When Calder’s strong arms loop around my back, pulling my body flush against his, every thought flees to the corners of my mind, leaving room only for sensation. My core twists and pulses as his hand tangles in my hair. As our mouths mesh, warmth spreads through my body, filling me to the brim with an energy that thrums against my skin. Maybe it’s wrong to trade kisses with two different men over the course of a couple of hours, but I can’t bring myself to care.
Too soon, feet crush through the underbrush. Not wanting to having a similar conversation with Taj right this second, I pull away from Calder, straightening my back. “So, we don’t have to worry about more bounty hunters. And we’ve seen the last of that daemon, so…”
“I wouldn’t be too sure of that.”
The silky voice puts me on high alert. I spin to see the daemon from before approaching from the direction of the road. At least I’m pretty sure it’s him. The man who attacked me had silver hair, but this guy’s glossy tresses as black as the surrounding night. I can’t imagine he left us to go dye his hair before returning, but my stuttering brain can’t come up with any other explanation. “Where’s Taj?”
“Sitting in your getaway car while you two…” He waves his hand vaguely. “Don’t worry, I come in peace.”
Calder snorts. “Yeah, I buy that. Don’t you think you’ve done enough damage tonight, daemon?”
The man sighs. “The name’s Silas Kim. And, yeah, I certainly have.”
Before I can ask what he means, he holds up his left hand. The shape in the center is unmistakable.
A bubble of laughter rises in my chest and spills over my lips. “You cursed yourself?”
Silas tilts his head, giving a pointed look. “I don’t know what happened. This isn’t the first death mark someone forced me to do, but this time was different than before. There was this… power that surged through me. It was like the curse was supercharged. It shouldn’t have marked anyone but you, but it did. And it sure as hell shouldn’t have marked me.”
Calder sends off a quick text message before pocketing his phone. “I don’t know what you want from us. We’re in this mess because of you.”
Footsteps crash through the forest, and moments later Taj appears from behind a large tree. His eyes are wide with fear, but when they land on Silas, his brows knit. “What’s this now?”
“As I was about to explain to your friend here, we’re not in this situation because of me.” He gestures to his black hair. “I was bound before.”
“Bound?” I vaguely recall Poe saying the word right after Silas disappeared into the woods, but in the initial aftermath of the curse, I didn’t follow much of what he was saying.
“Yeah,” Silas says slowly. “You know, cast the right spell, have your very own daemon to do your dirty work? Bound.”
“And whoever he was bound to made him curse you,” Taj adds.
“That still doesn’t explain why you’re here,” Calder says. “You accidentally marked yourself for death. Good for you.” He lifts his chin in Taj’s direction. “Let’s get out of here.”
But the three of us have barely taken a step before Silas’ words freeze us.
“We can remove it.”
“Bullshit,” Calder says. “I talked to some contacts of mine and they say it’s impossible.”
Silas raises his eyebrows. “Is that so? Witches, I’m guessing.”
Calder shifts his weight from one foot to the other, but he doesn’t answer.
“Believe me when I say I probably know a little bit more about daemon curses than your witch friends do.”
Calder and Taj exchange glances, but I step forward. “What’s the cure?”
Silas’ shoulders slump. “It’s not so much a cure as a possible solution.”
I glance back at Taj, but he shrugs. “Okay, I’ll bite. What’s the possible solution?”
The daemon exhales. “Elowen.”
Calder chuckles. “Elowen? You’re joking, right?”
The unfamiliar name sends an electric shock down my spine. The syllables are like the melody of a long-forgotten lullaby. “Who’s Elowen?”
Silas’ eyebrows hike upward. “Are you serious? The great mage of Twin Rivers. Everyone’s heard of Elowen.”
“Beg to differ,” I mutter. My mom never uttered the name, and no one in Mona’s organization mentioned her to me. But since Calder and Taj both seemed to know who he was talking about, I figure I can get the details later. “So, this great mage will lift our curse?”
Silas presses his lips into a tight line. “She might lift the curse.”
“For a high price,” Taj adds.
The way he says it made me think he doesn’t mean money.
“Look, pal,” Calder says, crossing his arms over his chest, “if you want to waste your last precious days trying to find that old hag, be my guest. My guess is that even if you do track her down, whatever she wants in return for breaking this curse will be worse than death.”
“You don’t know that,” Silas says. “Look, I get that you don’t owe me anything since I’m the one who cursed you, but it wasn’t my choice. I shouldn’t have to pay for someone else’s sins.”
His words strike a chord in me. Still, I trust Taj and Calder’s judgement, and if they say tracking down Elowen isn’t worth it, maybe they’re right.
“If you’re sure this is the only cure, you should go,” I say.
Silas throws up his hands. “It’s no use trying without you. If I go and convince Elowen to remove my mark, I’ll probably still end up dead at the next full moon. The curse was meant for you, but we all ended up with it. We’re linked now. That means if even one of us still has it when time is up, we’ll all die. This is the only chance, cupcake. But sure, spend your days knowing that in three weeks you’re going to die. You’re all going to die. Maybe you think I deserve it, but do they?”
I shift my gaze to Calder and Taj. Calder was the first person who ever cared for me simply because he wanted to. He chose to get to know me, to be my friend—my first love. And Taj may have taken the assignment to break me out of Mona’s organization out of duty, but it’s clear the mission means more to him now. I mean more to him.
No, neither of them deserves to die.
But what about me? How many people were hurt or killed because of what Mona made me do? But that doesn’t mean I don’t deserve to live a life. In fact, I should live so I can put good into the world to make up for all the bad that’s entered it through me.
I take in a deep breath, my resolve strengthening. “Okay, let’s do it.”
“Bryn,” Taj says, but I hold up my hand.
“I finished making my bucket list, and there’s just one thing on it—to get to Elowen and try to lift this curse.”
Chapter Thirteen
Bryn
The car’s headlights stretch out before us, illuminating our path down the two-lane highway. The forest on either side looks ominous in the bright lights.
I twist in the passenger’s seat to face Calder and Silas, who sit in back. “So Elowen’s immortal?”
Calder shrugs while Silas lifts a hand and tilts it back and forth.
“Only vampires are immortal,” Taj says, his hands on the steering wheel. “Other supernaturals live longer than humans, but even mages don’t live forever. Still, Elowen’s been around longer than your average mage.”
“And Twin Rivers? That’s where the elders are from, right?”
Silas nods. “Another reason we need Poe. He’s from there, and he might have some specifics about Elowen that we don’t. I only know what I’ve heard from stories. I’ve never stepped foot in Twin Rivers.”
“Nor me,” Taj says.
“I’ve never had occasion to go there either,” Calder says. “But I’m less worried about finding my way around and more concerned we might run into more bounty hunters. With Poe’s help, we can avoid them.”
“Hopefully,” Taj adds.
The new information makes my mind spin. I kne
w my understanding of the supernatural world was limited, but I’m only starting to understand just how little I know. I turn back to face Silas. “How do you know where Poe is?”
“The curse is still active.”
I wait for him to go on, but he falls silent again. “What does that mean?”
He heaves a heavy sigh. “I’m still connected to its magic. That’s how I traced you in the forest. And it’s how I know we’ll find the bounty hunter at Moonstone Tavern. The turnoff’s up on the right in about half a mile, by the way.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Taj mutters.
I study Silas’ face. “Can you see him in a vision or something? How do you know the name of the tavern?”
He looks at me like I’m crazy. “Because it’s the only supernaturals-only bar in a fifty mile radius. And it’s run by a pack of shifters, so they won’t turn Poe away. He may even know some of the owners.”
His gaze shifts back to the window on his left, but I’m not ready for our conversation to end. Every new answer only sparks more questions. “How do they keep it supernaturals-only?”
Silas scrubs a hand down his face. “Someone else want to take this? I’m about done with twenty questions.”
“You can find places like this all over the nom world, if you know where to look,” Calder says as Taj slows the car and turns to the right. “The area’s spelled with enchantments that make it so if regular humans get too close, they’ll start feeling ill. And if they manage to push through that, there are glamors on the building so they can’t even see it. That way, people like us can get together and be ourselves.”
I hear the music before the bar comes into view. The song is uptempo with a distinctly country twang. When we round a bend in the road, I can’t suppress a gasp of surprise. The bar is two stories tall with a wide porch for both the upper and lower levels. Strings of green twinkle lights circle the upper porch rail, and the illuminated sign at the apex of the building resembles the outline of a mountain against a rising full moon. The packed dirt lot is filled with rows upon rows of cars, trucks, and SUVs.
Taj pulls into the first parking space he spots and cuts the engine. While he, Calder, and I remove our seat belts, Silas remains still.
“I think it’s best if I stay in here.” Silas crosses his arms over his chest.
“You’re probably right,” Calder says. “I imagine if Poe kills you, there’s no way Elowen can remove the curse.”
If Silas detects the venom in Calder’s tone, his expression doesn’t show it. “Maybe pick me up a burger to go?”
Taj tilts his head to the side. “Are you serious?”
Before Silas can respond, Calder spins on his heel and leads our group away from the car. As the three of us walk to the bar, Calder seethes silently beside me. I hook my hand in the crook of his arm. “Hey.”
When his eyes flash to mine, a measure of the tension in his body drains. “That guy. He gets under my skin.”
I shrug. “Don’t let him. As soon as we find Elowen and get this curse broken, we’ll never have to see him again, okay?”
The corner of his mouth quirks. “Not soon enough.”
Four people stand in the grassy space in front of the tavern, chatting and laughing under clouds of white-blue smoke. While they don’t stop their conversation as we pass, I can feel eyes following me as we approach the porch.
Taj clears his throat as we near the door. “I think it’s best if we all stick together.”
I don’t argue. I’ve never been in a bar before, let alone a bar stuffed with magical beings. Despite the fact that Mona’s operation was full of supernaturals, somehow being surrounded by them out in the real world feels different. Dangerous. Perhaps because even though I was a prisoner at the compound, I was still under Mona’s protection. No such safeguard exists here.
The music is painfully loud as we enter the building. I can’t imagine why anyone would want music at such a volume. It must be nearly impossible for people to hear each other over it.
But as I survey the tables strewn with plastic baskets of fried food and empty pint glasses, the raucous shouting at the pool tables, and the slumped postures at the bar, I realize people don’t come here to talk. They come for oblivion.
Many of the men are dressed in black leather vests and muscle-hugging jeans. The women are more varied in their attire, with some dressed in form-fitting t-shirts while others sport low-cut tops with intricate designs. I wrap my arms around my stomach, feeling out of place in my baggy gray shirt, drawstring pants, and slip-on shoes.
Calder taps my shoulder and points.
Sitting in the corner of the room, his back to us, is Poe. With his dark jeans and black t-shirt, he looks cloaked in night, even under the neon lights of a nearby sign.
It takes all my self-control not to run to him. I’m not excited to see him again after he attacked me and tried to hurt my friends, but I am anxious to get this part over with—the convincing. The sooner we’re on the road, the closer we are to a cure.
We’re still a yard away when Poe’s back straightens and he turns. His striking green eyes flash when they land on me. “What the hell do you want?”
Before I can lose my nerve, I slide into the chair across from his. Taj and Calder remain standing beside the table like bodyguards. “There might be a way to break the curse.”
Poe’s eyes narrow momentarily. “Oh, really? And you’re suddenly an expert on curses?”
Although he’s talking at a normal volume, his words barely carry over the music. I grit my teeth in frustration. “Can we go outside? I’d rather not shout.”
After a pause that seems to drag on for an eternity, Poe pushes back his chair as he stands. Eying Calder and Taj warily, he leads the way out the front doors. I keep alert as we go, but no one we pass seems to notice our departure.
The loud group of smokers is still talking and laughing on the grass, and Poe leads us across the porch until we stand in a gravel-strewn stretch by two large green dumpsters. The music is still loud, but at least I can hear myself think over it.
“You’ve got three minutes, kitten,” Poe says. “Time is a precious commodity these days.”
The nickname chafes, but I do my best to ignore it as I suck in a breath, waiting for Taj or Calder to explain the situation. But their eyes are on me. I clear my throat, wishing I’d used our travel time to come up with a speech.
When Poe crosses his arms, I blurt out the first thing that comes to me. “You should know that if this has any chance of working, we all have to be in.”
Poe scans the parking lot, but he doesn’t voice the question flickering in his eyes.
I square my shoulders, hoping an adjustment in my posture can help me feel more convincing. “If we’re going to break this curse, we have to—”
“Who’ve you got here, Poe?” purrs a sultry female voice.
I whip my head around at the sound but almost wish I hadn’t. The smokers have discarded their cigarettes in favor of following us to the side of the building. I recognize the looks in their eyes as they approach. It’s similar to the way Aldridge and most of the other guards would watch me. Their gazes are predatory.
Poe crosses his arms over his chest, but he says nothing.
A broad-shouldered man beside the woman narrows his eyes. “This is them, isn’t it? The ones who got you cursed.”
My stomach lurches. I can’t exactly blame Poe for wanting to talk to someone about what happened to him, but I hadn’t exactly planned for it.
Calder holds up his hands. “We’re only trying to help.”
The woman laughs. “Like you helped him get marked for death?”
“That’s not exactly what happened.” Taj flashes a smile as he brushes his fingers across the woman’s elbow. “Now, why don’t we all go inside and I can explain everything over drinks?”
The broad-shouldered man grabs Taj’s arm and bends it back.
I’m not sure who throws the first punch, but in an instant, the four shift
ers are on us. Everything is movement and chaos, and I freeze in place, unable to move. I want to help, to stop the fight, to do something, but my body won’t obey my commands.
The woman comes for me.
“After everything you’ve done—everyone you’ve hurt—you don’t deserve to walk free,” she snarls. “Poe wanted to bring you in for justice. I’ll settle for vengeance for one of my own.”
My limbs might not know what to do, but something inside me does. Power surges within me before I consciously call for it. As the woman winds up to throw a punch, magic seeps out of me and the ground beneath her feet writhes, putting her off balance. I jump sideways to avoid her falling on me, my eyes landing on Poe.
He stands in the same spot he was in before, arms still crossed over his chest. A muscle in his jaw jumps as he watches the scene unfold around him.
A fist crashes into my gut, knocking the wind out of me. The woman slams me to the ground and lands a punch on my face. Fire radiates from my cheek bone, and stars pop in my vision. It takes all my energy to try to suck in a breath, so all I can do is cover my head with my arms and wait for another blow.
“Hey!”
A harsh male voice cuts above the muffled music and grunts from the fighters. I tense my muscles in anticipation of a hit that doesn’t come. The weight of the woman’s body on mine disappears. She screams, but the sound is cut short.
Footfalls thud on the ground around me, and I pull myself into a tight ball to avoid being stepped on. I peek out through the cracks between my fingers, not wanting to show my face. As soon as these people realize who I am, I have no doubt they’ll grab me and haul me away.
But the newcomers don’t seem interested in me at all. They square off against the people who were attacking us, knocking each of them to the ground with such ferocity it turns my blood to ice.
When the last of the original attackers falls, I dare to remove my hands from my face. Poe stands against the side of the bar, his eyebrows hiked but the rest of his expression impassive. Taj and Calder are propped up on their elbows on the grass, their faces wrinkled in confusion.
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