Coffin Girls (Elegantly Undead: Book 1 of the Coffin Girls Witch Vampire Series) (30 page)

“I don’t have much necromancy skills, Marie,” Conall shouted
over the noise of swords and anguish. “See if you can use what I gave you.”

There was no response from Marie as she contemplated the
spell. Then the zombies parted, revealing Marie sporting a scary grin. It was
pure anticipatory evil. Anais suppressed the shudder at her friend’s darker –
or greyer – side. Marie was closest to Raulf and she sent her zombies to the
wolf’s aide, commanding them to slaughter the vamps. 

 “I’ve got you now, you fucker,” Raulf’s alpha roared,
as he leapt at Ayden who was standing on an elevated area at the end of the
room.

Next to Ayden was Akeldonna, standing up, hands clenched in
front of her self-appointed throne. Anais and Conall both charged at her.
Conall got their first. Anais tried to step in as ancient vampire met ancient
witch. Conall might have the sword and the magick but Akeldonna had ambition
laced with the ruthlessness of pure evil. Anais watched with baited breath. At
times, they were so fast that they were blurry even to her super-vision.

Akeldonna managed to hit Conall in his Adam’s apple and
Anais watched in horrified stupor as Conall went down. Akeldonna was on him in
an instant only to be thrown off as Conall, shirt tattered, blood dripping from
scratches, threw her off. Suddenly, Conall had the upper-hand. Anais witnessed
the royal magick glow from him, blinding to the eye of an ordinary being.

“A lovely bit of entertainment, isn’t it my dear?” A voice
behind her whispered. “So nice of Akeldonna to arrange this; she’s so good to
me.”

Anais whipped around and had a blade at his throat before he
could say another word. “Entertaining is it?” Anais growled out, readying
herself to kill a man she hadn’t thought she would.  “Any last words,
Akhilleus?”

“What are you doing, Anais?” Akhilleus asked, genuinely
baffled. “Is this part of the show?”

Anais stared at him wordlessly trying to process what was
going on. There was something off. He seemed, well, high on something. Anais
knew that he was an ancient vampire and as such, should be powerful. Rumors
were that he was perhaps even older than Yves. But he’d always been lacking in
the balls department, having earned a well-deserved reputation as Akeldonna’s
puppet – despite her hideousness. Despite that character flaw, he’d always been
suave and articulate - not the broken, idiotic man smiling at her from the
dais.

“What the hell is wrong with him?” Anais asked out loud.

Anais felt Conall come up behind her. Drat! He’d finished
Akeldonna without her and by the pile of ash on the ground; it looked like her
man had done it well.

“He’s under an illusion spell,” Conall stated, nodding in
Akhilleus’ direction. “He doesn’t know what’s going on. I recognize the spell
and Ayden’s magick in him.”

“But wouldn’t that have been broken when Raulf killed
Ayden?” she asked, bewildered by the unexpected twist.

“I didn’t,” reported Raulf, naked and bloody in his human
form. “He teleported as I got to him. I wish he’d had Akeldonna’s arrogance,
the coward, and then I could’ve finished him off.”

“I’m not sure if he’s guilty of playing a part in this or if
he’s been under her control all along. What do we do with him?” Anais asked,
pointing at Akhilleus. He was pouting like a toddler, complaining that the show
was over. 

“Prisoner of war,” responded Sylvain, shaking his head as
the spectacle.

“Agreed,” stated Conall. He looked to Anais for her
agreement and at her nod requested of Niul, “Take him and let’s get out of
here. I’ve had enough of this place.”

“I’m grateful to you for what you’ve done.” A beautiful
woman with eyes like Raulf’s clasped both of Anais’ hands in her. She threw a concerned
glance at the she-wolves that they’d rescued from Akeldonna’s clutches; they
were being tended to by the fae healers and the coffin girls. “The pack will be
indebted to you once again, like we were when you set our slave ancestors free.
It is a debt we are privileged to have and will honor.”

Anais regarded Raulf’s mother, a woman she respected,
although she wasn’t as close to her as she was to Miss Suzette. Years have been
kind to her, Anais noted. Raulf’s mother looked thirty years younger than the
fifty-odd she could lay claim too – then again, wolves could live for centuries
and Raulf’s bloodline was a strong one. The only indication of age was the
wisdom reflected in her eyes.

“There’s no need for indebtedness or gratitude, Gabrielle,”
Anais stated solemnly. “We’re family so helping goes without saying.”

“Besides, I didn’t do it alone,” Anais said, tilting her
head towards Conall and the rest of the men who helped tend the wounded
soldiers. They’d agreed that the men would see to the injured fighters to free
up the women to tend to the rescued girls. The tactic was not born of sexism
but from a need to sensitively care for the girls who may have been molested by
Akeldonna’s male vampires – as they’d already witnessed with two of the girls.

“Yes, of course,” acknowledged Gabrielle with a nod. “Your
handsome man and his friends have aided my son too.” Raulf’s mother’s eyes
filled with unshed tears and she dabbed at the corner of her eyes.

Anais recognized the tears for mother’s relief at her son’s
safety. “And Raulf aided them, Gabrielle. It was collaboration against evil.”

“Yes, I’m proud of him, cher, as I am of you,” Gabrielle
acknowledged. Shaking her head, she grinned at Anais, “And I’m happy to see you
finally in love. My son was not the one for you.”

Anais felt discomfort mingle with embarrassment in her
belly. Her blushing response was cut off by a chortling Miss Suzette.

“Oh leave her be, Gaby,” Miss Suzette said, stepping up to
her sister and kissing her cheek. Miss Suzette cut her chick a break, “Now,
y’all have to eat. It’s been nearly twenty-four hours since any of y’all have
had full in your bellies.”

“I agree as always with your wisdom, Miss Suzette,” Conall
came up to them and planted a smacking kiss on Miss Suzette’s cheeks. Conall
shot a concerned look at Anais, “I can feel how tired you are, love. Sylvain’s
given orders for the fae to take over the tending of the wounded – souls and
bodies. Believe me, they’re more than capable. So, I think it is time for some
food and a comfortable bed.”

As much as Anais wanted to push on, she acquiesced, “Okay,
I’ll go round up the rest.”

“No need,” interjected Conall, “Sylvain and Niul have
already spoken to them. Raulf’s arranged for the she-wolves and warriors to go
home with his mother. He says that they’ll heal faster on home-ground.
Something about spiritual place of healing. He’s staying a while longer so we
can de-brief.”

“Our grounds are filled with the love, energy and wisdom of
our ancestors,” Gabrielle commented.

“Not all the she-wolves are yours, though,” Anais stated.

“No, they’re not,” acknowledged Gabrielle, “but they are
orphans – without a pack – and we’ll take them in until we find their packs or
they can stay with us. They’re weres and that’s what counts.” At the collective
nods, Gabrielle continued, “I’ve already made the preparations. I wanted to
thank y’all first before leaving.”

“The thanks is accepted and returned,” responded Conall.
“Raulf and his warriors were equal contributors to our victory.”

Gabrielle acknowledged the thanks and turned to leave, only
to stop and glance back at Anais. “But,” she said, looking squarely at Conall,
“prince of witches, fellow warrior and now friend, if you hurt one head on her
head, I’ll eat you.”

“You won’t get the chance to make me your meal,” responded
Conall while Anais blushed with embarrassment and Miss Suzette grinned,
enjoying the spectacle. “I love her and would vow to take care of her if she’d
let me.”

Eyes sparkling, Gabrielle turned to Anais, “I expect an
invitation to the wedding.”

Anais objected, “There’s n-” before Conall cut her off with
a thorough kiss. Anais had needed this – the connection, the sense of
fulfilment she got from him, after the battle, so she threw caution to the wind
and gave into it.

“Get a room,” Raulf growled as he approached them,
grinningly slapping Conall on the back. Anais didn’t miss the unspoken
communication between Gabrielle and Miss Suzette that spoke of relief that
Raulf wasn’t heart-broken and amusement at the bromance that had sprung up
between Conall and Raulf. Anais found her lips curving in satisfaction too.

 Conall leaned down and whispered in Anais’ ear,
“That’s a look I wouldn’t mind seeing in our bedroom, love. After I feed you
and get your energy levels up.”

“And after we de-brief, which may take some time,” Anais
threw water on the heat he was stirring up between them.

“Aye,” he said, gravely disappointed by the reality.

With their bond, Anais felt that emotion and grinned
appreciatively. She reached up to him, her lips teasingly grazing his ear as
she promised, “But I’m sure I can maintain my energy long enough so we can
‘de-stress’.”

She loved how Conall perked up at that but stopped him when
he hastily made to pull her towards Sylvain’s library where the working lunch
awaited them  - they’d skipped both dinner and breakfast after bringing
the rescued women home.

“Wait,” she said, “I just want to speak to Faith first.”

Anais made her way to the hospital bed where a Marie was
tending to the girl who’d first made contact with them.

Anais had been worried about Marie since Conall had helped
her send the zombies back. Marie had come back from the plantation, introverted
and had thrown herself into helping tend the wounded without any chirps or
sarcasm. “Marie,” Anais brought her friend’s attention to her. “It’s time for
dinner, cher. Why don’t you go ahead while I speak to Faith?”

Marie nodded her response and left them silently. Shrugging
away the frown, Anais turned her focus to the young girl that lay in the
hospital bed – she’d find time back on the plantation to have a heart to heart
chat with Marie. Sometimes, people needed time to process traumatic events and
perhaps that was what Marie required now.

“How are you feeling?” Anais asked the girl.

“Better but confused,” answered the girl.

“The confusion is normal,” Anais placated, “I’d be confused
too if I’d been through what you’d been and didn’t even know my name.”

At the girl’s nod of acceptance, Anais began, “We can’t keep
on calling you girl. So, until we know what your name is, what would you like
us to call you?”

“I don’t know,” the girl responded, shrugging. “It doesn’t
really matter. It’s just a formality until we find my family. Then I’ll know my
real name. Why don’t you choose something?”

“Okay,” responded Anais. “How about Faith? You gave faith to
the other girls that were captured, you held onto faith when you tried to reach
me and helped us get you all out of there.” Anais squeezed her hand, feeling
eyes moisten at the sight of the tears sliding down Faith’s face. “Now, I need
you to hang onto that faith a bit longer. We’ll find your families and return
you to them and if we don’t, you’ll have a family with us. You’re safe now.”

“Thank you,” croaked Faith.

“It is my sincere pleasure,” Anais stated, giving her new
charge a watery smile. “I’m going to get something to eat and some rest. We’ll
talk tomorrow. So, for now, I need you to focus only on healing, okay?”

“Okay,” Faith responded determinately. Anais felt her heart
fill with care and protectiveness towards her.

As Anais made her way to Conall, she acknowledged that Faith
was getting to her. She easily recognized the emotions as the same as what
she’d felt when she’d brought the other coffin girls to her fold. She knew what
to do about her feelings towards Faith and the possibilities those emotions
could lead to. Looking at Conall, handsome as sin and as caring and honorable
as any woman could want, she felt herself fill with love. These were the
unpredictable feelings. She didn’t know for sure what their love would lead to.
By the look on his face, she knew that he knew of her internal debate, courtesy
of their blood bond and knew that he would wait patiently for as long as it
took – as he’d promised.

--------

Anais walked into Sylvain’s library on Conall’s arm and
stopped short.
Mon Dieu
! Sylvain’s elegant, aristocratic library had
been transformed into the plantation kitchen. Even more so, the rest of them were
settled around the table, awaiting Miss Suzette’s food while she bustled around
them finishing the preparations for the fiery Cajun meal. The sounds emanating
from the room were comfortable and reminiscent of home.

She went to Sylvain and kissed his cheek, “
Merci
, my
dear friend.” Sylvain was giving them comfort after the battle.

“I had nothing to do with it,” Sylvain grinned, “but I’ll
take the kiss.” Sylvain kissed Anais’ confused face then nodded at Conall whose
pleased smile had been replaced by a scowl. “That jealous man of yours is
totally responsible for this, I’m afraid.”

“I wouldn’t need to be jealous,” said Conall coming forward
and placing a kiss of his own on Anais, “if you’d keep your lips to yourself.”

Veronique’s lips curved gleefully, “Oh, I don’t know about
that Conall. After having experienced those lips, I’d say that it’d be a shame
if other women didn’t get to come into contact with them.”

The rest of them laughed as Conall’s scowl deepened. Anais
felt her heart melt at what he’d done and turned to kiss away the frown. “
Merci
,
cher,” she said, “you’re too good for me.”

“No,” said Conall, “I’m just right for you.”

Now it was Anais’ turn to frown. With their blood bond, she
could feel the honesty of his emotions, his thoughts for her. Fuck, she
thought! Why did everything in life lately have to be over the frikkin’ top!
Why the fuck can’t things come at an easier pace!