Barely Bewitched by Kimberly Frost

waited for him to say more about Momma, but he just looked at me.
    “If you want to know the truth,” I said, “your curse-spell made me dig up some faery dust that did all this. Why would you do a random spell on me?”
    “Who said it was random?” he countered.
    “Wasn’t it?”
    He shook his head. “We took a taste of your power.”
    “But I heard the verse. It didn’t say any thing—”
    “That’s what the symbols on the table were for. What I’d like to know is how someone who’s supposed to be new to the craft managed to counter that spell in less than twenty-four hours? Felt you recover your power. Who taught you such complicated magic?”
    I sure wasn’t going to tell the truth about Bryn unspelling me. The blank-faced girl snuggled against Incendio’s chest, making me grimace.
    “She’s way too young for you,” I said and grabbed the girl’s arm, dragging her away from him.
    “Hey,” she complained. “Lemme go!”
    “Come back here,” Incendio said, holding his hand out to the girl.
    I planted my feet and held on to her with all my might. She weighed at least ten pounds more than me, but I was determined.
    “You can’t have her. She’s not legal,” I said, trying to back-pedal while holding on.
    “Depends what laws you follow. Myself, I don’t follow too many, comprendes ?” he said, walking toward us. He jerked my arms off her waist and yanked her to him. She flung her arms around his neck as he swung her away from me. “Go wait on my bike,” he told her.
    I jumped in front of his path and put my hands out, slamming them into his chest. “You’re not taking her.”
    He grabbed my hands, holding them flat against him. “You offering to come in her place?” he snarled.
    “No.”
    “Then get lost,” he said, shoving me aside. I stumbled back, and he turned, walking away from me. As I started forward, flames burst up in front of me. I ran and jumped over them just as they flared higher. I landed on his back with the hem of my dress smoking.
    “What the fuck!” he shouted.
    I clamped my arm across his throat, realizing that my feet had committed me to something that the rest of my non-action-hero body thought was a real dumb idea. It was going to hurt like crazy when he flung me off. I held tight, trying to postpone the landing as long as possible.
    “If you take her, I’ll report you to the police. They’ll come and arrest you for statutory rape.”
    “She’s eighteen,” he growled as I dangled from him.
    “If she’s eighteen, I’m forty-five!”
    He walked to a tree and spun, slamming me into it. Sharp pain vibrated through my back. I held on, but howled in his ear, raking my nails across his throat. He cursed and slammed me again, knocking the breath from my lungs.
    “Incendio!” Jordan snapped.
    “What?” Incendio asked, hauling me over his shoulder and dropping me on the ground at his feet. Despite the throbbing pain everywhere, I hadn’t given up my suicidal determination to stop him. As he stepped over me, I grabbed his leg and held on with both hands. He dragged me along, but I’m pretty sure I slowed him down by at least a few seconds.
    Jordan walked next to us, looking down at me. “What are you doing, love?”
    I spit out the leaves and grass that had gotten nearer to my mouth than is strictly pleasant for a non-elf. “I’m stopping him,” I said.
    “Really?” Jordan asked, clearly skeptical.
    “He’s not taking some underage teenage girl off on his motorcycle.”
    Then, surprisingly, Incendio stopped walking. I rolled to a kneeling position, ready to clip him. We’d see how well he walked with only one good knee.
    “Damn it!” Incendio grumbled.
    I looked past him and saw the girl walking off with a boy in a Duvall High letter jacket.
    Incendio raised his arm, but Jordan held out his hand. “Don’t. The fae are here. Plus, so many human witnesses.”
    “Like I give a fuck about them or you.” He glared at the flames of a lit barbeque,