go.”
“I can’t look.”
“Hold on to me, and I’ll lead you outside.”
I shuffled along, my shoes slipping in places, and I tried not to think about the carnage. Outside the rain had made the air smell nice, and I gulped in a couple of Texas-sized breaths before I opened my eyes.
The door of the limo hung open and Lennox was slumped on the seat with his head back.
“Is he okay?” I asked, taking a step forward.
An engine roaring to life made me look up, and mud splattered as Astrid swung her white sports car around and barreled it out of the field onto the road.
I slid into the seat next to Lennox, and Bryn sat across from us. Bryn shrugged his suit coat off, and I noticed that the left lower part of his shirt was shredded and saturated with blood.
“Oh no,” I gasped.
“It’s all right. How are your legs?”
“Okay,” I stammered, staring at the deep scratches on his side where I could see muscle and marble-size blood clots.
“It’s all right. I’d feel worse if I’d lost much blood.”
I turned to Lennox. “Are you awake?” I asked softly.
“Yes,” Lennox said in a voice that was sandpaper rough.
“Where are you hurt?”
“I’m fine. Just tired,” he said, but the upper right shoulder and chest of his suit were wet and dark.
“I’m sorry they broke through,” Bryn said, brows drawn together with worry.
“If you hadn’t been there, we’d all have been dead,” Lennox said matter-of-factly.
“Why did they do that? Why did they come and attack you?” I asked, shaking like a vine in a hurricane.
“They must have been hunting someone. Werewolves have preternatural tracking abilities. Not only can they follow a human’s scent, but also a particular witch or wizard’s magical essence. Our energy has a unique signature,” Bryn said. “It’s unfortunate that they caught up with whoever they were looking for during the meeting. They tried to kill the rest of us just because we were there. In that form, they’re basically animals.”
We rode for a while in silence with only the sound of the rain for company. I looked out the window and cried for the strangers who’d died. In all my life I’d never seen anything so violent, and it had shaken me up like not much else could have.
Finally, I pulled myself together and cleared my throat. “What kind of spell can we cast to heal ourselves? ’Cause I definitely don’t want to turn into a werewolf.” I coughed and shivered some more before adding, “I’m real firm on staying human. I don’t even like dogs, and I’m pretty sure Mercutio feels the same way.”
Lennox laughed softly. “She’s entertaining, this one.”
Bryn smiled. “We can’t be turned. The magic doesn’t cross over. The power that makes us witchfolk prevents us from becoming werewolves or vampires or other types of magical creatures. We’re a different species.”
“I’m not much of a witch though. Not really.”
“You certainly are,” Bryn said. “When you came out of that blood circle, the energy I used to create it should have dissipated, but you thrust it back into me, gave me back my strength.”
“I didn’t give it back. I didn’t cast any spells.”
He shrugged. “You willed it. It happened. That’s witchcraft.”
“Think so?”
He nodded.
“Am I strong enough to undo my spell on those people that I put to sleep?”
“Yes, with the right ingredients for the counterspell.”
“Then you’re going to tell me what to use. No more asking for permission and checking with the other witches and wizards. We tried to play by the rules and almost got eaten. So, you tell me what to do, and I’ll keep it a secret that you ever helped me. I can’t let those people die on a technicality.”
“And if he does you a favor, you’ll owe him one in return,” Lennox said.
I looked pointedly at Bryn.
“That does seem fair,” Bryn agreed.
I could see that I was going to be trapped very neatly into associating with him more than I
“I can’t look.”
“Hold on to me, and I’ll lead you outside.”
I shuffled along, my shoes slipping in places, and I tried not to think about the carnage. Outside the rain had made the air smell nice, and I gulped in a couple of Texas-sized breaths before I opened my eyes.
The door of the limo hung open and Lennox was slumped on the seat with his head back.
“Is he okay?” I asked, taking a step forward.
An engine roaring to life made me look up, and mud splattered as Astrid swung her white sports car around and barreled it out of the field onto the road.
I slid into the seat next to Lennox, and Bryn sat across from us. Bryn shrugged his suit coat off, and I noticed that the left lower part of his shirt was shredded and saturated with blood.
“Oh no,” I gasped.
“It’s all right. How are your legs?”
“Okay,” I stammered, staring at the deep scratches on his side where I could see muscle and marble-size blood clots.
“It’s all right. I’d feel worse if I’d lost much blood.”
I turned to Lennox. “Are you awake?” I asked softly.
“Yes,” Lennox said in a voice that was sandpaper rough.
“Where are you hurt?”
“I’m fine. Just tired,” he said, but the upper right shoulder and chest of his suit were wet and dark.
“I’m sorry they broke through,” Bryn said, brows drawn together with worry.
“If you hadn’t been there, we’d all have been dead,” Lennox said matter-of-factly.
“Why did they do that? Why did they come and attack you?” I asked, shaking like a vine in a hurricane.
“They must have been hunting someone. Werewolves have preternatural tracking abilities. Not only can they follow a human’s scent, but also a particular witch or wizard’s magical essence. Our energy has a unique signature,” Bryn said. “It’s unfortunate that they caught up with whoever they were looking for during the meeting. They tried to kill the rest of us just because we were there. In that form, they’re basically animals.”
We rode for a while in silence with only the sound of the rain for company. I looked out the window and cried for the strangers who’d died. In all my life I’d never seen anything so violent, and it had shaken me up like not much else could have.
Finally, I pulled myself together and cleared my throat. “What kind of spell can we cast to heal ourselves? ’Cause I definitely don’t want to turn into a werewolf.” I coughed and shivered some more before adding, “I’m real firm on staying human. I don’t even like dogs, and I’m pretty sure Mercutio feels the same way.”
Lennox laughed softly. “She’s entertaining, this one.”
Bryn smiled. “We can’t be turned. The magic doesn’t cross over. The power that makes us witchfolk prevents us from becoming werewolves or vampires or other types of magical creatures. We’re a different species.”
“I’m not much of a witch though. Not really.”
“You certainly are,” Bryn said. “When you came out of that blood circle, the energy I used to create it should have dissipated, but you thrust it back into me, gave me back my strength.”
“I didn’t give it back. I didn’t cast any spells.”
He shrugged. “You willed it. It happened. That’s witchcraft.”
“Think so?”
He nodded.
“Am I strong enough to undo my spell on those people that I put to sleep?”
“Yes, with the right ingredients for the counterspell.”
“Then you’re going to tell me what to use. No more asking for permission and checking with the other witches and wizards. We tried to play by the rules and almost got eaten. So, you tell me what to do, and I’ll keep it a secret that you ever helped me. I can’t let those people die on a technicality.”
“And if he does you a favor, you’ll owe him one in return,” Lennox said.
I looked pointedly at Bryn.
“That does seem fair,” Bryn agreed.
I could see that I was going to be trapped very neatly into associating with him more than I
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