Chapter 14

Mykneeswerestill weak, but I managed to somewhat smooth out my tangled hair and get my breathing under control by the time I got to the courtyard with my spell supplies. Goddess. I was not going to let Aahil know how shaken I was. I lifted my chin a notch and slapped on my best let"s-get-down-to-business face.

Of course, everyone was there. So I was surrounded by stuff that wanted to tug at my emotional strings. Not the best situation when dealing with water energy.

Niamh watched me with her leaf green eyes, one brow arching in snarky, know-it-all question. I wanted nothing more than to explain to her so she could calmly tell me how the hell to handle the out-of-control jinn…and maybe make me forget all about dick for a while. I could also feel Zhong"s eyes on me tracking my every move, like always, but this time the sensation brought with it the knowledge of how secure I"d felt in his arms, how right his lips had felt pressed to mine. Elijah hovered nearby, and I knew he was probably contemplating slipping inside my skin to protect me, but after basically having ghost sex with the specter, that sort of thing would be a little awkward.

Aahil leaned against an oversized cement flowerpot near where I was getting ready to work. I refused to let myself even look at him, but I felt those mesmerizing gold eyes following my movements, watching every step of my set-up.

"You should probably make the containment circle bigger," he commented in a bored, lazy voice. "What"s the matter, Lovell? That tired out after one little orgasm? Does the little witchy poo need a nap?"

I did look at him then, feeling the surprised—or probably not so surprised if we"re being honest—eyes of the others on us at his little declaration. "Fuck. Off."

One corner of his perfect lips curled up in an evil, poisonous smirk. "I doubt you could survive a fuck, Lovell. You barely made it through a blow job."

I rolled my eyes. I now knew exactly what Aahil needed—I had seen inside him, got a glimpse of that dark corner of his mind where he was absolutely terrified of not being in control. But that didn"t mean I had any clue how to fix this thing between us. Or that I didn"t still want to smack him every time he opened his stupid, pretty mouth. "Okay," I muttered, aping the jinn"s bored tones. "Whatever helps you sleep at night genie."

I startled when he suddenly materialized right beside me, crouching to draw a long black claw through a symbol I"d just made on the cracked pavers. "Focus. I don"t want to lose my pet because I broke her tiny little brain. I"ve only just begun to get my revenge. That line can"t touch this one."

I huffed. "I know how to draw runes. Go away."

I did know. And I had fucked it up anyway. Clearly, I was just fine. Yep. Peachy.

Aahil disappeared with a little puff of smoke, rematerializing to sit perched on the side of his potted plant. "Hurry up, Lovell. Before you fall over and start snoring."

A whistling noise and a blur of movement, and one of Niamh"s arrows thunked into the trunk of the small ornamental tree next to Aahil"s head. "Leave her alone, demon."

He pulled one leg up and wrapped his arms around it, the other leg swinging, barefoot and relaxed, like a bored child. Niamh"s quiver of arrows burst into flames.

The fae bared her teeth and threw her quiver to the ground, dousing it with magic to smother the flames. The jinn was only fucking with her, since she was able to actually put the fire out. But she took a step toward Aahil anyway, happy for any excuse to attempt to maim him.

Elijah popped up to hover between them. "Not the time," he said in a hushed voice that whispered like wind through the leaves in autumn.

Zhong had moved closer to me. His wings were half-spread, his stance saying he was ready to defend me at a moment"s notice.

I ignored them all. Let them fight to the death over whatever claim they thought they had on me. I had more important shit to do. I slowly, carefully redrew the fucking rune I had messed up. Aahil was right about that. Probably would have fucked everything up if he hadn"t pointed out the error.

Not that I was ever going to admit it.

I needed to get this done. Then, if I survived, I was going to sleep for a week. Alone.

I pulled on my magic, calling up my connection with the earth. The gemstone on my collar flared with ruby light, growing uncomfortably warm against my skin. Bis chittered at me helpfully from his place atop an ugly little gnome statue.

I didn"t need Bis"s input to realize what was going on. I could feel it. Just fucking great. The psychotic jinn had linked our magics together when he collared me. And if I had to guess, I"d say our little sexual encounter had strengthened the link. Wonderful.

I silently explored the connection, grinning to myself when I realized he had left himself wide open. Apparently, I wasn"t the only one who was prone to mistakes when spellcasting. Standing, I dusted my hands off on my jeans, then waved a hand, lighting all the candles in my spell circle with ease, since I was using the jinn"s elemental fire magic.

I was surprised when he didn"t immediately start bitching about the use of his power or come over to set the marks on my skin ablaze. But then again, he was busy telling everyone how he owned me and how they"d better fuck off or he"d set them on fire. Making friends, just like always.

Now that I saw through him, his little act was just ridiculous. He was keeping everyone at arm"s length on purpose, being as abrasive and bratty as possibly so they couldn"t get close, so they"d have no chance to use him. Cute. Even if it made me want to strangle him.

I turned my focus on the spells and incantations I needed to bash my way through my family"s spells and unweave the enchantments that held the water weaver within the bestiary. "Any idea how pissed-off this one"s going to be?" I muttered to the assembled asshats behind me as I mentally wrestled with one of Granny"s magical booby traps.

Niamh stepped up a bit closer behind me, and I felt the others fall in line as well, close, but not too close, giving me room to work my magic. "No idea," she said evenly. "None of us have ever met him."

Spec-fucking-tacular. The annoying creatures behind me had all met at one another at some point during their stint inside the book, even if it was only a dim awareness of the other person when both their powers were called into the same spellworking. The fact that the water weaver had never been used in tandem with the others could only mean one of two things. Either the water elemental was so weak they were never used, or they were so powerful they could be used alone, without the need to ever combine magics.

Of course, my twisted brain also provided me with a third option. Maybe no one had ever called on the creature because it was too powerful to control at all. Not a nice thought.

I sent extra power to my spell circle. It was stronger than the ones I"d attempted to use on Aahil or Zhong before, supplemented now by Aahil"s fire magic, as well as my earth magic. But I still had very little hope that it would hold.

The spells and wards crafted to bind these beasts to the bestiary were powerful, and they restrained the enslaved creature, preventing it from attacking its master. In order to free the creatures, I had to release those bindings, and in doing so, I destroyed everything protecting me from retribution.

I snarled as I fought my way through the particularly strong bindings on the water weaver, sweat pouring from my face as I pushed and pulled magic, as I used herbs, and stones, and bits of my own soul to dismantle my family"s spells. Then everything just…clicked. It was like once I was past the initial barriers, everything just…got easier.

I didn"t notice the rain, at first. I was so focused, I just assumed the dampness was sweat. My head pounded from all the exertion, and my eyes were unfocused. But I gradually realized those were raindrops hitting my skin. Fat, soft raindrops falling up, striking the underside of my chin and the palms of my hands with a cool, magic-laced tingling sensation.

I blinked, forcing my eyes to focus here on the physical plane, rather than the magic dancing in the ether. Silvery rain was falling upward, then pooling in a shimmering sheet above the courtyard, like the rippling surface of a lake, inverted into the sky.

Emotions bloomed in my chest along with the rising crest of water magic that flowed through and around me. Sadness, pain, desperation, elation, joy, lust, revulsion, peace, yearning. It was like I felt everything all at once, every complex human emotion shoved through my being with an unstoppable force. I gasped, tears joining the sweat and the rain as I clutched my chest.

Holy fucking shit.

I sucked in another breath as the water weaver began to materialize in the center of the courtyard. Focus, Andy. If earth magic was grounding and nourishing, air was enlightening and effervescent, and fire was mercurial and all-consuming, then water was…fluid. It was emotions and life, gentle rain and raging tsunamis all wrapped up into one element. I took a deep breath and rode the current, knowing that the feelings swirling inside me weren"t all mine. They were water magic. Untamed and flooding out in a tidal wave.

I raised my hands, palms out in what I hoped was a placating, peaceful gesture. The being who materialized in the center of the courtyard glowed with a blue-white aura that rippled in the rain. The downpour—or up pour, I suppose—suddenly halted, silvery drops hanging suspended in the air between the earth and that hovering steel gray sheet of water that filled the sky.

The water weaver was…ethereal, I suppose. Though that word seemed severely lacking. Tall and slender, beautifully androgynous, with shoulder-length, platinum blonde hair so light it was almost white. They had light tan skin, and piercing turquoise eyes.

The creature"s liquid turquoise eyes watched me from a perfectly blank face, no sign of intention obvious. Goddess, I couldn"t tell if I was about to be murdered or…not. I fucking hated this shit. I lifted my chin a notch. "You"re free. I mean you no harm."

Heh.I sounded like a Martian from a bad Planus realm movie. We come in peace. I was so going to get drowned now.

The water weaver wavered, going misty like fog, drifting over to stand right before me in the blink of an eye. They materialized so close they could reach out and place one cool, strong hand on my chest, right over my heart.

The others moved around me, all going on the defensive. But the water weaver ignored them. Those fascinating turquoise eyes stayed focused on my face as magic pulsed between us, flowing outward from their hand into my heart.

I pulled up my earth magic to prepare a defensive spell, but I was too slow. Heat bloomed from my right side as Aahil went up in flames. The jinn"s elemental fire sizzled as it came into contact with the suspended raindrops around us, steam rising in the air. "Remove your hand from my pet," he demanded.

I glanced to the side, surprised to see the tiny terror had become a towering pillar of flame. His clawed hands hung loose at his sides, and his expression was flat, but those gold eyes held the promise of pain and death. I suppressed a shudder at the not-so-subtle reminder that under the bratty facade, the man really was a powerful force of nature.

Before I could open my mouth to tell Aahil to stand down, Niamh spoke up. "Release her." I heard the soft, distinctive sound of her drawing her bow.

Elijah"s hollow voice spoke from my other side. "Peace. She has not summoned you to be used."

A solid presence at my back told me Zhong was about to yank me out of the water weaver"s reach.

Still those turquoise eyes held mine as if the others didn"t even register, the creature"s magic flowing through me, pulsing out from my heart, talking to every molecule of water in my body. Fucking shit. This being could probably burst every cell that made up Oleander Lovell with a thought. Bye-bye little witch. Farewell last of the Lovells.

But that was only if the rest of the idiots didn"t get themselves killed in the futile attempt to protect me. "Please—" I began, but of course Aahil had zero chill.

The jinn"s flames roared outward, lashing angrily in warning. "Release my witch!"

The water weaver"s eyes flicked to the side, toward the enraged fire elemental. A blink, that was all it took. Aahil"s flames were quenched in an instantaneous deluge of water—water that should have evaporated when met with elemental flame, but instead snuffed Aahil like a candle in a stiff wind.

I blinked at the jinn, who stood there with his mouth gaping open, clothing plastered to his lean body, and his wet, dark hair streaming water into his face.

"How dare you," he hissed like a wet cat. "I will incinerate you from the inside out. I will…."

The water weaver ignored the jinn completely, turning back to face me, their expression never changing from that blank, emotionless mask. Withdrawing their hand from my chest, they reached out and touched the top of my head in some kind of weird benediction.

I sighed. "So…I"m not dying today?"

One corner of their mouth lifted into a tiny, soft half-smile. They closed their eyes and just like that, every drop of water around us vanished. They stepped back, pinching a fold of their dingy gray cotton shirt between their fingers, then plucking at it with a meaningful glance.

I let out an unhinged cackle. "What…you want a bath?"

That earned me a full smile, both corners of their expressive lips tilting up faintly.

I rolled my eyes and turned away. "Yeah, okay. Why not." Scooping up the bestiary—which was still somehow dry, the creepy-assed thing—I headed back toward the house. "Come on," I told the strange water creature. "Not like anyone here can stop you anyway, right?"

I had a feeling this was the most powerful creature I had encountered. And they still hadn"t spoken a word or done more than pat my head. They hadn"t even needed a gesture or a spell to snuff out Aahil like a used match.

The jinn let out a small burst of magic, drying himself off with a soft puff of heat and displaced air. He had stopped growling threats, but the sparks in his narrowed eyes said it all. He was currently thinking up ways to murder our new guest. Probably for real this time.

Zhong"s big hand landed on my back, and the giant of a gargoyle bent slightly to meet my eyes as we walked. "Are you okay, master?"

"Andy," I reminded him. "Yes. I"m fine." I halted, causing everyone else around me to stumble to a stop.

The water weaver just kept walking, head turning this way and that, lifting a graceful hand to trail over a curio here or there as they explored the Lovell Horror Show.

"The cost," I muttered. "I don"t feel any magic drain." I yanked my insulin pump off my belt and glanced at the display. My blood sugar was fine. "Nothing."

I suddenly recalled how breaking the bindings had gotten easier for a time there. Had the water weaver somehow…helped me even while they were still bound inside the book? How the fuck strong was this thing?

The strange creature ahead of us reached the bottom of the sweeping staircase and turned back to look at me, arching their pale brows and nodding toward the stairs in question. I sighed and started walking again. "Yeah," I said tiredly. "Upstairs. There"s a big old bathtub in the suite at the end of the hall."

That earned me a beautiful smile that would have been absolutely stunning to behold…if it weren"t for the long, thin, viper-like fangs that flashed.

If pulling dangerous shit toward you like a magnet was a superpower, then I had it in spades. Glancing wearily at the others, I followed the water weaver as they flowed up the first few steps.

Then the doorbell rang.

I mean, when it rains, it pours, am I right? Ha. Very punny, considering that I had just freed a creature who made it rain upside down. I turned slowly and plodded back toward the front door. Even tired as I was, I could sense the strong magic signature that waited on the other side of the portal.

"Go hide," I told my assembled lurkers. Of course, they ignored me.

I slid the bestiary onto the bottom shelf of the slender table that stood along the hall, out of sight of the door. Better safe than sorry.

I pulled the door open and crossed my arms over my chest, pushing my shoulders back and pretending I wasn"t about to fall over from exhaustion, ignoring how my wet shirt clung to me and my damp hair wanted to stick to my face. "Can I help you?"

No one just up and paid the Lovell House of Horrors a friendly visit. It was either someone looking to curry favor and learn the family secrets for their own dark purposes, or it was someone come to rant at me for how my family had destroyed their family.

I raked my eyes over the woman on the doorstep. Dark, stretchy uniform, almost military-style haircut, muscular build, toting a shit-ton of custom charms and weapons, and radiating strong magic. I added a third option to my visitor list—I was in trouble.

"Field Mage 3765," the woman said in a firm voice, runes flashing on her hands, magic prepped and ready for casting. "The Supernatural Alliance has requested an inquiry into the rise in magical activity at this residence."

I sighed. "There"s no law against doing magic."

The field mage narrowed her eyes. "This residence is under surveillance concurrent with judgement number—"

I held up a hand, cutting her off before she could quote more Alliance bullshit at me. "Yeah, yeah, my family was a bunch of shitheads and now the government gets all nervous whenever I work magic. I got it."

She raised a hand, gesturing toward our assembled audience with a flick of her finger. "Please explain the presence of so many powerful and rare supernaturals in your home."

I huffed. "I"m building an evil army to overthrow the government so I can have all the Halloween candy to myself. Clearly."

The woman was not impressed. "Deflection and misdirection. But nothing good can come from a Lovell gathering power."

Anger swelled in my gut. Fucking magic assholes. How many times did I have to prove that I was not my family? That I was more than the sum total of other people"s fuck ups? "It"s none of your business who I invite to game night," I ground out.

She raised her glowing hands, and I knew what was coming next. Truth charm. A sort of compulsion magic that was banned if you were a normal citizen. But the fucking Alliance could use them whenever they wanted to.

"How have you enslaved these creatures and for what ends?"

Niamh spoke up before the mage could cast her spell and force me to answer. "We are not slaves," the fae woman bit out, coming to stand at my side. "This witch is righting her family"s wrongs. She has done no evil."

Zhong"s big hand squeezed my shoulder, and although the mage probably couldn"t see him, Elijah hovered nearby. Even Aahil stood in clear defiance, his hands on his narrow hips, little flares of magic dancing over him here and there in warning.

"Sanctuary."

The water weaver"s voice was the most beautiful sound I"d ever heard. Seriously. Like…angels wept somewhere out there over the beauty of that lilting, power-laced voice. The water magic in it pulled all my emotions to the surface, tugging at my heart and leaving me inexplicably…verklempt.

I blinked back tears of rapture and forced myself to pay attention to the mage on my front steps. "Like they said. Sanctuary. They were all wronged by my family in various ways. I"ve offered to let them stay here until they get back on their feet. But by all means, dude. Attack me for doing nothing wrong. Everyone else always does." I smiled sweetly at her. "And we both know you"re the sacrificial lamb anyway. Might as well fulfill your purpose, right?"

Because, honestly, if the Supernatural Alliance truly suspected that this massive increase in magical power signature suddenly coming from the Lovell mansion meant that the last remaining Lovell heir was about to unleash some unholy terror on the world, they"d send more than one single field mage. This was them testing the waters. Seeing if I would splatter this mage on the marble steps for all the world to see. Then they"d have more of an excuse for storming the evil castle.

She knew it. I knew it. And that was probably why she was being such a dick.

The woman compressed her mouth together in a grim line. "If you"re really trying to right your family"s wrongs, you"re fighting an uphill battle," she muttered.

I lifted a brow at her. "Doesn"t mean I"m going to stop fighting. One thing I did inherit from my fuckhead ancestors—we don"t give up easily."

She shook her head, the magic in her hands fading to nothing, showing she really didn"t believe I was a threat at the moment. "You push, they"ll just push back," she warned softly.

I met her hardened hazel eyes. "Yeah, well, fuck them." I lifted my voice, knowing we were probably being watched, maybe recorded by magical or mundane means. "I suggest you asswipes find something better to do than badgering an untrained earth witch!" Then I slammed the door in the mage"s face. But I didn"t miss the hint of an amused smirk that crossed her lips before she disappeared from my sight.

Damned Alliance. I hadn"t done a single fucking thing wrong. The only person I put at risk on my stupid quest to destroy the bestiary was me. And I certainly wasn"t going to let the Alliance get their hands on the grimoire. Those fuckers would lock it away, call it evidence or an "implement of the dark arts." But they"d sure as shit preserve it, and I was pretty sure they wouldn"t hesitate to use it whenever it suited them.

Dickwads.

Bis scurried up my body to perch on my shoulder, chittering up a storm as I went to retrieve the bestiary. I snorted a laugh when the skunk-rat-hedgehog hybrid extended one paw and flipped off the door. I patted his soft little head. "Thanks for the moral support."

He gripped my fingers in his dexterous paws and squeezed, giving me a chirp and a tilt of his cute little head.

Niamh nodded. "He says they"re wrong about you. You"re a good person, and you shouldn"t let it get to you. I agree."

I handed the book off to Zhong and scooped Bis into my arms, earning a startled chirp of outrage as I settled him on his back like a baby so I could ruffle my nose into the soft fur of his belly. He kicked me in the face with his back paws, then curled up into a spiny ball. But I just laughed.

I looked up to find the water weaver standing stock-still in the middle of the big foyer area, those turquoise eyes once again trained on me. "Um…what?" I said intelligently.

They flowed across the floor—seriously, I was pretty sure they didn"t even have feet with all gliding they did. The tall, ethereal beauty looked down at me with a questioning gaze. How could someone express so much without talking or changing their facial expressions?

I held Bis out like an offering, somehow knowing that was what the creature wanted. They lifted their hands, palms cupped, and arched a brow.

I shrugged. "Sure, why not. Just don"t hurt him."

Then I handed my best friend to the new supernatural I"d just sprung from a cursed book.

Bis let out a little peep of surprise, then slowly uncurled a bit, sticking out his cute little nose to sniff the water weaver"s hand. Apparently, he liked what he smelled, because he fully uncurled, gripping the water weaver"s thumb and standing up on his back legs like a person. The water weaver brought Bis closer to peer into his little rodent eyes.

Then the water weaver slowly smiled, like the sun coming out from behind a cloud. Bis ran a paw over his head in a self-conscious gesture, flattening the stripe of fluffy white fur there. I shook my head at this bizarre interaction.

The water weaver lifted sparkling turquoise eyes to mine and gently handed Bis back to me. "Enchanting," they said, their voice making my heart hurt again.

I nodded and put my weird companion back on my shoulder, where he happily chittered about something. I was too tired to even ask.

The water weaver turned away and headed toward the stairs again, gliding up them with unnatural grace. I didn"t miss the way Aahil"s eyes narrowed, as if he was hoping the newcomer would suddenly trip and tumble to their death.

No such luck. We all made it to the top of the stairs in one piece. After I showed our new houseguest the big tub and the collection of bath stuff, I left them to it. Returning to my room, I realized I was still trailing a host of weirdos.

I turned to them, one hand on the doorknob. "Uh. Guys? I"m fine. Really."

Aahil scoffed and turned away, striding toward his own room. "As if anyone cares." He slipped inside his sanctuary and the door clicked shut behind him.

I shook my head. Such an asshole. And a liar.

Niamh and Zhong shared a look. Elijah hovered at my side doing his ghostly version of hand wringing. "What?" I demanded.

Niamh gave me a slow, slightly evil smile. "We all want to comfort you, Andy. But we"re wondering who you"d prefer." Her leaf green eyes slid toward the door not far from mine, where Aahil had disappeared just seconds before. "Or maybe you"d like other company?"

I groaned and opened my bedroom door. "I don"t suppose anyone would listen if I said "no company.""

Zhong touched my hair, gently fixing a wayward tangle before he handed me the bestiary. "I would feel better if you had someone with you, master. The water weaver is an unknown. And there are…other dangers."

I didn"t miss the glare he directed toward Aahil"s room. Goddess, I did not have the mental capacity to deal with relationship drama right now. Not that there were any relationships. Sex. Sex drama. Kill me now.

"I"m going to go in there," I pointed into my room. "I"m gonna wash my face and hands, put on some ugly, comfy clothes, and collapse face first into my bed." I reached over and tossed the bestiary onto my dresser. "You weirdos want to watch me snore, knock yourselves out. But I swear to fuck, if I see one more little bit of posturing or jealousy, I"m going to throw you out the window. Understood?"

Niamh grinned. "I think I"ve proven I can share." She slipped past me into the room, and I narrowed my eyes at her.

"Sleeping, fae," I warned her. "That"s it."

Elijah disappeared and reappeared on my bed, his misty outline nearly indistinguishable from my bedspread. I looked back at Zhong, who was still hovering in the doorway. "Well?" I snapped impatiently. "In or out?"

He lurched across the threshold in a very un-gargoyle show of speed. "In."

I huffed a laugh. "Lock the door behind you. I"m done with the rest of the world for the foreseeable future."

Then I made good on my promise. Cleaned up and clothed in my ugliest, comfiest yoga pants and t-shirt, I collapsed into bed. Niamh curled up facing me, holding one of my hands, while Zhong shyly curled up close to my back, draping a big arm over my waist to hold me close. My eyes fluttered closed as Elijah covered me like a misty blanket over my aura, settling inside my soul.

I slept like the dead.