Chapter Fifty-Seven

Demetria

Demetria’s senses kicked into overdrive. Everything, everyone, around her shifted in one second— the wolves transitioned into their wolf forms, while Cynthia and Demetria braced themselves for impact.

Kerry’s wolf landed before Demetria, blocking her from harm. She knew he meant well, but she needed to see to use her magic. The beast the evil twins brought with them roared, and it sent a shiver down Demetria’s spine.

She knew better than to radiate any fear because creatures like that fed off it. Though, while peering around Kerry’s hulking wolf, she noticed several wolves attacking the beast in teams of three and four, tearing him down inch by inch.

Ivory cowered down against the base of the tree where Kitty had been hiding. Ike had her trapped there because of her betrayal. Demetria wasn't sure if he would let her go or not, but she looked terrified that he knew the truth.

Kitty, who was a very attractive alpha, was helping fight two hellhounds at once.

“We have to move,” Demetria said to Kerry. She could sense the sadness in his eyes. He was fearful for her, not himself, but she needed to help.

He stepped back slowly, allowing her to see around him and into the midst of the fight. She felt Ike’s stare on her from somewhere, but she also knew he couldn’t do anything without his pendant. Or at least he couldn't bring Sabrina's body into her without it. A pendant that Cynthia and Demetria had put a spell on, in hopes of prolonging his chances of winning.

“Demetria,” his voice whispered against the back of her neck.

She spun around, and Kerry’s wolf growled lowly, crouching down beside her, ready to attack something neither of them could see.

“Where is my pendant, pet?” Ike said, though this time he appeared in front of them.

Kerry leaped to attack him, but Ike was tossed clear across the yard before Kerry’s teeth could get close. Cynthia waved her hand from the porch where she’d taken cover, holding Ike to the ground with thick, wild roots.

Demetria smiled at her, though it was short-lived when Dom knocked Cynthia down the steps with a gust of wind. Dan attacked Dom from the back, tearing at his neck, and making Dom cry out in pain.

Demetria almost felt sorry for him and all the hell his siblings had brought him, but she couldn’t deal with it now. She needed to protect the pendant as long as she could.

The beast roared from somewhere behind her, followed by the sound of a wolf crying for help, and a loud thump. Demetria was too nervous to look back because a hellhound made his way toward the both of them.

Demetria braced her feet solidly on the ground, where she gathered her strength, and sent all the power she could gather toward the snarling beast. Leaves and debris floated into a circle around him, confusing him, until he became irate, and began trying to bite at the funnel. Demetria closed her eyes, imagining snapping the beast’s neck, when Claire barreled in from out of nowhere and did it for her.

Claire’s eye twinkled in the moonlight, the hellhound hanging from her mouth when Demetria looked at her.

Demetria chuckled when Claire's wolf tossed the hellhound to the side like a doll.

A piercing pain hit Demetria’s back, and she began to lift from the ground. She knew Ike stood behind her without looking. Kerry jumped, tugging at the ends of her pants, and began to pull her back to the ground— but they ripped, leaving her leg bare.

She felt Cynthia’s magic pull at Ike’s, and her body began to waver in the air, but Demetria was rendered helpless by his magic.

“Let her go!” Cynthia shouted at Ike.

But Ike’s laugh was an indication that he didn’t plan to do anything they asked. “Where is the pendant?” he asked through the crazed chaos around them. “Tell me where you hid it, you little witch.”

Demetria’s body was loosened so she could answer Ike’s question, but she refused to do so. She refused to give it away so easily.

Ike chuckled. “Stubborn witches think they can win,” he said, appearing on the porch steps.

Kerry jumped at him, missing by a few inches, and turning a quick circle in hopes of catching him again.

The beast roared several yards away, wolves hanging on his fur like children clinging to their mothers. The alpha— Kitty, Roan, whatever his name was— flung a hellhound at the beast’s head. He then leaped into the air, grabbing Demetria, and hauling her down with his weight.

His body sliced through the magic, though she felt him fighting to break through it. When he landed, he smiled down at her. “I did watch you in the shower a few times,” he said. Kerry’s growl did little to deter him from putting Demetria down and glancing around for Ike. “He’s good at this game,” he told her, "but you can always see a small spot of earth move with his footsteps."

Demetria watched as Roan found him quickly, launched forward, and took Ike to the ground. Ike screamed, rolling around with Roan, then leaped up, pressing his palm against his hair to fix it. He glared at Demetria. “You’re going to show me where that pendant is, little witch.”

Demetria sent a beam of light toward him, knocking him back, while Cynthia sent a boulder down from the sky on top of his head. His scream hit Demetria’s ears and she felt as if it shattered her eardrums.

Kerry pawed at the ground beside her, and when she glanced down, she realized something was wrong. She glanced around while Ike attempted to get up with Cynthia raining hellfire down on him, and saw Alpha Davers gasping for breath, Dom standing over him.

“Go,” she whispered, shoving him away. “Go save him.”

Kerry didn’t want to go, his eyes told her so, but he leaped and hit Dom mid-air. Alpha Davers stumbled up and shook himself off, finding two wolves trying to take down a hellhound.

She felt fur against her back again, but she sensed it was Claire. Cynthia fell back to the porch in exhaustion, her hand lowering as she tried to catch her breath. Ike crawled to a standing position, his clothes torn and ratty, his body bruised from the hellfire.

His icy stare narrowed in on Demetria and then Claire. “There is the mutt that started all of my problems. The one that took my pendant. You think I’m scared because you’re a hybrid.”

Claire snarled.

Ike grinned. “You’re going to regret the day your dad ever screwed your mother, mutt.”

Ike took a few steps, bracing his arms at the array of creatures ready to kill him, and whispered under his breath.

Demetria felt the earth cracking beneath her, and the ground began to separate. Cynthia crawled to her feet, searching the yard for Dan who held Dom in one of his hands, and then she looked at Demetria.

“Run,” she whispered.

Demetria shook her head slowly. She wasn’t running anymore from Ike. She was finished running. She didn’t care if he caused an earthquake, brought all the hellhounds up to the surface, or unleashed seven more beasts.

This was ending tonight.