Page 51 of Tempt the Dragon
“We know how to do it.” All attention went to the doorway where Shola and Ravyn walked in.
Thetwo went to the front of the room, going directly to Bleu and his screen. Ravyn gave him a microchip and Bleu plugged it into the side controls of the screen. In seconds, the pictures changed from the burned remains of Riya’s house, to what looked like an abandoned piece of land amidst a dark mountain backdrop.
“It’s here, just outside the Molongi village in the Congo. The Schenek witcheshave guarded it for centuries,” Shola spoke. “And just like Enes said, Lava Lake is just a few miles from the village. It’s an actual lake of lava that forms whenever the volcano in that mountain erupts.”
“How’d you manage to find it and how do we know for a fact the ancients are buried there? Is there some type of sign that says Vamps Sleep Here?” Reese was dead serious about this questioneven though his comment earned him a warning gaze from Theo.
“I’m sure because I felt it.” Shola’s voice was different as she spoke, deeper, more powerful. As a demigoddess blessed with the forces of the powerful Orisha Goddess Oya, she didn’t shift like the Drakon, but there was no doubting the magick that vibrated throughout her body. “It took a long time, but when I channeled all my energyto the one place that could provide answers—the earth—it came to me. My Creator is the sentinel between the realm of life and death, and stepping through the door that opened in my mind the moment I placed my palms on the ground outside shook me to the core, but it led me to where we needed to be. The Congo.”
“Did you see the graves?” Magnum asked Shola.
Gazing at Magnum, Shola shook herhead. “I saw the billows of death in that area. It’s too strong to be an ordinary cemetery such as the one where we battled Temptra a few months ago.”
“The vibrations almost knocked her unconscious,” Ravyn added.
Theo immediately stood to grab Shola by the shoulders. “What the hell? You did all that when I wasn’t here? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You gave us the assignment of figuringout where the burial site was and how we could stop the uprising. That’s what we were doing.” Shola’s tone remained level but there was no doubting the edge that loomed after each word. Theo apparently felt it too, because he loosened his grip on her, rubbing his hands down her arms instead.
“That’s before I knew you were gonna channel the Goddess to help you send energy vibrations into theearth to find them.” He looked stressed as hell and in that moment Aiken’s beast wavered as if it were once again being knocked off balance.
“So we can get to the burial site, but what do we do once we get there?” Steele directed his question to Ravyn as if already knowing she had the answer.
Another picture appeared on the screen. This one was a close-up of a group of huts.
“Thiswas captured long ago on the night of the Blood Moon. It’s the one night where the veils between the realms are lifted and magick goes wonky. Each one of these huts are protected by magick, so while on this night they looked like normal huts to the human eye, they’re really links in the chain of a powerful spell that for centuries has been binding the ancients to the ground.” Ravyn’s eyes glitteredwith the excitement of her find.
“But wait, the first picture you showed was of something that looked like abandoned land. Is this the same location where these huts are?” Mag asked.
Ravyn nodded. “It is and that’s why the huts are only seen on magickal nights like the total eclipse or something like the summer solstice, I believe. Their spell is so powerful it also renders the huts invisibleat all other times, which makes the village even harder to locate. That spell is the reason the ancients have been so hard to raise. And while they’re buried deep in the earth, they’re feeding off the power being used to keep them there, so that once they come aboveground they’ll be virtually unstoppable.” Ravyn had come to stand beside Steele while she talked and he reached a hand up to clasphers.
Teamwork. Partnership. A selected couple. Aiken’s thoughts shifted but immediately focused on Mel the moment she spoke.
“That’s what they want,” Mel said. “It’s the power they’ve been searching for, the power the Collectors’ client wanted on his side, that’s why he put such a high bounty on Duncan’s head.”
“Then the client must be a vampire, as well, else how would they haveeven known what Duncan was or how he could be beneficial?” Reese asked.
“Clients are usually higher-ups on the preternatural radar. Species leaders, or captains of rogue teams, Spirit Realm demonics, they all have a stake in getting their hands on some of the targets before human authorities or other preternatural protectors like us.” Rubbing a hand over his chin, remembering the Fratellibrothers who’d worked for the company for years and were always the reason the team Aiken was on won the annual company softball game, Aiken knew the stakes had just been raised. “Whatever ability Duncan has to bring these vamps aboveground, it’s valuable.”
“So valuable that Montoy’s partnered with him,” Magnum added.
“I can stop it.” Ravyn spoke into the silence that fell after Magnum’swords. “I consulted some of the others that used to be in my great-grandmother’s coven and I believe I’ve come up with a potion that will keep them bound for eternity.”
“You’ve developed a potion that the Schenek witches hadn’t thought of in the hundreds of years they’ve been guarding that burial site? You’ve been a half witch for all of six months, how is that possible?” Reese asked.
The way Steele looked at Reese guaranteed that Drakon’s ass kicking was coming in the very near future.
“Yes. I have and you can chalk that up to my wiccan heritage or the three years of advanced chemistry in high school,” Ravyn snapped back with a “fuck you” grin.
Reese held his hands up as if in defeat, but Steele’s gaze was still hot as he glared at him.
“The potion will need tobe poured into the ground over any one of the graves. It’s meant to spread around the perimeter of extreme energy, binding it so that it can’t be raised, no matter what Duncan or any other vampire does.” Ravyn held up what looked like a soda bottle full of a red substance.
“I’ll take it,” Mel said before standing. “I’ll take it to the burial ground and pour it over one of the graves.”
Aiken was speechless.
“We were actually hoping you’d say that,” Shola said.
