Concealed Influence (The Magic Sanctuary Trilogy Book 3)

by V. M. Marsh

  When the huge beer arrived, I wondered if I’d given myself too much credit. That was a lot of beer. Also, I became concerned I might not be able to lift it. Then I shrugged and kneeled on my seat to reach the top of the mug and tipped it the tiniest bit as I took a large gulp.

  Lars laughed. “That’s one way to do it. Let me know if you need help.”

  Glaring at him, I took another swig to let the refreshingly light flavors bubble on my tongue. “So, what’s the plan here?”

  “This is basically it.” He replaced his metal stein on the rough wooden table. “We sit here, drink, and let the alcohol and atmosphere do their work.”

  Bewilderment crossed my face. “I don’t see what being in a crazy mix of hell and the old west will do for me.”

  “So, maybe just being out of the house and alcohol, then.”

  Rolling my eyes, I downed more beer. A nice buzz was starting to set in, and I swayed to the country pop song playing. “Let’s dance.”

  “Hell, no.” He replied before calmly lifting his stein to his lips.

  Shrugging, I slid out of the booth after taking one more large gulp. “Your loss. I’m sure I can find someone else to dance with.”

  I’d never seen him move so fast as he shot to my side, and I couldn’t help the giggle that bubbled out. Covering my mouth, my eyes grew big. Maybe I was a little more than buzzed. I had finished half of that big ass beer already.

  After dragging him to the edge of the dance floor, I dropped his hand and began to dance. I moved around him as I swung my hips to the rhythm of the hard rock song.

  The Demented Demon liked to mess with its patrons by playing all genres, even classical music. Although they did it to make the place feel like Hell, it actually drew customers of all kinds because they knew they would eventually hear music they liked, regardless of their tastes.

  Lars stood with his arms folded and watched me. He scowled, but I saw the appreciative glint in his eyes that never left my undulating body. Sashaying closer, I rubbed against him as I danced.

  Closing his eyes, he whispered in my ear, “Keep that up and we’ll be making a quick trip to the bathroom.”

  Giggling, I danced away and sauntered back to our table. Hot and sweaty, I chugged my beer, which was still chilled thanks to the magic mug. It hit me hard and fast.

  “I’m glad you made me come out tonight. I needed something like this, although, for future reference, a trip to the Sweet Shoppe for some of their specialty hot chocolate would have done just as well.”

  “For you maybe. This is more my scene.”

  Laughing, I finished off my beer. “That was enough of a break. I’m going back out there.”

  Sighing, Lars drank the last dregs of his own beer and followed me. Just as we reached the dance floor, a ballad played overhead.

  “This is perfect!” I slurred as I threw my arms around his neck and swayed against him.

  Resignation fell over his face as he wrapped his arms around my back and moved with me. This was Heaven. I stumbled and frowned. It was a good thing he had finally started dancing with me because I was a bit unsteady on my feet now.

  Swaying with him like this as he held me felt like magic, and my heart swelled. Standing on my tiptoes, I pulled on his neck until my lips reached his ear. “I still love you. I never stopped.”

  He missed a step, but I kept him close to me. “I never wanted to marry Jace. I’ve only ever wanted to be with you. I can’t tell you how sorry I am for breaking up with you.”

  He embraced me so tightly with his face buried in my hair I could no longer dance. Shrugging, I hugged him back.

  “That looks mighty nice, there. And that ass. Damn! Let me have a bite of that.” A man slurred behind me.

  “Get lost. She stays with me.” Lars growled from my hair.

  “Come on, man. You need to share. She’s too fine to keep to yourself. Spread the wealth.”

  Lars’s head shot up to glare at the man. This wasn’t going to be good. “I already told you. She’s not going anywhere with you.”

  Grasping my hand, Lars led me away, but the drunk followed. “I want a turn with her. That ass needs me.”

  We had almost made it out of the bar when the man grabbed my other hand and tried to pull me from Lars. Normally, I would have kicked him in the nuts for touching me without my consent. However, I was too drunk. I actually tried, but my aim was off and didn’t go high enough. I only struck air and threw us all off balance.

  Luckily, Lars caught me and himself before we fell. The drunk wasn’t as lucky, but he wouldn’t let go of my hand as he dropped to the floor. Since Lars held me up, the man’s upper torso was suspended in the air.

  “Let go of her. Now. This is your last warning to leave us alone before I beat the shit out of you.” Lars furiously hissed.

  “You haven’t let me have a turn yet.” He whined just before Lars leaned down and punched the man in the face. I winced at a loud cracking sound from his jaw.

  After yanking our hands apart, Lars sat me on a stool before turning back to the drunk and socking him in the stomach. A roundhouse to the chest had the man groaning on the floor and out of commission.

  Lars reached for me when someone yelled, “You can’t treat my friends like that!”

  Then Lars was hit over the head with a metal stein. I chuckled at the priceless, “Is this guy for real?” expression on his face before he turned to the man.

  By now, other customers had begun to come see what all the commotion was about. As soon as Lars punched the man’s face so blood spurted from his nose, all Hell broke loose. Other men jumped in to defend broken nose guy and others joined in to fight the defenders.

  I scooted up onto the counter to get further from the melee and a better view. Since I didn’t have any popcorn, I began to cheer. “Lars, Lars, he’s our man. If he can’t do it, no one can!”

  This was so hilarious, I laughed until tears ran down my cheeks. Lars sent me an incredulous look between punching a man in the stomach and kicking another one’s legs out from under him all while dodging and blocking blows to his own face.

  Clapping, I yelled, “That’s my man. Kick some ass, sweetie!” I bounced to the rhythm of the classical music overhead and laughed at how it contrasted with the fight before me.

  The bartender stood on the counter next to me with his hands raised.

  “Lars! Watch out!” I shouted.

  Spotting the bartender, Lars dove out of the way just as everyone froze. Literally. The bartender could stop people from moving.

  “That’s enough. This may look like Hell, but we keep the peace in here, so everyone can enjoy it. Anyone involved in the fight, get out. You’re not welcome here tonight.” He turned to me. “That includes you, Missy.”

  My face fell. I hated getting in trouble. I opened my mouth to argue just as Lars pulled me off the bar. Apparently, he no longer trusted my legs because he carried me to the car.

  He placed me in the seat and kissed me with the intensity of a thousand suns. “I told you not to wear that shirt.”

  He grinned. “I don’t like that that guy touched you, but that sure was fun. I didn’t realize how much I needed that outlet. We should train more. Or cause trouble. Both work for me.”

  He kissed me again before shutting the door. That was unexpected.

  My head hurt so much. Groaning and queasy, I rolled out of bed. Stumbling to the bathroom, I splashed water on my face. As water dripped down my face, bloodshot eyes peered back at me in the mirror. I looked horrible and the water didn’t make me look or feel any better.

  Drying off my face, I hobbled back to bed. I felt a million times worse than before Lars had taken me out.

  “Good morning,” Lars called as he sauntered into the room looking as fresh as a daisy. My hands flew to my ears while I buried my face in a pillow.

  He chuckled. “I called your dad, and he told me where you keep your hangover cure. It smells horrible, so that must mean it’s a miracle worker. Drink
up.”

  Slowly sitting, I carefully accepted the mug and tried not to gag. It smelled worse than mold, dirty feet, even the boys locker room. However, I knew exactly how well it worked and that it was worth the horrendous smell and taste. Plugging my nose, I chugged every last drop. Then I pushed the mug into Lars’s waiting hands and dropped back onto my pillow.

  “I can’t believe you drank that.” He remarked peering into the empty cup. “That was the most disgusting thing I have ever smelled. You will never get me to drink it, so don’t bother trying if you ever find me in your position.”

  “Once you see how well it works, you’ll be begging for it if you ever get this hungover.” I croaked. “I’ll still need to take it easy for the rest of the day, though, so you’ll have to wait on me hand and foot.”

  “Nice try. I’ll believe it when I see it, but your dad said it would fix you up as good as new.”

  I frowned and mentally thanked Dad for ruining a day in bed. “That was helpful of him.”

  “You’ve spent enough time in bed this week. My goal is to at least get you out of this room today.”

  Already feeling considerably better, my skin felt dirty and gross. “Help me to the shower, please. I need to get the bar off me.”

  His idea of helping was to carry me in, start the shower while holding me, and deposit me inside.

  “You forgot about my clothes!” I shouted as he closed the glass door.

  He grinned. “No, I didn’t.” Then saluted and left me behind in a lukewarm shower with sopping wet nightclothes.

  Glaring at his retreating back, I quickly removed my nightie and threw it at him over the shower stall. Bullseye. A large wet circle appeared on his back as he arched a brow at me over his shoulder.

  Giggling, I felt better by the minute from both the medicine and my shower. Taking my time to scrub every last inch, I was refreshed and almost back to myself by the time I finished. Wrapping a towel around myself, I hurried into my bedroom to dress and find Lars.

  Once I had on a bright yellow jogging suit, I strolled downstairs and found him lounging in the living room. He covered his eyes. “You’re blinding me. What the hell are you wearing?”

  “Hush. Yellow is a happy color, and I’m trying to feel happy again.”

  He lowered his hand and gazed pensively at me. “Do you remember telling me you love me last night?”

  “Sure do, and I don’t regret it since I know you love me back.” I plopped down onto the couch. “However, the Elders aren’t going to let us be together, and they are threatening to seriously mess us up. We’re talking no memories of each other. You could lose your entire childhood.”

  “Eh, it wasn’t all that great. Besides, you’d be worth it.” He shrugged.

  “You wouldn’t remember me to know I was worth it.” I said exasperated.

  “Stop worrying about it. I’m more determined than ever to show them I’m worthy of you. I’ve got it covered.”

  I rolled my eyes. “You don’t have a clue what you’re up against, but I’ll let it go for now.”

  I sighed and propped my feet on the coffee table. Leaning back, I closed my eyes as the exhaustion of the last week set in.

  “What else is bothering you?” He asked.

  “Obviously, my mom, but I also miss Scarlet. I could really use her right now.”

  “You should call her. It’s been months, she should be over it by now.”

  “It’s been two months. And if she was over it, she would have called me.” I retorted.

  My eyes flew wide at the beeps of phone buttons being pushed. “How did you unlock my phone?”

  He sent me a pointed look. “You forget who you’re dealing with and what I used to do for a living. Besides, your password was easy to guess. You need to come up with a stronger one. In fact, this whole place is lacking in security. That’s what I should be doing instead of fixing sinks and comfort spells.”

  The faint sounds of my phone ringing as it called someone startled me. “You did not just call Scarlet.”

  “I sure did. Now talk to her.” He handed me my phone just as Scarlet answered.

  I froze in shock that she had picked up. “Emma, is that you? Why aren’t you talking? Are you okay?”

  I finally found my voice. “Yes, it’s me. I’m fine. Everything is fine.”

  A relieved exhale came through the phone. “That’s good to hear. So, what’s up?”

  Tears filled my eyes. “Actually, everything isn’t okay here. Bradley found the Sanctuary and attacked it. He injured several people, so we went after him. Me, my mom and dad, and Lars. You remember Lars.”

  She paused. “The guy who used to work for Bradley?”

  “Yes. He’s actually my high school sweetheart. It’s a long story.” I choked up. “Anyway, when we tried to get to Bradley, we ran up against some of his followers.”

  She gasped. “He has minions now?”

  “Yes. We kicked their butts and Bradley wasn’t even there, but that’s not the point I’m trying to get to.” I paused for shuddery breath.

  “My mom was acting as a lookout and some random street thugs tried to kidnap her.”

  “What?!” She shrieked.

  The tears began to fall, and I couldn’t finish. Holding the phone out to Lars, I buried my face in a pillow as I sobbed.

  “Scarlet? It’s Lars here. Those men attacked Emma’s mom, and it was fatal.”

  He turned on the speaker phone. “-can’t believe it. I am so sorry, Emma. When is the funeral?”

  “It was a few days ago.” Lars replied.

  “You have no idea how sorry I am that I wasn’t there for you during that. I’m packing right now and coming up.”

  I pulled my face from the pillow with dread and a sick feeling in my gut. “You can’t come. Bradley is in Wildwood, so it’s not safe for you here.”

  “I’ve got the charm you sent with Charlie to mask my magical signature, and he thinks I’m dead.” She paused. “I wasn’t there when you needed me most, but nothing is going to stop me from being there for you now.”

  “Scarlet, don’t you dare. I’ve already lost my mom. I can’t lose you too.” I cried.

  “You won’t. I’ll be there in a few hours.” Click. I stared in horror at the blank screen after she hung up.

  “What have you done?” I whispered as I looked at Lars with terror filled eyes.

  Chapter Seventeen

  The crunch of gravel and lights passing by the window had me jumping up from the couch and sprinting for the door. Pulling it open, I ran towards Scarlet as she exited an old grey sedan.

  I threw my arms around her and squeezed. She wasn’t much of a hugger, but she returned my embrace just as tightly. I must have held on longer than she was comfortable with because she started awkwardly patting my back.

  Releasing her, she sent me a chagrined smile. She took off a pair of black rimmed glasses with no lenses, and I lifted a strand of long blonde hair. “Are you trying to pass as me? Because I have to tell you, you are way too tall and skinny.”

  Grinning, she replied, “I put this on when I got near the area so Bradley wouldn’t recognize me on the very slim chance we crossed paths. Better to be safe than sorry.”

  Lars leaped down the porch stairs and jogged to us. “It’s been a long time, Scarlet. I hear you’re doing well now.”

  She eyed him suspiciously. “I am.”

  “Open your trunk, and I’ll get your bag.”

  She cocked a brow, but complied. Scarlet was slow to trust and had no idea what Lars had done for her. That would be one of the first things I cleared up with her after she got settled in.

  “Come on in. Are you hungry? It was such a long drive.” I asked climbing up to the porch behind Lars.

  “I’m here to take care of you, not the other way around. You’ve spend enough time tending to me. It’s my turn.” She argued.

  I glanced skeptically over my shoulder. “I appreciate you coming, but you aren’t exactly the nurt
uring type.”

  “Hey, I can cook spaghetti, grilled cheese sandwiches, and heat soup on the stove.” She replied scornfully. “Oh, and Cade just taught me how to make an omelet and grill hotdogs, so we’re golden. I got this.”

  Laughing, I led her to the kitchen. “Well, I knew you’d arrive around now, so I made chamomile tea. It’ll help us sleep after all this excitement.”

  “Psychic thing?” She asked.

  “Nope. Just gauged the time it takes to drive from your last update. It’s called Google Maps. Maybe you’ve heard of it.” I retorted while pouring water from the kettle.

  Scarlet chuckled. “Emma’s got bite now. Good for you.”

  I rolled my eyes and handed her a cup of tea. “Sugar is on the table, cream is in the fridge. I remember how you like to drown out good flavors.”

  “Sugar and cream are the good flavors.” She pointed her spoon at me.

  Sitting at the table, we sipped our tea as uncomfortable silence descended.

  “I’m sorry for being such a hypocrite and stuff, especially since you were helping me.” Scarlet blurted out while studying her cup.

  Tears filled my eyes. Happy tears this time. I had been waiting for this for so long and was beginning to lose hope it would ever happen. Yet here she was. “And I’m sorry for all the secrets and how I mishandled the whole thing.”

  I phrased it that way to apologize for all secrets I’d kept from her and all the ones I’d have to in the future. I’d never be allowed to be completely honest with her, so it was the best I could do.

  However, since most of it wouldn’t have anything to do with her, it was sort of like lawyers and doctors keeping confidential information to themselves. Thinking of it that way only made me feel marginally better about it.

  She sighed. “Cade has shown me the error of my ways. The jerk. Anyway, you have nothing to apologize for. You did what you needed to for all of us, and you probably saved my life. So, thanks.”

  “You have no idea how much that means to me or how much I want to hug you right now.”

  Alarm spread across her face making me giggle. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep my hands to myself.”