by J. E. Taylor
Austin stared at his hands and then at his face, wondering if he really understood what the man was saying. He wasn’t at the top of his game, but no tongue?
Tom let out a low chuckle and walked away. Austin followed into the living room and his gaze was drawn to the amazing view of the city beyond the room. Temporarily stunned by the cityscape, he slowed to a stop, mesmerized.
A throat cleared, and his gaze bounced to Detective Connolly and an older gentleman with the same dark hair as Tom, but with gray coloring his temples. But that wasn’t what made Austin’s mouth drop open. He recognized the fourth man sitting in the overstuffed chair. Paige had gone all gooey-eyed when he came on the television, and he had to admit the guy had a voice that could charm the pants off just about any woman.
“CJ Ryan,” Austin said in no more than a whisper.
The sparkle in the man’s eyes was on the border of impish, and he nodded.
“Holy shit,” Austin mumbled and glanced around the room again.
CJ met Tom’s gaze. “You got this?” he asked and Tom nodded. “Good, because I’ve got a show to do,” he added, getting to his feet. He crossed to Austin. “My brother can help,” he said directly to Austin.
“How,” Austin said, not meaning to be rude, but he couldn’t fathom how they could possibly help.
“Trust us, we’ve dealt with worse,” CJ said and disappeared out the front door.
“Mark, we’ve got this,” the older gentleman said to Detective Connolly, and both Austin and the detective looked at him.
“No offense, Steve, but I’d really like to bag this psycho,” Detective Connolly said.
“Normally, I’d say join the party, but from what you said on the phone, it doesn’t sound like something your sister would want me to let you get involved in.”
The detective’s jaw tightened, and he sent a glare at the older gentleman.
“Do you mind if I sit?” Austin asked before exhaustion dropped him to the ground. He offered a slight shrug, trying to hide the wince that followed.
“Be our guest,” Steve said.
Austin took the closest seat. Lowering onto the soft leather was a challenge, and he had to clench his teeth against the discomforting pull of stitches. He glanced up at Detective Connolly.
“The only way to catch Hunter is by using his magic against him,” he said and cringed at how that sounded out loud.
“Magic?” A soft Irish lilt pulled his attention to the hallway and the stunning redhead standing in the entrance.
He gave a slow nod. “Yeah.”
“Now, I’m going to insist that you let us take care of this,” Steve said to Mark.
Austin’s gaze moved around the room at the parties still present and fell back on the red head. His gaze dropped to the unique amulet gracing her neck. He licked his lips as Steve escorted Detective Connolly to the door.
“Hello, I’m Raven,” the redhead said and crossed the room, offering her hand.
Austin took it and gave her firm grip a quick shake.
“I’m Tom’s wife,” she added sending a smile in Tom’s direction.
Austin couldn’t help the smile at how much love was in that single look. “Austin,” he said after her gaze came back to his. “I’m still not clear how you can help.”
They traded another glance before they settled on the couch across from him.
“What kind of magic?” Raven asked.
“Paige said it was black magick,” Austin said, wondering what the hell he was doing actually voicing this shit out loud. He glanced behind him, expecting to see the detective, but the front door was cracked and all he could hear were hushed whispers.
“Steve is walking the detective out,” Raven said, pulling his gaze back.
“Are you comfortable?” Tom signed.
“I’m fine.”
Tom tapped the back of his shoulder and raised an eyebrow, and Austin’s jaw dropped for a second time that evening.
“He can read minds,” Raven said softly, drawing his attention back.
The door creaked and closed, and Steve crossed into the room, handing the detective’s phone to Austin. He sat down at the computer desk on the far side of the room.
“Can you please call them?” he asked when he looked up from the keyboard.
Austin huffed a laugh, and everyone looked at him expectantly. “I don’t think that’s wise. There are three of you and only one of me, and I’m not in any position to defend myself right now.”
Smiles appeared briefly on all three faces.
“It’s okay. I highly doubt his magic will affect us.”
Austin stared at the phone, unsure of what to do.
“Call,” a voice whispered in his mind, and he glanced up, moving his gaze from Steve to Raven and finally to Tom.
The voice in his head wasn’t the former two. Tom raised a brow challenging him.
“If he hurts her...” He trailed off, his gaze bouncing between them.
“I can trace the call if you can keep him on the line for a full minute.”
“And if he takes control of you?”
Raven pulled out her necklace, showing the details to Austin. “This protects us,” she said.
He stared at it and then his gaze bounced to hers. “Black tourmaline?”
“No, bloodstone, but black tourmaline is a good, strong repellant, too.”
Her accent was almost hypnotic, as was the looping pattern of the Celtic knot.
“We all have them,” she added.
“Why?” It seemed like the logical question to ask, and it gave him a minute to gather his wits.
“Black magick isn’t the worst thing that exists in this world,” she answered, and his flesh broke out in a rash of bumps. “And we happen to be specialists in this kind of thing.” She pointed between her and her husband.
Austin glanced at the phone and then over to Steve hunkered behind the computer, waiting for him to dial. With a deep breath, he tapped his number in instead of Paige’s, praying he wasn’t putting her in more danger.
“Austin?” Her soft whisper filled his world.
He closed his eyes. “Are you okay?”
Silence filtered between them, and then her sigh squeezed his heart.
“Please don’t look for me.”
He leaned forward in the seat, unable to digest her words. “Excuse me?”
“Austin...”
“Fuck that, Paige. I’m coming after him whether you agree or not, and this time, I will end him or die trying.” He got to his feet, trying to keep his cool while keeping the conversation going. When she didn’t speak, he ran his hand through his hair, painfully aware of the eyes watching him. “Is this really you talking?”
“It’s me.” Her voice was soft and muffled.
“I know this isn’t what you want,” he said, scanning the cityscape.
“It doesn’t matter what I want. He’s...”
“He’s what?”
The phone shuffled.
“Get away from me,” she said, her voice barely registering with the muffle. The crack of skin on skin resounded and a bang followed.
A video request appeared, and Austin stared at the button with dread. He swiped the controls and waited, holding his breath. It took a moment, but then the wobble of the phone being moved took over the screen and Hunter’s face appeared.
A succession of ancient words tumbled from his lips, and his eyes glowed green. A sick twist clenched Austin’s gut, almost doubling him over, but he grabbed the edge of the couch to catch his breath.
“Son of a bitch,” he breathed, glaring at the laughter spewing from the screen.
The patter of feet heading down the hall gave him enough of a diversion to fight the pain ripping his insides apart.
“I’m going to kill you,” he said through clenched teeth.
“Save that anger for your lovely whore,” he said, and the phone flipped.
Paige kept her head dipped, her hair hiding her face, and she was n
aked with thick chains around her wrists and ankles.
“Look at him,” Hunter demanded, but Paige shook her head. When his hand reached into the picture, yanking her head back, all pain left Austin, replaced by a fury too big for his body to contain. The discoloration of her cheek and swollen eye fueled his anger, but it was the dried blood on her lip that pushed him over the edge.
The snap of fingers next to him, followed by the chains unlatching and tumbling to the ground onscreen, stunned both Paige and him. She stared at him like the camera was broadcasting on her end as well. The spell broke when she launched at Hunter.
Her feral growl shattered all of Austin’s reserves, but all he could do was stare in silence and horror as a group of men came from the shadows, intercepting her before she could get her hands on Hunter.
The camera turned away from the scene.
“I’ll be sure to save a piece for you,” Hunter said just before Paige screamed.
The call cut and Austin stared at the screen, waiting for the picture to return, for it to show Paige was okay. Only silence responded.
Austin turned his gaze to the closest person, and Tom’s hard blue eyes stared out the window, the muscles in his jaw tight, and his fists clenched. He glanced at his wife and pulled his arm out of her grasp.
“You can’t make that jump. I haven’t felt that kind of evil since...” Raven trailed off and glanced at Steve before returning her gaze to her husband. “Since I was possessed.”
Austin’s gaze jumped to hers. “You were possessed by a ghost?”
“No. A demon.”
Black Magick Chapter 9
Every muscle in her body hurt.
He stood over her like a god taking pity on his subject.
“I don’t know where the hell you got that phone or how you got out of those chains, but next time you decide to disobey me, I’ll personally beat you unconscious.” He pushed the hair out of her face. “By the time I’m done with you, he will not want what’s left,” he added, cupping her chin and forcing her to look at him.
“Fuck you,” Paige whispered.
“Is that an invitation?”
Just the thought repulsed her, and she turned her head away. His little group had already done enough damage. When he thought she was sporting enough bruises from their punches, he turned them from an angry pack delivering an ass-whooping to a frenzied group of horny gang bangers with just a few ancient words. They pounded her until each man had their turn at whatever orifice they chose.
Hunter watched every decadent act without a hint of compassion like she was a stranger starring in a twisted porn flick.
“Get away from me,” she whispered, but she couldn’t stop him, not with her arms splayed wide.
He stepped closer. “What are you going to do about it?”
She went to lift her knee, but the chain anchoring her foot to the floor stopped her. She screamed in frustration. “What the hell happened to you, Hunter?”
A bitter smile found his lips, but it never reached his icy eyes. “You.”
“How do you figure?” she snapped, refusing to let him see the damage he had already caused. While every fiber in her body feared Hunter was right, that Austin would no longer want her after what Hunter had done, she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of seeing just how crushed she was inside.
“I loved you, and you threw me away, banished me from your life.”
“You murdered innocent people,” she said.
His hand grasped her neck, pulling her close.
“They deserved to die,” he growled in her face. “And so do you.”
“Then kill me yourself, you gutless bastard,” she replied with an equal amount of venom.
The flash in his eyes and the pressure on her throat as he squeezed tighter created a web of panicked heat that spread through her like a shot of alcohol. She tried to pull her arms in to defend herself, but that only succeeded in rattling the chains.
His grip remained tight enough for her breath to wheeze and her head to get light. Hunter’s free hand traced her skin, slowly toying with her until he found a sensitive bruise, and then he poked. Her wheeze froze. Pain radiated from the bruised rib and her eyes filled with tears.
“You should not fuck with me right now, because you just might get exactly what you wish for.” He stepped away, staring at her like he’d swallowed something bitter. Then he turned, leaving her alone in the barren room, chained, bruised, and naked, just waiting for the next time he decided he needed entertainment.
Black Magick Chapter 10
“Demons exist?” The thought of something more evil than Hunter existing in this world dried the spit in Austin’s mouth. Nods confirmed it, and he closed his eyes, slowly formulating a swirl of questions. The one that popped to the forefront of his mind was the one that controlled his tongue.
“Why are you helping me? You haven’t even asked what happened.” Austin said as he stared at the three of them.
Tom tapped his temple. “Mind reader, remember?” he signed. “And I have no tolerance for that kind of animal.” Tom nodded towards the phone in Austin’s hands.
“I’ve got a location,” Steve said from behind the computer. The printer whirred to life, and he came around with an address to hand to Tom.
Austin intercepted, plucking it out of both their hands.
He stared at the address and folded the paper, tucking it away until he could catch a cab.
“Let’s go,” Raven said, and both Tom and Steve stopped in their tracks.
“You aren’t going,” Tom signed.
She huffed a laugh. “Who do you think has a better chance of counteracting the magic?” she asked.
Tom pulled out his medallion and stared her down without words.
“I’m going,” she said.
The fire in her eyes almost pulled a smile from Austin, but the reality of the situation kept it at bay.
“You both can’t go,” Steve said, blocking the exit. “If shit goes down...” His hands landed on his waist, and he stared at the ground.
Austin watched the standoff between the three of them. Tom’s hands flew as he articulated his argument in sign language, and Raven crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows in a way that was vaguely familiar. It took a couple of blinks before it hit him. Raven’s ‘you-are-so-full-of-bullshit’ look was the same as Paige’s.
“Wouldn’t three of us have a better chance at this than just two of us?” he asked, silencing the building argument.
“They have a daughter, and if something happens to both of them, she will be an orphan,” Steve said.
“We are perfectly capable of handling this,” Raven said, glaring in Steve’s direction. “If it were CJ...”
“I would still give him the same advice now that he’s a father,” Steve answered.
“Bu,” Tom said out loud, and even Austin caught the full enunciation of ‘bullshit’ behind his inarticulate response.
“Look, you guys can argue all night, but I’m going after my girl,” Austin said and started for the door. He had the address and the pendant Raven had slipped him while he was on the phone. He had thought the anger was what stopped the bone crushing pain, but it was actually the amulet. Now that he had that in his arsenal, he was sure he could wipe the floor with Hunter.
“Wa...” Tom said.
His full command of ‘wait’ halted Austin in place. It was almost like the power Hunter had over him in the museum. He couldn’t move forward.
His gaze shot over his shoulder at the small group. “What the fuck?” he asked still frozen to the spot.
“Just give me a minute,” a voice said in Austin’s head, and Tom put up his finger before his hands began again.
“But...” Raven started.
Tom’s hand formed a stop sign and both Raven and Steve remained quiet.
“Stay here,” he signed and stepped towards the door.
Whatever held Austin in place released him, and he joined Tom by the elevator.
“You need me to counteract the spell,” Raven said from the doorway.
Tom leveled the kind of look that chilled Austin, and Raven’s reaction made him take a closer look at the man next to him. She dropped her gaze to the ground with a sigh and then turned, closing the front door in submission. As soon as they were in the elevator, Austin pointed towards the doors.
Tom nodded. “Yes, I can do a hell of a lot more than just read minds.” His mouth never moved, but his hands echoed the words resounding in Austin’s head. Tom met his gaze. “And I can do more damage than my wife can,” he added. The corners of his mouth turned into a smile that left Austin cold.
“Did you use magic to stop me back there?”
The slow shake of his head sent another wave of chills through Austin.
“How...” he started but couldn’t quite figure out the proper articulation of his question.
“I’m not your average man,” he signed, and his voice echoed in Austin’s head. “The mind reading and projecting thoughts are just parlor tricks in comparison to the other talents I possess.”
“You know, less than a year ago, none of this shit existed,” Austin started. “I was clueless, and a part of me wishes I was still clueless.”
Tom’s smile faded and he offered a nod. “I’ve always known ghosts exist, but I really never considered them dangerous. As far as this shit...” He tapped his temple before continuing, “My brother has always been... special, so the existence of a... supercharged human is normal for me.”
The elevator opened to the lobby, and they crossed to the front door, stepping out into the brisk spring evening. Tom waved a cab down, and they slid into the back.
“Normal, huh?” Austin said after he rattled off the address. He glanced out at the passing scenery as they headed downtown. “I feel like I just stepped into a bad horror movie.” He sighed and focused on a plan of attack.
“We’ll have to scope it out before we go in,” Tom said in his head.
He turned his attention to Tom and went to speak.
“Think it, don’t say it. This is our best chance at a surprise attack.” Tom’s blue eyes reflected the passing lights.