by Jasmine Walt
“What. The fuck. Was that. About.”
“Dinnae fash yerself so,” Maddock said irritably. He snapped his fingers, and the air around us vibrated with magic—some kind of silencing spell. Like the one Thelia had used last time we were here. “I didna mean to leave ye, Brooke. The Seelie Queen called me away, and I couldna refuse her summons without suffering dire consequences.”
“Oh.” I exhaled, trying to release the anger and frustration that had built in my chest. But it still pissed me off I’d been left completely in the dark. “Couldn’t you have at least left me some kind of clue about where you’d gone? It’s fucking stressful, not knowing.”
“There was no time,” he said tersely. “When the Seelie Queen commands her subjects, she expects to be obeyed instantly. I figured ye’d be safe enough at ENVY while I was gone, in Talon’s care.” A muscle ticked in his jaw. “It would seem I cannae leave you alone for one minute without ye landing yerself into some kind of trouble.”
I scowled at him. “The lawyer said almost the exact same thing. Did you two talk or something?”
“It’s a bit difficult to make cellular calls from Faerie,” Maddock said dryly.
He had a point. “So what did the Seelie Queen want? Or is that top secret, too?”
“She wanted to know what I’d been doing on Unseelie lands,” he said, surprising me with the straightforward answer. “She was extremely displeased I’d gone to visit the Winter King without informing her first. I was accused of high treason, and she even had me thrown in her dungeons overnight.” His eyes glittered dangerously, fury coming off him in waves. “I was lucky to have convinced her of my loyalty.”
“I’m sorry,” I said, feeling a wave of sympathy. I knew all too well what it was like to be locked up like that. “I…I’m glad she let you out.” I reached across the table for his hand, then froze. What the hell was I doing, opening myself up like this to Maddock? Was I some kind of masochist?
But to my surprise, Maddock didn’t push my hand away. He took it, and my heart stuttered as he wrapped it in his own big, warm hand. “I’m glad, too, lass,” he said in a low voice that made my stomach flutter. “And I’m glad to see ye’ve managed to fend for yerself without me.”
“Thanks.” My cheeks were burning. This was so freaking embarrassing. I pulled my hand from Maddock’s before I spontaneously combusted, placing both hands between my thighs and squeezing them together. The motion sent a flash of heat through me, and I cursed inwardly. What the hell was wrong with me? Maddock and I had made out before—numerous times, in fact. Why was I getting so worked up about hand-holding?
“Darun was waiting for me at ENVY when I came back from Faerie,” Maddock said, interrupting my flustered train of thought. “He gave me scant details, but enough to know that everything went to hell while I was gone, and ye somehow managed to fix it anyway.” He leaned back in his seat, a gleam in his eyes. “Mind filling me in on what happened?”
“Sure.”
Over the remainder of my baked lobster, and a slice of rich dark chocolate cake that I shared with Maddock, I explained the last few days. He interrupted me a couple of times to clarify certain points, but for the most part, he stayed silent… until I got to the part about accidentally leading the witches straight to the channel’s hiding spot.
“Ye did what?” he roared, his face an almost comical mask of horror and anger. Several heads turned our way at the commotion—they couldn’t hear what we were saying, but they could still detect volume. “Why the bloody hell did ye do that? Have they already opened the fecking thing?”
“Of course not,” I snapped, crossing my arms over my chest. “Don’t you think you would have noticed if they had? You were in Faerie, weren’t you?”
“Aye,” Maddock said, reining himself in a little. “The Seelie Queen would have noticed such a massive disturbance. But witches are crafty, and ‘tis possible they opened the channel without drawing any of the power yet.”
“Not these witches,” I said. “Darcia is one greedy bitch. There’s no way she wouldn’t have started pulling on the power immediately. If she’d been able to go through with the ritual last night, Faerie would suddenly be a lot poorer.”
Maddock relaxed at that. “How did ye to stop her?” he asked. “Did ye find a way to disrupt the ritual?”
“You could say that.” I couldn’t quite stop the smirk tugging at my lips. “I challenged her for the title of coven mistress. And won.”
Maddock froze. “Ye…what?”
“You heard me.” I forked up another bite of cake and popped it into my mouth. “I’m the new mistress of the Daire Coven.”
For a long moment, Maddock was silent. Then he threw back his head and laughed, a deep, rich sound that sent a flush of pleasure through me. His white teeth flashed against his tanned skin, his shoulders shaking, and suddenly, I was laughing, too. I was sure everyone in the restaurant was staring as we both howled like a pair of loons.
“By the Lady,” Maddock finally said, catching his breath. His green eyes were sparkling with mirth. “That is the daftest plan I’ve ever heard of. And ye pulled it off. Never in my wildest imagination did I think ye would end up as a coven mistress.” He chuckled, shaking his head. “I’m sure the other witches are losing their minds.”
“A couple of them turned around and walked right out,” I admitted. “They took Darcia with them. She’ll never be coven mistress again,” I added. “I took too much of her power.”
“Aye,” Maddock agreed, “but she still has her experience. She will no doubt gather her supporters together and rally against you. She won’t stand for an upstart like you running her coven, even if it means giving the leadership to someone else.”
I nodded. “Yeah, she’ll probably be angling to put Thelia in my spot now, once they defeat me. Although I wouldn’t put it past Carina to try to take the spot—she’s one of Darcia’s lackeys, but I get the idea she’s not quite as loyal as Darcia would like to think.”
“Either way, our priority is to destroy that channel,” Maddock said. “Just because they can’t perform that ritual until the next full moon doesna mean they might not find some other spell to use in the interim. Witches have a knack for causing trouble in ways you tend not to expect.”
We pulled up to the club, and I was surprised to see the line outside was distinctly shorter than usual. “Where are all the clubbers tonight?” I asked, looking around. It was a Thursday night, sure, but Maddock’s club was always hopping.
“I have been experiencing a distinct lack of Unseelie clientele ever since activating the artifacts,” Maddock said silkily as he helped me from the car. Goose bumps broke out along my skin as the warmth from his hand seeped into my body. “We’ve experienced a drop in revenue, but the peace of mind I’ve received in exchange is more than worth it.” His fingers tightened around my arm, and he tugged me away from the car. “Now let’s hurry up, Detective. We won’t be here long.”
“We won’t?”
“Aye,” he said, guiding me to the entrance. “Get what ye need, then meet me outside. We’re going back to the forest to deal with this problem once and for all.”
Chapter 26
I didn’t need much from ENVY—a change of clothes, my 1911, and Darun, who was waiting impatiently in my room, were more than adequate. I strapped the dagger around my waist, though I didn’t anticipate any of the witches would let me get close enough to use it on them. I also grabbed a quick shower, since I hadn’t had one in two days, then braided my silver hair into a low tail, threw on a thick jacket that easily hid my weapon, and ran out to meet Maddock.
I expected him to bitch about me taking forever to get ready, but he only nodded curtly at Darun, then took my hand again. Darun growled a little at the contact, but I didn’t pull away even though I knew I should. I was enjoying this new Maddock—the one who apologized, who complimented me on my strengths, whose laugh filled me with all kinds of strange but good feelings, and who wasn’t afraid to hold
my hand.
It’s not going to last forever, a little voice in my head warned. He’s a Seelie, and you’re an Unseelie shadow. There’s never going to be anything between you two.
I shoved that thought away as we got into the car. Not because I wasn’t willing to confront it, but because there was no time for it. We weren’t going out on a date—we were going on a mission to finish something I’d started a long time ago.
Twenty minutes later, we pulled up to the edge of the forest, then made the increasingly familiar trek through the woods. Darun trotted ahead of us, with Maddock bringing up the rear, ensuring I was protected on both sides. Even so, my senses were on high alert, and my gun was within reach. I’d loaded it with regular .45 caliber bullets—iron and wooden stakes weren’t necessary to bring down witches, or so I’d discovered. They died from regular bullet wounds just like anyone else.
As soon as we began to draw close to where I knew the warlocks were camped, Darun moved left, heading straight through the trees. He was going to cover us from the opposite side while we went for the camp, since his wolf form enabled him to move with almost perfect stealth.
One of the warlocks was sitting on the log, warming his hands by a well-used fire pit. He jumped up as soon as we entered the clearing, but Maddock hit him with a sleeping spell before he could cry out an alarm. He dropped like a stone, snoring before his head even hit the ground. The commotion woke the other warlock who had been sleeping in the tent beside the fire, but I was already across the clearing and inside his tent by the time he sat up. His eyes widened as I clamped a hand over his mouth and used the same sleeping spell. His eyes rolled back in his head, and he flopped backward onto his pillows as if nothing had happened.
“It’s in the other tent,” Maddock called as I climbed back out.
“Yeah, I know.” I could see the green glow coming from the tent, clear as day. Reaching inside, I pulled out an iron oil lamp with a magical green flame flickering brightly within. I opened the tiny glass door and wrinkled my nose as the tang of copper hit me—blood. Drawing on my magic, I sucked in a breath, then blew on the flame as hard as I could. It sputtered for a few seconds, then died, and the shimmering barrier flickered out of existence as well.
“Excellent,” Maddock said. “Now we can pass safely.”
We hurried onward, and I led the way this time since I was the only one of the three of us who knew the exact location. But as we began to draw close, Darun ran in front of me, forcing us to stop.
“I can smell the witches,” he growled in my head. “They are up ahead in the clearing, and it sounds like they are chanting.”
“Dammit!” I focused my senses, finding an intense green glow up ahead. “They’ve found some way to access the channel!”
“Already?” Maddock demanded as I broke into a run, but there was no time to discuss it further.
We sprinted as fast as we could go, Darun in the lead, and burst into the clearing. Horror clutched my chest in an icy grip as I saw Darcia, Thelia, Marion, Carina, and Lauren standing in a circle around a hole in the ground with ten other witches, hands joined as they chanted. The tree that had once stood proudly there had been completely uprooted and tossed to the other side of the clearing like a piece of garbage.
Most of the witches didn’t even glance our way, but Thelia turned and glared at me, her eyes awash with hatred. “You can’t stop us!” she shouted, and we abruptly slammed up against a barrier, one that even I couldn’t pass.
Golden magic flowed out of the ground and up into the witches. The thirteen of them blazed with power. I watched, mouth agape, as the wrinkles disappeared from Darcia’s skin, her spine unbowed, and her hair grew thick and lustrous once more. A wicked grin transformed her face as she sucked in all the magic she could, and a chill shot down my spine as she locked eyes with me.
“Just in time for me to k—” she began, and that was when the power abruptly shut off.
“What the—” Carina snapped as they stumbled back in shock, the shield around them shattering into ethereal shards.
The magical barrier died like so many spent firecrackers, and my companions charged, Maddock with his sword, and Darun with his jaws opened wide as he lunged for the throat of the nearest witch. I didn’t bother running—instead, I lifted my pistol and fired off four shots that took out the two witches nearest us. As their bodies fell backward in sprays of blood, Darun tackled the closest while Maddock cleaved the next one in two.
Unfortunately, the witches finally seemed to snap them out of their shock. Before we could do anything else, Darcia raised her hand and flung a bolt of crackling energy at me. Her sisters mirrored her attack, driving back Maddock and Darun.
“You won’t beat me this time!” Darcia shrieked, her eyes glowing with rage as she stalked forward. The rest of the witches flanked her in tight formation, all emanating such enormous power that I was forced to turn down my magic-sight before I blinded myself. This time, they attacked as one, flinging a single blast of combined energy at us. It sizzled through the air like an atomic bomb, and Maddock and I joined hands, forming a united front against them despite the crazy odds. We poured all our energy into another shield, trying to hold them back.
But it was no use. There were eleven of them remaining, all hopped up on stolen juju, and we were only three. I fired blindly into the glowing magic with my free hand, hoping to hit one of them, but there was no effect—the power just kept coming.
“Blast it!” Maddock growled as our shield fell crumbled like wet tissue paper.
“I can’t get a clear shot,” I shouted as another jolt of energy flew straight at me. I had half a second to see it before Darun leapt in front of me. The blast hit him square in the chest, and he yelped as he went skidding across the clearing.
Darcia smiled as he fell. “Now you can watch your friends die, Brooke,” she said, reaching out and joining hands with the witches on either side of her.
Rage surged inside me, but before I could do anything, a binding spell wrapped around Maddock and jerked him toward the coven. He was slammed against the tree, and my heart leapt into my throat, choking me as glowing ropes of power bound him to the trunk. It was the same spell the Onyx Order used to restrain fae they planned to siphon.
Shit. We were in real trouble now.
“No!” I cried, taking a step forward. I grabbed onto my power, but before I made it two steps, Darcia stepped in front of Maddock.
“How sad,” Darcia sneered as she advanced on me, power crackling across her body, “that you’ve barely managed to hold onto the title five minutes.” She tossed her mane of dark hair, smiling cruelly. “If you’d simply done as you were told, you could have shared in this great power with us, Brooke. Instead, you’re going to die.”
She raised her glowing hands, and three other witches followed suit. I tensed, preparing to throw up another shield. But even if it worked to deflect their blast, how the long could I keep this up? When I’d started this fight, I’d still had most of Darcia’s power, but now I was starting to weaken.
Don’t fight it, something inside me seemed to say, and I froze. Embrace the power. Be the blade of grass in a storm, not the oak tree.
That sounded completely insane…but it had come from that dark, distant place inside me, and if I couldn’t trust that, I couldn’t trust anything.
Fine, I thought, smiling grimly as I faced Darcia’s cronies. Bring it.
The witches unleashed a huge blast of power that lit up the clearing so brightly I was forced to squeeze my eyes shut against it. I balled my fists at my sides and threw my head back as the wave of power crashed into me with the force of a hurricane. I expected it to rip me to shreds, to grind my bones to dust, but instead it sank into me, into that core that filled up with power every time I took it from someone. My shadow instincts latched on, pulling greedily, elation filling me as the power flooded my body…
Until it all went to hell.
My shadow instincts abruptly recoiled, and sharp
pain stabbed me, like millions of tiny, red-hot needs being jabbed into every single one of my cells. A scream tore from my throat, one that would have made the devil cringe, and it took everything in me not to collapse. The magic was trying to grind me to dust, I realized dimly through the pain. This wasn’t like when I sucked the magic out of another supernatural—this power was still trying to obey the command to destroy me. I had to give it another outlet soon, or it would do exactly as it intended.
So I did the only thing I could. I unleashed it on the witches who’d turned it on me.
They didn’t even have time to scream.
When the blinding glow finally cleared away, there were four piles of dust on the ground in front of me. The clearing had gone deadly quiet as the remaining witches stared at me in stunned silence. Thelia’s mouth was open in horror, every ounce of blood drained from her face, and I wasn’t sure if she was going to attack me, or beg for mercy.
“Anyone else want a piece of me?” I growled, taking a step forward. I didn’t have much left inside me, but these bitches didn’t need to know that. “I’m more than ready to take the rest of you on, unless you’d rather leave town first.”
They didn’t give me an answer—just turned tail and ran like the cowards they were. I watched them go, my hands clenching at my sides as I vibrated with pain, rage, and exhaustion.
My nerves were scraped raw from all that magic, and I knew if I took too much time thinking about it, I would probably collapse from exhaustion. So instead, I gathered what strength I had left and stalked over to Maddock. Summoning the last bit of power I had, I pressed my hands against the magical barrier holding him into place and deactivated it.
“Brooke.” Maddock wrapped his arms around me, pulling me tight against his body as my knees gave out. “Brooke, are you all right?”