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The group laughs, each voice echoing off the prior and bouncing around inside my head. I remember every time, in my entire life, I’ve felt embarrassed. Every time I’ve felt uncomfortable because of the way a boy treated me, or looked at me, or said something about my body. Every one of those memories flashes through my thoughts, fueling my rage.
The last memory is Savannah. The fear in her eyes, and worse, her sadness. This isn’t only for me. This is for every girl. Every woman who anywhere and at any time felt ashamed of her body because of how she looks. Because of who she is. It’s injustice and I’m done. As done as I am with the Druid. As done as I am with Dugald. I’m done and this guy, this bully, is going to be my message to all of them.
“Look,” Todd says, dropping his tone into what I’m sure he thinks is some range of seductive but is anything but. “I’ll tell you what. Because I’m pretty drunk and really, I’m a nice guy, I’ll let you ride my dick. You can brag to your friends about it later and I won’t even deny it.”
Their laughter echoes in my ears. Ringing like the bells of a cathedral. I close my eyes, struggling to control the deluge of power swelling through my body. It’s too much for me to contain. More than I felt even in the Fae lands.
Do it, let him have it.The voice in my head is Moira’s, not mine. Like she’s whispering in my ear, but she’s not there.
Todd sways closer. His crotch is thrust forward, his grin is broadening. His right hand reaches towards my face. I snap.
I grab his hand right before it touches my face and twist. He screams as his arm snaps. Power bursts forth and he slams back and into the wall. He sticks there, two feet off the ground, held in place by my will.
His companions shout and scramble back. As they do they run into other patrons. Protests fill the air. Tables and chairs scrape as patrons look to escape. I stalk forward. Moving slowly, languidly, enjoying Todd’s fear. His lips quiver, his eyes glisten with unshed tears, and he’s pale.
“Todd,” I say, softly.
It doesn’t feel like this is me. I’m a passenger inside my head. As if this is me, but not me. It’s a strange sensation. At the edges of my vision is darkness, throbbing with an unsatiable hunger. I could give Todd to it as an offering.
“I’m… I’m… I… s-so-sorry,” he mumbles, sniffling, and tears stream across his face.
“Sorry?” I ask. Even my voice doesn’t sound like me. It’s purring, rich, and half an octave deeper than I normally talk. “What are you sorry for, Todd?”
“E-everything.” He shakes his head.
His breath is coming in ragged gasps because I’m holding him in place. Not physically, with magic. I know exactly how much pressure is on him and exactly how much more it will take to crush his rib cage.
He deserves this. Destroy him.
The voice whispers in my thoughts and now I’m not sure if it’s my thoughts or not. It sounds like Moira, but it also sounds like it could be me.
“Everything, Todd? That’s very broad, isn’t it? Let’s be specific, Todd. Let’s be very, very specific.” I increase the pressure on his chest. Only a little, but the effect is clear as his eyes widen and his breathing becomes ragged.
“Quinn, we should go,” Savannah says, but she is distant, miles away from Todd and me.
The darkness pulses in my head, throbbing like a migraine that’s building to some explosive climax. In the darkness are whispers. Whispers that might be my thoughts, but if so they are the ones from the darkest parts of my soul. The parts of me that I’ve never set free. Fleeting thoughts that I have always kept squashed because good people don’t have thought like these.
“I’m sorry for being a jerk,” Todd gasps.
“That’s enough, let him go,” one of his compatriots says.
I’m aware of every set of eyes on me. Every person, where they are, what they’re doing. It feels like, if I concentrate, I can know what they’re thinking. Todd’s crew doesn’t like this. They don’t know what to do. Do they attack? No, that’s not them. They’re followers. For them to attack, one of them would have to lead.
“Is that what you want, Todd?” I smile as I say his name. “You want me to let you go?”
Power surges through my body and I’m left trembling. Moira steps out of the kitchen. Her eyes bore into me and there is no judgment, nor a hint of recrimination. No, Moira is smiling. Delight shines on her face such as I’ve only rarely seen. She nods, encouraging me to continue. To do more.
And the power singing through my soul, filling my body and my thoughts, roars for release. I want to let it out into the world. I ball my free hand into a fist and pull back, ready to punch Todd in the face. I’m going to make sure that he can never, ever hurt anyone. Never again insult a woman. Never treat others as less than, because I’m going to make sure he will be a horror to look upon.
I raise my fist. Todd turns his head away, knowing what is coming and helpless before it. Savannah yelps in protest. Moira nods. My fist, held high, trembles.
“Stop it, Quinn.”
That’s a new voice. An unexpected one. I glance to the side and Dugald stands in the doorway. I didn’t hear the door or see him enter but there he is. No more than a stride away, watching, his face impassive.
“No.”
I swing. My fist flies towards Todd’s face with more force than my body should ever be able to generate. I know, as if I’ve done this a million times, what it’s going to feel like when it connects. I anticipate the sound of the flesh and bone of my hand smashing into him. Right before it lands, Dugald catches my fist in his and there is a loud smack.
