Chapter Twenty-Eight
Meredith stared at the phone, watching the battery meter slowly count down the power percentage until shut down. A cry ripped from her throat as the hope died along with the phone. This was it. If no one had found her signal, then she was as good as dead.
She stood up and paced. She was out of tools. Like, literally out of them. She only had the clothes on her back, and she doubted her t-shirt and leggings would be able to help her out of this one. Meredith threw herself on the bed, sobbing into the musty pillow.
“Don’t lose hope, min kjære.”
Meredith froze. She was dreaming. Her starving body was making her hear things. Stefan was sending her visions to drive her mad. Slowly, she got up from the bed and turned around.
Daric was standing in the middle of the room, his handsome face beaming at her. It took a second for it to register in her brain but when it all clicked, she ran toward him, leaping up into his arms and wrapping her legs around him. She grabbed his face and planted a hard kiss on his lips. God, she missed him. She couldn’t believe he was really here.
“Yes, it’s me,” he laughed as he gently pried Meredith away from him. She untangled herself from his body and stood in front him.
“You’re here,” she whispered, tears streaming down her cheeks.
“I’ve come to rescue you and—” He staggered forward, and Meredith planted her palms on his chest to steady him,
“Daric!” she cried. “Are you all right?”
He nodded. “I’m sorry. This place…”
“It’s your village, right?”
“Yes, but that’s not all.” He quickly explained to her how the northern lights were affecting his powers.
“It’s draining you?” she asked.
“Not totally, but yes. I can only perform a few more spells before I need rest.”
“Okay, then what’s the plan?”
“Wait, this first.” He bent down and waved his hand over her tracking bracelet. The band disappeared, and the device fell on the floor.
“Daric!” she exclaimed. “Why did you do that? Your powers!”
“A small trick,” he said with a smile. “I’m conserving them as best as I can. Transporting takes the most out of me, but I can still do small things. You will need to defend yourself.”
“Right.” She took a deep breath. “So, now what?”
“I was hoping that Sebastian and Zachary Vrost were with you so I can take you all away.”
She shook her head. “We’ve all been separated. They’ve got some special chain holding Sebastian down so he can’t shift and I haven’t seen Zac since we were in Fenrir, but…” She closed her eyes, trying to use her enhanced hearing to tune in. “He’s been crying, poor thing, but I think I know where he is. North…no, northeast of us.”
“Then we must go,” he lifted his hand, but she stopped him.
“No, save it! We’ll sneak out. Can you remove whatever it is that’s blocking the door?”
He nodded and then walked to the front door, waving his hand. Grabbing the handle, he turned it and slowly opened the door.
Meredith peered outside. “There,” she said nodding towards one of the distant cabins. There was a faint light coming from the inside. “We need to go there.”
“That was our old home,” Daric said through gritted teeth. Before Meredith could stop him, Daric grabbed her arm, and the coldness gripped her. A few seconds later, they reappeared inside another cabin. This one was much larger and had more furniture. A fire was blazing in the hearth, and there was a bed and a baby cot in the corner. A woman stood with her back to them, holding a bundle in her arms as she rocked back and forth.
“Stop crying,” Victoria begged. “Please, baby, stop.” She turned around, her eyes growing wide and her face becoming even paler as she saw Daric and Meredith. “You!” she hissed. “What are you—Master!!” she screamed.
Before Daric or Meredith could move, Stefan appeared on the opposite side of the room.
“Ah, my old protégé,” the master mage mocked. “Looks like you’ve freed your little bitch, I see.”
“Let him go, Stefan,” Daric said as he raised his hand.
“Or what?” Stefan slowly walked towards the witch. “Victoria, you know what to do.”
“Yes, Master.” Victoria retrieved the knife strapped to her waist and pointed it at Zac. “Move, and he dies.”
Victoria moved the tip of the blade closer to the bundle, pointing it straight at Zac’s heart.
Daric lowered his hand. “You truly are a monster, Victoria.”
“No!” Meredith yelped. “You wouldn’t.”
Zac let out another cry, and Meredith saw Victoria’s hand shake and her face falter, just for a second. “He’s your grandson,” Meredith pleaded. “Cady’s son. Your own flesh and blood.”
“Shut up!” Victoria screeched. She pressed the tip against the baby’s breastbone. “I’ll do it, I swear.”
Daric began to raise his hand and slowly advanced toward Stefan. “You’ve drained yourself, Stefan, I can see your hands shaking. You’ve used too many spells, haven’t you? Plus, all the puppet masters have been draining more and more of your power.”
“Stop stalling,” Stefan bellowed at the witch.
Victoria’s eyes went wild as she looked at Zac and then Stefan. “Master?”
“Kill the child, Victoria,” Stefan ordered. “Now.”
Victoria let out a wail and raised the knife. Meredith was about to scream for Victoria to stop, but her breath caught as she saw the witch fling the knife at Stefan. The master mage waved his hand, and the knife reversed its course, sending it straight to Victoria.
The witch twisted away, shielding the baby as the knife buried into her back with a sickening squish. She fell forward, and Meredith lunged for her, grabbing the bundle before Victoria fell.
“Tell…Cady…” Victoria choked, reaching out to Meredith with her hand.
Tears burned in her eyes as she nodded. “I will.”
Victoria’s hand fell back and her eyes closed.
“Pity,” Stefan declared. “She was quite useful to me.”
“Stefan!” Daric yelled as he flung his hand toward the mage. Stefan was caught by surprise and his body was thrown against the wall.
“Is that all you’ve got?” Stefan laughed as he brushed himself off and stood up. “What were you thinking? Coming here by yourself and trying to get your Lycan whore back? My men will be here in two seconds. I’ve already roused the army.”
“No,” Daric said with a smile. “I’m not alone.”
Stefan was about to open his mouth when sounds of screams and shouts from the outside made his face twist in anger. “What have you done?”
“It’s over, Stefan,” Daric said. “The Lycans and the witches are here.”
Stefan laughed. “I don’t think so.”
The doors behind them suddenly burst open, and five large men filed in, all carrying rifles. Behind them, a giant black wolf padded in, fangs bared.
Meredith’s inner-she wolf howled, and she set little Zac down on the baby cot. She turned and then hunched herself in as the animal burst from her skin. Her limbs and face elongated, her muscles and bones stretching, and fur sprouted all over her body. It all took a few seconds, but to Meredith, it felt like an eternity. She landed on all four paws and stood in front of the other Lycan. She heard a gasp behind her, probably Daric, and she wasn’t surprised. Her wolf was magnificent—all silver white fur and red eyes. She was the only albino Lycan in the world, as far as she knew.
The she-wolf growled at the humans, ignoring them as she advanced toward the other wolf. Daric took care of them anyway, as their weapons jammed the moment they tried to use them on her. The two wolves were evenly matched, same height and weight, but Meredith had an advantage, of course. The child inside her would protect her, and she wasn’t afraid of getting hurt, especially not when she was protecting those she loved. Her mate. Her clan. Her family.
The black wolf lunged first, and she sprang at him, ripping with her claws and fangs. The other wolf’s claws ripped down her face, sending the blood spurting and staining her snowy fur, but she ignored the pain. Instead, she went straight for the neck, clamping her canines down on the flesh as hard as she could. The wolf let out a howl of pain and rolled away from her as soon as she released him. He limped away, dragging his body into the corner as he lay down and turned back into his human form.
“Stefan!” Daric called as the mage disappeared. “Goddamnit!” He turned to the she-wolf, who had padded over to him and was licking his hand. “I must go,” he said. “Take care of them for me, she-wolf.” Without another word, he disappeared.
The she-wolf whined and then turned around, running into the chaos outside. Inside her, Meredith railed and scream, begging the wolf to go and find Daric, but the wolf didn’t listen. Instead, she raised her head, sniffing the air as she tried to find a distinct scent. The scent of fire and ashes.
***
Daric immediately knew where Stefan had disappeared to, or rather, the mage had told him, sending him a vision of where he was. As he focused on the exact place, he thought that it might be a trap. Perhaps it was, but one way or another, this would end tonight.
He appeared right on top of the cliff, the highest point overlooking their village. Here, the northern lights seemed to burn much brighter and he could feel its effect more prominently. He thought he had enough power for at least a few more spells, but he was almost tapped out.
The cliffside point also offered a view of the action below, and it seemed Stefan had used the last of his powers to bring his remaining four mages and six of his human slaves with him. They stood to the side, ready to defend their master.
“Ah, you’ve come,” Stefan taunted as he looked at Daric. The mage struggled to get up, but he managed to get to his feet.
“Your magic is almost gone,” Daric stated.
“And so is yours. Get him,” Stefan ordered. One of the mages stretched his hands out and began to chant. The human slaves suddenly stood up straight and began to lumber towards Daric.
Daric lunged towards Stefan, tackling him to the ground. He would kill Stefan with his bare hands if that’s what it took. The master mage screamed in protest as Daric’s heavy body landed on top of him, pinning him down.
“Get him!” Stefan managed to croak out as Daric’s fingers wrapped around his throat.
Daric squeezed as hard as he could, but the human slaves pulled him away before he could feel the last breath leave from Stefan’s body. The six men restrained him, forcing him to his knees as the largest of them twisted his arms back before pushing him down on the ground.
Stefan heaved as he tried to get up. “It is such a pity,” he rasped as he slowly stumbled to Daric. “You could have been great! Could have ruled by my side, but you throw it all away for a worthless little Lycan bitch.” He looked at the man holding Daric down. “Kill him.”
A meaty arm wrapped around Daric’s neck and tightened, squeezing the air out of him. As spots appeared in front of his eyes, his last thoughts were of Meredith and their unborn child. He wished he could have seen her future if only to know what their offspring would look like. Probably beautiful, like Meredith.
“Stefan, you shithead!”
The sound of large wings flapping filled Daric’s ears and a large rush of wind knocked over both him and the man who had him in a chokehold. They rolled around several times, and when Daric ended up on top, he slammed his fist into the other man’s face, knocking him out. Looking up, he saw a giant golden dragon flying overhead. Its wings slowed down, and the dragon swooped lower. A figure dropped to the ground, and he held his breath when he saw Meredith’s body fall to the ground, transform in mid-air, and land on all fours. The magnificent white wolf stood in front of Stefan, growling and snapping, forcing the mage to retreat. Behind her, however, the remaining men advanced. One of them pulled a pistol from his pocket, and he trained it on the she-wolf.
“No!” Daric ran towards them. His magic was nearly tapped out and he couldn’t do anything to stop them or get her out of harm’s way. One of them shot at the wolf, and she yowled in pain. She turned around, growling and advancing towards the men. She leaped at the man with the weapon, disabling him, but the rest piled on top of her, seemingly unafraid of the giant animal. The she-wolf let out a howl and shook them off her as they tried to hang on and wrestle her to the ground.
Daric wanted to help Meredith, but Stefan stood between them. The mage raised his hand, preparing to use his last bit of magic to help his goons. “Stefan!” he called, and the mage turned around.
“Still alive? You’ve always been a survivor,” Stefan said almost proudly. “Too bad, though, I think you’ve used up your magic and your luck.”
Calling on the last reserves of his magic, Daric used it to transport the sword strapped to Stefan’s side into his hand. “No, I think you’ve used up the last of yours.” Daric raised the sword, pushing it straight forward into the mage’s body. Stefan’s eyes bulged in disbelief and his face scrunched in agony as he screamed.
“Kill them!” he ordered the remaining mages as he staggered back, blood dribbling from his mouth. “Kill them all.”
The four mages turned their attention to Daric and Meredith. The she-wolf had managed to knock away one of the men, but the remaining four circled her. The mage controlling the human slaves waved his hand, and two of the men walked away from the she-wolf and trudged towards Daric. The remaining mages slipped their hands into their robes, preparing what Daric knew were various potions that could disable both him and Meredith.
“Traitor!” Stefan hissed with the last of his breath. “If I die tonight, so will you!”
The winds picked up, getting stronger and faster and Daric had to dig his heels in to keep steady. As he saw a flash of gold in the distance and heard the beating of wings, he knew what Sebastian was planning.
“Meredith!” he screamed. The white wolf’s ears perked up, and with one last growl, she turned tail and dashed to Daric. When she was a few yards away, her hind legs gave one last push, and she lunged through the air to leap over Stefan’s dying body and tackle Daric to the ground, rolling them away just in time as fire and lava rained from above.
The heat was unbearable, and the smoke and ashes made his lungs burn, but at least they were alive. They both were. Warm fur and heavy muscle shrank back into soft skin and supple limbs. Daric used his body to shield her, landing with a thud on his back as Meredith slammed on top of him.
“Oomph!” Meredith sputtered. She tried to look back but turned her head away. The light burning from the dragon fire was blinding, and Daric himself closed his eyes until the heat faded away.
“Is he…”
Daric opened his eyes slowly. The faint light of dawn was slowly creeping across the sky as the sun rose from behind the hills. Turning his head to the side, there was nothing but ashes by the edge of the cliff. “Yes. It is done.”
Meredith let out a whoop of triumph and pumped a fist high in the air. “We did it! Hey!” She looked down and raised a brow at him. “Are you getting a victory boner?”
He laughed. “You are naked and bouncing on top of me,” he pointed out.
“Right.” Meredith slowly eased off him and got to her feet. She bent down to help him up, and he accepted her hand. As soon as he stood up, however, Meredith let out an indignant cry.
“Daric,” she sobbed, tears filling her eyes. “You…your…”
“What is it?” he asked, running his hands over his body. “Am I injured? Should we get a doctor?”
“No,” Meredith cried. “Your…hair!”
Daric frowned and touched his head, running his fingers through his hair. He realized that it must have caught some of the dragon fire, as half of his long locks had been singed off.
“Nooo!” she bawled. “Your beautiful hair!”
Daric chuckled. “Min kjære, it is just hair.”
“Just hair?” she cried. “Just hair? Don’t you know how much I loved that hair of yours? It’ll take years to grow back.”
“I’m a warlock,” he reminded her. “I could learn to regrow it back if you wish.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Good,” she reached up and kissed him. “Now, let’s go back to the village and see what’s going on.”
“As much as I love seeing your delectable body,” he said as he began to unbutton his shirt. “I’d rather keep the image to myself.” He handed her his shirt, and she accepted, slipping it over herself.
“Thanks,” she said. Suddenly, her eyes grew wide. “Speaking of naked bodies…”
Daric pivoted his head and saw Sebastian walking towards them, a scowl on his face and naked as the day he was born. He looked back at Meredith, and when he saw her eyes slowly dropping lower, he pulled her face to his chest.
“A little help?” Sebastian asked.
Daric nodded, and with the wave of his hand, the grass around Sebastian’s feet floated up, swirled around his torso and the fibers changed into a pair of white boxers.
“Thanks,” he said gratefully.
“Sebastian, my man! High five!” Meredith bounded to him, her hands raised. “Flying was soooo fun! Let’s do it again. What do you say?”
“I’m not letting you anywhere near my dragon,” Sebastian huffed.
“No more dragon rides?” she pouted.
“Never again. What the hell were you doing, tugging and pulling on my horns?”
“I was trying to steer!”
“I was steering, you idiot!” he growled.
“Oh, and by the way, you’re welcome for the rescue! Thank God my she-wolf was smart enough to come and find you first.”
“That makes one of you,” Sebastian snorted.
“Did you see what you did to Daric’s beautiful hair?” she countered.
“I have to go see Jade,” he said, ignoring her. He looked down at his boxers. “Shit, I should have asked you to make me some stretchy pants like the Hulk. I don’t want to show up buck naked in front of everyone. I’ll see if I can walk back down.”
“We’ll follow,” Daric said. “But I need a few minutes alone with Meredith.”
Sebastian nodded and turned to walk away. Meredith suppressed a giggle when she saw what was printed on the back of Sebastian’s boxers. It was a unicorn in bright shades of pink and purple.
“You’re so bad,” she whispered, swatting him playfully on the arm.
“Since you seemed to enjoy his body so much, I thought I’d give you something better to look at. And no one calls you idiot and gets away with it.”
“Ha! That’ll teach him.” She laid her head on his chest as Daric’s arms came around her. She breathed in his chocolate scent and murmured against his bare skin.
“Did you say something, min kjære?”
“I said,” she looked up at him. “I love you, Daric.”
His blue-green eyes turned from stormy to calm, and a smile tugged at his lips. “And I love you, my she-wolf.”
Their lips met in a soft kiss as the sun continued to ascend, filling the valley with light. When they had enough of each other (for now, at least), they pulled away and started walking towards Sebastian, who was trying to figure out how to get down from the cliff.
“Let’s go,” Daric said, offering his hand to the other man. “I’ll take us back.”