“You’re a liar.” Geoffrey grinned. “I haunt you at night. I make you breathless. I make you break out into a sweat. I make you -”
I didn’t even have to raise my hand.
Magic poured out of me in droves, in colors, in everything bright and bold.
It went straight for Geoffrey, smothering him with my magic, with my colors, until he collapsed on the ground.
My magic disappeared like a light, leaving Pan and I frozen in place and Geoffrey in a heap on the floor.
24
I blinked, frozen in place. I should go to him. I should check to see if he was okay, if Geoffrey was still breathing. But the truth of the matter was, I didn’t want to touch him. I didn’t want to get anywhere near him.
A tingling took hold of my body, something that made me feel good...satisfied. Like I was glad that I inflicted pain on Geoffrey. Like I wanted to do it again.
I swallowed as Pan slowly made his way over to the private investigator. I had no idea why he was here, why he felt the need to check on the man. I stayed where I was. My fingers shook. I wanted to collapse. Hell, my knees were giving out, practically begging to drop to the floor.
But I held my ground.
I couldn’t relax, not until I knew Geoffrey was going to stay down.
“He’s dead,” Pan said, standing back up in a full sweep. His pale green eyes fixed me in place, and something swept over him as he regarded me. I couldn’t be sure, but it almost felt like respect. Like he was proud of what I did.
I wanted to vomit all over again.
And yet...something inside of me warmed when I heard that.
I felt good.
And I knew it was wrong. I knew I shouldn’t want to kill someone - and I didn’t. But knowing he had done something so terrible to me, knowing there was a chance he had done it to someone else...I was glad he was gone.
Before either of us could say anything else, a telling pop filled the air, and Rumple immediately entered the office. How he had any idea where I was at all, I didn’t know. Then again, Rumple seemed to know everything.
He immediately saw me and stepped towards me. His arms encircled my body and he pulled me to him. I was stiff as a board the entire time I spent in his arms. It was like I had forgotten how to give a hug, how to receive one. But Rumple’s arms around me soothed me. He made me feel safe if not relaxed, and I needed that right now.
God, I needed that.
“Rumple, I…” I pulled my head up so I could look him in the eye. “I...I killed him. I used my magic. I killed Geoffrey.”
“He possessed no value,” Pan stated, standing up. “There’s no great loss accompanying his death.”
“Why didn’t you call me?” Rumple demanded, turning his gaze to me. His voice was harsh, but I knew it didn’t have anything to do with me. I knew he wasn’t actually angry with me.
“I didn’t even think to,” I admitted. “He kept saying these vile things and I…my magic just reacted.” I brushed hair away from my face, tears squeezing out of my eyes before I could stop them. I should be more embarrassed about showing my emotions, especially in front of the two most stoic brothers I had ever met, but honestly, at this point, I didn’t even care.
Rumple tilted his head and looked at Pan. “How did you know to come here?” he asked.
“You think I don’t have spies in the police department?” Pan asked, fixing the sleeve of his shirt. “Please, brother. The second Sabrina Charming mentioned Geoffrey, I needed to do my own interrogation of the events leading up to Mary Stone’s death myself. I have a way of acquiring the truth, as you can see.” He gestured at Geoffrey’s eye sockets, and my stomach rumbled - not because I was hungry, but because there was nothing in my stomach I could throw up. “When I got here, he was approaching her like she was prey. If she hadn’t used her magic…” His voice trailed off and his eyes widened slightly. “I would have taken care of it.” He locked eyes with his brother. “Her magic was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen in my entire being. It belongs to the Fae. You know this.”
I shifted my gaze over to Rumple. He didn’t seem surprised by Pan’s admission. More like...wary. Like he didn’t want me to know where my magic came from.
Which meant he knew where it came from.
“Rumple,” I said in a small voice. Rumple’s eyes immediately snapped to mine, and he flinched. To anyone else, they might not notice because he had been subtle, but I knew him well enough to see it flash in his eyes. “Rumple...you know where my magic comes from?”
“I…” He looked away. “We can talk about this later. Somewhere that isn’t here. I promise to tell you everything, darling, I do, but -”
“No.” The word was low, cold.
My body, which had once been burning with magic, sparked by anger and fury and vengeance, had now run cold. I was tired, but more than that, I was numb.
I had killed someone because of my anger, and the worst part of it all was I didn’t even care. I felt no sympathy for this man, this rapist. And maybe I should. He was still a human being, despite the fact that he had raped me, had helped Sabrina kill Mary Stone, had tried to rape Belle. He still deserved justice in the right way.
The truth was, I was glad I killed him. I would do it again.
“No?” Rumple asked.
“You need to tell me,” I said. I forced myself to lock eyes with him.
“Alice, you need -”
“Don’t say my name,” I snapped, jutting a finger at him. “Don’t you dare try and compel me to do something I don’t want to do. I already told you what I wanted. I want you to tell me the truth. You know where my magic comes from. Clearly, I use ShadowMagic. Clearly, ShadowMagic comes from the Fae. Which means a Fae gave it to me.”
“Yes,” Rumple said slowly. “There is another possibility.”
“So, are we just going to leave the dead body where it is, then?” Pan asked, walking around to get a closer look at Geoffrey. “I take it we’re just going to pretend nothing happened?”
Rumple clenched his teeth together. “Take care of it,” he snapped.
“And what happens when Sabrina Charming discovers her precious PI hasn’t done the job of getting rid of your mortal, brother?” Pan asked. “If I get rid of the body, that could be misconstrued as an act of war. And we both know Caroline is looking for any excuse to attempt to go to war with the Fae realm. She thinks he’s hiding there.”
“I’m aware.”
“Who?” I asked. “She thinks who is hiding in your realm?”
“Why, your Mad Mage, of course,” Pan said. He began to unbutton the cufflinks to his shirt and rolled up his sleeves to the elbow. “She’s been looking for him for years.”
“I thought she was the one who banished him,” I said.
“She did,” Pan said. “He came from the Fae realm and sought her out here. He whispered wicked promises of revenge against the king and queen of the Fae realm. He promised her a crown so she could rule over both realms and be the most powerful woman in both lands. But that was not to be.”
“Why?” I asked. I looked between both brothers, waiting for some kind of response.
“The truth is, darling, we don’t know the details,” Rumple said, his voice soft. “We just know what little we were told.”
I clenched my teeth, furrowing my brow. “Let me get this straight,” I said calmly, trying to control my temper. I had to move, I had to get this energy out of me before it turned into something else, something destructive. I carefully maneuvered around the body and began to pace up and down where I wouldn’t be able to touch it, where I wouldn’t even have to step over it. “The Mad Mage is the true ruler of the Fae realm. Your family betrayed him and forced him out. He came here, looking to team up with the Red Queen, hellbent on power, for revenge. She agreed.” I paused. “How could they possibly think they were going to get revenge on the Fae realm. Fae have ShadowMagic. That’s more potent than regular magic.”
“It is,” Rumple said. “But the two were tryin
g to create soldiers for their armies. They would snatch young children and attempt to infuse them with magic in order to see if the magic would stick.”
“Why young children?” I asked. I couldn’t move, even if I wanted to.
“Obedience,” Rumple said. “Most believe that children are disobedient, but give them someone to admire, to care for, and they will obey without question.”
“Very much like dogs,” Pan added.
I ignored the comment.
“For whatever reason, the two began to disagree on everything,” Rumple continued, “until their fragile allegiance fractured to the point where it could never be repaired. The Red Queen, as she ruled over Wonderland, needed to weaken the Mad Mage. She also needed to guarantee she would be prepared in case of a retaliation.”
“So, she took the magic from Wonderland,” I murmured.
“To prevent the Mad Mage from making bargains with anyone else, yes,” Rumple said, nodding once. “And she wanted to protect herself with the magic she stole. She had hoped to come by ShadowMagic, but she didn’t find it in Wonderland.”
I shook my head. “I don’t understand,” I said. “The Mad Mage is supposed to be powerful. More powerful than anyone even in the Fae realm, except maybe you and your family. How could the Red Queen, who doesn’t even have ShadowMagic, banish him?”
“Everyone has a weakness,” Rumple said. “And the Red Queen is clever. It wasn’t long before she discovered his and used it to her advantage.”
I dropped down to the edge of the chair, needing to sit. My back was straight. “So, she didn’t banish him,” I said. “Not really. She leaned into his weakness. She forced him out. And in order to protect whatever that weakness was, he agreed to leave.” I blinked. “Where did he go?”
Before Rumple could answer, Pan drawled out, “Why do you assume he went anywhere?”
His words hit me like a slap to the face. “What is that supposed to mean?” I asked. “Are you saying that the Mad Mage is here?”
“Have you heard about James Hook?” he asked, giving me a long stare. “He’s in Neverland Penitentiary right now. Do you know why?”
“He’s...he’s the middle school teacher, right?” I asked, trying to rack my brain for the right words. “Uh, didn’t he, like, steal kids or kidnap them? Something like that?”
Rumple nodded once. “There was evidence that showed he stole children from their homes, yes,” he said. “But, more than that, he wasn’t working alone. There was evidence that showed trace ShadowMagic. Hook is not a Fae, which means he was working with someone who is. And I am working on a theory that might explain why a PE teacher would want to kidnap disadvantaged youth.”
I took a step back. “You think he was working with the Mad Mage,” I stated. “What does he say about it?”
“The usual drivel,” Rumple said. “He was innocent. He’s been framed. He’s been locked up for fifteen years and hasn’t said anything different, though it wouldn’t surprise me if he’s off his rocker slightly.”
I took in a breath, trying not to look at Geoffrey’s body. I was glad I killed him. I was. And yet, I couldn’t stomach the thought of looking at him.
“Did Geoffrey kill Anna?” I asked. “He said he didn’t, but it makes sense. Anna probably found out about Mary Stone. Maybe Russell told her. Maybe Sabrina knew about Anna and killed Anna because Anna was his weakness and -”
“Rory Rose is Russell Charming’s weakness,” Rumple said. “Just as you are mine. Just as you are your father’s.” He paused a moment. “We can, of course, have Shane run a test since Anna still has magic on her body. There might be a link there somewhere. But there might be a complication.”
“And what’s that?” I asked.
“If someone gives magic to someone else, the magic will tie back to the giver,” he said. “There might be a way to find identifying quirks of the independent user within it, but it’s difficult. For example, let’s say I make a pie. I give the recipe to my brother and he makes the same pie. The pie will taste the same though there maybe be something that’s different about the magic itself because of Pan. However, it’s not as easy to discover that.”
“And since Geoffrey has DreamMagic,” I said slowly, “we know he was given magic.”
“Yes,” Rumple said. “By someone who possessed DreamMagic at least twenty-five years ago.”
“But that won’t help us,” I said. “Everyone had magic still at that point.”
“I have a theory,” Rumple said, taking a step closer to me.
“And what’s your theory?” I asked.
“I’m still working out the kinks, darling,” he said. “I need to see if there’s truth to it or not. However, I believe that whoever gave Geoffrey Hunter DreamMagic also gave ShadowMagic to Tom Charming. I’m having Shane run tests to see if the magic lines up.”
“Tom said he was working with the Mad Mage,” I said slowly. My eyes widened. “That theory isn’t so crazy, is it?”
“I’m not sure,” Rumple said. “I don’t want to jump to any conclusions until I have all the facts.”
I looked down at my hands before my gaze found the tip of Geoffrey’s boots. “And me?” I asked in a voice just above a whisper. “You’ll be able to find out who gave me my magic?”
“Your magic?” Pan said with a sneer. “You think that that was given to you? No, mortal fool. Your magic is too potent to be given. You were born with that magic.”
I swallowed. “If I was born with ShadowMagic…”
Rumple blew out a breath from his nose. “You, at the very least, are half-Fae.”
25
Epilogue: Rumple
“I did not expect you here, Imp.” The jagged voice of MaryBeth’s voice caused my ears to twitch. I smoothed a smile on my face, looking around and taking in the stacks of books. The old woman was bent over the counter, white tendril of hair in her wrinkled face as she looked down at whatever it was she was reading.
Sadie always liked books. She always said her dream was to surround herself with books and watch the world around her pass her by. I did not understand her enthusiasm for such a simplistic life until this very moment.
Odd.
I had been here before, especially once I learned about Alice’s magic. I needed her to train with someone who was not me. I knew it was necessary and that interjecting myself in something so important might hinder her education, so I recused myself.
And now…
Now.
I shook all thoughts of Sadie from my mind. I was still searching for her. It was the reason I even wanted to open Anna Skaarasgard’s case up in the first place. I truly believed Sadie loved no one the way she loved Anna, and if she believed justice had not been served, perhaps she would come out and look into this with me.
Instead, she was gone, gone as the snow on the mountains. Gone like the wind in the trees.
Just gone.
“Yes, well,” I drawled, stepping over to the closest bookshelf. “I felt it was best to come and check on you.”
MaryBeth stopped what she was doing and removed her glasses. Though my focus was on the rows of books in front of me, I could tell she was staring at me pointedly, as though she could read my profile.
Old fool.
I was not so easily discerned. Even if I was more emotive than I tended to be due to my personal relationship with Alice, that did not mean I was so easily undone by anyone insignificant. Even old hags who still clutched her magic like a child clutched candy their parents were going to take away.
“And why would you need to do that?” she asked slowly. She flicked a page of her book but kept her eyes on me.
“Where is that dog you keep around?” I asked, stepping back from the shelf and looking around. “The one you’ve sent to retrieve that damned cat for you? You know, if he was such a good tracker, certainly he’d be able to find a cat.”
“Ah, yes, but we both know that cat is more than what he seems,” MaryBeth said with a small smile. She close
d her book delicately and set it aside before angling her torso in my direction. Her eyes pinned me in place. The blue captivated me, though I could not say why that was. “He eludes everyone save for the one he’s tasked to keep an eye on. I believe you keep an eye on her - or other parts of your body.”
I ticked my jaw. I needed to make sure I kept my temper controlled, especially in front of her. Just because she was old did not mean she was incapable. In fact, she was incredibly powerful, more than I initially gave her credit for.
“Tell me, Imp,” the old hag said, lacing her nobbled fingers together and resting them on the surface of the counter, “how does it feel, hmm? Being with her. Knowing who she really is. Is there some kind of power that stirs within you?”
“Why do you take such care to question me about my private life, witch?” I asked.
I turned my attention back to the books. Using an index finger, I trailed the pad of my finger down the spine of one the same way I might have touched Alice. Just thinking about her caused my loins to stir. I anticipated touching her again in whatever way she would allow; fucking her from behind, watching her fall to pieces in that mirror, was the most erotic experience I had ever had, and I wanted to do more with her.
“You aren’t jealous, are you?” I looked over at her and smiled with utter wickedness.
Instead of blushing as I thought she might, she gave me a level look. My insides turned at the sight of it. There was something about it that made me feel...uncomfortable.
I did not understand why.
“I am not jealous of any of your casual affairs,” MaryBeth said, wiping something off of her counter. “The whispers from the forest say you still long for Sadie, that she is the reason you involved yourself in Anna Skaarsgard’s murder anyway. Alice Winter is a means to an end, nothing more.”
It took everything in me not to react.
The truth was, Alice made me feel things I never knew I could feel. When she touched the scars that marred my back, that was more intimate than anything I had ever done before. I had never allowed anyone to see me so...vulnerable before. I had never allowed anyone to make me weak.
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