Page 3 of Witch's Exile
1
DEJA
Juno stood across the clearing from me with tears falling out of her ocean-colored eyes.
"I'm sorry, Deja. I had to," she sobbed.
I could barely see her in the dark, and the frigid air chilled me to the bone. It had to be some time either right before dawn or right after dusk. We were surrounded by woods on all sides but the two of us were alone. Not even a raven cawed through the trees.
"You have free will, June," I told her. "You always have the power to make another choice." I rubbed a protective hand down my large, pregnant stomach.
"No," she shook her head. "I don't have a choice. I'm so sorry."
With another choked sob, she raised her hand and I felt myself drowning.
The air in my lungs turned to liquid, burning me from the inside as I choked and coughed. I gasped desperately for a breath, but air turned to water the moment it touched my lips. My vision began to darken as I fell to my knees, trying to be careful to not hurt my baby.
The moment I hit the ground, a circle of flames erupted around me. It started a few feet away but slowly tightened closer, licking my skin with its burning heat.
I looked desperately through the flames at Juno. If I could just tell her!Kill me and do whatever the fuck you want with this mortal body, just let my child live. She's an innocent witch, just like you once were.
Juno's form seemed to flicker and shift as she watched me motionlessly. The flames grew even closer and I began choking on smoke as well as water.
Ash! Raum! Sal! She's trying to kill our daughter! I'm dying, please come save her,I cried out mentally to my men but my mind remained empty of their strong, reassuring voices.
Just before my vision went completely black, I realized with horror that Juno's formdidshift into something else.
Diana now stood on the other side of the flame circle-- bent over, disfigured and grotesque. She curled one claw-like finger at me and whispered, "Die with your evil spawn, demon whore."
I woke up thrashing and crying, my eyes refusing to open until warmth and solidness surrounded me on all sides.
"Sshh. I'm here, my love," Ash whispered. "It's just a dream. You're safe."
I curled up like a fetus against his chest, soaking in the protection of his hands rubbing my back and his kisses in my hair. He pulled back to look at me, tilting my chin to face him. His icy eyes were full of concern but also curiosity.
"Same one again?" he asked gently.
I nodded, lowering my eyes with shame while he wrapped tighter around me. My hand flew to my belly, which still didn't show any sign of pregnancy but only a week after Sal and I made our discovery, I already got attached to the mini witch growing inside me.
The dreams started the same night we arrived at our safe house. Sal and I announced my pregnancy joyously to Ash. We looked to find Raum but he was nowhere to be seen after the fight we had. In the week we'd been here, I'd barely seen him at all.
The three of us went to bed in high spirits, glad to have some good news despite leaving San Francisco to escape demon hunters, and that was when the nightmares started.
No spell or tea concoction seemed to make them go away. Seeing the two people who betrayed me in my dreams every single night just made the pain of it worse. And they knew it would. Deep down I knew they were doing this to me, this wasn't just my brain processing trauma. They were forcing me to live my worst fear every night-- being alone without my men and losing my child.
And I was powerless to stop it.
I hated feeling so weak, especially now that I had another person to protect. What were they trying to accomplish by doing this? Driving me mad with heartbreak to the point of suicide? I'd been forced to kill myself in past lives before, but never while pregnant.
Ash slid an arm across my waist and laced his fingers through mine on my belly.
"Nothing's going to happen to you," he murmured, tightening his grip on my hand. "Toeitherof you. Not as long as we're around."
"That's the worst part of it," I whispered to his skin. "Every time, I'm completely alone. I don't hear you or even feel your auras anywhere near me. If you guys aren't with me, I can't do anything to stop them."
"Not true," he insisted, tilting my face up again. "The truth is we need you more than you need us. Our souls are eternally bound to you, but you could decide tomorrow that you're done with us and want three new men to protect you. Hell, or even ten or thirty."
"That'll never happen," I insisted.
