Page 115 of Mystery in the Mountains

He caught her and held her as she sobbed and clung to him.

“I’ll meet you inside,” Abe said.

“Shhh,” Asher soothed as he held her and petted her hair. “It’s okay.”

Her arms tightened around his waist, and she was unable to let go or say anything just yet. All she could do was hold him.

Finally, she pulled herself together enough to step back to look up at him. “Are you okay?”

He cupped her face and wiped her tears before pressing a kiss to her lips. “Sunshine, my love, I’m fine.”

“But you were bleeding.”

He raised his wrist and showed her some bruising and a cut. “I was fighting against the chain. I’m sure Bridget or Julie can fix this right up.”

“They didn’t hurt you?”

Asher shook his head with a rough chuckle. “They wanted to, but when you guys showed up, you put a stop to it. You saved me, Sunshine.” He kissed her forehead and pulled her close.

“How did you end up there in the first place?” Sunny asked.

Asher pulled back again and ran his hand through his dark curls, his brow furrowing. “It doesn’t matter why I was there, all that matters is you found me. How did you find me, anyway?” He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

Sunny hugged him one more time, pressing her face to his chest, and breathed him in deeply before pulling away. “I bet there are people in there with the same question. Maybe we should head in.”

He bent his head and tenderly pressed his lips to hers. “Let’s head in.”

They entered the cabin, and Bridget, Esther, and Abe were already around the table talking about what was happening, while Julie was in the kitchen. She turned with a tray full of steaming mugs as she saw Sunny and Asher coming in.

“Just in time for tea,” Julie said with a smile.

They all sat around the table and breathed in a sigh.

“What the fuck just happened?” Abe said. “I feel like I missed something.”

“I know,” said Asher. “I feel like they are one step ahead of us all the time. How did we not know they were building a church right on the other side of our mountain?”

Esther shook her head. “And that church . . . I thought I left it behind me when I left Tennessee. I can’t believe that it just popped up here out of the blue.”

“In my time on this earth, I’ve learned that few things are true coincidence. I would imagine this church showing up here, and all three of ye have a backstory with it. I would reckon they are targeting something, whether it is you or the magic you protect.”

“Or both,” Abe said with a heavy sigh.

“I can’t put my finger on it, but if the witch hunter and warlocks are knocking on our backdoor, we have to do something. It is our job to protect this mountain,” Esther said.

“What are we protecting?” Asher asked.

Both of his siblings’ heads snapped to him.

“We protect the mountain,” Esther said grimly.

Asher put his hands up in defense. “I know we protect the mountain, and clearly, this mountain is like no other . . . but why? Haven’t you ever asked yourself that? What is the source of the magic, and why do we protect it?”

“Ummm, actually . . .” Sunny started.

The urge to stay quiet was strong. It was not her family’s job to protect this mountain, and as much as she loved it, it was theirs. And admitting what she was about to admit would be telling just how wrong she’d been.

“I found something out today about Nox,” she said quietly.

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