Page 5 of Mason
"What do you want me to do?"Mason asks, coming up beside me, fully clothed again.
"Take my hand, I'll do the rest."
With Mason's hand in mine, I close my eyes.Most humans expect magic to be flashy and for a practitioner to use a bunch of tools.But magic, at the core, is about intention and will.Tools can help focus the intention, but they aren't strictly necessary for a highly-skilled witch.At the moment, I'm grateful for that since I left all my gear at the Nefarious compound.It's supposed to be my day off, damn it.
Focusing my thoughts on Kory, I reach out through the budding bond between us.For a few breaths, I sense nothing, so I draw on the mate bond between Mason and me to boost the connection.
"He's anxious and irritated, but I don't feel any immediate danger," I say, puzzled by Kory's emotions.The cabin looks like a tornado went through it, so I know he put up a fight.I'd expect him to be scared.I suppose I should be grateful he's not.
"Can you sense a location or direction?Anything that can help us know where to start looking?"
"No.It's all murky.Maybe I'm too upset to get a clear picture of what's happening."I open my eyes and drop Mason's hand.Pulling out my phone, I text Cipher to send me the background info we put together on Kory when I started getting serious with him.Maybe there's something in there we missed the first time around, or a clue we can follow.Sometimes, magic is the answer, other times technology works just fine.Between the two, surely we can locate my lost mouse.
Chapter Six
Mason
WhileHexwaitstohear back from Cipher, we start cleaning up Kory's cabin.Hex doesn't want our mate coming home to this nightmare.I also think he's using it for a distraction, which is a more constructive way to handle the stress than going on a rampage, which is what my wolf wants to do.Now that the mate bond has fully awakened, my beast has strong opinions and feelings about everything.
"I told Kory he needed wards around the house, but he refused.He said he didn't see the need for them out here in the middle of nowhere," Hex says, breaking the silence."I should have set a few anyway, but I wanted to respect his wishes."
"You did the right thing.If you set them after he'd already said no, it would have violated his trust."
"Maybe.But he might be here now for me to grovel to if I had."
My wolf urges me to comfort our mate.After so much time apart, I'm not sure how welcome it will be, but I step up beside Hex and put my arm around him, giving him space to move away if he chooses.I'm surprised when he turns toward me so I can wrap him up in a hug.We stand quietly for several minutes, my wolf feeling somewhat settled by our mate accepting the gesture of support.
"I should call Ghost and get clearance to contact the Coven.We could use the magic boost," Hex says, stepping out of my arms.
My wolf isn't happy about it, but he'll just have to deal.We don't have time to play house right now.
"Let's wait and see what we find in Cipher's notes."I'm not ready to face my family or the Coven yet.The longer we can keep from involving them, the better.Plus, I'm not sure Ghost is going to agree to it anyway.There are certain processes you're supposed to go through to become the mate of a member of Nefarious.I bypassed all of it when I made Hex my mate.You'd think I'd get a pass since it was an emergency, but Ghost has been bitter about it because he feels it undermined his authority as the leader.Although, now that I think about it, I'm not dead in an unmarked grave somewhere, so maybe getting to live was the pass.Regardless, I'd rather Hex and I handle this and not complicate it further with club, family, or Coven politics.That shitshow is coming soon enough.I want to find Kory and complete our bond before I have to confront the consequences of my past decisions.
I'm saved from having to think of more reasons we don't need to call anyone else by Hex's phone chiming.
"It's Cipher," he confirms as he starts scrolling.
"Have a seat and take your time reading through it.I'll keep cleaning," I say, pointing to an armchair that managed to make it through the chaos unscathed.
Once Hex is situated and engrossed in his work, I search the kitchen for a broom and dustpan.With tools in hand, I return to the living room and start sweeping the dirt and broken glass into a pile, my mind wandering.I am the pack enforcer and security person.I'm normally the one making plans and on top of things when the shit hits the fan.But in the pack, there is a structure.I know the expectations.I know the type of enemies we're likely to face.And I'm surrounded by family that has my back.Here with Hex, I feel adrift.There is no chain of command, so-to-speak.There's no suspect or mission parameters.I don't have a directive from the Coven.I'm here on my own without any safety nets, or the security of familiar routines.Facing being on my own without my pack behind me is a humbling experience.Humans always depict shifters in their stories as larger-than-life badasses – and make no mistake, we can be – but most humans don't know shifters are real, much less that we have flaws, just like them.Part of us is still human, after all.
After sweeping up the larger piles and disposing of them, I shove the couch back to make sure nothing slid under it.A small vial rolls toward me as I sweep up a few stray pieces of glass.Crouching down, I pick it up and look it over.It's empty, and I don't pick up any scent from it.It's the complete lack of scent that raises a red flag.Almost everything has some kind of odor, even inanimate objects smell like the material they're made from.
"What do you make of this?"I ask Hex as I stand up.
He sets his phone down on the chair arm and holds out his hand.
"There's residual magic, but it's faded.I can't tell what it was meant to do."Hex turns the vial this way and that, studying it.When he uncorks it, his nose wrinkles."I may not be able to read the magic, but I know that smell."
"I didn't smell anything."
"You wouldn't.You're a shifter.This is a spell brewed to hold a shifter in their beast form.Harmless to other beings who don't share their body with an animal essence.It's unscented to a shifter nose so they won't know what's coming."Hex flips over the cork and looks at the bottom.
I walk around the chair to stand behind him, looking over his shoulder.An 'E' is stamped onto it.It means nothing to me, but I commit it to memory in case I need to reference it later.
"Enigma," Hex mutters softly.
"Tell me what you know," I say, gently squeezing his shoulder before walking back around to face him.