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WE SPENT A FEW HOURS hashing out ideas of how we could corner Sheridan Harwood somewhere and use the shield against her. Pinning her down wouldn’t be easy. She would react the moment she felt she was under threat. From the sounds of it, she had recruited magic users along with shifters and other supernatural creatures to defend her.
We’d decided her house in Rosethorn would be the best place to confront her. Anyone who got caught in the crossfire would be her minion. Bamboozled by her hypnotic spell or not, they would be considered collateral damage. There were always casualties in war, but I hoped no one from my team would become a victim.
Once we entered the mansion in West Virginia, we would no doubt become trapped by spells. We would have to kill our enemies before we would be able to leave. Although my team was formidable, we would need help to take down a monster this dangerous.
I’d fulfilled the quest that destiny had chosen for me when I’d been the catalyst to end Prince Sindarian’s rule. I’d faced that mission alone, but this time I was free to call on my friends.
We knew the Master Archivist planned to eradicate most supernatural beings. She’d also captured some of the magical creatures to use them for some unknown purpose. Once they were gone, or had been rendered powerless, she would be free to carry out the next part of her plan. We’d all figured that would most likely be total world domination.
The gorgon had made a deal with the Dark Prince to send the fae creatures here. What she didn’t know was that he’d also made a bargain with the Finlarc sorcerers. He’d told them that they could have this world if they aided him. He’d probably been planning to pit the gorgon against his new allies and see who came out the winner in the end.
“Get some sleep,” I said to my yawning team. They’d had a trying past few days and needed to rest. “I’ll call Quin and see if she wants in on this plan.” A glance at my watch told me it was after dawn in West Virginia. The leader of the Hunter Elite always woke up early and I knew she would be awake by now.
“Of course she’ll want in on it,” Leroy scoffed. “She’s an alpha werewolf. She’ll insist on being there when we kick Sheridan Harwood’s butt.” He was looking forward to our battles even if the rest of us were nervous. Ghosts couldn’t be turned to stone by a gorgon’s magic.
Pru gave him a disapproving look as she heaved herself to her feet. “I’ll need time to prepare more vials,” she said.
“That can wait until tomorrow, Mamma,” I told her. “We’re not going to rush into this. We don’t want to tip Harwood off that we’re coming for her.”
Nodding doubtfully, she motioned for me to stand, then gave me a warm hug. “I’m glad you’re back, young man,” she said gruffly, then poked my stubbly cheek. “Even if you do look scruffy.”
“I missed you, too,” I said with a grin and gave her a peck on the cheek.
“Stop,” Leroy said in mock protest and pretended to wipe away a tear. “I’m getting all misty eyed.”
Asha gave me a wan smile as she followed the witch and Harley towards the hallway. I knew she dreaded us reaching the end of our mission. Everything would change for her then and I shared her fear.
“We cannot change destiny,” Emelia said softly as we watched the trio head to their rooms.
“I know,” I said just as quietly. “You should get some sleep, too, darlin’,” I told her. “There’s nothing more we can do for now.”
Her eyes were shadowed when she looked at me, but she nodded in agreement and strode off after the others.
“Is she going to be okay, boss?” Leroy asked me when the door to the room she’d chosen closed behind her. “From what I can feel, she’s barely holding it together.” He tapped his forehead, reminding me of the link that had been forged between them after she’d donned the ring.
“I hope she’ll be okay once this is all over and she can take some time to rest and recover,” I replied.
“You care about her,” the phantom observed wisely. I wasn’t wearing the ring so he couldn’t feel my emotions, but he knew me well enough to read my expressions.
“Yeah,” I admitted. We shared a companionable silence, neither able to find anything to say to make the situation better. I heaved a small sigh and reached for the phone Harley had left on the coffee table. It was one of his backup phones since his gear had been taken from him when he’d been captured. The number wasn’t traceable and neither was the one I was about to call.
Quin picked up straight away, just as I’d expected. She was an early riser just like me. “Harley?” she asked, knowing he was one of the few people who had her secret number. The phone I was using was different from the usual one, so she didn’t instantly recognize who was calling.
“Nope,” I drawled. “Guess again.”
“Jake?” she said in pleased surprise. “When did you get back?” I heard Ari squeal in the background and grinned when she stampeded over to her boss to listen in.
“I got back a few hours ago,” I replied. “I’ve wrapped up my business in the Unseelie realm, but now we have another problem to deal with.” I left out the bit where I had to deliver Asha to her doom. That could wait for now.
“You’re going after Sheridan Harwood?” Quin surmised accurately. “Do you have a plan?”
“Yep, but we could use your help, if you’re up for it.”
“Of course we’re up for it!” Ari said from the background, knowing I could hear her clearly.
“What’s going on?” Jonah asked as he joined them.
“Jake’s back and we’re going to take down the Master Archivist,” she replied.
“We are?” Mirra asked as she appeared as well.
“Is that Jake?” Connor added when he also made an appearance.
“Jake is back?” Brandi said as the final member of their team arrived.
Quin let out a quiet sigh. “I’m putting you on speaker phone,” she said. A few seconds later, she spoke again. “Go ahead and tell us your plan.”
I didn’t have to worry that their mansion in West Virginia could be bugged. Ari’s spells would prevent anyone from breaking in to leave any surveillance equipment or enchantments behind.
I laid out what we’d come up with so far and they each chimed in with ideas, adding their expertise to the mix. “This all sounds plausible,” Quin said at last when the ideas ran out. “But how are we going to corner the gorgon without being turned into stone?”
“I have a shield made out of a dragon scale,” I told her. “We’re pretty sure it’ll reflect her spell back at her. We just have to find a way to short out her enchantments that are protecting her first.”
“This sounds far too dangerous,” Ari said. I didn’t need to see her to know she was worried. I could hear it in her tone.
“Don’t worry, sweetheart,” I said. “We have a secret weapon that I’m pretty sure Sheridan won’t see coming.”
“Are you going to tell us what it is, or is it going to be a surprise?” Jonah asked in excitement.
“I’m going to go with a surprise,” I replied.
“Great,” Quin muttered. “I hate surprises.”
“You’ll like this one,” I told her with a smirk that I was sure she could hear in my tone.
“When are we going to go ahead with this crazy plan?” she asked.
“My team needs time to rest and prepare,” I replied. “Give us until lunchtime tomorrow before you ask for a meeting with the Master Archivist at her mansion in Rosethorn. We’ll be ready by then.”
“This is going to be awesome,” Brandi predicted.
“I fear this is not going to end well,” Mirra said. Ari and Jonah immediately broke into snickers. It was one of the siren’s favorite sayings and it never ceased to amuse them.
“It’ll be fine, darlin’,” I said soothingly. “We’re the good guys. Everyone knows the good guys always win in the end.”
“In the movies maybe,” Leroy muttered.
“Is that Leroy?” Ari asked. “Tell him we said hi.”
The ghost had his ear pressed up against my phone so I didn’t have to relay the message. “Hey, girl,” he said in return. “I’m looking forward to seeing you in action again.” His tone was heavily suggestive.
“Are you hitting on my mate?” Connor asked in a mock growl when Ari repeated what he’d said.
“Yeah, honky. What are you going to do about it?” The challenge in his tone was mixed with amusement.
“He’ll do nothing,” Jonah said. “Because he’s just a shifter and he can’t hurt ghosts.” The spirits could all hear each other just fine through the phone. They all laughed, then Quin picked up the phone and took it off speaker mode. We spoke for a few more minutes before hanging up.
Leroy drifted away and I placed the phone back on the coffee table. Gorm’s gem pulsed, ready and waiting to be used. It was tempting to try to use it to eradicate the gorgon, but I wasn’t sure it was even possible. I’d almost depleted the jewel to the point of breaking it when I’d used it to close the dragon portal. I didn’t want to put it in jeopardy like that again. It would be best to stick to the plan we’d come up with. If things turned south, I would call on the stone and see if it could save our butts.
