by Tena Stetler
“Not sure. He accused me of stealing. But he didn’t say what. Only that he wanted it back.” She knew it was a futile attempt to keep Gale in the dark. He wanted his magic back.
“Bollocks to that. He discovered you have his magic, and he wants it back.” Gale went silent, her eyes blank for several seconds.
“Gale…Gale, are you all right?” She put a gentle hand on her friend.
When the witch focused again she said, “Tristian and Gavin are on their way.”
Gale moved to the counter, waved her hand over the lasagna, and steam rose from the dish. She snapped her fingers and a bell sounded. “Food’s ready.” Gale pointed to the cupboard to the right of where she stood. “Plates?”
“Wait, how am I going to explain the guy’s appearance?” She got dishes out of the cupboard Gale indicated and walked to the door way.
“Let them handle it.” Gale whirled around, waved her hand, index finger pointing to the cantankerous Blu-ray player. The disk popped out and sailed through the air landing on the carpet at Colleen’s feet.
Colleen giggled and picked up the disc. She nearly dropped it, then turned it over peering intently at the object. “Not even a scratch on it. Lucky.”
Bridget stood slack jawed staring at the machine with a flat-tip screwdriver in her hand. A second later she waved the tool around. “That’ll teach it.” Bridget slid another disc carefully in the player and touched a button. The drawer closed, and she blew out a breath. “All set. Come on over, fill your plate, and we’ll watch the next movie.”
Her gaze switched from Gale to Bridget and lingered on the front door. She could feel Tristian’s presence, but…
“Thanks.” Bridget and the others grabbed the plates out of her hands as they came through the doorway. Bridget stopped, opened the silverware drawer, and pulled forks and a large serving spoon out. Her friend commenced to scooping up portions of the lasagna and depositing the delicious smelling food on the plates.
Her stomach growled loudly. Bridget handed her a plate heaped with steaming noodles, meat, cheese, and sauce.
A loud knock sounded on the door. “Who the hell could that be at this time of night?” Bridget dropped the spoon back in the dish. Tomato sauce splattered on the counter.
“I’ll get it,” she said in unison with Gale.
Bridget followed the girls to the door, peered through the peep hole. “Well, I’ll be damned.” She opened the door a crack. “What are you doing here?”
“Good evening—or sorry morning to you too. May I speak with Hannah?” He held a bulky light green parka folded over his arm.
“Yes, of course. Come in.” She opened the door wide, motioning him inside with her hand. “Can I get you something to eat or drink?”
“No. Hannah left her parka in my car. Figured she’d need it since it appears a storm is blowing in.”
Hannah turned around to stare at the back of her chair and shifted her gaze to Tristian. A puzzled expression spread across her face.
She covered her mouth to hide a snicker. Hannah knew that coat was on the back of her chair earlier. A truck’s engine rumbled out front. A door slammed. In an attempt to peer out the door, she cut in between Tristian and Bridget. He caught her arm. “It’s Gavin. He drove me over.”
Oh, I don’t think so. You were here several minutes before he drove up. She answered telepathically.
Protecting my interests. His smooth deep voice wafted through her mind. After being summoned by Gale, I put a protection spell in place. All of you should be safe the rest of the night. We’ll discuss this when we return to pick you two up.
A female voice interrupted inside Synn’s mind. “What the hell is going on?” She put her hands to her head. There were too many people inside her mind. Knock it off, all of you. I can’t even think.
Tristian smirked as Gavin rushed in, concern creased his face. He reached out and touched her hand. She nodded.
“In or out boys, I’m not heating the outside.” Bridget wrapped her arms around herself and pushed on the door. The two couples clogging the doorway moved inside.
Tristian handed Hannah her coat. “Didn’t mean to crash your party. Dropping this off and we’ll be on our way.” He nudged Gavin toward the door.
“All right, girls, male strippers up next.” Bridget snickered all the way to the Blu-ray player.
Tristian’s jaw dropped as he stared from Bridget to Hannah. Gavin’s eyes went wide, and his gaze flew to hers.
“What!” they said simultaneously.
She coughed and covered her mouth to hide a giggle at the expressions on the men’s faces. “It’s only a movie.” She kissed Gavin on the cheek and flounced away to secure her seat in front of the television.
Tristian regained his composure first. “See, you leave a gaggle of women to their own devices and this is what you get. Booze, debauchery and…” He smirked. “Come on Gavin. We got a poker game to get back to.” Whirling around to face the women, a mischievous smile turned up the corners of his lips. “We could make it strip poker if you girls would like to play.”
Gavin chuckled, turned the knob, and held the door open shoving Tristian through it as a bright blue pillow flew at them. The pillow hit the backside of the door, slid to the ground as the door closed with a bang.
“Those two men are—HOT.” Colleen said looking from her to Hannah. “Maybe we should join the guys.”
Hands on her hips, Bridget narrowed her eyes at Colleen. “I’m cutting you off, no more wine. We’d be the ones showing our assets, believe me.” Bridget pushed the play button and dimmed the lights.
Chapter Twenty-One
Magic Hangs in the Balance as Decisions are Made
“I’m not comfortable leaving them alone unprotected,” Gavin paused. Looking over his shoulder as he hesitantly climbed into the truck.
Tristian frowned. “I cast a protection spell over the house. Baltizar won’t be able to even project an image within a hundred-foot radius. Still how he moved Synn across the room being only a hologram is troubling. He shouldn’t be able to do anything except project an image.” Tristian swung into the truck and closed the door.
“Obviously you’re missing something. I don’t like Synn not being able to wield all the magic that should be at her disposal.”
“Don’t kid yourself she’s far from defenseless. Giving her magic back before she is ready is more dangerous than leaving her without it.” Tristian rubbed his chin with thumb and forefinger. He was quiet for several minutes as the truck bumped along the road to Gavin’s house.
He pulled the truck in front of his home, cut the engine, and turned to Tristian. “How did he find her?”
“I’m sure he’s got spies embedded here watching. He may be tracking her by magic. Though, she knows to cloak her magic, if she has to use it.” Tristian shoved the door open a little harder than necessary.
He raised a brow as he rounded the hood of the truck joining Tristian. They trudged up the path to the house. Welcoming lights in the front windows shone through the inky black darkness. “I’m going to wrap up the game and let everyone head home. Concentrating is going to be tough trying to watch the girls and still win.” He pushed the door open to find the others sitting around with beers in their hands and the cards neatly stacked on the table. “Wanna beer, soda, or bottle of water, Trist?” He crossed the floor to the kitchen. All the snack bowls were empty and stacked in the sink.
“Soda will do,” Tristian said.
Bottles and cans clanked as he took a couple sodas out of the refrigerator. He handed one to his brother-in-law.
“Quinn’s lost all he can afford. The rest of us are afraid if we continue to win, we won’t be invited back,” Tim said with a cocky smile. The others nodded in agreement. “We cashed everyone out.”
“In your dreams ol’ man,” Gavin said eying the pile of cash at his place.
Quinn stood and stretched his arms above his head. “Do I need to crash here tonight, or can I go home?”
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He and Tristian grinned at each other. “Give it about another hour. One of us will drive you home. The girls are watching that XXL movie. If you’re dead on your feet, crash in the guest room to the right of the hallway.”
Quinn’s eyebrows shot to his hair line. “A stripper movie? I thought only guys did that?”
“Apparently not.” Tristian shook his head. “The women around here are a bad influence on my wife.”
Gavin slapped Quinn on the back. “You’ll reap the benefits of their escapades tonight if you can keep her awake.” He chuckled deep in his throat.
Tim stood took another swig of his beer and held it up to the light. “I’ll be heading on home. Thanks for the invite. Morning shift is going to come mighty early.” He shrugged into a light jacket and reached for the knob.
“I’ll take you home and come back,” Tristian offered.
“That’s a good lad,” Tim said sleepily.
“I’m going to head home soon as I finish this beer.” Quinn held his bottle up. “See if I can sneak into bed without catching Bridget’s attention.”
“I don’t think you’re driving anywhere.” He snatched the keys from Quinn’s hand.
“The hell I’m not.” Quinn made a grab for the keys, lost his balance, and face planted on the floor. He helped Quinn to his feet and pushed him into a chair. “Like I said, you’re not driving anywhere.” He paused for a moment considering the logistics of getting all the vehicles to their proper locations. “Tristian, I can pick up the girls and drop Hannah off.”
“Naw, safety in numbers. Be right back.” Tristian opened the door and followed Tim out.
****
An hour later, he locked up the house and opened the truck door. “Hey Trist, why don’t you leave your car here and drive Quinn home in his car, then I’ll follow you. We can pick up the girls in my truck. I’ll bring you and Hannah back here. You can take your sports car home.” He tossed Quinn’s keys to Tristian.
“I can do that. Come on, Quinn.” Tristian turned around and glanced at Quinn. “Hey, what happened to your eye?”
“Tripped and hit it on the floor…or something,” Quinn said sheepishly.
Tristian guffawed. “And you thought you were driving home?”
Quinn mumbled something unintelligible and followed Tristian to the vehicle.
When they arrived, Gale was climbing in her car. Hannah and Synn were standing beside the vehicle talking while Katie got in the passenger’s side. Colleen clambered into the back. Bridget was standing in the doorway as Quinn made his way up the path with Tristian’s assistance.
“Did you lasses have a good time?” Gavin asked getting out and opening the truck door.
Tristian swaggered up to the truck. “Quinn’s going to be sleeping on the couch tonight by the expression and tone of Bridget’s voice.”
Hannah snickered crawling into the backseat. “Bridget enjoyed the wine tonight too. She’ll have a heck of a hangover tomorrow.”
“That’ll probably be good for Quinn.” Tristian stepped into the truck and closed the door. “Or not.”
“To answer your question. We had a great time even after the incident.” Synn jumped into the front seat holding a wiggling Storm under one arm.
Tossing the crate in the back, he closed the door, vaulted over the hood to the driver’s side, and slid in the seat.
“Tell us exactly what happened,” Tristian said.
Synn recounted the event from going into the dark kitchen to when Gale turned the light on. “Strange, even Storm didn’t sense him. She’s usually my first warning even when my nightmares started.”
“He appeared without warning?”
“Yep, didn’t feel or see anything out of the ordinary. I’d had a couple of glasses of wine but didn’t really feel impaired.”
“It only takes one to impair your judgment,” Tristian said sharply. “It’d be wise to abstain until this matter is concluded.”
“Didn’t think about that. Sorry.” Synn stared at her hands stroking the pup.
Hannah bristled and shifted in her seat. “She’s entitled to have a little fun once in a while.”
“Not with Baltizar looking for revenge and my wife in close proximity.” Tristian growled. “Fun can have deadly consequences.” He shot a dark look at Synn. “Not on my watch, when any misstep could be fatal,” Tristian snapped. “Especially when Balti…”
“All right, I get it. It won’t happen again.” She squirmed under his gaze and sunk into the seat in a sulky silence. Her arms wrapped around Storm as she stroked the pup’s fur slowly staring out the windshield.
Gavin opened his mouth to protest. But the thunderous expression on Tristian’s face made him close it again without speaking. The ride home was quiet, too quiet. Not a sound from the creatures that roam the night.
“Good enough.” Tristian slid his arm across the backseat and wrapped his hand around Hannah’s shoulder. She kept her back to him.
His headlights swept the area as the truck coasted to a stop in front of his house. The porch light cast a pool of light over the front yard and the windows were dark. When Gavin stopped, Synn and Hannah rocketed out of the truck. He and Tristian exited and glanced at each other.
“See you tomorrow—scratch that, make that later today?”
“Sounds good. Just so you know, need to give Bruce a heads up before I return Synn’s powers. But I’m leaning toward doing that tomorrow.”
He raised an eyebrow and paused for a beat, glancing at Synn as she made her way to the house, Storm tugging on the leash in front of her. “Probably a good idea.”
Hannah waited at the sports car as Tristian sauntered up behind her and opened the door. She slid into the seat and closed the door with a pop. Tristian grinned back at Gavin. “She’ll be fine.”
Inside the house, Gavin grabbed Synn by the shoulder and spun her around, kissing her soundly on the lips. “So, tell me about the rest of your night—the fun part.”
“Gotta let Storm out first. Not in the mood to clean up puddles.” She unclipped the leash and followed the pup who raced to the back door. The door opened with a groan, and the pup thundered out. Synn waited for Storm to do her business, then insisted that she come back inside. “Too many weird things going on for her to stay out unsupervised.”
“Couldn’t agree more.” He leaned his chest against her back, his arm resting above her head on the door frame. “How about we leave her with Ma on Tuesday, and I’ll take you away from all this for the day?”
Her aqua eyes sparkled as she twisted her neck to glance up at him. “Oh, we couldn’t impose.” She sighed. “It would be fun. What have you got in mind?”
The corners of his mouth kicked up in a deliberate devilish grin. “It’s a secret. I guarantee you’ll enjoy it.”
A fist on her hip, she whirled around in his arms as one eyebrow winged up. “I will, will I?” She smiled wide. “Could use a little R & R around here. After the recent turn of events… I feel so bad I ruined your poker game and the girls’ night out.” Pursing her lips, she shook her head and stared at the ground. A single tear rolled down her cheek. “He’s never going to leave me alone.”
He’d hadn’t seen her cry much. When she did it was disconcerting, but a sure sign the tough façade she’d built around her was cracking. “You couldn’t be more wrong. And you didn’t ruin the poker game. It was time to shut it down anyway. Quinn couldn’t afford to lose any more—he had a bad night… A worse one once Bridget got a hold of him I’d wager.” When he reached out to touch her cheek, she backed away. Two steps forward, one step back—story of my life.
She straightened, and her chin jutted out. A fierce expression spread across her face, and her eyes darkened. “I’m not going to let that son-of-a-bitch take the new life I’ve carved out for myself here.” She paused. “For us.”
His heart sang at her words.
She paced across the room as her voice got louder. “If it’s a fight he wants… A fight to the
death he’ll get…his death.” Skidding to a stop in the middle of the room, feet planted firmly a shoulder width apart. She fisted her hands at her sides. “How can I protect my friends? I couldn’t bear it if they were hurt because of me. I need my powers back.” The air surrounding her crackled with defiance. Even Storm stood at attention surveying the area as if looking for whatever had upset Synn.
“That’s me girl.” He reached out for her. This time she leaned into him wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her face in his chest. His warrior was back. It was always darkest before the dawn, and the proverbial horizon was on fire. “Your friends will stand with you, whether you like it or not. That’s what friends do.”
“It’s my battle.” She braced her hands, palms down against his chest, and shoved. But he held her tight.
Finally, he loosened his grip and glanced down at her. “Oh, think again. The odds of winning go up exponentially with Tristian, Bruce, Angie, and the rest of us by your side. Baltizar is no match for us. He’s going to go down, once and for all this time.”
“I can’t let—”
He interrupted her shrugging one shoulder. “You’ve no choice.”
The rush of adrenalin had run its course. Fatigue etched lines across her beautiful face. Stifling a yawn, she brightened suddenly. “Sure Mary won’t mind keeping Storm on Tuesday?”
“I’m sure.” In the worst way he wanted to tell her Tristian’s plans to return her magic. But if Bruce nixed it, then she would be terribly disappointed. Besides the last place he wanted to be was crosswise with the warlock. However, given Synn’s rightly placed anger, determination, and confidence, he was sure Tristian would return her magic.
The fall breeze that wafted through the still open door had a bite to it, reminding him that Samhain would soon be here. What better time to launch an attack on Baltizar in the days leading up to the night the veil between the dead and the living was the thinnest. He sauntered over to the door and closed it.
She yawned again. “I’m going to talk to Tristian first thing tomorrow. Convince him I can handle the additional magic.”