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I know Rune cares for her—I feel it.
His guilt bleeds through his anger as he stares at the small cottage. “Our relationship with the Algiers pack is already teetering on a razor’s edge. We know where Josie is and that she’s tough. She’s got both a werewolf kill, and a vamp kill under her belt. We have a bit of time to figure this out.”
It’s not just me he’s convincing, and when I catch his worried gaze studying Sebastian, I understand his hesitation.
Our king has already killed one Moon Witch. We don’t need him to add to that list. That doesn’t mean I’ll leave Josie to fend for herself.
Rune can stay here and babysit our Mad King if he wants. If the Moon Witches have Josephine, I don’t care about the werewolves. I don’t care about the possibility of war. I don’t care if humans discover the truth about the supernatural.
“The only thing I care about is getting my Unity Witch back and taking her home.” I pull out of Sebastian’s grasp and take off with vampire speed across the water-logged grass.
Sebastian curses behind me, but I’ve always been faster than him.
SEBASTIAN
“There’s no way this ends well for us,” Rune says.
With a sideways glance at my second-in-command, I note the tension in his stance—even in his voice. Every muscle in his Viking-built, massive body is tightly coiled.
He is as eager for this rescue mission as Fintan.
This is certainly a switch in character for them. Usually, it’s Rune who almost gets us killed with rash decisions and his penchant for a fight. Lately, however, our red-headed Celt has been attempting to take the title from him. By racing straight at the Moon Witch cabin in full attack mode, he might just overtake his impressive sire for the recklessness record.
Finn knows the risks associated with sticking our necks out and interfering with Moon Witch, and subsequently, werewolf business.
It will put the past twenty-five years of hostile peace on the line. Not that I wouldn’t immensely enjoy taking out some pent-up rage on a group of werewolves.
Now that’s my kind of therapy.
I can’t dwell on that thought for long. We’re toeing so close to the line with the Algiers pack that even wishing for an altercation could trigger another war—one that would affect every supernatural and human in the city.
Possibly even beyond.
Still, Fintan is making that decision for all of us without a second thought, kicking up swampy muck as he sprints toward guaranteed disaster.
He’s changed. The pragmatic young vampire I knew would never be so foolhardy. It’s Josephine’s influence on him. Fintan is incapable of thinking past the hold that damned unity bond has on him.
And so, we are drawn into the chase.
I’m having a hard time holding my head above water on that front, too. But I also know being bound and mated to a Dumont witch is no better than a death sentence.
As the door swings wildly inward, several things happen at once.
First, I’m both surprised and relieved to find that, by some stroke of luck, there is no werewolf ambush waiting for us on the other side.
There are no werewolves here at all.
Second, we get a glimpse of a dozen Moon Witches huddled around the impressively sized trunk of an old bald cypress that, by the count of its rings, was older than me when it was chopped down and turned into a tabletop for witches.
And third, amidst it all, we spot our Unity Witch—the never-ending source of my ire.
Josephine Dumont.
My gaze narrows as I take her in, assessing the witch with a mix of irritation and, reluctantly, relief.
She appears unharmed.
“Josie.” Rune steps forward and collides with an invisible force field that stops him short with a grunt, the air rippling in the open doorway.
