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Her sister stood in the doorway, holding the door open and simultaneously physically barring entrance to their unannounced visitor.
The crazy stalker lady who’d nearly suicided herself on a public sidewalk the previous morning, and yet already looked completely fine. Or asfineas any woman wearing a dress designed for sex appeal, with the heels to match, on a snowy December morning could look. But that was impossible. There was no way this woman even knew Sienna’s full name, let alone the address of her childhood home and whether or not she happened to be there.
“Florence,” Fenn said, the name coming out in a displeased growl.
Both women at the door swung their gazes around. Confusion was plastered across Maya’s face, understandably, but Florence’s eyes lit up with something like gratification. Just for an instant.
Florence pinched her brows together and planted her hands on her hips, emphasizing the stupidity of her party dress. “I knew I’d find you here,” she said. “Now either let me in or come out here with me. This game you’re playing is pointless.”
Maya frowned as Florence spoke and focused her own stare on Sienna. “Sienna, what’s going on? If you’ve gotten into trouble—”
Sienna held up a hand and marched forward as fury licked through her. “Whatever this bitch told you, Maya, I promise you she’s full of shit.” She stomped up to the door, practically shouldering her sister aside in order to glare properly at the woman who’d had the audacity to show up on her family’s doorstep. “Andyou,” she said, “I don’t even know how you found this place, and I don’t care. Get off our property, get out of this town, and get lost. Like forever. Go flaunt yourself somewhere you’d be appreciated. Like in another hemisphere.”
Florence’s lips pulled into a thin line for a beat and her subtly tanned skin flushed unnaturally red. “Howdareyou speak to me like that, you ugly little whore!” She curled one hand as if her polished nails were actually vicious claws and swung at Sienna with her exclamation.
Maya shouted from over Sienna’s shoulder.
For a split-second, Sienna watched the red-painted nails descend in a surreal daze, her brain not fully processing that her face was their target.
Fenn caught Florence’s wrist in a firm grip and everything seemed to snap back into place. He’d reached around Sienna, taking advantage of his greater height, and anger wafted off him so powerfully she was surprised she couldn’t see the swirling darkness of his magic.
“H-hey, Fenn!” Florence said, shock and discomfort in her voice.
Fenn didn’t budge. His voice was dark and more dangerous than Sienna had yet heard it when he spoke. “I told you I would not tolerate any more of your stunts. Nowleave, before—”
Florence jerked on her arm in an attempt to free it and snapped, “I’m not leaving unless you’re coming with me!”
Sienna drew a deep breath and reminded herself that she’d promised, years ago, never to throw the first punch. Unless she was genuinely defending a life. The only lifereallyin jeopardy at the moment was Florence’s.
Maya laid a hand on Sienna’s shoulder and tugged her a step backward. It was an almost nostalgic motion, triggering memories of times when her sister would physically intervene to protect her in her youth. “Excuse me,” she said, her voice projected to catch attention, “Florence, was it?”
Fenn glanced back at her, and slowly lowered his arm as if in deference to his audience.
Maya continued. “I don’t care who you are or why you’re here. My sister told you to leave.”
Oh no.
“So leave.” The familiar echo had overtaken her sister’s voice, confirming Sienna’s fear. “Get off this property, forget you were here. Stay away from my family.”
Sienna let out a breath. Those had been strong words. She hoped Maya wasn’t low on her migraine medicine.
Florence took a large step back, away from the door, all emotion drained from her face. Her body began to turn but she paused and gave her head a shake, a harsh, grating huff escaping her. Then she turned back, facing them again, her expression twisted with incredulous amusement and outrage. “Some kind of hypnosis, really? That was cute. It even almost worked for a minute. But I’m so out of your league, honey. You’d need god-tier hypnosis to override my automatic mental healing.”
Sienna’s eyes bulged, despite that she remembered Fenn had warned her Florence was stronger than she looked. And older.
Maya reared back, shock rippling visibly through her posture. It was understandable. Sienna had certainly never heard of anyone resisting her sister’s hypnosis before, except maybe Piper.
Fenn’s lips tipped up in a smirk. “Now there’s an idea.” He pulled a glove off of one hand and, staring directly at Florence, bit into his own thumb. Blood pooled on the surface of his thumb as he released it and Florence’s eyes widened with some flicker of recognition, and fear. Fenn angled his hand to let the blood drip onto the doorstep, still between them. Once. Twice.
Florence began shaking her head, her blonde hair swinging with the increasing movement. “Wait, Fenn, don’t—”
“Florence Dossit,” Fenn said, his tone sharp and cold, “I forbid you. From this threshold, from the boundaries of this territory, for the duration of the bloodline which possesses it. Leave, and live, or remain … and perish.” The two little spots of blood on the snow-flecked doorstep flared with an instant, intangible black energy before vanishing from sight in a momentary gust of air.
Florence let out a shriek as if she were enraged, twisted on her heel, and sprinted from the door without another word.
From the kitchen, Piper shouted, “What on Earth is going on?”
Maya turned wide eyes to Sienna, her expression echoing their sister’s question.
