Chapter 19
Grady
He’d meant that in a good way, but all I felt was sorrow for the life he’d led. The fact that what I’d done was better than anything else he’d experienced was… terribly sad. I’d barely done anything, really. I’d been trying to let him adjust before doing much more than sitting at home and eating meals together. “I haven’t done nearly enough, Alaric.” He deserves the world.
He shot me a smile, but I could tell he didn’t agree.
With a pat on Tiberius’s head, I put the car in drive and headed for home. Alaric was quiet during the ride, likely trying to take everything in and wrap his head around the fact that his father had lied to him about his brother dying. What kind of man did something like that? Shaking my head as I wondered what else his father had lied to him about, I tried to concentrate on driving. I left Alaric to his thoughts, not wanting to be a bother but wanting him to have some peace. If he wanted to talk, I’d let him, but he didn’t seem to want to.
Once I parked in the driveway, I turned to him and whispered, “We’re here. Are you ready to go inside or do you need a minute? I could take them in and you could join us once you’re ready.”
He turned to me with wide eyes. “There is no way I would ever leave you alone with two warlocks I don’t know.”
My eyebrows shot up. “But… he’s your brother…”
He shrugged. “I haven’t seen him since I was eight. He’s lived an entire life without me. I hadn’t even known he was alive, and I don’t know Isiah at all. I didn’t sense any malicious intent from either of them, but I will not risk you simply because I’m overwhelmed. I will never risk you.”
Well, then. I sighed and nodded. “Are you ready to go inside, then?”
He nodded but hesitated. “Is the grimoire still hidden?”
“Yes.”
He blew out a relieved breath. “I would rather not share that I have it, not until I’m sure of their intentions.”
“Okay. I won’t say anything.”
“A-and the globe?” His voice was barely a whisper. “Is it still hidden as well?”
I reached over to give his hand a tight squeeze. “Yes. I won’t hand it over to them unless you tell me otherwise.”
“Thank you.”
I grinned at that. “Stop with the manners.”
He snorted, then surprised me by reaching over the console and pulling me into a hug. As I wrapped my arms around him, I realized he was trembling. He was… terrified.
“Alaric… we don’t have to bring them inside if you don’t want to. We can find somewhere else to go, or we can send them away. You don’t have to talk to them. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.”
He shook his head. “I’m… I’m scared of what might happen. I’m scared of something happening to you. I know… I know we haven’t been together for very long, but I’ve been happy, happier than I’ve ever been in my life, and I… I don’t want to lose that. I don’t want anything to happen to the life we’re building together.”
I ran my hand through his hair and up and down his back. I could see Raphael and Isiah standing outside their car, leaning against its side with a cat and bird on their shoulders, but I ignored them. They could wait. I whispered to Alaric, “We are soul-pledged, baby. Nothing will change that. We will have a life together, no matter what. No matter what they say or do, we will be together.”
He nodded against me and buried his nose against the skin of my neck, taking a deep breath as if he was breathing me in to memorize my smell. “You’re right. You’re with me, no matter what, and I’m with you. We belong together.”
I smiled at that. “I truly believe we do.”
He smiled against my skin, placed a small kiss there that sent a shiver straight to my crotch, then pulled back to look me in the eyes. “I’m ready.”
I kissed his lips. “Me too.”
Not wanting to be ignored any longer, Tiberius pushed between us, so I kissed his head before Alaric scooped him up with a small laugh and a whispered, “Don’t be jealous. He likes you, too, Tib.”
I smiled and followed him out of the car.
“Everything alright?” Raphael had a concerned face as he glanced between Alaric and me.
“Yeah, we’re good,” I answered with a small smile, and Alaric glanced at me before turning to his brother.
Raphael said, “This is my familiar, Jezebel”—he gestured to the cat on his shoulder, then pointed at the crow on Isiah’s shoulder—“and Izzy’s familiar, Nadia.”
Tiberius cooed at the other familiars, and the other two made noises back. I didn’t know what to say, but Alaric walked over to greet Jezebel until she purred loudly, obviously remembering her, then he petted Nadia after letting her smell his hand. I followed suit and let the two familiars smell me before I gave them a few pets. It was strange being so close to a crow and letting it touch me with its beak.
“The house is warded, but I will set it so you may come onto the first floor,” Alaric told him.
Raphael nodded in acceptance. “Very well. Thank you, dear brother.”
Alaric shot him a look before he moved ahead of us and rested his hand on the front door. Tiberius spread his wings, as if he was pulling energy to himself—maybe he was, I had no clue—and Alaric’s white, misty magic floated from his palm and outlined the front door before slipping inside. The curtains were drawn, so I couldn’t see what was happening inside, but a few minutes later, Alaric nodded, dropped his hand, and looked over his shoulder to say, “It’s done.” Then he opened the door… without using his key I’d given him. Well, then.
Shaking my head, I sighed and followed him inside. I didn’t think I’d ever get used to all this crazy magic stuff. Even though I’d seen Alaric use his magic many times, it was still rather unbelievable to watch.
Alaric stood in the hall near the door, and waved Raphael and Isiah into the living room, then we walked in as well while all three familiars stayed with their warlocks. Our guests were on the couch, but there was only an armchair left, and Alaric didn’t seem to know what to do, so I pushed his arm gently until he walked over to it. I could see that he was about to argue with me about taking the only seat left, so I sat on the chair’s large arm and patted the cushion so he’d sit down. With a tiny smile, he sat, and since I could feel inside of me that he needed my touch, I grabbed his hand, laced our fingers together, and set it in my lap. He sent me a grateful smile. It was rather strange being able to sense that need like that, but I had to admit that I liked it. It felt intimate and personal, and it was something I liked sharing with Alaric. I swear it was as if I’d known him my entire life and not only for a few weeks. The way I felt about him was so… grand, I was surprised by the enormity of it.
Raphael had watched our entire exchange with a smile on his face, and when we finally focused on him, he asked, “You two have only been together for a few days, right?”
Since I wasn’t sure what Alaric wanted to say to his brother, I kept my mouth shut and let him do the talking. “In a way, we’ve been together longer than that.”
Raphael narrowed his eyes slightly, then sighed heavily. “I understand your reservation about trusting us. You’ve been burned so many times before, so I’m trying not to take it personally. But I want you to know that I’m here because I care about you and I want to try to protect you. I realize the only thing that’s going to get you to trust me is time, but…” He trailed off with another weighty sigh. “I love you, Alaric.”
“I love you too,” Alaric whispered, somehow sounding sad and happy at the same time. I squeezed his hand.
Raphael said, “I want to… explain things, alright?”
Alaric nodded.
Raphael exchanged a glance with Isiah before he began talking. “When you were trapped inside the globe, the spell the witch used had a cloaking spell surrounding it. It cloaked its appearance and whereabouts from any magical creature, including witches and warlocks. That’s why we could
n’t find you, not for a lack of wanting to or trying to. I’ve searched for years.” He ran a hand through his hair. “The Conclave felt the energy surge, as did I, when the witch cast her spell. It was a cruel spell, crude, and it dripped with dark magic. Her wickedness tipped the balance of dark and light that day, and the Conclave has been searching for her, and for you, since the day it happened. They want to tip the scales back, even out the dark and light, bring some light back into our world.”
That was a lot to take in, so the four of us sat in silence for a few minutes while Alaric absorbed all of that.
Alaric whispered, “The balance is still messed up, even after all these years?”
Isiah nodded. “It took a while to figure out exactly what happened, but because she imprisoned an innocent and took away any semblance of escape or help, darkness began creeping in rapidly.”
“Wait,” I said. “What exactly does that mean? The balance and darkness creeping in and all of that.”
Isiah answered me, “I’m sure you’ve heard people say things about the balance of good and evil—”
“Yeah, in like movies and crap, not real life,” I said.
Isiah nodded. “But there is truth to that.”
“How? Explain, please.”
“Our magic requires manipulating the energy inside our bodies and around us, right?” I nodded, so he kept going. “That free energy already exists out in the universe. The energy itself is neither good nor evil, but when you call on it, a… reflection, so to speak, bounces back into the remaining energy. Everything we do with magic leaves behind a mirror image in that free energy. Our intentions and what we do with that energy is released back into the universe. Normally, there are enough witches and warlocks using their magic for selfish reasons or even for dark magic that every good thing we do negates that bad energy and keeps everything in balance. Too much dark magic, and the free energy itself becomes dark and impure. The same goes if there was too much good energy, although good energy isn’t harmful, so it’s not quite as bad.”
I nodded, following along. “So… when the witch trapped Alaric in the snow globe, she tipped the energy too far into the dark?”
“Exactly.”
“Wow.”
Raphael nodded. “Because this spell was going on for so many years and Alaric was suffering for every one of them, the dark magic kept tipping farther and farther to one side. There was also… an uprising with the dark witches, and many light witches and warlocks were killed. That tipped the scales even further.”
“Does that mean when Alaric uses his magic the magic could be bad? He could do something bad by accident because of the energy?”
Raphael shook his head. “No. As long as he has good intentions, the magic will bend to his will. The problem is that sometimes it’s hard to bend it and it takes up more energy than it should when it doesn’t start out neutral. It’s as if the magic wants to do evil, but as long as you’re powerful enough to stop it, you can. At least for now. If the dark magic keeps growing in the free energy, it will become harder and harder to manipulate, so… yes, eventually, it will affect his magic and start doing evil deeds when used.”
My mouth was dry, so I nodded and stood. “Does… does anyone want a drink?”
Everyone nodded, so I got up to make drinks and get some snacks together for everyone.
To my surprise, Alaric followed me into the kitchen, asking, “Are you okay?”
I nodded. “Yes, it’s just… strange and kind of overwhelming since I don’t know anything about your magic at all.”
“Do you want me to ask them to leave?”
I shook my head. “No. I want you to give me a hug.”
He grinned and immediately pulled me into his arms.
I rested my head on his shoulder and wrapped my arms around his waist. With a sigh of relief, I let his warmth comfort me.
Once I got my shit together and the waters and snack tray set up, we carried everything out and set it on the coffee table. I didn’t have many options, but at least I had some potato chips and dip, and of course, tortilla chips and salsa—my favorite. Everyone made plates of the snacks and settled back in their seats.
Alaric asked, “Does the Conclave know I’m out?”
Raphael nodded. “Yes. A few of them felt the surge as well.”
“And what do they plan on doing to me?”
Raphael’s brow furrowed. “Nothing. They want to catch Claudette Rathmore. And they might need your help to do it, but mostly, they want to keep you safe.”
“She’s still out there?”
“Unfortunately. She went into hiding after she realized we were after her, and she’s been evading us since.”
“What do you mean we?” Alaric asked.
Raphael glanced at Isiah before saying, “We work for the Conclave.”
Alaric jumped out of his seat and stood in front of me, in a defensive position. “You can’t take him. And I won’t allow you to take me, either.”
Raphael held his hands out. “Calm down, little brother. We don’t want to take anyone. We aren’t here to hurt you. The Conclave isn’t the evil organization that Father convinced us it was.”
“You’re not going to arrest us for forming a soul-pledge without prior permission?”
Isiah waved his hand. “No. We would never do that. Unlike some, we understand that the bond sometimes happens by accident, and that it’s a miracle and an honor to have a human or another witch or warlock bond with you.”
Raphael said in a soft voice, “You’ve suffered enough over the years, Alaric. There’s no way that we, or anyone else on the Conclave’s delegacy, is going to punish you further. You’ve done nothing wrong.”
“Give me your word that Grady and I are safe from you,” Alaric demanded.
Raphael said without hesitation, “I, Raphael Bloodgood, Conclave Enforcer, give you my word that Grady Shaw-Bloodgood and Alaric Bloodgood are safe from harm and malicious intent from me, and that I will not call upon the Conclave to harm them.”
My eyebrows rose… he’d known my last name, although he’d added Alaric’s on the end as if we were married or something, which was… strange. But I kinda liked the way it sounded.
Isiah repeated the oath right away, and Alaric finally calmed and retook his seat.
“You okay?” I whispered after I grabbed his hand again.
He nodded to me without looking away from his brother.
Raphael seemed sad, if the expression on his face as he gazed at Alaric was anything to go by. I was pretty sure he felt guilty about Alaric’s situation. He cleared his throat and said, “We’re here to keep you safe, Alaric.” Raphael turned his eyes to me for a long moment, then added, “You and your human.”
Alaric closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them and focused on his brother. “Do you think she’ll come after me?”
“Perhaps.”
“Is that the only reason you’ve come?”
Raphael’s expression was full of hurt as he whispered, “No. I came because you’re my brother and I’ve missed you. I wanted to see you and make sure you were okay after what she did to you. You’re my family, little runt.”
Alaric nodded and looked away, and Tiberius hopped onto his lap, nuzzling his neck.
After a few tense minutes, Raphael said, “Part of protecting you is trying to find Claudette Rathmore. She’s evil and I’m not sure what she has planned, if anything. Although, rumor has it that she wants to continue tipping the scales, and since trapping you was an easy way to bring about dark energy, I’m afraid she might try to trap you again. We’re here to ensure that never happens.” Unease filled my gut at the thought of that witch trying to hurt Alaric again. His brother might protect him, but I sure as hell wasn’t about to let something happen to my warlock. Raphael scooted to the edge of his seat. “Do you still have the globe?”
“Why?” Alaric asked.
“Because it should still have her magical signature. We could use it to find her,”
Raphael answered.
“I’m not giving you the globe, regardless of whether or not I have it,” Alaric said.
Raphael blew out a frustrated breath and scrubbed his hands over his face. “I… I understand.”
Isiah put his hand on Raphael’s shoulder, and Raphael leaned into him a bit. I couldn’t get a read on their relationship. Sometimes they seemed like good friends, and other times perhaps like a couple. I was insanely curious, but I was trying to be tactful. Maybe when or if we spent more time together, I could ask, or maybe I’d be able to figure it out. Either way, it didn’t truly matter, especially right now when Alaric was trying hard to keep his emotions and thoughts locked down from his brother and his brother’s friend.
When no one said anything for a long while, I said, “It’s nearly dinnertime.” I glanced at Alaric, but he wasn’t giving me anything to work with. Ugh. “Would you two like to join us?”
“Sure. That would be great,” Isiah replied before he glanced back and forth between the two brothers.
“Alright, I’ll get started on that. Is there anything you two don’t eat or anything like that?” I asked.
Isiah cringed. “We’re vegetarians, but… we could order some food, maybe? That way you don’t have to cook.”
I frowned. “What about some pasta? I have some veggies I can throw in, and I can put a few meatballs in the oven for Alaric and me, unless… do you just want veggies, baby?” Hopefully he doesn’t mind me calling him that in front of them. Shit. I should’ve asked first, but it sorta slipped out by accident.
Alaric finally turned to me, breaking the weird stare off he and Raphael were having, and I was relieved that he didn’t seem annoyed with me. “You don’t need to make anything extra for me. I’m fine with only the vegetables, thank you.”
I leaned over and kissed his forehead. “Alright. I’ll be in the kitchen. Is that okay? We could order food, if that would be better?”
“No, that’s fine. I’ll be okay here, but if you don’t want to cook, we can order.” Alaric smiled up at me. I’d ordered a pizza the other night for dinner, and Alaric acted like it was the strangest and most exciting thing in the world to have food delivered to your house. I supposed it was for him. But I was pretty sure he scared the delivery driver when he’d been bouncing around on his toes and super excited since I’d given him money so he could pay. It had been adorable to watch.
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