AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Sounds good.” Emma released him, then started to pace a few feet away. Toby had drawn close, though he sat and eyed her movements, his tail twitching. “But I think I should spend some time with my brew pot. I just have this feeling ... ”
“About what?”
She stopped and met his gaze. “Earlier, when I was in the ditch and opened myself up to my power, I had a moment of seeing the future in a series of images, like snapshots. At the time, I set it aside, because I felt the need to focus on the girls, to help their spirits move out of their bodies. But right now, I want to see if I can tap into the future. It might help us.”
“You believe that?” He was unfamiliar with witch things in the same way she no doubt couldn’t relate to his blood-cravings. Hell, it had taken him a couple of years to accept his physical need to pierce the vein.
For a moment, his mind got caught on exactly how he’d tapped into her blood while in her dressing room. His nostrils flared. He wanted to do it again, maybe tap into a different place next time. His gaze fell to her breasts, though he glanced away quickly.
She shrugged. “I at least want to see if I can engage with some form of prescience. I can’t promise anything, but I’ve always known I had a lot of latent ability.”
He made a point to keep his gaze on her face. “I’ve always valued that about you, Emma. Before I got to know you, I thought most witches were power hungry—” He almost added ‘monsters’, which wouldn’t have helped their situation.
Her lips quirked. “Most who work hard at expanding their witch abilities are after more power, so I understand your disdain. For me, it was different, but not necessarily better, as time has proved. I’ve been pretending I’m still human. And I’m not.
“But what ticks me off is that right now, if I was a stronger witch, we’d have a much better chance of taking Loghry down. Instead, it’s sort of like fighting a forest fire with a bucket of water. But I’m done with that and maybe you should prepare yourself, because I might become what you despise the most.”
He could sense her distress. He took hold of her arms in a gentle grip. “Hey, I could never think badly of you. I know your character, and I trust you. I do.”
“But what if I’m all spelled up and become the kind of witch who no longer cares, who could actually hurt you?”
“Then we’ll deal with it. Right now, I don’t give a damn if you grow hooves and horns so long as it will help us battle Loghry.”
She grinned. “Oh, now there’s a lovely picture.”
She turne
d and headed back into the house. “I’ll be in my spellroom. And, by the way, Stormy and Toby approve of you, in case you hadn’t noticed. Stormy, the owl, would have turned his back on you if he hadn’t thought you were amazing.”
Vaughn glanced at the owl first, who still stared at him, then looked down at the cat. Toby was doing a figure-eight around his ankles, weaving in and out and purring. He’d never been much of a cat person, but he’d felt the same way about witches until Emma.
There was always a first time.
From inside the house, Emma gestured to the west wing. “My spellroom is this way, if you need me.”
When she disappeared down the hall, he called Robert Brannick, one of his good friends and a fellow officer at Crescent Border Patrol. He reached the station and got routed to Lily in dispatch.
She kept her voice low. “Easton’s been asking about you, wanting to know the second you call in. We all heard what happened at the Graveyard. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re not shot up and bleeding to death?”
“Nope.”
“How about that TPS officer you were with? The witch. Did she survive?”
“GSW to the right calf, but she’s all healed up. She’d made some kind of healing potion. It worked fast.”
Lily whistled softly. “That’s some kind of power.”
He’d known Emma had potential, but even he’d been surprised when he’d felt her power at the Graveyard and of course later, when he’d made love to her.
Again, his mind got caught on his drive to get her on her back again. He’d thought making love to her would settle him down. The opposite appeared to be true.
Lily’s voice broke his train of thought. “Vaughn, what the hell is going on? At least a dozen of your brothers-in-arms were ready to take on the entire Elegance Border Patrol for what they did. Easton had five of our own jailed to keep them from going apeshit because of the attack.”
“Was Brannick one of them? Is he locked up?”
