Destiny of the Witch (The Other Witch #4)

3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

When I saw the incoming call from Dick Symes, I was almost relieved. It was hard to sit there seeing the polite smile on Mum’s face that she reserved for strangers. I excused myself and went into the hall to take the call.

‘DeLea,’ I answered brusquely as I stared at the painting that hung in the hallway. I would recognise Mum’s brushstrokes anywhere. She’d been here a matter of days, yet already she’d made this new house her home. She may be down, but she’s not out.

‘It’s time for favour two.’ Dick got right to the point.

‘What do you need?’

‘Some truth runes. Bring the griffin.’ He hung up.

I despised being summoned like I was a lackey. Dick might not be aware of my promotion yet, but I was now one of the most important witches in British society and being summoned like an acolyte set my teeth on edge. Nevertheless, I owed him a favour and it was time sensitive so I could hardly refuse. Besides, I’d rather have the debt squared off. And – I could admit it to myself, if no one else – I wanted an excuse to leave. I couldn’t stand seeing my mum like this. It was breaking something fragile within me.

I checked my tote bag; sure enough, I had a truth potion in its confines. It had seemed a sensible addition to the daily supplies that I carried around at all times; after all, I was hunting down evil witches and you couldn’t expect them all to spill their guts like Jeb had done. Figuratively and literally.

I repacked my bag and turned to re-enter the room. I paused at the sight of Mum’s familiar, Lucille, stretched out on the bottom stair, her chest rising and falling slowly.

Fear wracked me as I knelt next to her. ‘Lucille?’ I called, stroking her gently. Her eyes snapped open but she didn’t try to move. ‘Something is really wrong with you,’ I breathed, more to myself than her. ‘What can I do?’

She lightly batted her head against my hand. Her energy levels were at an all-time low. I was sure that she was helping Mum somehow, but whatever she was doing was draining her completely .

‘I’m going to help you,’ I promised. ‘I’ll brew something tonight. Can I take some blood?’

She nodded, watching me calmly as I pulled out a small syringe and some blood tubes from my bag. ‘Can you turn onto your tummy?’ I asked softly. ‘Or shall I move you?’ It is easier to take blood from an animal when they are in sternal recumbency.

She rolled onto her stomach with a visible effort. Because she was a familiar – and clever enough to lie still – I didn’t need anyone to restrain her. I took her right forepaw and located the cephalic vein. ‘Hold still,’ I murmured.

She sat patiently, watching me with intelligent eyes as I carefully placed the tip of the syringe into her vein and drew back the plunger. When it was full of blood, I removed the needle and bandaged her little forepaw. She lolled back onto her side and her eyes slid shut again.

‘Lucille?’ I asked in panic.

Her eyes opened again. Tired. The voice in my head wasn’t my own.

I’d never heard of a familiar communicating with anyone other than their bonded. I stared at her, my heart racing in panic at the state of her and the intrusion of the unknown voice in my head, which I knew somehow was Lucille’s. It shouldn’t be possible, but the fact that she was trying to speak to me showed how desperate things were.

Bastion stepped out of the lounge. ‘What’s wrong?’ he asked, looking around. His hands had shifted into claws, ready to rip into whoever had caused the distress that had rippled down our bond.

‘Lucille,’ I said finally. My voice dropped even lower as I voiced my fears. ‘I don’t think she has long left.’

Bastion’s lips tightened. ‘I’m sorry.’

‘I need to do something,’ I said desperately. ‘I need to help her.’

His claws shifted back into hands and he pulled me into an embrace. ‘You can’t save everyone, Bambi.’ He kissed my forehead.

He didn’t need to tell me that: my failures with Abigay and Melva were fresh in my mind. But I had saved Ria from black mordis, and I could save Lucille from whatever this was. I couldn’t – wouldn’t – fail again. ‘I can try,’ I argued.

‘You can try,’ he agreed. His confidence settled around me like a cloak. He had no doubt that if there was a way to save Lucille I would find it. Something in me eased. I might have failed Mum – this time – but I wouldn’t fail Lucille. But for now, I needed to move. I had work to do.

‘Dick Symes has called in his second favour,’ I said.

‘I’m not ready to see his dick again,’ Bastion complained.

It was enough to make me smile. ‘I think that’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing.’

‘We can hope.’

‘He wants me to use some truth runes on someone.’

‘On whom?’

‘That remains to be seen.’

‘I’ll get the others.’ Bastion released me and went back into the sitting room. I let him go; I couldn’t face Mum again just now, not when I was feeling so raw. I couldn’t see that polite smile directed at me one more damned time.

Oscar, Benji and Frogmatch followed Bastion out moments later. Grief was written across Oscar’s face, and it was enough to make me pull him in for a hug. He clung to me for a long moment and there were tears in his eyes when he pulled back.

‘It is hard for you to see her that way,’ Benji said softly. ‘When she does not know you.’

I nodded, a lump in my throat. ‘Yes,’ I managed. ‘It is.’

Benji reached out and touched both my shoulder and Oscar’s with gentle sympathy, ‘I’m sorry.’ There was something so simple and true about his comfort that it shot right to the heart of me and my eyes filled again. I hated it. No matter the new spin Bastion had tried to put on crying, I’d never be a tearful person and I didn’t want to be. Especially not in front of others. It was a vulnerability I simply couldn’t afford right now.

Oscar patted Benji’s hand before squeezing and releasing it, then he cleared his throat. Just like that, all signs of grief were gone, wiped from his face and shoved behind a carefully crafted mask of indifference. If only it was as easy to erase grief from our hearts as it was from our faces. Oscar took out the car keys and led the way out of the safe house.

Frogmatch was riding on Benji’s shoulder, but he swung across to sit on mine. He pressed a kiss to my cheek then, before I could do or say anything, he skittered down and disappeared into the car. I didn’t know what it meant that the imp was trying to comfort me, but it felt good. I had been so long without friends that every single one was now a wonderful gift.

Bastion waited patiently for me whilst I gave Lucille one last pat. When I stood to go, Mum was in the doorway. ‘You must destroy the harkan, Amber, no matter the consequences.’ Her eyes were full of passion and fire.

‘Mum!’ I ran to her and threw my arms around her before she could leave me again .

She clung to me just as fiercely. ‘My Amber, you are every inch the woman I dreamed you would be.’

‘Bastion is my familiar,’ I blurted.

She grinned. ‘I know – and I’m glad you do, too.’ She looked at him. ‘Keep her safe, Bastion.’

‘You know I will.’

‘I know you will,’ she agreed. She turned back to me, tucking stray hairs around my ears in a gesture universal to mothers. ‘There are dark times ahead, Amber, but you can do it. You must.’ She pressed a kiss to my cheek. ‘I love you so much.’

‘I love you, too.’ My voice was almost frantic. ‘I miss you so much and so does Oscar.’ I desperately needed her to know how much I loved her, though words couldn’t really express the feelings in my heart. She had done so much for me, more than I had ever known.

Her arms dropped away from me and her eyes fixed on the painting behind me. ‘It’s in the painting,’ she said impatiently, frustration in her tone. Then she blinked once and she was gone, her eyes blurry and vacant. She turned and walked back into the room with Charlize without so much as a goodbye .

Bastion’s arms wrapped around me. ‘I’m okay,’ I whispered as grief crushed me. My mother’s brief moment of clarity was all the worse for the confusion that followed.

‘No, you’re not,’ he said softly.

I wasn’t, but what choice did I have? The weight of the world was on my shoulders and we didn’t have time for me to throw a wobbly. But by the Goddess, I wanted to wail and gnash my teeth and complain that it wasn’t fair. I even wanted to throw in a stamp of my foot.

Instead, I took a deep breath and studied the painting she’d referred to. It was a landscape like most of her work, showing rolling hills and a lake, the Lake District or Wales, perhaps. ‘Do you know where this is?’ I asked Bastion.

He studied the painting then shook his head before taking a picture of it with his phone. ‘I can find out. We’d better leave it here – no doubt she’s painted wards into it.’

‘You’re right!’ I said excitedly. Maybe she wanted me to see some runes she’d worked into the painting. I touched the wall and pulled my magic forward. As I’d hoped, bright warding runes leapt up and beamed through the picture. I felt rather than saw the connecting runes in the other rooms. Mum might be losing her marbles but she still knew how to rune like a protective mama bear. This house was locked down .

Disappointment welled. Was that all she’d meant, that the wards were in the paintings? Somehow her comment had felt more important, more pointed, than that.

I let my magic fade and the runes disappeared. ‘I didn’t ask her about the code,’ I said with a soft sigh.

‘My hacker contact is on his way back to the US. Inc will be ready for business soon so we’ll shoot this to him ASAP. It doesn’t matter that you didn’t ask first, don’t add that to the millstone around your neck.’

‘Ink?’ I asked.

‘Inc with a c. It stands for Incognito. It’s his hacker handle.’

‘Do you know his real identity?’ I asked curiously.

‘No. I doubt even he does,’ he said wryly. ‘Come on, Bambi. We need to see a man about some truth.’