Page 33 of Sorcia's Heart
Completely unfazed by his lack of clothing, Jace strode up to the group, his eyes sharp and his voice steady.“I got some sort of sensation about a half hour ago,” he said.“What’s going on?”
“I’m catching up as well, mate,” Viktor replied dryly, his tone laced with irritation.“Apparently, our dear lady here has been trying to resolve a threat to her coven without our help.”
Jace’s expression darkened, a low growl escaping him again.“Why?”He fixed Sorcia with a pointed glare.“I thought we were a team, Sorcia.”
“We are,” she replied evenly, her voice calm but firm.She turned to face the three men, momentarily taken aback by their identical stances—arms crossed, shoulders tense, their protective fury palpable.Her gaze slid past Jace without lingering too low, resolutely avoiding the more...exposed aspects of his form.She heard a soft gasp from Althea behind her and suppressed a smile.This wasn’t the time for humor.Besides, Jace’s devotion to his mate, Annika, was well-known, and their bond was unshakeable.Sorcia was more surprised that Annika wasn’t at his side, given their usual inseparability.
“I’ll catch you up quickly,” she began, addressing all three.“Two weeks ago, we felt a tremor in what witches call thesphaera.It’s an energy field, like an invisible atmosphere that we can sense.It helps us detect when magic is being used nearby or when danger is close.”She raised a hand as Jace opened his mouth, stopping him before he could interrupt.“I don’t have time to answer questions right now, so let me finish.The important part is that a demon named Hazelton Birchsmire has been trying to capture me.”
Jace frowned.“Demons can’t do much more than make humans moody, can they?”
Sorcia nodded.“Ordinarily, yes.Demons feed off anger and spread it among humans, but humans recover once the demon moves on.However, they have another ability that makes them dangerous to witches.They can absorb our power.If they manage to capture a witch, they can use whatever magic that witch has learned, turning it against us—or anyone else.”
Marcus’s fists clenched at this revelation, his simmering anger at Hazelton intensifying.
“Our only defense,” Sorcia continued, “is to avoid being alone.In pairs or groups, we can overwhelm a demon.Alone, we’re vulnerable.”
“Why would Birchsmire want to steal your power?”Viktor asked, his tone sharp.
Sorcia sighed, frustration creeping into her voice.“Maybe because I’m the most powerful witch in this region.Demons crave power, and centuries ago, they were one of the greatest threats to witches.They hunted us, captured us, and used our magic to wreak havoc.So, we fought back.Covens banded together to take them down.”
Jace tilted his head, his dark eyes narrowing.“And after that?What happened to the demons?”
“We imprisoned them,” Sorcia said grimly.“It wasn’t easy.We used some of the most powerful binding spells ever created, locking them away in a prison realm completely cut off from thesphaera.In there, they couldn’t access magic, and we thought the threat was contained.”
Jace frowned.“Then how the hell is Birchsmire out here causing trouble?”
Sorcia blinked, momentarily caught off guard.“Apparently, at least one of them must have escaped,” she admitted, her voice heavy with unease.“There were rumors that the hunt didn’t get every single demon but some of our leaders at the time assured everyone that all had been captured.Over time, demons just…faded into legend.The only reason we even remember their danger is because the older witches passed down their stories.”
The weight of her words settled over them, the tension palpable.The morning mist was beginning to dissolve, and sunlight started to bath the street in gold, but it did nothing to lift the heavy mood.
Finally, Sorcia broke the silence, her voice steady but tinged with dread.“If Birchsmire is one of the demons that escaped imprisonment, then maybe…he’s working to release the others.But to do that, he’d need power.More power than Bethany has.He’d need someone like me.”
Jace’s brows furrowed, his jaw tightening.“You think he’s trying to break the seals on the prison realm?”
Sorcia hesitated, then shook her head slowly as understanding began to crystallize.“No, I think Birchsmire has a more immediate plan.He’s using Bethany as bait—to capture me.”Her green eyes locked with Marcus’s, the realization sparking an intensity in her gaze.“If he’s trying to release the other demons, he needs someone far stronger than Bethany to shatter those bonds.That’s why I think he’s coming for me.”
Marcus’s jaw clenched, the muscles rippling as his simmering fury turned to a controlled determination.His hands curled into fists at his sides as he stepped closer to her, his blue eyes blazing with an unspoken vow.“Then we don’t give him the chance, Sorcia.He’s not getting anywhere near you.”
There was a long silence.Sorcia suddenly felt a soothing warmth along her right arm.She glanced to her side and found Althea standing next to her, glowing faintly, radiating an almost tangible warmth and light.
“I will not let that bastard take you, Priestess!”Althea hissed, her voice fierce and unwavering.
Sorcia felt her heart ache for the young witch.Althea’s potential was immense—she would become truly powerful in the years to come.Sorcia placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.“Thank you,” she whispered, her voice soft but firm.“But I’m not going to let that demon hurt Bethany either.We’ll get her back.”
“We’re going to find him,” Marcus announced, his voice steady and filled with determination.“We’ll figure out where he’s keeping Bethany and put an end to this.”He turned to Althea, his expression softening slightly.“I’m sorry for yelling at you earlier.Can you walk us through what happened again?With a bit more detail though.Why was Bethany alone?”
Althea’s glow dimmed, but her resolve didn’t waver.“I couldn’t fly,” she admitted, her voice laced with confusion.“I only vaguely remember the trees, or…branches.”She paused, thinking hard.“No, it was definitely a vine like I’d originally thought,” she paused, concentrating again.“We were hunting through our grid area, following the tremors in the sphaera.We knew we were close.We even sent a signal to the coven.”
Sorcia frowned.“I don’t think the signal reached us.If it had, the entire coven would be here by now.”
Althea nodded.“You’re right, Priestess.Something blocked it.Bethany and I saw the signal get caught in the branches of the trees above us.It…got tangled.”Her brow furrowed, her confusion deepening.“That’s never happened before.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” Marcus interjected, his tone sharp.“Trees can’t interfere with magic.They don’t have that kind of power.”
“Keep going, Althea,” Sorcia urged gently.“What happened next?Why did Bethany end up alone?”
“She didn’t mean to be alone,” Althea said, her hands clenching at her sides.“We both took off, flying toward the source of the tremors.But the trees…they were in my way.Every time I tried to take flight, some sort of vine…or something blocked me.It was as if the trees themselves were trying to stop me.”
