Page 24 of Banishing Regrets

“No, not a chance in hell. The humans have shown their true nature, and I won’t rest until I’ve got every last one of them on their knees before me, even the ones you keep under your protection.” Nuka spat his words at Kas as he prowled closer and closer. “I mean it, brother. Either you stand with me or you’re against me. Give me the humans you have in your pack so I can make an example of them. If you don’t, I’ll bring the war to you. I’ll land everything on your doorstep while I continue to fight for dominance. Our faces are so similar. It makes me sad, sometimes, when I look in the mirror. I know you never had any desire to lead, but as the oldest you got all the power. Only a few minutes separated us at birth, but you got everything and deserved none of it. Make a decision, brother. Final chance—rule with me or die at the hands of the humans.”

Kas shook his head. He’d always hoped that deep down inside Nuka there was a compassionate side, making him worth saving. He knew now there was none of that. Jealousy and a desire for power had corrupted Nuka. At that very moment, Kas realized the only way to end this would be to kill his brother. He should do it now, but he couldn’t. He looked up at the ceiling.

“Jessica, there’s no hope here anymore. The man I thought was my brother has gone. There’s no way to get him back. Take me out of here so I can plan my war against him.”

Kas felt his body starting to dematerialize. He glanced at his brother, and the look of malevolence that came over the face that matched his own scared him. It wasn’t like looking at his own reflection anymore. They may have the same features, but where Kas’ expression was full of goodness, his brother’s was entirely evil.

The surroundings changed back to his office. Jane stood there, nervously nibbling on the tips of her fingernails.

“What happened?” she asked, looking him over for signs of a fight.

He went back to his desk chair and slumped down into it. He looked up at Jane as he considered the loss he might never fully come to terms with. The brother who’d shared their mother’s womb with him, the brother who’d laid beside him as they nursed, the brother who’d played with him as a cub was gone. Never to be seen again.

“Only one of us, Nuka or I, can survive this war, and the one that lives will be changed forever because they’ll have killed a fundamental part of themselves. I don’t know if I have the strength.”

Fifteen

Jessica threwthe herbs into the mixture of various liquids in the pot in front of her. This was ancient witchcraft at its finest, allowing the power to flow through her and into a potion that would hopefully remove the spell Ciaran had placed on Nuka’s grandfather.

“How’s it going?” Ethern appeared in the room, a swirl of black smoke accompanying him.

Jessica still couldn’t get used to the fact he was a whole different species now, a reaper as opposed to multi-shifter. At least he was alive and with her. When she’d thought he was dead, she’d really not wanted to carry on living.

“I’m just about to find out if it worked,” Jessica smiled at Ethern as he came to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He kissed her cheek.

“I’ll sit over to the side. I don’t want to disturb my genius at work.” He winked at her and made his way to sit on the couch she'd brought into her magic room just for him to sit on.

Ethern watched her intently as she flicked to the relevant spell in the book in front of her. It was the book handed down to her from her grandmother. She’d finally come to terms with it, and it was proving to be a great help in the fight again Nuka.

She traced her finger over the words and whispered them quietly.

“Gabh an draoidheachd seo a dh'fheumas mi a thoirt seachad, gluais e ann an incantations cumhachdach, a dh ’fhaodas tionndadh mì-nàdarrach, air ais ann an tìm, chun na bu chòir a bhith.”

Loosely translated from ancient Gaelic, it meant: Take this magic I have to give, shroud it in powerful incantations, and turn the unnatural back in time to what it should be.

The spell was designed to strip Nuka’s grandfather of all the magic that had brought him back to life. He died a long time ago, and that’s the way it should be.

Jessica held her hand over the potion and allowed the magic within her to flow out in the form of a bright light that wrapped itself around the pot. She repeated the words from the book.

“Gabh an draoidheachd seo a dh'fheumas mi a thoirt seachad, gluais e ann an incantations cumhachdach, a dh ’fhaodas tionndadh mì-nàdarrach, air ais ann an tìm, chun na bu chòir a bhith.”

Closing her eyes, she embraced the old magic, allowing it to combine with hers. It was powerful and intense, and she felt it cover her entire body. Ancient voices sang to her as she performed the spell, turning the potion into the potent magic she needed it to be.

The force of malevolence slammed into her before she had a chance to fight it. She heard Ciaran’s dark laughter, and she knew immediately the spell she was casting wasn’t going to give her what she needed. The druid had built in yet another fail-safe. She tried to push back against the force, to make the potion work, but she knew she was failing. She needed more time.

An explosion echoed around the room, and she was pushed backward against a wall. Her head slammed into it and dizziness engulfed her. Strong arms wrapped around her body, and she was carried away from the now cracked and empty pot. Her head continued to spin and the room seemed to be moving in circles.

“Jessica,” Ethern called to her as he laid her down on the couch. Hearing the concern in his voice, she tried to focus on him as he pushed stray tendrils of her hair away from her face. “Talk to me? Are you all right?”

She opened her mouth, but no words came out. She needed a minute to compose herself. The magic had taken a lot out of her, even though she was one of the most powerful witches on Earth.

She felt wetness at her lips, and sticking her tongue out, she brought the liquid into her mouth. Water. Ethern was giving her something to drink to revive her. She really was grateful he always managed to show up whenever she was doing a difficult spell.

Sadness washed over her—this time she’d failed.

This spell had been her last chance. She’d tried everything, and there were no more options. Nuka and his grandfather would be eternally linked. The only way to kill one was to kill the other. She’d really hoped to have spared Kas the pain, but she wouldn’t be able.

She felt the tears start to tumble down her cheeks, and the loud sob that escaped from her mouth echoed around the room.

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