Shadow Watcher (Darkness #6)(13)

Except when I was cranky and tired.

I took a shower barely half awake then stared at myself in front of the mirror. A red-eyed monster stared back.

After I brushed my teeth, combed my hair, and dressed, I caught sight of my reflection once more and pondered makeup. The red-eyed monster grimaced.

The witches could see me ugly. It wouldn’t be the first time.

It was only after I reached into the medicine cabinet for some mouthwash, that a nagging fear shot through me. It was the Sunday after the week of sugar pills—I needed to start a new pack of pills at bedtime. A shot of panic raced through me—I did have another package, right? I wasn’t out yet? I knew I needed to visit the doctor soon to renew the prescription, but I was pretty sure I had a month left.

Lord help me if I didn’t—there was no way Stefan would use protection if there was a chance we could get pregnant. I could deny him sex but he was a cunning bastard. He’d woo me and beguile me and then wink at me and I’d roll over and spread my legs. The man was too hot for his own good. It was almost a problem.

I yanked a drawer open and rooted through my birth control pouch. There, waiting for me with a smile, was the last package. Oh thank God! I needed to get into the doctor this month, though. I had to get that end of things locked down. I had more than enough time in my life to get pregnant and go visit that weird pregnancy farm these people had. Stefan could wait.

Humming a tune to myself, which sounded like a bee buzzing in flight even to me, I snatched my satchel off the couch, and headed off to the front door of the Mansion. I’d decided to test my bodyguards’ reaction time to me leaving without alerting them first. I knew that they got updates on my movements, but they hadn’t really been tested yet. I’d hate them to get complacent.

Tee hee!

“Good afternoon, Mage,” Timmy, the guy hanging out in the front guarding the entrance, greeted me. He was a human with a tiny flare of magic that Birdie had met in her magical club. Timmy usually reached purple and occasionally, with my help, could reach green. That was mostly useless, as far as spell-working went, but great for when I needed to link for energy for a spell. He got the “front desk” duty firstly because he was human, and staying awake in daytime was a natural thing, and secondly, because humans and Mata stopped by the Mansion at all hours, and the Watch worried someone would notice people disappearing into thin air. That would bring the lookey-loos and self-guided tours. Timmy was in position to stop that.

I wasn’t fooled, of course. Timmy was there to keep an eye on my comings and goings. I’d left one time for a quick run to get fast food and suddenly I was no longer trusted.

“Hi, Timmy. Slow day?”

“Always is. But it pays okay and I get to read, so I don’t mind. Where ya headed?”

“Oh, just heading out for a walk.”

“Uh huh. Okay, see ya.”

I gave him a wave and lifted my phone in front of me as I passed, pretending to be enthralled with what was on it. Instead, I watched in the reflection as Timmy eyed me, and then brought up his own phone to make a call.

As I stepped outside I heard, “Yes, sir. The chicken is leaving the coop, sir. S-sorry, no sir, I don’t think it’s funny to wake you up talking about chickens. I meant Sasha is—“

I didn’t wait around for the rest of the conversation. Instead, I sprinted out the door and to my car. No time to lose, I ripped my door open and jammed my key in the ignition. I pulled out into the street with a still silent Mansion behind me and gassed it.

It belatedly occurred to me that I should’ve been more cautious about getting into my car. With keys missing, anything could’ve been waiting in there. My bad.

The wind rushed through the open window and licked my face. The chill of the air bit me as I reveled in the glorious fiery oranges and reds of the trees. I took a deep breath and let the steady hum of the motor lull me into a comfortable daze. Not strictly safe while driving, maybe, but without Charles constantly chattering in my ear, or Jonas grunting and lecturing, I felt free in a way I hadn’t in a long time.

A ten-minute drive had me arriving at a busy coffee shop on the outskirts of town. I parked in the lot in the back behind a giant truck so I couldn’t be seen from the road, and found Birdie and Delilah sipping coffee outside in the sunshine.

“Hi ladies,” I said as I walked up with a bounce in my step.

“Where’s your entourage?” Birdie asked, frowning at me. She was an aged woman with a large stature and larger voice.

“Delayed.”

“Huh. Look what Delilah went and did!” Birdie exclaimed as she plucked at Delilah’s sleeve.

Rolling her eyes, the younger woman lifted her sweatshirt to reveal a circle of runes around her forearm. The other arm had different symbols in the same location. For a tiny woman with large glasses, this was definitely a little out of character.

“It looks okay,” I hedged.

“I told her to get some runes that increased working with power. What does she need with throwing when she doesn’t have much to throw? No. That was definitely the wrong set for the first time. I chose these—“ Birdie lifted the arm of her sweater to reveal a string of angry characters that ran up the loose skin on her forearm until it wrapped around her flabby upper arm.

“Whoa, nice ink grandma,” a guy with a Mohawk and a spiked dog collar said as he rolled by on his skateboard.