Witch of All Witches: Tales of Xest #4

by Donna Augustine

  I didn’t bother holding back the groan. Was this what it sounded like when I lied? I couldn’t be quite that bad. It would take practice to be that bad, lots and lots of practice.

  “I know why you’re here,” Bautere said, addressing Bibbi but quickly turning his full attention on me and keeping it there.

  He didn’t say more, and Bautere might be the hardest person to read I’d ever met. I didn’t think I’d ever really know what he was thinking, no matter how long I knew him, unless he spelled it out.

  “Are you planning on stopping me?” I asked, cutting to the chase. There was zero chance it hadn’t been requested by Hawk.

  “No. I’m here to lend help if needed.”

  “You aren’t going to stop me?” Probably not the question to beat to death after I got the answer I wanted. I should’ve taken the no and run with it, but Bautere made up his own mind. My inquiring as to why was unlikely to sway him once his decision was made.

  “It’s what I would do. You’re facing your weakness. You’ll either come out stronger or lose. As long as you’ve come to terms with that cost and are willing to live with it, it’s your cost to bear.”

  Of all the people I’d expected to understand, I should’ve known he would. That was how he lived his life. His kind weren’t known for being fierce because they backed down. They didn’t shirk away from their fears, and neither would I.

  “Thank you for understanding.”

  He turned sideways and took a step back, leaving nothing but the hill looming ahead.

  I nodded, glanced at Bibbi, and gave her the most optimistic smile I could before taking a step toward my destination.

  “You can back me up, but just so we’re clear, I’m lead,” Bibbi said to Bautere.

  Bautere was silent in reply, but I could just imagine his face. That alone made dragging Bibbi out here priceless, even if Oscar did lose his shit.

  I walked up to the spot, feeling a kind of fear I hadn’t realized existed. I should’ve left a note for Hawk. And Zab. And Musso, and…

  I should’ve left notes. What if this killed me? But if I didn’t do this, we’d all be dead anyway. The logic I’d used on Bibbi hadn’t been pulled out of thin air.

  There was no choice. I had to do this, and I might not get another chance.

  I dropped to my knees, focusing. The sounds around me dimmed as my head cleared. This might be the most important thing I ever did in my life. I’d never been a selfish person, or a taker. But that was what I needed to be today. I laid my hands on the ground, refusing to let an ounce of magic seep out of me. I dug my fingers in, and all I thought about was taking. Having enough magic to save everyone here. I would save Hawk, everyone at the broker building, everyone in Xest, even Gillian if it came down to it.

  The feelings came at me in a rush, and I pulled on them, taking everything there was and more. It felt like I was holding a live wire in my hand, and it took supreme attention not to let go.

  Suddenly it was too much and I was thrown off. I landed on my butt a few feet from the spot.

  Bibbi ran over, Bautere following, as I got to my feet.

  “Well? How do you feel?” Bibbi asked.

  I stretched my arms, moving my head back and forth, wanting to let the feeling settle in before I spoke. I’d felt good after I left the hill before, but this was different. After those times, a calmness would settle over me, but also a feeling like I could sleep for a decade. This time I felt like my body was buzzing, near tingling with the energy packed inside.

  “I’m guessing she’s feeling pretty good,” Bautere said.

  “I definitely don’t feel drained.” If anything, I felt more alive than I’d ever felt in my life, if that were possible. “I think I might be back.”

  “Good, then can we get out of here? I don’t like this hill business,” Bibbi said.

  31

  Hawk was waiting when we returned. The cords of Hawk’s neck looked taut, and the air felt like it was about to combust. Oscar was there as well, and not looking very happy either.

  “You took her with you?” Oscar said, stepping forward and looking like a person I’d never seen. “I told you not to—”

  “Bibbi made her own choice. Back off,” Hawk said.

  Hawk hadn’t moved, but it didn’t seem to matter. Oscar was still glaring at me, but he didn’t say another word. It was a little bit of a relief when he shifted his attention to Bibbi. He shot her a hurt look and then walked out of the room.

  Hawk shifted his gaze to Bibbi and tilted his head toward the door. I wasn’t stupid enough to think he cared whether she went and calmed Oscar. Hawk didn’t want witnesses to the bloodbath and possible murder to come.

  Bibbi looked at me.

  “He’s not going to kill me,” I said, hoping I was correct.

  “I wouldn’t be so confident if I were you,” Hawk said as soon as Bibbi went through the door.

  “Hawk, you don’t understand—”

  “Not here,” he said, walking out of the back room. I followed him through the office and up the stairs.

  His door no longer led to his bedroom but the sitting room I’d been in a handful of times. That was not a good sign.

  He followed me in, shutting the door a little harder than needed.

  Yeah, I’d gone to the hill without him. Yeah, I knew he’d be angry. But this seemed like a bit of an overreaction considering I was alive, well, and feeling better than ever. I’d won. I’d beaten Lou at his own game. All I wanted to do was talk about it, but Hawk wouldn’t calm down long enough to let me.

  “You don’t need my bed any longer, since you already slept with me for the token. I figured this room might be more appropriate.”

  I stood there speechless for a minute, watching him walk across the room, as if not trusting himself to get close to me.

  “You’re saying I slept with you to get my token back?” I asked, repeating his statement because my brain couldn’t get past the absurdity of it.

  “The timing seems a bit conspicuous.” His jaw was hard, his arms folded.

  Only a man in love would be that angry over the idea of being used for sex. My desire to fight got eaten alive by the warm, glowing feelings that were growing inside of me. I didn’t know how this man had fallen for me, but he had.

  Fighting was the last thing I wanted. I took a step toward him.

  “I was going with or without the token because I was trying to save you from doing something idiotic.” Some of the heat left his eyes, and I took another step in his direction. “I went to your room because I wanted to be with you in case things didn’t work out well.”

  He growled, and I immediately realized that hadn’t been the best choice of words.

  “You could’ve died. That spell could’ve wiped out what magic you had left. Did you think of that for even a second?” he asked.

  At least he took a step toward me.

  “It occurred to me. That’s why Bibbi was there.”

  He turned away from me, shaking his head. “Bibbi is a Whimsy. Not the best backup.”

  “She might be a Whimsy, but she’s got bigger balls than most of the witches and warlocks in Xest. She’d hit me off the spot with a stick if I had a problem, and keep doing whatever she had to do until it worked.”

  He took a few steps away, and I followed him tentatively, waiting to see how long it would take him to calm down. He turned and circled around me as I wondered what might get him past this anger. If he’d done this without me, I’d feel the same. I didn’t fault him. I just wanted him to get over it so we could move on to more enjoyable things.

  Although I could fault him on the token.

  “I’d like to mention that you left the token right out in the open. If you really didn’t want me to see it, maybe you should’ve put it under a shirt or a—”

  I didn’t finish because his lips crashed into mine. He held me against him as if his existence depended on it, and I reveled in the feel of him, gripping him back harder.
<
br />   His lips broke from mine. His eyes deepened as he laid his hand upon my throat.

  “You feel stronger. A lot stronger. What exactly happened at the hill?” he asked.

  “I think I broke the spell. I took my magic back.” I smiled, finally having a chance to revel in my victory. It was almost as good as having his arms around me, but not quite.

  “What exactly did it feel like?”

  He dropped his hands as he studied me. His eyes were pensive, but the cords in his neck were no longer on the verge of snapping apart from the tension.

  “Hard to put it into words, but I made contact the way I had in the past. This time, though, I was mentally prepared for it to try to pull from me, and I was cautious. I went in with the sole purpose of being the taker, focusing on holding everything close and tight and pulling energy toward me.”

  “How? Was it a spell?” He rubbed his jaw, watching me.

  “No. I was going on instinct,” I said, watching him watch me.

  “Then what happened?” He kept staring as if he couldn’t quite put something together.

  “Nothing much. I took it all back. In truth, it must have wanted to come back, because it nearly gushed at me to the point I was startled by how fast it flooded in.” I stretched out my arms, taking a deep breath. “I have to say, I feel utterly amazing. I hadn’t realized how bad I’d been feeling until now, but I guess that’s what happens when something creeps up on you. Now, though, I feel like I’m positively pulsating with life.”

  He nodded, quiet for a few moments, and then walked closer, staring me in the eyes. “I need to go somewhere. Can you, for once in your life, stay put?”

  “I’ll make you a deal: I’ll stay here until you get back, as long as you promise not to go after Lou until we discuss it.”

  He paused, as if it were killing him to commit to that.

  “I’ve got my magic back. I think there’s some leeway time-wise.”

  I leaned in closer, brushing my lips over his because he was close and I couldn’t not kiss him.

  “Okay, until we talk,” he said, before upping the tempo of the kiss from slow and leisurely to something that made me want to rip his clothing off.

  He pulled away. “I have to go before I can’t,” he said, then leaned in one last time anyway.

  Then he was gone, and all I wanted to do was run laps around Xest. Considering how freaked out he’d gotten, taking it easy for a few hours wasn’t the worst thing in the world.

  I skipped my way downstairs, so happy to be back to my old self that simply walking wouldn’t do.

  “I don’t know what your problem is,” Bibbi said, staring at Oscar.

  They both glanced over at me.

  “Sorry. I’ll just go to the back room.” I made my way there, wishing I were invisible.

  “No. It’s fine. We’re done talking,” Bibbi said, grabbing her jacket and heading out, clearly looking for some alone time.

  Oscar stared as Bibbi walked out of the room with the hooded gaze of someone who didn’t want to get caught watching but couldn’t stop themselves in spite of it.

  “You’re falling hard, aren’t you?” I said. I couldn’t even be angry at him for his behavior lately, not when he had it this bad for Bibbi.

  He jerked his gaze to mine, as if he’d forgotten I was in the room. As if the lights on the place had shut off as soon as Bibbi left the building.

  “What are you talking about?” he asked, as if he didn’t know exactly what I meant.

  “You’re falling for her and you don’t know what the hell to do about it, do you?” I didn’t mean to smile so wide, or want to laugh so hard, but this was Oscar. He’d thought he was untouchable. He’d thought he was in control of the situation, that he could mess around here and there with Bibbi but it wouldn’t be that much of a thing. He’d thought wrong.

  His only response was a roll of his eyes. He could roll them, huff a bit, add some bluster for good measure. I wasn’t buying it.

  “I can read it all over you. The second she walked out of the room, you looked like you wanted to chase after her just so you could watch her walk or talk or just stand.”

  He rolled his head, letting out a huff. The huff turned into a sigh and the roll turned into a shake. Finally, he threw up a hand in surrender.

  “I don’t know what to do. I don’t even know what happened. I thought we were having some fun. For all I know, that’s all she’s still doing.” He ran his hands through his hair. “I don’t know how this happened.”

  As much as I wanted to laugh at his arrogance, he looked a little too desperate.

  “It happened because she’s amazing,” I said.

  “She’s the most incredible person I’ve ever met. She’s tough and loyal. And holy shit, she rocks my world in bed. I can’t get enough of her and”—he waved a hand toward the door—“she flits around like she doesn’t care if we end tomorrow.”

  That wasn’t overly apparent to me, but Oscar didn’t need to know that. A little humble pie might be the best thing for him right now.

  “Have you tried talking to her?”

  He walked to the nearest chair and slumped into it, rubbing a jaw that looked a little rougher than usual. “What do I say? I acted like I wasn’t looking for anything serious. I thought I was doing the right thing, not filling her head with promises and bullshit. Now look at me.”

  I perched on the desk near him. “I think you tell her all the amazing things you said to me and see where it goes.”

  His lips parted with the shocking idea I’d just laid out. “What if she tells me she doesn’t want anything more?”

  He was frozen in his seat at the idea of it.

  “Then you decide how much you care, how long you’re willing to wait, and how hard you’re willing to fight. Look, you started this like you didn’t want anything other than some fun. You might have to suck it up and eat crow for a while. Maybe offer to take her to dinner as a start?”

  He nodded at the novel idea of a date. “If she’s willing to eat with me, that means something, right?”

  “Yes. It’s a good start. Maybe surprise her with a little gift, too.”

  He was nodding again, as if taking mental notes. “That’s a good idea. I gotta go,” he said, then got up and headed out. Looked like he planned to take my advice and not waste another moment.

  I walked into the back room, grabbed the throw blanket, and settled on the couch. The pitter-patter of little feet made their way across the room and then a nose pressed against my arm. Dusty cuddled onto the blanket next to me. He’d been growing more and more distant the more I’d gone to the hill.

  “You feel it too, huh?”

  He snuggled deeper into the blanket.

  “You cold? Hang on.”

  It was chilly, and I could do something about it now. There would be no more frugal magic thoughts here. I flicked a wrist toward the fire. It nearly exploded. I waved a hand again, fast, lowering it, but not before it had charred the front of the mantel.

  Dusty let out a small chirping sound.

  “Yeah, that was a bit strong, huh?”

  I’d have to find a spell to fix that tomorrow, but at least now I could. Most important thing was that I was back. From the look of that, really back. Maybe back and then some? How much magic had I taken from the hill?

  32

  I hit the landing and made a right, climbing the stairs to my bedroom. Hawk wasn’t back yet, I wasn’t tired, but I’d made a promise I’d wait here for him. Although he’d better be back by morning or I might snap.

  I stopped suddenly on the stairs, feeling him enter the building. I spun, waiting, not believing that my senses had grown that in tune with his.

  A few seconds later, my feeling was proven correct.

  Hawk stood on the landing, watching me. “Where do you think you’re going?” he asked.

  “I was going to bed,” I said, not that I’d mind a better invitation.

  He reached toward me and grabbed my h
and, tugging me back downstairs before pulling me behind him up the other set.

  We stopped walking at the same exact moment.

  Lou and Xazier were here. It felt as if I sensed their magic as soon as they set foot in Xest, like a jagged splinter in my palm.

  Before, my magic had felt like a nagging voice in the back seat, telling me to pull over or go faster. Now it was as if I were in the back seat, trying to hear over the radio as the car sped in whichever direction it wanted. Or maybe I hadn’t gotten more magic. Maybe I’d become unhinged.

  He turned, and a look passed between us.

  “You felt that?” he asked.

  “That wasn’t in my head?” I wasn’t unhinged. Should I be relieved or scared?

  There was a pause, as if he too seemed to be coming to terms with the changes in me.

  I was having my own realization about him. As strong as I’d been before, I’d been too ignorant to realize I wasn’t on his level. I’d always thought we were equals of a sort, or close. We might be now, but I was no longer delusional about what we’d been. Had he always sensed these things?

  “They’ll be here soon,” he warned me. “You don’t need to talk to them if you aren’t ready. I can handle it.”

  Leave him alone with Lou when I’d just pulled this situation back from the brink? Definitely not.

  “No. I’m the reason they’re here.”

  He nodded. I headed back downstairs before there could be any more questions about me staying behind.

  I made my way into the back room and made tea for no other reason than I wanted to portray calmness, even if I didn’t feel it.

  “What happened?” Hawk lifted a hand toward the charred wood and stone around the fireplace.

  “I think I had a flare-up or something.”

  He leaned on the back of the couch as I continued to pretend I wasn’t nervous.

  “What exactly happened at the hill?” His eyebrows were raised as he waited for an answer.

  “I told you. I’m not exactly sure.” I sipped some tea, giving myself an excuse to not talk, as my mind replayed what happened earlier. I’d leaned down. I’d taken it. I’d left. It had seemed so simple at the time.