The Windhaven Witches Omnibus Edition : Complete Paranormal Suspense Series, Books 1-4 by Carissa Andrews (graded readers txt) 📕

“Dad, you’re stronger than this. Don’t let the Lemure win,” I whisper, watching his every move.

His dark eyes tip upward, taking me in for a moment.

I hold my breath, unsure what’s going on in his mind. He’s so unpredictable, and without knowing what he’s truly capable of in this form, worry begins to gnaw at my reserve.

Maybe Wade was right. Maybe this wasn’t the best idea after all.

“Dad, please stay calm. I’m trying to help you,” I say, holding out my hands. “You can fight this.”

An absurd laugh erupts from his lips. “Fight fate? You truly are out of your league.”

His fingers fly to his mouth, as if saying the word fate suddenly reminded him about the Moirai. His features writhe in agony, and all at once, his skin melts away from his face. He arches backward at an odd angle, contorting into something dark and grotesque. The shape of his eyes elongates and his skin is replaced by an inky-black film. The joints in his arms and legs twist and grow until he looms over me.

“No, you’re mine. I won’t let them have you…” the Lemure wails. “They can’t have you if they can’t find you.”

Holding gnarly black hands out in front of him, a ball of red energy grows between his palms. The Lemure mutters under his breath as his focus turns solely on the growing ball of light between his fingers. As it gets bigger, he pulls his hands apart like he’s playing some sort of magickal game of cat’s cradle.

Without warning, my entire astral being feels like it’s being torn apart from the inside out. The room darkens, then shifts in and out of focus as he continues to mutter to himself. I stumble forward, trying to reach out for him, but my feet sink into the ground as if they’ve melted down and become a part of the floor somehow.

“Dad, please, no—I don’t want to stay with you. I need to go back,” I cry out, clutching at the air and struggling to maintain my sense of self.

The room spins and it’s almost as if everything I am is melting away, deconstructing atom by atom.

“You heard the lady. She said no,” someone says from somewhere in the room, though I can’t tell where.

The dark figure of the Lemure spins around. With his concentration no longer on the ball of energy, the room comes back into focus. Everything that I am pulls back together, and I’m no longer melting into the floor.

Dominic somehow rushes to me, bringing in a wave of fresh energy and light where only moments ago was utter darkness.

“How—?” I sputter.

“Forget that. We need to get out of here,” Dominic says. “Time to pull the plug.”

“No, we have to protect the others,” I say.

“Others?” The Lemure snarls. Its dark-purple eyes widen, and fury erupts across its quivering body. “What others?” Tipping his nose to the sky like some kind of animal, he sniffs at the air.

“The others need you alive, remember? Time to go,” Dominic repeats, tipping his head to the door.

I wave him off, shaking my head. “But what about him?” I stare at the mutated version of my father, unable to stop the well of compassion bubbling up inside me. “Will he be bound to his remains?”

Dominic’s eyes reflect the same confusion I feel and he shudders. “I don’t know, Autumn. It’s not my area of expertise.”

Panic spreads through me like wildfire, and I’m struck by total insight. He can’t stay separated from his body for this to work. I know what I need to do. I was never meant to simply distract him. I’m meant to bring his soul—pieces and all—to the catacombs. This was…

Fate.

The word floats through my mind, chilling me to the very core.

“What others?” The Lemure demands again. Its size expands, darkening the entryway and pulling all of the light with it. “What have you done?”

“Nothing. I didn’t mean—” I begin, putting on my best performance and trying to sound as terrified as possible.

“Where are they? How did I not know?” he growls, turning to face Dominic. “They can’t come in here and take you away from me. This is my home.”

The Lemure raises one of his gnarly hands, swinging it back to attack Dominic.

Rushing forward, I grab my Dad’s mangled body. Wrapping my arms around his torso, I press my cheek to the Lemure’s cold, almost clammy, chest and focus on the love I feel for my dad. How grateful I am that he loved me and my mother as much as he did.

Grateful for his sacrifice—even if it failed.

Then, with my mind centered on just one final wish, everything around me vanishes from view.

Chapter 30

Always Be With You

When I open my eyes, my dad and I are no longer in the middle of the entryway of the manor. Dominic isn’t with us, either. Instead, it’s just the two of us. We stand beneath the archway leading into the catacombs’ central hub, which glows softly from the torches on the walls. The symbols on the archway twinkle in bright oranges and blues, waiting, as I now know, to see if my dad’s soul is worthy.

“What is this place?” Dad asks, his voice a hushed whisper beside me.

I turn to see the distorted and darkened version of the Lemure fade away. He transforms before my eyes, as if there’s a plug in the center of his body and someone’s pulled the drain. When the last of darkness has faded, his blue eyes fill with wonder as his gaze extends beyond me.

“Welcome to the catacombs, Lyle,” Abigail says, stepping out from one of the dark tunnels beyond. “You’ve waited a long while.”

Dad’s lips falter, slipping into a frown as his forehead creases. “Abigail, I’m so sorry…”

She waves a hand dismissively. “None of this should be yours to shoulder alone, Lyle. You are but a byproduct of the centuries. Come,