Magick (Immortals and Magick Book 2) (7 page)

“Hey!” I started, poking a finger into his chest, but Harley reached out and grabbed my hand.

“Peter, I’m sorry, but you will have to educate us on this. Surely you know that we are constantly learning and growing. I didn’t say anything to you when you asked me if mandrake root really screamed when you harvested it from the ground, now did I?” Her voice dripping with sweetness and honey, Harley fixed him with a stern look.

Peter flushed scarlet, but nodded in acknowledgement. I stifled a laugh; everyone knew that was a myth, and for a witch to ask about it…shameful, but who was I to talk? Apparently we didn’t know what “in flux” meant.

“She’s a vampire. She hasn’t changed fully yet though. She hasn’t had enough of her sire’s blood.”

    My head suddenly swam with images; a pale girl on a bed of silk, blood everywhere and Padraigan standing over her, smiling down upon her writhing form.

“See, until they take enough of their sire’s blood, they’re pretty much in a half world, at the mercy of their sire. They have vampire reflexes, but human weaknesses. She can go out in the daylight, but can also be killed easily. She can move really fast and is super strong, but she can’t feed unless he feeds her. No fangs yet.” He finished, tapping his own canine teeth.

Why had she come here, of all places? Did she recognize me from my…my thought trailed off.

   We had our answer. I hadn’t dreamed it at all. I had been in Padraigan’s lair.

Harley waited downstairs for Noah to show, leaving me upstairs to brood. Me being in Padraigan’s house…why? I had never even met the monster, so why would I go night traveling to his cold tomb?

Gemma’s words, if that was her real name, came back to me, the ones she threw at me when I offered help in the bookstore. No wonder she sounded so…so disgusted. The last time she asked me for help, I had left her bleeding on that bastard’s bed. How was I to know? I had thought I was dreaming!

I paced the living room, moving back and forth from the windows to where the dining area started, not knowing what to do. I couldn’t wait for Anna and Gareth to get home, so that we could all sit and put our heads together. We all worked together as such a cohesive unit that it seemed as though we had spent a lifetime together, and I missed our camaraderie. 

It made no sense to me why I went to Padraigan, or how he knew I was there. Astral projecting was an ephemeral thing; it wasn’t as if your body was standing there all weak and helpless, waiting to be destroyed. I was as solid standing in that room as I would have been if I was truly there, and that was not right. He should not have been able to touch me, let alone see me.

And Gemma…my thoughts wanted to stray from the vivid memory of her lying prone on that silk-covered abattoir, her blood staining the ivory silk crimson…

Could I have done anything to save her from whatever fate Padraigan had planned for her? Even if I had known what was going on, I would have probably only succeeding in getting us both killed.

I could only guess as to what had brought her to Written. I had a hard time convincing myself that it was coincidental. I had a sneaking suspicion that Padraigan had sent her. He knew of Anna and Gareth’s connection to us, and now he knew that Noah was connected to us also.

I could hear voices on the stairs, so I moved into the kitchen to check on the roast. I wanted to be doing something other than pacing when they came up, and checking the roast was the first thing that came to mind, not that it was very believable.

My heart raced as Noah’s tall form came into the apartment, and I wanted to hate myself for that. Why couldn’t things be back to normal with us? It was probably sick of me, but I liked it when we fought like cats and dogs. I was in my safe zone when we were at each other’s throats.

To my surprise, he didn’t even look at me. He went straight through the living room and into the hallway that led to the bedrooms, not even sparing a sideways glance in my direction.

I looked at Harley and she shrugged her shoulders, her expression confused.

“What the hell was that?” I asked, sure that my tone matched her expression.

“I don’t know. We were talking downstairs, then he got quiet when we started up.”

“Gee, hi Noah, how was your day?” I called out. My tone suggested that I didn’t care if his day sucked or not. Of course, there was no answer from the bedroom, which bothered me more than it should. If we were back to our old selves, then I expected better than that from him.

“Don’t be antagonistic, T. Who knows what’s on his mind? And what did you think you were going to do with the roast?” Harley said as she came into the kitchen, pushing me away from the slow cooker. I gave her a disgruntled look, but moved away, knowing that she was right. On all accounts.

“I was going to take it out and put it on a plate. I guess you don’t think I can even handle that, huh? Can’t protect myself, can’t take a roast out.” I muttered, staring balefully at her. I was being childish and I knew it, but I couldn’t make myself stop.

“Yes, you’re right, that’s exactly it. I don’t think you can protect yourself. Oh get over yourself and quit acting like a baby.” She said as she saw my expression turn to shock.

“Do you really think I feel that way? Teagan, of course I know you can protect yourself. Noah is just here for added security. What happened to the two of you? I thought you were calling a permanent truce.” Harley asked as she went about getting the roast out.

I sat in the nook, facing her with defeat written all over my face.

“I don’t know what is going on. We had an interesting talk today,” I didn’t want to mention what it was about to Harley, feeling that was Noah’s place to do it if he wished, “and I thought we had ironed some issues out. Apparently I was wrong. Oh well, he’s an asshole anyway.” I finished, but the statement didn’t hold half the conviction it would have if I had said it yesterday. Which I probably had.

Harley leveled a scathing look in my direction.

“What?” I asked defensively.

“I’m so sick of this. Can’t you see what’s in front of your face?”

“Well if it’s so obvious to you, why don’t you fill me in?” I crossed my arms over my chest and sat up, my back stiff with indignation. A shadow of puzzlement flitted through my mind. I didn’t like that Harley and I were so out of sync lately, and it was because of two men. The irony was, it was the same argument on both sides. Me and Noah, her and Damien; what a mess. Anna and Gareth had it so simple, minus the psychotic vampire trying to kill them, that is.

“I did already, you just don’t want to hear it. He is in love with you Teagan. Why can’t you see that? And you’re in love with him.” It wasn’t said as a question, and that bothered me. I didn’t like people to tell me how I felt, dictate my emotions to me, not even Harley.

“Like how you’re halfway in love with Damien?” I shot back. Her mouth twisted, her regal features turning into a sour mask. Bull’s-eye. It bothered her to have the tables turned around on her, and I should have felt triumphant to get a good salvo in, but it just made me feel small and mean. I knew Harley’s philosophy on life, and where I wasn’t as strict about my life as she was with hers, I understood that I couldn’t have made a worse statement to dig at her with.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. This is not about you and Damien.” I apologized, hating the look on her face.

She set down the plate in her hand with the roast on it, took the dishrag off her shoulder and set it on the counter, her movements deliberate. She wouldn’t look at me.

“You right, it’s not, but I don’t think I want to be around you right now.” She said quietly. She took a deep breath and left the kitchen, her back straight and head held high; the Indian princess to the tips of her fingers.

“Harley…” I got up, my hand out to her, but she just put up her hand in a “stop” gesture. I watched helplessly as she went to her bedroom, slamming the door behind her.

My eyes started to tear up and I pinched the bridge of my nose viciously. Gods, what a mess this was turning out to be. If I had Padraigan in front of me right now, I would take insane pleasure in cutting his head off with a butcher knife. He was the cause of all this discord. If he hadn’t gone after Gareth and Anna, if he hadn’t dragged Damien into this, if he hadn’t turned Noah’s sister…there were a lot of if’s, but the realization occurred to me that if he hadn’t done all that he had, I would have never met Anna, or Gareth.

I would have never met Noah.

The thought of that bothered me more than I thought it could. My heart gave a spasm at the thought of never seeing him, the pain making me gasp. It was always this way with Noah, and the thought of him; every feeling I had about him was extreme, a hundred times more than any man had ever made me feel.

I walked out of the kitchen, moved robotically to my room. I went through the motions of getting ready for bed, even though it was only eight o’clock. I lay back in bed, the television on but lowered. I stared unseeing at the screen, my thoughts far from the room I was in. Before I knew it, I was asleep.

I came awake with a start, my heart racing in my chest. I looked around my room, trying to find the cause of the noise that had me flying up out of sleep. The glow from the television cast flickering shadows that made it hard for me to make out the entire room, so I reached for the lamp.

I stopped in mid-reach as the voice floated out of the darkness.

“Oh leave it off, will you? The darkness makes it more interesting.”

My skin crawled with revulsion and my heart became a trip-hammer as Padraigan’s voice rolled over me, fear holding me hostage with my hand frozen in mid-air. I didn’t want to look over my shoulder, didn’t want to see his disgusting presence defiling my sanctuary.

“You’ve done well, witch, protecting yourself. I wonder what is different tonight. What could you have possibly forgotten to do before going to bed that would keep me out?”

His voice was silky, sensual, and it sent shivers of disgust down my back. Mentally, I was cursing myself. I knew what I had forgotten to do and I could have cheerfully killed myself and saved Padraigan the time and effort.

Completely distraught over Noah and Harley, I had forgotten the most basic of protection; casting my room in a protective circle. There were protective wards on the house itself, but since my night flight at Anna and Gareth’s, I had taken to casting an additional protective circle on my room at night, for this very reason.     

I didn’t hear him move, but I could feel the bed dip suddenly as his weight came down on it. I heard the whimper escape from me and hated myself for it. If he wanted to kill me, now was the perfect time.

“I don’t want to kill you Teagan, I want to torture Gareth and Noah. If I avail myself of your charms in the meantime, that’s just a double bonus for me.” His cold hand pulled my hair back and exposed my neck. I had to do something, or else he was going to take me.

“I thought you were gay. Could you even get it up for me?” The words came out of my mouth before I could stop them, and they were dripping with good old sarcasm. It didn’t quite have the effect I wanted though. He flipped me over nonchalantly, his deep chuckle blowing in my face as he positioned himself above me. I tried to knee him, though what good that would have done was beyond me, and he laughed some more, pitching his voice low.

His hands pinned my arms down to the mattress, and he put all his weight on them, pressing down painfully. My arms felt as though they were going to break; the pain was excruciating, but I could only whimper.

“My dear Teagan, I could get it up for anyone, especially you. I’m going to enjoy this even more than I would have with your friend Anna.”

His head descended towards mine slowly, and I turned my face into the mattress, trying to avoid what was coming. Helplessness washed over me as I realized I was totally at his mercy, of which there was none. I tried calling out to Harley, but she was sound asleep, her mind closed down. I needed Noah, but I had never opened myself to him. It was a vulnerability that I didn’t want to expose myself to, but I had no choice.

Noah! Help me!

I flooded my mind with his image, reached out with my entire being towards him. At the same time I thrashed my head back and forth, trying to prevent Padraigan’s lips from touching me, viciously clenching my legs closed, scissoring him between them in a sick parody of desire. I couldn’t do much to him, but I had to stall his movements somehow.

“Oh, so you do want to play. I can gladly accommodate you.” With a smooth move, he flipped me over and brought himself down on top of me again, this time not waiting for the thrill of toying with me. He raked my hair out of the way and plunged his fangs into my neck.

I bucked uncontrollably, my body fighting against the intrusion. Scream after scream pealed from my throat as he began drawing my life out of my body.

Teagan!

I heard Noah in my head the split second before he came crashing through the door. Padraigan withdrew from my neck with a hiss, and suddenly his weight was off my back. With a sob I flipped over, only to see Noah and Padraigan facing off at the foot of my bed. Wind whipped the curtains at my open window and I cursed myself a fool. I had left that stupid window unlocked.

Padraigan was settled in a fighting crouch, fangs bared theatrically. Noah had a smile on his face, his stance casual. His arms were crossed over his broad chest, a smirk on his face. He didn’t even look at me.

“Preying on helpless women again Padraigan? You’re such a coward.”

Still in his crouch, weaving like the snake that he was, Padraigan hissed again. With a detached mind, I realized that he had my blood running down his chin. Hysterical laughter was building in me, threatening to boil over. Goddess, was I going to become what Gemma was?  A vampire in flux, never to be turned completely? My vision started to flicker at the edges.