“What the hell just happened?” I heard Lily’s shook voice behind me.
She had been saying my name over and over before that, but I had heard it faintly and from a great distance away, as if in a vacuum.
I didn’t dare turn and face her. “You have to go now, Lil,” I said with a quiet growl. “I have not been feeling well. Don’t come back here. It’s best we don’t see each other for a while. Don’t ask me to explain.”
“I’m just--” There was concern and fear in her voice.
I sensed her hand reaching for my shoulder. I spun away. “You need to go. Trust me on this, Lily. Please.”
Her lips trembled. She was breathless, heartbroken. “First you don’t text back for days and now this? And you ask for trust? You’re looking at me like I’m the devil. What the hell is happening? Talk to me.”
I opened the door for her, my eyes watering. “Just go.”
The tears on her cheeks almost brought me to my knees. She snatched her jacket and walked out without a word.
Oh, shit, oh shit, oh shit…
I paced the room, belligerent mutterings spilling out of my mouth. I turned away my best friend. My heart felt like it was being torn out of my chest, but I had to push her away. Violent days were ahead.
A chill spread over me. Lucia was knee deep in forbidden magic. She knew I was from the Deep Down. Why else would she have sent that evil charm, loaded with an obstruction spell?
To be honest, I was mostly pissed she had risked her own daughter and my best friend on such a dangerous undertaking.
Could I even trust Lily again? I swatted the troubling thought away.
Lily was an innocent bystander. I had to believe that or what was the point of anything? I would protect Lily no matter what, even if that meant leaving her life for good.
And where the hell was Winter? I needed him. The only person I could count on I had to chase away. And now what was I left with? All these ugly souls who couldn’t care less if I lived or died. If they even have souls.
I tapped my fingernails on the coffee table. I had managed to summon him before with a powerful ritual that almost destroyed me. But now I was under a blood oath that restricted use of my magic. And my free will, really.
I picked up the phone and texted Faion.
Need u to help me find W. IRL ASAP.
Sitting on my couch, waiting for Faion’s text, I wondered if I would ever again be allowed to walk free with my friends in the basic world.
CHAPTER 20
____________________________________
The lock made a clicking sound when I tried the handle. A fraction of a second later, an electric jolt pulsed through my fingers.
With a yelp, I spat on my hand to cool down the burn. I pushed gently against the door and was shocked again, but this time I was better prepared, as I formed a thin barrier of elemental energy to guard my skin.
I had come to the right place. It wasn’t electricity or fancy tech that had knocked me back—it was a protective ward, powerful enough to repel a small army.
The place was boobytrapped. I sensed wards, protective spells and energy shields strategically placed in layers to reinforce their effectiveness.
It would take hours, if not days, to break the wards, but, luckily, all I had to do was bypass them and I was pretty sure I knew the cheat code.
I lowered myself to eye level with the lock to use my secret weapon, the true name of the man who owned the condo and had installed the magic that sustained the ancient wards.
“Winter,” I whispered, followed by a monosyllabic spell that was as potent as devastating when used in conjunction with a ritual name—UNSEAL.
The magic ward on the door hissed and smoked before it split in two and retreated to allow me entrance.
I stepped into a dense quagmire of protective spells and wards connected to each other through elaborate witchcraft patterns. A thief would be striped with burnt flesh before they took a second step in here.
Some of the spells used to bind together the crisscrossing elements were simple spells I recognized—others were beyond my skill. It would take me a lifetime to defuse them, and even then, they’d renew themselves almost instantly as that was how they had been designed. Only their master could truly shut them down. His name alone would not protect me. The wrath of the ancient guards, slithering about the condo, would erupt if I disturbed their balance in the slightest.
I switched on a lamp and walked about the living room on tiptoes. Unlike the shitty car he drove, this place must have cost a small fortune. Situated on the waterfront in the most hip area of La Jolla, it featured an open floor plan with cherry hardwood flooring and huge sliding glass doors that provided stunning views of the Pacific Ocean. Contemporary art hung on the walls and the kitchen set the standard for state-of-the-art.
The wards shadowed my every move, unsure of my intentions, white lines glowing inches away from my feet but not daring to touch me.
Winter’s name was a weapon like no other in my hands.
But it shouldn’t be. When I left the Deep Down, I vowed to live a magic free life in the basic world. In the span of a few days, I had violated that promise to my Order a hundred times over.
I had basically twisted Faion’s arm to get him to help. He used a series of scouting spells to locate this condo, despite his certainty that I was going to get him killed, or worse, if Winter found out.
And now I had used the etheric essence of an Immortal Magistrate’s name to commit an act of territorial invasion.
I managed to sit down on his couch without triggering the wards.
Minutes went by, then an hour and another. Sunset came and went, the soft rosy heavens turning into a dark palette sprinkled with silver specks.
What if Winter didn’t come home tonight or ever? The condo was immaculate—in fact, it looked untouched, possibly for days. On the other hand, I had smelled fresh soap and after shave when I first entered. He had likely taken a shower that morning.
I became bored. I’d love to go through his desk drawers, but I doubted his wards would allow it. I took my phone out of my jacket and jotted down some random thoughts in the notepad.
It was close to one in the morning when I jolted awake after dozing off in the fetal position on his couch. I heard steps outside the door. I sat up and straightened my hair, making myself look alert and totally chill.
The door swung open and Winter walked through it. He saw me and stopped, all the color draining from his face.
It was then I noticed the sword in his hand. He sensed his wards had been disturbed, but obviously did not think me capable of the feat.
Insulting.
I stretched and yawned. “Hi, Jonas,” I said, grinning.
He shut the door, locked it, then regarded me with a heavy glare. He was not one bit amused.
“Jonas Sandell,” I went on, pleased with his frustration. “Sounds like a Viking or at least a major shareholder of IKEA.”
“Are you finished?” he said, placing the sword on the table.
“Yes, Jonas, I’m finished.”
“I bet Mr. Trice regrets the day he met you,” he said. “The things you’ve been forcing him to do are not healthy choices.”
“Anyone could find out the name of a property owner,” I said. “I hardly needed help.”
“Not the name, the location,” he said as he set a pile of junk mail on his counter. “But I am too tired to discuss. We both know the truth.”
“Do Immortals get tired?”
“Only if they have to deal with you,” he said.
“That was a joke,” I said, almost proud of him.
“It really wasn’t,” he said, sitting down in an armchair. “There is, however, something we need to discuss.”
“I agree.”
“You used my name,” he said, punching each word. “You have violated my trust at the highest degree.”
“Trust? Did you say trust? That’s most definitely a joke. You take me to your fr
eaking Council of prehistoric bullies, you force me to take a blood oath and then you vanish, leaving me to fend for myself. Boom. Trust broken.”
“You used my ritual name to find my home and to break my wards. Not only violating our bond, but your bond to the Council and your bond to your own Order for that matter.”
“You should talk, you’ve always used my ritual name,” I reminded him.
“And I retained respect for your name. I honored its ancient line of magic. You spat on mine. Give me a good reason I shouldn’t inform the Council.”
“Hmm, I don’t know, because then you’d have to admit all the secrets you have knowingly allowed Faion and me to witness.”
We were at an impasse. Neither of us were willing to accept fault.
“You are more than expected,” he said. “You’re not as naïve as you appear, you’re not a victim, you’re a…”
“A witch?” I put in. “Damn right I am. Never forget it.”
“I was going to say a worthy opponent, but yeah, you are a witch, or at least something that rhymes with it.”
It was my turn to glare at him. “What did you just say?”
“I thought you liked jokes?”
“Maybe that’s not your thing,” I said. “Mean is more your thing. And manipulation. And even when you were sort of supportive, it was all a big, fat act of deception and psychological violence.”
“You’ll soon be rid of me. One week and that’s it.”
“If I make it out alive.”
He flared his nostrils, then took off his jacket. I was surprised to see he wore a tight, olive t-shirt and slim-fit charcoal chinos. He looked like a normal guy—a ripped, streamlined, drop-dead gorgeous grown-ass man, but he’d totally blend into the world of basics.
“You’ll be fine,” he said. “I’ll make sure of it.”
“Dude, you’re so all over the place. First it was like ‘You will help me, or I’ll kill you’ then it was like ‘I’ll protect you. I’ll boil hearts for you.’ Oh, wait, and that totally weird thing you said about me finding you in my dreams.”
“I warned you, Luna, not to get close to me.”
I locked on his eyes. “Maybe you’re having dreams about me.”
“I rarely sleep.”
“Daydreams, then. And you totally lose it when I’m with guys.”
“I’ve been with the beauties of the ages, Luna Mae, your modern flair and schoolgirl charm is fine for the day, but hardly registers with a man like me.”
“Oh, so it does register,” I said. “I didn’t expect you to freely admit it.”
“Clever, but I neither dream nor feel jealousy,” he said. “And when you say you were with guys… you mean a shifter and a man who prefers men.”
“Is that it, Mr. Ikea, you prefer men as well?”
I did love getting under his indestructible skin.
He took a moment. “To you, I prefer almost anything,” he said.
“Keep telling yourself that,” I said, tired of the topic.
I walked over to grab a heavy hardback off a shelf. I leafed through it, not to read, just to enjoy its weight and old book smell.
Winter snatched it away and put it back on the shelf.
“Don’t touch without permission, Luna.”
“Sophie,” I said, raising my voice.
“What?”
“When we’re in the basic world, I’m Sophie and you’re Jonas.”
“Sophie,” he said, “you’re quite the… witch.”
I glanced side-eyed at him. “I see what you did there.”
“Perhaps, you see too much,” he said. “Wisdom has a sharp edge.”
“That’s kind of true,” I said, moving about his living space. “Hey, that ice queen at the Court, was she one of those beauties of the ages you’ve been with? You know, the ones who are so much more than me?”
“I do not submit to gossip,” he said, frowning.
I had touched a nerve. “I saw the way she looked at you, like all her ice might melt away with one touch of your fingers.”
“You want to question me about my love life?”
“Do you have one?”
“I do not have time for such dalliances. The world is at stake.”
“Hmm, maybe I should speak with her next time we meet.”
He exhaled, his eyes serious as hell. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll stay away from Chazona.”
Playing with fire was never my forte. Literally and figuratively. I never messed with fire. And yet… “Chazona? Really? That doesn’t quite roll off the tongue, does it? I bet it’s distracting as hell to say while in the throes of passion.”
He walked to the kitchen, ignoring me. I followed him.
“I received a basic’s evil spell while you were out screwing Arizona. My best friend delivered it unknowingly.”
I regretted my words immediately. Winter had been acting reasonable. There was no reason to provoke him.
His cold blue eyes calmly found mine, freezing my soul. “I have every confidence you handled it accordingly. If you cannot shatter a silly little spell by now, then we are all doomed.”
“Oh, okay, yeah, I’m good,” I said, wondering if I had overreacted with Lily and perhaps was too quick to link Lucia to Chaos and the morphs.
“Today’s our little secret,” Winter said, equally eager to erase our conversation and my misdemeanor break-in from our memories forever.
“Great. Agreed,” I said. “I really needed to see you. It’s the only reason I broke the rules.”
His shoulders tensed. “I come on too strong, I know, but that is not without reason. My responsibilities are great.”
I held his stare for a moment. “I guess I know how that feels. I want to explode all the time, too. We’re deep in this thing.”
He hesitated, then grabbed his jacket. “Yes, we are, indeed. Come with me, I’ll show you what I’ve been working on.”
CHAPTER 21
____________________________________
The night hummed like a living organism as Winter and I climbed a small bluff just south of the border. We stayed low when we reached the top. Down below in a small clearing, a dozen tents surrounded a stone fire pit. Through binoculars, I zoomed in on the eight shifters gathered around the high flames.
Five guards were in human form and two were in beast form (one wolf, one cheetah), and the final guard was in a state of mid-shifting: half-human, half-beast, and dripping with some sort of wet membranes. Horrific.
“They set up camp last week,” Winter said. “They bring in a few human captives every night. I want to find out what they do with them.”
“This feels like a trap,” I said.
“Possible, but unlikely,” he said. “Only the Grand Magistrate and I know this location. It’s doubtful Chaos even knows we know about his plans for the morphs. Only the council has that privileged information and each Magistrate has proven over many centuries to be extreme loyalists.”
“Here in the dirt world, we call that extremism,” I said.
“Exactly,” he said. “They will do what’s necessary.”
“Okay, so why did we climb up here?”
“They’re hiding something vital. I’d bet my life on it.”
I smirked. “Tough time paying that bet since you can’t die.”
“Then I guess we’ll pay with yours,” he said with a grin before pushing my face against the ground.
Immortal horse play sucks.
“I’m a girl,” I said, spitting dirt from my mouth. “Save that crap for your Immortal buddies.”
“Quiet, girl,” he said.
One of the men below swung his axe and bludgeoned the wolf’s skull. The wolf yelped achingly before going suddenly silent.
“That’s the alpha,” Winter said. “He’s displaying his authority.”
The alpha shifter was a massive man, at least six foot six, and he had a neck like a bulldog. He ranted at the fallen wolf who lay whimpering.
&n
bsp; Two other men lifted, then escorted the wolf away.
“Does the Seventh Council always meet in the SoCal Court?” I said.
“We move as needed. There is no base.”
“The gypsy life,” I said. “Do you pack up and leave when it’s over?”
He thought for a moment, which was unusual. “You’ll miss me?”
I shrugged. “So you keep saying.”
“I am aware of my unpleasant side,” he said, “but it would be far worse with any other magistrate.”
Was that a Winter apology?
“Definitely better you than Chazama.”
“The alpha shifted,” he said, “he’s on the move.”
I glimpsed a wolf the size of a Kodiak bear run off into the night.
Winter quickly formed a misty cocoon around me. “No matter what, stay here and stay inside the shield,” he said and took off before I could protest.
Of course, he’d hunt the alpha and leave me alone. What else was new?
I kept my head down, occasionally taking a quick peek below. The shifters that were in human form disappeared into tents. When they came back out, they had two children with them.
I looked through the binoculars. Two young girls, around seven years old, looking lost and worried. There was no way to tell if they were basics or shifters with all the auras floating around, but the fact their hands were tied told me all I needed to know.
The cheetah circled the girls while the mid-shifter twirled a large knife. The blade reflected the dancing flames in the fire pit. Somehow, the mid-shifter had kept his human face and human hands while the rest of him had shifted into a huge panther. I shuddered, knowing he had designed himself just for this moment of horror.
My heart pounded in my throat when a shifter kicked the terrified girls down onto their knees and forced them to rest their heads on blocks of wood.
Magic raced to my fingertips like an avalanche of hate. I surged to my feet. A ball of energy escaped my right hand, racing down to the fire pit.
Tongues of fire exploded out in an expanding circle, blasting the two shifters off their feet.
They bounced off their backs instantly and landed back on their feet.
Now they all sniffed the air and turned in my direction, like a single beast with multiple sets of eyes.
Luna Page 14