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What? It’s not my fault! It charged all night and was full this morning, asshole. Something drained it. And it wasn’t me using it, either.I want to cut that thought off at the knees before Fielder can snarl the accusation at me.
Can Kohaku do any cool demon shit to get you out of there?
I blink at the new voice.Cohen?
Yeah, wildcard, it’s me.I want to ask how in the hell he’s able to break into our spell, but honestly, I shouldn’t be surprised. Cohen can use magic in ways that the guys have never even dreamed of. I bet it drives them crazy.
I cannot get our mate out of the woods before they are upon us. If she urged me into a demon form, I might have been able to teleport us, but as it is, I am a kitsune.
If I tried to urge you toward a demon now would that… Would you have that ability?
Kohaku tenses in front of me, reaches one hand behind him to grip my hip and urges me to stay still. But he takes the time to answer.I do not believe so. You chose my form when I first manifested. I am limited in my powers now.
Well, fuck.
Of course, I’d be the one to fuck this up. If I’d,I don’t know, asked him what he wanted to be, it might be different. We might already be back in Osprey Falls, but instead I am stuck here being hunted and-
All thoughts cut off at the loudcrack!that sounds through the forest. All the birds are silent. I strain my ears to hear over the too loud pounding of my heart. Kohaku steps back, moving me with him until my butt presses into the fallen tree behind us.
What do we do?I ask him, my fingers curling into his shirt to steady myself.Do we run?
You better tell us what the fuck is going on, Sweeney.
I don’t answer. I don’t think I could. Because I’m hyper focused on the woods around us, on any movement. I’m tempted to close the link, to not have the distraction. But if something goes really bad, I don’t want to have to reactivate it.
In the next moment, five bodies emerge from the trees forming a loose semicircle around us. They’re dressed like hunters, bright orange vests, weird brown camouflage, which really seems like an oxymoron in an outfit. I want to blend in, but also here’s a super bright color, so I don’t accidentally get shot by one of my friends.
Three of them are wearing backpacks, and all of them have what I assume are hunting rifles cradled in their hands. But I don’t know anything about guns, so they could be Uzis and I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.
Kohaku glances at me over his shoulder, and his mouth tightens. I don’t know what he’s sensing from them, but whatever this is, it’s not good. Really not good. Then his gaze flicks up to something behind me and his eyes narrow.
I know without looking that there are more of these people behind us. He’d said he thought we were being hunted by eight beings. There are five in front of us, so that means there are at least three behind us.
Really freaking great. But at least they just look like humans, not some kind of monster or demon or whatever.
We can probably talk our way out of this. Just two stupid city folks who got lost in the woods. They’ll buy that, right?
Rosalind, tell us what is happening right the fuck now,Fielder demands.
Rather than form words, I take a snapshot with my mind and send that along to them, just like I had when I woke up on that cliff.Hunters.
Cohen swears viciously. It’s not only anger I hear in his voice, but fear. He’s afraid for us. Why?
I look at the people surrounding us again. They all look normal. Most of them are older than me, nearing forty or so, but there is a young woman a few years older than me, and a guy who looks to be about my age. Those two bear a striking resemblance. Obviously they’re related, Most likely siblings.
Care to share why this is a bad thing, Faulkner?I almost don’t want to know the answer, but know that I’ll be better prepared to handle it if I have all the information.
But the two words he mutters back to me has a chill running down my spine, has a full body shiver shaking me, and goosebumps erupting over my skin.
Witch hunters.
Chapter 10
I blink at the two words echoing in my skull.
I’m sorry, what?My voice is a shriek even in my own head.Witch hunters? There are actual fucking witch hunters? Like Vin Diesel type mother fuckers whose sole purpose is to hunt us?
Calm down, wild card. Losing your shit right now is not going to help. If you don’t have a solid grip on your power, they’ll feel it. As of right now, you are just a twenty-year-old lost in the woods.
