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He hit you. He’s out.
“I’m fine.” I sent him some calm through the bond. I couldn’t let Dastien piss this witch off, especially since I’d asked for him to show me what he could do. We need him. I don’t know what kind of witch he is or what those crystals are, but he has magic. Plus, we’re desperate. He’s in.
Dastien wasn’t happy about it, but he let River go.
“That was amazing,” I said as I brushed myself off. “Do the crystals hold magic or was it in the gesture or what you said?”
River stepped away from Dastien, smoothing his hoodie down. “All of the above. We can talk about it another time, but first, someone mind filling me in on the specifics of the spell? Shane told me that we only have until tonight.”
He might have looked laid back and unassuming, but River was looking better and better. I liked that he was getting straight down to it. “Yeah. You hungry?”
“No,” River said. “I ate on the way.”
“Cool. Sit down.” I’d said it to River, but everyone else seemed to take it as time to clean up.
Blaze went to Mom, asking for a broom so he could clean up the mess from where I’d slammed into the wall. Dad was still looking pretty pissed off—probably mostly because I’d been thrown across the room, but probably also because there was a Tessa-sized dent in the wall that now needed fixing.
Mr. Dawson’s phone rang and he stepped into the kitchen to take the call. Chris was bent down, whispering something to Shane, but Adrian’s gaze stayed glued to River. I was watching him carefully, too, as River bent to pick up a chair that had fallen. He didn’t have the smooth way of moving that I’d come to recognize from a fighter, but he held himself confidently. Not an easy thing in a room full of Werewolves.
I might not know River very well or really at all yet, but I had a good feeling about him. “You didn’t happen to bring any friends with you?” B
ecause if he did, they were in, too.
River set the chair down. “No. Why?”
“We need one more witch.”
His eyes widened. “No good comes from that much magic being harnessed. What kind of spell are you doing exactly?”
I blew out a breath. “I guess Shane didn’t tell you everything.”
He shot Shane a less-than happy look. “Apparently not.”
It took a good twenty minutes to explain it all, especially since he peppered me with questions every step of the way. By the time I was done, he’d pulled out his phone. “Have you talked to anyone in Washington?” He asked Claudia.
“No. I’ve…I haven’t reached out to anyone.”
He looked up from his phone for a second before going back to his phone. “This is exactly what’s wrong with witches,” he muttered to himself.
“That’s what Shane was saying.” I was now realizing how big of a problem this was.
“It’s true.” Claudia fiddled with her braid. “I meant to do something about it, but after Luciana, I just needed a break, I guess.”
“I can understand that, but I think taking a break right now is a bad idea. What happened with Luciana shows that covens have to start working together or else risk more covens going dark…” River’s words made Claudia frown. Lucas leaned in to say something, but Claudia grabbed his wrist.
If I were Claudia, I wouldn’t want to reach out to any witches either. Hell, I wasn’t even in Luciana’s coven and I’d had my fill. It was going to take a lot to make me trust another coven implicitly, and I hadn’t endured the years of abuse that Claudia, Raphael, and Shane had. I was surprised to know that Shane had been visiting other covens, but it was smart.
“I’m calling Washington and Oregon,” River said. “The California coven is out. There’s a few scattered elsewhere, but there are some I wouldn’t trust. Someone want to call Colorado?”
Shane nodded. “I can do it.”
“Wait. That’s where Cosette was?” I asked.
“Right,” Claudia said. “Her roommate might be the best place to start.”
“Shit. I don’t have Karen’s number,” Shane said.
“I do,” Chris said. “Sending you her contact info now.”
