Beholden Page 12

  Max nodded. I fought not to cringe. Jester was scraggly in appearance, not dirty exactly, just unkempt. He unfolded his body from the corner of the couch, and I was surprised he was so tall. I would’ve never guessed a man like that could’ve curled himself into so tight a ball. He walked closer to us, and I leaned against Wes.

  Wes put his lips to my ear. “It’s all right. You can trust him to work this spell correctly. Because if he doesn’t—” Wes lifted his head and looked Jester in the eye “—he’ll answer to me.”

  “Oh, isn’t that sweet? Agent Caldwell has got himself a boyfriend.”

  Wes made a noise, and Jester raised his hands.

  “It’s good, it’s good. I’ll be good. Step back and let me work my mojo so I can get the hell out of here. I don’t have all day, you know.”

  “Jester,” Wes warned.

  “Cross my heart, I’ll do it right. You there, have a seat and let’s see what’s woven around you.” Jester didn’t wait for a response before he started digging in a canvas satchel. He unearthed a pestle and mortar, then half a dozen baggies filled with various herbs. He picked through them, measuring out what he wanted in the palm of his hand before tossing them into the mortar, then he vigorously ground them. When done, he looked up, blinking. He pointed at me, then snapped his fingers and pointed to the couch. “Sit.”

  I was reluctant to move, but Wes squeezed my hand and mouthed, “Trust me.”

  I crossed the room and sat gingerly on the edge of the couch. Jester walked forward, the mortar cradled in his right hand, and studied me for a long moment before he pinched up a bit of the mixture and threw it right in my face.

  I coughed and sputtered even as I felt more of the fine powder landing on me. I wanted to protest, to jump up and move, but I knew I shouldn’t. It took all my willpower to remain seated, but I couldn’t stop my gaze from searching out Wes. He stood placidly, like this was what he’d expected. I wished someone had told me.

  “There,” Jester said, his voice filled with awe. “There’s the bastard’s magical signature. Good gods, boy, he sure did a number on you!”

  “Can you tell who did it?” Max whispered.

  Jester shook his head. “It ain’t no one I recognize, which is weird, ‘cause, you know, I know just about everybody who’s worth knowin’ when it comes to this kind of shit.”

  My heart sank at the words, but before I could really think about it, Jester kept talking. “‘Course, I could trace it back for you, if you wanted. It’d take a long time, though, and it’ll be very expensive.” He paused, letting the anticipation build. But when no one said anything, he sort of sagged. “Or, you know, I could just unravel it.”

  “Are you certain you can do that?” Wes’s voice was just this side of menacing, the threat implied in what he didn’t say.

  Jester nodded fast. “Sure, sure! I swear. The bastard laid it all out, nice and easy. I can see it, so I can work it back.”

  Wes thought that over for a moment before his gaze landed on me. “Give us a minute.”

  He knelt in front of me, but didn’t touch me. I knew if he did, it would disrupt whatever spell Jester had worked. I still wanted to feel the reassurance of his heavy hands on my thighs. I leaned forward into his space.

  “Babe?” he queried in a whisper.

  “I want it gone,” I answered.

  “I know.” Wes nodded, then leaned a little closer. “But if he removes it, then we might never find out who put it on you or how.”

  I carefully weighed his words. “I hear you. But, and tell me the truth, what are the chances we’ll actually find this guy, even with Jester tracking the spell? How long will it take? How long will I have to suffer before we find him?”

  Wes’s silence was answer enough. I smiled softly. Gods, I wanted to touch him. “I know it’s important to find whoever did this. I want to know who it was, too. But gods, Wes, I want it gone.”

  “Yeah, okay.” He pursed his lips and blew me a kiss I would’ve missed if I hadn’t been looking right at him, then he stood and turned. “Unravel it.”

  “Wes, wait—” Max began.

  Wes held up a hand. “Do it, Jester.”

  “No! Wait!” Max shouted. I’d never heard him raise his voice before. He looked pointedly at Wes. “Let me bottle it as Jester unravels it, then at least we have a chance of tracking him later.”

  “Absolutely not!” Wes roared.

  “Yeah, man,” Jester agreed. “That ain’t a good idea at all.”

  I was so lost. It sounded simple enough, and the fact that Max suggested it made it seem like no big deal. I knew better, just by the way Wes reacted. Of course, the fact that Jester had agreed made me especially nervous.

  “It’s just a little, wee, itty bitty, tiny piece of my soul. It’s no big deal,” Max said.

  I gasped, shock coursing through me. “What?”

  Max looked at me and smiled. “A hex can’t exist on its own. It has to be attached to something, right? So I put just an itsy bitsy, teeny tiny piece of my soul into a spell bottle as a lure, and it goes in there, and you’re free. Ta da!”

  “No,” I said fast, shaking my head. “No, no, no. I won’t let you do that. That’s crazy! I can endure a little longer. I can. If that’s what we have to do to track this guy, then—”

  Max whipped a small bottle out of his pocket. “It’s already done. It just needs the hex.”

  “Fucking hell, Max!” Wes bellowed.

  Jester gave a low whistle. “You Dreswicks is all crazy.”

  “No point in arguing now,” Max said. “So let’s just do this thing.”

  There was a hell of a lot more arguing. But I didn’t join in. I couldn’t even fathom what Max had done. He, essentially, gave up a piece of his soul for me. The very core of him—the seat of his power—was now diminished even if it was barely a fraction. My heart pounded and I had trouble drawing breath. That was the most selfless thing anyone had ever done for me. I could never repay him. And I had no idea why he’d done it.

  “It’s a good idea, that’s why!” Max’s shout rose about the others, and Wes and Jester went quiet. I opened my eyes in time to see Max suck in a deep breath and smile widely. “Look, this is probably the safest thing to do with it, and still be able to trace the hex. I’m safe enough, Julian can get all better, and we can use this—” Max shook the empty bottle “—to track and then trap whatever member of the Order did this. It was necessary. So I did it. End of story.”

  Wes pointed at Max’s face. “This isn’t over.”

  Max snorted a laugh and pushed aside Wes’s finger. “Don’t know what you’re going to do about it there, big guy, considering it’s already done.”

  Silence reigned for a few moments, then Wes sighed and motioned to Jester. The squirrelly man looked even more nervous as he approached me. He glanced one more time over his shoulder at the agents before he set to work. He didn’t enunciate well, and spoke so softly, I couldn’t make out the words. Max stood nearby, the bottle at the ready. Every once in a while, Jester would mime peeling something away from me, then putting it in the bottle. I had to assume it was pieces of the hex, but I wasn’t gifted with that kind of sight, so I had to take their word for it.

  Finally, Jester drew a deep breath, peeled off one more thing, and I felt I could breathe for the first time. Energy flowed into me, filling me to near bursting. I gasped, then hissed, and finally sagged on the couch.

  Until that moment, I had no idea just how poorly I’d been feeling all this time. I’d gotten used to it, I guessed. But all of a sudden, I felt like my old self again. The one who could work for twelve hours straight with barely a dent in my power. The one who could survive on nothing more than peanuts and a few hours’ sleep. I felt rejuvenated. Relief flooded my veins and I started laughing.

  “Julian?” Wes asked.

  “Holy shit. I feel awesome!”

  “And that, right there, makes it all worth it,” Max said with a satisfied smile.

  I
sprang off the couch and rounded on Max. “What the fuck? Why would you do something like that? You barely know me! That was stupid and dangerous. And it’s not that I’m not grateful, because I sure as shit am, but seriously, Max. What the hell were you thinking?” I couldn’t seem to stop babbling.

  Max grinned. “I like you, Jules. You’re a good guy and you make Wes happy. But the truth is, it needed to be done. And I was the only one who could do it. I’m glad it was for you, but I would’ve done it for anybody.”

  “I’m going to bake you a cake.” Then I blinked. I had no idea where that had come from.

  Max’s laughed, rich and deep. “I like carrot cake. With real cream cheese frosting.”

  I joined in, giddy from the power influx. Wes eyed us both like we’d lost our minds. No one seemed to notice Jester pack his stuff and sidle out of the room. When Wes cautiously moved closer, Max and I sobered a little. If a few more chuckles escaped, we couldn’t be blamed.

  “You okay?” Wes asked me, looking me right in the eye. Gods, his eyes were so blue. I could get lost in them.

  “I have literally never been better. I have so much energy, it’s ridiculous.” I couldn’t stop grinning.

  Wes gathered me up and squeezed me tight. He placed a hard, sucking kiss on my neck, then let go. But he didn’t release me completely. He kept one arm around my waist as he turned to Max.

  “Thank you,” he said reverently.

  Max’s smile was beautiful. “You’re welcome.” Then he clapped us both on the shoulder and walked out of the room.

  I turned into Wes’s chest and reveled in the feeling of his arms around me. “Is that it? It’s really over?”

  Wes nodded. “Well, this part. We still have to figure out why magic is increasing all over the world. And there’s that whole matter of Max trapping a piece of his soul in a bottle. But this? You? Yeah, you’re all better.” He kissed me, then lifted my right hand to his mouth and kissed the top of the ring, his lips grazing my knuckle. “And as long as you wear this, you’re safe.”

  My whole body melted. “I should probably hang onto it, huh?”

  The smile Wes gave me would’ve given the sun a run for its money.

  Chapter 14

  The soft chime was a reminder of quitting time, and that I needed to start packing up my office and getting ready to go. Wes would be here in five minutes. It was something new he’d been doing—sending me a soft reminder—so I would be nearly ready by the time he showed up at my office door.

  I was just locking the curio after having settled my favorite bowl inside when my door opened. I’d given Wes access to my wards more than a week ago, and he still gave me a goofy smile every time he used it. If something so simple could please my man, I’d never have to worry about keeping him happy.

  “Ready?” Wes asked.

  I nodded even as glanced around to make sure I hadn’t left anything. Wes already had my satchel over his shoulder, and he snuffed out the candles for me with a wave of his hand. With the room suddenly plunged into darkness, I had to feel my way toward him. My hand bumped into his groin, and I laughed, knowing he’d positioned himself at the edge of the desk so exactly that would happen. It was his new favorite game. I let him gather me up in his arms and closed my eyes.

  A few seconds later, we stood in his living room. He held me tightly, making soothing circles on my stomach, waiting for my queasiness to pass. I’d been traveling with him enough lately that I was actually getting used to it. We’d basically been living together for the past couple of weeks. Even though I hadn’t yet given up my apartment, I never spent any time there.

  After my stomach had settled, Wes handed me my satchel and headed into the kitchen to start dinner. He really loved to cook, and since I loved everything he made, it worked out well. It didn’t hurt that I always did the dishes.

  I dropped my bag on the end of the couch, then took a seat at the island. “So. Tell me what the big meeting was about today.”

  Wes made a face as he started chopping onion. “Basically, all the agents across the country agree. Magic is increasing tenfold. But no one has a clue yet for what.”

  I frowned at his phrasing. “What do you mean ‘for what’?”

  Wes slid the diced onion into a hot pan, then used a neat flick of the wrist to get them moving. I watched, fascinated, even though I knew he was biding time before he answered. I stayed silent. I’d learned that was the best way to get him to talk if he was reluctant.

  “Something’s coming,” Wes eventually answered, his voice low, like he didn’t want to admit it out loud. “The jikininki a few months ago, you, and now there are reports of other operating cells. Things that were never connected before are now connected. The Order is up to something big. We’re working on the what and the why. But it’s clear that magic is building up to combat it.”

  That sounded bad. Really, really bad. I couldn’t imagine a group of people amassing enough power to do that kind of damage. So much the world itself was gearing up for a fight. Fear clenched my gut, and I started breathing heavy and fast. I tried to will away the panic, tried to keep my face impassive. I failed.

  Wes pulled me into his arms and nuzzled his lips along my jaw. “Hey,” he whispered. “You know I’m going to keep you safe. I’m going to work my ass off to do my part to figure out what’s going on.”

  I nodded fast, my chin bumping against his cheek. “I know.”

  He cupped my face in his hands and looked me straight in the eye. And only when he had my complete and total attention, did he say, “I love you.”

  Magic words. He’d said them a lot over the past few weeks. He didn’t care that I didn’t say them back. He knew I cared about him, that I wanted him, that I cherished every damn thing about him. He knew that I wanted him safe, and that I worried about him. He knew that I loved coming home with him, loved spending time with him, loved—oh. Huh.

  I smiled, because apparently I was pretty damn dumb. “I love you, too.”

  Wes let go of me instantly, walking back toward the stove. My mouth gaped open. The first time I’d said the words and he’d moved away? That couldn’t be good at all. Maybe he didn’t want my love back after all. Maybe he just wanted to be the white knight, swooping in to save the day and…

  That line of thinking trailed off the instant I saw the seductive grin on his face. He turned off the stove with a couple of quick snaps of his wrist. Then he stalked toward me, a growl in his throat. “Dinner can wait.”

  I hopped off the chair and backed toward the bedroom, peeling off my clothes as I went. Dinner could indeed wait. Everything else could, too. Whatever was coming would come, and we’d meet it when it did.

  But until then, this was the only thing that was important.

  THE END

  ABOUT KRIS T. BETHKE

  Kris T. Bethke has been a voracious reader for pretty much her entire life and has been writing stories for nearly as long. An avid and prolific daydreamer, she always has a story in her head.

  She spends most of her free time reading, writing, or knitting/crocheting her latest project. Her biggest desire is to find a way to accomplish all three tasks at one time. A classic muscle car will always turn her head, and naps on the weekend are one of her greatest guilty pleasures. She lives in a converted attic with a way too fluffy cat and the voices in her head. She’ll tell you she thinks that’s a pretty good deal. Kris believes that love is love, no matter the gender of people involved, and that all love deserves to be celebrated.

  For more information, visit kristbethke.com.

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