by Jayne Hawke
“Really? When? How?” He couldn’t keep that hope from threading through his words.
“Now.”
Amy told me to follow my instincts. I reached out and put my hands on the taller garou’s shoulders while closing my eyes. There was something there. I could feel it wrapped tight around Adam’s wolf like a barbed net. Slowing my breathing, I reached deep and tried to pull the net off. Adam shot backwards with a howl of pain.
Briar looked at me accusingly as she ran her hands over Adam and put herself between him and me.
“What did you do to him?” she growled.
I reflexively bared my teeth at her tone.
“I tried to break his curse.”
“You hurt him,” she snarled.
My wolf side pushed forward, and I felt my gums ache where my teeth sharpened. Briar backed up and kept herself between Adam and me. She lowered her eyes and hunched her shoulders until I calmed. I closed my eyes, feeling like a complete dick. She was just trying to protect her brother.
ONCE AGAIN, I WAS WOKEN from a nice dream by heavy banging on the door. This time I shot down the stairs while pulling my rat’s-nest hair up into a tie and beat Cole to the door. He gave me a disapproving look as I opened the door. It was the little things in life.
The sky behind the very angry looking witches was a pale lavender with soft touches of smouldering pink. There wasn’t a single cloud in the sky above the mature forest. It would have been stunning had it not have been ruined by the deep scowls on the older witches’ faces. A thick ribbon of steel grey hair cut through the dark brown of the woman directly in front of me. Her dark blue eyes contained bright swirls of violet that were almost entrancing.
“Those garou miscreants stole something of ours,” she snapped.
My protective instincts kicked in hard.
“And you have evidence that they stole it? You said they only walked your grounds.”
She narrowed her eyes at me, and her friend glared daggers at me. Cole put his arm around my waist and squeezed my hip. Hard.
“We are witches, you infuriatingly arrogant little girl,” she snarled.
I smiled sweetly.
“And I’m a guardian. So, we’re all a little bit special.”
She looked me up and down. Cole was digging his fingers into my hip. If I spoke again he might well draw blood.
“What exactly did they steal?” Cole said coolly.
“An important stone.”
“Oh, a stone. Well...” I said.
I couldn’t help myself. I wanted to see how far Cole would go.
He practically dragged me behind him.
“What does this stone look like?”
“Two inches long. Blood red with a clear black line down the centre. Oval,” the other witch said.
Cole nodded.
“I will speak with my packmates.”
He went to close the door on the witches, but the brunette shoved her toe in the door, stopping him.
“We’re not leaving here without that stone.”
“And if they don’t have it?”
“Then you and your little guardian will find it. Else the Morrigan witches will descend upon you,” she said icily.
I rolled my eyes. Witches seemed so melodramatic.
“You are on my property. I am a councilman and you will treat me with the respect that commands,” Cole said, stepping forcibly into their space.
The witches’ mouths tightened, and they stepped down off the porch. Cole closed the door and gave me an intense death glare. I smiled brightly at him.
“You have no idea what you brought on our heads, do you?” he growled.
Maybe a lack of sleep was making me petty and belligerent.
“No?”
He threw up his hands.
“If we don’t return that damn stone, there’s a chance of war between the witches and garou.”
“...Oh.”
17
I banged on Briar’s room until she gave up pretending to be asleep (garou hearing has its upsides). She kept her eyes low and waited for me to speak.
“We just had the Morrigan witches banging the door down claiming you stole a stone.”
Briar tensed.
Her eyes flicked to the dresser near the large window. Great. She’d done it.
“We needed the money,” she said.
At least she wasn’t going to try and lie about it.
“There are far better people to steal from than witches! They’ll do a hell of a lot worse than turn you into a frog.”
She exhaled slowly and her jaw tightened but her eyes remained low.
“Why did you really do it?” I pushed.
“It feels good,” she muttered.
Great. We had a kleptomaniac on our hands. So much for my great instincts.
“We started thieving when we were struck with the curse. At first we needed the money. Then it became... therapeutic. We were taking these beautiful things from dicks who didn’t deserve them. It was a thrill sneaking into magical houses and taking prized possessions.”
“You know you have to stop now you’re part of this pack?” I said gently.
She huffed.
“I’m serious. If we don’t return that stone, there’ll be war.”
Her eyes went wide.
“Seriously? It’s just a stupid stone.”
I shrugged.
“You know how attached witches get to weird stuff like that.”
The corner of her mouth rose with a small smile.
“They are a bit obsessed with stones and stuff,” she admitted.
I felt like I was making a little progress here.
“Do you have any other weird stones with you?”
She shrugged.
“We sold them on pretty quickly. Fae get as much of a kick out of buying witch stuff as we do stealing it.”
I snorted. The fae were an odd bunch. A lot of the time they seemed to be fuelled by spite.
“So you’re saying we’re not going to have any more witches banging our door down?”
“I can’t really promise that, they don’t seem to like you much.”
I barked out a laugh. She wasn’t wrong there.
“So, where is it?”
Briar shuffled across the room and dug a red stone out of the drawer.
“This means no war?”
“I hope so.”
“Are you sure you’re a guardian? I mean... you’re not as badass and scary as I pictured.”
Her words hurt a little, but I raised an eyebrow.
“You’d rather I was scary?”
She looked down and away.
“No.”
“Then stop being a little ratbag.”
I took the stone from her and let her return to whatever she was doing.
It seemed like such an innocuous thing. I quickly took a picture of it with my phone and sent it over to Amy asking what exactly it did. Knowledge was power, after all.
18
Cole was waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs. His arms were crossed, and his mouth was pulled into an even deeper scowl than usual. He glared at me as I casually made my way down towards him. The stone was in my hand; it would all be over in a few minutes. I could feel the biting lecture hanging between us. He was just dying to tell me how it was an awful idea bringing a pair of kleptomaniacs into his pack.
I held the stone out for him to take and he sighed.
“Is this a one off?” he growled.
“Maybe, maybe not. Briar, at least, likes to steal things.”
Somehow the scowl deepened. I wasn’t sure how his face was able to produce such an intense scowl that burned in his eyes and twisted his pretty mouth into something of such pure frustration and disappointment.
“At least Adam shows respect,” he muttered.
We both pulled ourselves up taller and braced as Cole opened the door.
The witches stepped back up onto the porch and looked at the stone in Cole’s hand.
The older witch went to snatch it, but Cole pulled it out of her reach.
“What exactly is your coven doing with this stone?”
My ears pricked at his accusatory tone. I’d assumed Briar was in the wrong, but it felt good to hear that maybe the witches were the bad guys here. Sort of bad guys - Briar did still steal it.
“That is witch business,” the older witch snapped.
Cole bared his teeth and the witches stepped back off the porch.
“I am a councilman, and this is a blood stone.”
I made a mental note to ask Amy about blood stones.
The younger witch paled as Cole turned his gaze to her. She swallowed hard as Cole’s predatory glare pinned her in place.
“What we do with such things is between us and our goddess,” the older witch said haughtily.
“These have been illegal for a decade,” Cole said icily.
“You’re being melodramatic. It’s an old relic,” the older witch said as she went to take the stone.
“There is fae blood in this stone,” Cole snarled.
The older witch sighed and visibly deflated. She was aware that she had lost this little encounter.
“You will come before the council on Monday,” Cole said.
The younger witch’s eyes went wide, and a shiver passed through her. It would seem that the punishment for this crime was severe.
“Our goddess-” the older witch started.
Cole held up his hand.
“You cannot hide behind your goddess. She has not stolen your free will. You were aware of the laws and the reasons behind them. Now get off my property.”
We watched as the witches walked away with their heads held high and backs straight.
As soon as Cole closed the door, a quiet voice said, “So we did the right thing.”
Cole and I turned to look at Briar who had a tentative smile on her face.
“You still went onto witch property and stole an item. The fact that they shouldn’t have had it is irrelevant,” Cole said.
Briar pursed her lips and huffed.
I couldn’t blame her. She looked like she could really use a win.
19
COLE WAS OUT AT THE council meeting where they’d review what to do about the witches with the blood stone. Adam and Briar were walking around town handing out their resumes. Or at least, that’s what they were supposed to be doing. I was sitting in a cafe looking at the Grim when I spotted Briar dumping a handful of her resumes in the trash can.
I was going to confront her about it when I saw a new top-paying merc job get posted. I clicked on it without thinking and skimmed over the details. There was a trio of blood witches in the area, and someone needed to either kill them or bring them in for the council to dispose of. The pay was incredible, and I accepted that job before I read the fine print. It was the perfect opportunity to really prove myself to the community.
Briar was sulkily leaning against a lamp post watching Adam try and charm the owner of the local bookstore when I looked back out of the window. Sighing, I decided that it was time to be an alpha and tell her to get off her ass and try. I put my laptop away in my bag, left a generous tip (it felt really good to be able to do that now), and went to try and be a real alpha to Briar.
I crossed my arms and stopped next to her. It took her a long moment to realise I was there; she’d been side-tracked watching her brother shake hands enthusiastically with the bookstore owner. She startled when she finally noticed me.
“I erm... Rosalyn... Hi.”
“Why did you throw your resumes away?”
Small talk didn’t really seem appropriate. I was out of my depth here, but I was going to try.
Briar huffed.
“It seemed like a waste of time. I’d be a useless waitress, I don’t have the people skills.”
“Then be a barista, work in a shop; if you get your driving license, you can be a tour guide in the next town over. Get an apprenticeship. That’s what I did.”
Briar’s eyes lit up.
“You did? I thought you were just a dumb merc.”
I pursed my lips and let the comment slide.
“I was an apprentice baker.”
“I like cars... could I apprentice as a mechanic?”
There was a desperate layer of hope in her words as though I were holding her dreams in the palm of my hand.
I shrugged.
“I don’t see why not. We can ask around. They might be a bit weird about you being a girl, but we can talk them around if it’s what you really want.”
Her entire being lit up with joy. Her eyes shone with happiness, and for the first time she wore a huge brilliant smile.
I’d have to ask around and see how the apprenticeship thing worked, but I could get her to do the legwork. If she wanted something, she was going to learn to work for it rather than stealing it.
Adam practically bounded over to us.
“I’ve got a job in the book store! I start tomorrow!”
Briar hugged him tight.
“I’m happy for you. I know you love books.”
“I get a discount! From day one!” Adam practically bounced.
“You have a driving license, right?” I asked.
“Yea,” Adam said.
“Looks like we’ll have to get you a car, then,” I said with a smile.
I felt a little proud of them both. They were taking steps to a brighter future.
“Come on, I’ll buy you whatever you want from the coffee shop,” I said, turning back towards the coffee shop I’d not long left.
“Anything?” Briar asked.
“Whatever you want,” I repeated.
I knew she was going to make me regret it, but we were celebrating. And for once, I had the money to afford a little luxury.
I ADMIT IT. I SPOILT them. They each got a large bag of their favourite coffee and an armful of pastries. They were just so damn happy to have a pack and the hope of jobs. I was enjoying their relaxing and beaming like fools. Maybe I should have been firmer, maybe that would have been the more alpha thing to do. They were polite, so I let them have some nice things.
When we got home, we began looking for a car for them to share. Briar already knew the basics of driving, she just had to brush up on a few things. Adam said he’d help her with that - just not in my Mustang. I wasn’t letting a new driver in my baby. Once I hit my introvert limit and needed some alone time, I retired to my room and went back to look over that merc job I’d picked up.
When I’d first glanced at it, it hadn’t seemed like such a big deal. Blood witches weren’t fun, and were on the edge of illegal, but I felt confident. I could handle some witches. Sure, they had magic, but I had claws and... this job wasn’t looking quite so easy after all. I read the listing twice, and a heavy stone formed in my stomach.
They weren’t any old blood witches. They were a trio of Aztec blood witches, and they sounded an awful lot like the ones that had killed Cole’s pack. I chewed on my bottom lip. Should I tell Cole they were back in the area? There was a good chance his life was in danger. Sighing, I realised as a councilman he probably already knew. I’d have to tell him and face the emotional consequences involved.
20
Cole wasn’t home by the time it got dark. I ordered pizza as I couldn’t get the blood witches out of my head and didn’t want to try and cook meals. They’d never match up to what Cole cooked so effortlessly, and I wasn’t in the mood for Briar’s thoughts on that fact.
Once the pizzas were gone (I saved one for Cole), I shooed the siblings out of the kitchen to go and watch TV while I baked. It had been too long, and I needed the therapy that came from turning such simple ingredients into something wonderful. Millionaire’s shortbread was first on my list. It wasn’t something I made all that frequently, as the caramel was difficult to get just so, but I needed that intense focus that night.
I went through the familiar motions of preparing the shortbread. It was an exact recipe, which i
s why I loved it. One little thing wrong and you’d lose the entire batch. Those were the sort of challenges I enjoyed. The blood witches stomped around my mind while I tried to figure out the best way to tell Cole I’d taken the job on. He’d do his alpha glare and tell me I was a fool to take on something so dangerous.
The shortbread came together beautifully, and I put that in the oven while thinking how best to approach my problem. The witches needed to be tracked down. There had to be ritual sites around somewhere that they were using. From what I’d managed to glean from the job listing, they worked outside and didn’t appear to have a set base. I needed to get back on the Grim to check for gossip relating to blood sacrifices.
A text came in from Amy saying she’d email me about the blood stone the Morrigan witches had. I sent her back my email address and told her we needed a movie night soon. My thoughts returned to Cole and the witches as soon as I set my phone down. It was going to be traumatic for him, but he was an alpha. He’d take the news with a scowl and the gruffness that I was coming to enjoy.
The millionaire’s shortbread was complete and I was just finishing up the cleaning, ready to make muffins, when Cole walked in. His eyes flicked to the doorway where the siblings were watching some action movie on the couch. He said nothing to them and instead walked into the kitchen and gave me a flicker of a smile.
“That bad?” I asked.
He sighed and pursed his lips. I took that as a yes. I lined up my ingredients and set about starting the muffin batter.
“What are you making?” he asked.
He was suddenly next to me, his body almost pressed against mine.
“Muffins. Cranberry and white chocolate.”
“Make them coffee walnut and we’ll talk,” he said with a wicked smile.
I twisted to look at him better while ignoring the squirming in my stomach that came from his smile.
“If you help me make them, then I’ll make coffee walnut.”
He raised an eyebrow before he looked down at my stand mixer and back at me.
“Deal.”
I had expected him to huff and eat his pizza in his study away from everyone else. It took me a moment to realise that I needed to switch out my ingredients. I’d been planning on baking a coffee walnut cake, so I had everything I needed. Cole watched me with a small smile as I bustled around the kitchen getting everything together. There was a clear tension about him; he seemed as though he needed this little break as much as I did.