Winter Ice (Storm for All Seasons 3)

Too bad. He moved through the beaded entrance to the magic room, but it was empty, too.

So was the storeroom.

Hell, she really wasn't here.

"Where is she?"

"You lost the right to know anything about her when you accused her of trying to blow up your hotel. Were you born a moron, Logan, or did you have to work extra hard to perfect it?"

"Look, Samantha, I can appreciate your 'protect the friend' persona, but I really need to talk to her. So cut the crap and tell me where she is."

"She's with Josh," Samantha said, a perversely satisfied smirk on her face.

"Josh. That...boy who works here?"

"If you say so. But then again, she's with him right now, not you, and he'll take good care of her. He always has and always will."

Always has and always will. Logan shook the feeling of dread from his head.

Bullshit magic anyway. "Never mind, I'll find her later."

"Not if Josh has anything to say about it."

He pulled hard at the front door and stormed out, heaving a breath as he stood at the sidewalk trying to get his bearings.

Something was wrong.

Danger.

Help me, Logan, please.

Logan flinched as pain rocked his stomach, fire burning within him.

134

Winter Ice

Shit! What the hell was going on?

Something was wrong.

With Sophie.

She was in danger.

How the fuck he knew that to be true was beyond his ability to even want to fathom. But he knew it.

Trouble.

Josh.

Her trailer.

Goddamit! He tore down the street and jumped into his car, throwing it in gear and speeding away from the curb as if his life depended on it.

His didn't.

Sophie's did. He had to get to her trailer fast.

*

Sophie finally managed to summon enough magic to fling Joshua away from her.

But he only laughed.

"Nice try, babe, but I'm way stronger than you."

Anger filled her as she leaped across the bed trying to avoid his advance. She summoned up her ancestors. Their strength was needed. She couldn't do this alone.

Please, please help me. I need your power, the power of what is right, what is pure. I need the light of the moon to defeat this darkness, the might of the heavens to send it back to hell where it belongs.

"I'm taking what's mine, what I should have taken years ago." Josh held up his hands. "The fires of hell surround me, their power and might stronger than light."

He had her backed into a corner with no way out. This was really, really bad.

135

Jaci Burton

And bad had just gotten worse. Flames shot out from his fingertips, lighting the ends of his hair, and burning his clothes as he burst into an inferno.

The heat blasted against her. The room was so small, the trailer so small.

They'd be toast in no time.

Her blankets blazed, the trail of flames inching toward her.

She closed her eyes, refusing to give in to the fear, knowing she needed her strength now more than ever.

A wall of protection surrounded her, but Joshua's power beat against hers. She had bought herself a little time, that's all.

Very little.

*

Logan barely tapped on the brakes before he threw the car into park and leapt out.

Smoke filtered out through the kitchen windows.

He tasted fear.

And angry hatred.

Time was running out.

He flung open the door and hurried inside. A blast of heat and flame barricaded the bedroom.

Without another thought he called forth the elements, bringing a blinding rain into the trailer, dousing the flaming wall and allowing him entry into the room.

Sophie was in a corner, her face pale, her eyes closed. He sensed her concentration as her magic protected her from the whirling blaze that he assumed was Josh.

The flame turned, angry bursts of fireballs shooting in his direction as loud piercing wails followed suit.

136

Winter Ice

Obviously Josh was not happy to see him. Logan held up his hands and washed away the fireballs. "Let go of her motherfucker--now--and I might just let you live."

A sick, twisted laugh greeted him. "You're too late, Storm. She's mine!"

"I don't think so." Undaunted, he brought his full powers into the fight. Ice, rain, sleet, snow, and biting, arctic winds. Once he'd summoned them all, he stepped into Joshua's circle of fire, determined to come out of this the victor.

The ice of winter mixed with the hottest fires of hell as they battled within an invisible circle. Logan lost sight of reality and his surroundings, concentrating only on making sure he pulled every ounce of magic he possessed into the fray.

Josh was strong. Very strong.

But Logan was strong too, and had years of pent-up magic to release. Anger, frustration and a desperate fear for Sophie's life spurred him on. He hated his magic, had always hated that it made him different. But right now he was damn glad he possessed it, because it just might save them both.

Despite the burning hands reaching for his throat, trying to squeeze his life away, he held on, refusing to give up.

"You sonofabitch!" Josh cried, then the flames began to dissipate. Slowly, at first, and then rapidly as Josh became human again and collapsed, shivering as an icy cube surrounded his charred body. He was still alive, barely.

But not for long.

Logan raced to Sophie, heedless of the flames tearing through her trailer.

Whatever barrier she'd put up collapsed as soon as he approached. Her eyes widened and she began to cough, tears streaming down her ash-streaked face as she sucked in the smoke.

Logan didn't pause to say anything to her, just picked her up into his arms and carried her through the fire, dousing it around them with a cold, protective rain.

137

Jaci Burton

She hung limp in his arms. As he stepped outside, she closed her eyes and lost consciousness.

He felt her pulse, which was thready, rapid one second, slowing the next. He had to get her to a hospital.

Gently depositing her in his car, he backed away from the inferno that was once her trailer, his fierce anger fading somewhat as he took comfort in the fact that Josh was still inside.

The evil was gone. He felt it. Back to hell or wherever it had come from. Now he had more pressing things to worry about, like making sure Sophie survived.

*

Sophie woke to the sound of voices. Unfamiliar voices. She was cold, her body trembling violently.

And her throat hurt so damn badly it brought tears to her eyes. The fact she really needed to cough didn't help either.

Forcing her eyes open, she blinked against the harsh lights, taking in her surroundings.

The hospital. Emergency room. A nurse came over and smiled, adjusting the mask that delivered sweet, pure oxygen to her lungs. "Miss Breaux. You're going to be fine. A little smoke inhalation and a few small burns, but otherwise you were very lucky."

Lucky. Right. It all came back to her. Joshua, her trailer, the fact that he was some sort of demon and she'd never, ever known that. How stupid could she be?

Tears pooled and fell and she shamelessly wept for the man who had been her friend since childhood. There had to have been goodness in Joshua. He couldn't have been completely evil, or she would have felt it. She was sure of it. But something happened to him along the way, something that triggered this. Sadly, she knew what it was.

138

Winter Ice

Because she couldn't love him. Not like she loved Logan.

Lying there on the bed and staring up into the lights, Sophie had to smile at the irony. Josh loved her, but she couldn't return that love. And she loved Logan, who didn't love her back.

What a mess.

No, a nightmare.

"You have a few people waiting outside to see you," the nurse said. "Feel up to visitors?"

She nodded while the nurse pressed the remote and moved the bed so she could sit up. Waiting, hands clasped, she wondered if Logan was still here. Her memories were still a little fuzzy, but she did recall him carrying her out of the fire.

Blinking the tears back, she refused to dwell on what she couldn't change.

The curtain drew aside and Logan stepped in, followed by his parents and Samantha. Samantha ran over and hugged her.

"Oh, God, Soph, I had no idea," Samantha said, tears streaming down her face. Her friend squeezed her tight.

Sophie coughed and shook her head. "I didn't, either. None of us did, Sam. It's nobody's fault. Joshua just hid it well."

Angelina pressed a kiss to the top of her head and held her hand. "Some magic is discernable. Some isn't. Your friend was very powerful. You're lucky to be alive."

"I know." If it wasn't for Logan's heroics, she wouldn't be. She turned to him, offering a smile. "You saved my life. Thank you."

His expression was unreadable, but she sensed a tension within him. "And you saved my family's life. I'm sorry I couldn't save your trailer."