by Izzy Shows
I lurched forward, then forced myself to stand. “All right. Let’s get this door back together.”
Shawn disagreed. “I don’t think you’re in any condition to be lifting anything. Why don’t you just sit tight and let me handle it, OK?”
“You don’t have to tell me twice,” I said, slumping back into the chair, waving both my hands defeatedly in front of me.
He frowned. “How is it you have both of your hands back?”
“Magic,” I said, grinning. “Lots and lots of magic.”
“I didn’t know you could do that. Why have I been stitching you up all these years if you can just fix yourself?” He was frowning.
“Are you complaining about all the times you got to see me shirtless?” I pouted. “That’s not very nice.”
“Of course not,” he said, his tone dry.
“Well, if you must know, I didn’t do this to myself. But I can’t tell you who did or how it happened, so please don’t ask me.”
Another secret I would have to keep from Shawn, unfortunately.
He sighed, sounding a little put out. “All right. Have it your way.” He turned and walked over to the door lying against my couch, and it was then that I saw the workman’s belt hanging off his hips. He had a few tools stashed in it. I wondered where he’d got it, or if he was the type of guy who was very handy.
Not a huge deal, but it was something I hadn’t known about him, all the same.
He busied himself with taking the broken hinges off the door. “You’re lucky it’s all in one piece, although one side of it looks like it took a torch.”
“It did, in some ways,” I said. “There was a fire creature here. I had to fight it. It didn’t like my ice so much.”
“I can’t imagine why,” he said. I had the distinct impression he was rolling his eyes at me, though his back was to me. “You’re going to want to get this replaced soon, but it’ll do in a pinch.”
“I’ll get some wards up on it again, then think about replacing it when I get paid from Finn.”
“Good idea,” he said.
After he got the hinges off, he replaced them with shiny new ones, then lifted the door with both hands. I was impressed as I watched him carry it through the living room, and didn’t stop myself from admiring him as he put the thing back together.
Shawn was a very gorgeous man: tall, with a stocky build, and he tanned very nicely in the summer. He had muscles that didn’t come from a gym, but rather from working hard. He kept his hair cut short and had piercing eyes.
I was going to miss being in his arms once all was said and done. He did a lot of things well, no denying that, but he was a superb lover.
“So, you’ve been really busy lately,” he said as he worked.
I narrowed my eyes. “Yes.”
“What have you been up to?”
“A little of this, a little of that.”
I couldn’t tell him about the Order, not when I knew I was going to end things with him soon. He’d always said he wouldn’t ask more of me than I could give, that things would be casual between us. I hoped that meant that when things ended, he wouldn’t just disappear off the face of the Earth.
As shitty as it was, I still needed him around. Not for things like fixing my door; I could find someone else to help me with that. But for stitching me up when I didn’t know how to heal myself? I didn’t know anyone else who could do that for me.
But there was no denying that there was a good chance he wouldn’t want to hang around, that things would be awkward between us.
“Blair…”
“Yes?”
“We’ve always been straightforward with one another, so I’m just going to ask. Is there a reason you’re being so cagey?”
“I can’t talk about it, Shawn. It’s different,” I said. “Stop asking.”
He took in a sharp breath, and I could sense his patience wearing thin. That was fine by me. The more aggravated he became with me, the easier this would probably be when I got around to ending it.
It didn’t feel like a good time to do that right now.
“Fine,” he said. “I won’t push it.”
I had to look away from him, startled, though his back was to me. I hadn’t expected him to be so…understanding. “Thank you.”
“When you’re ready to talk to me, and I mean really talk to me, you know where I am,” he said. I heard him turn around and lifted my eyes again. The door was back in place.
He was done.
“Thanks for fixing the door,” I said softly.
“Do you want me to take a look at those burns?”
I shrugged, though the motion hurt. “They’re just burns. Nothing to do about them but put some cream on and wait for them to heal.”
“Maybe your mystery healer can help with that.”
Was it my imagination, or did he sound bitter?
My lips curved. Leave it to Shawn to never be jealous about the idea of me with anyone else, but to be territorial about who fixed me up.
“Shawn, you’ll always be my guy to stitch me up.”
“I should hope so,” he said, grinning. “I kind of like the job.”
“Good. You’re stuck with it.”
Maybe things could be normal between us, after all.
Thirty One
My sleep that night was about average for me—which is to say that it was absolute shit by other people’s standards. I was visited by my usual nightmares: the people and things I had killed or had been killed because I hadn’t got there in time.
There was one in particular that overshadowed the rest, though. That was of Mal, trying to explain to me what was going on. I knew in my heart that my brain was trying to rationalise it, but it did me no good to think up reasons for him. If he ever wanted to tell me—well, the odds were, I wouldn’t like the answer.
I sighed as I got out of bed, wincing at the pain that came with moving my shoulders. I thought about taking one of the pills Shawn had given me when I broke my arm and ribs—they would certainly take away the pain, considering how well they had worked on broken bones.
But I was going to see the Order today. I was going to go through more trials. I didn’t want to take the risk that the medication would have an effect on my powers. That, and who knew if anything else would come and attack me. No, I couldn’t take the chance.
So, instead, I got out of bed and pulled on my clothes. I didn’t have a single pair of jeans in good condition, so I had to settle for the least torn-up pair I owned. My knee poked through one of the holes, but at least the jeans did their job of holding up at my waist and covering most of me up.
Barefoot, I walked out into the kitchen and fixed myself a cup of tea. The Order would be here any minute; I had slept late, which meant there was no time for breakfast. The Order was nothing if not punctual.
Just as I was finishing my tea, the knocking came at the door.
“Coming!” I called.
I hurried back into my bedroom, yanked on a pair of socks, then stumbled into my boots in the living room. I yanked open the door, my jackets thrown over my arm. The freezing day beat at me, seeping into my bones.
But the anxious look on Gregor’s face affected me more than the cold.
“What happened to your door?” he said, looking past me to the scorch mark.
“Ah, well, you see, I had a run-in with some sort of fire creature last night. It was pretty intent on burning my house down, but I handled it.”
His eyes widened. Surprised? I couldn’t tell if it was because I had handled the creature on my own, or because it had attacked me in the first place. I decided to go with the former, because it left me feeling quite puffed up.
“An elemental.” He shook his head. “Something like that would have to be summoned from the Ether, bound by a Wizard. Not something a hedge witch would be able to do. That sort of magic requires training.”
I frowned. “Well, I mean, there are other ways to learn than through the Order. Don’t yo
u remember Deacon, the warlock who took down Aidan? He wasn’t trained by the Order. He came into his magic through other means.”
He shook his head again. “No, he was given brute force power from something. He wasn’t trained.”
“He bound undead to his will,” I said slowly. I didn’t see the difference between the two.
“Anyone can raise the dead, Blair. It’s not so difficult a task, forbidden though it is.”
I raised an eyebrow and filed the information away in the back of my mind. If anyone could raise the dead—well, that was something to be concerned about. Still, I didn’t think just anyone would be able to summon a Colossal Undead the way Aidan had. That had been a truly terrifying creature, the likes of which I would be happy if I never saw again, thank you very much.
I decided to let the argument drop, though, because clearly Gregor did not agree with me, and he was the expert on the subject. He hunted warlocks, after all.
“So, you think a Wizard did this?” I frowned. “Why would a Wizard attack me?”
“Why, indeed.” He wasn’t paying attention to me; he kept his narrowed eyes on the door behind me. I assumed he was thinking hard about it, wanting to know who had done this and how.
“Well, shouldn’t we be getting on, then? Important things to do and all.”
“No,” he said, shaking his head once more. “There won’t be any trials today. We will see you on the morrow. I must tell the Council about this.”
My eyes widened. “It’s that big a deal? Seriously, it wasn’t such a difficult thing to take down, all things considered. I’ve faced much worse before.”
“I’m sure you have, from what I’ve heard about you,” he said, shifting his attention to me at last. His eyes were still narrowed, and I was left feeling quite uncomfortable. “It doesn’t change the fact that this crime was committed by a Wizard, and the High Council must know about it.”
I sighed. “All right, then. I won’t object to having the day off. I don’t suppose you’ll let me know what you find out?”
He was silent, his features hardened.
“I didn’t think so. Privy information and all of that nonsense,” I said. “Well, I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”
I managed to sound nonchalant, but inside, I was doing a little happy dance. If they weren’t taking me away for the trials, that meant I had a whole extra day to figure out what to do about the mark.
I might be able to get out of this, after all.
Thirty Two
As soon as Gregor left, I hurried back inside and closed my door. Giddiness took over me. I had a whole day to myself, the first day since the Order had left the missive on my door. The lazy part of me wanted to take the day and lounge about, enjoying my freedom for once.
Hadn’t I just been wishing that I had one day to be normal? I could call Shawn and we could make a day of it, one of the last days we’d have before I dropped the hammer. But, no, that wasn’t fair to him, and I was an arsehole for even thinking of it.
I shook my head, clearing away the lazy thoughts. I was going to have to do a lot more than just enjoy the day. I was going to need to take hold of it and make it work for me.
Pacing the living room floor, I thought about all the things I needed to do. Contacting Mal was at the top of the list, but I didn’t want to do that just yet. Truth be told, now that I had tamped down my rage and feelings of betrayal, I was avoiding the confrontation. I could go to him tonight and hopefully get things wrapped up before I saw the Order tomorrow. I didn’t know when the aura reading would be, but I could sense that I was running out of time to get it handled.
I sighed. What to do in the in-between, then?
Raven. The thought sprang to mind immediately. Raven would know more about the Others, or at the very least be able to confirm what Fred had told me. Fred had been out of the game for Gods only knew how long, so his information wouldn’t be as accurate as Raven’s; Raven had their hands in all the pies.
Raven, I have need of you.
I sent the thought out into the universe, knowing they would be able to hear it. I didn’t understand how that worked, how they always knew when I called them. But there was no sense in fretting about it; it worked to my benefit. I only hoped it didn’t mean they lurked in my thoughts.
A gentle knocking sounded at the door, and I hurried to open it. Raven stood before me in their human form, silver hair hanging down to their shoulders, their eyes the same colour. They were dressed in all black, a button-up shirt and black trousers.
“You called?” they said. Their eyes darted across me, up and down, and narrowed as they reached my shoulders. I shifted nervously in place; I had the feeling they could sense the damage done to me, though my shirt hid the burn marks. “Your burns speak to a battle, but the marks on your hands do not. What has happened?”
I covered one hand with the other, a futile gesture, as one hand’s knuckles were still bared. I didn’t want to tell them about my rage over Mal, about how I had abused myself afterwards. It was embarrassing now, in the light of day, to have cared so much about a demon’s betrayal.
I should have known it was coming. It was my own fault for thinking he was anything other than what he was.
“I was attacked by a creature of fire last night,” I said, pointedly avoiding the topic of my hands.
They raised an eyebrow but otherwise let it go. “Interesting,” they said. “That is an abnormality for you.”
I snorted. “You can say that again.”
“I fail to see why I would do that,” they said, narrowing their eyes and frowning.
Sighing, I shook my head. “It’s just a saying, Raven. Please, come in.”
I stepped to the side to allow them into my house, then shut the door behind them. The door was little more than wood at this point; I hadn’t had the strength to craft wards for it last night. I would need to do that today, now that I had the time for it.
Raven inhaled as they walked into my living room. “A creature of the Ether,” they said. “Why would one of them come for you?”
“Well, the First Hand doesn’t think it came after me of its own accord. They think a Wizard bound it and sent it after me. I don’t know how much I believe it was a Wizard, but, actually, that might make sense. Diego did say I had royally ticked off a lot of the Wizards in the Order. Maybe one of them grew impatient with the trials and decided to get rid of me sooner rather than later.”
Raven waved a hand, as if to say, No, not that. “That would indicate a loss of control. Wizards pride themselves on their subtlety. It is not a subtle thing to send an elemental after you.”
“Actually…” A disturbing feeling grew in my gut. “It may not be the craziest thing I’ve heard recently.”
“And why would you say that?”
“Because Lilith told me she was tainted by a creature before she succumbed to the hunger that drove her wild. Fred thinks it was one of the Others, and if one of them tainted her, it stands to reason that it might have infiltrated the Order as well.”
“Tainting one lone succubus and infiltrating the Order are two entirely different beasts,” Raven said, and their expression soured. “I should not have said that.”
“Why?” I frowned. “It sounds like you aren’t surprised that there’s something called the Others, and that they’re tainting people. In fact, you talk about it like it’s just any old thing you’ve heard about before.”
“I do not wish to continue this conversation,” they said coolly.
“Raven, tell me.”
“Please, desist.”
“Raven! I demand you tell me what you know.”
They snarled, glaring at me. “Either you have grown more impudent since last I saw you, or you have learned a new trick.”
I frowned. “Wait—you’re Fae?” My mouth formed an ‘O.’ “Oh my Gods, you are, aren’t you?”
They continued to glare at me. “We have known about the Others for quite some time. They attacked Winter not too lo
ng ago, or ages ago, depending on your mortal view of time. It matters little, because it is believed that they captured the Lady. Without her…”
“Winter is in anarchy,” I said, finishing the thought for them. “That’s what Fred told me yesterday.”
They nodded. “It is true. We have been fighting a losing battle with the Others, now that we do not have the power of the Winter Lady.”
“Wait. We? Are you a part of Winter?”
They stiffened. “Why do you ask so much of me now?”
“How is it ‘much’ to want to know more about you? You’ve barely told me a thing about you in two years, and now I know so much, and yet still so little.”
“I prefer to keep my concerns private.”
I rubbed at my temples. My headache from the night before was returning. “I don’t understand.”
They narrowed their eyes, focusing on my movement. “You do not need to understand. Please, do not ask more of me.”
“Fine, fine. We’ll leave it for another day. But, Gods, this business with the Others—I don’t know what I’m going to do about it.”
“For now, you will do nothing. You cannot possibly hope to go up against them in your current state. They would devour you on sight.”
My nostrils flared. “I’m not as weak as I once was.”
A single pale eyebrow lifted. “You think you can do what the Winter Lady could not? She had the power of Winter behind her, and she vanished into thin air. Make no mistake, if you go against the Others, they will not settle for simply capturing you. They would kill you in a heartbeat.”
Damn them. They were right, and I knew it. There was no way I could stand up to something the Winter Lady had failed at, even with Mal’s power behind me. Not yet.
It was a motivator unlike any other. I would get through these trials, become the Wizard Aidan had thought I could be, and I would learn whatever I needed to have the power I needed to take these monstrosities down.
I swallowed. “What do the Others want?”
Raven looked at me, surprised. “What does anything want? Dominion. They will see all of this universe enslaved or destroyed.”