AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She smacked Tony on the back of the head. “Because Gio says we don’t call the police!” She said it like it was the most obvious thing in the entire world, and Tony actually seemed chastened.
“If you hadn’t noticed yet, there’s magic going on outside,” Gio snarled.
“Lucien is shooting fire from his hands!” called out his cousin Annabella.
“How are you going to explain that to the cops?” Gio demanded.
Tony flushed, rubbing his head. “I don’t know, but people are shooting at our house.”
“Who are these people, Vanni?” his father asked.
“They’re called pestilents, and they are trying to kill all humans,” Gio explained quickly as he tried to sneak another look out the window at Lucien. Now wasn’t the time to get into it.
“Well, that’s not nice at all,” his great-aunt Mary declared from where she sat in the corner working on knitting. “You need to tell them to go away.”
“Definitely not welcome at our party,” his great-aunt Donna added.
“We can’t sit here and do nothing!” Tony shouted to be heard over the sudden rising tide of conversation about interlopers to their parties.
“We’re not,” Gio growled. Keeping low, Gio hurried to the rear of the house, cutting through the dining room to the kitchen where Wiley was still standing in the kitchen at the big center island, typing away on his phone. “Tell me you’ve got something.”
Wiley lifted fear-filled eyes as he shook his head. “No. There’s nothing I can do here. All the protection spells that I’ve found take most of the Weavers Circle and lots more ingredients than I can find here. Even if I started hunting down substitutes for stuff, we’re talking hours of prep, and then I still won’t be strong enough to cast on my own.”
But if he’d just accepted his fate as Lucien’s and Calder’s mate, he might have magical powers right now, a gift that could be helping the three men who were risking their lives right now to protect him and his family.
“Fuck!” Gio shouted, shoving both his hands into his hair. He hurried over to the window over the sink that looked into the backyard. The bonfire had been extinguished, but he could still see Calder from the lights on the house. Water swirled and crashed around him, consuming dozens of creatures that were attempting to reach him. He was holding his own, killing them steadily, but how long could he keep this up?
“Gio?”
He turned to see his mother’s concerned expression. “Ma, I can’t stay in here and do nothing. I need to get out there and help them.”
“Of course, honey. You need to go protect your men. They’re risking their lives to keep us safe. We can’t stay in here and do nothing.”
“You will stay in here where it’s safe. I’ll handle this.” Gio marched over to the butcher block and pulled out the meat cleaver. Not the best weapon, but it would have to do. He was not leaving Calder, Lucien, and Baer out there without more help.
“Absolutely not!” His mother puffed up, her shoulders straight and chin up as she stormed across the kitchen and jerked open one of the drawers. Reaching inside, she pulled out her heavy marble rolling pin and thrust it at him. “Use this. You’ll ruin that knife too quickly, and your father will have to buy me an entire new set of knives just to replace the one. A good rolling pin is much easier to replace.”
Yes, his mother was always frightfully practical. And in this case, the rolling pin could be swung like a baseball bat. Much easier than slicing and stabbing. Putting the knife on the kitchen counter, Gio snatched the pin out of her hand and pressed a kiss to her cheek.
“Stay in here and keep your head down,” he ordered.
His mother snorted. “We’re helping. We didn’t teach you boys to run from a fight. We protect our own.”
Before Gio could argue, his parents were shouting orders at the other adults, rounding up the kids to go into safe places in the house while others armed themselves with whatever they could find.
“Wow,” Wiley said on a loud exhale. “Your family is crazy.”
“Yes, they are.”
Wiley looked over at him and flashed him a wide grin. “I like them.”
“Russos don’t run from a fight.”
“Neither do Weavers.” Wiley grabbed the cast iron skillet off the stovetop and moved toward the door. He was reaching for the handle and suddenly stopped, his head tilting to the side a little.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Good news actually.” Wiley blinked and glanced up at Gio. “Baer has gotten some hawks, bobcats, and wolves in the area to come help. He thinks the tide is finally turning in our favor. Spread the word to your family not to hurt any animals they spot.”
Gio nodded and turned toward the living room where he gave Wiley’s good news and then returned to the back door. It seemed the safest exit compared to the flying fireballs. He slipped out onto the patio and stood mesmerized by Calder for a moment. His arms moved smoothly through the air and the water danced to his every whim. Dozens of creatures were captured within its crystalline depths, slowly dying as the water filled their lungs. Even in the dim light, Gio could see that the water held a pink tint.
