Romani Prophecy (Shifter Blood: Romani Curse Book 4) Read online

  Romani Prophecy

  Book Four in the Romani Curse Series

  Frances Trilone

  Magic Raven Press

  ROMANI PROPHECY

  Copyright © 2021 by Frances Trilone

  All rights reserved.

  * * *

  This book is a work of fiction. Any names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any similarities or resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or places, is entirely coincidental.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the author. Brief quotations may be embodied in articles or reviews.

  Published by Magic Raven Press

  ISBN 978-1-7324998-6-7

  * * *

  Cover designed by Ravenborn

  Editing by Liz Dempsey, The Error Eliminator

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.”

  – William Shakespeare

  Chapter 1

  “Sienna, watch out!” Rosella Sherard raised her hands and flung a wall of wind in my direction.

  I dropped to the ground, cursing at the sight of more flickering red eyes. Another vampire. How many lurked nearby, hidden by the night?

  Ignoring Rosella, the vampire stalked toward me. As the wall of wind pummeled him, he flew across the road and struck a tree. Broken branches thudded to the ground as he slid down its trunk.

  “Hail to the Guardians of the South, of the power of fire, I call upon thee.” I scrambled to my feet and snapped my fingers, a grin crossing my face as a fireball materialized in each hand. I loved being a witch.

  The vampire took one look at the fireballs and ran off into the woods.

  After releasing the fire element, I glanced down at the large tree lying across the road. Had the vampires blocked the road into Woodlake, or was that merely a coincidence?

  I ran to Rosella’s side, grateful for a witch bestie who had a strong affinity for air. “Where’s Markus?”

  “Last I saw, he was fighting a vampire.” She tucked black hair behind her ears and glanced at the car parked on the road where Victor Macek sat in the driver’s seat, one hand gripping the steering wheel and the other holding a gun. Rosella’s protection spell kept him safe as long as he stayed in the car. Drina, my cousin, would never forgive me if something happened to her husband.

  I scanned the woods on both sides of the road, listening for a howl or a yelp, anything that might reveal Markus’ whereabouts. As a Norwood wolf shapeshifter, he could take care of himself, but that didn’t stop me from worrying.

  Why were the vampires this close to town? Had the warlock Julius decided to kidnap me now instead of waiting until Samhain? Perhaps he’d learned of my plan to convince the wolf packs to fight alongside the witches and prevent the demon Vadoma from rising again.

  “We need to find Markus and get to the Romani community before more vampires show up,” I said.

  “I’m sure he’s fine. He probably ran into town.” Rosella walked over to the tree in the middle of the road and invoked air to push it aside.

  When we stopped a few minutes ago, Markus had insisted on moving the tree, despite me offering to use my telekinetic powers. As soon as he lifted it, he’d told us the tree had been intentionally cut. And then a vampire attacked him.

  “We should go,” she said.

  “Markus wouldn’t leave me.” I shook my head. “He must be in the woods, and he might need our help.”

  Her lips twisted. “I’m not putting my life in danger for some wolf who—”

  “Fine. Stay here until I get back.” I stalked toward the trees. Why couldn’t Rosella see that Markus wasn’t just another wolf? He wouldn’t run away—not when Kaleb, my wolf shapeshifter fiancé, had ordered him to protect me—and no way could I leave without him.

  With a huff, Rosella followed me.

  “Markus,” I shouted.

  She grabbed my arm. “Yelling is a bad idea. What if those vampires are still around? It’ll be faster if I cast a hearing spell.”

  “What does the spell do?” I didn’t recall a hearing spell in any of the books I’d read, but then Rosella was an experienced witch, even if I was supposedly more powerful. Of course, I still hadn’t invoked the earth or spirit elements—something the High Council witches demanded I do as soon as possible.

  “I’ll hear his heartbeat, so we can find him.” She released my arm. “Stand still and be quiet.”

  I did as instructed, letting my eyes adjust to the darkness and wishing I could see what she was doing. Learning the spell would come in handy, as I couldn’t hear a thing. No rustling leaves. No crickets chirping. Nothing but Rosella’s mumbling.

  Even though she’d recently lost her mom, asking her to join us had been the right decision, since I needed a Romani witch like Rosella around. Someone I could trust and rely on. We’d been close friends and roommates at the Raven Coven for the past two months, so working with her came easy.

  My chest tightened at the thought of vampires lurking nearby. They might be watching us right now, readying to attack again. Or, even worse, perhaps they’d hurt Markus. He’d been fighting one vampire, but what if the others joined in?

  “I hear him.” Rosella pulled me deeper into the woods, leading the way. “But something’s wrong. His breathing’s shallow.”

  “Damn,” I muttered.

  “There he is.” She pointed up ahead, where moonlight streaming through the tall pine trees exposed Markus in human form, struggling with three vampires. One perched on his back while the other two had seized his legs, and as they sank their fangs into him, his agonized scream echoed through the surrounding woods.

  I summoned fire and ran, throwing fireballs at the vampires who still had their teeth buried in Markus’ legs. They released him and ducked, snarling as they moved away.

  “I got them. Go help Markus.” Rosella summoned air and headed after the two vampires.

  Markus thrashed around, trying to get the vampire off his back, but to no avail. As he fell to his knees, blood dripping down his torn T-shirt, the vampire smiled and sank his fangs into Markus’ neck.

  “Get off him,” I yelled, flames crawling along my arms and shooting from my fingertips.

  The vampire lifted his head and tossed Markus aside.

  I hurled myself through the air and grabbed hold of the vampire. Clinging to his torso, I refused to let go as his clothing caught on fire. As soon as he screamed, I released the fire element and fell backward to the ground.

  The vampire’s red eyes narrowed as he burned, and then crumbled to ashes.

  “What…?” Markus coughed. “I didn’t know you could do that.”

  “This is the new, powerful Sienna.” Rosella appeared beside me. “Did my brother teach you that move?”

  “No. It just kind of happened.” I stared at my hands, remembering our conversation last night. Rosella insisted I had an affinity for fire after seeing me create a fire wall so easily. I didn’t believe her since I already had an affinity for air, but she had to be right. How else could I kill a vampire without knowing how I did it? “Where are the others?”

  “They ran off when they saw their friend on fire.” She eyed Markus. “Why didn’t you shift into a wolf?”

  “I was about to when they grabbed me.” Panting heavily, he rested against a tree and tore off what remained of his T-shirt. He used it to wipe his neck before dropping it to the ground.

  I pushed aside his brown hair to examine the bite marks on his neck. The wolves had the power to heal themselves, but his wounds weren’t healing as they should. “How do you feel?”

  “Fine.” He coughed again, his golden-brown eyes flickering yellow.

  “We’d better get out of here before they come back,” Rosella said.

  “You’re right.” I slipped an arm around Markus, letting him lean on me for support. “Can you grab his other side?”

  Rosella bit her lower lip in hesitation, then lifted his other arm and draped it around her neck. No doub
t she disliked the idea of touching him, given that the wolf shapeshifters and witches rarely got along.

  We walked back the way we came as fast as possible, keeping an eye out for the other vampires.

  As we approached, Victor leaped out of the car to open the back door. Running a hand through his dark brown hair, he glanced around nervously. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah,” Markus grunted as he climbed into the car.

  “What happened?” Victor closed the door, his brown eyes locking onto mine.

  “Sienna killed a vampire,” Rosella blurted out, seeming way too happy to share the good news.

  “I don’t even know how I did it.” Although I wanted to celebrate my success, I wasn’t sure what Victor would make of it. He’d once been my chaperone, and now I was the one protecting us. “How about I drive the rest of the way? If we run into trouble again, it might be better if Rosella and I are up front.”

  “Okay,” Victor said reluctantly before walking around the car and getting into the back seat.

  Unlike the past hour, where Victor and Markus had chatted nonstop, no one spoke as we drove into town. I tried to focus on the road, but my thoughts kept drifting to Kaleb. He’d left the coven yesterday, promising to call after checking on my pregnant cousin, but when I talked to Drina last night, she hadn’t seen Kaleb, and I couldn’t help but worry.

  This morning, when Victor called Drina, he couldn’t understand why he kept getting a busy signal—until a witch told us about the news report. A severe thunderstorm near Woodlake had knocked down power lines and cell towers, cutting all communication with the town. Even Norwood Isle had suffered extensive damage, forcing them to close early for the year.

  As we neared Woodlake’s city limits, Rosella pulled out her cell phone, the screen lighting up her side of the car. She grunted before powering off the phone and turning it back on again.

  “What’s wrong?” I slowed the car as the headlights struck the ‘Welcome to Woodlake’ sign. Memories of moving to town and meeting Kaleb flooded my mind. I had to find him. I needed to know he was okay. Losing him again wasn’t an option.

  “Something’s not right.” She held up her phone. “I don’t have a signal, but that makes no sense. There’s no debris on the road. No broken trees. Even that welcome sign back there seemed fine. Does it look like there’s been a terrible storm?”

  “No.” I sighed, hating to admit she was right. The news story must be a cover-up. But for what? The vampires attacked Norwood Isle three nights ago. Had something else happened that would explain why someone blocked the road and why we ran into vampires?

  Markus groaned from the back seat.

  “I’m sure there’s a logical explanation.” I pressed down on the gas pedal, reminding myself to focus on the plan: ensure Drina’s safe and find Kaleb.

  Chapter 2

  “Seems quiet around here. Definitely not what I expected,” Rosella said as we passed pine tree after pine tree, nearing the Romani community on the outskirts of town. “What’s with that tall fence and barbed wire? I didn’t know Woodlake had a prison.”

  “They don’t.” I slowed the car to see what Rosella was talking about. She had to be imagining things. When I saw the barbed wire fence, I gasped. “Victor, did the Elders put up a fence?”

  “No.” He stared out the window, appearing as shocked as me.

  I turned left to the community’s entrance and stopped the car. The main gate was closed. Something I’d never seen before. Not when the gate was purely for aesthetics.

  “How far back are the houses?” Rosella squinted. “Shouldn’t we see lights from the front porches and windows?”

  “The community shouldn’t be that dark.” We should’ve seen lights from a few houses, but only darkness welcomed us from behind the gates. Where was everyone?

  “I’ll push the gate open,” Victor said.

  “You can’t.” Markus let out a breath. “It’s hot. I can hear an electric current running through the fence.”

  Victor cursed. “This doesn’t make sense. I’ve only been gone three days.”

  “I’ll check the perimeter, see if the fence goes all the way around.” Markus straightened, failing to conceal a wince.

  “No. You’re not healed yet. What if you run into more vampires?” I gripped the steering wheel, frustrated that nothing was going as planned. First the vampires, and now this. “I’ll check the perimeter.”

  “That’s not a good idea,” Markus snapped.

  “I’ll go with her,” Rosella said. “If we find an opening, we’ll get Drina and hurry back.”

  Markus shook his head. “I won’t allow it.”

  “You do remember we’re witches, right? It’s not like we need a big bad wolf to protect us.” She turned to me and muttered, “I’ve no idea how you even put up with him.”

  I glanced at her, wishing it wasn’t so hard for her to accept that some wolves were on our side, especially Markus. It wasn’t that I expected the witches to forget the past. I just needed them to get along with the wolves and fight with them against Julius. Once we’d won, and there was no chance of the demon Vadoma ever possessing me, everyone could go their separate ways, including the tatcho vampires. Of course, I still didn’t know how we’d convince the wolves to set aside their differences and work with the witches and vampires. Something I’d have to worry about later. For now, we needed a plan to get past those gates without being electrocuted.

  “Any ideas on how we’re supposed to get inside?” Victor sounded worried.

  “What about that camera?” Rosella pointed to the top of the streetlamp, where a red light blinked several times.

  Everyone except Markus got out of the car.

  “That’s new too.” Victor waved at the camera. “Something bad must’ve happened. You don’t think Drina’s…”

  “She’s fine. Kaleb would’ve protected her if she was in danger,” I said.

  Rosella sighed. “We don’t even know if he made it to Woodlake.”

  “He did,” Markus said as he rolled down the car window.

  I studied his pale face, worried the vampires’ bites had affected him more than he was admitting. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  “Yeah. We should get out of here and come back in the morning,” Markus said. “We can stop at the police station and ask about the fence. They’ll know what happened.”

  Markus’ suggestion made sense, but there was no way Victor would leave, not without knowing Drina and their unborn baby were safe.

  “You’re right, but we should try to get inside,” I said. “Why don’t I use telekinesis to open the gate? If that doesn’t work, we’ll cast a spell.”

  “No,” Victor said. “You’re on sacred ground without the Town Council’s permission, and if they find out you’ve used your powers, they’ll punish you.”

  Rosella laughed. “Well, Sienna might have to play nice and follow the rules, but I don’t have to. It’s not like anyone can punish me or—”

  “You need to leave.” Behind the fence, a man dressed in camouflage emerged from the shadows. He carried a shotgun and wore a belt with a hunting knife and a handgun.

  “Now, this is how I imagined Woodlake. Romanies with guns,” Rosella said.

  “He’s not Romani,” I whispered. The man looked familiar, but he wasn’t from the community.

  Victor approached the fence, his arms spread wide. “My name’s Victor Macek, and I’m here to see my wife, Drina. She’s eight months pregnant. Will you open the gate?”

  “No,” the man said, his tone flat.

  “Can you tell us what happened?” I asked. Even if he wouldn’t let us in, perhaps he’d give us some answers. “Why’s there an electric fence around the community? It wasn’t here three days ago, and neither was that camera.”