Читать книгу The Keepers: Ethan - Rae Rivers - Страница 16

They raced down the stairs and onto the street, merging with the crowd. Confusion had broken up the parade. The music stopped, the explosions continued. Everyone began running. Screaming.

Ethan bolted into the panicked crowd, dodging people and fire, his focus zeroed in on one woman across the road. Sienna.

Jenna felt it too. That burning need to protect her witch above everything else. Despite the anguish. Despite the screams. Their witches came first. Always. She raced through the crowd, searching for Kate through the thickening smoke. Kate!

Declan came up behind her, taking her arm. “You have to get Kate home!” he shouted, tugging her with him as he walked.

“Where is she?”

He turned into the alleyway beside the restaurant. A wave of unease crashed through her as her instincts lit up like a runway. In a brisk movement, she yanked her arm out of his grasp and spun around, delivering a powerful kick that sent him reeling against the wall.

She launched at him before he could recover, slid around him and grabbed his neck between her arms. A death grip that could snap his neck in a heartbeat.

“What the hell was that for?” He gripped her arms, trying to break free. “Kate’s in trouble, you crazy woman!”

“You think I’m stupid?” She tightened her grip, taking satisfaction from his grunt. “Declan would never, ever leave Kate alone during an attack, so next time you try your Mimic crap with me, try a better story.”

He grumbled something beneath his breath, his words barely audible, and grew still. Then he laughed. The image of Declan disappeared to reveal the man beneath the facade. She recognised his mop of black curls and his jagged teeth. One of Hazel’s sidekicks, although Jenna had hardly spoken to him in her time with them. A Mimic. Known for his ability to imitate others.

And now there were shifters too – able to shift into cats at will. Both dangerous and deceptive.

“There are innocent people here!” Jenna said. “Are you all insane?”

Safety aside, a magical display like this risked exposure and severe consequences.

“Mildly, but watching you and the Bennett brothers fight to keep our secret is so entertaining.”

Jenna didn’t respond, distracted by a movement in the distance. Two cats sauntered toward her, unperturbed by the chaos in the background. In a sleek, agile movement, they effortlessly shifted into their human form, two women Jenna had never seen before. They were small in build and had dark hair, porcelain skin and narrow, bright green eyes that smacked of malice.

Jenna heard the rush of air a moment before she felt the impact from above. A third cat collided with her, a light force that instantly grew stronger as it shifted. But Jenna was faster. She dropped the Mimic, simultaneously delivering a vicious elbow to her attacker’s face the moment she became human. The shifter crashed into a dustbin but was on her feet in an instant. She had a similar appearance to the other two, almost identical.

They circled Jenna, snarling softly, the sound emanating from the back of their throats. Three against one. And the damn Mimic. Just her luck. Jenna braced herself as they closed in.

“STOP!” A voice demanded from above. “Get away from her! Hazel was clear this one was hers.”

A young woman leapt from the roof and landed on the ground in front of them. She had short jet-black hair, eyes outlined in dark makeup. Small in build, but a fierce and powerful witch Jenna instantly recognised.

Megan. The young witch her parents had taken in. Despite their mercy, love, and guidance, she’d joined Hazel’s cause anyway. The last time Jenna had seen her had been the night they’d tried to sacrifice Kate.

Jenna’s hands closed into fists, her body flooded by conflicting emotions always sparked by an interaction with Megan. Good versus evil. Right versus wrong. Two women on opposite sides of the war. Bound by a twisted childhood friendship.

Their gazes locked, silent animosity bristling between them. A shared past, a secret they both fiercely protected.

“We were only having some fun,” the Mimic replied, watching Megan with wary eyes.

“Get out of here,” Megan ordered, turning to the shifters. “And tell your people to tone it the hell down. We’re here to deliver a message, not spark a damn war!”

They hurried away, leaving behind two estranged woman and a heavy silence.

Anger soared through Jenna as instincts demanded she avoid Megan. The witch who wouldn’t hesitate to harm them.

The witch who had just helped her.

An age-old voice reared to life within her, a whisper of a twisted loyalty Jenna had always felt but never understood. So compelling. So wrong. Manifested during the years her parents had fostered Megan. They’d both been seven years old when they’d met and had become firm friends. Sisters.

Enemies.

“It would’ve been nice to have a warning before you invaded our town,” Jenna said.

“I warn you and I’m dead, Jenna. Besides, why would I bother? You destroyed any ounce of relationship we had when you betrayed me in New Orleans.”

“You were about to kill my witch!”

“A witch we needed.”

It was an ancient war between them, an inner battle they both fought. In truth, their friendship had altered the night Jenna’s mother had sent them through the portal. They’d parted ways. Jenna had joined the academy and Megan had aligned herself with the very people Jenna’s parents had despised. In time, they’d grown to be enemies, allied in opposite armies.

But somewhere beneath all that was a slither of respect and loyalty neither of them could shed. A legacy of the parents who’d raised them in a glimpse of time when they’d mattered to each other.

And if their alliances ever found out, they’d both be shunned. Or dead.

“I told you never to set foot in Rapid Falls again,” Jenna hissed through gritted teeth, temper flaring.

Megan grinned. “But this is where all the good witches are.”

“If you harm my witch, no amount of –”

“I’m not here for that. Not today.” Megan’s expression grew serious, her brows creasing with worry. “Hazel’s opened the portal to Ameera, Jenna.” Hearing the name aloud sent an icy spurt of alarm through Jenna. Their gazes locked, the mention of their old home jarring the rivalry between them. “I have a message from her.”

“Forever her sidekick.”

Megan let the comment slide. “She’ll keep the portal open until Sienna hands over the Brogan Grimoire.”

Ah, the damn Brogan Grimoire. Sienna’s mother had once sealed the book with a powerful spell. According to her grandmother, a Beckham spell and four enchanted stones would unseal the book, but so far Sienna hadn’t been able to crack it.

Hazel was convinced the book contained the location of the witch massacre – a minefield of potent energy left behind by the slaughtered witches. If she ever found where that magic was buried, she’d have access to a power that went beyond anything they’d ever seen. She’d be unstoppable. So the book remained in hiding, safely tucked away at the Bennett Estate.

“Sienna will never relinquish the Grimoire,” Jenna said.

“You know what will happen if that portal stays open!”

“And you know what will happen if Hazel finds that magic!”

“Ameera is so much worse now –”

“You’ve been back?” Jenna cut in. When Megan looked away, her lips thinning into a grimace, Jenna gasped. “Hazel’s in Ameera, isn’t she?”

“Jenna –”

“Did you find my parents?” A surge of desperation had Jenna in front of Megan in a sudden movement. “Did you see them?”

Megan’s unfaltering gaze met hers and held, an ocean of memories bristling between them. “No.”

The ache in Jenna’s chest was almost unbearable. “Why’s Hazel in Ameera?”

The question served as a stark reminder of everything that stood between them and Megan jerked back, her expression hardening. “Like I’d tell you.”

A scream in the distance jarred Jenna into action. Anxious to find Kate and instinctively knowing that Megan wouldn’t offer any more information, she backed away, scowling at her. “Stay away from my witch, Megan.”

Turning around, she bolted for the street.

The fire had spread, claiming trees and plants along the way. The awning above a boutique window went up in flames.

A child stood in the centre of the chaos, clutching the arm of a teddy bear, crying hysterically. Jenna raced forward, scooped him up and pushed him into the arms of a young woman with saucer-wide eyes.

It began to rain. Soft droplets that soon grew heavy and persistent, dousing the flames. Archer?

A ripple of energy washed over Jenna, one she instantly recognised. Kate’s magic. Her body soared with relief when she spotted her witch beside Sienna in the distance, surrounded by the three brothers. They were all drenched from the rain. Kate wore a blank expression, almost oblivious to the chaos, but Jenna knew better. Her witch had gone into that quiet, private place that would stop the madness.

Jenna was beside her in a heartbeat.

Instantly, as though Kate had flicked a whip, everything began to settle. The explosions stopped, the panic lessened, and the shifters retreated. Clearly, they’d been warned that the hybrid Null was no match for them. More so now that Kate had been practicing with her grandmother every day for the last few months. Honing her powers, developing her skill. Lethal.

When Kate snapped out of her trance, blinking rapidly, Jenna reached for her arm, frowning at the slight tremble beneath her touch. “It’s okay, I’m here,” Jenna said. “Are you hurt?”

Kate shook her head but leaned in, holding Jenna’s arm.

“Where the hell have you been?” Declan snapped, scowling at Jenna.

“Bumping heads with your lookalike.”

“A Mimic?”

“Yeah, and he was much friendlier than the genuine version.” She pointed to the retreating shifters. No sign of Megan or the Mimic. “They’re leaving already.”

Cursing, Ethan spun around, but Archer was in front of him in the blink of an eye. A barricade of rigid resistance.

“Ethan!” Archer grabbed his shoulder, adding more resistance when Ethan ignored him. “Stop, dammit!”

“Let me go, brother.” Ethan kept moving forward, taking his brother with him. An inescapable force. “They attacked a town full of innocent people, Archer! This is bullshit and you know it!”

“You can’t go alone! We don’t know how many there are.” Archer’s shoulders heaved and his eyes flashed with something wild. He jabbed a finger at Declan. “Go with him. We’ll take care of Kate and Sienna. Go.”

Declan jerked forward, his protective instincts itching for a fight. But he hesitated, his gaze moving between Archer, Kate, and Sienna.

His brother. His woman. His witch.

Jenna stepped forward and touched his arm. “Go with Ethan, Declan. We’ll be fine. I promise.”

Declan’s frown deepened, words unnecessary. They both knew what was at stake. Exhaling harshly, he scanned the crowd. With a quick nod, he pulled out the keys to his Harley Davidson and tossed them to Jenna. “Stay in town. It’s safer. We’ll come back for you.”

As the two men took off, Jenna wondered if their witches were safe anywhere.