EXCERPT FROM SNOW MAGIC
©2017 Bianca D’Arc. All Rights Reserved.
Sir Rayburne wasn’t really sure what was going on, but something—a very strong something—had pulled him into the mortal realm. Unfortunately, it had also dragged the unholy creature that had acted as his jailor along.
Ray didn’t want to stick around to find out if the mages that had freed him were good or evil. If they were good, they might possibly be able to handle the flame creature themselves. If they were evil, he hoped it ate them.
If he hadn’t spotted the one familiar face he most wanted to see, he would have spent more time getting the lay of the land, but as it was, he had to protect his mate, first and foremost. He made straight for Evie—his beloved Evie—and swept her into his arms.
He wanted to weep with joy, but there was no time. He had just enough magic left to get her to safety. Little Evie had no protection against the sort of evil the flame creature could produce. Better to let the mages fight it out with the beast while Ray protected the one woman for whom he would happily give his life.
He ran straight to her and scooped her into his arms, expending the last dregs of his magic to transport them both to the place he’d been dreaming of for so long. A blinding flash of light and then they were there. He could feel the bite of the cold North Dakota winter night. It had been summer in the fey realm and he wasn’t dressed for snow, but it didn’t matter. He had his mate in his arms for the first time in way too long and now, they were home.
Evie blinked a few times after the second flash of light. Ray still held her tight, but they weren’t in the warmth of the magical circle anymore. He’d done something. Taken them somewhere. She took a quick glance around and had her answer. They were hundreds of miles away from where they had just been.
Evie clouted him on the shoulder. “Ray! What did you do? Why are we here?” She didn’t give him a chance to answer her questions but rushed ahead, in a state of near-panic. “We need to go back and help Joshua!”
“Who’s Joshua?” Ray asked, puzzled.
That stopped her cold. She looked up into his beloved face, meeting those eyes she’d thought she would never see again and her heart just melted. He’d missed so much. He didn’t even know he’d had a son.
“Ray, you’ve been gone a long time,” she began, having some recollection that time passed differently in the fey realm than here.
“How long?” He traced the lines she knew had formed on her face in the time since he’d left.
Lines of worry, though she didn’t age as humans did. She suspected she didn’t even age like shifters did. Not since joining her life to Ray’s. She didn’t seem to get older anymore, though her experiences had aged her in ways that were visible sometimes.
“It’s been more than twenty years,” she told him in a gentle voice. “That man back there. That was your son. I named him Joshua. And the woman with him was his mate, Deena. They’re newlyweds, and they’re the ones who were tasked with freeing you and pulling you back into the mortal realm.” Ray looked stunned. As well he should. Evie reached up and took his cheeks between her two hands, knowing tears were leaking out of her eyes. “I didn’t know what had happened to you. I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”
“Oh, Evie,” he whispered, clutching her to his chest as he hugged her tight. “I’m so sorry. I never intended to leave you all on your own.” He kissed her then, a kiss that tingled with his magic and innate goodness. She’d missed that flavor of power and frisson of electricity that zinged between them whenever they touched. He drew back after a moment and looked incredulous. “We had a son?”
She laughed through her tears. Incandescently happy for the first time in over two decades.
“Yes, we had a son. A big, strapping werewolf with amazing magical abilities, and a new mate.” She patted his chest, loving the reassuring beat of his heart under her hand. “Ray, we really need to get back to them. They may need our help.”
His eyes narrowed in concern. “I can’t. Not yet. I need a little time to build up my strength. I’ve been drained of magic every moment I was away. That creature that came through with me was literally sucking my magic out of me. The enemy laid a trap and left the creature to guard and feed off me until I was no more. I thought I might die there. Even fey can die if all of our energy is stripped away.”
The horror of what he was describing pained her. He’d been through an ordeal. They’d both lost time together and so much more. She wasn’t sure they’d ever be able to recapture those lost years, but she was willing to try if he was. But that talk would come later. Right now, they had to figure out how to get back to Josh. Though it sounded like that was a non-starter.
“How long before you can poof us back to where we were?” she asked.
“Poof?” he repeated, smiling a bit at her choice of descriptor. She just raised her eyebrow, waiting for a straight answer. “A few hours. What time is it now?” He paused to look up at the cold, starry sky. “Around midnight?” She nodded confirmation. “Maybe by dawn,” he told her and she realized they weren’t going to get back to the battle in time to make a difference.
She thought Josh could probably take care of himself, but a mother always worried. Still, she had to be practical. She looked around and realized where they were.
“Why’d you bring us here?” she asked, curious.
“It was the only place I could think of on the spur of the moment. It was where I was happiest.” He moved back, letting her go, and looked around at the cold cabin a few yards away.
They were standing in front of the home they’d shared for those blissful months when they’d been newly mated. Remote and wild, nobody lived nearby. Not for miles and miles.
To read more, get your copy of Snow Magic by Bianca D’Arc.