Hunt the Darkness (Guardians of Eternity #11)(16)

In an effort to distract his growing discomfort, he moved to watch her set the box in the center of the circle and then slowly begin to light each candle.

“Why can you speak some spells and others you have to cast?”

“Like vampires, every witch has her own strengths,” she answered even as her attention remained on completing her delicate task. “My talent lies in molding the environment.”

He recalled her earlier words. “That’s how you set the curtains on fire?”

“Yes.” An absent nod as she grabbed the chalice filled with the dark potion and walked along the inner perimeter of the circle, dribbling the potion on the flickering flames. “And how I put the protective bubble around the box.”

He grimaced as the candles hissed and a strange stench filled the air.

“A bubble of what?”

She shrugged. “Weaves of air.”

He shifted nervously, his gaze clinging to the delicate perfection of her profile and unconscious grace of her movements. Any second he was going to snap and yank her out of that circle. Distraction. He needed a distraction. Pronto.

“How is a dampening spell different?”

She completed the ritual and set aside the bowl.

“I’m going to try to blend the glyphs in a stew of magic.”

“Stew?”

“Stew is a mixture of tastes so it’s difficult to pick out one ingredient.”

“Ah.” It made an odd sort of sense.

She knelt beside the box, sending him a warning glance. “I’m going to raise a protective shield around the circle now. Don’t try to come near me.”

She lifted her hands, but as she began to chant soft words Roke went rigid with an unexpected alarm.

“Sally,” he hissed.

She frowned with impatience. “I’m just starting.”

“There’s something outside.”

Her eyes widened. “Levet?”

“No.”

“Then who?”

He concentrated on the vague presence that had arrived outside the cottage without warning.

The intruder was demon, but the scent kept shifting, as if it weren’t entirely stable.

“I can’t . . .”

He gave a frustrated shake of his head, reaching to pull the large dagger he kept holstered beneath his leather jacket. Then, turning toward the back door, he braced for an assault.

Not that being prepared did a damned bit of good when the attack came.

How did you fight a wave of sonic vibrations that shuddered through the air?

Clenching his teeth, he ignored the damage to his soft tissue that was already healing, whirling to discover Sally bent over, blood running from her ears and nose.

“Shit.”

Forcing herself back to a kneeling position, Sally waved an impatient hand.

“Get in the circle.”

He didn’t hesitate. Sally might want to strangle him, but she wouldn’t put the protective shield until he was safely beside her.

Leaping over the candles, he knelt next to her trembling body.

“Now.”

Chapter Five

Sally hastily finished casting the spell of protection, not for the first time appreciating her mother’s sadistic habit of forcing her daughter to the very limit of endurance then making her perform spell after spell.

On one memorable occasion, she’d even beaten Sally until she was barely conscious and then demanded she levitate a boulder that weighed almost a ton.

At the time Sally had violently hated her mother for her ruthless training, but she couldn’t deny that it had kept her alive on more than one occasion.

Now she had to hope it came to the rescue once again.

Blocking out the ringing in her ears and the sluggish beat of her heart, Sally concentrated on the magic that stirred in the air.

This magic was different from her demon powers.

It wasn’t an organic release of the magic that flowed through her body.

No, it was a fierce battle that demanded total focus to leash the elements that surrounded her.

Muttering the last of the incantation, Sally tipped the potion onto the floor, releasing the magic.

With an audible hiss the power spread like a dome over the circle, the shimmering spiderweb invisible to all but her eyes and impenetrable to almost any weapon.

The candles flickered and Roke tensed, the air inside the circle frosty as his power surged.

“You have the barrier up?” he demanded, unable to sense magic.

“Yes.” She grimaced, already feeling the drain on her inner resources. “It won’t hold up for long.”

The pale eyes flared with fury as he reached to gently touch the blood running down the side of her face before moving to brush away the similar drip of blood from her nose.

“You’re hurt,” he rasped.

“I’ll be fine,” she assured him. Although she was only half demon, she still healed far faster than a mere human. Thank the goddess. If she’d been mortal that strange blast of vibrations would have turned her insides to goo. Not the most pleasant way to die. “What the hell was that?”

He grimaced. “Magic?”

“None that I’ve ever encountered before.” She pushed back her hair, feeling a layer of perspiration on her forehead despite the chill in the air. “Can you sense how many are out there?”