Page 42 of Wicching Hour (The Sea Wicche Chronicles #3)

FORTY-TWO

Double the Fun

R obert stood. “He’s right. Am I terrified something will happen to my wife and children? Yes, but I feel it too. It’s all falling together tonight for a reason.”

Elizabeth stood as well. “We’ll go to where our boat is docked and sail her back. The water is deep enough for us here, isn’t it?” She pointed out the back window to the deck.

“It is,” I said. “I can also calm the waters to make it easier.”

Robert nodded and checked his watch. “Our slip is close. Prep work needs to be done. We can probably be back in thirty to forty-five minutes.”

“We can text you when we’re on our way,” Frank said. The teens looked nervous but determined.

“I’ll call Mom,” I said. “We’ll need both of them. The three are a power all our own. We’ll put aside what we discussed earlier tonight. We need to work together to battle a demon. Questions can be asked tomorrow. All right?”

I waited until even the most reluctant—Declan and Bracken—nodded.

“Also,” I said, unsure of how this would be received, “I made a promise to my dad that I’d be in the water when this all went down. It’s where my power is its strongest.”

They shared looks, appearing confused as to what that meant.

“Remember, the ocean is my father’s domain. I can’t drown. Okay?”

Declan gave me a sharp look, but the others nodded.

“You guys take off and I’ll call Mom.” I blew out a breath and tapped my phone. It rang a few times.

“Hello, darling,” she answered.

“Hey, Mom. Can you go get Gran and bring her here? We have Cal’s workshop narrowed down to two locations. Robert, Elizabeth, and the kids are getting their boat and we’re going to go?—”

“No, Arwyn,” she interrupted. “Remember your vision was of Elizabeth and Faith flying out of the boat and into the ocean. She promised they’d stay out of the water.”

“Mom, you and Gran said I had to find Cal. Well, that’s what I’ve done. We’re not arguing about this. We’ll need the three to break through her wards. Will you get Gran and help or not?”

Declan, who could, of course, hear both sides of the discussion, pulled the phone from my hand. “You need to get ready and practice. I’ll talk to her.”

Nodding, I blew out a breath and handed him the phone before going out the back door and over the railing. I didn’t have long to practice. Treading water, I closed my eyes and shoved out the hurt and betrayal. I thought of the ocean, the force of the waves, and pushed my magic onto the deck.

It took a few tries. Okay, more than a few but I had a lot on my mind. I opened my eyes, staring at the open door to my studio. Declan’s voice was raised, so I went in.

“She’s been working her ass off trying to make you two happy, taking on all the danger while you pass judgment, always finding her lacking in some way. She’s a fucking miracle, but you two never fail to find fault.”

He paused, listening, and then said, “No. I’m not. She just found out some hard truths tonight that broke her heart, but she’s still getting ready to battle a demon.” He paused again. “Guard dog? Yeah, hilarious. Just know Arwyn has a very protective wolf in her corner now. And unlike you, I’ll always be on her side. So, are you going to come back her up or are you just going to let the rest of us risk our necks?”

He listened a moment and then threw the phone, but I flicked my fingers, catching it. Bracken was just moving his hand, no doubt to do the same, when they both turned to the open door.

“Arwyn?” He was staring right at me but didn’t seem to see me.

I looked down and didn’t see myself either. “Can you hear me?”

Both continued to stare through the doorway.

I thought of vocal cords again and cleared my throat. “What happened?”

He walked right through me onto the deck. “Ursula, where are you?”

I pushed harder and heard a sharp intake of breath. When I turned toward the sound, I found a wide-eyed Bracken.

“How did you do that?” he asked.

“Can you hear me?”

He nodded.

“Oh, good. I got that working,” I said.

Declan stood in the doorway, looking astonished. Pointing behind him, he said, “You’re in the water. How are you here?”

“I know, right. This was what my dad was teaching me earlier. He wants me in the water and sending this shadow out to deal with Calliope.”

Bracken blinked. “But can you do magic in that state?”

I flicked my fingers and the lights went out. With a shrug, I turned them back on and said, “Looks like.”

“Are you an apparition or physically here?” Bracken walked closer and put a hand on my cheek.

We approach a grand double door that looks weatherbeaten. Bracken has the demon blade in his hand. He thrusts it forward, popping a ward. The door clicks open and he reaches for the doorknob.

Terror floods my system and I try to stop him, but he’s already touched the knob. Convulsing, smoke rises off him, along with the acrid scent of burned hair. He’s blown back into the courtyard. Declan and I run to his crumpled body. His skin is charred, his expression grotesque. Dead.

On a huge intake of breath, I opened my eyes and stepped away from Bracken’s hand. “You can’t come with us.”

“Don’t be silly,” he protested. “Of course I’m coming.”

“No.” Sudden tears flooded my eyes. “You can’t. If you come, you’ll die.”

He stilled a moment and then said, “But if I don’t, who will die in my stead?” He paused, patting his pockets absently. “I know not to touch your skin, yet I felt compelled to do it just then. I could have touched your sleeve to know if you were corporeal, but I touched your skin. Was I influenced to do that, so you’d see what you saw? What if my not going weakens our side and Declan dies instead? What if it’s little Faith?”

He shook his head. “We have a plan and it’s a good one. They’re clearly nervous or they wouldn’t be trying so hard to derail us.” He pointed at Declan. “He never loses his temper and yet he’s yelling and throwing phones. No. We’re not changing the plan now. We have them spooked, which means we’re on the right track.”

My phone buzzed. Declan went to the couch to get it. “Can you open it in this state?”

“I guess we’ll find out.” I reached for it. “If it slides through my hand, try to catch it.”

He nodded, looking more than a little unsure of this new development.

The face recognition software on my phone recognized me, so that was good. I checked my messages. “They’re there and getting the boat ready. They’ll text again when they set sail.”

“Good. Fine.” Declan took my phone back and put it on my worktable. He looked between the two of us. “He’s right. I don’t trust myself. I just yelled at your mother.” His head went up. “Hernández arrived.”

I pushed him toward the door. “Go. She knows you, and being near other wolves might help how you’re feeling. We have some time.”

He looked between Bracken and me, walked onto the deck, and leaned over the railing, no doubt making sure I was still there.

“The ocean is where I’m safest,” I reminded him.

Nodding, he headed around the gallery to where Jake, Tyler, and Hernández were.

Bracken and I stood in silence.

“I don’t want you to die.” I wiped at my face. “We have an agreement. We’re building you an apartment so you can stay here with me,” I whispered.

“Yes,” he said, his expression softening. “But things change. You’re starting a family.” When I stilled, he smiled gently. “You forget. I notice patterns and breaks in patterns. Don’t get me wrong. I want to be here to meet the little one, who I know will be extraordinary, like her mama, but we all need to work together to stop Cal now if we want that happy future. You know that. If I’m feeling the pressure, you certainly must be.”

My shoulders slumped. “I feel it.”

“So, tell me what you saw so I know what to avoid.”

I blew out a breath. “We’re approaching the house?—”

“We’re going to find it,” he said triumphantly.

Nodding, I said, “You use the demon blade to break a ward. It pops open the front door. You touch the handle, and it seems to burn you from the inside out. It was horrible.”

“I’m sorry you had to see that.” He pulled the sheathed blade from his tweed coat pocket. “I was sure I’d need this tonight.” He slipped it back into his pocket. “We’ll just have to make sure none of us touch any doorknobs tonight.”

“I wonder if I can.” I looked at my gloved hands. “We should do an experiment. Go get one of my steak knives. Let’s see?—”

“What the hell?” Declan roared, storming back in. “We’re not seeing if we can stab you. What is going on?”

I jumped. I’ll admit it. “Dude, settle down. We were just talking.” I rolled my eyes at Bracken.

Declan looked toward the deck again. “That’s your mother’s car.”

“Oh.” We needed them, but I felt chewed up and spat out at the moment. “Hey, give me a kiss. Let’s see if you null my powers in this form.”

A heavy sigh, a quick head shake, and he was leaning in for a kiss.

When he pulled away, my fingertips went to my lips. “I felt that. It was almost like a real kiss.” We stared at each other as we both considered other types of experiments.

Bracken cleared his throat. “Still here.”

My phone buzzed again. I went over and checked it. “They’re on their way. Frank says ten minutes.”

Mom and Gran walked in the back door. Both, at least, were dressed for a night sail. I’d half expected trousers and heels.

“Arwyn, for goodness sake, tell us what’s going on,” Mom said, still eyeing Declan with more than a little animosity.

I waved them in and then stood in the doorway so I’d see the boat coming.

“Here,” Declan said, pulling me back in. “I’ll go out. I have better eyesight than you do. You talk with your family.”

“Good call.” I went back in but stopped short. “Wait. What happened with the arsonists?”

“Arsonists?” Mom repeated. “Bracken, what is she talking about?”

While he explained, I caught up with Declan. He was leaning against the railing, looking down at the real me.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“Yeah. It’s very weird, standing here talking to you while I’m watching you bob in the water down there.” He studied the me on the deck a moment. “You don’t have the hair right. This is more of an all-over brown.” He pulled one of my curls. “And it’s not soft enough. Your hair is an amazing mix of colors. It’s like every hair is a touch different from the one beside it.” He rubbed the coil between his fingers. “Maybe because my sight is better, I know what it should look like. You can’t duplicate what I see because you don’t see it the way I do.”

I looked down with him, considering the hair flying around my head up here versus what I could see on the real me down there. He was right. This was weird. “I’m going to need a strong conditioning pack tomorrow.”

Laughing, some of the tension left his shoulders. “At least I know for sure this is you.” He wrapped an arm around me and looked toward the marina. “I see lights in the distance. That’s probably them.”

“Been a pretty big day, huh?”

He met my gaze. “It’s been a lot. I’ll give you that.”

“So? Arsonists?”

He looked back out over the water. “They were arrested. Jake and Tyler went in to give their statements. I told her if we survived tonight, we’d send her the security footage tomorrow.”

I leaned my head against his chest. “Bracken insists on coming.”

“I heard. We’ll need him. No one spots details like he does. And my guess is he’s hell on maps too. We’ll watch out for him. You and I both will.”

“No doorknobs! If at all possible, don’t touch anything ,” I told him, squeezing my arm around his waist.

“I heard that too. Have you been practicing your magic?”

I held out a hand and a ball of blue fire rolled on my palm. “What would you like me to do?”

He thought about that. “Can you levitate?”

“Only one way to know.” I stepped away from him, the fire evaporating. The spell for levitation was ready in my mind. I felt my magic thrum through me—the me in the water. My fingers flicked—below water and above—and I was hovering a foot off the deck.

Declan laughed. “That answers that question. Yes, you can, even after kissing me.” He pointed over the water. “See them?”

I saw tiny lights reflecting on the waves. “Yep.”

“You’re going to need to get out of the water so you can get in the boat.”

“Right. On it.”