Better 'Ink Twice
Page 18
Something that hasn’t happened in the witching community for a long time. I’d heard stories of the old days when a witch met their magical match but the Magistrate and their classist rules put an end to that. Everything was arranged— by the amount of your tithe.
Buried deep down beneath the binding, my magic tried to answer the call but in place of a magical flare and burning passion, searing pain took my legs out from under me. I broke the kiss and collapsed in his arms.
Nicholas went down with me, taking the brunt of the fall on his knees. He cradled me on his lap and brushed a few wayward strands of hair from my face. “Adeline, are you okay? What just happened?”
I turned my head so he couldn’t see the single tear that managed to escape. He knew the answer to his question, I saw it in his eyes but I saw something else, too. Fear mixed with relief. The binding prevented my magic from recognizing his, from claiming him.
And for a moment, he looked relieved.
If he hadn’t been right in his resignation, that might have destroyed me. But I knew better. The binding was a much-needed reminder of things to come and all the reasons we shouldn’t be together. My trial, the Council’s plot to tear down the Magistrate and rebuild it in the Goddess’s image as it was intended.
My life was a war zone and Nicholas was collateral damage.
He spent the years since his father’s death trying to prove his uncle’s involvement. With that done, he and his mother could claim their place in society and be out from underneath the Winslow name. He was better off without me.
“Del, I...” He raked his fingers through his dark hair. “You and I... Why is this so hard? Look, what I’m trying to say and doing a horrible job of, is—”
I pressed a finger to his lips. “Don’t. It will be easier if you don’t say anything.” After crawling off his lap, I collected the mail littered on the floor and got to my feet.
Nicholas looked up at me, pain and confusion marred his handsome features. He started to say something but Lars and Amber spilled through the door, interrupting him.
“I come bearing gifts.” Lars sidestepped through the door, carrying two large rectangular boxes. “The dozen glazed are for me but I threw in a couple raspberry jellies for you.”
Amber followed behind him holding a carboard carrying tray with two coffees and one tea. Amber preferred tea over coffee. If that’s her only flaw, Lars is a lucky man.
Lars stopped dead in his tracks when he caught sight of who stopped by for a visit. Amber didn’t miss a beat, brushing past her boyfriend to set the drink tray on the makeshift table with the blueprints.
“Nicholas, it’s good to see you.” She offered a genuine smile before pulling her cup of tea from the tray and taking a sip. “What do you think? It’s really coming along, right?”
“Yeah, it’s going to be great. I, uh... I was just stopping by to see when Del was taking appointments.” With a nervous laugh, he looked from Lars to me and back again.
Lars’s feet found their purpose again as he joined Amber at the table. After shoving an entire glazed in his mouth, he let Nicholas off the hook. “She’s booked, but I have a few openings.” Lars chased the donut with a swig of coffee. “Did Del show you the blueprints yet?”
“Not yet, but I really should head back to campus. I’m getting better at controlling magic but my mother insisted on hiring a tutor.” Nicholas’s eye roll and lighthearted smile didn’t fool me. His mother’s insistence for a tutor rankled him. He pointed to the stack of mail containing the linen envelope still clutched in my hand. “I’ll save a place for you, in case you change your mind.”
“I won’t,” I muttered to his back as he walked out the door— and out of my life whether he knew it or not.
Amber and Lars had the good sense not to ask any questions, offering donuts and coffee instead. They were keepers.
I pulled the plastic lid off the cup of black coffee. “I might need something stronger after that.”
Amber set down her tea and opened the messenger bag slung over her shoulder. Her arm disappeared up to the elbow as she rooted around. With an aha, she retrieved an airplane bottle of whiskey, dumping its contents into my cup.
When Lars and I both raised a quizzical brow, she shrugged off our matching expressions. “What? I carry it for medicinal purposes and offerings.”
“Right.” I winked at her over the rim of my cup of spiked coffee.
She eyed the heavy stationary. “You going? Lars and I got an invite, too. We could all go together.”
“How do you feel about greige for the walls?” It was a blatant attempt to change the subject but I didn’t care.
Lars rested his hand over Amber’s and signaled her to drop it with a shake of his head. “Greige is the new neutral.”
Amber may have misinterpreted Lars’s signal. “So, we’re just going to ignore the elephant in the room?”
“Which one, Amber? Nicholas? My trial? The Council’s machinations against the Magistrate or the Goddess’s divine intervention in all of it?” I pressed the heel of my palm against my breastbone, rubbing at the nagging ache again. “Or how about the fact that I’m being used as bait and literally powerless?”
“I just thought, you know, since he’s reaching out—”
I held up my hand to stop her. “He’s grasping at straws. It will never work out.” I snatched the jelly donuts from the box along with my coffee and walked toward the back of the building.
“Del, don’t walk away. I’m sorry.” Amber’s apology was genuine and unnecessary.
I waved it off. “I’ll be in my office.” Acting like a stubborn ass and wallowing never solved anything, but I wasn’t up to rising to the occasion.
My office didn’t have a door or finished walls for that matter, but the framing sectioned off the space and offered a false sense of privacy. I needed some alone time— with my coffee and donuts. After powering through the powdered confections, I sprawled out on the concrete floor. It was the original and unlike everything else, survived the fire.
A direct connection to Grim and our life before all hell broke loose.
The ley lines were there; a current of energy running like an underground stream of magic. I didn’t have to feel to know they existed. Just like I didn’t need to feel the soft hum of Grim’s energy to know he was watching over us. So I laid there with the side of my face pressed against the cold concrete and imagined him dolling out another heaping helping of his sage advice.
Which I would ignore, like always.
***
The first day we re-opened, the line wrapped the block and the phone rang off the hook. Customers old and new came out to schedule an appointment. Lars and I were booked a year out before lunch. Something To ‘Ink About was as good as new— maybe better.
It turns out, life as a mundane wasn’t that much different from my old day to day routine. I missed warding, the rush of using my magic during an underground tattoo— of helping a fellow witch. But I didn’t miss being hunted or imprisoned.
Even if it was only for one night.
The Magistrate appointed a lawyer to defend me during my trial. An unexpected offer of help or a double agent sent to spy on me for the prosecution? I suspected the latter but decided to receive judgment until I after our first appointment.
There was no word from the Council other than be patient, the Goddess will reveal everything in due time. Easier said than done. It wasn’t their magic in a vice grip or their life hanging in the balance. The chances of a legislation reversing the Magistrate’s stance on warding passing into law were slim to none. It would come down to the high court.
The most sensational trial since 1692.
Even with the Goddess and the Council on my side, the odds were stacked against me. But everyone loves an underdog and I’ve got a lot of fight left.
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Did you love Better 'Ink Twice? Then you should read Rotten Luck by Rachel Rawlings!
A perpetually unlucky girl, a brooding vampire hunter, and an influx of rogue vampires... What could possibly go wrong?
After her best friend is murdered by a rogue, Lucky Jones enlists in a vampire hunting organization hoping for revenge—regardless the cost.
The training program is rigorous, and the man training her is...distracting. But Lucky can't allow for distractions. Not when she only has one month to develop her skills before she's faced with the test that will determine her fate as a vampire hunter.
If she fails, the Organization will wipe her mind. Without her memories, Lucky will be left with nothing, and the rogue who killed her friend will continue to feed.
Fans of Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy and Stephenie Meyer's Twilight will devour this new novel from Rachel Rawlings.
Scroll up and 1-click this vampire romance to start reading today!
Read more at Rachel Rawlings’s site.
Also by Rachel Rawlings
A Touch Of Ink
Better 'Ink Twice
The Jax Rhoades Series
Payable on Death
Paid in Full
The Maurin Kincaide Series
The Morrigna
Witch Hunt
Wolfsbane
Blood Bath
Ill Fated
Darkness Hunts
Mistletoe Meltdown
The Maurin Kincaide Series Box Set
Standalone
Sherri 2.0
Watch for more at Rachel Rawlings’s site.
About the Author
Rachel Rawlings was born and raised in the Baltimore Metropolitan area. Her family, originally from Rhode Island, spent summers in New England sparking her fascination with Salem, MA. She has been writing fictional stories and poems since middle school, but it wasn't until 2009 that she found the inspiration to create her heroine Maurin Kincaide and complete her first full length novel, The Morrigna. When she isn't writing Paranormal Romance, Psychic Romance Suspense or Urban Fantasy, Rachel can often be found with her nose buried in a good book. An avid reader of Paranormal/Urban Fantasy, Horror and Steampunk herself, Rachel founded Hallowread- an interactive convention for both authors and fans of those genres. More information on Hallowread, its schedule of events and participating authors can be found at www.hallowread.blogspot.com and www.facebook.com/Hallowread. She still lives in Maryland with her husband and three children. Want to find out about new releases, appearances, contests and give-aways? Sign up for her newsletter-https://mailchi.mp/rachelrawlings/newsletter-sign-up-form Be sure to check out Rachel's Facebook page- www.facebook.com/rachelrawlingsauthor
Read more at Rachel Rawlings’s site.