I looked at her, nonplussed. What did she just say?
“I know, I know, but Noah is different. He’s not like any other sorcerer that I know. He’s honorable, thoughtful, and not too cocky. A little bit of arrogance is attractive, I always say.”
I was struck speechless. My mouth opened and shut as my brain tried to process what she said. Granted, Harley had always been the more accepting of us, her mind more open to sorcery, but it was still a shock to hear her say something like that.
Noticing my lack of response, she turned toward me. “What? Did I actually shut you up for once?”
“I’m just not used to you saying something like that. What brought it on?” I finally found my voice, but was still just as puzzled as before.
She turned back to the counter and lifted the pot roast into the frying pan. I watched as she seared the meat, at least I thought that’s what she was doing, and waited for her to go on.
“Well, we’re all in this now, tied in somehow. Gareth and Anna because of the cure, Noah because of his loyalty to Gareth, although I think there’s something more there, and me because of you. I would love for us to get to the bottom of your night time trip to his house, and maybe having Noah here will give us the extra strategizing brain power needed to figure that out.”
It was glaringly conspicuous to me that she left Damien out of her little equation.
“What about Damien? I noticed you didn’t include him, although by my estimations, he’s part of this, too.”
She shrugged nonchalantly, but I could see that she wasn’t unaffected by my question. I didn’t have to be tuned into her feelings to know that.
“He has his own issues that have nothing to do with us.”
“Oh by the Goddess, Harley, quit it. Just stop. I don’t know what is going on with the two of you, because you won’t let me in on it, but he is as much a part of this as we are! He saved Anna’s life, and if Padraigan wasn’t already holding something over his head, that would have brought him into the mess just as much as we are. Give the poor man some credit. He can’t help who he is any more than we can.”
“You think I’m like this because he’s a werewolf? Teagan, you should know me better than that. If I were that type of person, I wouldn’t like Gareth, either.” She muttered, almost throwing the roast into the slow cooker. She started tossing vegetables in, almost making as much of a mess as I would have. Carrots and celery bounced out of the pot to land back on the counter.
“But you do like him, Damien, I mean. You can’t fool me, Harley.”
“OH! Just drop it, okay? We’re talking about you and Noah.”
“No, we were talking about how you thought it would be nice having a sorcerer in the house.” I let her change the subject, as she was obviously getting agitated over it.
“Well it will be nice. Ooh, maybe I can get him to fix the toilet on the ground floor.”
I snorted out a laugh.
“I get it now, you just want a handyman around. I can dig it.”
The bell rang inside the door, announcing someone downstairs. I jumped up, glad for the excuse to escape.
“I’ll get it, you just keep roasting.”
“But it’s ready to go! It’s just clean-up now!”
I heard her yelling at me as I ran down the stairs to the second floor, only to run into someone already there. I stopped in my tracks, the surprise of seeing someone that I didn’t know in this section of the bookstore making me freeze.
“Can I help you?” I asked, my voice a little standoffish. She wasn’t someone I knew, and Harley and I knew everyone in town that would come up to the second floor. The second floor was reserved for true Occult books, ancient tomes bound in leather, grimoire’s, Wiccan spell books. Books that only pertained to a certain clientele.
She spun around from where she was perusing a section of books on mystical beings to face me, a smile pasted on her mouth. It didn’t quite reach her eyes, though.
“Yes, I was wondering if you had any books on Shamanism.”
I stood back for a moment, taking her measure. She was dressed head to toe in Anne Klein, from her hound’s-tooth blazer to her grey three inch heels. I don’t like to label people, but she didn’t strike me as our usual clientele.
“We do, follow me.” I turned my back to her and walked toward the back of the store, but even that bothered me. Something about her was off and I couldn’t place my finger on it.
“So how did you hear about us?” I asked as I stopped in front of a bookshelf dedicated to Shamanism.
“Oh, you know, the usual circles.” She waved a hand breezily, not quite looking me in the eye.
“No, actually, I don’t know. Enlighten me.” I crossed my arms over my chest and stared at her, debating whether or not to break my own rule of reading stranger’s minds. I couldn’t place her, but she seemed very, very familiar, as though I had seen her around recently. It hadn’t been in the bookstore, of that I was certain.
Her eyes grew cold and she raised her chin an inch in defiance.
“I’m sure you’re aware how people of our,” she paused here, a smirk on her face, as she searched for a word, “talents, shall we say, find your little store.” She gave a disparaging look around, as though the store fell below expectations.
I tried not to let it get to me, asked the Goddess for a little bit of patience, and took a deep breath.
“Then you would understand why I’m a little suspicious when someone who is new to the area comes in unannounced. Usually, someone would come in with you for introductions.” I said, my voice dripping with kindness, tinged only lightly with suspicion.
“I understand. We can never be too careful, can we? Gemma Conklin.” She replied, extending her hand out. I took it slowly, giving it a cursory shake, then let go, trying to contain my revulsion. Her skin was…wrong, somehow. Not quite cold, but not the same temperature as my own skin, and the texture was off, somewhere between soft and hard.
“I’ve heard of the store for years now, just have never come in. My curiosity finally got the best of me, and I had to come in, take a look around.”
Her eyes never strayed from mine, the glittering black almost unnerving me. They stood out from her pale face and platinum blonde updo, making them seem almost depthless. Convinced that if I stared at them long enough, I would fall into them and be lost in the depths of hell, I managed to let my gaze drift around the store, striving to give the impression of nonchalance.
I knew that I couldn’t lose it, couldn’t let her know that I was suspicious of her for more than just showing up unannounced at the store. I didn’t know who or what she was, so I nodded slightly, keeping my expression even.
“Have a look around then, let me know if you need any help.”
“Help? Yes, I will be sure to let you know if I need any of that.” Her voice dripped with disdain for a moment, but she quickly masked it with sarcasm.
I frowned as she turned her back on me and perused the shelves. I called out to Harley, her answer echoing in my head.
I need you down here.
Be right there.
I didn’t trust Gemma Conklin for a moment and I needed a second pair of eyes to keep on her.
She didn’t even bother to look up as Harley came down the stairs, and Harley, upon seeing her there, gave me a sharp look.
Who is she?
I just shook my head slightly, the frown still wrinkling my forehead. Harley moved around the second floor, called a greeting to someone as they came up from below.
“Peter, how nice to see you. I have that new book you asked for, Scottish Witchcraft. Let me get it for you.” Harley gave me a glance as she went towards the stock room, and I shrugged, keeping my eye on Gemma.
“Teagan, how are you?” Peter asked me, so I turned to him reluctantly, not wanting to let her out of my sight. I kept her in my peripheral though, so she couldn’t leave without me seeing her.
“I’m good Peter, how’ve you been?” I looked up at him
and gave him a slight smile.
“Good, good. Work and play, you know?” He returned my smile with a bigger one. This was awkward. I was hoping he wouldn’t ask me out on a date, which he did every time he was in the store.
“I heard that you were seeing Noah Jacobs.”
I don’t know who was more shocked, me or Gemma. I saw her jerk, turning her head slightly, the better to hear our conversation. I, however, stared at Peter with my mouth open.
“Ah, did I hear wrong?” Peter guessed, smiling a bit too widely at my expression.
“Where...where, um, Peter, where did you hear that from?” I stammered just as Harley came back in, book in hand. She took in my startled expression and cast a wary glance at Gemma.
“Around, you know how these things get twisted. I have to say, though, that I’m glad it’s not true.” His smile remained plastered on his face, got bigger if that was possible. Wonderful. I should have just told him it was true.
“Well, it’s not. We’re just friends. We have a mutual acquaintance in common.”
“Really? You? Friends with not one, but two sorcerers? Must be a really good acquaintance. Who is it?”
I could see Gemma struggling to hear our conversation and be slick about it at the same time, but she wasn’t very good at it. I wondered why it was so interesting to her that I was friends with Noah. Ex-girlfriend, maybe? For some reason, that thought made me mad.
“Peter, here’s your book! If you want to come with me downstairs, I’ll get you on your way.” Harley practically shoved the book into Peter’s hands and grabbed him by the elbow, but he didn’t move, his curiosity piqued.
“I can’t think of anyone that you would know that would have a sorcerer as a friend, especially someone like Noah Jacobs.” He chuckled, looking at me expectantly.
“The Jacobs’ are a very well-respected family. What’s wrong with them? What’s wrong with Noah?” I said heatedly, hands on my hips.
“Nothing, Teagan, I actually like Noah, but everyone knows how you hate sorcerers. I didn’t think you would hang around anyone who had a differing opinion about them.”
“Teagan…”Harley tapped on my shoulder, but I shrugged her off.
“I hang around plenty of people who like sorcerers, and I think that is a bit exaggerated, what you said about how I feel about sorcerers. I don’t hate them.” That was a bald-faced lie, or had been until very, very recently.
“Teagan…”Harley tapped again, her voice a little sterner.
“What, Harley?” I gave a sigh and turned to her.
“She’s gone.” Harley pointed to the bookshelf where Gemma had been standing not thirty seconds before.
“Where the hell did she go?” I ran to the stairs leading to the bottom floor but she wasn’t on them, and the front door was shut, the bell silent and unmoving.
“I don’t know. I was trying to keep my eye on her, but then you started defending sorcerers, which frankly took me by surprise, so I was distracted. It was only for a couple of seconds, though, and now she’s gone…who is she?”
It was cold comfort to me that even Harley was puzzled by the woman, and she hadn’t even been close to her to see her eyes and feel that odd skin.
“I don’t know who she is, but how did she move so fast?” I asked, to neither one of them in particular, but was shocked even more when Peter answered.
“She’s in flux. Gosh, couldn’t you tell?”
Harley and I both fixed him with glares.
“What do you mean, she’s in flux? What the hell is that?” Harley demanded, tapping a foot agitatedly on the floor.
Peter swung his gaze from Harley to me then back again.
“She’s changing.” At the blank looks from both of us, he shook his head sadly. “And you two call yourselves witches.”
“Hey!” I started, poking a finger into his chest, but Harley reached out and grabbed my hand.
“Peter, I’m sorry, but you will have to educate us on this. Surely you know that we are constantly learning and growing. I didn’t say anything to you when you asked me if mandrake root really screamed when you harvested it from the ground, now did I?” Her voice dripping with sweetness and honey, Harley fixed him with a stern look.
Peter flushed scarlet, but nodded in acknowledgement. I stifled a laugh; everyone knew that was a myth, and for a witch to ask about it…shameful, but who was I to talk? Apparently we didn’t know what “in flux” meant.
“She’s a vampire. She hasn’t changed fully yet though. She hasn’t had enough of her sire’s blood.”
My head suddenly swam with images; a pale girl on a bed of silk, blood everywhere and Padraigan standing over her, smiling down upon her writhing form.
“See, until they take enough of their sire’s blood, they’re pretty much in a half world, at the mercy of their sire. They have vampire reflexes, but human weaknesses. She can go out in the daylight, but can also be killed easily. She can move really fast and is super strong, but she can’t feed unless he feeds her. No fangs yet.” He finished, tapping his own canine teeth.
Why had she come here, of all places? Did she recognize me from my…my thought trailed off.
We had our answer. I hadn’t dreamed it at all. I had been in Padraigan’s lair.
Chapter Seven
Harley waited downstairs for Noah to show, leaving me upstairs to brood. Me being in Padraigan’s house…why? I had never even met the monster, so why would I go night traveling to his cold tomb?
Gemma’s words, if that was her real name, came back to me, the ones she threw at me when I offered help in the bookstore. No wonder she sounded so…so disgusted. The last time she asked me for help, I had left her bleeding on that bastard’s bed. How was I to know? I had thought I was dreaming!
I paced the living room, moving back and forth from the windows to where the dining area started, not knowing what to do. I couldn’t wait for Anna and Gareth to get home, so that we could all sit and put our heads together. We all worked together as such a cohesive unit that it seemed as though we had spent a lifetime together, and I missed our camaraderie.
It made no sense to me why I went to Padraigan, or how he knew I was there. Astral projecting was an ephemeral thing; it wasn’t as if your body was standing there all weak and helpless, waiting to be destroyed. I was as solid standing in that room as I would have been if I was truly there, and that was not right. He should not have been able to touch me, let alone see me.
And Gemma…my thoughts wanted to stray from the vivid memory of her lying prone on that silk-covered abattoir, her blood staining the ivory silk crimson…
Could I have done anything to save her from whatever fate Padraigan had planned for her? Even if I had known what was going on, I would have probably only succeeding in getting us both killed.
I could only guess as to what had brought her to Written. I had a hard time convincing myself that it was coincidental. I had a sneaking suspicion that Padraigan had sent her. He knew of Anna and Gareth’s connection to us, and now he knew that Noah was connected to us also.
I could hear voices on the stairs, so I moved into the kitchen to check on the roast. I wanted to be doing something other than pacing when they came up, and checking the roast was the first thing that came to mind, not that it was very believable.
My heart raced as Noah’s tall form came into the apartment, and I wanted to hate myself for that. Why couldn’t things be back to normal with us? It was probably sick of me, but I liked it when we fought like cats and dogs. I was in my safe zone when we were at each other’s throats.
To my surprise, he didn’t even look at me. He went straight through the living room and into the hallway that led to the bedrooms, not even sparing a sideways glance in my direction.
I looked at Harley and she shrugged her shoulders, her expression confused.
“What the hell was that?” I asked, sure that my tone matched her expression.
“I don’t know. We were talking downstairs, then he got q
uiet when we started up.”
“Gee, hi Noah, how was your day?” I called out. My tone suggested that I didn’t care if his day sucked or not. Of course, there was no answer from the bedroom, which bothered me more than it should. If we were back to our old selves, then I expected better than that from him.
“Don’t be antagonistic, T. Who knows what’s on his mind? And what did you think you were going to do with the roast?” Harley said as she came into the kitchen, pushing me away from the slow cooker. I gave her a disgruntled look, but moved away, knowing that she was right. On all accounts.
“I was going to take it out and put it on a plate. I guess you don’t think I can even handle that, huh? Can’t protect myself, can’t take a roast out.” I muttered, staring balefully at her. I was being childish and I knew it, but I couldn’t make myself stop.
“Yes, you’re right, that’s exactly it. I don’t think you can protect yourself. Oh get over yourself and quit acting like a baby.” She said as she saw my expression turn to shock.
“Do you really think I feel that way? Teagan, of course I know you can protect yourself. Noah is just here for added security. What happened to the two of you? I thought you were calling a permanent truce.” Harley asked as she went about getting the roast out.
I sat in the nook, facing her with defeat written all over my face.
“I don’t know what is going on. We had an interesting talk today,” I didn’t want to mention what it was about to Harley, feeling that was Noah’s place to do it if he wished, “and I thought we had ironed some issues out. Apparently I was wrong. Oh well, he’s an asshole anyway.” I finished, but the statement didn’t hold half the conviction it would have if I had said it yesterday. Which I probably had.
Harley leveled a scathing look in my direction.
“What?” I asked defensively.
“I’m so sick of this. Can’t you see what’s in front of your face?”
“Well if it’s so obvious to you, why don’t you fill me in?” I crossed my arms over my chest and sat up, my back stiff with indignation. A shadow of puzzlement flitted through my mind. I didn’t like that Harley and I were so out of sync lately, and it was because of two men. The irony was, it was the same argument on both sides. Me and Noah, her and Damien; what a mess. Anna and Gareth had it so simple, minus the psychotic vampire trying to kill them, that is.
Magick (Immortals and Magick Book 2) Page 6
