spy?”

Stella rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Said no blind girl ever.”

* * *

“I didn’t think we were that unbearable to be around.” Z said as he stood in Jewel and Anna’s empty motel room. The warlocks had been dozing next door when they were both awakened by a sudden surge of dark magic. They hurried to the girls’ room, but no amount of banging on the door or calling their names received an answer. So Z had used his own brand of magic; his shoulder shoved into the door hard enough that the lock gave way.

“They didn’t leave on their own,” Sly said. “They were taken. You felt that magic, and you know as well as I do who it belonged to.”

Z nodded. “I was just hoping it was something else. I wish they were here to yell at us for waking them up.”

“The question is, why did he take them and ignore us?” Sly asked.

“He has us between a rock and hard place, Sly. He doesn’t need to take us back to his lair. He can trace us anywhere, and he knows we aren’t going to run or do anything to tick him off.”

“We could go to the King and Queen,” Sly suggested.

Z’s face hardened. “Don’t even think it. He would torture her if he even suspected that we sought out the help of King Cypher and Queen Lilly. Besides, this is our mess. They’re dealing with their own issues.”

He saw the tortured look in Sly’s eyes. They were getting desperate. No one but the two warlocks knew that Volcan was holding Z’s sister captive, and the fae had promised her a slow painful death if the two warlocks didn’t aid the healers in their quest to produce the witches. Sly would have helped his friend Z for that reason alone, but something necessitated his cooperation—the girl was Sly’s mate.

“So, what do we do now?” Z asked.

Sly rubbed the back of his neck and sat down on the edge of one of the beds with a heavy sigh. He dropped his backpack next to him. He didn’t want to let the thing out of his sight for an instant, considering it held the stolen book inside. “Honestly, Z, I don’t have a damn clue.”

“You thought I forgot you?”

Volcan’s sudden arrival caused Sly to move so fast he fell off the bed before he could make it to his feet. Z clenched his teeth together as he stared at the fae. Even if the man hadn’t kidnapped his sister in order to compel their aid, he would still want to kill him. Problem was, he wasn’t powerful enough to do so on his own, and he wasn’t even sure who was.

Volcan’s eyes danced with maniacal delight as he looked from Sly to Z and back again. “It was your job to make sure they did what they were supposed to, and what do I find? You sleeping, doing nothing.”

“We have to rest sometime. We aren’t machines,” Z snarled.

“You want rest? I’ll give you plenty of rest.” He grabbed their arms, and they were flashed from the motel.

The reappeared in a room surrounded by stone walls. They were back inside his castle in the draheim realm.

“You shall have plenty of rest in here, at least until I decide you need a different kind of incentive to do what you’re told,” Volcan said just before he disappeared, leaving them in a room with no door and only a couple tiny windows at the top of the twelve-foot walls.

“This is not good,” Sly said.

“Glad we got that cleared up.” Z growled as he took a seat on the cold floor and leaned back against the wall. He might as well attempt to get comfortable. There was no telling how long Volcan would leave them to rot.

* * *

Jewel blinked several times, convinced she was hallucinating. There was simply no way her mother was trapped in an iron cage in Volcan’s office. He couldn’t have found her and captured her, right?

“Mom?” the healer said as she looked at the face trapped behind the bars, a face she knew as well as her own.

“Jewel,” the woman responded. The look of sorrow and brokenness in Gem’s eyes caused Jewel to rush forward, throwing herself against the bars. They embraced as best they could, Jewel forcing her face against the cold steel in an effort to reach her mother’s warmth. Then the older woman pushed her daughter back and gazed at her. “Whatever happens, just do what he says.”

“What?” Jewel frowned. “What do you mean?”

“You know what he has planned. As bad as you hate it, you must give in to his demands for the moment. But trust that his plans will be thwarted if you can stay strong.”

The young gypsy’s eyes widened as she realized the implications of her mother’s statement. Of course, she thought, once her brain recovered from the shock of seeing her mother as a prisoner. Volcan was going to use her mom as leverage. The bastard was going to torture her mom in order to ‘motivate,’ as he’d put it, the healer to do what he wanted. He didn’t get it. She’d been trying. Her failure wasn’t because of any lack of effort. She just didn’t know how to make it work. Her mom was going to suffer. But no amount of suffering would give Jewel the knowledge she needed. The girl wanted to scream in frustration. She wanted to stomp her foot like a three-year-old and throw things against the wall, but neither of those actions would likely help her in that moment.

“How did he find you? Didn’t you know he was coming?”

Her mom nodded. “I knew, but I also knew the outcome if I didn’t go with him. It was an outcome that I couldn’t allow. So I chose the lesser of the two evils. That’s what a parent does, my precious Jewel. We sacrifice, even though it’s going to hurt. In the long run, it will cause you less suffering, but you will suffer for a time. You can’t see the whole puzzle, and though you may be angry with me at first, in time you will see what I am choosing is for the best.”

Jewel shook her head. “I don’t like what you’re saying, Mom. What sacrifice? What are you going to do?”

The look on her face was full of the love that only a parent could give. “I’m going to do what’s best for you. That’s my job, to always do what’s best for you. No exception, without fail, if it’s in my power. You have and will always come first. Never forget that.”

“A reunion, how sweet,” Volcan said as he appeared beside the cage.

“YOU!” Jewel screamed. She saw Anna jump in surprise. She had surprised herself. Jewel hadn’t known herself capable of such hatred. “YOU FILTHY, ABOMINABLE, ODIOUS, REPUGNANT, MALEVOLENT, DAMNABLE, PIECE OF TRASH.”

“You’ve quite the vocabulary,” Volcan said, seemingly unaffected by her outburst, which only angered her more. “If you put as much effort into your task as you do your tirade of words, you might actually make some progress. But since that has not been the case, then there are consequences.”

“Bringing my mother into this is not going to accomplish what you hope,” she said through gritted teeth. Her breathing had quickened from her angry outburst, and she couldn’t get her emotions under control.

“I think bringing your mother into this is going to be exactly what you need.”

Jewel wished she had some sort of weapon, a bat maybe, so she could just pummel the twisted man before her. He shouldn’t be allowed to draw breath. Someone like him should not be permitted to take up space on the overcrowded earth, no matter what realm he occupied.

Volcan threw his hand out, and the door to her mother’s cage opened. “Step out, Gem,” he said.

Jewel hated her mother’s name on the fae’s lips, as if he had a right to address her. Her mom was the complete opposite of the vile fae. She was kind and good. She was selfless and humble, and she didn’t deserve whatever was about to happen.

“Please don’t do this,” Jewel pleaded. Begging was not beneath her, not when it came to her mom.

“Me?” Volcan pointed to himself. “Oh no, my dear. I am not going to do this. You”—his finger turned and pointed at her—“are going to do this. Had you done what I commanded, then you would not be in this position. This is all on you, Jewel.”

She was confused. What did he mean? Jewel didn’t have to wonder long.

“Apparently Anna wasn’t enough practice for you, so your mom will be the next witch added to my army. You will turn her, or you will watch her die a most painful and hideous death. Your choice. Do not fail me this time, Jewel Stone.”

Jewel heard Anna gasp behind her.

The breath was sucked from her lungs as she realized what she had to do. Could she really turn her mother into a witch, an evil being meant to follow all of Volcan’s commands? Even if she could, the only reason she and Anna hadn’t been consumed by his dark power was because of their countervailing gypsy-healer magic. Her mom wasn’t a healer. She wouldn’t have the same defense against Volcan’s evil. She felt tears filling her eyes and had to blink to see her mom clearly. She was standing a few feet from the hideous cage that had been her prison, its door resting open. How long had her mother been there, she wondered.

“You can do this, Jewel,” her mom said gently.

Jewel was already shaking her head. She didn’t want to do this. She didn’t want the evil to touch her mom. “No,” she said, though it came out in a hoarse whisper as she fought the urge to fall to the floor and weep. How had things continually gone from bad to worse to downright unimaginable? Why was this happening? Why did it have to be her?

“I will not wait all day, Jewel,” Volcan told her, sounding bored, as if he was merely asking her to pass him a section of the newspaper.

Jewel didn’t know how she got her feet to move, and she didn’t hear Anna moving behind her, but suddenly the other healer was standing beside her, in front of Gem. Jewel’s eyes met Anna’s, and Jewel felt the compassion coming from them. They seemed to say, ”I’m with you. I won’t leave. You don’t have to endure this alone.” For that, Jewel would be eternally grateful.

Her mom reached out and took her hand and then took Anna’s with the other. Anna wrapped her other hand around Jewel’s free hand, and the circle was made.

In her mind, Jewel was chanting over and over, I don’t want to do this. I don’t want to do this. Please make this stop. The words were a tidal wave rising up from her soul and crashing into her mind. She locked her knees to keep from falling to them. Her mother’s gaze never left Jewel’s face.

“It’s going to be okay,” she told her daughter.

It was a lie. Nothing would ever be okay again, not after this. It was impossible to stop the tears once she started speaking the words for the spell. Anna joined her, and she began to feel the dark magic rise to the surface. She felt their hands heat as the magic began to flow into her mom.

But then something happened, something that hadn’t happened when they’d attempted the spell on the others. Her mother’s voice and memories filled Jewel’s mind.

She saw her through her mom’s eyes, and it was so incredibly humbling to see how her mother viewed her daughter. To Gem, Jewel was the most beautiful thing to grace the face of the earth. She marveled in Jewel’s success and wept with her over painful failures. She hurt deeply about Jewel’s isolated high school years, understanding that people avoided her because of Gem’s life. People didn’t understand that Gem was the real deal. She was a prophet. And Jewel felt awful for the times she blamed her mom for her loneliness.

“Do not feel bad, lovely Jewel,” her mom said into her mind. “You had a tough lot in life because of me, and for that, I am deeply sorry.”

“You don’t have to be sorry, Mom,” Jewel assured her. “I didn’t understand then, but I do now, and I should be the one apologizing.”

“It doesn’t matter now. We have important matters to discuss and must do so quickly.”

Jewel didn’t understand what was going on. Was this happening because of their blood relation?

“You need to go see Anna’s mother. Go back to her store and talk to her. She will have the information that you need in order to do what Volcan requires. I don’t know the details. I wasn’t allowed to see that in my vision. But I know she can help you. Perizada of the fae will be coming to you very soon, and she knows a powerful male named Thadrick. You must speak with him if you want to gain the power to use Volcan’s army against him. Stay with Anna’s mother until Peri finds you. Use the information she gives you to create the witches, even though you hate to do such a thing. It must happen this way. You cannot veer from this path or all will be lost.”

“What do you mean, all will be lost?”

“Volcan will be too powerful if you are unable to turn the witches against him. Destroying him would cost hundreds of thousands of lives.”

“So this Thadrick will be able to help you as well?” Jewel asked as hope grew in her heart.

“No, love, my time on this earth is over. If I allow you to change me, I will be under Volcan’s control, and he will have access to my visions. He cannot be allowed to have access to the future. Such a thing would make him too powerful to defeat, even with Thadrick’s help. This is goodbye, my dear. But do not despair. I didn’t think I would even get a goodbye with you, so I am so very thankful to Volcan, if only for this small amount of time with you. Do not forget what I’ve told you to do. And Jewel, I could not have imagined a more incredible daughter with which to be blessed. You have been the joy in my life that I could never have predicted. And the woman you are growing into is nothing short of incredible. Don’t give up, not on Dalton, not on the other people who love you and will fight beside you, and, most importantly, not on yourself. I love you, Jewel Stone, and one day you will have a child and understand just how inadequate any words are to describe what you feel for your child.”

“Mom, please don’t leave me.” It was cruel of her to ask such a thing, but how could she not? How could she just let her mother go? How could she move on from such a loss? “I’m not ready.”

“None of us are truly ready for the next step in our lives, no matter what it is. All that matters is that we face it and move forward, knowing that change is necessary. Change means growth, whether it is through failure or triumph. Never be accepting of stagnancy. Always move forward, growing and changing for the better. I’ve no doubt that you will triumph. One last thing, then I must go. You’ve recently found a very important book. Keep it safe and hidden, especially from Volcan.

“Fight Jewel. Fight for all those who cannot fight for themselves.”

Jewel felt her mother’s hand go slack in her own, and Jewel’s eyes flashed open. There was a burst of light, and then all was calm. Her mom lay still at her feet. Her face was peaceful, as though she’d simply slipped away in her sleep.

Jewel fell to her knees and wrapped her arms around her mother’s lifeless form. Her heart shattered in her chest, and the pain felt as though it would destroy her. “No, please not this, not this.” She wept, unable to contain her grief. “I love you, Mom. I love you so much.” Her mother had said there were no words adequate to tell your children how you felt about them. Did she realize that Jewel felt the same way? There were no words that could ever express the love and gratefulness that she felt for Gem Stone being her mom. How did you thank the person who has stood beside you through everything you’d ever faced? How did you thank the person who cared for you when you were sick, fed you when you were hungry, cheered you on as you stumbled through this journey we call life? How did she ever say thank you for the unconditional love her mom had given her? She couldn’t.

“What have you done?” Volcan asked from behind her.

She didn’t answer him.

His hand was suddenly wrapped around her arm, and he jerked her away from her Gem’s body. She would have scrambled back to get to her mother, but Volcan’s grip was like iron. Anna hadn’t moved. She stood in the middle of the room, as still as a statue. Her face was ashen, and her mouth slightly agape.

“You killed her,” said Volcan.

Jewel had to think fast, even though her mind was still reeling over her mother’s words and death. “I told you that you wouldn’t get the outcome you wanted,” Jewel said to him. “If you would have listened to me, we could have been working on finding a solution instead of this.” She made a motion toward her mother. “This is what has happened every time we’ve attempted to use your magic to change a woman. We don’t know why they aren’t surviving.”

“You must be doing something wrong,” he argued.

“Well, we certainly aren’t doing something right,” she spat back. She should probably remain calm and try not to provoke him, considering he was already quite worked up, but Jewel couldn’t bring herself to care.

He released her, but before she could get back to her mom’s side, Gem’s body disappeared. Jewel whipped around and glared at him. “What have you done with her?” Anger was pulsing through her body, and her blood felt hot in her veins.

“When you start doing what I command, you may have her back to give her a proper burial. But if you do not, then you will never see her body again. I’ll leave it to rot as an example of how I treat those who fail me.” He paused for a moment. “I have high hopes for you, Jewel.” The fae walked toward her, his eyes drinking her in, and the appreciation she saw in them made her sick. “I have plans for us. You will succeed, and when my army is ready, you will take your place at my side as my mate.”

She started to tell him just where his plans could go, but Anna’s hand on her arm stopped her. Instead, she ignored his words and tried to appeal to the side of him that understood the power of knowledge. “In order for me to accomplish this task, I need more information. Perhaps we cannot properly control your magic working through us. There’s something we are missing.”

He began to pace, his hand stroking his chin. His lips moved as though he was talking, but no sound came out.

“Do you remember anything about how you made them before?” she asked. “You know, however long ago that was.”

He shot her an irritated look. “Of course. Why do you think I gave you my blood and the spell I used? It worked just fine, then. Once the woman was changed, she had to make a blood sacrifice in order to claim the magic and finish the spell.”

“Blood sacrifice?” Jewel frowned.

He rolled his eyes as if he was talking to an exasperating child. “Kill someone and offer their essence to me. In this, they prove their loyalty.”

He went back to pacing and thinking. Jewel’s mind was working as well. He had been successful before, so what was different this time? Then it hit her, and she had a complete ‘duh’ moment. Before she blurted out her revelation, something inside of her screamed at her to keep her mouth shut. The difference was, of course, they were gypsy healers. Volcan’s previous witches were regular women, created by a direct magic transfer from fae to human Now they were mixing two types of magic—Volcan’s darkness with their healer purity, and trying to use that on a regular human woman. There was no way that didn’t change things. She was sure it complicated the spell in some way.

It felt like forever before Volcan finally stopped pacing and addressed them once again. “I’m not—” He stopped in mid-sentence and then let out a string of curses. “It appears an urgent matter requires my attention. I won’t be gone long. When I return, you will resume your task, giving it your complete and utter devotion. First search for information you need, and then, once you’ve found it, begin turning the women. Until then … you will have a visible reminder of whom you serve. If your loyalty begins to waver, simply look in the mirror.

Volcan stepped forward and took one of their arms in each of his hands and flashed them from the room. They reappeared in what could only be described as a dungeon. It seemed a little cliché with its dark gray walls, dripping water, and foul smell but, then, if it was any different, it wouldn’t exactly be a dungeon.

“My lord.” A short man with a bald head and sharp yellow teeth stepped out of the darkness.

“Is that a vampire?” Anna whispered right next to her ear.

“It’s definitely not a friendly leprechaun,” Jewel answered softly.

Volcan held out his hand to the short man and a knife appeared there. The blade glowed and Jewel could feel power emanating from it.

“They need to be branded,” he told the vampire.

“Back of the neck?” The vampire asked.

Volcan shook his head as he looked at Jewel and Anna. “Abdomen. The most vulnerable place on a wolf. It will be a nice message to the dogs when the time comes. The blade is enchanted. You will find that it will take many, many cuts for the mark to be thoroughly embedded in their flesh. It is a fae blade, which means no magic can alter it or remove it.”

“As you wish.”

Volcan pointed to two stone slabs. “Lay down on those,” he instructed.

Neither Jewel nor Anna moved, both unwilling to simply crawl onto a table in order to be branded like cattle.

“NOW,” Volcan roared.

Jewel’s body moved against her wishes, as his blood in her veins reacted to its master’s command. Anna made the same jerky movements and they both climbed up onto the slabs and lay down on their backs. Their arms were stretched out so their bodies formed a T shape. There were no straps holding them in place, but no matter how hard Jewel tried, she couldn’t raise her head, her arms, her legs, or any other part of her body. It was as if she was completely fused to the stone.

“Behave,” he told them before disappearing.

The vampire walked over to Jewel and pushed her shirt up, exposing her stomach. He did the same to Anna, and then he picked up the glowing blade. Jewel tried to prepare herself for the pain, but nothing could have. When the blade made contact with her skin and began to move, a scream welled up from deep inside of her and rose until it rushed out of her lungs like a hurricane hurling itself at the shore. The force was painful, and she would be surprised if her vocal chords came out of this experience unscathed. Tears fell down the sides of her face as the pain seared her flesh and ate at her sanity. So much loss happening in such a short amount of time. She’d just lost her mother, and now she was losing a piece of her dignity. She might ask what more could Volcan possibly take, but that would be foolish. There was plenty he could still rip away from her. Even in her anguish in that moment, she knew she had not hit rock bottom because she still had people she loved out in the world. People she would die to protect and, as long as they existed, Volcan would hold her in the palm of his hand. If there was someone for him to torture, destroy, or take from her, Jewel would do whatever he asked of her. The only way he couldn’t benefit from her was if she joined her mother and said goodbye to her life on earth. The thought was fleeting at first, but then it began to take root as she considered how much grief she could prevent if Volcan didn’t have her in his power. How many people could she save if he couldn’t use her as a tool in his sick plan?

Her thoughts were distracted as she began to hear Anna’s screams. Hearing her friend in so much pain was actually worse than the pain being inflicted on her own body. She closed her eyes and felt more tears run down the sides of her face. Her mom had told her not to give up. How could she hold on when there was so much pain? How did she keep hope alive when it made more sense for her to just die?

“You will not break me.”

Jewel heard Anna growl through the pain.

“You will not break me, and you will not win,” the other healer said. “You can come at me over and over again, but I will rise back up every time you knock me down. I have too much to live for. I have friends who I care about and care about me. I have a mate I really want to get a chance to know. I have a mom who I need to know better. I have a future that I didn’t know existed, and you will not take it from me.”

Her words reminded Jewel of another time when she’d lain on a slab and endured torture. She told herself to endure just five minutes longer. She told herself that the only difference between a hero and an ordinary person was that a hero fought the battle for five minutes longer. Anna was right. They did have too much to live for. They couldn’t just lay down and die. They couldn’t expect someone else to step up and fight Volcan.

“He won’t break us,” Jewel said out loud, joining in Anna’s declaration and letting her sister know she would stand with her. “He will not defeat us. He will not because we won’t allow it.”

“Damn straight!” Anna screamed from determination and pain.

Jewel echoed her sentiment, “Damn straight!”