Chapter 8

Eight

Adrian

It took a week for Donna to say that Calista was ready. She trained nonstop and most days Draxos had to drag her upstairs for her to quit. Calista also hasn’t said a word about what happened with her dad, and it’s not for lack of us trying to get her to open up. She always says that this is more important and she would deal with it later.

Calista steps back from Donna, closes her eyes, takes a deep breath, and we watch her skin start glowing from within. The electricity no longer runs across her skin without her permission. She still has a lot to learn, but she’s done amazing. She still doesn’t realize how powerful she is though.

“She’s magnificent,” Draxos murmurs, watching Calista weave a spell.

“She is,” I agree.

“It’s time,” Donna says with a smile. I’m almost convinced that she’s been telling the truth. We knew all about the witches in the Underworld, so we understood about the ancestors. They only tell you the information you need to know and only allow you to share what they see fit.

We finally figured out why we had to wait for Calista to turn twenty-one. To a witch, that’s the turning point for their powers. The only thing we still don’t know is what the prophecy actually was. We know Donna said part of it was to keep evil in the Underworld, but there’s more to it that we don’t know.

“It’s time for what?” Draxos asks, stretching his legs out in front of him.

“It’s time for you to go home.”

My heart starts hammering in my chest, and we exchange a look. This is the moment we’ve been wanting, but it always means taking Calista to a place we know nothing about right now. After what went down with her father, she’s decided she has nothing holding her here anymore. She seems at peace with that decision, and it has nothing to do with the fact that she’ll be royalty down there. She just wants to be with us.

“What happens now?” I ask.

“We’ll need some supplies, but tomorrow will be your best time.”

“Why?” Calista asks, walking over and crawling into my lap. I love how affectionate she is because it matches me perfectly.

“All Hallows Eve, darling. It’s when the veil is thinnest between the worlds.”

Calista snorts. “Of course it’s Halloween.”

Draxos lays his hand on her thigh and squeezes. “Is there anything you want to do here before we leave?”

Calista’s face turns red. “It’s going to sound stupid.”

“Nothing that comes from that mouth will ever sound stupid, my Queen.”

“I kind of want to take my boyfriends to a Halloween party. No one will ask any questions, and I’ve never been to one. Just the costume party where I met you.”

“I think it’s a good idea,” I agree.

“Will you dress as a slutty nun this time?” Draxos asks, making Calista smack him in the chest.

“My mom is right there.” That situation hasn’t really changed. Calista is trying, but she still blames her mom for what she went through growing up. Draxos doesn’t think we can trust Donna, but I think we can.

Donna laughs and sits on the edge of her cot. “I hear everything, Calista.”

“Oh my God,” Calista groans, covering her face with her hands. “I’m going to die now.”

“None of that.” Draxos tugs her hands away from her face and kisses her knuckles. “If you want to go, we’ll gladly escort you.”

I’m pretty sure Draxos will never say no to her.

With a plan in place to start the spell right at eleven p.m., we wait downstairs for Calista to get ready. I’ve never seen someone so excited for a party, and her excitement is addicting.

“Are you fucking serious?” I hear Draxos ask and turn to watch Calista walking down the stairs. When she gets to the bottom, she does a twirl, laughing.

“What? I thought it was fitting.”

Calista is dressed as a sexy witch, complete with a pointy hat. The dress hits her mid-thigh, and my mouth starts watering. “I think you look gorgeous, baby.”

“Of course you do,” Draxos says dryly. “She’s always gorgeous. Are you ready?”

Calista pulls Draxos down to her level and pecks his lips. “Let’s go.”

Draxos wraps us in his shadows, and we land in the forest behind the party. The bass is thumping so loud that we can hear it all the way out here. Draxos grabs our hands and leads up the path. When we start walking through all the people standing around drinking and staring, I want to hide like we’ve gotten used to.

“No one knows,” Calista whispers. “They just think it’s a really good costume.”

“Like you did?” Draxos comments, pulling us into the house.

“What do you expect? You approached me at a costume party with horns and an attitude.”

“I did not have an attitude,” Draxos argues, making Calista laugh.

“Calista!”

A blonde tornado runs toward Calista, and I watch Draxos tense, ready to defend her. “Chloe!”

They hug, and Chloe pulls away, her eyes widening when she sees us. “You’ve been busy I see.”

“This is Adrian and Draxos,” Calista introduces, pride in her voice. “I met them a couple weeks ago.”

“I see.” Chloe can feel something wrong with us, just like every human can. They’re immediately wary, and Chloe is no different. “I didn’t think you were going to show. You kind of fell off the planet.”

“I’ve been a little busy,” Calista answers. “But I wouldn’t miss the epic Halloween party.”

Chloe grabs her hand and tugs her away from us. “Where have you been?” We follow behind them, not wanting to let Calista out of our sight. I don’t feel anything off with Chloe, so I know she isn’t a shapeshifter, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t mean Calista harm. “You’ve been short in your texts, and you haven’t been home.”

“I’ve been with them,” Calista answers, getting slightly defensive. “I didn’t think I needed to check in. I moved out of my dad’s so I didn’t have to.”

Chloe’s entire demeanor changes from interrogating to happy. “Oh. That’s not what I mean, and you know it. I’m happy for you.”

Draxos gives me a look that I know all too well, and he slips into the shadows. When I look back, he’s already gone, probably searching the house. Something is definitely off. Calista turns around and raises a brow. “He went to get drinks,” I answer, hopefully giving her a reassuring smile.

Calista lets Chloe lead her into the living room where more people are dancing. When Chloe tries to pull her further into the house, Calista pulls her arm free and turns to me. She wraps her arms around my neck and starts swaying her hips. “Something is wrong,” she whispers. Damn, my woman is smart.

“I know,” I answer, pulling her closer. “Draxos is already searching.” I look over Calista’s shoulder at Chloe, and she’s glaring at the back of Calista’s head. “Either she’s jealous, or something bigger is going on.”

“Something bigger,” Draxos answers, walking to stand behind Calista. “We need to leave, but not make it obvious.”

“So no shadows?” Calista asks, trying her best not to look around.

“No.”

“What did you find?” I ask.

“Not here.” Draxos starts moving with us after placing his hands on Calista’s hips. “We’ll talk about it once we’re out of here. Might as well make the best of it while we’re here.”

Draxos moves Calista’s hair to the side and kisses the side of her neck. I lean down to kiss her, and Calista sighs into my mouth. No matter how many times I kiss or touch her, it feels like the first time. We stay locked like that until Calista’s hips start moving between us, begging for more. I pull back and peck her lips. “Later,” I promise.

“You bet your ass later,” she jokes. “I like seeing you on your knees for me.”

“That’s so dirty,” I groan. “You know what that does to me.”

“I’m going to take you home,” Calista continues, “put you on your knees right in front of my pussy, but I won’t let you touch me.”

“Why not?” I ask, my breathing already getting rapid. Draxos and Calista both lean into my submissive side, and I love it. I can be dominant with her too but prefer to leave that to Draxos.

“I’m going to make you watch him touch me.” The him in question slides his hand between us, rubbing her pussy through her dress. The back of his hand rubs my cock, and I have to choke off a moan. They know exactly how to drive me crazy and use it against me. “You’ll have to watch his big, strong fingers bring me over the edge and watch my cum dripping down my thighs. If you’re a really good boy, I’ll let you clean it off.”

“I’ll be such a good boy,” I promise, the vision already filling my head. She wasn’t sure how far to push at first, but with Draxos’ urging, she’s become a pro at bending me to her will.

“Oh,” Calista breathes, and I look between us. Draxos has slipped his hand under her dress and her arousal hits me full force.

“As much as I don’t want to break this up,” Draxos rasps. “We need to start making our way out. Adrian, grab her hand and start leading her away. Slowly. We still have an audience.”

I peek over Draxos’ shoulder, and Chloe is standing there, tapping her foot with her arms crossed over her chest. I kiss Draxos, grab Calista’s hand, and start leading her to the door. Draxos walks behind us, I’m sure more than ready to get us out of here.

“Calista!” Chloe calls out, her voice friendly, but there’s an edge to it. “You just got here.”

I start moving a little faster, and something strange slides across my spine. Draxos’ shadows cover us and then disappear just as fast. Something is very wrong. I spin around to face Draxos, and he’s just as confused as me. “What just happened?” I ask.

“You didn’t think you’d get away that easily, did you?” Chloe asks, coming to stand beside us. She grabs Calista’s arm, and Calista gasps.

“You’re a witch.”

“Took you long enough,” Chloe snarks, and Draxos growls under his breath. “Did you think I’d willingly hang out with you for all these years?”

“Who are you?” Draxos barks.

“That is none of your concern. But I will tell you that you aren’t going to win this battle. Everything is already in place in the Underworld, and we’re set to take over. All that needs to disappear is her.”

Chloe lunges for Calista, but I’m faster. I spin, and every bit of power surging through Chloe lands on my back. My roar sounds far away even to my own ears, and black spots start dancing in my vision. My knees buckle, and Draxos arms come around me.

“Adrian!” Calista cries. “What did you do to him?”

I hit my knees, my head leaning back on Draxos’ shoulder. My eyes catch on something on the ceiling, and when I open my mouth to say something, nothing comes out. There are symbols painted on the ceiling that are slowly draining our power, which is how Chloe stopped Draxos from using his shadows. We walked into a fucking trap, and I can’t warn them. I try to talk again, and it’s like all the breath is sucked from my lungs. I hear the yelling going on around me and dig my fingernails into Draxos’ arm to get his attention. With all my strength, I point at the ceiling and make sure that he looks.

Then pass out.