Chapter 37
“Little Gem!” I heard Dad’s call as I hurried toward the breakfast cart.
I’d gotten up early hoping to grab coffee and food for Logan before he woke up. He’d been working overtime to look after me
and needed rest. For once, I wanted to be the one who took care of him.
“Hey, Dad,” I said, shooting him a smile as I waited for him to catch up. “I didn’t expect to see you here so early.” Classes
didn’t start for at least an hour and Dad usually spent as much time as he could with Mom in the mornings.
When he didn’t return my smile, dread slithered through my stomach, twisting it into knots. “What happened?” I asked, not
sure I could handle the answer. “Is everyone okay? Mom and the twins?”
He wrapped his hand around mine. “They’re all fine, honey. I’m sorry to scare you, but we need to talk, and quickly.”
Anxiety was my new bestie as I followed Dad through Writworth and up two flights of stairs to his office. I hadn’t had any
reason to visit the row of faculty offices, and I was surprised to see dozens of doors open, professors already inside preparing
lessons or meeting up with students. Apparently, Dad was one of the few not normally here early.
He was greeted warmly as we passed, his colleagues glancing my way as he all but dragged me along, but no one made any comment.
When we reached his office, I was waved toward his spare chair; he shut the door firmly and pressed his palm against the frame.
I felt a wash of magic as he murmured a spell to shield our voices from being overheard.
It was a familiar chant I’d learned in class last year.
“Dad,” I said softly, not wanting to spook him in his current mood. He was liable to burn the school down if his energy grew
any more out of control, and this time he would absolutely end up in prison for it. “You’re freaking me the Hel out.”
Dad took his time making his way to his chair on the other side of his desk. His office was sparsely furnished, the only personal
item a framed family photo on the overflowing bookshelf—which was otherwise filled with his favorite texts on fire and general
magic. “I’ve been keeping an ear out for council news,” he said as he sank into his chair, eyes dark as they met mine. “It
was unremarkable until this morning.”
Leaning forward, I swallowed roughly and tried to keep the tendrils of panic from spiraling. At the other end of my bond,
Logan’s energy stirred, and I didn’t want to wake him. At least not before I knew how serious this was.
“What happened this morning?”
“The full roster of elders are gathering,” he said hoarsely. “Elder Monroe called them all in, and I can’t remember the last
time they gathered as a whole.”
“Do you know why? Could it be about the spellcaster issue in Europe? I know it’s somewhat died down, but I heard on the news
that they’re back to meeting with the council in regard to giving spellcasters more say in magical decisions.”
Dad shook his head. “It’s not that, Paisley. That’s been going on for months, and it hasn’t required all the council to gather.”
Right. Crap. “Elder Monroe being involved is a bad sign,” I admitted as the hold on my magic wavered, sending my panic down my mate bond.
“He’s been quiet since Logan interfered with him attending your trial.”
That slipped out before I remembered Dad hadn’t been aware of it. Only, he showed no surprise as he rubbed a hand against
his right temple. “Logan shouldn’t have done that,” he said with a huff. “He painted a larger target on us all, and I would
have been fine either way.”
“He did it for me,” I said, feeling strangely soothed at the mere memory of his caring actions. “He knew how worried I was
about the outcome.”
Dad looked pained as he leaned closer to me. “I love you, Little Gem. You know I love you more than anything, and I can’t
imagine life without you, but I think you and Logan should disappear for a while. Just take off and lay low until Monroe finds
a new target for his rage. He’s been an asshole since his wife left him and made her base in India. He doesn’t like to lose,
and especially not when it’s to do with his family. You befriended his daughter, and he won’t let you have her. He’ll do whatever
it takes, and unfortunately, it won’t be difficult for him to convince the council to investigate. They have the evidence
from the monster attack here last year.”
“I won’t break in front of them,” I promised him. “No matter what he does, I won’t call the monsters again. I have complete
control of my magic.”
Not totally accurate, but I was confident that even if I accidentally called a beast, I could send them back fast enough that
no one would notice. Hopefully.
“What if he threatened someone you cared about?” Dad said as fire licked across his skin.
I hadn’t seen my dad lose control like this in a long time.
“You’re vulnerable because you have a lot of witches and warlocks you love.
He will use them against you, Pais. He will take and hurt until he gets what he wants.
I can’t have that happen. You have to run. ”
My distress had called my mate; Logan’s energy was getting closer. “Okay,” I said with a rasp. “Okay, Dad. I’ll leave today.
How will I know when I can get in contact with anyone again?”
Logan’s power grew stronger, until my magic swelled. Dad’s flames expanded as he felt my magic. “We’ll grab burner phones
for contact. Here are a few months of suppression potions to get going.” He reached into his bag on the floor and lifted out
a small pouch. “From your mom. But you will need to contact us for more.”
“Here’s hoping Logan has some of his billions stashed in cash,” I said, my laugh strangled and weird.
Speaking of, the spellcaster’s energy crashed against the warded door, and Dad shot to his feet to remove his spell before
Logan blasted it to pieces. Logan strode through in a cloud of darkness—not literally, but I could feel it in our bond. “Precious,”
he growled, eyes locked on me, before they ran over my face as if checking for injury. “Why are you panicking?”
I’d been so focused on the power that rode around him like an entourage that I missed the part where he was wearing black
sweats and a soft gray shirt, his feet bare and hair mussed. He’d clearly rolled out of bed and grabbed the first clothes
he could find to get to me fast.
Moon goddess, I had a hot mate. That was one upside to life on the run. There weren’t many others.
A fraction of his tumultuous energy eased up as he noted my general well-being and blatant perusal of him.
His finger tipped up my chin. “Focus for me, baby,” he chuckled, and I wondered how he smelled so good when he hadn’t showered or brushed his teeth.
Had he used magic to clean his teeth as he rushed here?
“She’s less focused than usual,” Logan said, raising his head to meet Dad’s gaze. “Maybe you’d better fill me in.”
Just as I found the will to shake off the thrall he held me under, Logan lifted me from the chair and settled in, pulling
me onto his lap. Yep, okay. Thrall was back and much, much stronger.
Dad didn’t react to the way I was plastered against Logan, but then again, I’d seen him like this with Mom more times than
I could count. He understood the driving need to be close to your mate, especially after almost losing them. “You have to
take Paisley and run,” he said. “The council gathered today as a whole, which never happens. And it was called by Elder Monroe.”
Logan’s fingers, which had been gently tracing up my spine, stilled, and that darker energy returned. “What time were they
called?”
The fact that my unflappable mate was taking this seriously had me forcing my focus back to the situation at hand. “Mom sent
suppression potions for us both,” I told him, my voice now as weird as my laugh had been before. “Do you have cash stashed
to get us through the next few months of lying low?”
Logan’s body was rigid beneath me. “I have plenty of cash, Precious, but we need to consider that Monroe won’t ever give up.
He’s been making noise about me keeping him from the trial, even though he doesn’t have any evidence that I was involved.
This is personal on two fronts now. Unless we want to hide forever—” he shifted me so he could meet my gaze “—and I will if that’s what you want.
But if not, we need to think of another path. ”
“What path?” Dad’s facade of cool was gone in a blaze of flames.
Logan didn’t pull his gaze from mine. “We should petition the council and ask for a public hearing. The entire magical world
needs to know what they did to reapers in the past, and what they plan on doing again. We’re civilized in a way we never used
to be, and I think a lot of magical families would be against outright executing a witch because she was born with an affinity
they fear. Paisley has control now. She can show them that the creatures aren’t a risk.”
Dad looked like he’d rather take any suggestion over that one, but as we sat in silence, I could tell he had no better ideas.
“What about the fact that a student died here last year because of her affinity? They’re not going to let that slide.”
Logan shook his head. “We have to convince them that she was let down by the magical community, shunned for her ability. That
she has worked to control it, and that she deserves the same chance as any witch who loses control of their magic. It happens
more than you’d think, that a witch or warlock from an elemental or necro family blooms as a spellcaster. They never anticipate
how strong their magic will be, and when their energy blooms, it quite often destroys whoever is nearby. None of them are
set for death . . . or even jail time. They all get another chance, and Paisley should be no different.”
It took a few fortifying breaths, but eventually Dad was on board with this new plan. “Okay, I’ll reach out to an elder I’ve
been friends with for years. I’ll see if I can get this moving forward before they track Paisley down and take our choices
away.”
Logan’s entire body shook beneath me, his magic as heated as Dad’s. “Not even I can go up against the entire council, especially since they’ll bring in spellcasters from the armed forces. We must make this work.”
No matter what happened, I wouldn’t let Logan get hurt to save me. I didn’t care what it took, or how many monsters I had
to release, he would walk away from this meeting with the elders.
If it was the last thing I ever did.