The Magic Of Betrayal

by Britt Andrews

  "Hmm," I hummed, walking towards him. His back was pressed against the door, the water ball in his hand pulsing with power. "You think you're a top dog, Bryce? You aren't shit. Nothing but a throwaway, I can guarantee you that you don't cross Red's mind, ever. Seems that's not the case on your end though, is it? You just don't understand that you need to fuck off."

  What was this guy doing here again? Kai had mentioned he'd seen him slinking around in the dead of night last week. If he was hoping to catch Red off guard, he'd be in for a fucking surprise.

  "See, I think that's where you're wrong. Saige needs a firm hand, she craves it. Aren't you concerned at all that she's going to destroy your little crew?" Darkness flashed in his eyes, but I kept my own face impassive, I wasn't giving this guy a scrap of ammunition to use against any of us. He was up to something, and I was going to find out what.

  "Actually, quite the opposite," I lied, because I was concerned, but fuck if I was going to let him know that. "She's really talented at bringing us all together," I hinted, the innuendo clear.

  Bryce's face deepened to a dark red that had him strangely resembling a tomato with hair. A slight shift in his shoulder was all the warning I got before he launched the ball of water in my direction, having turned it to ice before it left his hands.

  Bringing my hands around, I held them before me and willed a wall of flame into existence, the ice melting before it even had the chance to reach me. My feet carried me forward, right through the fire, and just in time for another round of ice daggers shooting straight for me. A wave of my hand had a wall of heat taking care of those as well.

  "You wanna fight me, douche? Get over here and let's do this shit. My fists are itching to fuck up your face," I taunted, and then Bryce was sprinting at me, two ice knives gripped in either hand.

  My heartbeat increased in anticipation. Just as he reached me, I dropped into a crouch and spun low on the ball of my left foot, sweeping my leg out, throwing him off balance and causing him to crash into the pavement. A wave of water propelled him upright and we circled one another. He must have a decent amount of power to be capable of the things I'd just seen, but he wasn't as strong as I was. No fucking way.

  "Why are you here, Brian?” His eyes flashed when I called him by the wrong name on purpose. “Didn't you get the memo enough times? You're not wanted. You're nothing but a piece of shit woman beater.”

  He snarled. "Like I said, she loves it. She'll be back, begging for my cock, and the other things I love doing to her. She bruises so prettily."

  All I saw was red. Launching myself at him, I hadn't given him time to react and his eyes widened just before I tackled him to the ground. My fist swung through the air, connecting with his cheek, his head snapping to the side. He rallied quickly, though, blasting me with a shot of water that pushed me backwards. His foot came up and he kicked me squarely in the chest, sending my back flat against the warm asphalt.

  Rocking back on my shoulders, I jumped up fluidly, not seeing the ice shards he'd fired my way. The kiss of pain tore through my upper arm, leaving a few rips in the black t-shirt I'd been wearing. A small trickle of blood ran down my forearm and I smiled maniacally.

  "You should probably run, motherfucker," I said, calm and deadly.

  "Bring it, fire bitch."

  Well, that's a new one.

  Dropping the barriers on my magic, the fire rushed to freedom, erupting from my body like a volcano. I was a walking flame, fire circled every inch of my body, nothing more than an extension of who I was on the inside. I'd worked my ass off to be able to master this skill, and it was fucking rare that a mage could completely push his power from the inside out. I was going to grab this son of a bitch and turn him into char.

  Bryce's eyebrows lifted to his hairline, finally realizing he stood no chance in this fight. The fire that surrounded me began to turn black, white, blue, and purple. Temperatures climbing, the air just giving more fuel, I was reaching cremation level. Vaguely registering the sound of a bike, I advanced on Bryce, one goal in mind. Burn. Burn. Burn.

  "Sloane!"

  Blinking, my hands were suddenly stretched out in front of my chest, the magic building, ready to launch out and protect me.

  "Gods dammit! SLOANE!"

  Fischer?

  My concentration wavered for just a second and Bryce turned his back and ran away like the fucking rat he was. Glancing behind me, Fischer was standing about fifteen feet back, a panicked look on his face.

  "Take a breath, man. He's gone. You know you can't burn people alive in broad daylight, and we're supposed to be blending in. Kill it." His deep, soothing voice had my hackles lowering, the flames shrinking in on themselves.

  "He needs to die," I gritted between clenched teeth. Adrenaline still coursing through my bloodstream, the urge to chase him was simmering in my blood.

  "Yes. He does. But not like this. Not today. Not where our cover could be blown," Fischer reminded me, and I inhaled a deep breath, letting the flames burn out completely.

  "Fuck!" I stalked over to Fish. "He wants to hurt her. I can't allow that. I can't allow him to be in a position to ever hurt any woman again."

  Fish nodded, grabbing my wrist and tugging me toward the building. "We should have this discussion in private. You never know who is watching."

  Frustrated with myself for losing my head like that in public, I agreed with him with a short nod of my head, letting my feet carry me up to the apartment. Thank fuck my clothes didn’t burn up. I’d learned long ago that I could control the flames, nothing got incinerated without me intending it to, but the moment was so close from getting out of control, it wouldn’t have surprised me if they had burned off. Tugging my shirt off, I tossed it onto the island, pulling a bottle of water from the fridge and chugging over half of it before leaning forward, my forehead pressed against the cool metal of the appliance.

  A barstool slid across the laminate, scuffing softly as Fischer thought aloud. "We need to do some more digging into the backstory with the ex. Is he a local? From everything I've seen of the people that live here, his behavior doesn't mesh with the feel of the community."

  He was right. It didn't fit. How was it that Red was with this asshole for so long and nobody knew or stepped in? But then, I lived that life, I knew all too well how easy it was for people to look the other way versus sticking their nose where they felt it didn't really belong. How did she get mixed up with a guy like that? She’s stronger than I’d given her credit for because somehow she’d gotten away from him. Something my mother was never capable of doing. Fuck, this is the kind of shit I don’t need to be thinking about.

  "We need to figure out what he's up to." I pushed away from the fridge and sat down beside him, finishing the rest of my water. "This is the second time now that one of us has caught him snooping around here and he's very out in the open with how aggressive and abusive he is. Whatever he's up to, it isn't good. He's pretty powerful, too," I gritted out, because it pained me to make it seem like I was giving this idiot a compliment in any way.

  "I'll find out where he lives, works, all of that. Once I know his routine, I can see who he talks with, see where he goes, and read his emotions," Fischer offered and I nodded, agreeing with his line of thinking.

  "You could always just—"

  "No."

  "Fischer. He's filth. Scum of the earth. We'd know right away then. I’ll be with you."

  "I said no." His tone was firm with an edge to it, one that I knew meant he wasn’t willing to budge an inch.

  "Fine. We'll do it your way." I backed off, if he wasn't willing to use his affinity to its fullest extent, then that was on him. Fish was able to insert himself into another person's memories and thoughts. As far as we knew, he was the only mage capable of such a thing, and he used that power as little as possible. The last time he'd done so, we'd been on a mission that ended badly, a lot of people were killed, which wasn't his fault— but he'd gone off the deep end. Scary shit.

  Glancin
g at him from the corner of my eye, I could see his fingers tapping rapidly on the countertop, a glazed look to his eyes, a tic in his jaw. He was reliving it.

  "Tell me where they are, Chan. We've been at this for days now, we don't need to turn it into weeks," Fischer's rough voice skated across my skin as Cam, Kai, and I looked in on the interrogation through a hole in the wall of the dilapidated warehouse. Chan was cuffed to a chair, his sweat drenched hair hung in his swollen eyes, a waterfall of blood running from his nose and ears, then there was the little matter that he’d nearly bitten his own tongue in half trying to fight Fischer from getting inside his head.

  "Fuck. You," Chan grunted. I was surprised the man could still speak.

  Chan's organization had been kidnapping witches and mages, studying their powers, experimenting on them. Fucking bastard. One of Radical's spies had gone missing while undercover and we suspected she'd either been made, or was seen as being too tempting of a lab rat to ignore.

  Fischer laughed a deep, dark laugh. A laugh that had the hair on my arms raising and Kai's eyebrows lifting. The darkness was coming and if Chan thought things had been bad before, he was about to get a fucking wake up call. We’re the only ones who have ever seen that monster and lived to remember it.

  "Just remember, this was your choice, Chan."

  Fish sat down in front of our captive in a metal chair.

  "Look at me," he ordered. Chan didn't move.

  "Look at me!" Fischer's voice was no longer his own, the monster that lived inside of him that he kept on a tight leash was in the room now.

  Chan's head snapped upright, his eyes nothing but an endless pit of the darkest black. If I'd been able to see Fischer's, his would've been matching.

  Not the appropriate time to have your cock wake up, but he was so deliciously devilish when he gave in to the beast.

  Chan released a high pitched squeal, his face wincing in pain as Fischer pushed his way into his mind. The shit fucking hurt, I knew first hand because we'd all practiced our powers on each other at one time or another, and it helped to have first hand training so we were all familiar with all the different possibilities. If you'd just allow him in, drop your barriers, it was more of an uncomfortable pressure, a presence that didn't belong.

  If you resisted, well, it would feel as though your skull was splitting down the middle. Chan was probably really fuckin' regretting his decision to be difficult, but it was too late now. He wasn’t the first person Fischer had done this to, and he wouldn’t be the last. We’d seen this show before, but each time it was equally disturbing.

  "Where are they, Chan? Hmm, let's see what I can find out. What secrets are locked away in here?" Fischer practically sang the last part of his questioning.

  I heard Kai mutter, "fucking hell," beside me. Fish tried holding back his darkness until it was truly needed, and when he let it out, it was almost like he became a different person. It was unsettling the way his honey oak eyes changed to pitch black, even the smile on his face changed. The hairs on my arms lifted as I watched him.

  Fish hopped up and began pacing around the table. "Really, Chan? Everyone knows toilet paper goes over, not under. I'm disappointed. And for fuck's sake, you don't put ketchup on steak. I should kill you on principle alone."

  Chan's screaming bounced around the cavernous warehouse, the sounds of rats scurrying along the concrete floor reached my ears. When the rats know it's time to fucking bail, you should take the hint and get the hell out yourself. But this was Fischer, my family, our monster. We’d never leave him. Watching him in his element was everything.

  Fischer's fist swung out and connected with Chan's nose, blood spurted from his face as though a tap had been turned on.

  "You're a sick fuck, Chan. You've not only been taking adult supes, but kids?" Fischer growled. Pulling out a sharp knife from his pocket, he flicked it open and in a flash, had it buried to the hilt in Chan's thigh.

  Looking to Cam for his reaction, Kai began growling low and dangerous.

  "News to me... Fish will get the information. Then he dies," Cam snarled.

  "Had... no... choice," Chan told Fischer, his voice full of panic.

  "Fuck that. Drop your shields, you piece of shit."

  A beat of silence and then more screaming. Fuck.

  Fischer turned to look where we were hidden, his face a deadly calm mask and his eyes black as night that had a shiver running down my spine. His thick curls were sticking out in all directions, he looked absolutely deranged, and I reveled in it.

  "They're being held in some shit neighborhood in Cleveland." His tone was dripping with darkness and the promise of blood.

  We moved out from behind the wall. "Get the details, see if you can find out who ordered him to do all of this, then we gotta hustle. Who knows what they'll do to them when they realize Chan's been made, and that won't be too much longer considering his phone has been buzzing non stop the past two hours," Cam instructed, leaning back against the crumbling brick wall, the scent of his leather jacket becoming stronger as his arms crossed over his barrel chest.

  Fischer stepped up behind Chan, the man clearly sensed the predator at his back, his begging and pleading becoming pathetic. Nothing was going to save his ass now. Fish placed his hands on Chan's head, his hands trembling with exertion. The desire to get out of this shithole and go rescue some people was riding me hard, seeing Fischer in all of his glory had my own demon wanting to party.

  "They're in a basement, there's cages..."

  Another growl erupted from Kai, and fire flared in my own palms. They're dead. All of them.

  "Crying. Some of the younger ones are crying."

  Cam slammed his hands down on the table, finally losing his calm demeanor.

  "8734 Sycamore Lane. That's where they are." Fischer sagged, Chan's head hung limply, blood and drool dripping from his chin.

  "Let's go, we'll call it in and get someone in the area on it. I'm going back to the hotel to pack. Leave him here for the rats," Cam snarled, turning and heading for the exit.

  Kai followed, leaving me with Fischer. The exertion of his work evident by the shiny sheen of sweat on his pretty face.

  I stepped up behind him, running a hand down his muscular back, a gasp leaving his lips. Spinning around, his hands gripped my shoulders and I looked into his black eyes.

  "Still not back yet, pet? Do you need a session with your Master?" I murmured.

  "I feel dirty, like I can't shake the feel of that fucker's mind. He needs to die."

  "Allow me."

  Calling on my fire, I tossed the large flame and it hit Chan on the back of his head, the rest of his body catching within seconds. Blood curdling screams that only a man being burned alive could make reverberated through my bones, cutting off sharply about three seconds later. My fire burned with the heat to rival a cremation furnace, so he was reduced to nothing in no time at all. The smell wasn’t overwhelming, thanks to the high temperatures, but still, I didn’t want some burned asshole so close. I let my fire build in my palm and aimed it at the skeleton before letting it loose and watched with satisfaction as it slid clear across the floor to the other side of the huge room.

  Fischer leaned forward, his hands now sinking into his dark hair. "Fuck!"

  Grabbing his hair myself, I pulled him up. "Listen, pet. You're a fucking beast, and my monster wants to play with yours. My darkness will pull you back to the light."

  He groaned, grabbing my neck, and pulling my mouth to his. Sweet fucking stars.

  Pushing him back, I reached for what was left of the rope lying on the table. "Turn around. Hands behind your back."

  Fischer obeyed and I quickly secured his hands.

  "This is going to be rough, pet. I hope you're ready for this," I whispered in his ear.

  "Fuck this out of me, Master. Bring me back."

  My dick surged to a painful thickness. I loved his begging, but it wasn't necessary. Not with how turned the fuck on I was after watching him work. Pulling
the packet of lube from my back pocket, I ripped it open and sat it on the table next to his hip. Reaching down to his waistband, I hastily undid the button on his jeans and unzipped them, pushing them with his boxers down to his ankles. That'd just have to work for now, I needed to be inside of him. Shimmying my own jeans down, I pressed myself against his ass, groaning at the feel of our skin together. My hands found his cock, and I squeezed his balls, earning a moan that had my own tightening.

  "Please..."

  Pushing him down so his chest was flat against the table, his legs spread as wide as the restriction of his jeans would allow, I dropped down behind him, sucking on two of my fingers.

  "You want this, pet?" My voice husky and deep.

  "Yes, Master. I need you."

  My fingers ran down his crack, swirling his hole. Fucking hell, he's so tight. A whimper filled the air when I pushed in, and I quickly pulled out, spreading him with both hands before leaning in and running my tongue from his sack to his ass. His body jerked at the contact, a chorus of 'oh yes' and 'more' driving me further.

  "Tell me how much you love this, pet. Now." My palm cracked his ass, his tan skin reddening with the blow. I loved marking him.

  "Taste me, this ass belongs to you, Master."

  Fuuuuuck.

  "Gods damned right it does," I snapped, leaning back in to work him up so good he'd forget all about Chan. The only fucking mage who belonged inside of him, his mind, his body, was me. My tongue licked and speared, and Fischer began moving his hips, grinding his cock against the table, searching for friction of any kind.

  My fingers pushed easily inside of him and he squeezed tight at the intrusion, but he was begging for more. Chan's body was nothing more than a pile of ash at this point, and I fisted my cock with my free hand, groaning at the contact.

  Standing up, I slapped Fischer's ass a few more times, his hole squeezing my fingers gloriously with each smack.

  "What do you need, pet?" I questioned, reaching for the lube.

  "Your cock, Master." He panted.

  "Quit fucking the table, pet. I'm the one who is going to give you what you need." I squeezed the lube out onto my fingers and coated my dick with it. Bracing myself by gripping his hip tightly, I pressed the head of my cock to his asshole, pushing just enough to have him squirming, trying to fuck himself onto my dick.