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Chapter forty-nine

Damian

E xhausted, we teleported back to the cemetery before the sun rose, thus keeping ourselves hidden from nonmagical and magical eyes alike.

I took a moment to fill Mr. Stages in on what the ghosts of his friends had told me to relay to their kids before I went home. He assured me he’d give them the message.

I had a feeling now that Shadow had claimed that part of Illinois as her territory, the witches around her would be a bit more active. The Karkadann was a powerful creature known to create a lot of energy around her.

If my intuition was telling me correctly, the Arabic culture had spent copious amounts of time describing her and her power. Mostly they were scared shitless of her, as was wise. Very wise.

I missed Owen. All that’d gone down, all the mistakes I’d made almost destroyed him. I was almost sure Shadow was telling him to leave me the fuck alone, run and never look back. I got home to a very upset household.

“What? What’s happening?” I asked Orville when I walked in and he and several of the other ghosts rushed me at the door,

“Is…is he okay?” Orville asked, and I knew he meant Owen.

“Yeah, he’s good. Just spending time with his sister.”

Relief washed over him, and he came in for a hug. I did the spell fast enough that when he collided with me, he was physically able to hug me. Of course, the moment he pulled away, he transformed back into a spirit.

“Oh, the ghosts, our sources from Illinois, said… They said horrible things.”

I nodded. “It was horrible, Orville,” I said as the other ghosts stood silently listening. “I will tell you all the details later, but yes, I sorta screwed up, but Shadow, my friend? The one that came with Molly the first time? She saved him and all of us.”

Magically, I was reminded of my agreement to not disclose who she and Owen were, and stopped before I said more. “Where’s Molly?” I asked to distract from the abrupt end of my conversation.

“She’s here,” Alice said from the parlor. The door was closed, but Alice came through it and over to me. “She was so afraid, but about an hour ago, she said, ‘They’re fine,’ then fell asleep.”

I smiled. Somehow, Molly had sensed the end of it all. I wasn’t surprised, even as a nonmagical. Shadow and I were her besties, not to mention her new friends Owen and Cary. She was probably linked to all of us, and all of us being magical, naturally, she would’ve felt something.

I opened the pocket door, walked to where Molly lay, and kissed her forehead. She moaned a bit and rolled over, so I pulled the throw I assumed Alice had laid over her up, so it covered her better. It was cold, so I also flicked my hand, making a small fire in the fireplace, and smiling when I realized one of the ghosts must’ve cleaned out the flue and replaced the logs after we’d last used it.

I closed the door behind me and went up to the attic. I wouldn’t be able to sleep until Owen got home, but I was still in pain from when the blood spell had bound me. I needed rest, even if it wasn’t accompanied by sleep.

“Orville, tell me if Molly wakes or Shadow and Owen get home,” I said, remembering I’d blocked Orville from the attic. I quickly brought forth my staff and severed the bindings that kept him out, no longer having any internal strength to do it myself.

Even a small spell was too much for my body.

I stripped my clothes off and climbed into the shower. Blood magic had a distinct smell, and I was covered with it, which was making me nauseous. And even as tired as I was, I didn’t want to get in bed until that smell was gone.

By the time I got out of the shower, the sun was up, making me feel a little better. Owen was sending me positive energy, and that was enough so when I lay down and closed my eyes, I fell into a blissful sleep. My thoughts filled with Owen, a beautiful and powerful magical beast I loved with my entire soul.