Page 25 of Banishing Regrets

“Oh, baby,” Ethern pulled her close. “Don’t cry, it’s all right. We have other options.”

She shook her head.

“No, we don’t. That was the last one. I can’t separate them. Ciaran has built magical barriers everywhere I turn. This is never going to end. I can feel Ciaran’s magic growing by the day. He is just going to keep getting more and more powerful. I fear he’ll soon be strong enough to take on the dark magic again. What if I can’t stop him this time? What if he comes for you again and I can’t stop him from killing you? This is your last life, Ethern. I don’t want to lose you. I can’t. I won’t survive.”

These days, it seemed like the only thing the women in the pack did was cry in their partner’s arms, and Jessica was no different now. She’d always been strong, but she was finally falling apart.

“We will find a way, Jessica. I’m doing special favors for Death at the moment—it’s why I’m so busy. I’m hoping he’ll be able to help us with the fight in the long run. Maybe he’ll take the lives of those who deserve to die, and not the lives of those who just want a peaceful existence. We’ve got to remain positive, even when it’s hard. I know this is my last chance at life. I’ve had so many reincarnations now. There can’t be another one. I’ll be a reaper until Death chooses otherwise and sends me to Heaven or Hell, whatever he decides. But we can never give up hope. That’s something I’ve learned during my time spent with the Glacial Blood pack. The one thing that brings you all together, no matter what, is the hope for a better future. Many of you have had terrible, past experiences that have caused you great pain and suffering, but whatever life has thrown at you, none of you have ever given up hope. It’s the reason I adore being a part of your pack. Look at your books again, Jessica. We’ll sit here all night, and I’ll go through every single one with you if you want. One of them must contain a spell that will help us get through this and help start a new world we can all embrace.”

Jessica nodded at Ethern. He was always her voice of reason when she lost it. The magic coursing through her body was strong and powerful. It had turned her jet black hair as white as the fresh fallen snow. It had left her emotional and scared, but Ethern was her anchor. He was linked to her in ways no one else could ever understand. It was like he was inside her mind whenever she needed him, and it was why he’d appeared when she was trying to cast the spell that had proved impossible.

She turned her head to her scorched workbench and stared at the broken pot and putrid gloop spilling from it.

“We will beat this.” Jessica flicked her hand up in the air and summoned several magical texts to come to her. They’d been collected by the shifter council over the years, and when the Reichstag was destroyed, they’d been brought to her for safekeeping. She’d started to read them, but time was always an issue. Ethern was right. They needed to look through them all.

She opened several of the books, and having suspended them in midair, she shut her eyes and divided her body into three. It was quicker to read a pile of books if there was more than one of you.

Ethern chuckled next to her. “I guess I’ll have to do it the old fashioned way.”

He got up off the couch and pulled a book from the case as Jessica, her true self and her two astral projections, smirked at him.

They sat in silence for the next few hours, reading and discarding books that now littered the floor. She’d found lots of interesting spells, but nothing that would help them in their fight. Exhaustion was starting to take over when a particular incantation leaped off the page at her.

She immediately merged herself back into one.

“I might have something,” she informed Ethern, who closed his book and came over to her. He looked down at the book in front of her. “It would be a last resort, but it could work. We can’t separate Nuka and his grandfather, so if we’re unable to kill them before Ciaran gets too powerful, then we could try this. It’s never been attempted in the history of the universe, but it could allow us to try again to integrate humans and shifters.”

Ethern traced his finger along the words.

The spell could turn the human mind back in time. It could wipe all traces of the shifters from their memory, and it could replace the truth with false explanations for the events and deaths that had occurred at Nuka’s hands. It would allow them all to settle in peace once again. Tyler was a computer genius as well as a brilliant chef. He’d easily be able to remove all trace of the shifters from the humans’ computer networks. It all relied on stopping Nuka, Ciaran, and Nuka’s grandfather, though. Jessica wasn’t sure that was even possible at this stage.

Ethern looked reluctantly at the spell.

“I wish it was something we wouldn’t even need to consider, but the introduction of supernaturals to the humans has been a catastrophe. Maybe we were wrong to stay hidden. Maybe we should have revealed ourselves earlier to those who run the countries and proved to them we’re not a danger. But it’s too late now—we’ve been shown to be something that should be feared and controlled. What ingredients do you require for this spell, in case it’s needed for back-up?”

“I need some special herbs, and I know just the two people who can get them for me.”

Jessica shut her eyes and called Katia and Jackson into the room.

Sixteen

“Try to keep up.”Katia laughed as she and Jackson raced through the dense rainforest.

As soon as Jessica had asked them to fetch the herbs, Katia and Jackson had allowed the witch to teleport them into an area of the Amazon that was largely unexplored. It was lovely to be away from civilization, especially as most of the humans wanted them dead or deported to a place Katia had never been. She enjoyed sunbathing, but the thought of Africa and the intense heat sent chills of worry through her body. They definitely had to find a way to put a stop to what was happening, even if it meant racing around the rainforest for a few hours collecting plants.

Jackson sped up so he was closer to her.

“You forget I’m bigger than you. It takes a bit more agility to get through all these trees,” he moaned via their telepathic link.

“I like you being bigger than me. It makes me feel safe, especially when we’re in bed together,” Katia replied as lots of naughty thoughts raced through her mind.

She and Jackson had been on guard duty when Jessica called them. There had been plenty of flirting between them as the park was virtually empty, following reports of a lion, tiger and snow leopard being seen there. She’d been surprised the news hadn’t brought trophy hunters to the park, but it seemed the humans really were scared of them. Thankfully, the people who’d spotted Scott, Brayden and her, when they’d rescued Tyler, had been incredibly drunk, and their story was already being considered a hoax.

“And now I’m going to be running with my dick sticking out because I want to fuck you, here and now.”

Katia roared out a laugh. “Let’s find the herbs first, and then you can have me before we return home. I bet there are some gorgeous spots in this forest.”

“You’re on.” Jackson overtook her and sped faster in the direction they’d been told the herbs would be.

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