by Char Webster
They didn’t want to use the same spot Pravus had dumped the body, but it needed to be just as secluded. “There’s a clearing over that way, and it feels magical. There are a lot of trees in the area that will provide shelter.”
Aedan parked the car, and they got out to explore the location. “This might be perfect. Look, there’s even a small shack.”
Julie headed toward it. “We need to make sure no one lives in it.”
“I doubt anyone does,” Aedan muttered but followed behind her.
They stepped up onto the creaking porch that was much more solid than it appeared to be. The front door was leaning down from a broken top hinge, but Aedan opened it easily.
Julie kicked a couple of empty beer bottles out of the way. “Kids use this for a party house.” She tried not to step on the cigarette butts and old fast food wrappers that littered the floor. “Wonder what’s through that door? This place is bigger inside than it looked.”
Aedan went over to the door and opened it. “This is where they have private parties.”
Julie peeked her head inside. “Ewwww. I bet those sheets haven’t been changed in years. So gross.”
“This is perfect.” Aedan wondered around the room, making sure there were no surprises.
“It desperately needs to be cleaned.” Julie waved her hand around and the trash and debris piled up in one of the corners. She went over to the broken table and chairs on the side of the room and recited a spell to fix them. “Now, we at least have a place to sit down.”
“You want to sit on that? You don’t know what’s been on that table or those chairs,” Aedan teased.
“Do you think there’s a sanitizing spell?” Julie asked.
“Come on. We need to set up the fire ring.”
“How are you going to do that without him noticing a circle on the ground?” Julie was skeptical.
Aedan’s face lit up with mischief and he pulled a small object out of his pocket that looked like a hockey puck. “With this.” He chucked it at her.
Julie caught it and examined the label. “Surfboard wax?”
“Yeah. And I have three more. We can mold it into a ring and cover it with dirt and leaves.”
“Great, you know how to make a circle.” The sarcasm was dripping from her tongue.
“It’s really flammable smart ass. People make candles out of it.” Aedan was opening the package on a second one and breaking pieces of it off.
“You’re kidding, right?”
“Do I look like I’m joking? We need a little bit of heat to soften it up.” Aedan went over to a barren spot on the ground and gathered up some sticks to create a small fire. He threw some magic at it to get the flames going.
They worked together to form the wax in a large circle while Julie giggled about using surfboard wax. Aedan sprinkled it with the consecrated ground he had collected.
“Wait until I tell Damian that my wax came in handy. He was giving me crap about bringing it.”
Still grinning, Julie called out to him. “We should go get the others.”
~*~*~
Back at the house they were borrowing, Markos grabbed his small dagger and strapped it to his ankle. “I’m going to Legacy to find out more about Hugo. They need to know he’s dead and possibly the traitor who helped Pravus escape.” Markos hugged Aria. “I’ll be back as soon as I can. They also need to be ready for tonight, when we hopefully trap him.”
“Hurry up. You don’t want to miss all the fun,” Aria teased as she hugged him again. “Thanks for coming to rescue me.”
He tussled her hair. “I’ll always come for you. I’m your brother. That’s my job.”
“Don’t mess up my hair!” Aria growled at him.
“Brothers do that, too.” Markos winked at her and turned to Damian. “Remember your promise.” He opened a portal and disappeared from the den where they had been planning.
“What promise?” Aria asked.
Damian debated on telling her the truth. “I promised I would protect you.”
“I can take care of myself. I don’t need you.”
“I know you can, but I’m still going to make sure you’re safe.” Damian would never allow anything to happen to her again.
He stepped closer to her, but she backed out of his range. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?” he challenged and followed after her.
“Touch me.” Aria could feel her magic reaching for his. It was harder to keep hers in check when all it wanted to do was mingle with his.
He got a wicked gleam in his eyes. “You want me to touch you. All you had to do was ask.” He crowded her, leaning into her body.
“No. I don’t want you to touch me or stand this close or whatever it is that you’re trying to do.” Aria backed away some more.
“What are you scared of?” Damian leaned in closer, pushing his magic toward hers.
She backed up and found herself against the desk with nowhere else to go. “Nothing. I’m not interested. I’m glad we talked and don’t hate each other, but that’s it. I can’t go there again with you, and I don’t want to.”
Damian leaned closer to her ear. “Are you sure you’re not interested?” He watched her try to hold back a shiver and decided to press a small kiss to her neck before straightening and walking away from her.
Aria slumped against the desk. Why are men so frustrating?
Chapter Eleven
Julie and Aedan stepped into the kitchen, and Aedan immediately began to root through the refrigerator.
“Aedan, we just ate. You can’t be hungry already.” Julie was shocked by the amount of food he always consumed.
“I want a snack. We’re going to be busy, and we might skip a meal.” Aedan was pouting when he closed the door. “There wasn’t anything.”
Damian walked into the kitchen. “As soon as I heard a noise back here, I knew you were trying to raid the fridge.”
“Who keeps no snacks in the house? That’s just not normal.”
“Do you want to go pick something up?” Julie asked, exasperated.
“Yeah, but we need to talk to these guys first.” Aedan was opening and closing cabinets.
“What’s going on?” Aria joined them in the kitchen but wouldn’t look at Damian.
Julie stepped up next to her. “Aedan’s being a big baby because there aren’t any snacks in the house, and he’s hungry again.”
Aedan turned from the last cabinet and frowned at her. “Julie, want to tell them about having to stop at Wawa on the way to the bayou to get more coffee since you swore you couldn’t function without it?”
“We wanted to tell you about the site we found.” Julie announced cheerfully.
She heard Aedan mutter, “Thought so.”
Aedan grinned at her. “It’s a perfect area for what we need. And, we already made the circle, so all we need to do is get everyone there.”
Julie rolled her eyes dramatically. “He wants you to ask him what he used to make the circle, Damian.”
Damian could only imagine. “What did you use?”
Aedan slapped a wrapper into Damian’s hand. He looked down at it and laughed. “Really?”
“Told you it would come in handy.”
Aria took the wrapper from Damian. “Mr. Zog’s Sex Wax? What is that? Do I want to know?”
“It’s surfboard wax. Aedan brings it everywhere even when he doesn’t have his board with him.”
“I like the smell.” Aedan shrugged and took the wrapper to sniff it.
“Anyway,” Julie said to get everyone back to important matters. “Lucinda said that once we light the fire, the magic will keep it lit, and Pravus won’t be able to get out of it, no matter what he does. It’s a really powerful spell, and we all will have to recite it.”
“That sounds too easy,” Aria said, worried.
“Ar nothing about this is easy. Pravus is too smart to fall for something like that. We’re going to have a heck of a time getting him to do anything, especi
ally stepping where we want him to.” Damian wanted this over.
Aedan was back to looking in cabinets that he had already searched. “I’m going to get some snacks.”
“Aedan, you and Julie should go tell our supernatural support team what’s going on and have them ready to go at 11 p.m. tonight,” Damian said as he leaned against the counter.
“Come on Juls. Let’s get some food and go tell the mystics we’re ready for tonight.”
As soon as they left, Aria turned to Damian. “That wasn’t as slick as you think, Damian.”
“I wasn’t trying to be slick or clever. I wanted more alone time with you.”
“Why? And don’t tell me you’re suddenly interested in me because I know you’re not. What game are you playing now?” Aria felt her magic surge. Every time she was close to him, her magic fluctuated.
His heated gaze was enough to make her run away, but she stood her ground.
“I’ve always been into you Aria even when I wanted to clobber you for some of the stunts you pulled on me over the years.”
She didn’t realize she had taken a couple of steps closer to him. “You pulled some stuff on me, too.” Their magic was so close together.
“All that’s over now.” He pushed off the counter and closed the space between them.
“I don’t trust you.”
“I know you don’t, but we have lots of time to build that.” Damian tucked some hair behind her ear. “And I want you to trust me again.” He silently added and love me as he lowered his head to brush her lips with his. Their magic began to mesh together, swirling around each other.
When she didn’t back away or try to stop him, he deepened the kiss, thrusting his hands in her hair. She wound her arms around his neck and kissed him back with all of the bottled up emotions she had kept hidden in her heart.
Aria was so completely lost in Damian and his intoxicating kiss that it took her a few seconds to realize he stiffened and was pulling away. Hurt flashed across her face until she realized they were completely surrounded by supernaturals.
Damian kept an arm around her waist, but he knew there wasn’t much he could do being outnumbered by that many people with special abilities.
Aria’s arm twitched and he knew she was making a move to get her sword from her boot. He tightened his arm around her and whispered, “Not yet.”
She glared at him but listened. There were too many to fight them all and win.
The beautiful woman from the night before stepped forward. “Bind them. We’ll sacrifice them to the ancestors for protection from Pravus.”
Another mystic moved to the front of the pack. “Pravus wants the two of you for some reason, so he’ll leave this area if we get rid of you.”
The mystics started to chant, and Aria and Damian were frozen in place. A couple of stunning spells were tossed their way, and Aria knew they were in trouble. The last thing she saw was Damian’s horrified expression. They were going to die.
~*~*~
“I made a deal with the mystics. They’re going to deliver Aria and Damian to us at midnight tonight,” Len announced as he entered the living room of the house Pravus commandeered.
“I didn’t authorize you to make any kind of a deal.” Pravus had been resting in the overly stuffed chair that still had knitting needles and yarn in the cracks. He wasn’t bleeding any more, but he didn’t feel fully recovered either.
“He was kissing her when the witches captured them.” Len gave him a superior look.
“You saw this?” Pravus asked eagerly.
“Yes. I was at the back of the crowd.”
“This might work. What are the details?”
Len explained where they were meeting the mystics. “They want to be dramatic and make the exchange at midnight. Most think they’re going to sacrifice the two of them in some ridiculous ritual to get their ancestors to help them.”
“We’re dealing with a superstitious lot?” Pravus asked.
“It’s New Orleans. Everyone has magic and the smart ones fear it as much as they embrace it.” Len knew enough to be very cautious of the powerful people around the city.
“We should bring a few friends with us.”
~*~*~
“This isn’t how I pictured the night going,” Damian whispered to Aria. “It had started off so much better.”
They were both seated on the ground next to each other with their arms tied behind their backs. There was a dark circle around them that looked like black sand, which made them unable to cross over the line. They were held in a trap like the one they’d planned to use on Pravus.
“I can’t believe you’re joking.” Aria twisted so she could see him better. She was thankful her legs weren’t tied.
“We could always pick up where we left off before they rudely interrupted us.” He puckered up his lips.
“Damian.” Aria was silently yelling at herself for even thinking about his lips on hers again.
He leaned into her side so his mouth was close to her ear. “I’m only half joking. They’ve been watching us closely. If we can distract them, we might be able to get the daggers from your boots.”
She turned her head to kiss his cheek and moved to his ear. “What good will that do? We’re still trapped in their stupid circle.”
“One step at a time, babe.” Damian bit her ear lightly. “The rope holding us must be spelled, or I would have been able to break through it. Hopefully, the dagger will cut it.”
Aria pulled away from him. “You want to make out in front of those three?”
“Are you embarrassed?” He didn’t care who was keeping watch.
“Well, no. But . . . won’t they think it’s a little weird for us to be all over each other when we’re being held prisoner and possibly sacrificed?”
“If I really thought this was the end and we were going to die, there’s nothing else in this world I would want to do besides kiss you until the last second of our lives.”
~*~*~
“What in hell is going on?” Aedan hissed at Julie when they crept through the trees approaching the clearing.
“They betrayed us. I can’t believe they’re holding Aria and Damian prisoner.” Julie was holding a ball of magic in her hand, waiting to start throwing it at people.
“We should wait here until it gets darker out. The mystics will still be able to see fine, but with a little magic, they might be at a disadvantage.” Aedan stopped behind a bush.
“We could just throw magic at everyone.” Julie didn’t want to wait. She wanted to kick some butt.
“There are too many, and we don’t know who’s in that shack.”
Julie groaned in frustration. “Do you think they have Markos?”
“He wasn’t supposed to be back here until later with the Enforcers. You could try to contact him to help earlier.”
“No. I’m not leaving you to deal with this on your own. What if something happens and you need backup?” Julie hated feeling helpless.
~*~*~
“Sit on my lap facing me with your legs wrapped around my waist.” Damian grinned at her shocked expression.
Aria’s eyebrows shot up. “What?”
“So I can reach your boots.”
“Oh.” Aria’s cheeks were turning pink just thinking about straddling him in front of witnesses even though they were their captors.
“You’re turning a striking shade of red.” Damian winked at her.
“You better stop, or I’m not going to do it and we’ll have to figure something else out.”
“You never had any qualms about sitting on my lap before.”
“That was hundreds of years ago, and I was just a girl back then!”
“You still look like a girl. Still incredibly beautiful.”
The goosebumps he gave her spread all over her body, and their magic swirled together again. She shifted to her knees, swung her leg over his, and settled on his lap. She twisted around so her legs circled his waist, which brought her body in
timately close to his.
His sharp intake of breath showed her that he was just as effected as she was. He was better at hiding it. She tried to stop her body from shaking, but it was beyond her control.
Damian locked eyes with her, and she could see the heat and desire in their depths. They sat motionless, gazing at each other for several long moments, not caring who was outside of their circle. It might have started off as a plan, but it had turned into something simmering.
“I want to hold you.” He leaned closer to her so their chests were nearly touching.
Aria glanced over his shoulder and saw that one of the mystics that was guarding them stood to see what they were doing. “Kiss me. One of them is coming.”
He closed the distance between them and took her mouth hungrily, pressing his lips roughly against hers. She was suddenly lost in the sensations of his body pressed to hers and the passion radiating off his muscular chest. He angled his head to deepen the kiss, and she brought herself flush against him.
Her legs tightened around his waist, and she felt his hands on the sides of her boots. They slipped down her calves and grasp the dagger from her boot.
She pressed closer, leaning all her weight against him, her hands still tied behind her back. He nibbled on her lips before claiming her mouth again in a breath-stealing kiss.
Damian moaned against her lips. This is what he had been waiting centuries for. His Aria was on his lap, and they were devouring each other. He flipped the dagger up and caught the edge of the ropes that were binding his wrists.
Aria pulled away, but he muttered, “Keep kissing me. I’m almost through the ropes.”
Aria nipped his lip and gave it a slight tug. She loved it when Damian moaned again and leaned into her more.
He sawed through the fibers, and his wrists were free. It would be hard for him to free her without anyone noticing. He would have to do it quickly. He whipped his arms around her back and cut through her bindings, all while continuing to slant his lips over hers again and again.