The Werewolf Dates The Deputy - Kristen Painter Page 0,80

shoulder every once in a while to make sure Leif was still following. He was. In a few more feet, Sola’s chanting reached her ears. Everything was proceeding as planned, except tonight there was going to be a very different ending.

“Ingvar,” she called out. “Ready?”

The seer wasn’t bothering to hide herself this time. She still stood near the back of the circle, but she was plainly visible. Arms outstretched, eyes black with the magic she was working, she nodded without breaking the rhythm of the words she was chanting.

Jenna hated being between Leif and the Sola-controlled Ingvar. She couldn’t keep an eye on both at the same time. Thankfully, Jenna wasn’t truly alone.

With that thought lifting her up, she began her slow retreat into the circle. Leif lumbered after her with all the grace of a drunken bull.

Helgrind quivered for release, but it wasn’t quite time, although her hands itched to grip the handle of her beloved sword.

The moment he was within the confines of the ring, two things happened.

The first was that Sola stepped forward, speaking the same words as she had before to close the circle. Light sprang up all around them, and Sola reached into the pouch at her waist and again drew out a handful of powder. She tossed it into the air.

Everything progressed exactly as it had the first time, but the circumstances weren’t the same as before because Alice had been here earlier and cast a spell of her own, to prevent Sola’s magic from working.

The second thing was Jenna reached back and pulled Helgrind free. The blade sang out its joy, shushing through the air as Jenna brandished the gorgeous weapon. “This is what you want, wraith. Come closer. I’ll give you a taste.”

Leif snarled and swiped at her, but he was still too far away.

She moved back and forth from one foot to the other, staying light and ready. As she did, she danced to the right just a little every few steps. Slowly, she put the seer in her peripheral vision. In her current position, she could also see the spot where Pandora was hiding.

Tessa, Hank, and Titus were above and behind her now.

This was a stronger position than having Sola behind her. At any moment, Sola would attempt her second spell, the one that would freeze Jenna in place and allow Leif to land a killing blow.

She had to work fast, because as soon as Sola realized Jenna wasn’t frozen, she’d know the game was finished. Jenna said a little prayer that Birdie and Bridget had been successful in their quest, because things were about to blow up.

Jenna smiled a smile she didn’t really feel as she leveled Helgrind at Leif. “All right, wraith. Playtime is over.”

Leif charged, but he still didn’t have the speed of a living berserker. Jenna dodged him without too much effort. He kept moving forward, nearly going headfirst into a large oak.

He caught it with one hand and used it to pull himself back around, ember eyes crackling with anger. He came at her again, hands grasping for the thing he wanted most.

Helgrind.

Again, she danced out of reach.

“Blythe,” he growled. “You cannot escape me. I grow stronger with each passing moment.”

“Stronger, but also easier to kill.” Easier probably wasn’t the right word. More possible to be killed was a truer statement.

He swiped at her again, and again she evaded him.

Her time was ticking down. At any moment, Sola would cast the spell that was supposed to freeze Leif in place so Jenna could deliver the killing blow. Of course, Sola would once again attempt to freeze Jenna instead.

But it wouldn’t work this time. Once Sola realized her magic no longer had any potency, that would be the end of it. The house of cards that Sola had built would come tumbling down. Sola with it.

Until then, however, Jenna had to do her best to end Leif. It wasn’t impossible to kill a wraith who’d not yet achieved a solid state. But it was very, very hard.

Valkyries knew all about hard, though.

She was going to have to get his sword if she was going to transport his soul once and for all to the underworld.

He came at her. She ducked his swinging arm and sliced her blade across his ribs as deeply as she could.

He yowled at the cut, most likely at the indignity. Neither wraiths nor berserkers felt pain in a tangible way.

A dark, oily, sooty fog escaped from the wound before it closed. Not