Rae Rivers - The Keepers - Archer

He lurched forward but stumbled back when the heat of the flames hit him. “Sienna!”

“Stop resisting and the flames will die.”

As there was no chance in hell he’d accept his prison of fire, she knew the flames would hold and keep him from following her.

“Don’t ever look for me again, Archer.”

His jaw flexed, and he clenched each fist. Slowly, he pinned her with a heated glare. “I will find you, Sienna. Don’t fool yourself.”

With a shaky smile, she backtracked away from him. “You’re the fool for thinking you could broomstick me back home.”

She turned away, needing to flee before he saw the crack in her powers as her body wasn’t yet strong enough to maintain them.

And the fear of losing control always lingered.

“Sienna.” The change in his tone had her glancing back at him over her shoulder. His eyes narrowed and his mouth curled into a small smile. “Game on.”

****

It was only later, when Sienna felt the syringe slam into her neck in the darkness of her apartment, that she wished she’d allowed Archer to take off her necklace.

This time, she really was on her own.

BENNETT ESTATE, RAPID FALLS, CANADA

When the cold arm wrapped around his neck with a vicious grip, Archer wasn’t surprised.

Thanks to his heightened senses, alive with warning, he’d heard and smelt the intruder the moment he’d entered his house. Driven by instinct and armed with exceptional reflexes, Archer whirled around and rammed his fingers around his attacker’s neck in a deathly grip. He charged forward, slamming the intruder against the wooden wall of the living room, not caring when the wood splintered beneath the impact, his arm shoved against his neck. The action sparked a series of choking gasps of air.

“Your name.” When silence met his question, Archer added more pressure.

“Hunter,” the intruder gasped between clenched teeth. “My name is Hunter. Now get off me.”

Like hell. “What do you want?” Archer demanded, adding another quick slam against the wall.

“I have a message for you.”

“And you had to deliver it personally.”

Hunter straightened his body in a brief act of bravery. “It’s about your witch.”

The mention of Sienna’s name fuelled Archer’s rage more than the attack itself. Go figure. “Leave Sienna out of this.”

“We know where she is.”

With lightening speed, Archer grabbed Hunter by the shirt and hurled him across the living room. The resounding crash resonated through the room with a sickening crunch of splintering glass. Three long daggers pinned against the wall rattled against the wood. Without flinching, Archer bolted and landed on his attacker with a low growl.

He spotted the branded tattoo on Hunter’s wrist, and his gut clenched. The mark of the one warlock he’d hoped would never return.

Warrick Brogan.

Damn.

“You’re here for Warrick,” he said, reigning in his searing anger.

“He’s issuing a challenge to the Bennett brothers,” Hunter choked, flinching at the weight of the solid man on top of him.

“And what challenge would that be?”

“He dares you to find the witch before he does.”

Archer’s stomach rolled at the mention of Sienna’s name in the same sentence as Warrick’s. The feeling was almost unbearable – blind fury and the instinctive urge to protect shot through his body, fusing together in intense heat.

“Tell Warrick that I have a message for him.” The colour in Hunter’s face had changed to a distressed blue. When his eyes started rolling back in his head, Archer softened his grip. After all, he needed a messenger. “If anyone so much as lifts a finger to Sienna, the Bennett brothers will retaliate with so much wrath that it’ll make hell seem like an attractive place.”

Hunter gave a sly grin. “Warrick wants the Grimoire.”

Of course. “Tell him to get in line.”

“But he wants the witch even more.”

“Like hell.”

“You won’t be able to protect her forever.” His words, said with such malice and confidence, hit Archer straight in the gut.

The Keeper of the Wise. His ancestral duty was to protect the Beckham witches from the evils of men like Warrick Brogan and his minions. So far, he’d already failed dismally where Sienna was concerned.

Two years later and she was still in hiding. Damn her.

He’d also failed his sister, his parents, and Sienna’s parents too, and their deaths had sparked a bitter quest for vengeance.

He leaned forward. “Touch her and you’ll die,” he said in an undertone that cut like a knife.

“Warrick won’t back down, Bennett.”

“And neither will we.” With herculean strength, Archer flung Hunter forward. “Get your evil ass out of my home,” he ordered and tossed Hunter through the jagged window. More glass shattered, and Hunter landed on the lawn outside with a loud curse.

“You’ll pay for this, Bennett,” Hunter said, wiping blood from his mouth with the sleeve of his shirt. “We’re coming for the Grimoire and the witch, and the Bennett brothers won’t stop us.”

Archer’s anger soared, and he bolted through the window, landing on the grass with the ease of a cat jumping from a four-storey window. “I dare you to say that again.”

Hunter stumbled to his feet with a string of curses that would make his mother blush. Not that men like him had mothers. No, they were the spawn of … evil.

A rustle of bushes drew Archer’s attention to the shrubbery beside him. A Golden Retriever circled their visitor with a soft growl.

“Ah, you’ve pissed off Levi.” Archer suppressed a grin at Hunter’s expression. The retriever’s growl deepened. “And Levi hates trespassers even more than we do.”

“Call off your dog.” Hunter quickly stepped back. “I’ll deliver your damn message, but you should know that Warrick won’t let this go.”

The dog’s low growl turned into a series of quick, loud snarls that sent Hunter soaring off and away.

Archer couldn’t blame him. In defensive mode, Levi did look rather frightening – nothing like the gorgeous, fury, friendly, and protective dog she was.

On edge with restless energy from the surprise attack, Archer blew out air and flexed his shoulders. His gaze travelled to the broken glass on the lawn, and he frowned. Broken doors and windows at the Bennett Estate was nothing new, but still sent a bolt of fury and resentment through him. Attacks from Warrick Brogan and others like him had been part of their life since they’d taken over the Keeper role from their parents before their deaths several years ago. But every time a dark force entered the estate uninvited, it stirred something vicious inside.

Situated in a small mystical town renowned for the production of ice wine, the mansion had been home to the Bennett family for decades, carefully restored by each generation. It was an impressive house, luxurious, and large enough to house several families. Thousands of trees, shrubs, and flowers filled their grounds. It was nestled in the centre of massive spans of land, surrounded by thick forests and a glistening river on the one side, and endless rows of grape vineyards on the other. The estate itself was very old, and steeped in magical energy. Storage buildings and underground tunnels filtered through the estate and the forest surrounding it. They’d all been abandoned or destroyed when the Bennett family had moved in.

Currently, the mansion was home to two of the three Bennett brothers. Still no sign of Declan.

Levi returned moments later, chasing an Aston Martin down the driveway.

Ethan.

When the car pulled to a stop in front of the house, the youngest Bennett brother emerged with a sheepish grin. “Seriously? Did you use Levi to frighten our visitors again?”