by C. C. Wood
With one hand, he tucked a pillow behind his back and with the other, he brought me up against his side so my head rested on his shoulder. He reached out and plucked the small black binder off the nightstand.
"Comfortable?" he asked.
I nodded and snuggled up against him. I liked that Mal wanted me close after we made love rather than putting distance between us.
"What do you want to eat?" he asked as he flipped through the pages.
"Mmmhhhmmm. Chicken tenders sound good. Maybe the appetizer sampler. And the brownie sundae for dessert."
Mal chuckled and I loved the deep rumble of it beneath my cheek. "Are you gonna share with me?"
"I guess," I sighed. "If you insist."
He laughed again, reached out to grab the phone, and placed our order. I ran my hand over his chest as I drowsed, my thoughts drifting.
When I imagined us together like this, I never realized it would be so peaceful. My eyes closed and I breathed in the scent of his skin. I never wanted to leave.
"You're staying the entire night, right?" Mal asked.
I smiled but didn't open my eyes. "I don't think I'll be able to move any time soon, so I'll probably be here even if the hotel catches fire."
"Will you move into my room?"
That got my attention. I opened one eye and looked up at him. "What?"
Mal grinned at me. "I want you to stay here with me until we head back home. I have...plans."
"I don't know, Mal."
"I've shared a room with you before," he pointed out.
"Yeah, my room at my home." This was different. Wasn't it?
Mal kissed my forehead. "Please stay."
The man knew my weaknesses. When he asked me so nicely, I couldn't say no. "I'll get my stuff in the morning."
His lips curved against my forehead. "Good."
Sneaky, sneaky man.
When Mal said he had plans, he wasn't lying. After we ate and made love again, he dragged me into the huge tub in his bathroom. By the time we finished with our bath, I was so sleepy I could barely keep my eyes open. My early morning vision of Death and being grabbed by a weird zombie giant had taken their toll. I needed rest.
Surprisingly, Teri didn't make a single appearance, though I could feel her moving around the hotel. I also realized we hadn't talked about the fact that she wasn't able to reach me when I'd been snatched at Francesca's house.
We definitely needed to discuss that. In the morning, though. I wanted to enjoy the moment with Mal while I could because tomorrow would be busy enough. After Blaine, Stony, and Jonelle finished their tasks, I had a feeling we'd be moving quickly.
Once I was dried off, Mal gave me another one of his t-shirts to sleep in and I crawled into the bed. Just before I passed out, I felt him slide under the sheets behind me and wrap an arm around my waist, curling his body around mine.
Definitely heaven.
Unfortunately, heaven didn't last long.
I found myself floating in the same darkness I'd experienced that morning. Now that I knew what to expect, the lack of light didn't frighten me.
"Adrian?" I called.
He appeared out of the shadows, still dressed in black, and he looked every inch the fallen angel.
"I'm glad you're safe, little one," he stated, coming closer. "But the danger hasn't passed yet."
"Gee, Grandpaw, thanks so much for the cryptic warnings. They're so helpful."
He sighed and tucked his hands into his pockets. "Are you done?"
"Just getting started."
"Zoe, you're being unfair."
"Unfair? Unfair! I don't think so. You pull me into this weird place and tell me I'm in danger and nothing else. Then you have the nerve to chastise me? How about you give me something a little more helpful? Like who or what is so dangerous that you feel the need to warn me about it."
Adrian studied me for a long moment and fear blossomed inside me. Maybe I'd made a mistake in mouthing off to him, but I was tired of this feeling. The feeling that I was nothing but a piece on a chessboard and someone else was moving me, positioning me to their advantage.
"I think you're the strongest of my descendants, both in magic and in spirit. I know you don't remember me, but I was there the day you died. I knew it wasn't your time, but I wanted to be there all the same. I knew then that you were special—strong and stubborn. But it wasn't until I saw you lying on the ground that it became real to me. You looked so small and helpless. I knew then that I would do whatever it took to keep you safe, even if it was against the laws handed down by Fate."
I didn't touch the comment about Fate, because there was already too much stuff in my head. Instead, I focused on his words about me. "But how is this helping me? You're telling me I'm in danger but not giving me any information that I can use."
He smiled, but it was sad. "I have, little one. The knowledge is inside you now, but it won't come until you truly need it. Even with all your magic, you're still mortal. There's only so much power you can handle. And knowledge is power in this case. I vow to you, when you truly need what I have given you, it will show itself."
I wanted to push, to ask him for more information, but Adrian stepped back and faded into the shadows.
Dammit.
I reached out into the darkness, but he was gone.
Double dammit. Enigmatic ancestors were a gigantic pain in the ass.
My eyes opened and I found myself staring at the wall of Mal's dark bedroom. A small movement in my peripheral vision made me tense. I shifted my gaze toward the end of the bed and saw Teri hovering there, a worried expression on her face.
I lifted my head and looked at Mal. He was still curled around my back, his arm over my waist, but he was sleeping soundly. His face looked relaxed in sleep and I wanted to kiss his rough cheek, but I restrained myself. I didn't want to wake him.
Moving carefully, I slid out from beneath his arm and motioned for Teri to follow me into the living room. I shut the bedroom door on silent hinges. When I turned on the lamp, I realized that I could barely see through her anymore. Her form looked nearly solid and her clothes were no longer greyish white. They had color. Her shirt was bright neon pink and her cutoffs were acid washed. Very 80's.
"Oh, my God, Teri." I lifted a hand to cover my mouth.
"I know. I don't know what's happening, but get this." She lifted a hand, holding it out to me.
I reached out to her and our fingertips actually touched. It wasn't the strange, chilly electric tingle I usually felt when we made contact. Her skin was still cold but it had the texture of real skin. She was solid.
And though I'd thought she was hovering earlier, she wasn't. Her feet were planted on the floor.
"I can still walk through walls if I think about it," Teri continued. "But unless I concentrate, I stay like this." She grimaced and rubbed her forehead. "I learned that the hard way."
"I don't understand," I murmured to myself.
"Jonelle tried to do some research earlier, but she doesn't have the contacts or the library that Angie does. Are you sure there's no way you can find her?" she asked. "Because we have more to discuss than the return of my body."
I frowned at her, confused.
"Today. When I was trapped and I couldn't get to you? Remember?"
"I remember. You don't think it was a one-off?"
Teri's expression darkened. "I don't think so. Even if it was, I want to know what happened because I don't want it to happen again."
She did have a good point. None of us had really talked about it once we got back to the hotel. I felt like a heel. Teri was an important part of my life and I'd been so focused on my own issues that I'd dismissed her. It was also telling that she'd caught me in bed with Mal with obvious sex hair and she hadn't given me any shit.
"I'll call Angie again," I told her. "We'll figure out what's happening and we'll make sure that you will be okay."
Teri nodded.
I glanced around, searching for my phone. I spotte
d it on the coffee table, partially hidden by one of Mal's notebooks. I plucked it up, entered my passcode, and opened the contacts app.
I didn't expect Angie to answer because she hadn't called me back after my previous messages, but I was going to try anyway. I could at least leave her another voicemail and update her on what was happening.
I scrolled through my recent calls and selected her name.
The phone rang twice and the line clicked. When I heard Angie's voice instead of the automated voicemail message, I nearly dropped the phone.
"Zoe, thank the goddess. I need to talk to you." Her voice was pitched higher than usual, as though she was stressed out.
"What's going on? Are you okay?"
Angie laughed. "Not really. I've been driving for hours to get to Austin."
"You're in Austin?" I asked. I couldn't hide my incredulity.
"Of course I am. Do you have any idea who Beatrix Fury is?"
"Beatrix the high priestess here?"
"Yes," Angie replied. It was more of a bark than an actual word.
"Where are you exactly?" I asked.
"I just got to your hotel. What room are you in?"
This was strange, even by Angie's standards.
"Uh, 651," I answered.
"I'll be there in a few minutes."
"Angie, this sounds serious and more than a little weird. What's going on?"
She laughed, but the sound was brittle and harsh. "What's going on? Nothing except you happily waltzed into the territory of one of the strongest dark witches in the South. Maybe even North America. It's difficult to assess considering they don't exactly get together and compete in public tournaments."
My stomach cramped. "Beatrix actually practices black magic? Carissa said that the directory mentioned the possibility, but I couldn't feel it when we met her. Her power seems normal."
"You can't feel it when you're around her? The. . . wrongness of her power. She wears it like a cloak."
I shook my head, my mouth refusing to work.
"Zoe?"
"No, I didn't feel it," I admitted quietly. "I could sense her power, but it didn't feel any different than yours."
"Ah, hell. That means she's learned to hide it," Angie muttered. "I'm about to get into the elevator now. If I lose signal, meet me at the door to your room in two minutes."
"Okay." There was nothing else to say.
Teri paced back and forth across the living area as we waited for Angie to make her way up to Mal's suite. "We shouldn't have trusted them," she murmured to herself. "I knew they were bad news as soon as I saw them. The assholes."
Teri would bitch about this for years to come. There would be I told you so's and repetitions of this story for a long, long time. Wonderful.
"I'm here," Angie said in my ear.
I'd forgotten she was on the line. I glanced at the clock on the wall and winced. No wonder I was having trouble focusing. It was two in the morning and I'd only been asleep for about two hours. My brain didn't want to function on so little sleep.
I hurried to the door of the suite and peeked out the peephole. Angie waited in the hallway, her eyes scanning from one end to the other, watchful and wary.
"Are you going to stare at me all night or let me in?" she asked.
"Just making sure," I replied.
"Guess I can't blame you for that."
I opened the door and knew that whatever the news was, it went far beyond dark high priestess witches. Angie stepped inside the room and I shut the door behind her.
She walked deeper into the living area and stopped short when she saw Teri standing by the coffee table.
"Well, you definitely weren't kidding about the changes in Teri, were you?"
Teri just stared at her. "Where have you been?"
Angie didn't answer her right away but walked over to the Keurig on the counter against the wall.
"Angie," Teri called.
"Give me a few minutes. I think I've slept all of five hours in the last few days and it's catching up with me. I need a cup of coffee."
Teri sighed heavily and flopped down on one of the chairs surrounding the coffee table. "By all means, take your time."
I glared at her. "Don't forget everyone can hear you now," I pointed out. "And you're being extremely rude."
"This is going to take some getting used to." Teri groaned and settled deeper into the chair. "Though it is nice not to have to concentrate if I want to sit in a chair and not fall through the floor."
Angie turned from the Keurig with a cup of coffee steaming in her hand. She took a sip and closed her eyes. When she opened her eyes, I noticed the dark circles beneath them for the first time. It had only been a few days, but she looked like she hadn't slept in weeks.
She carried the coffee cup over to the chair at the other end of the coffee table and settled on the seat so she faced Teri.
"I'm going to start from the beginning and I would appreciate it if you would keep your questions until I'm done, okay? My brain is sluggish enough and I need to be focused so I don't forget anything."
I nodded at her and Angie shifted her gaze to Teri, waiting.
Teri sighed and crossed her arms over her chest. "Fine."
And to think I'd once wished my other friends could hear and see Teri. I was beginning to regret it.
Angie took another large sip of coffee, wincing as if the hot liquid burned her tongue. "So here's what I found out. Your powers are so rare that it's been over two hundred years since anyone's even seen them. Usually there's only one necromancer in the world at any given time with your abilities. If that."
I didn't say anything, but I understood why. And I also knew that there was at least one in every generation with my abilities, probably more, even if no one else did. They were hiding, the people like me. Likely because they understood what I had not. Their magic made them targets.
"While most necromancers can only interact with or control spirits, the ones like you." Angie paused as if searching for the right words. "They have control over life and death itself. I'm not talking about sucking the life out of plants and animals like you did at the cemetery. I'm talking about bringing the dead back to life." Angie didn't give me a chance to truly process her words before she continued. "And it also explains what's going on with Teri. Some witches have familiars, cats or birds. Sometimes frogs or mice. But in your case, Teri is your familiar. Your power feeds her and strengthens her. That's why everyone else can see and hear her now. And why she's gaining a corporeal form."
"Why would I need a familiar?" I asked, despite Angie's directive not to say anything while she talked. "I'm not exactly a witch."
Angie drank more coffee. "But you are. You are a witch, but your power is focused on the dead. Familiars can be used to focus your power, to accomplish tasks, and sometimes even to spy. It's a deep connection, give and take, but also allows you to take control of your familiar should the need arise."
Teri stared at me in silence, but her expression said it all.
It did. I understood now how I was able to force Teri to comply when I wanted her to do something. I preferred not to do it, but I had. It also explained why her strength was growing. And why people could see and hear her now. My magic fed hers.
"So Teri is gaining abilities because my power is feeding her?" I asked.
"Yes." Angie drained the rest of her coffee and set the empty cup on the coffee table. "Now, I know you'll have lots of questions about this, which is why I asked you to let me say all I had to say before you spoke, but it isn't the time to discuss it to death. We have bigger issues to address."
"Bigger issues?" I echoed. My brain was still stuck on the fact that Teri was my familiar. I would definitely have to do some research in Angie's library when we got back home.
"Beatrix Fury. And the little girl you've been seeing."
"Selene."
Angie frowned at me. "Do you even know if this little girl is real?"
"I've been to her house. She a
nd her mother have been missing for a couple of weeks. Why?"
"Because it's very likely that Beatrix is the one who lured you here, probably under false pretenses."
"Why?" I didn't understand.
"I told you," Angie answered. "She practices dark magic. And she would do whatever it took to have access to magic like yours."
"How would she even know, Angie?" I asked. "I just found out myself a few days ago. I didn't tell anyone about it until yesterday. And Selene and her mother have been missing for weeks, not days. The timelines don't match up."
"One of the witches in her coven, Jezebel, is a powerful precog and telepath," she replied.
"What does that even mean?" I asked.
Angie got up, carried her cup back over to the coffee maker, and set about brewing another cup. "It means she can see the future and read minds. I've met her before and she may look like a cheerleader, but she's dangerous as hell."
My stomach twisted into a tight knot. We'd all spent several hours with her yesterday. What could she have gleaned in that time? "What happened?"
"Let's just say she hurt people I loved." Angie turned toward me, a full cup in her hand. Her expression was haunted. "And it was far too late to stop her when we realized what she was up to."
"We spent most of the day with her yesterday," I said.
Angie groaned as she sank back down into the chair. "You didn't."
"We all did."
"Then we have to assume that Beatrix knows everything that's been going on."
"But I didn't feel her picking through my brain."
"You wouldn't," Angie stated. "She is very, very good at what she does. She's insidious and cunning."
"So what do we do now?" I asked.
"We get as far away from here as we can." Angie drank more coffee. "And I'll fortify the wards on your house. Because I wouldn't put it past Beatrix to come after you on your own turf, even if it means war with my coven."
"I'm not leaving until I know that Selene is safe."
Angie stared at me, her gaze cold and determined. For the first time, she looked exactly like what she was—a powerful high priestess.
"Have you not heard a word I said?" she asked. "The girl and her mother are probably willingly involved in getting you here."
