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“Rikki,” I groan and see them dragging her kicking and screaming past me through the cloud of smoke. The space darkens and she blinks out.
29
Erica
“Rikki,” Riley groans before he passes out, and although I can just barely make him out with the smoke filling this place, I see his hand on the floor, reaching for something.
Hearing him call me that… God…
Two men in masks drag me out the door. One has me under my arms, and another has my ankles. I’m fighting despite the fact that my eyes and lungs are burning, but they’re much stronger than me.
I nail one in the nuts with my foot, and he grunts, then slaps me across the face. Hard. The tallest of the three guys, dressed like he’s part of a swat team shouts, “Forget her feet, cover her eyes! Gag her. Quick! Don’t let her see you or use her mouth. Fucking told you guys to be careful with your shit or she’ll cast a spell.”
“It’s hard Wyatt, workin’ against the alpha’s claiming scent,” one says, and now a hand covers my mouth. Another covers my eyes. Something gets tied too tight around my head and is pushed over my eyes.
“Let me go!” I try to shout anyway, but it comes out garbled.
I’m dropped roughly on my belly, and someone pushes my head down so my face is smushed into the wood as I try to drag in clean air.
Well, that’s some bullshit. I can cast a spell blindfolded and gagged. I don’t need to say a spell aloud or see these assclowns to do it.
“Push through,” the guy that’s still inside calls out. “He’s incapacitated and she’s ours for the taking. Don’t let her talk. But don’t fuckin’ smother her to death, I need the witch. Get her into the van and I’ll deal with them. Three fewer Arcana Falls super-alphas to worry about in one maneuver? It’s our lucky day, soldiers! Super-alphas? Such a bullshit abomination.”
The guy is venomous.
“If this is a witch with decent skills, I can get me the strength these seven have, no problem.”
How dare he threaten to deal with Riley after already hurting him! I’ll show him a spell…
Though… oh… oh shit; I can’t use magic. I can’t use it here.
Fuck. Fuck, fuck – wait… Not fuck.
I’m not actually in the village of Arcana Falls. I’m in between Drowsy Hollow town and the Arcana Falls hamlet.
A technicality. I’ll take it and hope I’m allowed. Though even still, he’s talking about hurting Riley! So screw the rules. Screw everything if it means Riley gets hurt.
And I can’t let them take me somewhere. Can’t let them ‘confiscate’ me. Can’t let that guy hurt my Riley or the other two wolf shifters that ran in to help. If I’m punished again, so be it.
I don’t let myself linger on rules or what ifs. I fight. I fight because the life of the man I love might depend on it. I can try to chant a spell in my head, but I don’t know how much goodwill I’ve got, not after all that’s happened lately. I need to ground myself. Even one of my limbs. Some part of me needs to be touching the earth so I can connect with that weeping willow and ask for help. I don’t know what kind of help it’ll share, but I have to try. I have to try something.
But hands grasp my wrists as someone is trying to tie them together. My ankles, too. So I kick, I struggle as something is shoved in my mouth.
I fight my way partly off the porch, falling to the grass, biting, kicking, and flailing blindly as I dig my toes into the grass, sending a request quickly to the weeping willow tree at the road. A request for energy. For help. So I can stop these guys. So I can save Riley and his friends. But it hits me that it’s not even necessary because vibrations are already zinging through me.
The zing didn’t start at my toes where I’m grounded. It’s coming from inside me, gushing through every part of me as power spurts from my pores. I’m easily able to shimmy the wrist binding off, then I haul the bandanas off my face as the men who had ahold of me have been blasted several feet away, as if by a massive whoosh of air. Lightning bug-like blue sparks flit around me. They’re crackling with energy. Energy of mine! I haul the bandana off my mouth before pointing at the one to my right.
A bolt of heat leaves my hand, cutting through the rope binding my hands and a visible bolt of energy zaps him in the chest, knocking him to the ground. He jerks and jolts repeatedly like he’s being electrocuted. My eyes dart to the other one who’s pointing his gun at me with fear in his eyes and I envision the negative life force that makes up who this guy is being pulled from his body. His skin starts smoking. He drops his weapon, twists to run, but falls flat on his face.
