A flicker of a smile sprung up at the edges of her lips. “Classy. Is that why he’s painting your house?” So she’d noticed that too.
“That was my winning prize. He’s just doing it anyway to be neighbourly.”
“I’m sure he is.” Étoile choked back a laugh.
“Is that why you came ahead?” I asked, when it dawned on me. “You wanted to make sure Evan wasn’t about to interrupt something?”
Étoile didn’t bother to look embarrassed; that really wasn’t her bag. “Pretty much. It would be a terrible reconciliation if you were.”
“Well, now you know. Are you going to zap back?” I swallowed the moment of guilt I felt. Nothing had happened, I reminded myself. Except a kiss, or two... if you didn’t count how long they lasted... or where they had taken place.
“To Evan? No, he’s driving and that would be unsafe. I might even not shimmer into his car. I’ll just wait until he gets here.”
“Is anyone else coming?” Meaning, how was everyone else, of course. Had they all survived? Fortunately Étoile got that.
“Kitty is fine though her leg is still in a cast but she’ll make a full recovery, you’ll be pleased to know. Shall I tell her where you are? Marc is with her. David and Seren are on their way here too.”
It would be quite a houseful when they got here. I knew I hadn’t enough cups for six, let alone anything else. Where they expecting to stay? I could hardly say no. I just couldn’t imagine the imminent reunion.
“I’ve booked rooms at an inn in Wilding,” said Étoile and it wasn’t the first time I wondered if she had a direct dial line straight in to my thoughts. “I’m sure you and Evan have some catching up to do. Plus, I just love playing third wheel to Seren and David.” She put her finger to her mouth and pretended to gag. Like Evan and me, Seren and David’s relationship had spring up at the safe house. It was heartening to know they were still together.
“Is Evan mad at me?” My voice came out like a whisper.
“Oh, Stella, no. Of course not.” Étoile took both my hands in hers and looked solidly at me. “He’s just been worried sick. He’s a tracker, probably the best there is and he couldn’t track you. He’s been desperate to find you, and fairly intolerable about it too.”
I couldn’t even begin to fathom what Evan must have thought. A ball of anxiety was welling inside me. At least, I thought it was anxiety. There might have been a pinch of fear, and excitement too. I was going to see Evan. Now that I knew it was going to happen, that he was real and alive, that he was on his way to me, the time felt like it slowed to a snail’s pace. It couldn’t go fast enough for me. I stood up, then sat down, and stood up again like a hyperactive kid who knew Christmas was only a few hours away. I wanted my present, damn it, and I wanted it now.
“So, show me around,” said Étoile, “and tell me what you’ve been doing the past few months and then I’ll tell you what’s been happening while we wait. Or you could stand up and sit down like you’re the only one playing musical chairs and I’ll try and look entertained.”
I grinned at her usual sarcastic self. “Missed you,” I said.
“Missed you, too.”
I showed Étoile around my house, which didn’t take long and she said nice things about the size of the rooms and what I had done with the place, which wasn’t much. She was much more admiring about the wards woven around the house.
“Frankly, it wasn’t easy to track you down. The wards are strong and they definitely mask the presence of magic, certainly for those who aren’t so inclined.”
“So how did you find me?”
I swore I saw a faint trace of red creep onto her cheeks. If I didn’t know better, I’d have said Étoile was blushing. “Land records,” she said eventually. “Turns out tax records were much more helpful than magic. I came here to check. I was fairly certain once I’d caught your trace and seeing you clinched it, naturally.”
“Thanks again for the coverlet.” It was still laid over the back of the sofa and I thought I’d keep it there; it was cosy. “I appreciate it.”
“I’m sure Meg would have wanted you to have it.”
“You know I never guessed Meg was a vampire.” I was surprised how easily that came out. Meg had been the owner of the safe house where I’d been hidden and she’d been an elderly, fussy housemother type who favoured night time walks and was always cold to the touch. I hadn’t known she was a vampire until I’d seen her body flake into ashes. A year ago I would have giggled at the idea of saying, never mind thinking, such a stupid thing, but then, a year ago I’d thought I was a clumsy freak and not realised that I was suffused with a deep and ancient magic that I could bend to my will. It made me wonder what else I didn’t know about.
“She wasn’t exactly your archetypal vamp. Definitely not of the black leather and chains’ school. Don’t be fooled until thinking they’re all like Meg though. Vampires are dark beings, mostly, though there’s always the exception. Generally they are not the sort you or I would want to consort with. Meg was an exception, though a dangerous one. We still took measures, even with her.”
I let that sink in and wondered how much danger we had been in every night at the safe house. I wondered what had become of the house itself now, whether it stood empty or if it had passed to the descendents that she’d been turned for, in her bid to provide a home for them when she knew she was sick and dying and had no other options.
Étoile flicked her wrist so she could glance at her watch. “What shall we do while we wait? Do you want to fill me in on what you’ve been doing? Or do you want to do your hair before Evan gets here?”
I looked at her sharply. “What’s wrong with my hair?”
“Oh, nothing.” Étoile quickly shook her head. Her hair was a little longer than when I’d last seen her, still closely cropped on the sides but now with a longer top that swept forward across her forehead. It softened her angular face slightly.
“We don’t all have New York salons to go to you know.”
“I’ve been in Oklahoma for the past few months.”
“Oklahoma?” I wondered it if had been near Tulsa; apparently scrying hadn’t been such a waste of time after all.
“You were hoping for somewhere more exotic? LA, perhaps?”
“I don’t know what I thought.”
“Oklahoma is perfectly lovely so long as you aren’t stuck in a hospital.”
“But you weren’t hurt...”
“No, I wasn’t, but I was still weak and I needed to recover and others were hurt. It took Seren and I two weeks before we could shimmer again, and even then we had to draw strength from each other. David had to drive us back from Meg’s house and we stayed to help. He’d looked all over for you. He said you used your magic.”
I thought back. “Yes, I shimmered out of the house and I covered my traces.”
Étoile cocked her head and considered me. “We caught a trace of your magic and then nothing. So you see, we did think, for a while, that something had happened to you. You have no idea what it was like telling Evan. He’s formidable when angry.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be. It’s all right. Now, tell me what you’ve been doing.”
I told her from the beginning. When I’d found myself alone in Meg’s house, I’d remembered the key amidst my panic and decided to go. And then I’d done very little except make myself at home. A light pinged in my head. Now that they knew where I was I could use my bank account. I could be a little more adventurous in looking for a job or starting college now that I didn’t feel like I had to be cautious about giving away my location. Things were looking up indeed.
“What about you?” I asked when I’d finished.
“Not much. Seren and I were ensuring our sister was safe and where she couldn’t harm anyone else. Her doctors seem to have hopes that she might recover. Eleanor meddled with her mind, you know. Hateful woman. And, of course, we stayed with Kitty – though Marc has been with her most of the time
– and with Evan, too.”
“How come I could use my magic, if you couldn’t use yours?” I asked, after I’d thought about it for a moment. Étoile and Seren’s power had been weakened by Eleanor but mine hadn’t abated then or now. I’d just stopped using it so much.
“I was wondering the same thing, though it didn’t occur to me at the time. Seeing as we thought you had been captured.”
“I said sorry!” I got up and walked over to the window as if looking out would make Evan get here faster. I turned. “Who did you think had captured me?”
Étoile took a deep breath before explaining. “The council is broken, splintered into different factions. Some want to be left alone. Some want power and they’ll do anything to get it, including snatching witches.”
This reminded me: Chyler. She had said something similar.
“What would they want with witches?”
“Reinforce their own power; wipe out other clans; who know what nefarious reasons they have. Some think with Eleanor out of the way that it’s time for a new order.”
“And that’s not a good thing?” It didn’t sound bad to me.
“Eleanor was not nearly the worst of them, unfortunately. Speaking of the worst, let’s snap to the best. I have something for you: Kitty’s phone number.” Étoile rummaged in her bag and produced her pride and joy, her BlackBerry. After pressing a few buttons she offered it to me.
“I can call her?” I asked.
Étoile rolled her eyes. “Just press dial. Do you mind if I take a nap? I’m exhausted.” Étoile was already kicking off her heels so I suggested she take the sofa seeing as the guest room wasn’t made up. Actually there just wasn’t anything even vaguely guest-like in the guest room, but I’d save those worries for later.
“I’ll wake you when they get here,” I offered, taking the phone.
“Do, though I’ll know when Seren is close by.” With that Étoile pulled the coverlet over her, sank back on the pillows and closed her eyes. She seemed to have gone straight to sleep.
I wasted no time in hitting the dial button and after what seemed like an eternity, a female voice picked up just as I stepped into my bedroom. “Hello?”
“Hello? Is that Kitty?” I sank down on my bed.
The voice on the other end of the line squealed. “It is, and I know that voice. Stella, I’m so glad you called. Étoile must be there, if you’re calling, and Evan, too?”
“Étoile is here. She shimmered ahead but Evan is still driving. I’m waiting.”
“And the time can’t go fast enough, huh?”
“It’s like it’s going slower,” I laughed, giddy at talking to Kitty, giddy at Étoile being here, beside myself that Evan was alive.
“Well, that I can relate to, honey. I’ve been in hospital ever since that day and boy, am I sick of it.”
“I’m so sorry, Kitty. I’m so sorry you had to go through all of that. I wish there was something I could do.”
“I heard about everything you did, and you’ve done enough. Besides, you don’t have to apologise to me. You did not do this, Stella, you hear me?”
“I hear you.” But it was still going to take time to accept that self-defence was an acceptable defence. I heard Kitty shuffle and tried not to imagine her in casts, in a hospital bed, with injuries bad enough that she had been hospitalised for months.
“Is anyone with you?” I asked. “Who’s taking care of you?” I didn’t have much to go on, and while I understood that she, and the others, had not been at a regular human hospital, I wasn’t sure what an... irregular one entailed.
“A great team of doctors and nurses – there are supernatural medical professionals who do a rotation through here.” Kitty paused, then said, “Brace yourself, honey. Marc stayed here the whole time.”
That wasn’t huge news to me, Étoile had already said as much plus I’d had an inkling that Marc’s feelings for Kitty went way beyond friendship. “You’re back together?” I asked.
“Hold up, girl. I have not finished telling my story yet.” Kitty laughed. “He’s been great, really great, but just when I was seriously thinking about it, I opened my door and found him playing tongue twister with the nurse and that, my friend, put paid to that.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. I’m just glad I realised Marc was still the same Marc. It’s almost reassuring you know?”
“I guess. Is he still there?” I’d had a lot of time to think about Marc but I didn’t know whether he blamed me or not for everything that had happened. I hoped not.
Kitty seemed nonchalant when she said, “Yes, for now.” Changing the subject quickly she said, “Evan, however, has pissed off just about everyone in the building. He was furious when he woke up and no one knew where you were.”
“I’ve been explaining that to Étoile. I panicked when everyone left and no one came back. I just hightailed it out of there and came to Wilding.”
“What’s in Wilding?”
“My parent’s house, they left it to me.”
“You’d have thought one of them would have figured that out a bit faster,” sniffed Kitty. “I sometimes think they need to use their brains, more than their magic.”
“I guess. Étoile said she found it through land records.”
“You can never escape taxes, honey.”
“Apparently not. Kitty, I have been looking for you guys. I tried everything, but nothing worked. I didn’t give up, I swear.”
“Honey, no one said you did and of course, it didn’t work. The magically injured come to this hospital for a reason. No amount of spells or magic would help you find us here. It’s very well protected.” Kitty paused. “I thought Evan’s heart was breaking, he was so sad without you.”
My heart lurched. I didn’t want to dwell on that, not now he was so close. Instead I said, “I can’t believe he’s nearly here.”
“Better believe it, baby. Now, I have to go for therapy and you have to keep calling me back to fill me in on what’s going on. Where can I call you?”
“On Étoile’s phone, I don’t have one.”
“You need to join the technological age, honey. Call me soon. I’ve missed you.”
“Missed you too, Kitty.”
~
Seren and David were the first to arrive. With every sense attuned to waiting for Evan, I had no problem hearing their car long before it turned onto the driveway. I went out to greet them.
Seren was a lot like her older sister with high cheekbones that gave her face an aristocratic air and the same piercing eyes, but Seren was somewhat softer to look at and her hair swung in layers past her shoulders. She was dressed in a soft powder blue sweater and jeans that hugged her legs. Behind her, David Barton, my former spell teacher, and her lover, was a tall, slim man with an unexplained scar that curved across a pleasant face. He had a fine crop of curly brown hair cut very short. Today he was wearing glasses with thin rims. I hugged them both and Seren kissed me on each cheek.
“Étoile’s inside. Sleeping,” I said, putting my forefinger to my lips as warning.
“I’m awake,” came her voice from behind me and I heard the sofa creak as she got up.
“Evan is right behind us,” murmured Seren as she swished past me.
“Shall we make coffee, sister dearest,” came Étoile’s voice again and I left the three of them inside so I could wait anxiously on the porch rather than circle the living room, too wired to sit still any longer.
I stamped my feet and wrapped my arms about myself to keep out the cold air and the ball of anxiety in the pit of my stomach blossomed into desperation. Six months had felt like eternity, and these few minutes felt like a lifetime. It was like time was tormenting me by dragging by.
When I thought I couldn’t bear it anymore, a big black car cruised into view and rolled onto the driveway to park behind Seren and David’s car. I waited forever for the engine to cut out and the driver’s door to ease open.
When Evan got out and stood,
and turning to face me, arms leaning on the door frame, as he blinked against the light of the cold sun, I gasped. I had never thought I would see him again and I breathed in the sight of him, from his short crop of hair to the fine cut of his jaw. Finally he saw me, our eyes met and I let out a yelp of delight.
I raced off the porch, my feet barely touching the steps as I sprinted towards him. In the same moment he slammed the door shut and took a few steps towards me, catching me in his arms and holding me tight against him as he spun me around. I breathed in the citrus scent of his aftershave as he kissed me and, after a moment, when he set me down and just looked at me like he couldn’t quite believe we were both here, he kissed me again, his full lips crushing mine and I thought I would never feel such pure joy again.
Six
We sat in the living room for the big witch powwow. Seren, David and Étoile on one sofa, with Seren in the middle. The sisters were incredibly close to identical though they had been born a year apart, but Étoile’s hair was as short as Seren’s was long and Seren had always struck me as a casual, bohemian dresser while Étoile favoured upscale chic. They shared the same elegant bone structure and almond, slightly feline, eyes. They were a study in contrast to their sister, Astra, who had looked ill the one and only time I’d had the misfortune to meet her. Evan and I sat opposite them, our hands so firmly entwined it was like they had melded together. I couldn’t fathom letting go. I was still struggling to accept that he was right next to me. Every so often he gave my hand a little squeeze like he couldn’t believe it too.
“I can’t believe you’re all here,” I said, at last.
“It took us long enough to find you,” smiled Seren, without a hint of admonishment.
David took her hand in his and smiled at her in a mixture of admiration and tenderness. Finally he turned to me. “I’m very proud of the way you used your magic. We could all feel it when we got here.”
Unruly Magic Page 8
