The Keepers: Ethan

“Oh no,” Jenna breathed, an icy sensation raking down her spine. “They’re shifters, Ethan!”

“What the hell?” he grumbled, reaching for his phone.

“Hazel must’ve opened the portal to Ameera.”

What that meant sparked a torrent of emotions that Jenna was quick to sidestep. She couldn’t think about that. Not now.

Ethan had Archer on speed dial, his barked orders swallowed by an explosion of fireworks that lit up the sky in a rainbow of colours. The fires in all the metal bins that lined the street flared brighter.

The bins exploded, in sync with the noise of the fireworks, white sparks flying everywhere. A few people noticed, moved out of the way, but the noise and sparks were so perfectly timed with the parade that it caused little alarm.

One by one, like a snake slithering toward its prey, the bins exploded, moving toward the parade.

Archer and Declan were already on their feet, Sienna and Kate sandwiched between them.

Smoke filtered from the sidewalks. It triggered a few surprised looks from the marching crowd, but they moved on, caught in the excitement of the night.

Energy, noise, and colour filled the street. Music played, people laughed, unperturbed by the explosions. It was all part of the show.

The smoke thickened. A few people coughed and backed away from the parade, arms flailing.

Fireworks exploded. Bins exploded. Perfect synchronisation. Light bulbs erupted. A tree caught alight.

By the time the cries of alarm added to the chaos, Jenna and Ethan were already running.

CHAPTER NINE (#ulink_30840110-cbe1-52be-847b-b6027fdf0b14)

They raced down the stairs and onto the street, merging with the crowd. Confusion had broken up the parade. The music stopped, the explosions continued. Everyone began running. Screaming.

Ethan bolted into the panicked crowd, dodging people and fire, his focus zeroed in on one woman across the road. Sienna.

Jenna felt it too. That burning need to protect her witch above everything else. Despite the anguish. Despite the screams. Their witches came first. Always. She raced through the crowd, searching for Kate through the thickening smoke. Kate!

Declan came up behind her, taking her arm. “You have to get Kate home!” he shouted, tugging her with him as he walked.

“Where is she?”

He turned into the alleyway beside the restaurant. A wave of unease crashed through her as her instincts lit up like a runway. In a brisk movement, she yanked her arm out of his grasp and spun around, delivering a powerful kick that sent him reeling against the wall.

She launched at him before he could recover, slid around him and grabbed his neck between her arms. A death grip that could snap his neck in a heartbeat.

“What the hell was that for?” He gripped her arms, trying to break free. “Kate’s in trouble, you crazy woman!”

“You think I’m stupid?” She tightened her grip, taking satisfaction from his grunt. “Declan would never, ever leave Kate alone during an attack, so next time you try your Mimic crap with me, try a better story.”

He grumbled something beneath his breath, his words barely audible, and grew still. Then he laughed. The image of Declan disappeared to reveal the man beneath the facade. She recognised his mop of black curls and his jagged teeth. One of Hazel’s sidekicks, although Jenna had hardly spoken to him in her time with them. A Mimic. Known for his ability to imitate others.

And now there were shifters too – able to shift into cats at will. Both dangerous and deceptive.

“There are innocent people here!” Jenna said. “Are you all insane?”

Safety aside, a magical display like this risked exposure and severe consequences.

“Mildly, but watching you and the Bennett brothers fight to keep our secret is so entertaining.”

Jenna didn’t respond, distracted by a movement in the distance. Two cats sauntered toward her, unperturbed by the chaos in the background. In a sleek, agile movement, they effortlessly shifted into their human form, two women Jenna had never seen before. They were small in build and had dark hair, porcelain skin and narrow, bright green eyes that smacked of malice.

Jenna heard the rush of air a moment before she felt the impact from above. A third cat collided with her, a light force that instantly grew stronger as it shifted. But Jenna was faster. She dropped the Mimic, simultaneously delivering a vicious elbow to her attacker’s face the moment she became human. The shifter crashed into a dustbin but was on her feet in an instant. She had a similar appearance to the other two, almost identical.

They circled Jenna, snarling softly, the sound emanating from the back of their throats. Three against one. And the damn Mimic. Just her luck. Jenna braced herself as they closed in.

“STOP!” A voice demanded from above. “Get away from her! Hazel was clear this one was hers.”

A young woman leapt from the roof and landed on the ground in front of them. She had short jet-black hair, eyes outlined in dark makeup. Small in build, but a fierce and powerful witch Jenna instantly recognised.

Megan. The young witch her parents had taken in. Despite their mercy, love, and guidance, she’d joined Hazel’s cause anyway. The last time Jenna had seen her had been the night they’d tried to sacrifice Kate.

Jenna’s hands closed into fists, her body flooded by conflicting emotions always sparked by an interaction with Megan. Good versus evil. Right versus wrong. Two women on opposite sides of the war. Bound by a twisted childhood friendship.

Their gazes locked, silent animosity bristling between them. A shared past, a secret they both fiercely protected.

“We were only having some fun,” the Mimic replied, watching Megan with wary eyes.

“Get out of here,” Megan ordered, turning to the shifters. “And tell your people to tone it the hell down. We’re here to deliver a message, not spark a damn war!”

They hurried away, leaving behind two estranged woman and a heavy silence.

Anger soared through Jenna as instincts demanded she avoid Megan. The witch who wouldn’t hesitate to harm them.

The witch who had just helped her.

An age-old voice reared to life within her, a whisper of a twisted loyalty Jenna had always felt but never understood. So compelling. So wrong. Manifested during the years her parents had fostered Megan. They’d both been seven years old when they’d met and had become firm friends. Sisters.

Enemies.

“It would’ve been nice to have a warning before you invaded our town,” Jenna said.

“I warn you and I’m dead, Jenna. Besides, why would I bother? You destroyed any ounce of relationship we had when you betrayed me in New Orleans.”

“You were about to kill my witch!”

“A witch we needed.”

It was an ancient war between them, an inner battle they both fought. In truth, their friendship had altered the night Jenna’s mother had sent them through the portal. They’d parted ways. Jenna had joined the academy and Megan had aligned herself with the very people Jenna’s parents had despised. In time, they’d grown to be enemies, allied in opposite armies.

But somewhere beneath all that was a slither of respect and loyalty neither of them could shed. A legacy of the parents who’d raised them in a glimpse of time when they’d mattered to each other.

And if their alliances ever found out, they’d both be shunned. Or dead.