Page 27 of Of Poison & Pumpkins (Of Witches & Men #3)

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Elias

T his ramshackle warehouse on the edge of town has turned out to be the most genius place to hide.

After the poisonous fountain overflowed back home, fleeing was the only way to keep Rynnlee safe. Miles away from Oakmar, my idea is working so far as no cops have shown up yet.

Rynnlee’s fingers might fall off soon from texting Tinsley nonstop to make sure they’re okay.

I never want to witness her in so much terror for the rest of my life.

The fear that Tinsley and Maya were had injured completely paralyzed her.

It’s my job to protect her from ever experiencing such fear again.

“It had to be Brooke. Did you see how she winked at me as they left?” Rynn says for the hundredth time, stomping over broken plywood scraps and metal shapes.

“Do you think Noah is helping?” She cracks her knuckles, and I’m surprised to hear them pop since she’s repeated the nervous habit over a dozen times already.

“If Tinsley and Maya had been poisoned, my sister would be six feet under right now.”

I stay quiet, deep in thought, as she rambles on furiously, throwing out random threats every few sentences. From where I sit on a broken chair full of termites, I focus on the high windows at least thirty feet above us. They haven’t reflected police lights yet, so maybe we’ll stay in the clear.

Night has fallen, and we've been in this awful warehouse for hours. It’s hard to believe that Shannon’s business will soon open in the other half of this building; I wouldn’t believe it based on the dust and health code violations surrounding us.

At least Rynn’s wearing her thick boots in case she steps on glass.

Everywhere, there are points and angles sharper than an eagle’s vision.

“You look ready to break something,” I say as Rynn paces.

“Brooke’s only doing this to hurt me.” Rynn’s arms flail in the air. “I don’t even think she likes Noah, no offense, he’s probably a great guy somehow.”

“He’s a snarlgoose who deserves to rot with the mushrooms.”

“She’s so conceited. So immature. So selfish to pour poison into the fountain. The whole town could be cursed!” Her voice rises again. “I can’t turn her in without confessing everything. I can’t confront her because she’d deny it. I can’t threaten her, because I’d be no better than her.”

“Let’s go smash something.” I move towards her, hoping my original idea will be effective. I planned this for a future date night to relieve stress, but now seems to be ideal.

Rynn shakes her head, then stares at our two backpacks on the floor, full of the ingredients for the antidote that should free those who have been cursed. Along with them, we packed a few changes of clothes, money, toiletries, and protein bars.

“I need to show you something. Come on,” I say. “Think of it as date number two.”

Rynn’s brows tighten. “Are you crazy? Our entire city might be under the spell of my sister’s wicked insanity, our relatives are married, I’m going to jail for the rest of my life, my shop is ruined, and you want to go on a date ?”

“Yes. A date of destruction. You look?—”

“Angry!? Do I look fuckin’ angry??” A string of inhuman sounds bursts from her lips like an explosion. Rage detonates from her soul, layered with so much built up outrage kept buried for too long.

Apparently, red-rimmed eyes have the capacity to crush me.

Her cheeks blotchy and streaked from crying don’t help my fortitude.

I’ve purposefully held back from cradling her in my arms while she lets out her steam, knowing she doesn’t want to be held right now, but it’s nearly impossible not to hug her when so much pain paints her features. It ruins me entirely.

Seeing her this worked up, I’m determined my idea is exactly what Rynn needs. There may be no end to her rampage unless I steer her towards Shannon’s ‘Fury Factory.’

“Do you trust me?” I ask her.

As I skim my hands up and down her arms, she nods. “Yeah, I do trust you.”

“You say that like it’s such a shock.”

“Maybe it is.” Slipping her hand in mine, she makes a soft hum sound. “Okay! Let’s go pulverize!”

“Pound something!”

“And slam! And squash!” Her voice rises with power. “Flatten! Mangle!” she screams, letting her voice bounce off the concrete walls. Her smile returns, with an edge of vicious deviousness I haven’t seen before.

The way she looks at me now, it tilts my entire world on its axis.

In this moment, I know. I’m flying in love with her.

There’s no falling, only rising. Rynn molds around me into a shapeless cloud of inescapable love.

She’s everywhere, in my soul, in my very breath.

Escaping this feeling is impossible, even if I wanted to.

Well, fuck it. I’m flying in love with Rynn Pozinne. Maybe I’m already soaring.

A strange tingling covers my skin. I’m hypnotized as I stare at her.

Yes, I’ve always liked her, wanted to date her, dreamed of sleeping with her, but this feeling …

I’ve never felt it before. My heartbeat skyrockets.

I’m the lucky one holding her hand. It’s like I’m seeing my life through a new lens.

Suddenly, nothing else matters. My shop can go bankrupt for all I care. Dad can nosedive off the end of the Earth and it wouldn’t phase me. An immediate, desperate desire to give Rynn anything she needs consumes me like a flame.

“Lias, you okay?” She waves a hand in front of my face.

“Kiss me.” I swallow, because it feels like a rock is lodged in my throat. “Please.”

“Right now?” She rises on her tiptoes and presses her hands against my chest.

“Tell me to kiss you.”

Rynn bites her bottom lip as her gaze drops to my mouth. “Hhmm, no, I don’t think so. You got me all excited about this date. You’re not allowed to kiss me until after.”

“But …” My hand clutches my heart involuntarily. “You … Rynnlee, you made me float.”

“Are you playing some sort of code game?” The corner of her frown twitches even though she’s trying to stay serious.

“Never mind,” I say, too much of a coward to tell her when I’m unsure how she feels about me.

We walk through shadowy tunnels, past a spot where water drops, plink plinking against metal. Rynn anchors my nerves with her calm confidence. Should I try to tell her again?

When we turn a corner, a bright light appears in the distance, growing larger with each step.

“You made it,” a voice I recognize as Shannon’s calls out. “Welcome to the Fury Factory! Where all the ghosts roam free!”

Weapons made for bludgeoning hang from the wall—from baseball bats to golf clubs to hammers to maces. Shannon passes us each a safety suit, since debris will soar in all directions when we start.

I’m glad we met Shannon at the café last week.

I had texted her an update of Alexandra’s status when we went to the unicorn farm, and she wanted to thank me with a free session here.

She owns this start-up company that hasn’t debuted yet.

I doubt their funding will be approved based on the amount of waivers we sign.

As she explains the rules and what to expect to Rynn, I can’t help but gawk at my Sunflower in a jumpsuit.

My lady rocks every outfit she wears, whether it’s pajamas, exercise clothes or thick, oversized gear meant for a mechanic.

Goddess, she’s enchanting. I need to tell her my feelings.

Now. It’s an erupting sensation from my chest that’s about to rupture all my bones.

But then she turns towards me and steals my very breath.

“You’re not ready,” Rynn says, her head tilted to the side. “Do you want help?”

I follow her gaze to a matching outfit draped over my arm. Unsure how it got there I shake my head and fumble my body into it. Alone. If she moves any closer, I’m going to mount her like a crazy animal. This intensity can’t be normal, right?

Her warm smile makes me into a jumbled mess of crossed wires, useless. How have I survived so much time in her presence without losing my mind?

Rynn shoves her helmet and eye shield on, then swipes a crowbar from the rack.

Shannon turns up the volume of the heavy metal music until it might perforate my ear drums. She leads us to the ‘Fury Factory’ rage room, where a few ghosts swarm the air.

Some hold weapons of their own and swing at the objects.

Their batons and axes pass straight through the old desk and vintage microwave.

I can’t hear their seething rants, but their boiling expressions are evidence enough that they belong here.

In complete adoration, I simply watch Rynn wink at a ghost then start her rampage by beating the shitzu out of an old mannequin. Before I can join, it is decapitated and brutally disfigured.

Beads of sweat shimmer on her forehead as she meets my eye with a giddy smile. Yes. This is what she needed. Determined, she lifts her crowbar again and slams it down on the top of an old wooden desk. Looks fun. Ghosts swarm and I can taste their unified animosity.

I grab a metal pipe. Lift it over my head. Pause. What should I envision?

Noah. No longer the Dad I need to impress, simply the male who contributed to my genes.

After all this time trying to achieve the impossible to make him proud, it’s almost a joke how much energy I’ve wasted on thoughts of him.

When he finally pranced back into my life, he didn’t show half-a-crap about Pumpkins , or me, or my life.

My body tenses. I ram the pipe straight through the top of the desk. It cracks. The impact rumbles through my muscles. Pure ecstasy floods my nervous system like a drug.

Rynn’s eyes widen. I can’t hear her over the blasting music but read her lips. ‘ Again .’ So I strike. Hard and fluid. Again and again. Splinters fly but our suits protect us. Music pounds my ears. Adrenaline pumps on overdrive. My pulse spikes high. Breathing turns heavy and labored.

Smack .

All the wasted years I spent accelerating in school which Noah didn’t even notice.

Crash.

Wasted effort sucking up to Noah’s colleagues.

Slam .

Wasted hope that one day he’d apologize, acknowledge his mistakes.

Strike. Bang. Bash.

My arms shake. Back burns from overuse. I scan the room, where half the ghosts stare at me in surprise. What used to resemble a desk is now a disorderly pile of wood and rubble. There’s not much left to wreck, I drop the pipe to the ground and bend over, hands on my knees, to gather more oxygen.

The music dies and the ghosts all disappear through the walls as if they were never here. Rynn kneels in front of me, and I’d yell at her for risking getting cut if I were able to speak.

“Holy shit, Elias! That was epic.” Rynn angles her face towards me, looking up at me through long eyelashes. Her skin is pink, but no longer from crying. Her eyes sparkle full of life.

I love her.

She may not return the sentiment right away, but I don’t care. This right here, the way her eyes shine when she looks at me, is proof enough.

“You’re looking at me all serious.”

“I love you.” I lift her chin a little then slide my fingertip down her throat. “I love you, Rynnlee, with my whole heart. And I’ll be by your side, ready to destroy anything for us, for you, as long as you’ll let me. All you need to do is ask, and I’m yours.”

Her lips part with a soft puff of air. “Oh.”

“I’m not expecting you to say it back, but you did promise me a kiss after our date.”

Both her hands find the back of my neck and she climbs my front like a tree until our mouths collide in passion. Our teeth even knock together. Her tongue is on a mission.

“Stop that, right now. That’s against rule eight!” Shannon laughs, pulling us apart. “One of you may have wood or glass in your suit and pierce the other by accident. “Wait until you get to your room.”

“Our room?” Rynn asks.

“Yeah, didn’t Elias explain? The Fury Factory isn’t the only experience of our sensory hotel. He booked the full shebang. We haven’t named each room yet, but your next space is where you’ll spend the night. I might call it the Furry Fortress.”

“Wait, you said he only reserved one room?” One of Rynn’s eyebrows rise and I lift both my hands in surrender.

“Hey, now. They only have one test-room ready. I’m not planning any mischief.”

“And what do you expect will be happening in this shared room tonight, Lias?”

“A pillow fight.”

Tonight, I’m going to savor every moment with the woman I love. Love . I love her. And I plan to prove it in more ways than one.