by Erin R Flynn
“I like when you’re just the boss until you let me be the boss,” he murmured, his hand traveling down to my ass and giving it a squeeze.
“Basically, you’re checking I won’t beat you bloody if you carry me off to have your naughty way with me when you want or if this was a one-time pass?” I drawled, not hiding my sarcasm at all, even as I pushed my ass against his hand.
“Yeah, but you know it’s more than that with us.”
I smiled up at him. “Yeah, it’s more than that with us.”
He gave a grunt when that was all I said. “So what’s your answer?”
“I’m not sure.” I smirked and gave a shrug. “But I’ll give you tonight to convince me.”
It was a challenge he gladly accepted it.
Accepted so many times, I lost count and every inch of me deliciously hurt the next morning even after using a healing rune before I passed out. Nice.
19
I decided to skip a Saturday morning workout given the one I’d had the night before and went straight for the cafeteria… After I had to portal back to my room naked because my clothes were all toast. Even my damn socks.
For real.
At least the shoes I liked were fine. I could replace the jeans since I’d loved them.
Izzy was sleeping and there was a note she was going to skip breakfast since our room was stocked from the bakery.
And could they please stop doing that so she didn’t get fat?
Oh boy. I was not telling them to give me less food. The hobgoblins would panic something was wrong with me then.
Just thinking of that had me loading up my tray to recover from my fun with Hudson. I’d need the energy since I was unlocking ten fairies today at lunch. We found that worked best so instead of freeing hobgoblins, I was freeing fairies. We were getting back to the hobgoblins—and soon—but Neldor was still hitting up places to make a show.
We just thought it smarter to get more help and do it better so we could move faster than here and there. There were a lot of balls in the air after all.
I made sure to say hi to the hobgoblin kids, a few bringing me extra fruit or food to have, which I always found adorable. I was almost done with my first tray when my keys on the table flared with bright light. It startled me so badly, I jumped to my feet and almost fell to the floor. I blinked my eyes to adjust to the sudden brightness and then realized what it was.
And then my blood went cold.
It was one of the warning charms I had on my keys to signal that there was trouble. After the one Hudson had gotten me had proven so badass when Darby’s grandfather had abducted me, I’d immediately gotten them for the ones who meant everything to me.
I glanced around and found who I wanted. “I need permission. Give me permission. Now!”
Dean White’s eyes went wide as I jumped the table with my phone in my hand, already texting for back up. She knew what I was talking about. She’d see it in my aura or knew me well enough where I didn’t need to waste time explaining. “No. If you out that then you will—”
I said the only words I think that could stop even her from arguing with me, holding up my keys as proof. “It’s Izzy.”
She pressed her lips in a line and nodded. “Yes, I give you permission. Leave it open and I will follow with the guards and help.”
“Thank you, Anya,” I breathed… Before holding out my hand and opening a temp portal right there in the middle of Saturday morning breakfast service at the busiest time where probably over a third of the campus would see it.
I didn’t care. Izzy was in trouble, and I would deal with the fallout later of outing I could do that. Her life was more important.
She was more important to me.
I ignored the gasps and stepped right into the portal, knowing it would take me to where Izzy was. I heard people yelling my name in the distance as I went through, probably trying to warn me it could be a trap. I knew that. Of course I knew that.
It was still Izzy in trouble. I didn’t care about a possible trap, but people would die if they touched one hair on her head trying to get me.
I only needed seconds to take in the scene, people everywhere and upset. A dozen were focused on one spot they couldn’t get to.
Izzy’s gaze snapped to mine and relief filled her eyes from where she stood behind the barrier my charm provided her. “I love you for being the most paranoid person ever.”
I snorted. “I keep telling you it’s only paranoid if I’m wrong, which I rarely am.” I gestured to all the people. “Clearly, that emergency charm to warn me if you’re in danger and a panic room barrier until I get there was needed.”
“Yeah, it was,” she squeaked as some of the guys going after her sent more attacks.
“Get off of her!” I roared, shooting a power clap at the group and scattering them like bowling pins, only two managing to keep their feet.
“This is official business,” one of the two snapped. “You just attacked guards.”
“Bullshit,” I snarled. “She was asleep in our dorm not ten minutes ago, and we’re not on campus. If this was official then you wouldn’t have to pull shit.” I glanced at Izzy for a split second and saw she was holding what looked like a package from Amazon.
She nodded to confirm my suspicion. Her thoughts told me that there was something magical in it that opened a portal under her that had taken her from the guard station on campus where we picked up packages and brought her to this spot. Fuckers. Legal and legit my ass.
“You have no stance here to involve—” a man started to inform me.
And I used that term loosely as he was a snake. Mr. Kincaid, Izzy’s father, was the lowest form of snake and person there was.
I didn’t hide my hate for him as I focused on the piece of shit. “She is protected by the dragon royals and your abducting her very much involves me, you psycho.”
“How dare you speak to me in such a tone,” he seethed. “I will do with my daughter as I wish, and you will learn—”
“Yeah, try it,” I taunted, smirking at his sons standing behind him. “You’ll get the same ass kicking I gave your two loser sons, no matter how they lie I was crying in a corner.”
“You are both women and—”
“I get it,” I snapped. “We’re not worth what you mighty men are. I understand your point of view. I don’t fucking care. It’s bullshit. Tell me your views until you’re blue in the face. I don’t give a flying fuck if your council backs you on this. It’s not happening. Izzy is not a thing you can just take because you say so.”
Two of the idiot guards realized they weren’t ever getting through the barrier protecting Izzy and came for me. I wrote the rune on my arm for show and shattered their legs, my gaze never leaving Mr. Kincaid’s.
“Your opinions or whether you agree with me don’t matter, nor do you,” Mr. Kincaid informed me with a straight face.
I snorted, enraging him. “Your opinions or whether you agree with me don’t matter, nor do you,” I parroted. “You’re the only one who thinks like this, asshole! The rest of the world does not agree with you. To humans, you are trash. The humans you all look down on would arrest you. It’s called human trafficking. You are the lowest of the low to them. They have long since evolved from these ways.
“So you’re the one who doesn’t matter. You can look down your nose at me all you want, but you are the antiquated nothing whose ego is deluded into thinking you’re important. You’re so fucking pathetic, you have no chance against me and had to hire goons to abduct your daughter to sell her to your corrupt council. Explain that away as we’re just women all you want, but it’s bullshit.”
The rest of the guards tried to rush me all at once, but I had way better training and fighting skills. I didn’t even have to use magic or runes to beat them. I threw punches and kicks as they came at me and in under a minute, they were all unconscious or too injured to get up.
“I really hope you didn’t pay much for them,” I muttered, almost anno
yed how easy that had been. They really only brought that for me?
I was honestly insulted.
“We ride or die in our family, and I knew you would come,” Izzy called over.
“What does that nonsense even mean?” Mrs. Kincaid demanded. “You’re being obtuse, and I’ve had enough of this with you, Isabella.”
Izzy looked at her mom with tears trailing down her cheeks. “And I’m done making excuses for you, Mother. You’re as bad as Father, worse for selling out another woman, your own daughter. You buy into this bullshit that women are worth less and only exist to birth more warlocks. It means we’re all-in. I knew Tams would come, and you guys never thought she’d show just for me.
“But that’s because none of you would have come for me if I was in trouble. I’m just the girl. I’m just the expendable and easily sold female, not really family or worth risking yourselves for. That’s not family. That’s fucking sick. All of you are deranged. Tams risked everything to come for me when I was in trouble without even thinking about it, just as I would for her. That’s family.”
“Yes, she risked a lot,” a man chuckled from my left. “Your daughter was the perfect bait to draw out Vale. I’m glad we made it in time when I received word through my office you’d set this up.”
I glanced over to see it was one of the warlock elders, two more at his back… And a fuck ton of council guards.
Oh no, I was so, so worried.
I snorted. “And that’s all you brought with you to get me?” I chuckled when the group frowned. “Bitch, please. You better at least triple that amount.”
“Oh, we are,” that elder taunted as two more temp portals opened behind them.
Well, I got my wish as the rest of the elders came out with probably every single council guard they had.
“You are in such deep shit for poking them, Tams,” Izzy grumbled.
She wasn’t wrong, but I was pretty sure this was going to happen whether I had or not.
She cursed when more and more kept coming. She gave me a look like she was going to strangle me when I glanced at her in confusion. “Those aren’t warlocks. They brought shifter help.”
“Ooooh, fun,” I chuckled, rubbing my hands together. “I didn’t have my normal workout this morning. I could use the exercise.”
“Come with us quietly and we will leave Ms. Kincaid alone,” that councilman offered. “We won’t remove the magical tattoo and will even cancel the summons for questioning.”
I snorted. “No.”
He clucked his tongue and shook his head at me in such a condescending way, it was overly dramatic. “And here you give such lectures about loyalty and whatnot. I thought—”
“I’m not coming quietly and you’re not getting Izzy, asshole,” I drawled, rolling my eyes to be just as overly dramatic. “I’m up to tier eight crystals now and her barrier is powered with that. It means it’s going be a while until you can get it down and if I wanted, I could throw up one around me. Of course, I called for help. So you’re not getting us, and I’m going to have fun until you guys run like normal.”
Rage flashed in his eyes. “Your continued disrespect grates on my nerves, Ms. Vale.”
“I have no respect for any of you and you’re all trash that should be in prison, probably put to death for your crimes once we get the full list.” I smiled evilly at them. “And one day, I will be there for when it happens. There will come a day when you are all brought to justice, and I will sit front and center to bear witness to what you have done.” I looked at the Kincaids. “As well as you.”
That seemed to be the line, the first group of council guards rushing me.
And they were no joke. They weren’t like squaring off with idiots at the Power Playoffs, but more like how I saw our magical football team play. This was a squad that trained together or something. Three were the physical fighters that came in for that, while two others were trying to hit me with the right runes, and the last of the six was quickly healing them.
Cool.
A real challenge.
I had fun sparring with the three that were good, much better than most warlocks—definitely at school—but not even close to the Rothchilds. One was the level of the human MMA fighter’s I’d gone up against before, but I was way over that level now. It was much more difficult with two guys tossing runes and spells at me and three on one in a fight was never easy.
Plus, that jerk insta-healing them was kind of annoying. But the challenge and experience of it was great. Exciting and invigorating for sure.
Fine, I was demented and would absolutely get in trouble later. It was still cool.
“Magnificent. She’s a magnificent creature,” one of the councilmen praised.
Gross. I launched a bolt of electricity at him with a sneer. “I’m not a fucking mare, you sick fuck.” I laughed when he easily deflected it, but it had made them all jump as if they remembered this was like a real fight they were near, not watching video later. They really were creepy fuckers.
“We cannot leave you alone ever without you finding trouble,” Zack bitched from behind me, letting me know the adults and backup had arrived.
“Trouble?” I called over my shoulder. “This is my idea of fun, mate.” Just to make my point, I changed my attack to combine my electricity rune—visualizing those whips I’d used before—and inverting a channeling rune. It was meant to focus power like when I’d pushed power from my reservoirs out into Faerie, but in a rune, and combining magic.
Inverting didn’t always work but in this case, it was the rune for weakening and used to keep prisoners chill in cells. I had a different intent, wrapping my electric whip around the arm of the healer and focusing on his magic. I smirked at him when I felt a rush of power.
His power.
“See, fun,” I mocked as the guy dropped like a rock, passed out and wiped. I quickly did it to the five others while they were shocked and then turned to see who all had come.
Everyone. Just about everyone, and people were still coming. All the normal everyone who rushed into the fray. From the look on Zack, Ray, White, Craftsman, Edelman’s, and several other faces, they had been there a bit too.
Oh boy. I was in trouble this time.
“Stay out of this, wolf, or we will contact your elders,” one of my least favorite of the warlock elders, Councilman Harjo warned. “They are both witches and ours.”
“Tamsin Vale is undeclared and has repeatedly said she does not recognize your authority,” Hudson declared loudly.
Oh shit.
“And both women are not yours or anyone’s,” he continued. “Isabella Kincaid might be a witch and once under your jurisdiction, but your corrupt ways and mistreatment of half of the population you are sworn to protect incited my family give her protection. You risk war with our family with this madness.”
“No, you do, and you are but a prince who will rule one day,” Harjo snapped. “Your father is wise and would never stand up to us over two women. It’s why he has not made a move yet or—”
“I haven’t needed to,” Mr. Vogel said from behind me. “Ms. Vale has always spanked you and yours by the time we get to show up to whatever insanity you pull each time. I think her labeling you all Wile E. Coyote was rather fitting.”
“You did laugh, and for a while,” Mrs. Vogel chuckled. “They have our protection. I tire of having to repeat that and so does my mate and our friends.”
“They are witches and our concern,” a different councilman snapped. “It is insanity you would risk so much over them.”
“And yet you keep trying for her, so you understand her value,” Mr. Vogel threw right back. “You think you do. We actually do, and what she stands for is more important than one woman so yes, we will risk war to keep her out of your hands. You keep saying that we won’t honor our word or it’s all rhetoric, but hear it from my lips that we will keep our oath and protect her.”
“It’s insanity,” he whispered, several echoing him.
“
As is what you are trying to do to her who you fully believe is a witch you are supposed to protect,” Hudson shouted, sounding seconds from losing it.
No one seemed to know what to do or say next and I sighed, turning so I could face them all. “So you’re not going to let me keep beating them all up, right?”
The looks I got promised several were going to strangle me.
“I believe you had other plans for your energy today,” White reminded me, taking the rest of the fun out of the idea.
I was about to agree when I remembered the Kincaids. “Fine, the council and their idiots can all leave, but not the others.”
“You don’t tell us—” Harjo started.
But I ignored him, pointing at the Kincaids. “They abducted Izzy off campus and were going to hand her over to have her mind melted. They don’t just get to walk away from that.”
“Yeah, except they’re the ones that would punish them, Tams,” Izzy reminded me.
I frowned at her even as relief filled me when I saw Geiger, Edelman, and several others standing by her and the barrier down to signal the danger was over and she was protected. “That’s not fair.”
“No, but there’s nothing you can do about it,” one of the council guards taunted me. “This is the place of witches and soon it will be yours. The council will get you one day and then you will know your place and know it well.”
Oh, wrong thing to say, buddy.
Wrong. Fucking. Thing.
I heard people shout my name and felt a few try to reach me, but they were too late. I wrote something on my arm for show, but then launched the magic at the four Kincaids.
“What did you do?” Harjo demanded.
“Karma. I gave them a bit, a sliver of karma, and a down payment on the justice they will get one day for treating their own family as they have,” I answered with a smile.
“You attacked—” he started, but I laughed.