“Good for you. I’m not so sure I’d get over it as well, you know, having an ally publicly turn their back on you.”
“You heard wrong. We weren’t allies at the time it happened.” He was laying out bait, but I was long past the days of being easy prey.
“Really? Because word is you were extremely close allies.”
“We just had a parting of ways. Nothing that dramatic.”
“Well, it’s good to be so easygoing. I have colleagues that would rake me over the coals if I were so easy, and I mean that literally.”
He said the word “easy” the way I used the word “schmuck.” There wasn’t a damned thing I was going to say to stop him, because you didn’t pick a fight with a top demon for the underworld. Certain things I might need explained, or written out in a book of rules and regulations. This one was pure instinct, the way you knew by age five that you didn’t stick your hand in a fire.
“I guess that’s just me. Easygoing.” I kept my tone light, ignoring the insults.
“Word is he gave your job away in a matter of days, stopped you from getting employment anywhere. He should realize that it’s a miracle you speak to him at all. It stumps me why he thinks he could treat you that way, as if you’re worthless and so easily replaced.”
“Sounds like you’ve really gotten an earful lately. I guess people do like to gossip when they don’t have anything else to do.” My pulse was ratcheting up in spite of my effort to stay calm. It didn’t help matters that he was using the truth against me. All of those things did happen.
“Oh, most definitely, and especially about situations like yours. They all get high and mighty about how they never would’ve tolerated what you did. Then again, they don’t know your situation, right? Only you know the truth of the matter and why you decided to stay.”
He pulled his jacket tighter and shuddered, as if the cold were getting to him. I believed it about as well as I believed that he didn’t know how badly he was insulting me.
“Well, I’ll be off. I look forward to our next chat.”
I smiled as he left. I kept the smile partially in place as I continued on, not sure if he was watching, waiting for me to kick a stray cat or something.
He’d had one purpose tonight, to worm his way under my skin. He’d accomplished it. To the rest of Xest, I probably looked like the schmuck he’d called me, but they didn’t know all the ins and outs, like the way working with Hawk had been the best thing at that moment. And I was working with him. I was not an employee, no matter how it appeared. I hadn’t just rolled over. I’d put up a fight and demanded certain things.
When Hawk had locked me into a contract with no way out, I didn’t speak to him—for the most part, unless it was really important.
I walked into the building, trying to not slam the door.
“Why do you look mad?” Zab asked.
“I’m fine.” And the lies just kept coming.
I headed straight for my room before I screamed.
17
Bibbi looked up from her breakfast, her eyes big and round.
“I like your outfit,” she said, eyeing up my new leggings and boots. Xazier had never returned my last pair of boots and left me with an unusable pair of sandals. “Did you get them at Bewitching?”
“Thanks. I did. You should go there.” She was staring at my clothes with that longing look that made me want to go change. I wasn’t used to being on the other side of this kind of reaction. I was the giver of those looks. I’d never been the one with an enviable wardrobe.
“They don’t like my kind in that store,” Bibbi said, going back to her breakfast.
“What do you mean?”
There was something definitely wrong about that statement. Zab and Musso kept going about their business, as if this were commonplace.
“The owners of the nicer places don’t like Whimsys. It’s too high-end for us.”
“Why don’t we go shopping?” I didn’t wait for Bibbi to agree before I looked at Musso and Zab. “You can handle things without us, right?”
“You mean the two people that might come in? Yeah. I think we can manage,” Musso said, in his gruff way.
“You two go. We’ll hold back the horde,” Zab said, laughing.
“Bibbi, get your jacket.” I could’ve told her to drop and give me twenty in the same tone.
“I almost want to go shopping with you. Not quite, but close,” Zab said, laughing some more.
I waited at the door, watching Bibbi move around the room, grabbing her jacket in slow motion as if trying to figure out a way around going with me.
“You know, I’m not sure today is a good day. I’ve got an awful big stack of—”
“We’re going.”
The pretext of cooperation died and the jacket in her hand drooped.
“What if I don’t want to?” She glanced around the room, weighing possible support if she tried to avoid me.
Zab and Musso were feigning interest in their paperwork. Good move on their part, because I was dragging her with me if she put up a fight. Bibbi was too high up on my list of people I cared for, and my tolerance for the caste system in Xest was zilch. I’d fix this place single-handedly if that was what it took. And this was something I could fix, at least in this one instance.
“You’re going if I have to drag you there.”
Bibbi shot me a dirty look but put on her jacket. Even a block away, she kept looking back over her shoulder, toward the office.
“I had your job and know it pays well,” I said. “Maybe the Whimsy witches at the factory can’t afford this place, but you can, and we are going to shop there. And if you don’t want to spend the coin, I’ll do it, but no one is telling you that you can’t.”
“That’s not the only problem,” she said, looking back again. “I don’t like leaving Gillian alone without someone supervising what she’s up to. Why do you think I keep going in for teas, even though she’s in that back room? Someone has to try to keep her on the straight and narrow, even if you’ve given up the ship to her.”
“That’s your problem?”
“Mostly, yes. I hate leaving her alone there. She’s sneaky. But if you’re that set on me going broke on clothes, who am I to say no? It’s not like I don’t want to get away from her for a little while.”
We stopped in front of the store.
“What happens if they say I can’t?” she asked.
“They won’t. People are a little afraid of me. And if they aren’t scared of me, they’re terrified of Hawk, and they’ll expect him to show up next.” I smiled. Being scary wasn’t always a bad thing.
“Yeah, that’s true. He always has your back.”
The way she said it, you would’ve thought it was an absolute truth, like it had been etched in stone and written in the stars. Too bad that wasn’t true, like Xazier had pointed out last night.
The owner of Bewitching was smiling at me through the window, probably adding up the coin I’d spend in her head. Her gaze landed on Bibbi, and there was a curious look but nothing unfriendly.
I opened the door for Bibbi and motioned for her to go first. Bibbi lifted her chin and walked in.
The owner walked right over. “So nice to see you. What can I do for you today?”
“Not her. I’m the one shopping today,” Bibbi said with some backbone to spare.
“Of course, what did you have in mind?”
She scanned the room like a kid in a candy store. “I’m not sure, but I think I want to try on all of it.”
We stepped out of Bewitching, and Bibbi had a bounce in her step.
“Look how it moves,” she said, her exaggerated movements making the hem of her jacket flare.
I nodded. “Very nice.”
“Thank you. I think so too.”
“That blush color is amazing on you.”
She flipped her hair as I spotted a group behind her heading our way. No one approached me unless I knew them and they were on my side. At some poi
nt since the immigration stories had passed, or maybe the dragon incident—could’ve been the flashing colors in the alley; I didn’t exactly know which story—but people had started crossing the street when I approached, the way they did for Hawk. This group looked angry, and they were heading right toward me.
“Bibbi, we’ve got problems.”
“Yeah, I’d say so. No one is going to be able to stop looking at me in these new clothes. How will anyone be able to work? It’s definitely a problem.” She kept walking with an extra swing in her step.
I grabbed her arm, hurrying her along with me.
She looked where I’d clamped a hand on her, which was not a Xest thing to do. “Oh, you mean real problems.”
I glanced over my shoulder again. Bibbi followed my lead.
“Oh. That is a problem.”
Her pace finally picked up, but I didn’t let go of her arm. This was going to be a battle for sure. How did I fight a group? One on one was a different issue than being surrounded, people coming at you from every angle. Yes, I’d killed more than one before, but it was an accident with a dome and a blast. I needed reinforcements. As much as I loved Bibbi, she wasn’t going to cut it.
“Turn right up ahead there. After we turn, you run and get help.”
“What? I’m not leaving you. That’s crazy. There’s ten of them.” She glanced back again. “Nope. Make that fifteen.”
I pulled her into the alley and grabbed her shoulders. “You have to. There is another group heading in the opposite direction. If you don’t get help, I’m dead. If you stay, we’re both dead.”
She shook her head. “If I stay, you’ll have a better chance of fighting them off. You’ve got this.”
“There’s too many. Bibbi, you have to go get help or we’re both dead.”
“I can’t leave you.”
“Bibbi, I love that you’re willing to die with me. But I don’t feel like dying today. They want me, and every second you delay is going to be worse for me. I don’t have time to debate this with you.”
The group converged at the end of the alley we’d just turned down, joining forces. My urgency went from concern to dead calm.
“They won’t follow you. Go before they kill me.”
Her eyes opened wide. “Okay.”
She took off, and a weight lifted from my shoulders. Now at least the damage would be done to me alone. She’d been right: I would’ve had a better chance fighting them off with her, but what awaited me was a loss either way. It was either die fast or die slow. Now I needed to stall.
I spun, turning toward the group, listening to Bibbi’s running the other way. A few sets of eyes shot to her, as if debating whether to let her go.
“What do you assholes want?” I said loudly, drawing every ounce of attention back to me, as I’d hoped. That was as far as I’d go to provoke them. I didn’t recognize most of the faces. They might all be Whimsys, but there were too many.
Three of them took the lead, one man and two women, breaking off from the group to walk closer. The herd quickly closed the distance, not wanting to miss the show or the action.
A lanky guy, probably close to my age, said, “You shouldn’t be here. You don’t belong in Xest.”
“I earned my place here. What have you done other than been shit out?” Probably not the best stall tactic, but no one was looking past me for Bibbi.
If he heard the insult, it didn’t show. The boy didn’t look quite in his right mind, so focused on me with rage brewing in his expression that could only be matched by one other. Dread felt like this about me. Mertie had warned me.
Dread was getting in their heads, using them against me. Did this kid even know what he was doing, or was he ruled by a rage embedded in him? Was that the case with all of them?
“You’re a plague. Evil. An abomination, and we’re going to make sure that you are destroyed.”
They charged me. All I could think of was how to turn saving myself into saving them. And there were so many of them. Focus on him. Then another. One at a time.
With a leap, I took out the lanky boy with a kick to the head, then tumbled in the air and landed back on my feet. Not a bad start. I swung around to kick an oncoming woman in the chest.
Damn, I was doing pretty good.
They seemed to think so too, because they all came at me at once. I went to leap out of the way, but it was as if I were fighting a monster with unlimited hands. I was tugged down, and the mob devoured me. There was kicking and swinging, and I wrapped my hands around my head, hoping my magic would kick in. I couldn’t think of a single rationale that I could use to twist the situation into me saving them.
I hit the ground as I was getting pummeled in every direction. My head took a blow. My ear took the toe of a boot. My stomach was kicked, only to be propelled backward. Bibbi had only had a minute or two lead, and we were on the other side of Xest. How long would it take for help? Would I make it? My vision was getting black spots and my ears were ringing.
A deafening roar filled the alley. A boot was about to hit my nose when it was yanked backward. Another body flew, and then there was the sound of screaming and footsteps retreating.
White paws filled my vision as Bautere knelt beside me. He leaned down, sniffing at my head and grazing it with his nose.
I unfurled my body slowly, each move causing pain. I coughed, some blood hitting the ground and causing a splatter of red on the white. I used my arm to wipe away the moisture from my face.
“I taught you better than this,” he said, as if appalled I’d let a horde of deranged lunatics beat me.
“In my defense, I did really well with the first two. Thanks, though. Appreciate the help.” I got to my feet and realized one leg wasn’t working so well. I put a hand on the building to keep myself up, realizing every movement was going to cause pain somewhere.
“Where are they?” Hawk yelled, racing down the alley toward us, looking much scarier than Xazier ever had.
“They ran off, but I know their faces,” Bautere said.
Hawk scooped me up in his arms, giving Bautere a nod. I didn’t bother struggling, since I couldn’t walk anyway.
“What were you thinking? Why did you send Bibbi away?” Hawk asked as he walked through the door he must’ve taken here.
“Because it wasn’t her fight, and she wasn’t going to be able to help anyway.” Another person angry at me that I’d been beaten up, but I didn’t care. All that mattered was that we wouldn’t be walking around Xest for all to see me weak and vulnerable. I had a reputation to protect.
“She would’ve tried, and when they hurt her, your defensive magic would’ve kicked in.” He kicked the door closed and we were in the upstairs hall of the broker building.
“Is she okay?” Bibbi yelled.
“You can tell everyone she’s fine,” Hawk said, before he opened the door to his room. After he crossed the threshold he edged the door closed with his shoulder, shutting everyone else out.
“So I’m supposed to keep her around to get beat up so I can protect myself?”
“She would’ve been fine. You would’ve made sure of it.” He dropped me onto his bed and went to the trunk he kept his potions in.
“I’m not using her like that.” I took a break from arguing with Hawk to try to breathe past the pain in my chest. I shifted left, hunched over, and then tried a different position. Didn’t seem to matter how I sat. The pain was still there. “You’re not supposed to get angry at the person who was attacked.”
He rifled through the trunk as if I hadn’t spoken then walked back over with a couple bottles and rags. “Pull your shirt up so I can see your ribs.”
I didn’t argue, as every breath was another stab of agony. I couldn’t be down and out for long. I needed to be in fighting shape, especially if this happened again. This wouldn’t do at all.
I lifted my shirt up to just under my breasts, and his anger grew palpable.
“All this magic and what did you do? Curl into a ball
like you’re defenseless when you’re not.” For all his anger, he barely touched my skin as he coated it with smelly white lotion.
“I was protecting my head.” At the time, it had seemed like the best move.
“You had the upper hand. You rolled over and let them hurt you when you didn’t have to.”
“I tried to protect myself because my magic doesn’t work like that, and won’t no matter how you wish it to be different.”
“That’s a bunch of bull. You can’t protect yourself because you don’t value yourself. That’s the problem here. That’s what we keep skating around and avoiding.”
He had a lot of nerve lecturing me on self-worth. Xazier’s words, the ones that seemed to be stuck in my head, kept haunting me as he spoke.
“And you helped make me feel like I mattered? All you’ve ever done was try to push me out of Xest to a place I didn’t belong. Don’t act like you care.” Our eyes locked, my anger boiling as hot as his now.
“That’s right. It’s my fault again. You just keep finding reasons to hoard and be angry about instead of facing the truth.”
“Your truth.”
He stood and walked a few steps away from me. I would’ve done it myself if I could’ve moved better, but crawling away wasn’t the look I was going for.
A minute or so stretched out in silence before he said, “Let me check your—”
“I’m fine. I don’t need anything else from you.”
He walked closer anyway. “You’re so stubborn it borders on stupidity.”
“You’re so pushy it borders on bullying, so I guess we’re even,” I said, looking up at him.
He abandoned his room, leaving the door open. Great. I already knew from the throbbing in my leg that I wasn’t going to be able to walk. Yelling for help was about as dignified as scooting downstairs on my ass. This was not a convenient location to be abandoned.
I waited until the sounds of his steps had completely faded and then another twenty minutes before I yelled, “Zab? Bibbi? Anyone?”
The Most Wanted Witch: Tales of Xest Page 10