On Wicked Ground (Solsti Prophecy Book 4) (35 page)

“Hope so,” Kai said. “There are four, but we may not be able to see all of them from this viewpoint. Let’s head that way.” He shifted Brooke so that she was at his back, arms locked around his neck. “Hang on, baby.”

Kai swam toward the land that only he and Gunnar could see. Brooke had the fleeting thought that this must be what it was like to swim with a dolphin. Her mate was so fast, so agile, and his arms cut through the waves with powerful strokes. She peeked over her shoulder to see Gunnar and Nicole swimming the same way, though her sister had her head down, buried against her mate’s back.

Hmm, I’m going to give us all a boost
, she said to Kai. She willed the water behind their group to surge forward in a buoyant wave. It swelled beneath them, carrying them on its watery crest and pushing them even faster than the men could swim.

Brooke looked up at the gorgeous bright wash of stars overhead. Thousands twinkled down on her, accompanied by the twin moons. The wild beauty of Torth hit her full force, and she let out a whoop. For a moment she relished her power, her mate, and her family. Elegia be damned. The Solsti were here.
All of us.
“That bitch is going down!” she screamed into the surf.

Kai laughed in her mind.
I love your attitude, baby
.

In a minute they reached the shore of the nearest island. Brooke tumbled from Kai’s back, finding her footing in the gentle waves. She picked her way over dark sand and waited, shivering. Shit, it was cold.

Gunnar and Nicole joined her and Kai. “Ready to dry off?” Brooke asked.

“Y-yes, p-please!” Nicole chattered.

Brooke summoned her power once again, letting energy coil in her fingertips. She raised her hand, and every last drop of water that clung to their clothing and hair lifted up. Thousands of droplets floated above them in a cloud that sparkled with the stars’ reflected light. Brooke moved her hand, and the drops moved out over the waves. With a splash, they fell and joined the sea.

“So cool, sis.” Nicole shook out her now-dry hair.

Brooke smiled, then looked around. A gentle bluff rose behind them, with a scattering of spindly branches sticking out among sand and sea grasses. A gust of wind swept in from the sea and she shivered, despite the fact that she’d just dried them off. “Where should we go?”

“If I lived on an island in the middle of the ocean,” Kai propped his hands on his hips, “I would put my house up high.”

They all looked to the top of the bluff. “Look.” Gunnar pointed.

Again, Brooke saw nothing. “I wish I had your eyesight,” she muttered.

“There’s a trail.” Kai took her hand. “Let’s go.”

With Kai leading the way, they picked their way up the sand and dirt slope. Tall grasses lined the sides, bending into their path and snapping upright again. Waves crashed far beneath them, drowning out any other sounds.

Up they hiked, and passed a tree growing sideways out of the bluff. That’s weird, Brooke thought, and then second later a cloud of tiny wings burst from the bark. She yelped and ducked behind Kai.

“It’s just bats.” He swatted a brawny arm above his head. “That’s our confirmation we’re in the right place. Orion is full of them.”

“As long as they leave us alone,” Brooke muttered.

They climbed a few yards higher and Kai stopped, holding up one hand.

What is it?
Brooke asked him.

Incoming. Portal magic
. Kai turned to Gunnar and angled his head.

Gunnar nodded. “Few seconds away.”

“Who?” Nicole peered up into the darkness.

“I’m guessing it’s the demons from your dream,” Gunnar said.

“Oh shit,” Brooke said.

“How do they end up on land when we ended up in the water?” Nicole frowned.

Brooke fought back an inappropriate giggle. Nicole and Gin were so logical. She opened her mouth to say something when Kai shook his head.
Hear that, Sprite?

Hear what?

It sounds like a giant bubble popping, then a whoosh like a breeze.

Um, no.

That was a portal opening and closing. We’re no longer the only visitors here. Stay close
. He glanced over his shoulder at Gunnar and pointed to the top of the bluff. Tall grass formed a wavy fence, and they moved toward it silently.

Well, the men were silent. Nicole and Brooke tried their best. Their mates had instructed them in the ways of creeping quietly, and they were used to stealth on Chicago’s dark streets, but they didn’t come close to the predatory prowl of the Lash demons.

Stay here
, Kai told her, then he and Gunnar moved forward to peer through the grass.

Brooke glanced at Nicole, who looked at her and shrugged, then grinned broadly. She raised her hand, and Brooke brought her palm an inch away for a silent high five. Just like old times.

Your dream called it, Sprite.
Kai’s thoughts pulled her from her prefight anticipation.
Ghazsuls and Vipers. And a small cottage.

Let me—

Fuck! They’re firing flaming arrows
. Kai’s voice snarled in her mind, just as a dark figure loomed over the edge of the bluff, blocking out the stars.

“I knew I smelled shit,” it growled around huge fangs.

Brooke froze, taking in her first up close and personal view of a Viper demon
.
Its form was humanoid, except for its head, which resembled that of a snake. Scaled skin and slitted eyes completed its frightening appearance.
Let me drain him
, she said to Kai.

“Go ahead, Sprite.” Kai stepped back. “This is gonna get messy,” he muttered to Gunnar.

The Viper snarled and jumped down several feet to where the men stood. Brooke barely registered the too-fast movement as she gathered her power and concentrated on the cells in the creature’s body.

Thud.
It landed in front of Kai and took a swing. Kai ducked, narrowly dodging it. The Viper drew its arm back again…then a strangled sound gurgled from its throat. Its body twitched as it stood, then a trickle of water bubbled from its mouth and nose. Next from its ears and eyes.

“Gross,” Nicole muttered beside her.

The water changed colors as different bodily fluids poured out, turning into a sludgy mess of tissue, drawn by the pull of Brooke’s mind. Liquid seeped from beneath its scales, forcing them up. They detached and joined the deepening pool of filth that darkened the sandy soil. The creature dropped to all fours, choking, blinded, and writhing. It convulsed as its shoulders slammed the ground, a lifeless husk with skin hanging loose and wrinkled from its bones.

Brooke stopped, aware that she had drained her own power the first time she’d done this. Kai was at her side in a heartbeat.

“You okay?” he asked, arms around her.

She took a deep breath. “Yes. I think I am.”

“That was insanely disgusting, but very cool,” Nicole said, wrinkling her nose. “I call dibs on the next one who bothers us.”

“Good idea. I might need the recharge,” Brooke said. “I’ve never done this back to back.”

Recharge?
Kai asked with a healthy dose of concern.

Just as a precaution. I really feel fine
, she said.

Yeah, I can tell. Nothing but healthy vibes coming through the bond.
He kissed the top of her head. “Just one last thing. I need to make sure that guy doesn’t revive. Who knows if the lily would keep him alive through your dehydration? I don’t want to chance it.” He flung a ball of fire at the motionless Viper, and in seconds it was a pile of ash.

“Let’s move,” Gunnar said, reaching for Nicole’s hand. She gingerly stepped over the ashy clump, made a gagging face, and joined him.

Cresting the top, the four of them stopped and stared. Brooke sucked in a breath.

In the time it had taken her to bring down the Viper, Rosa had created the barrier in front of the house. Flames licked the edges of her roof, and Vipers and Ghazsuls paced outside the barrier.

“This is what you saw.” Kai didn’t need to ask it as a question, already knowing from the mental image she’d sent him.

“Yes.” Brooke jumped as bright light flashed from Rosa’s palm, breaching the barrier to strike three Vipers. They crumpled to the ground.

The four Ghazsuls screeched, their voices like jagged shrieks as they chanted.
A spell?
  A rip appeared in Rosa’s magical fence and they poured in.

The wooden board from Brooke’s dream broke free from the roof and fell toward Rosa.

”I got it!” Nicole yelled. She scooped it up with an air current and flung it far out over the beach beneath them.

The Ghazuls and Rosa turned to stare at them. Just like in Brooke’s dream, Rosa’s clothing and silver hair were sooty. But her bright blue eyes flashed in recognition before she turned back to the red-winged demons in front of her. She spoke in Demonish and the air crackled with her power.

Brooke shivered, remembering how Rosa had transported an elf through thin air a few months ago. Just,
poof
, and he wasn’t standing on her porch anymore.
Can’t she do that now?

But the Ghazsuls spoke a spell of their own, creating some sort of shield around them. It appeared like a translucent wall of contained shimmering trails of purple light.

“My turn!” Nicole said. She extended her hand in front of her and stared with unwavering focus at the group.

Brooke had no idea if she could work on all four at once, but as she watched, the lead demon clutched his throat and stumbled. His friends didn’t miss a beat. One continued to fire flaming arrows over the wall at Rosa, while the other two charged Kai and Gunnar.

The red demons screeched, swords drawn, mouths twisted. Kai and Gunnar met them in a blinding flash of metal and curses.

My god, they’re fast
. Brooke watched in horrified fascination at the spectacle of the Ghazsul demons moving with lightning speed. Kai and Gunnar were good, very good, but they weren’t dosed full of lily extract.

One demon struck faster than Kai could move, slicing a bright ribbon of red down his arm.

“No!” Brooke shrieked. Through their bond, she felt Kai’s anger at the strike, rather than pain from the wound, but she knew he was stubborn and wouldn’t stop for anything.
Good thing you have me
, she said into his mind, and focused on the demon who struck him.

The Ghazsul jerked back at the swift barrage of Brooke’s power. Vomit flew from its mouth and it dropped to its knees, but Brooke didn’t let up. Not yet. She reached deep into its cells, wrenching free the life-giving molecules of water and forcing them out in any way they would go. A disgusting sludge of fluids seeped from the creatures eyes, nose, and mouth as it writhed on the ground.

Kai shot her a glance. “You okay, babe?”

She nodded and halted her onslaught.

“That’s my girl.” Kai raised his sword and brought it down hard, severing the demon’s head to make sure it was truly dead. He turned to Gunnar, who was breathing hard as he fought his own Ghazsul.

The demon that Nicole had attacked lay motionless on the ground. The last one, the archer, looked from its downed comrade to Nicole and bared its teeth in a snarl.

“Sayonara, ugly.” Nicole lifted her hand and directed her power at the demon, who clawed his throat and choked just like the first one.

As soon as the Ghazsul dropped to the ground, Nicole and Brooke hurried to Rosa, who scowled at her roof. “Let me,” Nicole murmured, and a gale rushed along the top of the house so forceful that the flames all blew out.

“Are you okay, Rosa? I had a dream.” Brooke laid a hand on the witch’s arm. “I saw,” she gestured around the yard, “all of this. Your home. You. Alone.”

“Thank you for coming so quickly. When Whysper reached out through our old connection, I thought it was odd, but I didn’t have time to stop and think about it. We’d barely said hello and the ley lines were disrupted.”

“Disrupted? Did some other creatures get here before us?” Nicole asked.

“Yes. What’s left of them is over there.” Rosa pointed to three dark forms laying in the grass at the side of her house. “Neshi demons.”

Brooke shuddered.
Been there.
“I’m glad you got rid of them.”

Rosa grimaced. “They’re good for brute strength, but not so good against my spells.”

A grunt sounded from behind them, and Brooke turned to see the last Ghazsul pushing at the ground as if he were trying to get up. Finished with his first opponent, Gunnar extended his hand and summoned a fireball, then flung it at the creature. In seconds it was a pile of ash. He repeated the process with the last downed Ghazsul.

Kai and Gunnar ran over to Brooke and Nicole. “Are you all okay?” Gunnar asked.

“Never better than when using my power in a new way.” Nicole smiled up at him.

Kai looked at Rosa. “Any guess as to who sent these thugs? Or why?”

Rosa’s lips tightened into a thin line. “I think we all know who. And as for the why? I’m a threat, plain and simple. I’m sure she’d love to have me in her ranks.”

Nicole folded her arms. “That will never happen.”

Brooke nodded. “No way in hell, not now that all four of us are together.”

Rosa turned her brilliant turquoise eyes on Brooke. “You found her? The fourth Solsti?”

“Yeah, several days ago.” Nicole shoved an errant lock of hair out of her face. “She’s at Watcher HQ.”

A twin trilling sounded from both Kai and Gunnar’s phones. They pulled them out and made identical scowls. “Shit,” Kai muttered. “The alarm level is up one notch. All Watchers are supposed to be in position. No sign of Elegia’s troops yet.”

“How much time do they have?” Brooke asked.

“Not sure.” Kai shook his head.

“How—” Brooke’s mouth froze mid-sentence, as a shock wave reverberated from the house. From
inside
the house. Wide-eyed, she looked at Kai.
What was that?

Not sure yet
. He punched a code on his phone.

Silence loomed on the bluff, except for the waves crashing below them. Gunnar inhaled, then turned to Kai. “Smells like…”