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Chapter 2
Ruby Sutton had faced a multitude of embarrassing moments in her life, magnified when she had returned to Broom’s Isle and had to face the series of interrogations and doubts about her reappearance on the island that had semi-forgotten her. There was the case of her last name, attached to a quirky, powerful family that others thought didn’t deserve that power. There was also the case of her brother, once revered and now talked about like he was the lowest of the low to ever exist. Her disappearance had been chalked up as a rebellion, not the kidnapping that it was when pirates had decided to use her magic to further their means.
And just like before, Maddox was here, about to rescue her again—Maddox, who was handling this island’s judgment better than her and had become an upstanding citizen while she spiraled from one failure to another.
She looked around in the darkness, frantically trying to find a way to get herself out and salvage her dignity. She snapped her fingers and groaned when nothing came alive inside her, indicating that the blast of unsteady energy earlier was all she was going to get for the day. Maybe for days. Before she could process all of this, the mound of ash and soil above her gave way, and a hand clasped around her arm.
“I can handle myself—” she started to say, then clamped her mouth shut when Maddox lifted her with the ease of someone lifting a toothpick. She scowled. “Maddox, seriously—”
His free hand ran down her head, thumb rubbing corners before it traveled downward. She sputtered.
“I’m just checking for injuries.”
“I’m fine. Just a minor scratch.”
He found the scratch on her palm and rubbed that, too, eliciting a warmth that warred with the coldness inside her from the absence of magic. She gave up on her protests until he returned to check her face.
“Tell me what you see.”
She could see his face, inches close and brows slashed with worry. His dark hair had grown longer and curled at the edges of his neck, while his blue-black eyes held her gaze. Full, sensual lips were turned down as he waited expectantly.
“I see…a pretty face.”
The brows rose and his voice lowered in a sigh. “Ruby…”
Ruby swallowed, not immune to the beauty that every vampire she had met exuded—not that she met a lot of them. But his being half-human didn’t deter from that beauty at all, only emphasizing it with even more masculine features and that brooding quality that had a few witches—and warlocks—turning heads. Okay, a lot, not a few.
“I see you very clearly, Mad, and my head’s fine. I don’t have a concussion.”
He rolled her answer in his mind, then nodded and stepped back. She stumbled at the loss of warmth, then straightened herself and cleared her throat.
“If you are sure…”
A different kind of warmth entered her at his visible concern and lack of anything else, because…well, no one had ever only offered just concern since she got back. She opened her mouth, the words crowding in her brain.
I did an experiment and failed. I have been doing experiments to test my magic as I did before, but it’s not working. Something’s wrong. I don’t know what’s wrong.
A flicker of light yanked her to the present as she glanced at the figure approaching them. Just like that, all urge to share her innermost thoughts popped like a balloon at the sight of James Magoo, whose presence reminded her of one important matter: that Maddox being an upstanding citizen meant whatever she said would get back to the assistant head of the council.
“Good morning, Miss Sutton,” he called out, attention not on her but on the rubble behind her. “I was just in a meeting and asked Maddox to come here in my place, thinking the worst. It’s a relief to see you alive and…well.”
Translation: not crazy, not consumed by darkness, and not about to wreak havoc on Broom’s Isle like her infamous brother. Disappointment blazed bright and was shoved down erratically as she squarely faced the man.
“Good morning. Please call me Ruby. There are a lot of Suttons out here.”
Perhaps it wasn’t a good idea to remind him of the other Suttons, considering her sisters were also on board the upstanding citizen train.
“Ruby, Ruby,” James said promptly, making a point of sweeping the area. “Can you tell me what happened here?”
“Welding accident. Nothing serious, but I was sleepy and distracted and wasn’t paying attention until the machine exploded.”
The lie rolled easily off her tongue, but still rendered her nervous when James walked closer to the rubble and toed some bits.
“That’s unfortunate. I was about to send a gardening device for repair. A part broke and I need it fixed.”
“You can still send it.”
Too late, she realized her mistake and bit her tongue to keep from wincing as James studied her some more. The gray-haired, short man was good at that: intimidating with his piercing looks while still trying to convey a certain friendliness.
