by Larissa Ladd
“Me, too,” Jayden added as she got up and grabbed her purse from the counter. “I don’t know how long you’re staying, Creed, but I’d love to go to the movies or something, if you’re up for it. Right now, I’m going home. I haven’t been there in almost 24 hours, and I should let you enjoy your little family reunion for a bit without an interruption.” She leaned over and hugged Creed, then left.
Ava finally sat down in her empty chair, and Skyler tensed. This wasn’t going to be easy, not when Creed and their mother had fought so hard before he’d left. Deciding it might be good to give the two of them a few minutes alone, Skyler stood. “I have a phone call to make. I’ll be back in about fifteen minutes.” She looked pointedly at her mother. “Behave while I’m gone.”
Creed looked like a deer in headlights. Skyler almost turned back to save him, but there were things he had to do for himself, however fragile. She couldn’t always be there to smooth things over. He’d been on his own for a year and a half now. If he couldn’t face their mother for five minutes alone, there were more serious problems for him to deal with than Ava Duran.
Unfortunately, Skyler was torn herself. She would have much rather butted in on that conversation than call Chad and have a conversation of her own. But she’d promised Jayden, and she would start small. Over the phone was better than face to face, and it also allowed her a little more time before he began to think something was off with her if she didn’t give him a call. She took her cell phone back to her bedroom and dialed his number, hoping to keep it short and sweet.
Chapter 12
When his phone buzzed, Chad found himself far too anxious to answer, especially when he saw it was Skyler. Trying not to sound desperate and hating that he actually felt a bit so, he answered the line. “Well, if it isn’t the devil I was just thinking of! How are you feeling, Skyler?”
“I’m doing a little better, but apparently my mother disagrees. She’s over here, making homemade soup for me to help settle my stomach and get me all the nutrients she feels I need. It’s a great gesture, but she has terrible timing.”
She sounded a little agitated, and Chad frowned. What was wrong? “You sound upset. Were you in the middle of something when she came?” He perked up and teased, “Were you getting ready to come over and see me?”
“Not exactly.” She at least seemed amused by his words. “Any other day, I would have just smiled and thanked her. But today, she’s in the way.” She was silent, and Chad almost asked her to continue before she finally sighed. “My brother’s been away a long time, and he and my mother don’t really get along very well. He surprised me this morning at my front door, and it’s awkward now because Mother is here. There’s obviously something he wants to tell me, and he refuses to talk about it with her here.”
Had she mentioned her brother before? Chad couldn’t remember. Either way, he knew all about the reality of awkward moments with family. Van hadn’t been a big fan of their parents, and for years, time spent together with the whole family was uncomfortable at best, explosive more often than not. “Can you ask your mother to leave?”
“No. I don’t think Creed even wants my mother to know he’s hiding something from her. I just wish I knew what he needed. I’d find a way to get her out quickly if it was urgent.” She cleared her throat, and Chad wondered if she was close to tears. “Anyway, I wanted to let you know that I’m feeling better but also make sure you understand if I can’t see you today.”
“Family drama trumps all else,” he told her, trying to lighten the mood. “I completely understand. Take all the time you need, and if I can do anything, let me know.” He stood and walked over to the refrigerator, his appetite suddenly ravenous after being nonexistent all day. “By the way, I hope Jayden is as happy as Van. He’s smitten, to say the least, and apparently had a really great night with her.”
Skyler didn’t respond immediately, and when she did, she sounded hesitant. “She can’t stop talking about him, either. I just worry that they’ll move too fast and someone will get hurt.”
Was that really her concern? Chad couldn’t tell. He needed to see her face, to read her eyes to know if she was honest. But he took her at her word for the moment, had no reason not to trust her. After all, she’d called him, hadn’t she? “I don’t want Van hurt any more than you want something bad to happen to Jayden. I’ll look out for them from my end, and you watch from yours.”
“Thank you, Chad.” He heard a noise in the background, which was the only thing that stopped him from saying something stupid, like ‘I love you.’ He didn’t know where the urge came from, but he was glad there was something to distract him. “Oh, lord, I’ll have to call you later, Chad. I have to get in there before they end up tearing my house apart.”
“Go play mediator, Skyler. I’ll talk to you later.” He hung up before he made that mistake and then he tossed the phone onto the counter, reaching into the fridge to grab the first thing he saw to eat. What the hell was wrong with him? Skyler wasn’t by any means supposed to be important in his life, especially now. But for some reason, he had the overwhelming desire to tell her she did.
He needed to get out of the house, spend some time alone. That was the answer. He needed to be somewhere other than here, thinking about someone other than her. Going to his ‘lair,’ as he liked to call the room filled with objects of his power, he pulled out the atlas that had been spelled so long ago and flipped to a random page. He laughed. Maybe his own mind had affected where the book landed because he seemed to always land on Vegas when it came to a quick trip. He loved the city, knew very well it was perhaps the only place where he could openly use his powers and never once be suspected of anything.
The problem now was, he didn’t want to go alone. For the first time in his life, Vegas didn’t sound like a solution because he didn’t want to go to that adult playground without a partner in crime. And his brother wasn’t going to cut it. They’d made that trip before, and it had been wild, with tons of liquor, money, and women. Now, though, the more he thought about how good it would be for him to be exposed to all those women, the less Chad wanted anything but Skyler. She’d really gotten her claws into him, and he had to admit, she hadn’t even needed to try hard.
Walking away from the atlas, he thought maybe he would just head to the coast for a few hours. After all, he had work tomorrow, and he’d definitely see Skyler then. He didn’t want to miss that chance. He needed to see how she’d react to him in person, and he feared the worst while hoping for the best. It was foreign to him to care this much.
Yes, the coast would be a nice, little getaway. He could be there and back before nightfall and have a great little break just walking along the water and thinking in between. Grabbing his keys, he forgot about the food on the counter and decided just to grab a bite along the way. The sooner he got out of here, the better.
Chapter 13
Skyler hurried from the bedroom to the kitchen, where voices had risen and issues had escalated. Her mother and brother were talking over each other, and she couldn’t understand what either one said. By the time she got there, Creed was aiming to get out the door. She couldn’t let him leave yet. Tapping into her magic, she shouted a single word in a voice that echoed through the air and made the decorations on the wall vibrate. “Enough!”
It was the voice her mother used to use when they were small children and started fighting over a toy or television show. It forced silence from all parties in disagreement for a short period of time, just long enough for Skyler to have her say in the matter. “I don’t know what you’re fighting about this time or who started it, but this is my house, and you are both my family. I won’t have my brother screaming at my mother, and I won’t have my mother making my brother feel unwelcome and upset when he finally comes home to visit. If you can’t coexist in the same room without mediation for ten minutes, I suggest that next time you find separate rooms. Do I make myself clear?”
Her mother had the gall to smile at her as she walke
d over and kissed Skyler’s forehead. “Have I told you what an excellent mother you will make someday?” She turned to look at Creed, her hands still on Skyler’s cheeks as she spoke. “I’m sorry, darling. I’m going to leave. The soup will be done in about an hour, so you both be sure to eat. I’ll leave the two of you alone now. Creed, I hope to see you again before you leave and promise to try harder to keep calm.” With those words and a flourish of her flowing scarf, she was out the door.
Skyler shook her head, wishing she understood the woman. Maybe, in another forty or fifty years, she would be like her mother. It was frightening, but at the same time, she’d feel better about the woman’s mentality if she could tap into it. “Are you alright?” she asked Creed.
He nodded, the muscle in his jaw twitching. “I’m fine. Mom started in again with her jealousy of why I call and talk to you and why I come to visit you but want nothing to do with her. When I told her that wasn’t true, she exploded, and it escalated from there. I’m sorry, Skyler. I didn’t mean to blow up in your house.”
“I’m not mad at you.” She sat down again and motioned for him to do the same. “I just don’t want you to feel like you can’t be here and be comfortable in my home.” She smiled. “So, I can tell you have things to talk to me about that you didn’t want to mention in front of Mother. What’s going on?”
He leveled a knowing glare at Skyler. “You first. Who’s this mystery man that’s got you in such a funk? If you’re in love, that’s great, but you’re obviously afraid of something. What is it?”
She should have known he could read that about her. Creed’s insight was spot-on all the time, and at times like this, it was very inconvenient. Groaning, she shook her head. “I’ll tell you all about him later. I think that whatever brought you back halfway around the world after more than a year is probably far more important than some romantic drama of mine. You need something, or you would have just called. What is it?”
He looked nervous and excited all at once. He licked his lips and leaned forward as he spoke. “I have a chance at fixing myself, Skyler. That’s why I spent so much time with the monks. They were helping me control the disaster in my mind, and the whole time, they were looking for a permanent solution. A man named Abizu thinks he found the answer. All I have to do is find the right person to teach me, and I won’t need to hide anymore.”
Skyler was floored. She hadn’t expected that. “So, you’re telling me that monks are still believers in magical beings.”
He laughed. “Monks are all about old-school ways. They didn’t even have indoor plumbing where I was living because it was too modern. So, yes, they believe in witches and magic and all things archaic. And because of that, they’ve kept some very old manuscripts that explain what could have happened to me.” He hesitated, and Skyler wanted to strangle him and force him to speak. Instead, she waited anxiously for him to finish. “It’s happened before, though it’s incredibly rare. Skyler, I’m not an abomination. I’m not a mistake. I’m just a warlock.”
She couldn’t have heard him correctly, but the look on his face told Skyler he wasn’t kidding. Before she knew what was happening, a ring of blackness closed in on her, and she was out.
Chapter 14
The light above her seemed ultra-bright as Skyler opened her eyes. She blinked and squinted, and as she turned her head so she wasn’t staring directly at the fluorescent light, Creed came into focus. “How long have I been out?”
He frowned. “Just a couple of minutes, really. What happened? Are you alright?” His face was the picture of concern. “I’ve never seen something like this happen to you.”
She pushed herself up until she was sitting and gave him an irritated look. “Yes, well, you’ve never dropped that kind of news on me before.” She shook her head. “What do you mean, you’re a warlock? How the hell is that possible? I might believe it, if our father had been one, but he died of a heart attack. Warlocks don’t have heart attacks.”
“According to the scrolls they had, sometimes, the witch gene doesn’t just pass to the females of a very powerful witch line. If they pass to the males, those males are like warlocks. They have the same powers and capabilities.” Creed stood and took her hands, helping her to her feet. She stood there for a few moments, trying to get her balance and process what he said, all at the same time. “For someone like me who didn’t know and didn’t have help learning how to use my powers, it can be hell. I could go mad. But with help from a warlock learning to control and use the magic, the same way a witch does, I could be a perfectly healthy and sane individual.”
Great. She dropped into a kitchen chair. “Well, if that’s not the worst news I’ve heard in . . .” she checked the clock, “twelve hours.” She sighed. “So, what are you going to do with that information?”
Creed took a seat next to her, shoving her coffee toward her. She took a sip and made a face; she wasn’t a fan of cold coffee. He laughed. “I don’t know, Skyler. Apparently, I need to find a warlock. That shouldn’t be too hard. After all, they’re more secretive about their own society than witches, and they’re loners that don’t roam in packs or meet secretly under the light of a full moon.”
His sarcasm made her smile reluctantly. “That’s a false statement. Some of them have covens.”
He rolled his eyes. “Okay, but that’s as rare as a solo witch.” His smile faded, his face growing solemn. “I didn’t really have a lot of hope in finding one, especially someone who’d be willing to teach me. I was ready to go hunting, at least until I did lose my mind, just because I would have been able to cling to the hope a little longer.” He raised an eyebrow. “Right now, though, I have this strange feeling that I’m not going to have to go a-hunting.”
Skyler said nothing, but her brother wasn’t going to break the stare. Their gazes were locked, and she’d never been as good at this game as he was. Banging her fist on the table, she erupted, “Dammit, Creed, your little gift is a big problem for me. I wish you could turn it off or maybe that I could cast a spell to at least keep you out of my head.”
“Well, if you could do that, you’d find a way to spell me so I wouldn’t get in anyone’s head. And as for turning it off . . . that’s the whole point of this conversation.” He didn’t say anything else. Instead, he got up, sniffing at the pot of soup as he stirred it. Then, he grabbed their coffee cups, dumped the contents, and refilled them.
When he reached into the refrigerator and came out with a yogurt, Skyler huffed in frustration. “Is that all you’re going to say, Creed?”
He feigned surprise. “Oh, was it still my turn? Because I thought you might have something to say about all of this.” The disgusted expression she sent him seemed to amuse him. “Come on, Skyler. I know something is up with you. I know that the word ‘warlock’ sparked something inside you that resonated with fear, and your thoughts told me it was a little too close to home. And before you tell me that I might misinterpret things now and again, I should tell you that, while you were passed out on the floor, you mumbled something about a man named Chad and the word ‘warlock.’”
Skyler dropped her head to the table, banging it twice. “I don’t want to talk about this, Creed. If you think we’ve got the solution right here, waiting for us, all wrapped and tied with a bow, you’re sorely mistaken.”
“Are you or are you not involved with someone who may or may not be a warlock, Skyler?” Creed sounded angry now. “You’re my sister, and you told me you’d do anything to help me once. Are you really going to turn away from me now, the first time I actually asked you for help?”
She gaped at him. Creed regularly grew angry with Mother but had never taken such a tone with her. It fueled her own rage over how messed up her world had become over the last couple of weeks. “Do you think I want to deny you the help you need? You should know better than that! I just don’t know if there’s anything I can do. Yes, I know a warlock named Chad, but it’s not that simple.”
“Then tell me what’s wrong!”
he exploded.
The air rippled with tension before they both took a deep breath and settled back down. Skyler hated being enraged. It screwed with her whole being, made her witchy juju bad. Her emotions had been on overdrive for longer than she wanted to admit, and all of it was culminating right now. “I started seeing my boss, which was my first mistake. But the idea was to keep my job. He kept threatening it, and you know how much I love it there. So I cast a spell for him to fall in love with me, and I thought it was working. But then I noticed a little habit he has of compelling people to do things, and it all made sense. To make matters worse, I can’t just go find a new job and ignore the guy because I set Jayden up with his brother—also a warlock—and she doesn’t believe it or doesn’t care. She wants to keep seeing him and doesn’t want them to know that we know.”
She was rambling at a hundred miles an hour, but it felt good to spill everything. She could see that Creed was processing it without trouble. “If your spell didn’t work, then he must actually be in love with you.”
Feeling crazy, Skyler ran her fingers through her hair. “Or maybe he knows what I am and wants to destroy our coven. Or control it. Or some other dastardly plan. He could very well be using me. After all, it was his idea to set Jayden up, and that could be their way of infiltrating, one witch at a time. I don’t know what to think. All I know is that I want to run away. And now you want me to introduce you. What am I supposed to say? ‘Hi, Chad, meet my brother, Creed, who thinks he’s a warlock who needs to go to Warlock Academy, and since I’m pretty sure you could teach Ghostly Candles of Magic, could you help him?’ I don’t think that would go over so well.”
“Well, you can’t run away.” He reached out and took her hand, pulling her into a hug. “I’m sorry I dropped this on you when things are already difficult for you. But you’ve never been one to run away like me. You’ve always been strong and confident, as far back as I can remember.”