Page 24 of Adepts and Alchemists
“Of course I can.”
Poppy offered me a vial of shimmering blue liquid. I took it after a beat of hesitation and crossed over to the mirror in two strides. It was a gorgeous piece of work. Large and framed in carved mahogany. Enchantments had been expertly woven into each spiraling design, done in detail so fine, it beggared even a vampire’s keen eyesight to spot them all. And the possessive spell was definitely there. Yep, it was no wonder this mirror had just sat at the antique store for as long as it had.
The potion gathered in every groove when I passed a damp finger over each painstakingly wrought design. I wasn’t sure if Betanya had bought the frame and altered it or if she’d done the masterful piece herself. I could only be grateful for it. The embedded enchantment would make this easier.
“It’s superb work,” I said as I glanced over at her with a nod.
Betanya smiled gently. “Thank you, Indigo.”
I blinked away the fierce, burning desire to cry. It was the first kind word anyone in Scapegrace had for me. I turned back to the mirror, brushing my fingers over the mirror’s surface, muttering the Latin incantation under my breath. The surface barely rippled. I tried again with similar results. The desire to cry redoubled. We were going to die horribly, and it was all my fault.
“Damn it,” I whispered. “Damn it, damn it, damn it...”
“What’s the problem?” Finn asked, watching me with concern.
“I can’t get through,” I muttered, shaking my head. “What am I doing wrong?”
It was a rhetorical question, but the voice on the other end of the phone answered, anyway.
“Your intent must be as clear as your reflection,” Aurea said primly. “Your mind isn’t clear enough.”
Of course it’s not!I wanted to scream. She was cloistered in a cell somewhere, safe and under guard. I was a sitting duck out in the open. Poppy was certain her grandmother had at least one mirror we could step through. The problem was reaching that mirror. So far, we weren’t off to a good start.
“I’m under a lot of stress,” I gritted out. “You’ll have to be patient with me. I don’t even know what my destination looks like.”
“Irrelevant,” Aurea said. “It’s not about the location. Only mediocre witches care about knowing what the location looks like. It’s about the bridge between. It’s about centering yourself, Indigo. Find the fuel for your magic, and cast like you mean it.”
I was going to send a curse her way, and I’ddefinitelymean it.
“I align with fire magic,” I said in an undertone. “And I’m not feeling all that fiery at the moment.”
“What’s fire magic?” Finn asked.
Wanda gave the boy an indulgent smile. I swore she was a minute away from pinching his cheek and slipping him a twenty so he could go get candy. Nevermind that he was sixteen or something. “A witch’s powers tend to align with one element over the others,” I explained.
“Right,” Finn said with a nod. “Astrid is aligned with air, I think.”
“That’s common for white witches,” I answered. “Fire is passion, movement, change, vitality. Getting in touch with one’s own body.”
Fire magic was about being present in the moment and enjoying it to its fullest. Yet, I felt so far from joyful that I’dlanded on another continent. To my surprise, it was Angelo who came to my rescue once more. He stepped forward, offering me a hand, one eyebrow raised.
I took the hand he offered, sucking in a sharp breath when desire thrummed through me. I felt like a plucked guitar string, vibrating from the intensity of the lust pouring through the contact. Another hand slid into my left one, and I turned my head in time to see RJ giving me a sheepish grin.
An insane urge seized me, and I acted before I could stop to think better of it. I seized a fistful of his hair, guiding his face down to mine. With the cobwebs of fear and despair burned away by lust, I could admit that I wanted the mundane. Not for the forbidden draw of him, the way things had played out with Anthony. But because he’d been kind to me. His sculpted face could have so easily conveyed cruelty. But instead, he was here, helping a woman he barely knew because he believed it was the right thing to do.
“Ah gross,” I heard Finn say.
“Look!” Wanda’s voice startled me out of the liplock, and I hastily stepped back from each man. Angelo gave me a knowing smirk before retreating to his position at the rear. I scowled. The demon had done that on purpose.
RJ, for his part, looked torn between surprise and arousal. On any other day, and without onlookers, I would have drawn him down for another, longer kiss before straddling his lap. It had been so long since I’d been with a man whom I wanted for the sheer pleasure of it. Anthony and I had chemistry, but our proximity had been forced. There was a constant barrier in the shape of his mother hanging between us.
“Thank you,” I said.
RJ blinked rapidly, gathering his thoughts before mumbling, “You’re welcome?”
I laughed. “Was that a question?”
His eyes finally focused and softened. He raised a hand as if he might cup the side of my face, but then thought better of it. “No. It was nice. It was really...”