Chapter Twelve

CHAPTER TWELVE

Amalie didn't really see any other choice. She left the safety of her bedroom and went downstairs. She took a deep breath before opening the back door into the garden and stepping out onto the patio. A streak of orange fur shot out of the door before she could stop him, and she despaired of the fact that now Mr. Humblebee might get hurt out here too, but there was nothing she could do about it. At least he'd headed straight for the undergrowth and disappeared. Maybe he was just scared and wanted to hide. Amalie hoped that was the case.

Mrs. Entwistle was waiting for her on the grass, just at the end of the paved patio. That's where Amalie's ward on the patio area ended.

She wasn't sure if that's what kept Entwistle off the pavers or if she was just staying there to mess with Amalie's head. Everything Amalie had seen so far tonight—demon summoning, seeing through her lattice of spells, and all the rest indicated a mage of much higher power and skill than Mrs. E had portrayed to the coven. Much higher. She could probably walk through Amalie's ward on the patio with impunity. Amalie had to remember to take nothing at face value. Entwistle was both clever and crafty. And a total evil bitch, of course. That too.

"There, now. That wasn't so difficult," Mrs. Entwistle taunted, smiling broadly as she saw Amalie. "Of course, the next part isn't going to be very nice for you, but them's the breaks, as they say." Entwistle shrugged extravagantly as if she was performing some kind of comedy act, then raised her hands toward Amalie, preparing some sort of assault.

But Amalie wasn't going to take this standing still. She was going to fight, and fight hard. No way would she go quietly into the night with this evil old hag.

Billy saw Amalie dodge a fireball that suddenly appeared near the back of the house, on the patio. What the hell was going on there? Amalie was supposed to be safe inside, tucked into her safe room. Why the fuck had she come out here?

Then, Billy saw the old woman. Mrs. E had snuck in and lured Amalie out. Son of a bitch.

His concentration broken, the bull-creature got in a lucky swipe of his claws over Billy's left side and down his abdomen. He yelped in pain and went down under the bull-creature's hefty pounce. It had him pinned to the ground, and Billy was just shaking his head at his own stupidity. Loss of focus might just cost him his life. His brothers would never let him hear the end of it, if he managed to live through this.

Billy was devising a strategy when a blaze of pure gold roared through the air, hitting the bull-creature from the side and pushing him off Billy. The bull-thing tumbled away a good few yards in the same direction as the golden blur, which, Billy realized belatedly, was Gavin in his lion form. The kid had good timing. That was for sure. And he was absolutely massive in his lion form.

He might even be a little bigger than Billy. Maybe. But either way, he was a good ally to have in this fight. Jumping to his feet in one swift move, Billy maneuvered his way toward Gavin as they faced the monster together.

He spared a quick glance for Amalie to see her sending him a hand signal. One of the ones he'd taught her. Smart woman. She was asking him to hold position and be ready. He could do that. He just wasn't sure what he was supposed to be ready for, but knowing Amalie, it was likely something magical. He assumed he'd know it when he saw it.

"Oh, how cute," Mrs. E said, glancing back over her shoulder. "Now, there are two of them. One for me, and one for the Tauror. Yummy."

Amalie felt sick at her glee, but thought she detected just the faintest shadow of doubt in Entwistle's tone. Had she not counted on Amalie and Billy having backup nearby?

"What's the matter? Did you think we were going to make this easy? You should have summoned more than just that one pathetic creature," Amalie pounced, taunting the old woman as she raised her hands in preparation for opening a portal.

Since Amalie had never opened a portal in front of any of the coven members before, they likely didn't know what that looked like. Hopefully, Entwistle would be ignorant of what Amalie was doing until it was too late to stop her. Amalie aimed for a place over Entwistle's shoulder, very close to where the men were fighting the Tauror.

"Next time, I'll summon more. Thanks for the advice," Entwistle said in a testy voice. She raised her hands to ward off Amalie's spell, but it wasn't aimed at Entwistle, so her defenses had no effect.

Amalie rotated her right hand, her fingers held in a specific pattern, and opened a portal to the second demon realm. The magic spun, and the vortex swished open easily under Amalie's skilled guidance. She'd been opening portals from a young age and it was a skill one never forgot, even if she hadn't used it in a while.

"Now, Billy!" she shouted, but Billy didn't need any urging.

He and Gavin were herding the Tauror toward the portal, and the moment the creature touched it, Amalie used the vortex to suck it in, snapping it closed behind. The Tauror was gone.

Amalie turned to face Entwistle, but she was gone. She'd run once her demon was sent back from whence it had come. She might be more powerful than she'd let on, but maybe not as dangerous as Amalie had feared if she'd run at the first sign of trouble with her plan.

It wasn't much of a plan, really. It relied on the fear a Tauror would generate to those not familiar with dimension travel. But Billy was made of sterner stuff than that, and Amalie had insider knowledge that not even the Marsh Witches could boast.

She ran over to Billy and checked his injuries. The gouges were deep, but he was still standing. He put one arm around her and hugged her to his side.

"You did great, Amalie," he complimented her. "Even if you did break with the plan and come outside." He sent her a wink that softened his words.

" My plan—" she emphasized that first word, "—didn't count on having anyone other than myself to worry about. It would've been fine had I been alone, but I couldn't let you face that demon all on your own. Especially not when Entwistle started hexing you to make you lose your footing." She wanted to growl.

"Is that what that was? I couldn't figure why I was suddenly so clumsy," Billy said, clearly surprised by the revelation. "I'm glad it wasn't me, but damn. That was almost too effective. I didn't know witches could do something like that."

"It's an old trick. Really basic magic. But it does come in handy sometimes. Especially popular with people who like to play dirty tricks on others," she told him as Gavin came over. She looked up at the man who was now fully dressed and back in his human form. "Thank you for racing to our rescue," she said, smiling brightly. She held out her hand. "I'm Amalie."

"Gavin Kinkaid," he said, shaking her hand politely. She noticed that he moderated his grip, which would likely have crushed her hand if he'd been using his full strength. "Happy to help."

"I wonder if we've seen the last of Mrs. E?" she said, turning back to Billy. "She didn't expect me to be so powerful. I never really let on much about my abilities when I was living among the coven. She probably thought I was weak, and that's why I lived with my grandmother and never participated in the coven's activities. We didn't advertise what I really am or what I can do. I wanted to live a normal life," Amalie admitted with a shrug. She figured Gavin had already seen her power. No use tiptoeing around it after the fact. "Helps me now, since I was able to take her by surprise. She won't come back here until she gathers allies strong enough to take me on."

"But this location is totally blown," Gavin said, his tone low with warning. "You can't stay here."

Amalie shook her head. "Yeah, I know." She looked around at the backyard that she'd enjoyed so much. "It's a shame. I really liked this place. But you're right. Time to circle the wagons. Maybe I'll go back and help Gran. Sounds like the coven could use all the power it can get right now to keep everybody safe." She looked at Billy and the pain he was trying to hide. "But the first thing is to get you patched up. Gavin, do you know any true healers in the area? It's going to take something special to make sure all the demon taint is ousted from those wounds."

Gavin was shaking his head. "I'm afraid not. The closest I know of—and I did research on the area before I left on this mission—is several hours away."

"Then, there's no help for it. I'm going to take you home with me, Billy. Gavin, have you ever been to the fey realm before?" she asked, clearly shocking both men. She almost giggled at their bug-eyed expressions.

"No, ma'am," Gavin replied slowly, as if unsure that he'd heard her words correctly.

"Are you sure we should take him with us?" Billy said. She liked the way he put them together as if his going with her was a foregone conclusion.

"We can't just leave him here for Mrs. E and her allies, should they rally sooner than we expect. And they're likely to follow him home if we don't hide his trail with magic. Easiest way I know is to take him away from here and bring him back somewhere else."

"You can do that?" Gavin asked, his incredulity showing on his face as slack-jawed amazement.

Amalie shrugged in acceptance. Her cover had been blown, and it was time for her to accept what she was and let those who could be trusted in on her secret. Gavin had proven himself when he'd leapt in to save Billy as far as she was concerned. Even if Billy never acknowledged the Kinkaid Clan, Amalie would always include Gavin among her trusted circle.

"I'm a Portal Master," she revealed to the younger lion.

"No way." Gavin looked at her with total amazement as she nodded.

"It's part of my heritage," she affirmed. "So, we're going to the fey realm to visit my folks and find some healing for Billy. Then, either I or my father will portal you back to the mortal realm, wherever you wish to be returned. Do you have anything in your vehicle or elsewhere that you need to bring with you?"

"No, ma'am. I travel light when on a mission, and everything I need is on my person. The car was a rental and is parked a few blocks over," Gavin reported.

"We won't be returning here, and perhaps we can call on the shifter or wicca networks to deal with your car and anything I have to leave behind." She got up and headed for the house. "Keep watch. I'm going to get my go bag, and then, we'll head out. Billy, let Gavin know if there's anything you want from the shed. I'll get anything you left in the house."

Decisions were coming to her hard and fast. She felt invigorated to finally have things coming to a head. It was as if she'd been living her life in limbo, just waiting for things to start happening. And now, they had.

She hadn't expected to feel so determined to mix it up and fight against evil. Maybe that was what she'd been missing all along. She made a quick round of the house, taking the things that mattered most and the bag she'd kept packed with her personal I.D. and electronics. She wouldn't need them in the fey realm, but she couldn't leave them behind with all their information, just in case the enemy got through her wards and ransacked this house. She'd have someone else come and pack everything of hers up later and send it on to wherever she landed. Possibly Long Island with her grandmother.

Possibly somewhere else, if Billy wanted to prolong their dalliance and turn it into something a bit more lasting. She was hoping for the latter result with all her heart, but she wasn't going to pressure him. She had a feeling that, for shifters, it was either forever or not, and nothing she said or did could change it. So far, she wasn't sure what he was thinking, and they hadn't really had time to talk about anything too deep, so she'd keep hope alive.

It only took about five minutes to get what she needed from the house. She'd grabbed anything of Billy's that he'd left behind, but there wasn't much. Gavin had helped Billy into his discarded clothes, including the sheathed blades and holstered weapons by the time she got back outside. Good. It really wouldn't do for her to show up with a naked guy on her parents' doorstep.

"Do you need anything from the shed?" she asked Billy as she approached with her bag slung over her shoulder and bouncing heavily against her backside.

Billy looked at Gavin, and the younger man trotted to the shed, emerging in moments with Billy's small duffel bag. He returned in less than a minute.

"I kept it packed for the most part," Billy explained as he levered himself up from the little bench that was part of the landscaping.

Amalie frowned. He looked worse than he had just a few minutes before.

"Time to get you to a healer," she said, taking his arm and helping him up. "Lean on me," she whispered to him, for his ears only. She was gratified when he put one arm around her shoulders without demur. "Gavin, stand on my other side and walk through when we do. I don't like to keep portals open any longer than I have to."

"Understood," Gavin said, hefting Billy's bag in one hand. "Are you sure about this?"

She sent Gavin a smile. "Of course. It won't drain me. I was born to do this. And we're going to my family home. My folks will welcome you on my behalf and then send you back wherever you want to go. It'll break the trail for anybody who tries to follow you, and you'll get a cool story to tell your grandkids someday. The Time I Went to Faerie by Gavin Kinkaid," she teased.

He chuckled and looked relieved. "Well, if you're really sure," he said in reply.

"I'm really sure. Now, don't dawdle. Step when I step, and we'll see you on the other side," she promised with a wink.

Then, she called the energies she seldom used unless she was going to visit her folks. She was keyed in to the family portal. The one nobody without the proper magical signature could access. There were some privileges in being a Portal Master, and her father had made a portal that she could easily access, but no one else could find. Right next to her family home.

The light blue, pink and purple of the fey realm mixed with the gray of the Between and the vortex formed between one eyeblink and the next. She widened it out so that it was big enough to encompass the three of them, then stepped through with Billy leaning more heavily on her than before. Yes, it was past time they got him to a mage healer. Luckily, they had one at the castle.