Sweaty Nights & Gator Bites (Twisted Sisters Midlife Maelstrom #12)

Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

DEANDRA

X inar inclined his head. “Right. We need to stop him from killing anyone else.”

Lia was nodding in agreement when her phone buzzed. She glanced at the screen, her brow furrowing as she answered. “Hello?”

We all watched as her expression shifted from curiosity to concern. “When? We’ll be right there.”

She hung up and met our eyes with urgency. “There’s been another attack in the swamp. They need us.”

Dani’s expression hardened. “Let’s move. We can’t waste any time.”

Cyran, Xinar, Kaveh, Kaitlyn, and Talindra all said they were going with us. It would be nice to have allies at our side when we went back to the swamp. We quickly gathered our things and headed out.

“ Stay focused and trust in each other. Use your allies. ” Adèle’s voice guided us as we made our way to our vehicles.

The drive to the swamp was a tense conga line of cars. This was one of those times I wished my empathic powers weren’t so strong. I could have done without feeling what our friends were experiencing. The silence in Lia’s car was filled with unspoken fears and questions just like the rest. As we approached the familiar, murky landscape, my sense of dread grew stronger.

We parked at the edge of the swamp, the thick foliage and dark waters greeting us like old foes. The others stopped beside us. “Dea, what can you sense?” Lia’s voice interrupted my thoughts and helped me focus away from the raging emotions around me.

I closed my eyes, reaching out with my spiritual connection. I reached for the ebb and flow of energies around us. Garrick’s presence was a dark stain on the ethereal plane. It was a trail of malevolence that left blight in its wake.

“I can feel Garrick’s essence, moving southward," I said as I opened my eyes. “He seems to be moving fast.”

The bayou was dark and foreboding as we navigated our way through the dense foliage, the air was thick with humidity and the scent of earth. Lucas and Noah led our group. They had the sense of smell that would get us there faster.

I spotted a disturbance in the undergrowth a few feet ahead. “Over here!” I called.

Someone was sprawled on the ground. To our surprise and relief, he was still alive. “It a selkie,” Lucas observed.

Remy joined us and was breathing hard. “It’s Melanie’s brother, Dennis,” he said, bracing his hands on his knees. “We managed to stop that evil asshole before he killed him.”

Dennis’s eyes fluttered open. There was pain etched on his face. “Help me,” he whispered in a hoarse voice.

“Hang in there,” Dani said, her voice soothing as she assessed his injuries. “We’re going to get you to safety. ”

Lia turned to the coven members who had accompanied us. “We need to get him to Kip for healing. Can a couple of you take him?”

Two young witches nodded at the same time their hands shot into the air. “We will,” the pair said.

Two shifters stepped forward. “We’ll help carry him,” one of them said, his tone leaving no room for argument. Lucas said something to them and they gently lifted Dennis. The coven members bracketed them. Their hands were sparking with magic, ready to fend off any further attacks.

“We need to move quickly,” I said, my eyes scanning the surrounding darkness. “If Remy and the gators scared him off, Garrick could still be nearby.”

“We need to split up," Dre suggested. “The sisters will stay together while the rest of you separate into groups. I recommend at least three per. Garrick is strong as hell.”

Lucas and Noah each took a group of witches and one of their shifters. Kaitlyn and Kaveh stayed together with the others. Cyran and Talindra took the rest. We dispersed into the night in our clusters, eager to find any trace of Garrick. My sisters and I stayed together. We were better together and everyone knew it which is why Lucas and Noah didn’t try to fight to remain with their mates.

The darkness closed in around us as we moved through the swamp. Every sound, every shadow could be a threat. It made us as jumpy as cats in a room full of rocking chairs. Navigating through the swamp was like stepping into another world. It would be nice when it once again resembled what I had grown up with.

“ There's something to the southwest of here, ” Adèle said, her tone soothing despite the tension. “ Garrick’s essence is strong there. ”

I reached out for Lia’s hand. She was closest to me. My stomach felt like it was filled with worms trying to get out and my heart raced. I could now feel his power. Lia’s hand tightened on mine and Phi grabbed my other one. Their fear left a bitter taste on the back of my tongue and made my nausea worse.

We reached a clearing and looked around. “ There’s something here ,” Adèle said. “ Look around but be careful. It could be Garrick hiding. ”

Releasing my sisters’ hands, we scanned the space for anything. I didn’t see where he could be hiding, but Adèle wouldn’t have said that if she didn’t think it was possible. That made me look closer. It didn’t take long to find an entrance, hidden behind a curtain of hanging moss. It was almost invisible.

“Over here,” I called out. I carefully moved the moss aside and gasped at what I saw. “I think this is Garrick’s lair.” When no magic came flying at me, I assumed it was empty and entered. The lair itself was a small, decrepit cabin that blended seamlessly with the swamp. It looked abandoned, but I could sense the dark energy wrapping around the interior.

“Don’t go without us,” Dani whispered as she followed me.

My nose wrinkled over the acrid smell of burnt herbs. Flickering candles cast eerie shadows on the walls, which were covered with maps, charts, and scribbled notes. A large, rough-hewn table dominated the center of the room. It was cluttered with ancient tomes and magical artifacts.

“This place is a goldmine of information,” Lia said, her eyes scanning the room. “We need to document everything.”

Dre carefully examined the tomes. “Look at this,” she said, holding up a weathered book. “These are detailed plans for rituals. He’s been siphoning power from the swamp and spirits to strengthen his magic.”

Phi nodded, her eyes narrowing. “And here, these notes connect him to the three families. He’s been manipulating them and using their resources for his gain while they think they are doing the same to him.”

Kota studied the maps. “He’s marked key locations around the swamp. Most of them have been the site of an attack. We can clearly see where he plans to strike next.”

Dre's eyes narrowed as she rummaged through the desk drawers in Garrick’s lair, her hands moving with purpose. Suddenly, she paused, her fingers tapping on the wooden bottom of the drawer. “There’s a secret compartment in here,” she said in a voice filled with intrigue.

We all gathered around as Dre carefully pried open the false bottom. Hidden within was a set of documents. They were meticulously organized and marked with Garrick’s distinctive handwriting.

“Let’s see what he’s hiding,” Dre murmured, spreading the papers out on the desk.

The first thing we noticed was a detailed map of the council building, annotated with notes about its security measures and weak points. But there was more—a lot more. Detailed plans and schematics outlined Garrick’s strategy for taking over the entire council.

“His plans go beyond the swamp,” Lia said. Her disbelief was evident in her voice. “He knows every entry point, every vulnerability.”

Dre continued to sift through the documents, her expression growing darker with each revelation. “It’s not just about the council,” she said, holding up a sheet covered in arcane symbols and strategic notes. “Once he has control here, he’s planning to move on to other paranormal strongholds like Camden, Maine where Phoebe lives.”

A chill ran down my spine as the full scope of Garrick’s ambitions became clear. “He wants to dominate the entire paranormal world,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper .

Dani’s eyes blazed with determination. “We can’t let this happen. We need to use this information to stop him.”

“ If he is able to succeed in New Orleans, he might be able to pull it off, ” Adèle admitted to us. “ It will get easier for him as his power grows .”

Kota’s expression turned grim. “We need to inform the council immediately and start reinforcing our defenses.”

As we gathered the documents, a renewed sense of urgency filled the room. The stakes were higher than we had realized. But now we had the tools to counter Garrick’s plans. “Let’s get out of here,” Dre said. “We should gather the others and stop this asshole.”

We left the lair, the weight of our discovery pressing down on us. Emerging from the small cabin, we hurried back the way we’d come. Lia pulled out her phone and sent a message to the others to regroup where we found Dennis. The return trip was much quicker than the one to find the lair.

“There they are,” Dani pointed out. She’d spotted the group moving toward us first.

It was Kaitlyn’s group. We waved to get their attention and started making our way to them. “Kaitlyn!” Lia called out as we approached, her voice breaking the silence. “We found Garrick’s lair.”

Kaitlyn turned to us, her eyes widening with concern. The rest of her coven continued their work. Now that we were close enough, I could hear them chanting a protection spell. “What did you find?” she asked, stepping forward.

“We found detailed plans for him to take over the paranormal world,” Dre said, holding up a weathered book with pages that seemed to hum with dark energy. “He’s been strengthening his magic by stealing energy from the swamp. And if he succeeds in taking over the council here, he will cause a lot of problems. ”

“And there are notes connecting him to the three families,” Phi added, pulling out crumpled papers covered in Garrick’s spidery handwriting. “He’s been manipulating them, using their resources for himself.”

Kota unrolled a large, brittle map she had taken from the lair. It was covered in markings, notes, and symbols. “He’s marked key locations around the swamp. This is where he plans to strike next. We can stop him.”

Kaitlyn’s brow furrowed as she examined the map. Her fingers traced the lines and symbols, her lips moving silently as she deciphered the notes. “We’ll need to fortify these areas immediately. My coven can set up additional wards and protective barriers to impede his progress.”

Kaitlyn’s coven came to us and looked over things. When they went back to work, they had shifted where they were creating wards. The air hummed with the vibrant energy of their spells. As Kaitlyn’s coven worked, I noticed Xinar approaching along with Lucas and Noah. Cyran and Talindra were behind them. We updated them on what we discovered. Xinar went rigid while we were talking.

“Xinar, what is it?” I asked, moving closer to him, the damp earth squelching under my boots.

A deep frown was etched across his face when he looked at me. “There’s a major disturbance in the area,” he growled. “It’s significant and Dark.”