Bewitched: A Zodiac Shifters Paranormal Romance: Gemini (Willows Haven Book 2) Read online

  Bewitched

  A Zodiac Shifters Book

  Beth Caudill

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Bewitched

  Copyright © 2020 by Beth Caudill

  First e-book Printing, June 2020

  Cover Art © 2017 Ravenborn

  Developmental Edits by Shay VanZwoll with EV Proofreading

  Line Edits by Quillfire Author Services

  Proofreading by Book Nook Nuts

  Published by Moonlight Mountain Books

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods—except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews—without written permission.

  For more information: [email protected]

  Contents

  Story Summary

  Acknowledgments

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Epilogue

  When the Tree Falls

  Zodiac Shifters

  Gemstone

  Gemstone: A Zodiac Shifters Paranormal Romance: Gemini

  About the Author

  Discover the Worlds of Beth Caudill

  Story Summary

  Guardian angel Leyna Angelheardt travels the world trying to guide children to their brighter futures. However, free will rules the human spirit, and after she loses three charges, her heart needs healing before she can continue her calling. Directed toward the magically protected town of Willows Haven, she faces her greatest challenge.

  Vithar Woodward runs the small town newspaper with his twin brother. But his family harbors a dark secret: a century ago, an incubus cursed them to spend their days shapeshifted into animals. Now with only a few days until the curse culminates, Vithar knows his only hope is to find true love and nullify the curse. Yet he wonders who would ever love a man who spends half his days as a barred owl.

  When Leyna and Vithar meet, it becomes clear that fate has drawn them together. As sparks dart between them, Leyna must decide if she should remain a guardian angel or embrace this new existence of loving a mortal.

  For after all, what is more magical than true love?

  For all those who waited to find their One True Love.

  Acknowledgments

  This story continues the saga of the small, magical town of Willows Haven, North Carolina. It wouldn’t exist without the effort Melissa Snark put into creating the Zodiac Shifters author collective. Where Evelyn’s Aquarian traits in Tethered were taken from my desires, I wanted to give my hero Vithar Gemini traits inspired by my husband and mother. Both of whom have early June birthdays.

  Fairy tales have fascinated me since I first saw Disney’s Sleeping Beauty, but not all of them are based on old tales. Ladyhawke inspired my curse in this story. While I love the 1985 movie, there were things that bothered me like no specified end to the hero and heroine’s affliction and the sunrise/sunset change window. I wanted to give my characters a time when their sorrow would end, whether it was for good or ill.

  Aside from watching a good movie, my research included going through all the Psalms looking for a quote to use against a demon and a book on palm reading. There were far more Psalm chapters than I remembered, but I settled on Psalm 18 having the sentiment I wanted to express. For reference, check out the online version of the King James Bible. My other reference book was the Art of Palmistry: A Practical Guide to Reading Your Fortune by Anna Southgate. I didn’t know anything about reading palms, but I thought it an appropriate divination tool for my guardian angel heroine.

  Owls have always fascinated me: from being Athena’s avatar to Owl in Winnie the Pooh and finally the Wise Owl in the Tootsie Roll commercial, owls have a varied history. White snowy owls were my favorite even before Hedwig in the Harry Potter series hit the scene. But there’s really no reason for one to be in North Carolina. I decided to use the Barred Owl because I thought their coloring was cool. For the last few years, we’ve heard an owl at night during the summer but never saw one to determine the species. This year we’ve actually seen him/her in our backyard. He/She is a barred owl who apparently likes our pine trees. Remember if you find an injured raptor, please contact an organization that can handle its care. In Wake County North Carolina, you can contact the American Wildlife Refuge.

  I want to express my heartfelt thanks to my developmental editor Shay at EV Proofreading, and my line editor Erica Monroe at Quillfire Author Services for pointing out my leaps of illogic and generally making me a better writer. My gratitude goes to Tammy at Book Nook Nuts who found a few misused words despite the number of times I’ve read over this manuscript.

  I hope you enjoy this short paranormal shapeshifter romance between a cursed newspaper reporter who turns into a barred owl and a heartsore guardian angel.

  Prologue

  San Francisco

  May 9, 1916

  “It was simply a beautiful wedding,” Mrs. Landsberg gushed. “Melisande was radiant in that rose lace gown.”

  Vithar Woodward took the lady’s hand and placed a kiss upon the aged skin. “Meli glowed, but no one can hold a candle to you, madam.” He flashed a roguish smile.

  Mrs. Landsberg was the most prominent of his mother’s society friends and married to the owner of the Chronicle. An endorsement from her would elevate Melisande’s status and help with Fremont and his prospects for working at the newspaper.

  “You are a charmer.” A calculated gleam entered her gaze, and she patted his hand. “Don’t you worry. We’ll find a nice girl for you, too.”

  Icy dread, and a tiny flicker of hope, filled him. “Umm. Thank you.”

  Slate gray clouds obscured the sun, and a strong breeze pushed the woman down a step from their front stoop. “My word, I wonder where this storm came from. It was supposed to be clear all night.”

  “Let me help you.” He took her arm and placed his body between her and the worst of the wind. Then, he guided her down the stairs.

  At the bottom, she placed a hat on her head and nodded to the private driver holding the car door. “Hurry back inside, young man, before it rains. Tell your mother I’ll call on her next week.”

  The car chugged down the street, and he stood alone with his thoughts. He faced his parents’ house, a two-story Victorian with old silver colored siding and red roof tiles. It had been his home for nearly twenty-eight years.

  Now it was a crowded shelter that reminded him how isolated his existence had become. The meeting of hearts that his parents possessed. What Fremont and Melisande declared today.

  Love eluded him.

  Storm clouds rolled across the sky, and a spike of lightning dazzled his eyes. Hurrying up the stairs, he closed the outside door and let his smile slip now that the guests were gone.

  Meli had been the perfect bride; happiness radiated from her. She was like a bright pink daisy in the soft pink, flower-imbued lace dress. His brother had stood elegantly tall, but the bride was the center of attention, as it should be.

  He wa
s truly happy for his brother and sister-in-law. But a hungry longing existed in his heart. He coveted what his brother had.

  Not Melisande.

  But someone who complimented him.

  Someone who could accept the closeness of his twin brother.

  They had a tight bond—could read each other’s expressions and inexplicably sometimes even heard each other telepathically. Several of his previous girlfriends had complained they’d been shut out from his life. He’d not intended to exclude them, but Fremont was a part of his heart that a woman had to share. Many didn’t understand or appreciate that. They wanted Vithar’s exclusive attention and refused to understand his closeness with his brother.

  The front door flung open. A bright flash of white splintered his sight, and a loud boom shook the house.

  The wind whipped around him, and he had to fight to reclose the door and lock the deadbolt to keep it in place.

  The house shimmied like in an earthquake, except energy crackled in the air. The picture frames on the foyer walls banged so hard that some turned askew, while others clattered to the floor. Shadows stretched across the floor like a grotesque cast of purple crabs. He fumbled with the catch, then shoved apart the panel doors and entered the living room.

  Fremont stood at the bay window with his arm around Meli. Vithar heard their parents in the kitchen at the back of the house. His family appeared fine, yet a sense of impending doom suffocated him.

  Another flash of lightning lit the space, and a second boom thundered loud enough to drown out his heartbeat. The sharp tang of ozone infiltrated the room.

  “Aren’t you a lovely couple?” A deep, brassy voice sounded behind them.

  They turned, and Vithar moved to flank Meli, a united front against the unknown.

  A tall man stood in the center of the room. The silver streaks throughout his hair indicated he was at least middle-aged. The suit he wore settled wrinkle-free across a fit, muscled body.

  The stranger was definitely a threat. Aside from his unexpected entrance in a place that should have been impregnable, the terrible smell of sulfur wrapped around them. Vithar suppressed the desire to flee. Every creak of the house elicited a jolt of fear along his spine.

  The man threw white powder into the air. The particles drifted to the doorways and then coalesced into a nearly invisible barrier that blocked Vithar’s parents from the events in the room.

  “What do you want, demon?” Meli asked, her words clipped and unfriendly.

  Vithar peered at her. How did she know this man?

  Fremont glanced at him above Melisande’s head. Fremont’s wide eyes indicated his surprise. Vithar was more shocked by the hostile tone Meli used. She had always been a quiet, sweet woman.

  “What I’ve always wanted. You.” He pointed toward Meli. “When you left, you stole from me.”

  She touched the wolf pendant hanging from a silver chain around her neck. “Doyle Desideratus, you tried to steal my life. The necklace was just compensation for my work. I took only what I was owed. No one owns me.”

  “Since I can’t have your heart, I’ll take your soul.” His left-hand fingers drew a large spiral in the air. Tendrils of red trailed his inscription.

  Fremont stepped in front of Meli. Vithar joined him, and together they formed a blockade.

  No one would touch their family.

  Melisande was his to defend as much as she was his brother’s.

  Doyle sneered. “How very noble. But an insignificant gesture.” The demon spoke guttural words, and an upside-down triangle appeared inside the spiral.

  “They say demons can’t abide by the bible,” Fremont murmured.

  Vithar whispered, “The eighteenth?” A reference to their favorite Psalm.

  Freemont nodded and together they recited, “‘The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.’”

  The demon hissed, and smoke rose from the soles of his feet. “I’d hoped to do this quickly. Now I’ll have to involve the witch, and all three of you shall pay the price.”

  A pouch appeared in his left hand. He poured copper-colored sand into his right hand and blew it into the air. “What you won’t give me, I will take.

  May the Darkness grant my claim.

  From this the zero hour, until twelve hours past

  Man becomes creature, and creature becomes a man.

  Mirror images no more.

  For the man who stole my dream,

  A furry beast, you shall assume.

  For the twin at your side,

  Wings that glide upon the air shall be your doom.

  And the woman who spurned my love,

  You shall be trapped in the form of your mate.

  My heart could have been yours,

  Now I will not rest until your soul I take.

  For 101 years, you’ll know my wrath,

  Forced to be remade, never allowed to speak.

  Frozen in age, unable to die,

  Beware you do not lose yourself within the mind of the beast.

  Only when the single twin discovers a celestial love

  Shall this curse be lifted and the caster damned.

  If not, then three souls lost will be bound

  To serve the Mistress of Shadows.”

  Vithar’s chest constricted as if a rope wrapped around his torso. A leaden sensation of being drenched in sludge inundated him. Blackness smothered his awareness. A rumble of thunder crashed across the room.

  In a blinding flash of light, the devilish man disappeared.

  In the hall, the grandfather clock chimed. As the echoes of the sixth bong died into silence, Fremont and Melisande shimmered, their bodies twisted. Fabric tore. A white glow encased them.

  When the light vanished, two wolves stood in their place.

  Cold encased Vithar. Magic didn’t exist. Science and technology consumed their world. Yet if the demon’s words were true, they had a little over a century to break a terrible curse upon their family. To find a once in a lifetime love that matched his brother’s.

  Nothing too impossible.

  1

  Willows Haven

  May 4, 2017

  Vithar Woodward soared along the air currents above the treetops. His barred owl body rose toward the heavens despite his heavy heart. Four days remained until the culmination of the curse warping his family’s lives.

  Once his brother and he had been the closest of twins; now they barely talked. Their eerie telepathic communication allowed them to discuss work, but everything else was edgy and strained. Their lives stuck in limbo for the past one hundred years. From 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., Vithar assumed the form of a barred owl. Fremont was human until 6 p.m. when he became a wolf, like Melisande who couldn’t transform at all. The curse’s magic adapted to their changed biorhythms every time they moved.

  Their bewitchment followed them around the world until they finally settled within this protected town. Willows Haven provided a safe place for them to live with their affliction but no answers.

  For all his efforts, love eluded him. Celestial, true, or simply lust— desire was beyond his ability to embrace. Fremont and Meli would suffer alongside him because of his failure.

  He banked around another treetop, the warm thermal carrying him higher. Flying was the highlight of his day. In the sky, his heart filled with the thrill of each beat of his wings. While he soared across air currents, the sorrow of his human life remained on the ground.

  Over one hundred years of assuming the barred owl’s shape, and now—toward the end of their affliction—the temptation to remain an animal held little downside. Where his most consequential concern was catching dinner.

  No heartache. No guilt. No worry over fulfilling the curse.

  Only the freedom to glide upon the air streams. To breathe in the earthy forest, to shred his prey, and swallow the feast whole.

  Yesterday’s telepathic communicatio
n with his brother had been terse. Vithar’s failures drove the twins apart.

  All because he couldn’t obtain the heart of a woman.

  A joyous cry from above banished his dark thoughts. He twisted his head to see the Peregrine falcon diving toward the lake. Evelyn, another shifter, flew above the center of Willow Lake, then dove sharply for the shore.

  Another cry echoed in the afternoon heat. He alighted on a tree to watch. The screech of teenage girls filled the air. The falcon flew above the crowd and landed on the grass near the ranger in charge of the group.

  She shimmered and assumed her human form. A twinge of envy gripped his gut at the ease of her change. She stepped up to the ranger and kissed his cheek, her hand resting on his chest. Happiness glowed from the couple. He closed his eyes and tried to shut out the pinch of jealousy that ignited his temper.

  Several months ago, Lawke’s daughter had been kidnapped. In his efforts to save her, one of Vithar’s most prized possessions had been destroyed—a photo of his family all together. Vithar didn’t blame the couple for the loss of his family’s photo. Had his daughter been threatened, he would have done anything to save her, too. But the loss of his family’s image further fragmented the strained relations between him and Fremont.

  The picture of their parents and the twins together, helping in the aftermath of the San Francisco earthquake, emphasized what the family stood for. Its loss had widened the gulf cracked open with their parents’ loss in World War I and expanded by the time spent under the curse.