by Kimbra Swain
“You done?” I asked.
“Yeah. I just got off my shift and wanted to wind down a little. I should probably get home,” he said.
“Oh! Do you have a family?” I asked.
“No, maybe someday, but not right now,” he said.
“How did you hear about Shady Grove? Why did you come here?” I asked while sipping on my coffee. I was feeling better already, but Dominick winced at my questions. “I’m sorry. Just making small talk. I’m not asking in any kind of official capacity.”
“Well, there were rumors of a town where a fairy queen was taking in exiles, and since I was kicked out of my pack, I decided to give it a try. I’m glad I’m here. The scenery is beautiful,” he said as his eyes met mine.
My heart thumped hard once. It had been a long time since someone had paid a compliment to me like that. It was corny, but I tended to like that kind of thing. It was honest and a sweet approach. Added to that was the fact that Dominick was someone new. It wasn’t my old friends telling me what they thought. It was a virile man.
“I’m sorry, Grace. I mean, my Queen. I didn’t mean anything by it. I mean, you’re a rare beauty, but I know about your recent loss, and I wouldn’t presume to...ah, shit, I’m sorry,” he sputtered.
“Please,” I said, putting my hand over his. I could feel the warm animal inside of him. I’d been with a shifter or two in my day, but never a wolf. It was almost as though I could feel the feral desire inside that he was holding back. Dominick may have come off as an unassuming flirt, but inside of him, he carried a beast that craved carnal contact. I knew that kind of internal battle. I had waged it from the moment I moved to Shady Grove up until I was with Dylan. Then he was all I wanted. “It’s alright. I know you didn’t mean anything by it.”
He looked down at my hand covering his and shivered. “Your hands are cold,” he said.
“Comes with the territory. Thank you for the compliment,” I said, trying to reassure him. His heart was pounding in his chest, and I could feel his urge to run from the bar. He’d stepped in a pile of shit and it was too late to scrape it off his shoes.
“Grace,” Levi’s voice came from the direction of the door. I hadn’t felt his presence, but I had been locking my grief away. Not just from myself, but from him too. Earlier when I had made the stop at the creek, I knew I had shut him out enough to keep him away.
“Hey, Dublin, come meet Dominick Meyer,” I said as I removed my hand from the wolf’s. Levi hadn’t taken his eyes off the physical contact since I noticed him there behind us.
“We’ve met,” Levi said slowly walking toward us.
Dominick stumbled off the stool and offered his hand to shake Levi’s, “Good to see you, Mr. Rearden.”
Levi shook his hand while locking eyes with him.
“Cool it,” I demanded.
“I’m cool,” he said.
“You look like you’re about to beat his face in,” I said.
“I am,” Levi replied.
“Dublin! I mean it,” I hissed. “Nestor, please get Levi a cup of coffee.”
“Sure thing,” he said promptly pouring a cup then setting it down on the opposite side of me from the wolf.
“Well, I see you have important stuff to talk about. It was a pleasure meeting you, Grace,” Dominick stammered under Levi's unyielding gaze.
“Stop it. Now!” I demanded. Levi growled at the command but had no choice but to back off.
“It was nice meeting you, too,” I replied. “What has gotten into you?”
“He should have some respect,” Levi said.
“Goddess bless it, Levi. I was having a conversation with him. That's all. I touched him, so it wasn’t like he was pawing me. There is a giant Phoenix-sized hole still in my heart. I ache with his loss, but one thing is for sure, my mind is not absent.”
Levi looked up to me with regret and an ounce of confusion in his eyes. I swiveled around on the stool just as Dominick made it to the door.
“Oh, Dominick,” I said, watching his eyes bug out of his head as I crossed my legs. I knew how to play this game far too well.
“Um, yea?” he said swallowing.
“Does Troy know you’re an Alpha too?” I asked.
“Fuck,” Levi muttered catching on to my game.
When I touched him, he felt different than the other wolves, except Troy. That magical whatsit that made him Alpha surged under his skin. I had suspected, but touching him sealed the deal. The color ran from his face as Levi turned to look back at him.
“I haven't mentioned it,” he said.
I slid off the barstool stalking towards him. Overt sexuality is power, especially when you've caught someone in a lie. Someone that has an animal scratching to get out. The one inside of me tended to do cartwheels instead. Had I not been grieving my fiancé and keeping my bard at arm’s length, she probably would have done a round-off backhand spring with a twist for the handsome, displaced Alpha wolf.
“So, my question is, are you here to cause trouble or are you going to tell Troy and swear your allegiance to the local Alpha?” I asked as I stopped right in front of him.
“Forgive me. I have kept the secret too long, my Queen. I will inform Troy immediately,” he said. “I'm trying to leave my past behind.”
“Shady Grove is just the place for that, but I suggest you start over with the truth,” I said with my hands on my hips.
“Yes, of course. You’re right,” he said.
“You hear that, Levi?” I asked teasing my bard. I loved being right. I loved hearing the words even more. My tease to Levi had been to lighten him up, but it didn’t work.
“Yes,” he grumbled.
I giggled as Dominick left the bar in a hurry. When I turned back to Nestor and Levi, my grandfather’s smile was wide, but he shook his head at me. Levi refused to look at me.
“I'm sorry. I assumed…” Levi started to say as I lightly ran my hand over his tattooed arm. He gulped and shivered. I was sexually charged up, and he could feel it.
Raising up to my tip-toes, I planted a kiss on Levi’s cheek. He huffed, then sighed. I could hear Nestor chuckling as he moved away from us. Without pulling away from his face, I whispered, “You’re adorable when you’re jealous.”
“Damn, Grace,” he muttered.
I smiled, then sat back down on my stool to finish my coffee while Levi gathered his senses.
He took a long sip of the coffee the muttered again, “Damn.”
“You okay?” I asked as Nestor poured a second cup of coffee.
“I'm sorry,” he said.
“Levi, don’t ever apologize for caring about me,” I said trying to let him off the hook.
“I felt you upset earlier, and I tried to give you space, but I found myself following you here. I felt the change in you when you touched him. I should have known you were up to something,” he explained.
“I was upset earlier, but you don’t have to stay away. I never asked for that,” I said knowing that he felt a need to respect my relationship for Dylan and the loss I felt. But Levi had always been my rock. It was difficult walking the line between respect for the past and the needs of the present. My instincts were to move closer to Levi, not further away. To me, our connection had always been wholly separate from Dylan. In a way, I think Dylan knew that. He practically blessed any future contact between Levi and me.
One thing was for sure, neither of us was ready to fall down that rabbit hole. In the meantime, I just wanted it to be less awkward between us.
“Why were you upset earlier?” he asked.
“I drove past the spot out at the creek where Dylan and I liked to picnic. I pulled over and got out hoping to feel closer to him. To remember. It was too much,” I said. “But I tucked away the grief and came here for some coffee.”
As he sipped on his coffee, I felt his demeanor calm. The matured bard returned with each drink. Sometimes I missed the emotional, impulsive Levi. The new one was more attractive though. Not that I neede
d any more encouragement in that department.
“He loved that spot, too,” he said. Somewhere along the way, Dylan had shared that with Levi. I supposed it was when he told Levi his side of our story. “You don’t have to hide your grief, Grace. No one will think you’re weak for mourning him.”
“I’ll mourn him after I kill Robin,” I said gritting my teeth.
“You can do both,” he suggested.
“I can’t get distracted,” I said.
“Pain isn't a distraction. It’s fuel. Use it,” he said.
“I'm afraid to let it take any part of me. It will be too much for me to handle,” I said admitting my fears.
He placed his hand over mine rubbing his thumb over my skin. The song he played through his tattoo didn’t play audibly, but I could feel it through his fingers on mine. The calming sensation of the song with the added coffee, plus a fairy tingle, and my senses were overloaded.
“That's why I'm here. For when it's too much,” he said.
“Damn,” I muttered echoing his earlier sentiment. I turned my hand palm up lacing my fingers through his. The pounding in my heart couldn’t be compared to the thump from Dominick’s flirt. Not even close.
As I buttered Nestor up to talk to Mable, Levi sat quietly allowing me to work my charm on my Grandfather. Finally, he piped up to offer an alternative.
“Why don’t you come upstairs and look through her stuff,” he said. “You might find something useful.”
“Wouldn’t hurt,” Levi said.
I agreed in hopes that it would push Nestor to go and talk to Mable.
Nestor led Levi and me upstairs into his apartment. Mable had moved in with him not long after I became aware of their relationship. While she worked at the Food Mart, she constantly stirred up gossip. Particularly when she told me what Dylan had said about me to his guy friends. That one act kept us apart longer than it should have. I couldn’t blame her though, because I had turned a cold heart to Dylan at the time. I was looking for an excuse to ignore my feelings.
“You sure you don’t mind if we look through her stuff?” Levi asked, then took a sip of the beer Nestor had opened for him downstairs. I hadn’t seen him drink the piss water in a while. We didn’t keep it in the house, but perhaps I should buy him some.
“No. I want you to go through it. If you find something that will help with the war or with the witches, it will help all of us here,” he said. “Just be careful of the big trunk. It’s got a spell on it. I touched it once and my finger was numb for days.”
“I’ll handle it,” Levi said.
“I’m gonna laugh when it zaps you,” I said.
“Oh, ye of little faith,” he said.
Levi had proven he had all sorts of skills in the magical department, but Mable was a formidable witch. Part of me hoped he didn’t get hurt, but the other part was prepared to have a good laugh.
Nestor took us into his bedroom where in the corner there was a shrine to the goddess. A banner hung from the corner depicting the Celtic tree of life. It was a deep hunter green with a golden knotwork. A small table sat in front of it with various candles. In the center, a wreath made of grapevines encircled a pentacle made of sticks and twine. A statue of the goddess stood in the center. Three women back to back forming a triangle: maiden, mother, and crone. Two wooden bowls held herbs and a goblet sat off to the side. Another bowl was filled with crystals of various colors and sizes. It all looked pretty standard for the practice of witchcraft.
When looking through my sight, I could see the faint glow of magic surrounding it. I was surprised to see that the magic was not black, but a dark green. However, the trunk sitting beside the table glowed brightly with the ward which protected its contents.
“I dunno, Levi. Looks pretty tough to me,” I said.
“For you maybe,” he said.
“Go ahead. I wanna see your cocky ass get fried,” I said.
Nestor chuckled at my ribbing of Levi. Nothing made me feel more like myself than giving Levi a hard time. And since I knew he loved every minute of it, I promised myself to do it more often. It was good therapy.
“She kept all her clothes in there,” Nestor said pointing to the small closet.
I opened the door to see the clothes we had seen her wear ever since I’d known her. Nothing looked out of place, and none of it had any evidence of magical echo.
“Did Mable do the concealment spell for Betty?” I asked.
“She did,” Nestor answered. “She concealed herself pretty well too. I should have known better.”
“The heart wants what the heart wants,” I said.
“It didn’t start out like that. It was more of a mutual release of pent-up frustration,” he said.
“T.M.I.,” I said as Levi laughed. I kicked him in the shin.
“Ow! Damn,” he whined.
“You’re a pain,” I said.
He laughed again. “I’m gonna show you that I can do this,” he said moving over to the trunk.
“Just don’t get your junk in the way. I’d hate that to go numb on you,” I said.
“It’s not like I’m using it,” he mumbled. Nestor covered his forehead with his hand and shook his head. “Here. Hold my beer.”
“Famous last words,” I said, taking the bottle from him. “I don’t know how you drink this shit. It stinks.”
“You get used to it,” Levi said concentrating on the trunk.
Levi pulled power from the room around us. He had an uncanny ability to pull power inside as well as outside. I’d only known the highest born fairies to be able to do that. I supposed it was the gift of Taliesin that my father had given him.
“Dispel,” he simply said. “Okay. You can open it.”
“Oh, hell no! You open it,” I instructed.
“Fine,” he huffed. He reached for the metal latch which would have held a lock if it had needed one. As his hand touched it, he screamed, falling backward from the box. He rolled on the floor howling in pain.
“Shit!” I exclaimed, falling to my knees next to him.
Rocking back and forth he bellowed, “Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Oh, shit.”
“What is it? What’s wrong? Talk to me, Levi,” I said starting to panic.
He stopped rolling, opened his eyes, and grinned.
“Awe, Grace, you care,” he said.
Nestor howled in laughter.
“Levi Rearden, you're so full of shit. I'm gonna stomp a mudhole in yo’ ass,” I yelled as I started slapping at him. He defended himself by putting his arms in front of his face, but it didn’t stop his laughter.
“Mercy, Grace! Mercy,” he said, trying to catch his breath.
“No mercy for lyin’ tricksters!” I protested. Relenting my assault, I rolled back on my heels to get up when he grabbed my hand. “Let go of me.”
“It’s good to see ya all riled up,” he said.
“Let go of me, you fool,” I said. He rubbed my hand just before letting go sending tingles through my body.
As he got up off the floor, he and Nestor continued to giggle. Heathen.
Levi flipped open the lid. In the very center, a tray stretched across the trunk, holding a bright red cloak laid.
“You never saw this?” I asked Nestor.
“I've never seen it open,” he replied.
Levi picked up the tray. The trunk was filled with all sorts of jars and boxes. Anything a witch would need to cast a spell. None of it looked out of the ordinary. The ingredients themselves weren't magical. It was the correct combinations of them that could produce potent spells.
Levi dug through the trunk. The last item he pulled out was a worn leather tome. Every witch had a book of spells. I was interested to see exactly what spells Mable kept in her book.
We sat down on the edge of the bed as Nestor backed out of the room.
“Where are you goin’?” I asked.
“I don’t want to know, Grace,” he said sadly.
“Alright,” I said feeling bad for him. He
hadn't noticed her activities, and it hurt him. I wished I could ease the pain, but I didn't know how.
“He will be okay,” Levi said reading my thoughts.
He flipped through a few pages of the spell book. It was like a diary of the spells she had cast and gathered over the years. As we turned the pages, the spells became more complex. However, most of them were still benevolent in nature.
Towards the end of the book, Mable had recorded in spells to summon demons and other beings of nefarious intentions. There was a spell to contain an aswang. Levi pointed it out.
“She knew about Lysander,” he said.
“It seems so,” I said.
Turning to the next page, I gasped and jumped off the bed.
“Fuuuuuck,” Levi said. “This is how to make the Absinthe truth moonshine.”
“Yes. The trailer that exploded was full of it,” I said. “I bet she's the one that planted the fields.”
“Wow,” he said.
I watched across the room as he flipped pages. “This one is a glamour to make a child look like the offspring of someone else,” he said. “Like how Devin looked like Dylan.”
“This bitch is something else,” I said. “I'm not sure I want to know anymore. Put the book in the vault. I don't want anyone else to have it.”
Staring at the page, he shuddered. When his eyes lifted to mine, I saw the terror in them.
“What?” I asked.
He looked back down at the book. He read, “After many contacts, I've finally reached the conclusion that the only way to terminate the bard would be to trick the Queen into exterminating him herself. Considering their blood bond, she is the only one that could break through his vast power which is not likely to happen. Except the chance that we could get the Phoenix to do it.”
“That's why they brought the jar to the bonfire,” I said. “They wanted you dead.”
“Why me?” he asked.
“You’re damn powerful if you haven't noticed. They are scared of you because they know you will protect me. That you will protect Shady Grove,” I said.
“Nothing like a big fat target on your back. Where'd my beer go?” he asked.