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Lincoln is back with the medicine bag. I hear Mason filling him in on the side.
“Good thinking,” Tyson says. “Could the necklace have come off in the water and allowed her use of her powers?”
“Don’t know,” Grey says. “New to all this.”
“Not likely,” Lucinda puts in. “That necklace would need to be removed by either the person who put it on, or one of their descendants.”
I didn’t realize they were all here. But they all are. All Riley’s council co-alphas other than Jason. They’re here for him. For Greyson. For me, too. For my family.
“Go on home and look after your mate and her family, bro,” Mason says. “We’ll keep you in the loop.”
48
Riley
I’ve got eight women in my house. Mimi, in a state of ‘pause’ with a dagger in her gut, is on the bed in my guest room with three cats and two nieces.
My mate is in the kitchen with the other supernatural council witch, two other sisters as well as my mother, who rushed over, bringing inflatable camping beds to put one on in the living room. The other is taking the couch. They’re drinking tea.
Mitch is on his way here to pick up Lucinda and take her back to the rented cottage. We’re all meeting in the morning to discuss this. It’s already well after two in the morning and though I want to be out there looking for that cunt who tried to take my mate’s powers, who tried to kill her family, I’m not leaving Rikki’s side tonight. My link with my council co-alphas is strong and I know the rest of them are on this. I’m not taking chances there’s not more I don’t know about. Not leaving her until I know this shit is over.
I’m infuriated at the notion of what could’ve happened. If Mimi hadn’t had a plan with Grey. I don’t want my mate out of my sight any time soon. I want these SCC people fuckin’ gone, out of our lives, so we don’t have to worry about shit like this again.
***
She’s sleeping on me, holding me tight like she’s afraid she’s going to lose me. She’s traumatized. I’ve stayed awake all night purring for her because every time I start to drift and the purring stops, she’s jolting awake and gasping.
Not long after five in the morning, I realize I must’ve drifted too because my phone rings. Not only must I have drifted with my woman on me, at some stage all three of her cats piled on me, too. I’ve got one stretched across my ankles, one has its head tucked under my jaw, and the other is on my woman’s back and she’s on me.
I grab my phone from the table.
“Linc?”
“Found her. Washed up on the shore by Savage House. Dead. Her wand was beside her. Necklace still around her throat. We’re bringing her to the town hall, and we’ll stick her in a basement cell. No sign of that cauldron so far.”
“Thank you, brother.”
My little witch is awake, eyes on me, looking relieved.
“She’s dead.”
“I heard.” She snuggles in further. “My cats are cuddling with you.”
“Yeah. Weird.”
“Nope. Not weird.”
“One’s technically on you. The one that hates me most. They’ll cuddle with anybody?” I ask.
“Nope,” she advises, and I feel her smile against my throat.
“Hey,” she whispers.
“Yeah, babe?”
“It’s my birthday,” she says.
“Happy birthday, beautiful.” I kiss her forehead. “How you feelin’ this morning?”
“Like I’m thrice my age,” she whispers. “Aunt Lyrica was talking to me, though.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. Through the kaleidoscope like she sometimes does. She told me that I already know that sometimes you pay tolls for what you’ve got. She said some of us pay our tolls at the beginning, so we’ll always know what’s at stake.”
“A wise lady.”
“I need to go check on Aunt Mimi.”
“Go ahead,” I say, squeezing her ass. “I’ll put some coffee on.”
“Going for a run?” she asks, getting out of bed. The three cats jump down, too, undoubtedly sure she’s up for the sole purpose of feeding them.
“Nope. I’m here where my mate needs me. We’ll go to the town hall at nine. Close the book on all this.”
“Okay,” she whispers.
“Do they need to worry about that cauldron? The wand washed up but no sign of that so far.”
“I don’t know, but I don’t think so. Our cauldrons aren’t as personal as our brooms and wands. I’m not sure why, but they don’t seem to hold the same energy.”
“I’ll let ‘em know to keep an eye out. Better if we find it.”
“Good thinking.”
“What do you want for your birthday?” I ask.
“You,” she replies. “Wished for you on my birthday candles every year since I was nineteen.”
“You’ve got me, little witch. What else you want?”
“The greenhouse out back or a balcony out there.” She points to the bay window. “When you can get to it.” She kisses me again and then she pulls a short blue housecoat on over her slinky little white nightie which I’d somehow missed last night.
