Abracadabra
ROGUE
I’ve been shot, stabbed, and once broke my foot in three places while running from a half-crazed ‘lost one’ sent after Reb and me in the tunnels under Bay City. That was years ago, and it still didn’t hurt as much as this shit does.
Never, not once, have I been as furious as I am now, squished in the back seat of a rumbling van with Damon and a full-grown lion who keeps growling grumpily at every bump.
I’m pressed against the window, trying to convince myself that holding myself upright is not a sign of weakness, while Damon is cataloguing his injuries out loud.
He’s doing it to keep his mind off of Rebel, so I let it go.
“Seven lacerations, two likely require sutures. Bruising on the left flank. My pinky’s probably dislocated, but the flexion’s improving. Rogue, how’s the arm?”
I flex my right hand. The tendons pull tight, bright white lines beneath blood and a layer of charred, sticky stuff from the blast site.
“More functional than everyone else,” I say. I glare at the side of his head. “How’s your shoulder?”
He shrugs and I nod, figuring the blood sharing did enough healing on us to make the serious stuff go away.
In the driver’s seat, one of Angelo’s lackeys tries not to stare at the lion in the rearview.
The other rides shotgun, looking increasingly nervous to be headed to their boss’ house.
They keep their mouths shut and drive like they’ve got something to prove.
The only words out of either of them were ‘Everybody in,’ and now there’s just the hum of the engine, Archie’s tail-licking, and the newborn shrieks of baby phoenix Javier in my arms.
Javi doesn’t look like even an actual bird yet, not with his pinkish see-through skin and those black pinprick eyes.
I don’t think anyone expected him to be palm-sized, angry, and already trying to peck Damon’s thumb off.
But his sacrifice kept us alive, and bought time to heal, so I won’t complain—at least, not right now.
Angelo rides shotgun in the other car—a blacked-out luxury SUV, which left with us at the scene of the explosion, but peeled ahead on our way to the drive.
He texted to say the house was secure, the gates locked, and Florissa had been called for a house visit.
Florissa isn’t my favorite witchy healer, especially because she charges triple for after-midnight calls and always smells like a ton of herbs and oils that irritate my Fae side.
Beggars can’t be choosers, though, so I’ll suck it up.
“Do you think we’ll be able to find him?” Damon whispers. I stare through the window, watching the scenery go by as I try not to think about my missing stepbrother.
“We have to.” I shake my head as I mutter, “I won’t survive losing someone else, D.”
Archie makes a low rumble that vibrates through my bones. He’s in pain—but staying in animal form is helping with that. With Rebel gone, we’re all on edge, and our leonine companion is no exception. I turn to pat his mane gently, and his big tongue swipes over my palm, making me shudder.
“Stay cool, dude. We’re almost there. Once that flighty spell slinger gets here, you can shift back and she’ll finish the job.”
“Almost there,” says the driver. He winds down the private street that leads to the enormous gates of our mansion, stopping for a moment as they open to allow us entry. I shudder to think how much more protection Damon will add after this fucking attack so close to our home, but I don’t blame him.
The first lackey hops out, opens the sliding door. “Out you go,” he says, and when Archie growls, he adds, “I’m sure they have a nice juicy steak inside for you.”
We do, but he’s going to eat regular food once the healer fixes him.
Archie ducks his head as he backs out of the back and leaps to the ground.
Once he’s at the side of the van, I push the door open and step out with Javier cradled against me, then Damon follows me.
My eyes dart around the drive, checking every angle to make sure someone isn’t lurking there hoping to take us out completely.
I know better, but the stress of the weather bullshit has me jumpy.
I catch a whiff of something acrid and realize it’s me.
My shirt’s torn, one sleeve blackened and melted into a kind of dreadlock at my bicep.
Most of my wounds are already closing, but my skin is red and puckered in places.
I think of Rebel’s face the last time I saw him and I lock it down behind my eyes.
I don’t have time for fear or grief right now.
Angelo’s standing by the garage door, tapping at his phone. His own blood is wiped away, but there’s a smear on his collar and an edge to his voice when he says, “Are you okay, Princess?”
He asks only me. The others can walk it off, but me, he’s treating me like I’m made of crystal when I saved all their asses. Go figure. “Is Florissa on her way? I don’t want to wait if she’s running a fucking tab that will make my eyes water.”
“On her way,” he says. “I want her to look at Archie first. If he shifts back before his insides re-align, he’ll fuck everything up. She has to make sure all the bones and shit are in the right places.”
The lion lifts his head and sniffs the air. There’s a long second, where I think Archie’s going to leap at Angelo and maul him for the insult. Instead, he yawns and lumbers toward the house.
That’s my cinnamon roll boy, alright.
Nodding at the door, I take Damon’s arm. “Let’s get in there and wash this crap off. I’m tired of being covered in debris.”
We follow the path Archie took, letting Angelo dismiss their goons on his own.
I don’t settle until I hear the door close behind him and Damon makes a beeline for the control panel of his military-grade security system.
Once everything is secure, I let out a sigh of relief.
Now I can try to calm my jangling nerves enough to think straight.
Angelo pulls me aside, head tilted as he says, “We have ten, maybe fifteen minutes, before the healer gets here. Do you have the evidence we collected?”
I fish the bundle from the dirty car towels I’m holding Javier in.
The various bags and papers holding the goop, dirt, dust, and other things we thought might be important are inside of a plastic grocery bag.
He takes it, heading for the wall of the living room and pulling a painting aside to reveal a safe.
I had no idea that was there, but I’m glad for it.
“You can’t possibly think Florissa is a suspect if she’s coming here,” I say quietly.
He doesn’t look back at me, just shoves the bag inside of the safe. “I think we have to behave as if anyone could be a suspect in Bay City right now. We saw that damn line-up at the meeting, and how did people know you and Arch were headed after the arena?”
“Lots of people there are being questioned, and law enforcement types, too,” I reply as I consider his question.
“But I don’t think that’s really where the leak happened.
This is bigger than cops on the Stuhlls’ payroll or Mina tattling to someone.
Other realms bigger, and I have no idea what those people are capable of—not really. ”
Angelo nods, looking concerned. “Exactly. So, this is going in here until Damon has what he needs to analyze it. It could be the key to finding him, Princess.”
We stand in the living room with blood and muck covering us, neither one wanting to say the thing we’re both thinking: If we don’t get Rebel back, we’ll turn this city inside out.
Archie pads over, leaving flecks of blood and a trail of fur across the office floor. Damon’s behind him, chasing him with rags as he tries to get the cat to be still so he can clean him up. The sight makes me grin a little, and Javi squawks a warning as Archie gets too close.
“Do we have a plan yet?” Damon asks.
I look at Angelo. “Sort of. The evidence is locked up, and Florissa is on her way to heal us.”
Damon nods. “Okay. That’s a start.”
The lion slumps to the floor in front of the couch, its breath coming fast. I sit next to him, stroking his ears lightly. “You’ll be all good soon, babe. Just keep hanging on, and we’ll get you patched up.” He snorts, and I chuckle softly. “I know you aren’t used to staying an animal this long.”
“It’s better for him, though. He heals faster, and the injuries don’t drain his energy as easily.”
“I know,” I say as I continue petting my poor hockey player. “But it’s shitty that he can’t talk with us and stuff. I’m sure he wants to tear his mane off because he can’t communicate.”
“Well, he’s a talker,” Angelo says with a smirk. “This is his punishment for some prank he pulled, I’m sure.”
The lion huffs, and I chuckle again.
Anything to keep from thinking about Rebel.
“I’m going to go get cleaned up, guys,” I finally say. Keeping baby Javier close, I kiss both twins on the cheek before I go. “Keep an eye on him until the Worst Witch arrives.”
At least if I’m clean, I won’t leave behind a stinky corpse if she hexes me for being salty with her.
When I come back downstairs, the beeps from the alarm tell me that the healer has finally arrived.
Damon buzzes her in, and I settle on the couch with my clean towel-wrapped phoenix mate on my lap.
He wouldn’t let me leave him on the bed while I showered, so I had to put him on the sink to stop the screeching that made my ears ring.
He’s on the naughty list for sure, but I won’t mind if he gives Florissa hell.
The doorbell rings, and I hear the jingling of bracelets outside.
Angelo goes to open it, and Florissa steps in, all patchouli and power, her hair wild around her face.
I have to bite my tongue as she surveys the scene: my lion mate bleeding on the floor, me with exposed wounds and a reborn bird in my lap, Damon limping in from the kitchen with water, and Angelo trying to pretend he’s an immaculate host despite his appearance.
“I charge extra for healing that begins in animal form, you know,” she says.
Of fucking course she does—this is why Fae human magic users don’t get along very well.
“Fine,” Damon says as he sits next to Archie. “Just get it done.”
Florissa breezes past, laying out her materials on the floor as she kneels near big kitty Archie.
Her incantations sound like French and Latin and some other language I don’t recognize.
I watch as she rubs some greenish ointment into his fur and chants, her voice low and rhythmic.
The smell alone makes my vision swim. After five minutes, Archie’s eyes go glassy.
Florissa turns to us, wiping her hands on a rag.
“He’ll sleep this off,” she says. “Then, when he wakes, he’ll be in human form again and healed well enough to resume normal activity. I’ve made certain that all the internal injuries are addressed.”
“Thank you,” I murmur as I look at my mate. I mean that, because no matter how greedy the witch is nor how much I dislike her, she just kept Archie from being in pain. That deserves respect and gratitude.
She sizes me up, her eyes sharp as they roam over me. “Your turn, girlie. I didn’t think I’d be doing this with you again so soon. Someone may have put a bad mark next to your name, you know.”
Yeah, I’ve considered that, but I’m not telling her.
I comply, sitting Javi aside as I move closer to the witch.
Damon turns away as I pull my shirt off, which is both sweet and unnecessary.
Florissa pokes at my burns and cuts and then rubs paste on them that stings like hell.
“You heal fast, but at least one of these might scar. Did you share power to keep everyone from dying? Your aura feels much weaker than it should.”
“I didn’t have a choice,” I mutter. “I couldn’t just let them all die.”
“Understood, but that took its toll. You know the saying about magic and prices… It doesn’t mean what humans think it does. It means the universe demands balance, and scars may be yours.”
“I’ll decorate them with ink and wear them with pride as always.” I smirk at her and the witch sighs like I’m the most trying person she’s ever met.
“Fae are infuriating.” She cleans up, packs her bag, and pauses before leaving. “Do you know what caused the burns? Because it looks like phoenix fire and you seem to have an ugly naked bird.”
“Coincidence,” Damon says with a shrug. “That’s Rogue’s new familiar.”
Florissa rolls her eyes. “Fine. If you want to lie, I can’t stop you. I’d recommend contacting its family to find out what you need to do to speed its growth and keep it healthy. There’s little to no information available outside of their groups on the care of reborn mythical birds.”
My stomach drops—I didn’t even think about that.
Angelo nods at the witch. “I appreciate the suggestion. Your payment will arrive through the usual method shortly. Don’t stray too far from your phone, just in case.”
“You two don’t need me, but you knew that,” she says as she heads for the door. “Your kind are impenetrable once your magic flows again.”
My gaze narrows as I look at Damon and Angelo, who both look sheepish. They didn’t want to admit that only Archie and I needed her, and I’m honestly too damn tired to fight about it.
Once she’s gone and the cameras show her exiting the gates, I drop onto the couch again, sprawling out with baby Javi. “You heard her. Call his damn parents, Ang. Damon, you deal with getting equipment here to analyze our evidence.”
“What are you going to do?” D asks curiously.
“I’m going to take a goddamn nap with the menagerie. Don’t wake me until you have what we need.”
I think I’ve earned it after all this shit.