Storm Of Magick Part 6

"Logan, you are bleeding," Ronan said, concerned.

I licked the blood away, leaving a funky metal taste in my mouth, and touched the corner of my mouth. It felt hard, as if someone had actually hit me. I couldn't believe it - why was I linking with Rafe? Was it because of my connection with Paris? I sat up slowly. I wasn't sure if I was going to get dizzy, sick or what. I didn't have a lot of experience with linking with someone. Ronan was the only person that I could do it with normally, but that was a little different.

My head pounded but other than that, I was good to go, I think. Oh yeah, did I mention I was confused as h.e.l.l?

"Paris, are you okay?" I asked, totally embarra.s.sed about what happened between us. In my heart, I knew my true feelings for him had powered the surge, and I didn't know what to do about it.

"I'm okay," he said with a weak smile and thumbs up. "I just thought I'd come along for the ride."

"I still have no idea where Rafe is being held. Did you see or hear anything familiar?" I asked.

He shook his head and sat up slowly. The vision had really kicked him in the a.s.s, and hard. He usually bounced back quicker than this; he had tagged along on many of my visions and I've never seen him react like this. Okay, I wanted to know what the h.e.l.l was going on!

"Keeper!" I yelled, trying to get to my feet. I felt a little dizzy and I rubbed my pounding forehead. The only good thing was I had nothing in my stomach to puke up. Ronan helped me stand, and Alex gave Paris a hand so he could get to his feet.

Ronan's hands were cool and soft. I knew from their touch he'd never seen manual labor. His helping me seemed more intimate than it should've, but I ignored the feeling. More times than not, the smallest action seemed intimate with Ronan.

The Keeper walked down the corridor towards us, stopping a couple of feet away. At a glance, I could tell he knew something was up and he wasn't comfortable with it.

"Do you know what the h.e.l.l is going on?" I growled, just wanting some answers for a change.

"I feel a major mixture of magicks within you. I'm afraid if you don't get some magickal protection soon, your control over your powers will worsen and I don't know if there will be a lasting effect," the Keeper said in a low, calm voice. You know the tone you use when you don't want to upset the crazy person in front of you.

"Okay, I don't have my Book of Shadows with me, but I do have my magick bag in the van. Maybe I have something in there that can help. Can someone get it for me?" I asked, not really looking at anyone.

I kept several potions and a lot of herbs in the bag; who knew some of them might be useful. Ailin went out into the cold to get it.

While waiting for him to return, we decided to continue our discussion in the living room. An extra long gold couch sat in front of an eight-foot slate arched fireplace. Two black suede winged back chairs sat at each end of the couch facing each other as if the sentinels to the mahogany mantle. A round gla.s.s table sat in a corner with four black cloth chairs. They looked new. With the crisp white walls and the black carpet, there was no question who decorated it. It screamed Ronan. He had better style than most women I knew.

Paris had recovered enough to join us without any a.s.sistance, although someone should've helped him. I still felt a little shaky, and I'm sure he did too from the tired look in his eyes.

Ailin returned with my black bag in hand. I took it, thanked him, and sat it down on the table. I opened the bag and breathed in the familiar leather and patchouli scent. In the small pocket, I kept a magick pouch for protection. As a matter of fact, it was identical to the one hung around the Keeper's neck. I picked up the pouch and put it over my head. The necklace pouch held Wolf's Bane, Dragon's Blood, Mugwort, several other herbs, crystals, and my symbol, a double trinity knot.

Since me performing any spells right now was out of the question, the Keeper would perform the protection spell. He stood in front of me with his arms raised. I watched his lips move but he said nothing aloud.

After the spell was completed, there wasn't any magickal vibration from the pouch, no glow or poof. Nothing. There should've been something to indicate that the spell worked. Usually I could feel something inside me click; something that said a spell had worked. And this one hadn't/ In the back of my head, I knew it was already too late to try a protection spell. I was p.i.s.sed. Who or what was doing this to me?

I ripped off the pouch and threw it onto the gla.s.s table. It landed with a thud. Okay, I had to control the surge, but I didn't know how. I could feel a surge building stronger. With all the extra magick in the room, it was becoming overwhelming. s.h.i.+t, my day was going to h.e.l.l in a hand basket!

Caleb came in with a piece of paper in his hand. He stopped and looked around the room, his expression reminding me of a deer caught in headlights.

Oh goodie, an update. Everyone stood close to the fireplace. I don't know why but it seemed to be a gathering place. I wasn't even sure if it worked. I took a deep breath and joined the gang, gesturing for Caleb to speak.

"I have some info," he told me. "The same type of murder has taken place in a couple of cities. One of the reports came from Cleveland and the other from New Orleans. The reports in both cities are identical to what you told me about our victims. But the reports say five women were killed in each of those cities." He just stood there when he was finished. I don't know if he was waiting for a comment or question, but I didn't have either.

I did have a thought. "Keeper, what were the last two cities you tracked the Dracae through?" I asked, an idea forming.

"The same two cities, but I don't believe that the Dracae is responsible for these killings," he replied.

That killed my idea. "So we still have nothing to go on," I snapped. "Maybe something is traveling with it or following it, but what?"

I gave a noise to my frustration and started pacing in a tight circle. I had so much anger and that in itself could make me lose what little control that I did have. My power pulsed inside me, but it was still manageable. For now. Once again, it felt like the surge controlled me, not the other way around. Not a good thing. I felt it writhing inside me, scanning the men around me for a possible outlet. I gritted my teeth and waited to see what it would do.

The surge pulsed and tuned in to Alex, as it had Paris earlier. Alex probably could handle a small amount of my uncontrolled magick. He was strong enough. At times, the surge seemed to do things that I refused to do. Anything up close and personal with Alex was one of those things.

There were several other people who could handle a large amount of my magick. Ronan, or even the Keeper or Ailin could hold my power, because their magick matched my own. Was I any more comfortable getting intimate with any of them? h.e.l.l no!

I felt sweat on my forehead. My control was at breaking point. I was glad no one was touching me because I really wasn't sure what would happen. I took a step away from everyone, but the surge didn't like that. A sharp pain shot through my head, as if it were splitting in two. I was paying for refusing to do what the surge wanted to earlier. I fell to my knees with a scream of pain.

Ronan knelt beside me, but didn't touch me. He felt the power and knew better. "Logan, give in to what your power wants or it will kill you, and hurt others," he told me urgently, voice low.

"Do you know what it wants me to do?" I said in a strangled voice, "I won't do it." And, with that, I tried to crawl away from him. Yeah, big tough witch. Not. I thought maybe some distance between our powers would help, but all that did was intensify the pain. Now there wasn't any distinguis.h.i.+ng where the pain started or ended. All I knew was that I hurt.

Ronan stayed with me, but I could feel that he was s.h.i.+elding like a son of a b.i.t.c.h. All I could do was lie on the floor, writhing in pain and watching his lips move, but I didn't hear what he was saying. The intense pain blocked everything out. I looked into Ronan's eyes and without saying a word, I begged for help.

All of a sudden, Paris was in my line of vision. I hoped he had a plan because I couldn't take the pain much longer. Paris bent down next to Ronan and placed one hand on him, the other on my shoulder. The pain dissipated enough so I could breathe and think a little.

"Do you feel better?" Ronan asked me. His violet eyes held knowledge. He knew what was going on. I hated being out of loop.

"Better, but how?" I asked, taking a couple of ragged, deep breaths.

"Paris and I are sharing your pain. But you must do what your power demands of you," Ronan answered carefully.

"Whatever it is, Logan, we can deal with it, but you can't do anything if you're dead," Paris said, unshed tears in his eyes.

Before I could agree or disagree, agony shot through my body. It sent out a shock wave, flinging the men across the room. Ronan hit the stone fireplace hard enough to break the stone and knock him out. Immediately, Ailin went to his side. He would heal almost instantly, but I guess it made Ailin feel better to check on him.

Paris landed in the corridor after hitting the stone wall. He lie on the stone floor, nose bleeding. Caleb went to check on him. Magical beings aren't like humans; we can take a lot of abuse and heal fast. And, natural witches were not considered human by any means. It doesn't hurt to make sure.

It was Ailin who came to me - everyone else kept a clear and safe distance. I stayed on my hands and knees, frozen in pain and fear. The thought of what could happen, of having anyone too close, scared me. He knelt down next to me and put his hands on my arms. I breathed in the scent of heather, Ailin's scent. His hands were cold; he hadn't fed on anyone's supernatural magick yet today. His presence eased the pain just enough so I could move. My jaws ached from me gritting my teeth. I relaxed a little in his arms. Like Ronan, Ailin felt familiar to me and I just didn't understand why.

"La.s.s, if you do not do something soon, I am not sure what will happen to you or any of us," Ailin said.

d.a.m.n it; he was right. I didn't want to hurt anyone but I had no other choice. I had to do something. Ailin helped me up and I put a hand on his shoulder to steady myself. I let my power build, but this time it didn't hurt.

The "oh s.h.i.+t" look on Ailin's face said it all, and he started backing away. I don't blame him. I stood at the center of the room, ready for whatever the surge was going to do to me, but I wasn't prepared for what happened next.

A white light rippled out from me, reaching everyone in the entire room. I felt a cool wind blowing around me. The power was too much for me to control and my vision grew dark once again.

I opened my eyes slowly and blinked at the ceiling. I no longer hurt, I realized. I wasn't sore and my head didn't hurt. In fact I felt, good. I sat up and looked around. All the men lay motionless. I jumped up and wished I had taken it a little slower. I got the mother of all head rushes. I felt the blood rus.h.i.+ng from my head, and everything seemed to be trimmed with a white fuzzy glow for a moment. It almost put me back on my a.s.s.

I went to Paris first, lying in the corridor with Alex next to him. Paris's nose was no longer bleeding but I wasn't worried about that now. I checked his pulse; it was strong and fast. I moved on to Alex, and he too had a strong pulse. I turned my attention to Ronan and Ailin, lying by the fireplace, both out as well. There was no use checking their pulses, vashon didn't have one. It came from the vampire half. Deep inside I knew they were 'alive'.

It was Caleb, lying in the middle of the room, who was the first to show any signs of coming around. I quickly went to him to make sure he wasn't badly hurt. He lay on his back, copper eyes open. I knelt down next to him and tried to help him up. Let's face it, I felt guilty.

"Caleb, you okay?" I asked, touching his smooth face. "Talk to me. Are you okay?"

"Logan, just back off for a minute," he said, with his hand up.

With those few words and a look, he sent my a.s.s flying across the room. I hit the wall, then slid down it and sat there for a second, staring at him. I knew he didn't have any powers beyond shape s.h.i.+fting five minutes ago, so what the h.e.l.l happened?

The other men started coming around. I got up and walked to Caleb, but not close enough to invade his personal s.p.a.ce. A strange electric magick filled the room, dancing along my skin, and coming from the men. They started moving around slowly. They all had a nervous energy that just wouldn't stop. Jasmine and heather scents permeated the air, so strong I could taste it on the back of my tongue. The faerie half of the vashon gave them all flowery scents.

When everyone had recovered enough, I told them what happened when I tried to help Caleb.

"Has anything like this ever happened to you before?" Ailin asked Caleb.

"To me no, but my great-grandmother and a couple of others in my family had telekinesis," he replied, shaking his head. "But not me."

"He could have had the ability, but it was dormant until now," I suggested. "My power may have kick started his." As I spoke, the guilt settled in again.

"Why are we tip-toeing around this? She did something to him, and I'm a.s.suming all the rest of us too," Alex accused, pointing his finger at me.

"The question is ... what ability has Logan graciously given to each of us?" Ronan said, looking at me with a delight on his perfect face.

"Are we going to ignore what she did?" Alex asked loudly, not looking too happy.

"Now now, Alex, we're going to play nice," I answered. I wasn't in the mood for his high and mighty c.r.a.p. Or, him looking down his nose at me like I was some kind of freak.

"I have seen something in the prophecy section of the library I think could answer the question," Ailin said, moving towards the corridor. "If you all care to follow me, I will show you."

We all agreed and filed out behind him. I watch everyone walk out but I waited for Paris, a little nervous. I didn't know what to expect, but Paris walked up to me and gave me a hug. I definitely felt a little better knowing that he didn't think I was a monster, someone who'd just horribly cursed everyone.

Three of the men I'd touched were already magickal so they might this as a power boost. I know Ronan did just by the Ches.h.i.+re cat grin pasted on his face. Alex and Caleb though ... that was another story.

Paris and I were the last to enter the library, with its old, musty paper smell. The library was as large as my entire first floor of my house and the bookcases stood twelve foot. They were loaded with old hardcover books most in shades of blue, black and red. A couple of large dark wood table and chairs sat in the middle of the room. The stone made the walls and floor look very masculine. It needed something to equal out the hard look of the stone something soft.

Ailin had already started to search for the book. Paris and I stood together, watching him go from shelf to shelf. I leaned against Paris's chest, the warmth from his body calming me. At least for the moment.

Ailin looked a little aggravated as he stood back and looked straight up at one of the higher shelves. "I need a ladder. The book that I am searching for is on the top shelf," he said, and with those simple words, he levitated off the floor. He retrieved the book and slowly descended back to the floor. The look on his face said levitation wasn't a power he'd wielded before now.

"I just want to say, for those of you who hate whatever your new power is, I'm truly sorry," I said into the awkward silence. "I never meant for this to happen."

Everyone looked at me but no one had anything to say. I guess if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. This apparently applied here. As silence enveloped the room, we all turned our attention back to Ailin. He rifled through the pages as quickly and carefully as he could, almost frantically looking for the page. Then he stopped. He started reading at the top until he got about mid-page.

"There is a legend that foretells the coming of a powerful witch. One who will give special abilities to vashon and lycanthrope." Again, silence hung in the air. I practically preferred arguing, or even finger pointing.

"Do you think this is me?" I asked with astonishment. I laughed and it was a bitter sound even to me. A knot formed in my stomach. This was so not good. I was thinking of the Elders Circle.

"Logan, how can you say that it is not?" Ronan asked. "This prophecy describes what just happened in the next room with great accuracy."

I looked around the room. The expressions on everyone's faces varied from pleased to p.i.s.sed. After all the s.h.i.+t that had transpired, I just couldn't wrap my head around it anymore. I was so tired, but I was also filled with a nervous energy. I couldn't take anymore 'what ifs' tonight. I made my goodnights and left the men to work it all out.

Chapter 9.

I walked down the corridor, towards a room Ailin said I could sleep in. The roads were too bad and I was too tired to try to drive home. Nemo had food and access to a cat flap, so there was no harm me staying here overnight.

I reached the door when my stomach started to b.i.t.c.h at me for ignoring it all day. I heard footsteps and smelt jasmine behind me, and didn't have to look to know it was Ronan.

"Logan, I wanted to make sure you are well," he said with his beautiful accent.

"I'm starving. Is there anything around here that I would consider food?" I asked. Vashon can't consume food. But, they can drink some fluids. Let's hear it for the faerie chromosome.

"I will go to the kitchen and have someone make a tray for you," Ronan said, and then he was gone.

With the scent of jasmine enveloping me like a warm blanket, I opened the door. My eyes wandered. I'm nosey, so shoot me. The room was decorated in white and gold. It looked expensive. I took off my leather coat and laid it on the bed. The gold bedspread was soft velvet, with silk throw pillows. The fabrics in the room were gold or white, and the entire room was designed with such a great attention to detail. There was only one man I knew who had such great taste and that was Ronan.

There was a knock at the door. I walked towards it with my left hand on my Ruger. I put my other hand on the cool bra.s.s doork.n.o.b and opened it slowly.

"Ms. Wolf, here is the food Ronan requested for you," a young man said.

I opened the solid wood door, the color of walnut. The man, who looked to be about twelve, walked in a silver tray, complete with a lid and a bottle of Diet c.o.ke brought the tray in. I had only seen the man in pa.s.sing once before. He looked nervous and wouldn't look me directly in the eye. He sat the silver tray on a small table without a word, and then quickly scurried back out the door.

I went to the table. Crisp white linen covered it and a single white rose in a silver vase in the center. I lifted the lid of the tray to find a huge slice of pizza. Just the smell of the pepperoni and cheese made my mouth water. It wasn't what I expected but it was just what I wanted.

I ate half of the slice just standing there, and then took a long drink of Diet c.o.ke. A couple more bites of pizza and I was stuffed. An air bubble formed in my throat. I hiccupped and it actually hurt. I wiped my hand on a white cloth napkin, but my hands were still greasy.

I went the bathroom to wash up. The room was a lot larger than I expected, and the theme of white and gold carried on. While I was freshening up, there was a knock at the door. This was a h.e.l.l of a busy place tonight well, at least for three in the morning.

"Come in," I said, my hand on my Ruger. Alex walked in. Just the sight of him p.i.s.sed me right off; there must be karmic debt between us.

"What did I do this time?" I asked with a lot of sarcasm and a kiss-my-a.s.s tone.

He took a step further into the room. "I wanted to apologize for my actions, but I still don't like what you did," Alex said. The look on his face told another story.

"Geez Alex, you're making me all teary eyed," I said with my hand over my heart.

My magick started p.r.i.c.kling up and down my skin, not in a good way either. I could also feel heat radiating off Alex. Oh, looks like the night wasn't over yet. I took a couple of steps towards him. If he thought he could intimidate me, he was in for a rude awakening. I just didn't scare that easy.

"I was trying to be nice. I'll tell you what I really think of you. I think you're a freak and too dangerous to be in public," he said, spitting every word at me.

Now I was p.i.s.sed. I didn't have to see my eyes to know they bled ice blue - or maybe violet - it happened when I lost control of my emotions. I caught the scent of fur and sandalwood, the scent of a werebear on the verge of s.h.i.+fting. Alex's eyes grew large but he didn't back up and neither did I.

"You think I'm a danger to others?" I asked with a laugh that echoed in the room. "You've put yourself in a risky situation. How you became Shah of the werebears is beyond me. I think you're a weak leader who gets his people hurt!" I yelled. I guess neither of were going to hold anything back. Yay for both of us being alphas.

His eyes bled all yellow. His werebear eyes. Now I took a few slow steps back but I wasn't scared, bully for me. I just wanted room to maneuver. My big mouth has gotten me into more trouble than anything else has.

"Alex, you don't want to make me mad, not after a power surge," I said. I wasn't sure how my power would react, especially after what just happened in the other room. I wasn't in the mood to play 'let's see what happens.'

With incredible speed, he backhanded me, sending me into the wall. My head hit the wall a second later and exploded in pain. I tasted blood in my mouth for the second time tonight. I took two quick strides and punched him in the Adam's apple, causing him to gag and cough.