Free Fighting Destiny (Central Coven) by K. D. Carrillo Page A

Anita began. “Except for my father,” I interrupted.  “Right, naturally except for him.  Why now, and why the rest of us?” Anita finished.  “Easy, together we can coordinate and amplify our abilities like a coven can.  Attacking us now, before our powers have matured and while we are still getting to know each other might be their only chance to defeat us,” Dean answered.
    Still, something troubled me.  All of the stories I had heard said we were immortal. I don’t just mean we live forever. We do, but we are also indestructible.  How were they planning on immobilizing an indestructible enemy?  I didn’t have an answer for that.  One other question was nagging at me.  Why would a necromancer need to control Alexander to go after Anita, if that is what he wanted already?
    “Anita, why do you think Alexander would need to be under a spell?  I mean if he wants to go after you anyway…”  “Right, I get it, he wouldn’t need to be compelled. Hmmm… Well, that is disturbing.  I’ll have to ask Grey,” she said thinking aloud.
    Dean wasn’t paying attention to our side conversation, because he was engrossed in talking to his family on the phone. “They are going to join in the search for Finn’s parents.  My cousin, Cooper James has gone missing too.  They think it might be related.  They were preparing to search for him, and now they think if they search for all of them they might have better luck.”
    “What does your cousin turn into,” I asked absent-mindedly.  “A bear.  My aunt and uncle adopted him, because he was the last of his kind,” Dean answered, staring out the window.  “And the rest of your family?”  A sense of foreboding was filling me.  “We all turn into big cats.”  I shook my head, trying to make the fragments of ideas fit together.  “So your family, are they the strongest shifters?” I asked.  Dean nodded yes.
    “Shit!” Dean exclaimed.  “Why didn’t I see it?  Finn’s parents are the strongest elves, my family is the strongest shifters, Anita is the only half vampire, and well you are also unique.  We were all brought together, each representing the strongest of our races.  Grey established us as a back-up Council .”  I nodded in agreement.  It seemed his mind was taking him down the same path mine had led me.
    “Do you think he accidentally made us a target while trying to protect us?” I asked.  “Maybe, but I think we were likely already targets. Our families have probably been trying to solve this problem without our knowing about it, but put us together as a last resort.”  “I would love to believe that,” I began, “but this is just the kind of problem my mother would force me to handle alone to see how I deal with it.”
    “Do you think there is any chance Vanessa is still alive?” I asked Anita.  She shuddered at a memory, her eyes glowed their odd mixture of bronze and reflective yellow, and her fangs slid out.  She hissed, “No.  She is not safe with Alexander.  He most likely killed her moments after he took her, if she was lucky.” “So there is no hope then?” Dean asked.  “We can only hope to prevent another murder,” Anita said severely.  I nodded my head, I was afraid of that.
    “We need to get out in front of this,” Anita advised.  “Yeah, but first we need to figure out for sure what ‘this’ is,” I said.  “I think we should go hunting,” Dean said excited.  “Who are we hunting?” I asked him.  “Vampires,” he grinned broadly. 
    “I agree, but finding the vampires won’t be enough.  We need the spells the necromancers have been using to control the vampires. Then I can craft charmed amulets and hide them into their clothing to counteract the spells.”   “What will that do?” Dean asked.  Anita bounced excitedly and started laughing.
    “Vampires hate relinquishing control.  When they are released from the spell, they will turn on the necromancers, and finish the