Chapter 36 - The Arrival of the Witches

White Raven was preparing for the arrival of the witches of Dark Sphere. Celeste said they would be there around nightfall because Brielle wanted to attack when they least expected it. Kaleigh and Alannah had placed multiple spells over the pack and pack grounds giving them an extra layer of defense. The warriors were ready for the fight. Celeste was waiting off pack grounds for the other witches to come.

Celeste planned to show the witches the best way for a surprise attack; however, she would lead them into a trap. When she reported to Brielle, she told her that the pack had no idea she was there. Celeste was nervous, but she believed the information she gave the pack and the spells that the Luna and Kaleigh placed would help defeat the Dark Sphere.

Kaleigh was waiting with Dominick, the Alpha, and the Luna in the Alphas office. Celeste was going to let them know once the other witches arrived. Kaleigh had Felicia, Allie, and Mollie waiting in Felicia’s bedroom. They would be following Kaleigh and Celeste when they were headed to Brielle. With the Dark Sphere Coven being in Ohio, Brielle had temporarily moved to another location in northern California to be closer if Kaleigh didn’t have the stone on her.

Everything was in place, and everyone knew their jobs. Kaleigh heard Celeste’s long whistle, alerting them the witches had arrived. Kaleigh squeezed Dominick’s hand and took a deep breath.

“It’s time. Dominick, no matter what happens, you have to stay here with the pack. It is the only way to keep you safe and for me to concentrate on what I need to do.” Kaleigh pleaded at him with her eyes. She knew he wanted to stay with her, but that wasn’t possible. Brielle would use him against her, and she could not let him suffer.

“I will, Kaleigh. Skylar has already warned Ash that there will be no mating for at least a month if we mess up. So trust me, we will not do anything we are not supposed to. No matter how much I want to take you and lock you up somewhere to keep you safe, I won’t.” Kaleigh laughed at the look on Dominick’s face while she silently applauded Skylar. Leave it to Skylar to dangle, withholding sex to keep their mates in line.

“Dominick, I love you. I want you to remember that while we are apart. Our love is what will help us get through this.” Kaleigh was almost in tears thinking about being away from Dominick. She knew there was no other way, though. She would not let Brielle anywhere near him.

“I love you too, Kaleigh. I hear the howls of the warriors; that means the witches are encroaching on our land. It’s time to get busy. I will see you when this is over.” Dominick leaned down to give Kaleigh a long passionate kiss before they parted ways.

Kaleigh and the Luna went downstairs to the entryway of the packhouse. At the same time, Dominick and the Alpha shifted into their wolves to lead the warriors. They both could feel the witches of Dark Sphere confused about the barriers that were in place. Alannah turned toward Kaleigh and smiled.

“Okay, Kaleigh, this is where we part. Please be safe, and I will do my best to keep everyone here safe while you are with Brielle.”
Kaleigh hugged Alannah. She hoped that she would see her again.

“Thank you, Luna. Once I have been successful, you will know because all of those still remaining from Dark Sphere will perish on the spot.”

They hugged once again before going separate ways. Kaleigh could hear the battle in full force. She was waiting for Celeste to give her the signal, and then she would go outside to be captured. Kaleigh was nervous that all wouldn’t go as planned. She mindlinked Felicia to ensure all was in place for them to follow her once Celeste took her to Brielle. Felicia said that she, Mollie, and Allie were ready to go as soon as Kaleigh told them.

Outside, the warriors led by Dominick, the Alpha, and Tom were fighting the witches who were trying to break through the barriers that were in place. Kaleigh, Skylar, Alannah, and Celeste had all put spells on the pack members and their weapons to give them a better chance of defeating the Dark Sphere witches. While they were trying to come through the barriers, the warriors who remained in human form could shoot flamed arrows piercing the witches in the heart, killing them immediately.

However, they were only able to kill a few of them because they quickly caught on that the wolf pack was prepared for them. The Dark Sphere witches became angry and started using their dark magic in an attempt to break the barriers. The spells in place were strong, but they knew they would not be able to hold for long. Kaleigh was hoping it would be enough for the warriors to get the upper hand.

Once the witches started getting near the wolves, they started trying to use spells on them to bind them in place so they could kill them. That did not go as planned either because the pack members also had individual spells placed on them to protect them from their attacks. The White Raven warriors were still shooting the flaming arrows and using swords to slice off the witches’ heads when they could get behind them. Dark Sphere realized that they were not going to be able to kill the pack as quickly as Brielle had anticipated. They also had not located the Emerald Stone witch.

Celeste pretended to attack with them. However, when they weren’t looking, she was sending spells to the wolf pack below to protect them from the attacks of her fellow witches. She wanted to give them a little more help before signaling Kaleigh and taking her to Brielle. So far, ten of the fifty Dark Sphere witches had been killed.

Celeste did not see any werewolf casualties yet. That gave her hope that all the preparations she, Kaleigh, and the Luna made were working. Celeste placed one more spell over the entire pack and decided it was not time for the final act.

Kaleigh heard Celeste give a long low whistle and knew it was time for her to go outside. She mindlinked Felicia, Mollie, and Allie, telling them it was time to be on the move. They mindlinked back and said they were ready to go. Kaleigh took a deep breath and stepped outside. She saw the witches trying to attack the warriors, and they all seemed to come to a complete stop when they saw her. Kaleigh could feel their hatred and hostility, except for Celeste.

The Dark Sphere witches all headed toward Kaleigh as one unit. However, focusing on her allowed the warriors to kill several more of them from behind. Celeste stopped the other witches before they could reach Kaleigh and reminded them that Brielle wanted her to take the Emerald Stone witch to her. Kaleigh could tell that the others were unhappy, but they didn’t want to go against Brielle, afraid of losing their lives.

Celeste slowly approached Kaleigh, and they pretended to fight using their magic. This went on for several minutes until Kaleigh pretended to allow Celeste to get the upper hand by binding her wrists with magical silver cuffs, which were actually white gold.

The Dark Sphere witches began cheering, thinking that Celeste had been able to stop the Emerald Stone witch and her wolf from attacking. They then turned back toward the pack members to begin fighting again. They realized that while they had been watching Kaleigh and Celeste, their numbers had decreased even more.

The Dark Sphere witches wouldn’t admit defeat no matter how many they lost. If they were not successful in beating the White Raven pack, Brielle would kill them. The way they saw it, no matter what, it was a death sentence, so they would continue fighting.

Celeste pretended to place a binding spell on Kaleigh and forced her to leave with her. Kaleigh appeared to struggle for the benefit of their audience as she was pulled behind Celeste. No one noticed the three she-wolves following behind the two witches from the cover of the forest. When they were far enough from the battle, Celeste and Kaleigh both took a sigh of relief.

“How far do we need to go, Celeste?” Kaleigh asked quietly, still worried that one of the other witches may have followed them.

“Not far. Brielle wants to be close to the pack because she will come here to look for the stone herself if you don’t have it on you. We shouldn’t talk anymore, Kaleigh. I don’t trust her not to have spies around so let’s continue pretending that you are under my spell.” Kaleigh looked at Celeste and saw her nervously glancing around. She nodded to Celeste as she led her deeper into the forest.

They had been walking for what felt like an hour when a strong cold breeze washed over them. Kaleigh and Skylar both started shivering even though they typically do not get cold with their wolf blood. Kaleigh knew they were getting close to Brielle’s hideout. Celeste stopped her, and suddenly a black hole appeared before them on the ground. Celeste grabbed Kaleigh’s cuffed hands and pulled her into the hole. Kaleigh screamed when they started falling very fast into the dark pit. She felt terror clench her throat as they continued to fall. Was this going to be the end for her?