by C. C. Wood
The witch rolled her eyes. “I had a vision, okay. Now, let me in because Finn wasn’t joking about me making a mess on the porch.” Without another word, she pushed past Macgrath. “Bathroom?” she asked Rhys.
He gave her directions to the half bath.
“Thanks,” she sighed, hurrying out of sight.
I felt the vampire’s presence as he moved closer to enter the house as well. While Macgrath just stared at him, I sighed and got out of the way, shutting the door behind him.
“Thank you,” he said, his words slightly stiff but polite.
“You’re welcome,” I replied as I looked up at him with a small smile on my face.
When our eyes met, I realized why he looked familiar.
His eyes were the exact shape and color as my own.
Chapter Ten
Macgrath
Ava had been quiet since the witch and her vampire mate arrived. From the moment she looked at Finn in the light for the first time, her demeanor changed. She watched them both intently and spoke little, as though she were observing them and looking for their weaknesses.
It was disconcerting. Ava was a natural leader. She rarely waited for anyone to take the reins, preferring to be the one in charge.
Yet she sat back and let Rhys do most of the talking unless Kerry or Finn asked her a direct question.
There was also fear and sorrow in her eyes every time she looked at Finn and I hated it. I fucking hated that look. Especially since I wasn’t in a position to do something about it. She wouldn’t take comfort from me, even if I offered it, but I wanted to. Goddess, I wanted to.
Once the witch, Kerry, emerged from the bathroom, she greeted Rhys with a hug and a smile. He was clearly pleased to see her but also seemed confused by her appearance.
“What are you doing here, Kerry?” he asked.
“I know that you need help,” she replied. It was an answer, but also an evasion.
Rhys sensed that because he changed tactics. “And how do you know I need help?”
Kerry’s eyes shifted toward her vampire mate, but she didn’t speak.
Before Rhys could press further, Savannah entered the room, dressed in pajama pants and a t-shirt.
“Rhys, what’s going on?”
Kerry turned and her eyes lit up. “You must be Savannah!” She moved forward and held out her hand. “It’s so great to meet you.”
Her mouth slightly agape, Savannah took the witch’s hand and shook it. She glanced at Rhys as she did, her eyes widening as if to silently ask “Who in the heck is this woman?”
“I’m Kerry. I met Rhys last year in Dallas. He helped us with a problem we were having and now is my chance to return the favor.”
The witch was smiling as she said this, but I could see the tension in her body and hear the quickness of her heartbeat. She wasn’t as calm as her appearance would lead us to believe.
Savannah made coffee as we all settled around the dining table. Rhys interrogated Kerry. That was the only way to describe it. He asked her questions, almost rapid-fire.
Every time I opened my mouth to ask my own questions, he would interrupt me. Finally, I gave up trying and sipped my coffee. Two millennia on this planet had certainly taught me patience. And Rhys was obviously worried for his woman.
Before the interrogation slowed, my phone vibrated in my pocket. When I saw who was calling, I excused myself and walked outside onto the front porch. Since the explosion earlier today, the itch between my shoulder blades had faded somewhat.
“Callum,” I greeted after I lifted the phone to my ear.
“I’ve found something,” he stated. “It took a shit ton of digging, but I think I know where the witch is.”
My hand tightened around the phone until the case cracked ominously. “Where?”
“That’s the weird thing,” he stated. “You were in the same area this morning. Right across the street from the building in fact.”
My body grew cold. Rhiannon was hiding across the street from Ava? “Are you sure?” I asked.
He scoffed. “Yes, I’m sure. I wouldn’t have called you otherwise.”
“Okay, thank you.” I nearly pulled the phone away from my ear then remembered what he’d said. “Oh, and we’re going to talk about you keeping tabs on me without my permission.”
His laugh echoed down the line. “We can talk about it, but considering it’s helping you right now…”
I growled and disconnected the call. I intended to leave without telling anyone but the front door opened before I had a chance. I glanced around and saw Finn standing a few feet away.
“Going somewhere?” he asked.
I nodded, ready to leave and track down Rhiannon and finish this before she had a chance to hurt Ava or anyone else.
“You shouldn’t go alone,” Finn stated, stepping forward.
I didn’t have time to argue about this. I turned away, moving down the steps.
“Don’t you dare leave without me, Ewan Macgrath!”
I sighed and dropped my head at the sound of Ava’s voice. She came down the steps and I saw that she was already wearing her shoes.
“You’re my ride home,” she clarified as she came up beside me.
“I don’t have time to deal with this right now. I have something important to do.”
Her eyes narrowed and I felt the whisper of her power on my skin.
“I know. You’re on your way to find Rhiannon and you’re taking me with you.”
I shook my head. “No, I’m not.”
Her stance shifted and she crossed her arms over her chest. “You are.”
Instead of engaging in an argument with her, I prepared to trace out. Though I lied to Rhys before about lacking the ability, I didn’t have the time to argue with Ava. It was better for me to get out of here now before Rhiannon had a chance to get away. Unless she had already.
As I reached for the power, a sudden heaviness infused my limbs. Ava looked at me, arms still crossed, her hip cocked to one side, and a smirk on her face. Somehow she knew what I was about to do.
“Release me, woman,” I demanded.
Her smirk spread into a delighted grin. “Make me,” she taunted.
I was tempted. Goddess, how I was tempted, but she couldn’t know of all my abilities. Not yet.
Kerry’s voice rang out. “We’ll all go.”
Now it was Ava’s turn to look upset. She twisted toward the witch.
“Kerry, I realize you’re one of Rhys’ friends, but I don’t know you. I don’t know what you’re capable of. I don’t even know if I can trust you. Until those questions are answered, I don’t want you involved.”
The witch smiled. “I’m already involved.” Her eyes flicked to Finn, who gave a single nod. “A few months ago, I found a book in my library. It belonged to my mother and she left a vision spell inside.”
Ava’s brows lifted at the mention of the dangerous spell. If the witch who spoke the words wasn’t powerful enough, they could find themselves trapped within the spell, forever lost.
Kerry approached Ava. “What’s interesting is the witch I saw while I was in the vision spell. She looked a great deal like you. Her name was even similar.”
Ava’s body grew still and her arms fell to her sides. She was on alert, her attention completely focused on Kerry.
“Aveta,” Kerry murmured. “Her name was Aveta. And strangely enough, she was a deity of fertility and childbirth with a deep affinity for water. Much like the mother Goddess.”
The name pierced my heart for some reason. It resonated deep within me, as though it were shaking the foundations of my very soul.
Ava went utterly still and silent, her eyes flaring to life almost as a vampire’s would. Her hair lifted as a maelstrom of magic suddenly whipped into existence.
“That name,” she whispered. Even I could barely hear her over the howling wind. “I know that name.”
Kerry moved closer to Ava. “You know that name because it was yours,” she st
ated softly. Hesitantly, she reached out and touched Ava’s arm. “I’m here to help you, Aveta. I’m here to bring back your memories of who you once were. Not just a witch, but one of those blessed by the Goddess with a piece of her power, a deity in your own right.”
All at once, the storm of power surrounding us dissolved as quickly as it came. Ava’s legs collapsed beneath her and, though Kerry was closer, I was the one who caught her before she could hit the ground.
My hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly that it creaked and groaned in protest.
Not only had I lost the argument with Ava, but with Kerry and Finn. Then Rhys insisted that he join us and Savannah refused to be left alone. Ava hadn’t passed out earlier as I believed, merely lost the strength in her legs for a second. Within moments, she was back on her feet and ready to go.
So now all six of us were piled in Rhys’ SUV and headed to the neighborhood where Ava lived. The address that Callum sent me was located across the street from her house. Which meant Rhiannon had been within arm’s reach the entire time. She could have hurt Ava whenever she wanted. The knowledge made my head pound. All this time I’d convinced myself I was protecting her and I’d been clueless.
I glanced at Ava in the passenger seat but she didn’t seem to notice my attention. Her head was turned away from me as she stared out the window.
The first tinge of dawn breached the horizon, bringing grey and purple light into the darkness. Pink and orange were just beginning to leach into the sky as we approached Ava’s neighborhood.
Before I turned onto her street, I parked the car on the side of the road and turned toward everyone else in the car.
“I will go in first. If anything seems off, your primary goal is to protect yourselves,” I commanded.
Ava sighed. “I’m going in with you.” She held up a hand when I turned a glare toward her. “I’m not going to argue with you, Macgrath. Either I go in with you or I pull the same trick I did back at Savannah’s and make you stay in the car.”
I growled low in my throat. “You do what I say, when I say it.”
She leaned toward me. “We are in this together, whether you like it or not. We all have to protect each other. Don’t let your obsession with protecting me get in the way of everyone else’s safety.”
Her words took the fight right out of me. She was right. I was being irrational. She was the most powerful witch I’d ever met, likely even more powerful than Rhiannon. She was more than capable of protecting herself and others. The only reason she hadn’t easily defeated the dark witch before was because Rhiannon was willing to fight as dirty as she had to in order to win. She would threaten and even kill innocents. She had no conscience. Toward the end of the century I’d spent as her errand boy, I’d begun to wonder if she even had a soul.
Kerry scooted forward to the edge of the backseat. “I’m strong as well, Macgrath. Finn and I can defend ourselves. And you know what Rhys can do.”
While her words didn’t exactly reassure me, Finn’s nod helped. No vampire would allow his mate to go into danger if she wasn’t able to defend herself. It went against our very nature. Hell, it was difficult to do even if our mates were strong enough to win a battle.
“Fine,” I grumbled, putting the car into gear and pulling back onto the street. Shooting Ava a sideways glance, I stated, “But if you get hurt, I’m not nursing you back to health this time.”
She snorted. “Oh, because you’re a regular Florence Nightingale?”
Kerry giggled from the backseat, but the sound was cut off abruptly, as though she were choking it back.
I looked into the rearview mirror and Finn’s eyes met mine, full of understanding and maybe even sympathy.
I parked several houses down from Ava’s house and we all climbed out of the car. The streets were still quiet at this hour but it wouldn’t be long before morning commuters would leave their houses to get to work.
“Ava and I will take the front.” I thought it best since she lived in the neighborhood and most people wouldn’t think twice if they saw her walking around. I gave Finn and Kerry a questioning look. “Can the two of you handle the back?”
Finn nodded.
Ava turned to Savannah and handed her a ring of keys. “Go in through the back door of my house and wait there.” She looked at Rhys. “The spells there would probably withstand a nuclear bomb. I doubt Rhiannon could break through.”
“I can—”
Ava shook her head. “I know you’re developing your powers, but you need to sit this one out. Your abilities haven’t strengthened enough to take on Rhiannon if it’s necessary.”
Savannah sighed and relented. “Fine.” She kissed Rhys’ cheek and headed toward Ava’s property, cutting through the back yards of several neighboring lots so that she would remain unseen from the house on the other side of the street. Once she disappeared into Ava’s house, the rest of us faced each other.
“Don’t hold back,” Ava instructed Kerry and Finn. “Rhiannon isn’t weak. She’s vicious and unpredictable. She will kill you if she has a chance.”
Once we all agreed on the strategy, we split up. As Ava and I approached the yard, she sent out a small ripple of power. There was no reaction, no protection ward set up.
With each step, I could feel her power rise just a bit, as though she were turning it up an inch at a time. Nothing happened. The air remained still and quiet.
“This is weird,” she whispered, her voice so soft that even I could barely hear it. “She should have spells of some sort set up. To hide her presence, to protect herself from an attack like this.”
“You don’t feel anything?” I asked.
“Nothing.”
The only magic around us was Ava’s as we walked up the sidewalk. We paused together outside the front door. Ava lifted a hand and pressed her palm to the wood. She closed her eyes, releasing one small stream of magic. When nothing happened, she did it again, more this time.
There was no reaction.
She nodded to me and stepped aside.
Taking a deep breath, I lifted my foot and kicked the door in.
Chapter Eleven
Ava
“Well, that was anticlimactic,” I sighed as I led the group into my house.
The home across the street had been empty. Rhiannon long gone.
Honestly, it pissed me off that she avoided capture again. She might not have my strength, but the witch was definitely cunning. If she wasn’t such an asshole, I would have admired her initiative.
“I take it she wasn’t there,” Savannah said, coming out of the kitchen with a cup of coffee in one hand.
“No, she wasn’t,” I answered. “Please tell me you made a whole pot.”
Savannah smiled and handed me the cup. “I did.”
“Thank the Goddess for friends like you,” I breathed, taking a large sip of coffee.
“I also called Harrison,” she stated.
I blinked at her for a moment, uncomprehending of her meaning. “Oh, shit! The shop. It’s probably a mess.”
I followed her when she turned and walked back into the kitchen. “Nope. Harrison said he handled the clean up. Apparently, his pack is dealing with the repairs as well since you can’t exactly make an insurance claim.”
“I can take care of it,” I argued.
Savannah laughed and continued pouring coffee for everyone else. “It’s too late for that.”
I stopped arguing and sipped my coffee, my mind going back to the house across the street. Rhiannon had definitely been there. In fact, she’d left a note.
See you next time.
It had been a giant fuck you.
While Macgrath had cursed and stormed around the house, looking for clues or things she left behind, I stood very, very still and focused on my breathing. I didn’t have the luxury of losing my temper.
The last time I had…I still couldn’t remember that time without a crushing sense of guilt and shame.
I couldn’t let my contr
ol slip for even a moment. One slip, one moment of loosening my grip, and the powder keg of power within me would ignite and lay waste to anything or anyone in its path. I couldn’t risk destroying people with my anger as I had once before.
Once I knew I had control over my emotions, I took one last cleansing breath and decided to spend some time on my yoga mat this afternoon. I needed all the serenity I could muster.
I felt the weight of eyes on me and knew before I lifted my gaze that Macgrath was watching me. Our stares clashed and I schooled my face, giving nothing away.
I’d let my guard down with him. Not completely, but too much. I didn’t think he was my enemy any longer, but he stirred long dormant emotions in me. Emotions that I never remembered experiencing before.
Once, I believed my heart was made of stone. That there was no room for love in my life. Then I met Savannah and grew to love her as though she were my daughter.
But romantic love and the sexual intoxication that accompanied it? Never. Sex was fun and it felt good, but it never seemed vital or compulsive, as though I needed a man’s touch as much as I needed the air in my lungs or the water I drank.
The feelings that Macgrath stoked in my belly were dangerously akin to the necessity for oxygen, food, and water.
I couldn’t allow that. At least not with Rhiannon watching, waiting, and scheming. Her machinations would be carefully planned, even if they appeared chaotic. Such as the explosion at the coffee shop.
What did that accomplish? Sure, we might have to close The Magic Bean for a few days for repairs, but it would be as good as new within a week and back in business.
Unless destruction wasn’t her plan.
Macgrath straightened from where he’d leaned back against the cabinet and I realized I’d been staring at him as my mind worked.
“What is it?” he asked.
I frowned. “I’m not sure. It just makes no sense. Rhiannon attacking us at The Magic Bean and staying at the house across the street, yet not making any moves to harm me. What is she waiting for? What does she want?”