Ancient Magic (Dragon's Gift: The Huntress #1)(62)

“Yeah,” Nix said. “The paramedics just said they were taking him in for monitoring and rehydrating. They said all his limbs worked and stuff, and he was talking.”

“Good.” I sank down next to my deirfiúr and stared at the wreckage of our shop. “Man, it’s been a shitty week.”

Del laughed. “Understatement.”

“I could eat a horse and sleep for two days.” My head dropped back onto the counter behind me.

“Connor and Claire came by when they heard the ambulance. They’re coming back with pasties.”

“Awesome.” I hoped they’d bring a lot.

“Del said you found the scroll. What’d you do with it?” Nix asked.

“Stashed it in my trove, but we need to put it somewhere no one will find it. And that can’t be traced back to us.”

Nix blew out a breath. “That’ll be tough. Can’t exactly take out a safety deposit box.”

It’d work, if only we could trust the bank not to look in our box. It wasn’t a risk I was willing to take.

“So, Del,” I said. “That scroll said that you are part Phantom.”

“Whoa.” Her forehead creased. “I have no idea what that means. Or what to do with that info.”

“We’ll figure it out,” I said.

She sighed. “Yeah.”

“Anything about me?” Nix asked.

“Nothing we don’t know.”

“I guess I’m kinda relieved,” she said. “So what happened back there—while I was passed out?” Nix asked.

I heaved out a sigh. Where to start?

Aaron. “The thief who destroyed this place wasn’t actually a bad guy.”

Nix’s head whipped toward me. “What?”

I told them about Aaron and his collar. About how his master was hunting us as well. About how I felt like shit for killing him.

“Man, that sucks,” Del said. “You didn’t do anything wrong, Cass. It was just a shitty situation. It sounds like he was happy in the end.”

“He felt happy. At peace,” I said.

“He’d have to be, after what he lived through,” Nix said. “How awful, being enslaved by a guy who puts a collar on you that will kill you if removed.”

“I think it was worse than that,” I said. “Aaron had powers that weren’t his own. He was born a Lightning Mage, but he wasn’t born with power over fire or telepathy. He’d killed for those. But his soul was so pure once I’d taken the collar off him, I don’t think he would have done it willingly.”

“So his master is making super FireSouls? To like, fight or something?” Del shuddered. “Monster.”

“I don’t know what his goal is. But he’s hunting us.”

“But he doesn’t know where we are, right?” Nix asked.

“I don’t think so. There was no one left alive to tell him where we are. I killed every demon who saw us. And Aaron.” I rubbed my upper arms, suddenly chilled. “I feel like a monster.”

“You did what he wanted,” Nix said. “He gave you his power. Willingly. He taught you how to take it. Don’t dwell on the bad. Use it to get even. Because the monster is coming for us.”

She was right. Logically, I knew it. But I’d killed a man tonight and taken his power. I just didn’t know how to process what I’d done. I’d spent my whole life resisting this.

Now my options were to keep ignoring my gifts and disrespect Aaron’s last wish—that I use his power to defeat the monster who hunted us—or to embrace them and eventually be discovered and thrown in the Prison for Magical Miscreants.

They were bad options.

But at least they were options.

And like Nix had said—the monster was coming for us.

I had to decide, I just didn’t know how.

The door to Ancient Magic opened. I tensed, still on edge, but it was just Claire and Connor.

Connor held up a brown paper sack. “Brought the promised pasties!”

Claire raised a tray of paper coffee cups. “And lattes!”

At the sight of my friends, warmth and gratitude filled me. It’d been a bad night and bad shit was on the horizon. But today was good. My friends and deirfiúr were here.

Aidan would live. I wouldn’t see him again—at least not past assuring him that the scroll really was destroyed—but at least he was safe.

At least we all were safe.

For now.





CHAPTER SIXTEEN





Two nights later, I sat in the corner at P & P with Nix and Del after another long day cleaning up Ancient Magic. We’d lost about half our stock—months of hunting work for me—but I couldn’t be mad at Aaron over the damage. That was all on his master, the man we now called The Monster.

But I was trying not to think of that tonight. We’d swept up the last broken replica and shard of glass, and new windows had been installed that morning. So tomorrow we’d be back to normal. That was worth celebrating. In the morning, I’d set out in search of another youth charm for Mr. S. Del had found reference to an amulet hidden in a temple in Prague.

Connor and Claire had joined us once their only staff member had shown up. Bridget manned the counter some evenings when Connor wanted a break.