Their magic grew thick in the air, mingling with the shifters’ energies and creating goosebumps along my skin. My nose tingled like I had to sneeze but couldn’t. They stayed focused on the gate, and the longer they kept at it, the weaker it grew. I could feel the strain of the gate’s tether within my body, fighting to keep a hold of me, grabbing onto whatever it could to stay in existence. This was a very persistent one.
Slowly, the dark gray shimmering within the gate died down, the edges wavering. The whole construct became translucent so we could see through it to the bushes on the other side. The air crackled with the stubborn energy, skittering along my skin.
Finally, the tether snapped, and I felt the gate dissolve. Gone. No baddies coming through to pick fights with the shifters. Again, an emptiness filled me up for a moment, and I stared at the spot, kind of missing the gate. Every time one of the ones I was connected to disappeared, it was like it took a small chunk of me along with it. Then I ran into other gates and that emptiness was filled up with them. Life moved on.
“Are you okay?” Landus asked, staring at me.
“Yeah, why?”
“Because you look sad.”
I snorted. “Why would I look sad?”
“I don’t know, why don’t you tell me?”
“Don’t worry, I’m fine.”
He reached over, and his fingers skimmed along the side of my face. “Then stop looking like you just lost a loved one.”
I grabbed his hand, pausing to let it stay against my skin for just a few more moments before pulling it down. “Don’t worry. I don’t know what it feels like to lose a loved one.”
“Then you’re one of the lucky ones.”
I sighed and looked away. “I mean I don’t have family. Not one I can remember.”
He fell silent and stepped closer. His body heat pressed against my skin, his energy caressing me as his scent wrapped around me. I practically wanted to throw myself at him because he made me feel so good.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
I looked up at him and gave him a weak smile. “Of course you didn’t. You’ve only known me for a day or so.”
His expression softened, his silvery eyes turning more into a warm, light gray. I loved how his eyes changed to match his mood. It made it easier to read him. “Are you sure? Because it doesn’t feel that way.”
Something in me warmed up in agreement. I really did feel like I knew him well, too. I was so comfortable around him. His beast didn’t scare me at all, even when he had that look of murder. I wasn’t disturbed that he tore people apart when we were fighting. Hell, I tore people apart when I fought, too.
I let his hand go and patted his shoulder. “You’re one of the good ones.” Probably too good for me.
The witches all gathered to talk to each other. Maura broke away from the group and sauntered over to us, a small smile on her lips. Her eyes became warm chocolate as she drank in Landus. They had a deep history with each other.
“Landus, so good to see you again,” she said. She laid her hands on his chest and stood on her tiptoes to give him a simple kiss on his cheek. She turned and did the same to Slade.
“I’m glad you’re well,” Landus said, his expression softer than I’d seen so far. Definitely a good history.
She turned to me, taking me in slowly. “And you are?” she asked.
“Nyssa.” I held out my hand and waited for her take it. After a moment she reached out. Even her hands were small, like her. Something about her rubbed me the right way. I liked her immediately. I could feel healing and calming energy coming off of her.
Then she ruined it.
As I pulled away, her magic seeped into my skin, singeing me. I snapped my hand back as if being burned and then went into a crouch, my instincts briefly taking over, ready to make heads roll for causing me pain.
I growled, the sound deep in my throat. Her eyes widened, and she took a step back as Landus stepped between us, shielding her from me.
“Move,” I said, my voice deeper.
“Nyssa.” He responded with a voice much deeper as his instincts to protect took over. “Back off.”
His command rolled over my skin, demanding to be heard and listened to. I shook off the feeling of wanting to listen, refusing to cave in. I wasn’t that weak. I wasn’t one to be commanded.
Slade wrapped his arm around Maura’s waist and pulled her further back. Something in me hurt at their expressions. As if I were the enemy. Then I realized exactly what I was doing. Making a damn fool out of myself because the little witch gave me a shock.
I straightened up, still glaring at Maura.
“Nyssa,” Landus said softly. Probably unsure about me.
“What?” I asked, still staring at Maura, not willing to look away. She returned the stare, though hers was more inquisitive than anything else. Questions bounced around in her pretty browns, but she knew not to ask anything right now.
“Look at me.”
I glared at Maura for a few more heartbeats then tore my gaze off her and looked at Landus.
We stared at each other for a minute or so, and slowly the tension seeped out of my body. It was as if he was forcing it out to calm me down, even though I felt nothing, no energy or magic manipulation used against me.
“What happened?” he finally asked me.
I kept my mouth sealed tight.
“It was my fault. I wanted to read her and used a little magic,” Maura finally said, stepping out of Slade’s protection. “I should have kept my hands to myself.”
“Next time you do something like that, I’ll bite it off.” My response was more of a growl. I let her hear the truth in my words, and she did. Loud and clear. She nodded.
“Maura and her coven are under my protection. If you bite her hand off, you’ll have to deal with me.”
“Self-defense, Landus. She used magic against me. I’m in my right to protect myself.”
“It was just magic.”
I snorted. “Maybe to you, it’s just magic. Even maybe to Maura. But not for me.”
“What do you mean?”
I shook my head and stepped away from them. “Nothing. Just forget it. Since you guys are done, I’m leaving.”
“I am sorry, Nyssa. I didn’t mean to offend you.” Maura looked contrite, and her words tasted truthful.
I looked her over slowly, letting my eyes grow cold. Landus stiffened, and Slade took a step closer to Maura, ready to protect her at a moment’s notice.
I let out a harsh breath, hating that they were treating me like the bad guy. Was it so wrong to defend myself? Doubt whirled inside of me. I never questioned who I was as a person until I lived in the city, and then the people here quickly taught me that I was mean. Prickly. If I ever had a kind bone in my body, the Woodlands had turned it into dust.
“Just don’t do it again.” My words were deep, my control nearly shot. I swore under my breath and headed back to my car. I just wanted to get out of here.
Frankly, for the last couple of days, since helping the mages, I’d been feeling weird. As if something inside of me had shifted and changed and didn’t bother to clue me in. I felt uneasy about it. Then there were all these gates forming, and I felt each of their existences; I felt their tether to me, and there were so many. Too many different energies coming at me through the tethers, putting me on edge. All I had to do was drive right by one and bam, I was connected to it. It was getting to the point of being overwhelming. There simply were too many gates, and I wasn’t even talking about the ones Baron was making. I knew the location of sixty gates in our city. Eleven of them were gates that people didn’t want to tear down and had been in use for a while now. The rest were new gates that had been formed in the past week. Some of them were angry gates, others soothing. Others called for me, wanting attention, nearly begging on their gately knees for it. They were confusing me.
Then there was Baron. The creepy bad guy who apparently liked me for some odd reason, given he had had t
wo chances to kill me but hadn’t yet.
And Landus. What the hell was up with Landus? Something about him was attracting me. Most of the time when I was in his presence, I just wanted to jump up onto him and wrap my legs around him like a damn koala bear. He was turning me into a sap, and I wasn’t a sap kind of person.
Damn. What was I getting myself into?
The passenger door popped open, and Cecil climbed in before I had a chance to turn my car on. She turned to me with a wide grin.
Chapter Twelve
I remember a girl-child following me. She walked behind me but stayed close. I stopped and faced her. She smiled big and wide, happy despite the cut on her chin and the bruising around her eye. I remember feeling jealous of her happiness despite the circumstances she was in.
—Nyssa’s Journal
“What?” I asked Cecil.
“I’m coming over. We haven’t had a chance to hang out in a while.”
I groaned. “No. I just want to go to bed.”
“Too bad.”
“You just want to make sure there’s food in the kitchen.”
“Duh. You tend to starve yourself if I leave you alone for too long. When was the last time you ate?”
I didn’t say anything because I couldn’t really remember. There was a hazy memory of munching on something, but I couldn’t pinpoint when that was.
“Exactly. I’m just going to come over to make you some food that should hold you over for a couple of days. I’ll even add a little something to help with those panda eyes you’re beginning to get.”
I sighed, giving in, and pulled away, heading home.
Cecil kept up a steady stream of chatter, and I kept up a steady stream of grunts in response. I wasn’t really sure what came out of her mouth, at one point she went on about a woman, but then suddenly she mentioned a dog. Just as I was catching up to her conversation, she began going on about a coffee shop she found.
When we got to my house, I was ready to crawl into bed. Cecil had a different plan. She dragged me into the kitchen and sat me down at the small table while she went behind the island and proceeded to make us a late lunch.
Holy shit. It was only lunchtime. I was so exhausted already, no thanks to the last couple of days.
My eyes were heavy, but I forced them to stay open with pure determination. Cecil was prattling away, and I needed to pay attention.
“I am so done with women,” she said. I think she was complaining about her latest fling. “It’s just so... dramatic with them.”
“Uh huh.”
“I just learned she’s an extreme feminist. You know the type, the ones that get pissed off because a man offers to open a door for you or to help you move something because it’s too heavy.”
“Yeah.”
“If a man opens a door for me, I’ll thank them because they are being kind. I don’t need to take offense for every little nice thing they do. And yet she thinks I want to be a homemaker rather than a working woman. She actually said I might as well just go straight and spread my vag for every man I come across. All this because I smiled and said thank you for someone being nice and opening the damn door for me. What the hell?”
“Exactly.”
She snorted and though she was facing away from me, I knew there was an evil little smile on her. “I hope she got that hair appointment she’d been trying to schedule. She needs it now that I decided to play hairstylist while she slept. I wonder how she reacted when she realized she had a bald spot.”
I thought I just blinked while she went on about her latest revenge but apparently that blink lasted longer than I thought.
“You look like shit.”
I opened my eyes and found Cecil staring at me, concern written all over her face, her green eyes dark as they looked me over.
“I feel like shit.”
She came over and ran her hand through my hair while she leaned forward. After a moment, she straightened with a frown and shook her head.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“Your face says otherwise.”
She sighed. “You know how I don’t like it, but maybe you should go into the Woodlands tomorrow. Rest. Recuperate. Do whatever it is you do in that goddess-forsaken land.”
I faked a gasp. “Is Baby-cakes finally warming up to the allure of the Woodlands?”
“Of course not. That place is a death trap, but you seem to thrive on it. Go,” she waved her hand. “Go and rest, do your thing and get rid of that look.”
“What look?” Apparently, I had a lot more looks than I thought. Strangers said I had resting bitch face, and acquaintances described me as amused. But friends, the ones closest to me, they apparently saw too much. Especially Cecil. My masks didn’t work around them. And maybe Landus, though he wasn’t any friend of mine. At least, I didn’t think he was. I was so blind to this stuff, he could probably think we were.
“You look like a kicked puppy. Tired, beaten, confused.”
I snickered. “You know me better than that, Cecil. I am more likely to be the one kicking the puppy.”
Cecil snorted, not amused with my response. Where others saw a bad person, Cecil saw a troubled soul. Someone had once called her a bleeding heart when she bought a meal for an older woman who had fallen on difficult times. Her bleeding heart was the only reason I was here.
“I don’t know what is going on with you, and I don’t even think you know what is going on with you. Whatever it is, it is taking a toll. Go out tomorrow, and do your thing before you end up dead. I get this feeling like you’re on the cusp of something, and right now, you’re losing. I’ll make sure no one harasses you. Take the day off and go be you.”
“I thought you weren’t that kind of witch.”
She gave me a glare. “Just because I don’t read tarot cards or palms doesn’t mean I can’t pick up on something every now and then. You are family to me. It makes it easier. Every witch can pick something up when it comes to family. It may just be a feeling, but it still helps us protect our loved ones.”
She had properly put me back in my place with her simple explanation that did weird things to my heart.
I leaned back in my chair while Cecil returned to stirring whatever she had going on in the pot. I thought about her words. What was she talking about anyway? I felt fine. I knew I didn’t look my best, but I also just came from raiding a damn house, and slaughtering thugs, and hadn’t had a chance to clean up yet. I was going to hurt and look like shit. A good night’s rest, and I would be back in the game again.
But then again, Cecil was the one suggesting I go into the Woodlands. I probably should go. She was always the first to tell me not to go.
A shiver crawled through my body as it fought something off. A light tingle spread through my stomach before disappearing. I looked over to Cecil with a frown. She was staring at me, also frowning. We both had that What the fuck was that? look. She took in a deep breath, and her eyes widened.
She put down the spoon, turned off the stove, and came over. “Let me see.”
“See what?”
“Your wound.”
“How do you know I’m hurt? I know you don’t have a heightened sense of smell.”
“Just show me,” she practically growled. It was almost shifter worthy.
I lifted up my shirt and showed her where the wound was. She removed the bandages and poked at it. I winced and inhaled sharply. Frown deepening, she grabbed the wound and squeezed it together. I yelped at the flare of pain and tried to push her away, but she ignored me. Dark brown pus seeped out of the wound, and my nose twitched from the magic I felt from it.
“Shit,” she cursed and then let out a few more choice words. “Why didn’t you tell me about this?”
I shrugged. “I didn’t think it was a big deal. The last time he wounded me like this, I was fine, and it healed up.”
“He injured you before?”
I nodded. “The wound just closed up before he did it again this mo
rning.”
She swore again and glared at me.
“This is kind of a big deal. He’s poisoning you. Or at least trying. You feel like shit right now because your body is fighting it off.”
“Okay,” I said, unable to really think about what that meant for me. I’d trained myself to be immune to plenty of different poisons and didn’t think it would kill me. “So how do we fix this?”
“Lucky for you, we found out before it got too bad. I recognize this kind of magic. It would have festered inside of you and after so long, you would be very weak. I don’t think it would have taken effect like it’s supposed to, but it’s using up your resources. Plus, it’s magic. Your body hates magic so it’s working extra hard to dispel it.”
I waited for her to say something else, but she remained quiet.
“Why do I feel like there is more to this than just that? You look like you did when you found out your aunt was dying.”
The fear I could sense throughout her body had turned her normally light green eyes into a dark emerald. Her fear was about to paralyze her, just like when she couldn’t save her aunt.
“I’m not dying, am I?” I guess I could say about damn time. I didn’t fear death, not with my long history. Death had stopped scaring me a long time ago. But I felt like something important was happening in this city, and I probably should stay alive to learn what that important thing was first before I kicked the bucket.
“No. No, you’re not. You’re winning the battle, though just barely. And I can fix something up to help you along. The, uh, cure is simple enough. We will have you fixed up in a couple of hours. I just need to run to my place real quick to pick up some herbs.”
“Then why are you scared?”
She bit her lower lip as her eyes flickered around before focusing back on my face. She put her hand on my knee, probably to comfort herself because I wasn’t comforted at all. Her hesitancy was starting to concern me.
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