Page 78 of A Witch-ish Guide to Protectors and Pendulums

“I just…” I sniffled. “I got Jeffery killed and he was a good man. He shouldn’t have ever been involved in this. What if I get you killed? I couldn’t live with myself, Connor.”

“That’s where this is coming from,” he muttered under his breath. Then in a slick yet loving move, Connor lifted me from the swing to deposit me on his lap. He wrapped the both of us in the quilt, tucking it down around our thighs, and he held me, rocking gently. “Baby, you have to listen to me. I’m sorry Jeffery got caught up in all this, but it’s notyourfault. You had no ideaabout any of this. And no matter how long or brief my life is, I willneverresent meeting you.”

“You say that now?—”

“I say that because I mean it. But just to say, I’m not going anywhere. My life is tied to yours, so I have to survive for you and for the kids we’ll someday have. So see… I have a family to create with my mate. It’ll be a hardship, but I promise to practice until we get it right.”

“I’m scared,” I said honestly, showing him the vulnerability that I tried not to ever show to anyone. “And if you repeat that, I’ll deny it toyourdying breath.”

He chuckled. “Your secret is safe with me.”

Then, rather than use his words, he used his mouth to tell me everything he felt in that moment. A kiss of epic proportions. Dammit, I loved this man. Things would be so much easier if I didn’t.

As our kiss reached the inevitable conclusion, Lily Joy came running out of the house shouting for us.

“Here,” Connor hollered back.

She rounded the corner with fear written all over her face. “A witch coven was hit outside of Boston. The news is calling them a preservation organization, but the Sisters of Salem?—”

“Is one of the largest covens in North America,” I finished for her. “How?”

“Bomb. It was a gathering night.”

“Shit,” Connor mumbled. Gathering nights were nights of celebration to bring new witches into the congregation. From what I understood, it was the night when they each declared a field of study, whether it be spellwork, herbology—like making teas and tinctures—crystal work, divination, or any other field of study.

“It’s started,” I said.

“It’s started,” Lily Joy agreed. And as if on cue from a stage director, Madigan and Sim ran out of the house shouting for us.

“Bamburg was hit,” Sim rushed out as they reached us, breathing hard. Bamburg? The German coven? No, no, no… This couldn’t be happening.

“Where are the other large covens?” I asked.

“Navarre and Edinburgh,” Lily Joy answered.

“Don’t forget Western Australia,” Madi said.

“There won’t be a continent unaffected. I see it now,” I said and I meant it. Like, as I spoke, this clear image of witch strongholds being attacked filled my vision. I felt lightheaded and sick like I had to puke.

“Simone?” Connor grabbed me before I passed out. “Talk to me.”

“Visions,” I managed to get out at the very same time my brother bent over in pain.

“I… feel… it…” he cried.

Madigan grabbed a hold of him to keep him standing. Then everything sort of happened at once. A large portal opened up from Hell, and thousands of demons started spilling out into this world. Once again, they’d breached all of Lily Joy’s spells and wards. They shouldn’t have been able to breach the wards.

A man appeared in the far-off distance right as Connor and Madigan dropped into their death-hound forms. The man in the distance disappeared as a death hound took his place, all this happening in the blink of an eye. He ran full speed toward us, tearing up grass and dirt in his charge. Lily Joy turned to look at the hound barreling down the hill and missed a demon aiming a nasty shot of something at her. I pushed her out of the way right before it hit her and Connor managed to knock me down before I got hit, but that put Connor in the line of fire until the unknown death hound launched himself at another demon, knocking him into the path. The demon dropped and vanished.

Who was this hound? Where did he come from? Despite the field around Lily Joy’s house having filled with demons, this new hound jumped right in fighting alongside us.

“Lilith,” I screamed, summoning her. Although I couldn’t see her, a ripple of energy radiated out from the field. I just managed to grab a hold of Connor’s ruff when the ripple hit, knocking us off our feet. I had the presence of mind to manifest our safety. I meant it to protect all of us, but when we landed in the hot, hard-packed sand, only Connor and I made it.

The sun blazed down on us. We had nothing for protection. My backpack was still up in our room at Lily Joy’s cottage—and that had the gem to Lilith’s dagger in it.

Connor had to stay in his hound form because whatever happened drained me and I didn’t have the power to manifest clothing for him.

“Where are we?” he asked in my head.

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