The Cat's Meow

by Stacey Kennedy

  “Fair enough.” Jace wiped at his pants and when dirt fluttered onto the ground, he scowled at it. No doubt he knew he’d face Peyton’s wrath once she forgot about his near-death experience. “Why don’t the Priestesses know of this already?”

  I shrugged, and was glad Jace agreed to my plan. “They know most of it, but I haven’t told them all of it yet.”

  Jace looked at Kale, then to me, and he smiled. “Naughty you.”

  “It’s not like that.” I glared at him. “I haven’t had the chance to tell them. Been a bit busy, you know. I planned to call them earlier and spill it all, but then Peyton called me here.”

  Jace studied me, long and hard. “How bad is it?”

  “Bad.” Kale pushed off the door, zoning in on me. “We need to keep moving and form a plan. You’ve seen that Peyton is fine, but this matter is not going to wait and we have to prepare ourselves.”

  I glanced at the hallway and wanted to go to Peyton. Maybe even stay with her. I hated to see her bothered by even little things. This had been huge, and leaving her in this condition made my stomach churn.

  “She’ll be fine, Libby,” Jace said.

  The softness in his voice dragged my attention to him, and I smiled. “I know. Just keep her out of it, okay? Don’t tell her anything about this, especially not tonight with her being so upset. She’ll just worry about me.”

  He inclined his head in agreement. “As long as you promise to call me in before you go after these assholes, I’ll keep this quiet.”

  “Deal.” It did please me we’d finally reached this place in our relationship. For years, we battled over what was right for Peyton, but thankfully we’d hit the place of compromise where we both won. I didn’t need to always win over him—even if I’d prefer it—as long as Peyton was cared for. “Tell her I had to take Kale back to the coven so my absence doesn’t worry her, and I’ll call her later.”

  Jace gave a firm nod. “Will do.”

  Kale opened the door and glanced over his shoulder at Jace with a tight expression. “We’ll be in touch.”

  “Glad to hear it.” Jace grinned.

  As I studied the two, they seemed friendly enough, so maybe they had good history together, but Jace was a pretty likable warlock so that wasn’t much of a shock. Hell, he was the only warlock I could stand, except maybe the one at the doorway. “If she doesn’t get any better, call me, okay?”

  “Libby, you have deeper shit to worry about.” Jace sighed. “She’ll be fine.” Then he smiled his mischievous grin. “So you’re not going to kill me tonight?”

  I stared him down and hoped a serious threat showed in my expression. “Not tonight, but don’t get too comfortable.” I approached Kale and meant this toward him as well, since he might go on my to-kill list, too. “That could always change.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Darkness greeted me as I stared out the passenger window. Kale insisted on driving—he said talking on the phone while driving wasn’t safe, and I needed to make a very important telephone call.

  I suspected he had become sick of not being in control of the wheel. He fit the alpha male persona, and I had to admit he looked good while he drove my SUV—comfortable. One hand on the wheel and the other on the armrest. Not that I minded anyway since I needed to think. I couldn’t get Peyton and my worries about her off my mind, but knew I had to. More serious matters were at hand, and Jace would settle her down as he always did. In fact, usually better than I did.

  Besides, I had to get back to digging into the warlock next to me. I turned in my seat, eyeing Kale. “Tell me about the case you and Jace worked together.”

  Kale’s hands tightened around the steering wheel. He stayed silent for three breaths before he said, “I’ve never worked with him.”

  Maybe I was getting to Kale, because he had finally given me a straight answer. Or perhaps he knew I would go back and force Jace to tell me anyway. I considered what that meant if they’d never worked together and a thought slowly formed. “This is your first time in Charleston, right?”

  Kale looked at me with a hard gaze, frustration darkening his eyes. “You know I’m new to Charleston.”

  Within his piercing look, I had the sense that Kale wanted me to know the truth, which was odd. Perhaps he had had enough of withholding information…and maybe even wanted me to figure it out. So, what did I know?

  Kale couldn’t tell me the real reasons he came to Charleston, or his real identity. Why? The more I considered it, the more I wondered if it’d been an order. If the coven had ordered him to withhold information from me, he would have no choice but to comply. Hell, I was bound by that very oath too. But why would the coven issue such an order? And why would Kale have the power to shut down Bryon and Jace as easily as he’d done?

  If Jace hadn’t worked with him, and Kale had never been in Charleston before, then how in the hell would they know each other? The only time Jace had ever left Charleston was to be rewarded by the Alchemy in New Orleans…

  Bryon worked for the Alchemy and he knew Kale.

  I looked at the warlock next to me, and his identity became clear. If Kale worked for the coven he’d have no more authority than Jace did. But perhaps the order didn’t come from the coven, but came from something far higher up the chain in the magical world—the Alchemy.

  He must be a Sentinel. They were the warlocks and witches employed by the High Priests to protect the Alchemy. Sentinel warlocks possessed impressive magic and skill, and didn’t that describe Kale well? And a Sentinel would have authority over a Ward, meaning Jace and Bryon would be cautious around him. “You’re a Sentinel, aren’t you?”

  Kale’s head whipped around to me, his brows raised. “Is that what you think?”

  With his shocked reaction, mixed with the twitch of his jaw, he told me without words I’d guessed right. “Yes, that’s what I know.”

  He stared a moment longer with intense eyes before his indifferent expression slid back into place, and he focused on the road. “Good theory.”

  I waited for him to elaborate, but when he didn’t, I snapped, “You have nothing more to say?”

  “Not a thing.”

  Did he just own up to it? Or did he just acknowledge that my theory sounded like a good one? Still, it didn’t add up if he worked for the Alchemy, because why couldn’t I know that? So, where did knowing this get me? A little closer to the truth, I thought, but not anywhere near a reason why Kale was with me.

  On a deep huff, I glanced out my window at the dark night. Since I wouldn’t get any more answers out of him, I knew one witch who would give it to me straight—who I needed to call anyway—so I reached for my phone on the dashboard. I dialed my mother and she answered on the second ring. “Are you sitting down, Mom?”

  “Why?” she responded in a tight voice.

  “Well…” From there, I recounted what I’d learned, what I’d been through, and the crazy-ass shit I found myself in.

  Through my talk, Kale pulled over and chatted on his phone, and I was pissed that I was talking to my mother because I couldn’t hear what he said. He kept his conversation short and was off the phone in less than a minute, but made another call, just as quick. Maybe he called while I was preoccupied on purpose so I couldn’t hear.

  By the time I finished with my story from hell, my mother was in stunned silence. I waited another few seconds, and then I cleared my throat. “Mom?”

  “Yes, I’m here, Libby.” Her voice trembled. “Hold on.”

  With his phone now back in his pocket, Kale glanced at me with concerned eyes, and I shrugged while I waited for my damn mother to get back on the phone.

  Finally, she did.

  “Is Kale still with you?” she asked.

  My blood boiled since it was obvious she didn’t plan to talk to me about what was going on, but a hint of heated emotion crossed my mother’s voice—anger. “Yes, he’s here,” I replied with hesitation, staring at the warlock in question, who looked calm and collected. “Wh
y?”

  Mom paused, and it became obvious she was hiding something from me. We never kept secrets. Ever. Hadn’t she drilled that lesson into my head a thousand times as a child?

  “Libby,” she said softly. “Put him on the phone, dear.”

  I remained fixated on Kale, watching him tense before my eyes. “Why?” I repeated.

  Mom raised her voice in her typical listen-to-your-mother snippy tone. “Put him on.” The strain was more obvious than ever, telling me her silence was an order, and an order that big to keep my mother quiet could only come from the Alchemy. She would have refused the High Priestesses if they had ever demanded that she lie to me, that I believed without a doubt. “Now.”

  The blood in my body turned wicked hot, and I inhaled sharply, catching a whiff of Kale’s woodsy scent, but even his yummy smell couldn’t calm me down. “I’m seriously done with this shit,” I yelled, not only at Mom, but at Kale too. “Why is everyone being ordered into silence by the Alchemy?” My hand trembled as I held the phone against my ear. “I’m tired of all the secrets and so damn sick of this game. Why do I have a Sentinel working with me? Why am I in the center of this mess? What the hell is going on?”

  Kale’s expression darkened, but his eyes softened, regretful, maybe.

  Mom sighed. “Libby, everything is fine. In fact, more than fine. You’re in good hands with Kale. I retract my statement earlier that you shouldn’t trust him. He is to be trusted, and then some. But I must speak to him.”

  Oh, I heard her message clear now. While some would think she’d given me advice to console me, it was such a switch in her original feelings toward Kale without ever meeting him, it told me my suspicions of Kale weren’t vague thoughts but truth. Only a powerful warlock—as in, a Sentinel—would sway her opinion so easily, and she hadn’t discounted what I said but avoided my questions, confirming that my assumptions were true.

  At my pause, her voice sharpened. “Put him on, Libby. Now.”

  With total frustration, since this new development only doubled my confusion because I didn’t understand why couldn’t I know Kale worked for the Alchemy, I threw the phone at Kale and he caught it, which infuriated me further. It would’ve been better if it smacked him in the head.

  He grinned at me and lifted the phone to his ear, resting his elbow against the door. “Kale.” He hesitated. “Yes…yes…that’s of no concern…of course I will. No, I need to take her somewhere else first.” After another pause, he continued, “Very well.” He offered me the phone. “She wants to talk to you.”

  I ripped the phone away from him, which he smirked at, and I glared back before staring out the front windshield. “What?” I snipped into the phone.

  Mom’s voice lowered in concern. “Promise me you’ll be safe, Libby.”

  While her worry for me was expected and I figured she threatened Kale’s life on the phone if he didn’t protect me, what floored me was that she hadn’t refused my joining Kale. We both knew I couldn’t fight against this rebellion. Maybe I was the strongest Enchantress in Charleston, but I was still simply that—a witch gifted by the Goddess to conjure spells, not fight nasty warlocks with demonic power. Besides, we’d already found the offenders, why was I still needed? “Are you honestly telling me to take part in this?”

  “Promise me you’ll be safe,” she repeated.

  I had it in mind to ask her what she said to Kale, more about him, and why she hadn’t stopped this in its tracks, but knew better. They’d all been ordered to tell me nothing—for whatever unknown reason—and no one would break their vow to the Alchemy, not even my mother. If she did, the Alchemy would order her death. But I knew without a doubt she believed I wasn’t in danger or she’d never follow the order, no matter if her life was on the line, so that gave me some reassurance. “Fine.” I shifted in my seat and continued to look out at the dark night through the windshield. “I’ll be safe.”

  “Please do.” Her voice lifted with confidence. “The Alchemy is on this and they’ll soon arrive to assist you, but stay close to Kale.”

  Good news, and also an explanation for why she didn’t force me to stay away. I suspected she wasn’t concerned because she didn’t think I’d be in the middle of it, not with the Sentinels’ arrival, and, more than likely, a Sentinel right next to me. Besides, since this case happened in Charleston, someone from our coven needed to be there to greet them, even if it made more sense for a High Priestess to go. With the force of the Alchemy dealing with the matter, my safety wouldn’t be an issue…maybe. “Okay.”

  “Stay focused, centered on the Goddess, and trust in her,” Mom continued. “You’ll do fine.” She hesitated again before she said in the softest whisper, “I love you, my darling.”

  I glanced down at the dashboard, trying to read between the lines and discover what I missed, and maybe find a hint of what she tried to tell me without words. I had no doubt within her advice there was a message. Trust in the Goddess, which also meant trust no one else but her, even if she told me to trust Kale. Besides all this nonsense, something else remained important. “Listen, I don’t want Peyton involved in this.”

  “Jace has already informed us.” Her warm voice indicated that she was smiling. “Peyton is at home and we’ve ordered her to stay, so that won’t be an issue.”

  Relief washed over me. It was one less thing I had to worry about, and I sighed as I glanced back out the side window when a cat ran by along the sidewalk. “Will Jace be joining us? I told him—”

  “Since you suspect that more demon summonings will happen, we’ll send him out with the other Wards to handle it.” Her voice firmed. “You don’t need him on this.”

  While that could be worrisome considering we needed as much help as we could get, it only established that Mom trusted that the Sentinels would have no issue with the rebellion. Why would they? They were the most powerful warlocks in the world, besides the High Priests themselves.

  “Got it.” I exhaled. “Love you, too.” I hung up and tossed the phone onto the dashboard, then turned my full-of-accusation glare on to Kale. My mother couldn’t tell me more about Kale, even if she implied I’d been right on his real identity, but that didn’t mean I’d give Kale an easy way out. “Why can’t you tell me you’re a Sentinel?” Watching him with interest, I searched for any hint of deception. “Really, who are you?”

  His pause was far longer than I thought it ought to be. “I’m Kale.” His jaw clenched. “You know this.”

  “Yes, you’ve already told me that, but who are you?” I was done; more than done, in fact. “Why have you and everyone around me been ordered to silence? ’Fess up, what’s going on?”

  He looked out the windshield, and the twitch of his jaw never ceased. “A group of warlocks is in Charleston and wants to summon a Prince of Hell. That is what’s going on, Libby.”

  Well now, maybe I was onto something with this. “You, as a Sentinel, have a duty to stop them?”

  His gaze flicked to mine in a hard challenge. “Don’t you have the same duty?”

  I sucked in a hard breath and gritted my teeth. He still avoided my question with a question of his own. Irritating! “My mother told me to trust you. Did you know that?”

  “I wasn’t aware.” He shrugged. “But I’m glad she did.”

  As it appeared, that was the end of the conversation. He put the SUV into gear and drove off. Not like it settled me any; worries flooded my mind. Thoughts about the rebellion and how dangerous this was wove a spell over me. I attempted to see past all the secrets, the hidden pieces to the puzzle, Mom’s cryptic message, and I failed miserably.

  Quite a few minutes later, Kale exhaled the longest breath. “All right?”

  “No.” What more needed to be said?

  He drove in the opposite direction of my house and I remembered what he had told my mother. “Where are you taking me exactly?”

  “We need to get you stronger.” His attention remained on the road, and he tapped his fingers against the steerin
g wheel. “You’re defenseless as is, and I imagine you’ve only tapped in to some of your abilities.”

  I snorted. “You’re an expert in that department, are you?”

  “I know a good witch when I see one.” He glanced sideways at me and studied me, and I instantly became uncomfortable. I liked and hated when he looked at me with such severe intent. He finally tore away and focused back on the road. “With this situation ahead of us tomorrow, you need more protection.”

  I absorbed what he said, blinked, and still had trouble processing. “You know how to obtain that?”

  “In fact, I do.”

  My eyes narrowed. Each time he opened his mouth, more confusion raced through my mind, as well as a million questions. “How?”

  Kale shook his head while he grinned at the windshield. “You’re so full of questions.” Then his smile vanished and darkness seeped into his features. “And so full of doubt.”

  I might have confirmed he was the reason behind all this doubt, but his white knuckles around the wheel indicated that he already knew. I allowed the silence to settle in, quieted my mind, and attempted to relax.

  After a few long, awkward minutes, he asked, “Do you enjoy your employment with the coven?”

  I turned my head, gawking at him. “You want to have small talk?”

  “Why not?” A hint of frustration deepened his voice, but he never looked at me. “The silence is heavy.”

  The silence was heavy, because of him, of what he didn’t tell me, and of the secrets between us. How peculiar to feel such a strong connection to a warlock I hardly knew, yet the pull I felt toward him was as if I had already learned all I needed to know. “Yes. I enjoy it. It’s my job. Do you?”