Isis' Betrayal by Brenda Trim, Tami Julka

their last foray into Cele’s mansion was. They had almost been caught, and she had no idea if Cele knew it was them. The way Cele stormed into the house told Isis that Cele was aware her protections had been broken, but Isis questioned if they’d covered their tracks well enough.
    T he tinkling of their door-chime sounded and all four of them turned to see who had entered. Isis’s mouth dropped open and her eyes bulged. None other than the High Priestess herself was standing in their doorway. Pema took one step forward with Ronan close at her back. She could tell by his protective stance that he was itching to eliminate the witch. “How can we help you, Cele?” Pema asked pointedly.
    “ You can help me by relinquishing your power to me, and then going straight to hell,” Cele spat out. She could almost see steam escaping from the witch’s ears, she was so angry. Isis noted the witch seemed to be muttering under her breath, and, wanting to be prepared for anything, she clasped hands with Suvi and touched Pema’s fingertips, connecting them. Isis felt an additional jolt in their combined power when Ronan laid his palm on Pema’s shoulder. Okay, that was new, and something they would need to talk about at a later date.
    “ There is no way in hell we would do that. You really have lost your mind, you know that?” Suvi spouted.
    At that moment, Isis felt a pressure to obey Cele’s command. It quickly became imperative that she do exactly that. She felt Suvi lose her vehemence and knew there was some magic at play in the matter. Pema, however, seemed to be immune. Why, Isis wondered. The thought crossed Isis’ mind that Ronan, as her Fated Mate, was anchoring Pema. Testing her theory, Isis conjured an image of Braeden smiling and nearly whooped when the compulsion left her. She squeezed Suvi’s hand and reached out through her bond to her sisters, mooring Suvi to the three of them.
    I sis saw when Cele realized her attempt had failed. The High Priestess was undaunted. “I will make you regret not giving me your power freely. What I will bring down upon you and your mates will be like unleashing Lucifer upon earth.” Cele waved her twig-like arms, reminding Isis of a dried-up, dead tree. “I know what you did to my daughter, just like I know that you broke into my house. As for you, I will never understand why my daughter gave you the best years of her life. You were always beneath her,” Cele said, pointing at Ronan. “You will be lucky to live through my wrath!”
    “ I loved your daughter before I knew who she really was. Now that I do, I see that you both grasp for what belongs to others, because you fall short in every respect,” Ronan asserted.
    “ Tell me, Cele, when did you go Dark? How can you imprison and torture a helpless stripling? Does it make you feel powerful to see him cower from you in fear?” Isis couldn’t help the disgust that seeped into her voice. Only those who went Dark were capable of such despicable acts. When a supernatural turned evil the whole world was at risk and just being near this female made Isis’ skin crawl and her gut churn with acid.
    S uvi took a few steps and they formed a triangle, facing down Cele. “And, by the way, how is Claire? Fate finally catch up with her? They do say never to mess with fate, that she’ll bite you in the ass in the end.” Isis finished, holding back as much destructive anger as she could.
    T he High Priestess turned bright red with rage. “You will regret crossing me. I have powers above and beyond your imagination.” Isis had a bad feeling about what was going to happen next. Understanding Pema’s silent command to cast a barrier spell, Isis muttered the words under her breath along with Suvi and Pema. “Oh no, you don’t,” Cele yelled and had her wand out in the blink of an eye.
    Isis felt the malevolence attached to the instrument, and tightened her hold on her sisters. Cele summoned her black magic and uttered Dark curses,