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PROLOGUE

M ist crouched low, one hand resting lightly on the rough wood of the old dilapidated barn. She could feel her charge close by, but she forced herself to move slowly. There was someone, or something, out there. Something sinister and full of hate.

Waiting.

Watching for her.

She stilled as she inhaled deeply, her body shuddering in revulsion at the stench of death that saturated the area. It had its own scent to witches; one that was unmistakable.

Someone had recently lost their life.

Mist’s heart skipped a beat and then began to race in terror, but she forced herself to palm the dagger she’d had hidden in her boot. One of the several weapons she had on her at any given time.

She took a deep, steadying breath. She would face her fears. For her charge, she would do this.

Mist was a sorceress and was blessed with certain abilities she’d been born with, along with others gifted to her by the Goddess when she accepted the role of savior in her coven. There were nine of them who were called upon to nurture, guide, and protect those they referred to as their charges, doing everything in their power to keep them safe from whatever evil threatened them.

While Mist had only been with her sisters for the past couple of years, the bond between them was strong. She’d trained with them for six months before taking on her own charges, learning quickly so she could be the asset they needed. She’d finally found what she believed her purpose in life was, and she loved what she did. The need to help others was engrained in her, something she couldn’t deny. She would do anything for her charges.

Unfortunately, she feared she was too late this time.

“Please, please, please, Goddess,” Mist begged so quietly she almost couldn’t even hear herself. “Please don’t let her be gone. Please.”

She knew the plea was useless, but it didn’t stop the words from leaving her lips. She couldn’t hold them back any more than she could hold back the tears that flowed down her cheeks.

Swiping at the moisture on her face, Mist called to her magic, clutching the dagger tightly as she felt the power begin to hum around her and pulse through her body. It strengthened her, giving her the courage she needed even when she trembled with fear.

She had to get to the girl she’d been charged with protecting just two weeks ago. The one whose life source had already left her body. Mist knew this, knew she was gone, even though every part of her wanted to deny it. Her heart ached at the thought of the young woman whose last breath had been stolen from her.

Margo was a brilliant snowy owl shifter, just eighteen years old, who was destined for greatness. She was already an amazing healer in her parliament and was supposed to be leaving for college soon to study medicine. The teenager wanted to be a doctor, dedicating her life to helping all shifters.

Unfortunately, she’d somehow caught the attention of a rogue tiger shifter when he was traveling through the small town where she lived, and he’d decided Margo was meant to be his, even though she wasn’t his true mate.

Margo refused him, wanting nothing to do with the man who, as she put it, made her skin crawl. The bastard retaliated by decimating her entire family. Grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, parents, siblings… they were all gone in the span of less than an hour, leaving Margo alone except for the other shifters in her parliament. A group of owls, who quickly turned their backs on the girl, afraid they would suffer the same fate her family had.

Mist slowly peered around the corner of the barn, and her soft gray eyes widened, a small whimper leaving her lips at the horrifying image in front of her. Her beautiful female charge lay unmoving on a cement slab next to an empty grain bin, her head resting in a pool of her own blood. Mist’s hand rose to cover her mouth and she couldn’t stop the cry of denial that left her at the sight of the pale blue eyes gazing unseeingly back in her direction.

Margo was gone. The soft-spoken, kind shifter whose only ambition in life was to help others, was gone.

Mist knew she needed to leave. She could feel the presence of another being close. Their chaotic emotions were swamping her, their anger slamming into her with a force that almost brought her to her knees.

Gripping her dagger in one hand, Mist gathered her courage, and her body began to shimmer before she blinked. One second, she was by the barn, the next she was beside Margo’s lifeless body.

“Oh, Goddess,” she whispered, laying a hand gently on the other woman’s arm. “I am so sorry, sweet owl. So sorry I wasn’t here for you when you needed me.”

It didn’t make sense. None of it. She’d hidden Margo well and had just been by to check on her the day before. Not even a full twenty-four hours ago. There had been no sign of anyone nearby. No hint of the vileness that surrounded her now.

Nothing.

And what was there now wasn’t the scent of cat, so it couldn’t have been the shifter stalking her who had taken Margo’s life. It was something else. Something that smelled like… fire. Brimstone. Ashes.

It was strange. None of her sisters could scent others the way she could. She’d always wondered if one of her parents might have been a shifter, because there were several times it felt as if she were sharing her body with another being or something, but she had no way of finding out.

She’d thought about asking one of the Channings on the numerous occasions she’d been around them, but didn’t know if that would be rude. What would she say? Hey, can you sniff me and tell me if I might be one of you? If maybe I’m hiding a tail and claws inside that might someday come out and play?

Which would be cool as shit if it ever happened. She loved shifters and would have no issues finding out she had some in her family tree. Bring on the fangs and whatever else her possible inner animal may have. She would embrace it.

Mist slowly raised her hand to trail her fingers gently down the other woman’s soft hair, then ran her knuckles over the snowy owl’s cheek. “I will figure out who did this to you, little one. I promise you, I will find them.”

A loud ferocious roar split through the air, and Mist gasped as she glanced up to see a large enraged tiger charging out of the trees nearby, coming straight for her. His dark eyes were full of rage, his powerful body eating up the distance between them quickly. He opened his mouth and let out another terrifying roar, showing some of the biggest fangs she’d ever seen.

She had no idea where he came from, but she knew for sure that he hadn’t been there before. He wasn’t the one who killed Margo. There was no sign of him anywhere until now. No scent, nothing.

No, somehow the crazy-ass shifter found her charge, but it was too late for him. She was already dead. Killed by someone else, although she had no idea who.

“Go, child! Go now!”

Mist didn’t question the voice that was suddenly in her mind. When the Goddess spoke, you listened.

Sliding her hand down to encircle Margo’s small wrist, she blinked, taking them away just as the tiger sprang.

* * *

Three months later, Mist stared at her coven sisters in shock from where she stood in the living room at Aurora’s house. “What are you saying? Are you kicking me out of the coven?”

“No,” Aurora snapped, reaching out to grab her hand, but Mist stepped back away from her. Aurora was the one she looked up to most, the one who she spent most of her time training with when she first became a part of the coven of nine. The one she felt closest to, or had until now. “Mist, you are in danger. You are being hunted by a demon prince who wants to claim you as his mate. We love you and can’t allow that to happen, but we can’t keep you safe when you are out helping your charges. We need you hidden somewhere he can’t find you.”

They wanted her to stop doing what she lived for. Wanted to take away the one thing in her life that mattered. But… maybe it was for the best. She’d lost three of her charges in the last three months. Three . Dead, all of them.

And it was all her fault.

It was her job to keep them safe, but instead they were killed because of her. Because some twatwaffle of a prince decided she belonged to him and was trying to lure her to him and his minions by sacrificing her charges. So he could kidnap her and make her his demon princess.

She wasn’t his, she knew that for a fact. Her sister, Luna, had a vision that showed her Mist did belong to someone in the royal line down in demon hell, but it wasn’t the one who was trying to claim her. She didn’t know what she thought about that. She realized the importance of mates, but she didn’t want to be tied to someone who would want to run her life and take her away from all the good she did in the world.

Well, all the good she used to do. Now, she was being sidelined. Expected to go hide somewhere while her sisters did their job and hers.

“Look, Desi and her brothers have been trying to find Darius, but they haven’t been able to yet.” Aurora glanced at the others before looking back at her. “We talked about it, and we just think it would be better for you if you take a little time off. Go into hiding until they track this asshole down and take care of him. It will be safer.”

Safer for her charges. They didn’t actually say that, but Mist knew it was what they were thinking, and they were probably right. It didn’t change the fact that all eight of her sisters had shown up at her home — women she’d come to care for, to love more than anyone else in the world — to kick her out of the coven.

It hurt so freaking bad, but she refused to let them see how much it affected her. So what if it felt as if they had torn her heart out, threw it on the ground, and stomped all over it? So what if she knew she would have probably felt the same way if it were one of the others in her position? It wasn’t one of them, dammit, it was her, and they were taking away the only family she ever had.

Her parents left her on the steps of a church right after she was born, and she’d been in and out of foster homes until she was eighteen and able to leave the system. It was a horrible way to grow up, especially when she came into her powers at the young age of fourteen and had no idea what the hell was happening. She’d stayed quiet and kept her head down, but something always seemed to go wrong.

Like the time she accidentally set one of her foster father’s toupees on fire after the asshole yelled at one of the little girls there and made her cry. Or the time one of her foster mothers slapped a boy for taking an extra helping of potatoes at dinner. The woman was a little irate when her large glass of tea ended up in her lap. No one could prove Mist had anything to do with the things that happened, but she was always quickly passed on to another family.

No one wanted her. No one ever kept her. She’d lived her life alone until she became a part of the coven, and now it seemed she would be doing it once again.

“You only have two charges right now,” Zara said, her golden eyes narrowing on her as if expecting Mist to argue. Zara was a warrior with a no-nonsense attitude. She was never shy in voicing her opinion, and didn’t hold back now. “I will take one and Tempest offered to take the other. You need to let us do this, Mist. You can’t keep them safe from Darius. They won’t survive.”

So, not only had they met behind her back to kick her out of the coven, but they also already planned who was going to take her charges from her.

Every part of Mist wanted to yell and scream. She wanted to punch something or someone. But what could she do? They were right. With the threat of a demon prince after her, murdering all of the people she was supposed to be protecting, it would be asinine of them to keep her.

“I understand.” Her voice was short, but she couldn’t bring herself to say more. If she tried, she was afraid she would break down in tears, and she was not going to do that in front of all of them.

“It’s just temporary,” Trinity said softly. “You’ll be back kicking ass with us in no time.”

Would she? Would she really? For some reason, Mist was having a hard time believing that.

Sirena rose from the couch and crossed the room to her, giving her a quick hug. “I have to go, sister, one of my charges needs me. I’ll be back to check on you, though.”

Yeah, she would believe that when she saw it, Mist thought bitterly as the other woman blinked, leaving the room as if she’d never been there.

Slowly, one by one, the others said their goodbyes and followed until it was just her and Luna left.

“Mist,” Luna’s voice was tentative, as if she wasn’t sure if she should share what she was thinking but felt as if she needed to. “Darius won’t stop until he either gets to you or dies trying. I haven’t been able to see the final outcome, but I have seen one more thing.”

Almost afraid to ask, Mist whispered, “What’s that?”

“Your mate is coming soon, and his demon will rage until you are either safe, or all of you are dead.” With those last words, Luna blinked, leaving Mist all alone.

Well, damn, this was going to be fun.