Ollie, Ollie Hex 'n Free (Easy Bake Coven Book 5)

by Liz Schulte

  “Enough. I have killed for less. Tell me.”

  “You think I’m not aware of that?” He was angry, but I wasn’t about to reveal anything to him that he didn’t already know. “Why don’t you tell me why you’re here?”

  “I know, Corbin. I know everything. You have been distracted, withdrawn. I tried to talk to you and you lied.”

  “I never lied.” Withheld, perhaps, but never lied.

  “I had a visitor today. One you are apparently quite close with.”

  Fucking Selene. “Oh?” I stood up and pulled on a pair of pants.

  “You bonded with the witch.”

  I picked up a long sleeve shirt from the floor and put it on too. “I didn’t mean to. You know I would not have hurt your sister.”

  He nodded only once. “You could have ended the pain long before you did, though.”

  I sat back down on the bed. “I never would have let her go. It was an accident.”

  “You care for the witch. That isn’t the problem.”

  “What is?”

  “Do you know how long I have waited and worked for the Abyss to open to our kind? The amount of effort and expense I have gone to, in order to make myself indispensable to the right people? The Erlking himself came to me for help not too long ago, and you jeopardize that. For what?” His voice thundered off of the walls.

  “She would have died had I not helped her. Surely the Erlking will not hold you responsible for me keeping his wife alive.”

  “Not her, Corbin. The witch you freed last night. The one who threatens them.”

  Oh. Her. Suddenly it was clear why Selene chose to go to Paolo and not to me. I placed my hands on either side of me and leaned forward. “I was protecting Selene.”

  “Try again.” Paolo toyed with the blade still between his fingers.

  “The witch wanted to be in the castle, she wanted the child, and she had a plan. I removed her to protect Selene.”

  “No.” The blade pierced through my hand deep into my mattress. “Had you wished to protect her, you would have killed the witch who threatened.” He tore the blade back out. The pain was much worse the second time through.

  “Sonofabitch.” I held my hand to my chest. “You know you are only hurting Selene.”

  “No, you’re hurting her. You choose to lie to me. And every time you do, she will feel your pain.”

  “She offered me Selene,” I ground out. “In exchange for helping her possess the child, I would get Selene. The elves and witches were close to figuring it out. Her plan was going to fail, so I got the witch out. I will not continue to live tied to someone I will never have. Why should she not be mine?”

  Paolo leaned back in the metal folding chair he must’ve brought with him and crossed his legs.

  “Do I not deserve to be happy?” I asked.

  “What else have you hidden from me?” Paolo asked.

  If Selene wanted to go over my head then she would deal with the consequences of that. “There is a necromancer.”

  The blade stopped in his hand. “Why have you not dealt with her?”

  “She isn’t a threat yet. She doesn’t embrace or understand her gifts.”

  “Then she is all the easier to kill.”

  I shook my head. “She is a bounty hunter and isn’t without friends. If I kill her, it will draw attention. Selene nearly did it for me, a few months ago.”

  Paolo tapped the knife against his leg. “Can you not just have an affair with Selene? Must you possess her?”

  Once I had her, she would be mine. I would never let her go. No one, especially Cheney, would ever touch her. “She will not.”

  He shook his head. “Is there nothing I can do to talk you out of this madness?”

  I shook my head. If the witch could give me a chance at Selene, I would be a fool not to take it—a fool that would live with regret for a thousand or so years.

  “Then I will not stop you…but I will not protect you either. If you are caught and the Erlking asks for your life, it will be granted.”

  “He cannot kill me so long as his wife lives.”

  “Very true, but he may keep you for as long as he wishes and do as he pleases. Including burial.”

  A buried vampire would starve to the point of insanity, then eventually wither past the point of recognition until it fell into a deep slumber—a hibernation if you will. A vampire bonded to another living being, like I was, would only have the madness. Continually fed through the bond, I would never wither and I would never hibernate. I would simply have to wait. Forever.

  “He would not hurt Selene.”

  “She is a witch. There are ways she can protect herself.” He stood in a single fluid movement. “Is it worth the risk?”

  “Yes,” I said.

  “Very well.” He left the room. “Corbin,” he called. “If you lie to me again, there won’t be a discussion. Oh—and I’ve left you a gift. I don’t expect a return.”

  The muffled sound of my front door closing, released something in me. My fist slammed into the wall, and plaster and dust fell around me. I picked up the metal chair, twisted it beyond recognition, then threw it across the room. She went to Paolo.

  My phone rang. I knew it was her before I even looked. I dropped the cell phone onto the floor and crushed it with my boot. If she wanted to talk, we would bloody well do it in person.

  I stalked down my hallway and into the living room—then stilled as I took in Paolo’s present. It was Selene’s lookalike, dazed and smiling on my couch. I didn’t fucking care how he knew about her.

  I took her hand. She slowly rose to her feet, eyes unfocused, and ran her hands over my chest. Her lips automatically sought mine, but settled for my neck. Closing my eyes, I traced my hands down her spine toward the swell of her perfect ass, trying to convince myself it was Selene, but her nagging presence inside of me wouldn’t allow me to pretend this woman was anything more than an imitation that I did not want. Not really.

  I took her lips, my tongue plundering her mouth as I drew hard against her life force. I needed to forget. I needed the numbing of overindulgence. My fingers dug into the soft flesh of her ass as I lifted her from the floor, my body pinning hers to the wall. Her fingernails scratched down my back as her thighs squeezed around me.

  It’s still not Selene, my voice echoed through me. She doesn’t smell like her, she doesn’t taste like her and when she’s gone, you will still have nothing.

  I didn’t want nothing.

  I lowered the woman back down to the floor and backed away from her. She aged. She aged a lot. She blinked several times as filmy blue cataracts formed over her eyes, then she crumpled to the floor. She wasn’t dead, but I had as good as killed her. She would probably never recover from the venom of our kiss, mine or Paolo’s—and her death would be painful and prolonged.

  I lifted her from the floor, took her to my bed, and placed her under the covers. What was I supposed to do with her now? I stared down at her and tried to feel sympathy or regret, but nothing came. She wasn’t Selene. No one ever would be.

  I headed out of the house, closing the door behind me. I would figure out what to do with the woman later. Right now I had a witch to see.

  ****

  “Not much of a secret hideout,” I said, walking into the morgue of the abandoned hospital.

  “It’s the perfect hideout,” a pretty dark haired woman with a slight Dutch accent purred, sitting up on the autopsy table. She waved her hand over her head. “Death, death, mental illness. They’ll never trace us.”

  Dirt and flecks of paint from the peeling walls covered the floor. A few lights, protective glasses, and some hoses were the only things on the tables. Jessica stood at the window, scowling out at the light that barely penetrated the filth.

  “Well, I love what you’ve done with the place.” I touched the rusted shade over one of the lights. “You have a problem,” I told Jessica.

  She turned her head slowly, eyes narrowing. “A problem you created
. My plan would have worked.”

  “You’re in over your head. They were inches away from figuring you out. If I didn’t free you, the witch would be free and whatever you are would be in hell.”

  Her teeth clenched. “What exactly do you see as my problem?”

  I flashed a smile, not even attempting to make it friendly. “I am. You see, if you can’t succeed, you cease to be useful to me. And if you aren’t useful, there’s no reason for you to be alive.”

  “How dare you threaten me?” She got that faraway spell casting look in her eye.

  My hand darted out, and I lifted her by the throat until her toes scraped the floor. “No spells. No escape. You give me what you promised or die.” A hose wrapped around my throat and tightened as the pretty brunette attempted to strangle me. I reached around and knocked her away. “A tip. Next time you strangle someone, make sure they need to breath. Like this.” I tightened my fingers and Jessica sputtered, clutching at my hand. I held her for just a moment longer then dropped her to the ground. “I am stronger, faster—and more resolved to get what I want.”

  Jessica waved her hand. “Enough, Monique. He’s still useful.”

  The woman behind me dropped her hands, giving up whatever spell she was saying to cast.

  “Give me one reason why I shouldn’t kill you both.”

  “We had a setback. We haven’t been defeated.”

  I shook my head. “She knows your plan by now.”

  “It doesn’t matter. There are other ways to get what we want.”

  “How?” I asked.

  Her eyes narrowed. “You will see.”

  I crossed my arms. “I’m not going to waste my time. Right now, I can take you back to Selene and erase any suspicion she has about my loyalty.”

  “Mon, get Gregor and Cyrus. It’s time.”

  Monique’s head rolled back and she grinned. “With pleasure.” She skipped out of the room.

  I looked at Jessica.

  “I do not have to explain myself,” she said through gritted teeth. “Selene will be yours and the child and its limitless capabilities will be mine. Nothing has changed other than the method that will be used.”

  “What is the new method?”

  “She will be weakest when she goes into labor. I just have to get this vessel killed in her vicinity. Her resistance will be negligible.”

  “And how will that give me Selene?”

  “It won’t, but this will.” She handed me a vial of bright pink liquid. “She needs to drink this before she goes into labor. If that happens, once I am in the child, I can free her once and for all. Everything that binds her to the elf will dissolve and she will have eyes only for you.”

  “And it will be her? If I wanted her submissive and compliant I would do it myself.”

  She sighed. “She will be as difficult as ever.”

  “It won’t hurt her? Because if you harm her, you will wish I killed you now.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Enough. No more questions. If you wish to kill me, then do it.” She waited. “That’s what I thought. Move. I have places to go.”

  My forehead was stuck to the page of the spell book when my own snore woke me. I groaned as I sat up and tried to work out the kink in my neck. “What time is it? Why’d you let me sleep?”

  Leslie yawned. “I don’t know. They really need a window in here. It’s like time doesn’t exist in this room.”

  “It’s after eight,” Frost said, not looking a bit sleepy.

  “How is it possible you aren’t tired? Do necromancers secrete caffeine?” I took a drink of my cold coffee, hoping it would get the horrible dryness out of my mouth.

  She shrugged. “Sometimes when I’m chasing a bounty I’m up for a couple days at a time, then I crash. I guess I’m used to it.” She stretched her arms after she double-checked no one was near her, despite the fact she was still wearing her gloves. “So what’s our new plan? I’m working on the spell to take Jessica’s magic, but how will we cast it without Selene’s help?”

  “How many witches does it take to send a soul to hell? Sounds like a bad joke,” I said with another yawn. I stood up. I had to move or I would fall back to sleep.

  “More than two,” Leslie said, shaking her head. “I honestly don’t know how we’re going to pull this off, Kat.”

  “It’s possible,” I insisted. We were just tired. We weren’t seeing the answer that had to be right in front of us. There was a way. I refused to accept anything else. “Do we have all the spells pretty much tweaked for our purposes?”

  They nodded.

  “Okay, why don’t we take a break and get out of here? When we come back later, how much do you want to bet the problem solves itself?”

  “It’s worth a try,” Leslie said. “So where are we going? The kitchen?”

  I shook my head. “No, we’re leaving the castle. We need a legit change of scenery.” Leslie and I headed for the door, but Frost didn’t even stand. “You coming?”

  “Where are you going?”

  That was the question all right. We really weren’t “allowed” to go anywhere in the Abyss anymore and in the human world we’d be sitting ducks waiting for Jessica to attack. There was only one place no one would say a word about us being there. “The Office. We can torment Sy for a while.”

  “As much fun as that sounds. I think I’ll stay and keep prepping. I don’t do crowds.”

  I didn’t argue with her. What could I say? If anyone, besides someone who was already dead, touched her, they died. If I had that kind of baggage I wouldn’t do crowds either. Leslie and I made it up to the great room as Cheney and his half-sister were headed for the main door. Lily smiled and waved at us.

  “I thought the two of you moved back to the human world,” she said, coming over.

  “We did, but then the threat level went crazy. Go figure. Now everything is spiraling out of control.”

  “As usual,” Cheney said, shaking his head. He took a deep breath. “And speaking of that, Selene is on bed rest until further notice. If you see her up and about, make her lie down.”

  I wrinkled my nose. “Um, precisely how are we supposed to do that?”

  “I don’t know. But we have to figure something out. According to Sy’s mother if she doesn’t rest until the birth, she’s not going to make it.”

  “You mean she’ll die?” Leslie asked.

  He nodded. “She cannot exert herself.”

  Well, holy shit balls. We really were on our own. “I’ll do everything I can. Does she want company? We were just taking a break. I’d be happy to go hang out with her.”

  “No, Sy’s with her now and I’ll be there all night. Right now she needs to relax and allow herself to rest. How are the spells coming?”

  “Works in progress,” I said.

  He nodded. “Well, then I bid you goodnight. I am sure we will speak more in the morning.” He kissed Lily on the cheek. “Thank you for coming by.”

  “Later,” she said. “The two of you look like you could use a drink.”

  “Or ten,” I said.

  “Come to the club.” Lily smiled brightly. “I promise you’ll have a good time.”

  Leslie shook her head. “We’re not supposed to leave the castle. The elves hate us and are on the rampage because Sebastian promised we were leaving and we haven’t—and Jessica could come after us again.”

  Lily waved off the objections, stepped between us and hooked our arms in hers. “My club isn’t just elves. Everyone is welcome and everyone pretty much comes. No one will even notice you’re there. The people who hate you are obnoxious prigs. Don’t give them a second thought. You’re my guests.” She winked and dragged us toward the door. “Trust me. We’ll have fun.”

  “I guess one drink couldn’t hurt.” Leslie gave me a helpless look.

  “Not one bit. It’s the least I can do for Selene. She’s stuck in bed so I’ll entertain her friends. You guys are cool with jinn, right? Doesn’t matter, they’re fun. You’ll like
them.”

  “Um, I guess,” I said. “Did Cheney tell you to take us out of the castle?” I couldn’t quite grasp why Cheney’s half-sister suddenly wanted to hang out with us tonight. She hadn’t shown a huge amount of interest in us before now.

  She snorted. “No. Cheney’s too wound up in everything he can’t control to think of arranging entertainment for anyone. Honestly, looking at the two of you, it must be catching.”

  I frowned. Of course we were “wound up.” How could we be anything else?

  “Look, I know I can’t help you with my ability. It will only make things worse. I’m more useful in the power plays. But according to Cheney and Sy, Selene needs to relax. How is she supposed to do that when everyone in the castle is ready to burst out of their skins? So that’s my personally assigned mission. One by one, I will get all of you to relax and burn off some energy. Starting with the two of you.”

  “And what happens when Jessica attacks your club to get to us?” Leslie asked.

  “Pssh. Been there, done that. First, all publicity is good publicity, right? Second, she will have about ten jinn to get past before she can get to you. By that time, I will have transported us back to the castle.”

  We stopped at the castle gates.

  “You’re not really going to turn back after you’ve come this far, are you? Come on. Laziness could be a virtue.”

  I laughed. “You had me at alcohol. Take me to your bartender.”

  “Leslie?”

  Leslie tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. “We still have work to do, so not too late, okay?”

  Seconds later, we were in Lily’s office inside the club. The large room, filled with tables (poker, craps, roulette, and even a few I didn’t recognize), was bursting at the seams. Lily had a point about no one noticing us. It was so crowded it would be hard to notice anyone.

  “Don’t you have fire codes?” I asked.

  Lily gave me a confused look, but shook her head. “There are two bars, but I suggest you stick to the one in back. If you want to place any bets, I would be happy to extend you a line of credit. You’ll have your own personal escort this evening whose sole mission will be to make sure you’re having fun. If you need anything, just ask.” She waved and disappeared into the crowd.