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Chapter Thirteen
Elias
My whole body ached from the wards on the grounds. I could feel them pressing against me, urging me to leave. A lesser demon would have no chance of making it through here. With my royal blood, I could tolerate it. It wasn’t comfortable, but it was possible.
Hopefully, the mages we came to see were nearby and the conversation would be quick. I didn’t want to linger longer than needed.
The hair on my neck stood on edge. Something had changed and I didn’t think it had anything to do with the wards. An energy surrounded us, something closing us in.
Xander stopped walking.
“I feel it.” I knew he could sense the change.
“Something’s not right,” he said.
“Be ready,” I answered. We were in for a fight. That was clear.
I felt the shifters surrounding us before I saw them. My magic was dulled from the ancient wards, but I could still feel them.
Slowly, I turned so my back was to Xander. Snarling, growling wolves emerged from behind tombstones and from around the crumbling mausoleums. This was the sort of thing humans must imagine when they thought about shifters and other supernaturals.
In reality, unless you hardcore fucked up, you weren’t going to be attacked by a pack of wolf shifters. Especially not in their wolf form. They’d risk being seen and I knew they valued staying hidden. Even if I didn’t agree with it, they didn’t violate that.
This might be a magically warded cemetery, but it was still out in the open. There were no shadows to hide in, no cover of night. They were exposed.
And so were we.
I called my magic, summoning it to my fingertips. It fizzled and smoked, but it didn’t come. My heart pounded. The wards were keeping it away but it hadn’t stopped the shifters. This wasn’t good. I could rumble with the best of them, but I’d relied on my magic when outnumbered for so long, I wasn’t sure how I’d fare without it.
Fuck. I’d gotten too dependent on it. My dad would be so disappointed. Not that I was trying to impress him, but he’d spent decades paying for the best training money could buy so David and I could learn to fight sans magic.
The skills were there, but they were rusty.
I heard Xander shifting, his wolf form taking hold. It was time to fight. I stepped forward, knowing Xander had my back. We might be reluctant partners, but I knew he was honorable. He’d fight hard. Between the two of us, we might have a shot out of this.
Four wolves stalked toward me, growling and baring their teeth. Their hackles were raised and each step was slow and purposeful.
A yelp from behind me let me know Xander was already in the fray. I risked a glance behind me and saw a half dozen wolves snapping and attacking. I hoped he had it under control.
We didn’t have much of a choice.
I turned back to the wolves moving closer to me. I reached for my magic again on instinct. This time, it simmered in my palm, a tiny ball of lightning that would give me a boost.
That changed things. I wasn’t unarmed. Lifting my hands, I showed the power to the creatures. “You ready for this?”
One of the wolves powered froward, charging me at full speed. I got lower, and braced for impact.
As the wolf slammed into me, forearms raised, I pushed my hands forward, making contact with the soft underbelly of the creature. My magic sizzled, shocking the wolf.
It howled as it fell back but didn’t stay put. A moment later, the creature attacked again. This time, his companions joined in.
The wolves continued to charge me, slicing and biting as they surrounded me. I fought back. The magic was enough to get me out of tight spots but punching and kicking worked just as well to throw them off me.
The wolves were heavy and more than once, I’d lifted and thrown one off me. I didn’t want to kill the beasts, I knew they were likely controlled by the moonstone. I wanted them to back off, but that wasn’t happening.
Every time I got them away, they charged again. One of them was bleeding, its fur matted and red. Another was limping. They weren’t backing down. I had a feeling they would fight to the death. Even if they’d normally back down, the control of the stone was too strong.
I backed up, moving closer to a small stone structure that looked like an overlarge headstone or a small mausoleum without a door. Quickly, I jumped to the top of the structure, getting a momentary break from the wolves.
