Witch Untold by Debbie Cassidy

Chapter Twenty

There was blood all over the floor. Sloane lay on her back, skin bloodless on account of the fact her blood was all over the ground.

The room smelled of alcohol and…blood.

Fucking blood.

My paralysis snapped and I rushed across the room, falling onto my knees beside The Elite.

Check pulse.

Administer CPR.

Come on, Sloane. Come on.

Somewhere in the distance people called my name, but I had to focus on Sloane. I had to bring her back, because this was insane. This couldn’t be happening. She went to get whiskey. She was coming back, but now she was cold and lifeless, and her eyes…Her beautiful electric blues were flat and…dead.

She’s dead, Cora.Tor’s breath was warm on my cheek.

Cora, let go of her,Leif said softly.

I gathered her close and held her tight so that her head was pressed to my chest. There was blood everywhere. Dark, wet, and thick. Congealing, because that’s what blood did.

Because Sloane was… “No…”

Someone was crying softly.

Someone else screamed. “Breach. We have a breach!”

“Cora, you need to let go,” Elijah said calmly. “Sloane’s gone.”

I shook my head, dislodging tears. “No. She isn’t. She can’t be dead. I won’t let her be dead.”

“You’re right, she isn’t.” The voice was harsh and cold, clearing the haze in my mind. I looked up to find Vlad standing in the atrium doorway. Mircea and Radu entered, flanking him. “Let go of her and step away. Now,” Vlad ordered.

Wren slid off my back. “You smell wrong. You don’t belong here.”

Tor, Leif, and Rune growled low and menacing, a warning of pain to come, but Vlad simply sighed as if the whole thing was tiresome.

“What’s going on?” Elijah asked the vampire.

“This is his work,” Vlad replied. “He used your witch’s blood to access enough power to break through your barriers.” His jaw ticked. “He’s gone but he’s left us a message. Your friend is about to turn.”

“Turn?” Elijah sounded confused.

“Into an ice walker,” Radu said. “We need to kill her. She’s in transition. Which can take anything from a few minutes to a few hours, so you need to move and let us do what we do.”

My mind whirred. If Sloane was in transition, if she wasn’t dead yet, then there was a chance to save her. To stop whatever was happening. And I knew just who to turn to.

“The Magiguard will help.” I looked to Elijah. “They’ve been experimenting with subverting the vampire infection in outliers for over a year. If anyone can help, they can.”

“That’s not your call to make,” Vlad snapped.

“Go away,” Wren said. “Leave my Cora alone.”

Vlad ignored him, his attention on me. “Move aside. I won’t ask again.”

“What is your problem? If I can save her, then…” The penny dropped. “You need her dead. You need all the ice walkers dead to be free.”

His expression was grim. “And I won’t let anything, or anyone, stand in my way.”

The Sons of Adam approached, and my guys tensed, huge wolf bodies bristling with power, ready to shred and tear.

The vampires blurred toward us and a roar sliced the air, sending out a visible rippling shockwave. It slammed into the vamps, lifting them off their feet and throwing them back.

“Leave my Cora alone!” The voice was a thick, feral growl coming from a huge, furry, four-foot form with rounded ears and inch-long talons protruding from its paws. It stood in the exact same spot Wren had a moment ago.

What. The. Fuck.

The creature stomped forward, coming to stand in front of the wolves. “Go away!” it roared at the vamps.

“Wren?”

The creature turned its head to look at me, and I bit back a gasp at the sight of its elongated snout and razor teeth lining its lethal mouth. Its eyes weren’t round and cute like Wren’s, they were slanted, red-rimmed, and menacing. There was nothing Wren-like about this creature.

This wasn’t Wren.

It couldn’t be.

But then it blinked, and its bloodthirsty gaze softened. “Wren protect Cora.” It growled.

Oh, shit. Oh, fucking shit.

Vlad and his brothers straightened, baring their teeth in Wren’s direction, ready to attack.

“Don’t!”

My cry was cut off as the vamps charged my furry fae buddy. Wren met them head-on, talons swiping the air and tearing flesh.

“No! Wren!”

Tor, Rune, and Leif joined the fray, and for a moment there was nothing but snarls and growls, and the flash of fur, fang, and talons.

“Enough!”

The scene froze, then the vamps were propelled out of the fray so their bodies smashed into the wall.

“Not so powerful without your runes, are you?” Jasper snarled from behind me.

My mates fell back, bodies heaving with the effects of exertion, and Wren…Oh, shit.

His tiny form lay on the floor, curled on his side. Elijah took Sloane from me, and I scrambled across the room to scoop Wren into my arms.

“Buddy, hey, buddy.” Oh, shit.

“Get him and Sloane to the Magiguard,” Jasper said. “I’ll take care of these fuckers.”

I wasn’t going to argue with that because Wren was limp in my arms, tiny, fragile, and silent, the monster gone, but Sloane was about to turn into a fucking monster. I hurried back to Elijah, who had Sloane halfway on his lap. Blood smeared his cheek, and his hands were coated in it.

I needed to take her from him, but my hands were full. Oh, shit.

“I’ll come with you,” he said.

Thank God. I nodded, placed my hand on his arm, and made the jump to Magiguard HQ.

We materialized in the same position we’d jumped—on the ground, with Elijah hugging Sloane to his chest and Wren clutched tightly in my arms.

Alarms blared, announcing our arrival. The place was shit-hot on security, and although they’d been unable to keep me from jumping in and out of the place, they could definitely detect a breach.

I’d chosen the fifth floor, where I knew the labs were located. We’d landed in the foyer barred by huge metal double doors that required a code. I could have jumped into the area beyond, but I needed Magiguard help, so pissing them off any further by infiltrating their super-secret lab space was a no-no.

Boots pounded the ground and then we were surrounded by Magiguard. Magic crackled and spat in the air in warning.

I looked up at the nearest guard. “Get me Ursula. Now!”

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