The Joy of Hex

by Sarina Dorie

  “Sorry about all that water,” I said with forced cheerfulness. “My affinity tends to amplify her magic.”

  The Raven Queen’s gaze flickered over to Thatch. Probably she’d once used him to amplify her magic. “Oui, I’ve noticed that tendency in some Witchkin.”

  “So you see Maddy’s water affinity,” I said.

  Water rolled off the Raven Queen’s gown. “Oui, I have no doubt of it. Now let’s have a display of electrical magic. A small display.”

  Maddy wasn’t particularly skilled in electrical magic. She had used the Red affinity for procreation. She had been too busy being pregnant and raising a baby to experiment with lightning. From Hailey’s comments the other day, I took it her electricity was more accidental than used as a weapon at this point.

  She looked to me again. “I need my . . . um . . . I need to get a jump start.”

  “A jump start?” the queen asked, unfamiliar with the Morty term.

  “She needs someone to light her fire,” Hailey said, stepping forward. I wasn’t sure the Raven Queen would know that euphemism either.

  Maddy blushed. “I think it’s because I’m a siren.”

  She had never told me this. I should have guessed that pleasure, or more specifically sex, would be the catalyst for her magic just as it was for mine. Hailey placed her hands on Maddy’s hips and leaned in to kiss her. I averted my gaze, feeling like it was wrong to stare at my former students being intimate.

  Instead, I watched the Raven Queen. There was hunger in her gaze. She breathed in the sex magic in the air, enjoying the voyeurism.

  Hailey grunted and jumped back. She looked to her hands, swearing. Her fingertips were covered in black burns. The air smelled of charred flesh.

  Maddy’s skin glowed pink, electricity dancing across her arms and face. Small arcs shot out from her, but they didn’t make contact with the floor. Slowly the light faded.

  “A double affinity. Quite rare,” the queen said. “It seems when you produce a Red affinity, the subject keeps the original one as well. Useful. If what you say is true. . . . I still haven’t seen a demonstration.”

  “I still haven’t seen my child. I’ll proceed when I see my baby.” I wanted her in the safety of my arms so that nothing bad would happen to her when I released Khaba.

  “Rest assured,” the queen said with a shark-like smile that did anything but assure me. “Odette is fetching them.”

  When I turned Hailey into a Red affinity, the electricity would be the perfect distraction to release Khaba. So long as I threw down the pottery somewhere dry, he would be less at risk of being electrocuted himself. He’d be able to take out the Raven Queen. I trusted Vega to be able to take care of herself. She knew the plan from before she’d left.

  Odette was taking forever to fetch the prisoners. Perhaps she was delaying on purpose, to keep them safe. I decided to proceed.

  I continued by introducing Hailey Achilles. She demonstrated her Elementia affinity, setting the tapestries on fire. One smoldering banner fell onto a group of Fae nobles, who screamed in fury. Maddy extinguished the fire, spreading more water over the floor. This was good. More of the floor would conduct electricity. The only area that wasn’t wet was the Raven Queen and around her throne.

  That wasn’t good.

  I drew the potion out of my pocket and held it up for all to see. “I made this using a recipe in Alouette Loraline’s journal.”

  “It’s a spell, not a recipe, little Miss Betty Homemaker,” Vega muttered.

  I tried not to laugh at her lack of Morty insults. I was pretty sure she had confused Suzy Homemaker and Betty Crocker.

  I waved a hand at Hailey’s blistered fingers. “As you just witnessed, Hailey is a fire affinity, but she can’t tolerate electricity. I will use this potion to turn her into a Red affinity.” I uncorked the bottle and handed it to her.

  She drank, gagging. “This is foul. It’s worse than one of Nurse Hilda’s potions.”

  Vega leaned forward. “Drink it all.”

  “What is in this potion?” the Raven Queen asked.

  I suspected this was a test. “I believe you already have the recipe. You just didn’t have the secret ingredient. My magic.”

  I glanced around, wondering how long it would take Odette.

  “Go on,” the Raven Queen said. “Inoculate her with your magic.”

  “I want to see my daughter first.”

  “No. Show me first.” The queen raised her voice.

  “No.”

  Thatch placed a hand on my shoulder. I knew he meant to warn me.

  “Very well. You needn’t show me.” The Raven Queen turned to Vega. “As it turns out, Clarissa Thatch isn’t the only Red affinity who understands Alouette Loraline’s secrets. I now have another in my service who will aid me in my endeavors.”

  Vega pointed her finger at Hailey, shooting out lightning in a precise arc that toppled her over. I was so surprised by what I’d seen, I was slow to react. I was a fraction of a second too slow to use the electricity to camouflage what I was doing. I threw down the bong as hard as I could at the dry patch next to the Raven Queen’s feet.

  I was good at throwing. I didn’t miss. The pottery landed out of the water, but it didn’t break. Khaba wasn’t released. The bone throne was hard. Ceramics were fragile. There was no reason it hadn’t shattered.

  I stared in puzzlement. Thatch groaned.

  “What is this?” the Raven Queen asked.

  “A gift,” Elric said quickly.

  “I don’t believe I’ve ever expressed an interest in abstract art.” She held up the water pipe, perplexed.

  “It’s a bong,” Vega said with the same disinterest characteristic of the Thatch family when they spoke. “It’s a device used to smoke purified cannabis.”

  “And it’s art,” I said, hoping to lighten the mood and distract the queen. “But if you don’t like it, you can just toss it back to me.” Then I would rub it and make a wish. “Anyway, back to the demonstration. I just made a Red affinity. Now you know the secrets of how to make Reds.”

  Maddy kneeled beside Hailey, helping her sit up.

  The queen looked into the valve of the bong, frowning.

  I quickly rushed on, the right words coming to me easily. I could feel the competency lozenge taking effect. “I’ve gotten that demonstration out of the way. I’ll hand over Maddy, Hailey, and Lucifer as soon as you bring me Imani and Aubrey.”

  “Oui.” The queen continued to inspect the bong. “I sense great magic from this object.”

  “That’s probably because it contains a genie,” Vega said.

  Seriously? Whose side was she on?

  “I see,” the queen said. “Why is a djinn housed inside this piece of art?”

  Vega waved a hand nonchalantly. “Obviously someone has a morbid sense of humor.”

  “I don’t mind morbid humor.” The queen rubbed the bong. “I believe I’ll make a wish.”

  “Wait! What about the exchange?” I asked.

  Smoke poured out from the openings. It shouldn’t have surprised me the skunky stench of marijuana would fill the room.

  I had to use this moment to my advantage. The competency lozenge hadn’t taken full effect yet, but I was starting to feel my mental faculties fully awaken.

  As the Raven Court watched the smoke fume out of the neck of the bong, I centered myself in my core. I radiated my energy out to my friends around me and their magic expanding to touch mine. Each of them was a single spectrum of the rainbow around me completing the color wheel in my core. Their presence strengthened my affinity.

  My concentration was broken by Khaba’s voice.

  “Yes, Master?” His grin faded as he took in the sight of the Raven Queen.

  The Raven Queen cackled. “I wish for the death of my greatest enemy.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  The Difference between Right and Bong

  Khaba’s shoulder sa
gged in defeat as the Raven Queen pointed to me. She’d just wished for the most powerful being in all the realm to kill me. He would have to obey.

  “Please clarify, who are you pointing to?” Khaba asked. “Who exactly is your enemy?”

  He was delaying. It would only work so long. But it only would need to work for a moment longer. My brain was speeding up. My magic was revving closer to full power. Between my blessings and competency lozenge, I knew what to do.

  The Raven Queen opened her mouth, about to reply.

  I spoke first. “Your wish is singular. Your greatest enemy.” I was quick, my reflexes amplified as more competency kicked in. “I am plural. Do you wish the djinn to take my life and that of your unborn grandchild? Or were you pointing to—” I scanned the Raven Court crowding behind us. “—that guy with the big beak over there?”

  The courtier shrank back.

  “From the wording of your wish, I can only kill one individual, your greatest enemy,” Khaba said. “Shall I strike the vessel of your grandchild?” Khaba asked. “Or would you prefer one of your doubtfully loyal subjects?”

  “What?” the Raven Queen looked from me to Thatch. “Do you mean to tell me Clarissa Thatch is with child? Again? She is bearing another of my grandchildren?”

  Thatch inclined his head. He wasn’t lying that way. I forced myself not to look at Elric.

  Khaba winked at me.

  The Raven Queen closed her eyes and inhaled. I thought for a moment she might be sucking in the lingering marijuana smoke, but then I felt her presence pushing and prodding against my mind. She was like an oil slick trying to get under my skin. I used the electricity housed inside me to zap her presence out. It took more effort now, staying vigilant and building up my powers in my miniature electrical generator, but I continued to do so. I hoped the electricity would keep out any “blessings.”

  “This is better than a fucking soap opera,” Vega said.

  Plans A, B, and C were out of the question. That left the next backup plan. I centered myself in my core, opening my senses to the many affinities in the room. I tasted the pallete of colors around me, drinking it in. My magic amplified my friends’ magic, and theirs fueled mine. I was a conduit for a rainbow. Slowly my affinity ramped up, not as quickly as it had the evening before in Elric’s living room, but it was happening.

  I would defeat this evil queen.

  The Raven Queen turned her attention to Khaba. “I’ll tell you who my enemy is.” She swept her hand in the direction of my little army. If she wasn’t going to name me, it would be Thatch or Elric. It might be any one of my friends. She opened her mouth, about to say more, but Odette walked through the stone wall behind the Raven Queen, a bundle wrapped up in her arms.

  She moved as effortlessly through stone as a rock Elementia.

  “One moment,” the queen said apologetically to Khaba and turned to accept the baby. “There you are, ma chère. Aren’t you the most precious baby ever? I could eat you up.”

  I caught sight of a pink fist unswaddled and jiggling with the movements of the queen bouncing her up and down. That was the moment I was a goner. I only had eyes for my baby. My arms ached to hold her, to look at her face.

  Thatch caught my elbow as I stepped forward. “It’s a trap. This entire evening always was a trap.”

  “What? You’ve known all along? And she didn’t listen? Tut tut,” the Raven Queen said in a cooing voice as she bounced the baby.

  Odette leaned down and said something in the Raven Queen’s ear. I tried to refocus, but I couldn’t tear my gaze from the Raven Queen. I wasn’t going to be able to do anything like shoot lightning at her while she was holding Aubrey. Not without killing my baby.

  I thought of the blessings from the Dragon Court. I knew when not to start a battle. This wasn’t the time.

  Off to the sides of the throne, men strode through the stone wall, carrying a box. No, not a box, a coffin. I suspected it was meant for me. Her enemy. Dread settled in my gut.

  Odette seated herself beside her queen.

  The Raven Queen clucked her tongue at me. “It would appear someone attempted to send spies into my castle to infiltrate my servants. Such actions cannot be ignored. These inferior Witchkin have been dealt with as they deserved.” The Raven Queen gazed fondly at Vega. “I wouldn’t have known to send Princess Odette looking for them, except that I was fortunate my precious pet recognized them for what they were.”

  The men worked at the coffin, prying it open with a crowbar. One of the men grunted in pain as his forearm brushed against one of the iron nails in the coffin. His flesh came away charred where the metal had touched him. Such a reaction meant he was a pureblood Fae.

  Vega smirked. “Josie and Pinky are safely locked away in the dungeon. Safe for us, that is.”

  No! Vega had sold us out? This couldn’t be! These were her colleagues. Her friends. Well, maybe Josie wasn’t. But they were coworkers. They both cared about their students and shared common ground in that regard.

  It was okay, I told myself. Pinky and Josie were alive. They were safe for now. So long as Ludomil and Sam were alive, spreading discontent among the servants, we might stand a chance at summoning their help and taking their masters by surprise.

  “Oh, and weren’t there two more?” the Raven Queen asked.

  Vega inclined her head. “The rock affinity and the satyr. I believe Princess Odette captured them as well.” She looked to Thatch’s sister.

  Odette nodded.

  I tried to squash the sense of betrayal threatening to smother my calm. I needed to stall for time. I needed to build up my power.

  “Why, Vega?” I asked. “We’re friends. Why would you do this?”

  I thought of Thatch’s lips on mine. I willed the energy in my core to spark. It churned within me, spiraling in a dance. Just as the time when I’d defeated Quenylda, I became my own generator. I shielded my affinity from others, hoping to keep what I was doing secret.

  “Why? Perhaps the real question is why not?” Vega pointed a red lacquered nail at Elric. “You promised me a castle. You said I would be your princess. But you had to get yourself kicked out of the Silver Court, and I’m stuck with a measly cottage.”

  That cottage was a mansion. Was this really about title and property?

  I felt myself losing focus on generating electricity. I ignored her words and thought again of Thatch’s lips on mine. It wasn’t enough. I took his hand and squeezed. He smoothed a thumb over the back of mine. My magic spiked.

  “Vega, darling, you said riches weren’t important,” Elric said uncertainly. “We love each other. That’s all that matters.”

  She stood, glowering down at him. “And how do you repay my love for you? By using me to sire your heir while behind my back you use my only friend to sire your next child.”

  “Wait a minute,” the queen said. “Are you saying that isn’t my grandchild within Clarissa?” Her eyes gleamed.

  “Excuse me,” Vega said, holding her finger up and shushing the queen. “I need a moment here to put these bitches in their places.”

  The Raven Queen sat back in her chair. There was calculation in her eyes as she skewered me with her gaze. The magic in me faltered. Things grew worse by the moment.

  Vega pointed her chin at me. “I thought you were my friend, Clarissa. But you’re a backstabbing slut, and I’m tired of your whiny crap.”

  I had to divide my concentration between fueling my magic and speaking. “You know Elric would have died if I hadn’t fulfilled my end of the contract.”

  “Well, he shouldn’t have made a bargain that put him in that position in the first place, should he?”

  The Raven Queen chuckled. “Revenge is such an amusing sport, no?”

  “No,” Elric said, firmly. “Vega, sweetie—”

  “Don’t ‘sweetie’ me. I’ve moved on to bigger and better castles.”

  The Raven Queen cackled. “This truly has been a diver
ting evening.”

  “And the fun is only just beginning,” Odette said dryly.

  “Shall we bring forth the guests?” Queen Morgaine asked.

  The Raven Queen gestured to the men with the coffin. They dropped it before me, water from the floor splattering my leggings. Something inside the coffin thudded as it slammed against the floor. I realized then the coffin wasn’t empty. It wasn’t meant for me.

  This coffin housed someone else.

  “Is it time to kill your enemies yet?” Khaba asked. There was an odd gleam in his eyes. He actually looked like he wanted to kill me. Had something gone wrong when Elric used the Seal of Solomon?

  “I know it’s hard to be patient, but just a minute longer,” the Raven Queen said. “You may kill my enemies after I fulfill my end of the bargain with them.”

  I reached out with my awareness. I didn’t want to know who was inside the coffin, but I had to know.

  The body within was still warm, but she took no breath. Her heart was still. I felt no magic, but I sensed her soul tethered on a string. Her soul drifted away, just as my own once had done when I’d been dead.

  I saw her face before the men yanked back the lid.

  This was Imani’s corpse. Horror stole over me.

  Elric sank to his knees. “She’s just . . . sleeping?” His voice rose in question.

  Vega’s fingers danced over the skull on her armrest, anticipation in her frame. “It was my idea, in case you were wondering.”

  “My new protégé,” the queen said, gazing fondly at Vega.

  The queen turned the bundled baby so that I could see her ashen face. Even before I saw with my eyes, I saw with my awareness. There was no life or breath in that little form.

  Aubrey was dead. They were both corpses.

  I stared as grief took hold of my soul. “No.”

  “You never specified you required them back alive,” the Raven Queen cackled.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  Peace Corpse

  I screamed. This had been the Raven Queen’s plan. Her trick. Once again she had fooled me into giving her what she wanted while I was left with even less than before.