Magick (Immortals and Magick Book 2) (15 page)

Noah was true to his word, and made a reservation for us all to dine together that night. When I got a little upset about the fact that we were going to be discussing vampires, magick, and arson in a public place, he assured me that he had booked a private room, and that as long as we shut up when the waiters came in, we’d be fine.

              I didn’t feel too sure about that, but I knew Noah enough to guess that he wasn’t going to let go of it. He was right anyway, as much as it pained me to admit it. I couldn’t figure it out on my own, and we hadn’t really had a meeting of the minds in quite some time. It was as if we had put everything on hold until Gareth and Anna had returned.

              I felt a little nervous as Noah and I pulled into the parking lot of The Copper Table and saw everyone out front waiting for us. He pulled the truck into a parking space and put it into park before turning to me.

              “You okay?” He asked, searching my eyes. He could tell I was nervous. It had to be radiating off of me. I shrugged.

              “I guess so. I mean, I have nothing to be nervous about, really. But I am. Makes no sense.” I replied, shaking my head.

              He reached over and took my hand, twining our fingers together.

              “Teagan, no matter what happens, we’re in this together. You aren’t alone anymore. Look at those people waiting for us. Do you think they’re judging? Do you think that they would let anything happen to you?”

              I looked at the four people standing by the front doors of the restaurant, chatting about who knew what. They looked so normal, so perfectly in place, that anyone would think they belonged there. Of course, I knew better. Vampire, vampire, witch, werewolf; each one a representative of the major players in the supernatural world, gathered in one spot.

“No, no they wouldn’t. You’re right, I’m just being silly.” I said, but in my heart I knew that I wasn’t acting like myself. I didn’t know what turn I took when I let Noah in and solidified our relationship, but I wasn’t sure I liked where I was going. I wasn’t my usual smart-ass, confident, albeit a bit naïve, self.

“So let’s get going and eat some good food and drink some excellent wine, and then talk about things that a human would freak out about. I’d say it’s shaping up to be a fun evening.”

His pep talk helped bolster me and the cocky grin he shot me filled me with warmth. I felt a little of my spirit returning. I could do this, I could face evil and prevail. I had the best people in the world by my side, and we were a team. A ragtag team that would be shunned by society if the general population knew what we were, but who cared?

Four of us sat back from the table, our stomachs full of excellent food and wine. The vampires must have had dinner before we got here because they had just watched us eat while we shared small talk and grilled them about their honeymoon in Scotland. I had never been, but it was on my bucket list. Gareth sweetened the pot by telling us that we were welcome to use any of his properties and plane whenever we wanted to.

I made a mental note to convince Noah he needed a vacation after all this was done.

I looked around the table at the people I loved; my oldest and dearest friend, my new friends, and Noah, the last person on the planet that I ever thought I would love. I watched Gareth raise Anna’s hand to his lips, planting a kiss on her knuckles that conveyed every emotion he felt for her, and the love shining in her eyes as she looked at him.

I shifted my attention to Harley and Damien, who sat next to each other. They were studiously “not” paying attention to each other, but the tells were there if you knew what to look for.  The sideways glances when one thought the other wasn’t looking, the way they always seemed to know when the other one needed the salt, or the butter, or a water refill from the pitcher on the table.

Then there was Noah. Except when he was eating, he always made sure to hold my hand, or touch my knee, or tuck hair behind my ears. When he looked at me, I saw not only his love in his eyes, but feel it emanating from him. The old Teagan would have run screaming from it. Now, I took comfort from the fact that I had it, especially with what I was about to propose.

I had to get some information first though from Gareth before I blurted out my plan.

“So Gareth. You’re the one who knows Padraigan best. Can you give me some history on him?”

Everyone at the table stopped what they were doing and turned to me. Gareth raised an eyebrow, a small smile playing on his lips.

“Why yes, I can. Do you have something in mind or are you just gathering facts?”

I tilted my head to the side and squinted my eyes, thinking. How much information did I want to give up?

“A little of both, you could say.”

Noah looked at me, a question in his eyes. I shook my head slightly and waited for him to communicate with me.

What are you planning?

I didn’t know where to look first. Three voices chimed in my head at the same time, all saying the identical thing. It was a little disconcerting to have Anna, Noah, and Harley in there at once.

“Okay, next time, take turns. That was so not cool.” I complained, shaking my head to the side, like I was trying to get water out of my ears instead of the ringing sound in my head.

“Well, you’re obviously up to something, so spill it.” Harley put in. She almost looked mad, though why I had no idea.

“I do have a plan, yes, but I need to know Padraigan’s history. I need to know what I’d be up against—“ I couldn’t finish my sentence as Noah cut me off with a slash of his hand.

“What do you mean, what
you’d
be up against?” He growled, actually
growled
, at me.

“This isn’t something that can be done as a group.” I stated, matching his disgruntled stare.

“Why don’t you tell us what it is? Maybe it
is
something we can all help with.” Anna offered, more to interrupt the staring contest between Noah and me than anything else.

“Okay. I’ll tell you all, which is what I was about to do when I was rudely interrupted.” I answered tartly, narrowing my eyes at Noah.

“Children, please, if we could get on with it.” Damien spoke up finally, leaning back in his chair. He crossed his arms over his chest and gave me a look which could mean that he was losing his patience or he was getting ready to wolf-out. Patience with dramatics was not Damien’s strong suit.

“Okay. Here goes.” I took a deep breath to steady my nerves, calling on Morrigan to give me strength.

“I want to do a controlled travel to Padraigan’s house…lair….whatever it is. He didn’t know I was even there the last time, and I can get more intel if I go on my terms.”

Crickets. It was so quiet around the table that I could almost hear crickets. The dismay in the air was so thick, I expected it to coalesce into a fog-person and do a jig on the table. The men all looked thunderous, and Anna and Harley looked like I was already dead.

“Everyone was so quick to offer opinions before and now you all got nothing?” I muttered. I kept my chin high though, committed to my plan. If Padraigan could pull me in while I was dreaming, I could travel to him on my own terms. I was tired of being a pawn in his plans with no control over how and when he decided to use me.

“Teagan, I knew you were insane but this is just ludicrous.”

My head whipped around to Gareth, my mouth dropping. Gareth was the last person I figured was going to oppose my plan.

“What are you thinking? You can’t possibly be considering this.” Damien added, which was another shocker.

“I have to agree with Gareth and Damien, Teagan. This is not a good plan.” Anna said, shaking her head.

I looked first to Harley then Noah, both of them still quiet. I was half tempted to peek, get a look at what was going through their minds, but I mentally took a step back. They would both answer in their own time.

The silence stretched on as the four of us waited for their reaction, but I was starting to get wicked uncomfortable.

“I don’t think it’s the smartest thing she’s ever come up with, but I can understand where she is coming from.” Harley finally spoke. I was shocked, to say the least. She was the last person I expected to see my way of it. She and I were like sisters, but we didn’t always see eye to eye. In this, I figured she would be the loudest detractor, next to Noah.

“Hear me out.” Harley began. “Think of everything that Teagan has been through with Padraigan. He has infiltrated her dreams, forced her to travel to him, and almost turned her, twice now. Then, his bitch minion set our home on fire. It’s an insane plan, to be sure, but what else do we have? The last time she went, neither Padraigan nor Charles knew she was there. I think she can do it.”

“I agree.”

No one was more shocked than I that Noah agreed. I was certain that he would be the strongest detractor. He didn’t look very happy about it though, judging by the thunderous look on his face. He did however slide his hand over mine under the table and gave it a reassuring squeeze. Or it could be a warning that he would behead me when we got home.

“Noah, what do you mean, you agree? You would put Teagan directly in harm’s way?” Gareth asked, shock on his face.

“No, not really. That’s the last thing I would want. Harley’s right though. Teagan has been through too much on HIS terms. This is hers. I don’t know why he’s targeting her. She has nothing to do with his fight with you Gareth, but he’s dragged her into it regardless, so let her fight the battle her way. The only thing we can do is be there to help guide her and make sure she comes home to us. And besides, let’s face it. If we don’t back her on this, she’s going to try it on her own, without anyone there to watch over her, and get herself killed.”

His words almost brought me to tears, despite the smartass remark. No one besides Harley had ever known me so well, and he was right. My mind was made up, so I was going to do it with or without them. I just preferred that it was with them and not alone.

“Alright then. No mistake, I still think it’s an insane plan, Teagan, but Harley and Noah make a good argument. How long have you been thinking of this?” Gareth asked.

I looked around the table and everyone was now looking at me expectantly.

“Since the night that I was there and discovered Charles. Padraigan did
not
know I was there. I don’t know why I was pulled there if not intentionally, but I just figured I could replicate it on my terms. I could be a spy for the home team.”

I shrugged my shoulders. There really wasn’t more to it than that. If we could get an idea of what he’s planning, then we would be prepared.

“Well, I don’t like it, but since everyone is on board, far be it from me to be the dissenter. How soon do you want to do this?” Anna asked, a frown marring her perfect alabaster forehead.

“Tonight.” I said with a nod of my head.

“No.” Noah spoke the word softly, but there was no doubt he felt strongly that it wouldn’t be tonight.

“Why not?” Harley asked, but it was the question that was on everyone’s mind, no more so than mine.

“Yeah, why prolong it? It seems that she know what she wants to do, and we’re all agreeing on it, so why not tonight?” Anna put in, although she had traded her frown for one of hope. I was getting the idea that Anna was just following along, but felt that this was a terrible idea.

Although I had come up with the idea, and was prepared to execute it, I wasn’t sure how great of an idea it was. Anything could happen, even with my personal guardians to watch over me, but it was a chance I was willing to take.

“Well, for one, we need to thresh out who is doing what while she’s under. That’s not something I feel comfortable rushing through. Another thing is, although I agree with her, and think it’s something that needs to be done, I want one more night with her so that I can lecture her on being irrational and reckless.”

I swiveled sharply in my chair to stare at Noah, but I noticed the small smile playing about his mouth. I narrowed my eyes at him playfully, and he completed the smile. I could see the real reason he wanted to postpone for another night, and my insides flushed warmly at the thought.

“So…I’m full. Anything else?”

Harley apparently got the gist of Noah’s delay as well. From Gareth’s fake cough and Damien’s nervous shifting, it seemed they got it as well.

“Well hold on, no one get up yet. What’s the plan?” Damien asked, and looked questioningly at me.

“Well, for starters…”

The next hour was dedicated to them listening to my plan, and pointing out various holes in it and how to fix them. Noah’s hand was permanently linked to mine, and occasionally he would squeeze it reassuringly. We laughed, we plotted, we worried.

The night had settled firmly in Noah’s woods as we pulled up to his house, a lingering chill in the air. I pulled my hoodie closer around me when I hopped out of the truck, looking forward to a fire and a whiskey. Noah came around the truck and we walked up the stairs together, his arm slung around my shoulders.

“I’m glad Gareth and Anna are back, so that Harley has someone with her. I almost feel bad about it, like I’m abandoning her.” I mused quietly as we walked into the cabin.

“That was random.” Noah commented as he turned on lights. Neither one of us wanted the darkness tonight. There’d be enough of that tomorrow.

“Well, just because I’m here with you doesn’t mean I don’t worry about my best friend.” I moved in front of the fireplace and cheated a little bit, holding my hand out and bringing up the fire. I didn’t have any patience for kindling or matches tonight. My nerve endings sizzled with the building pressure of…what, I didn’t know. Something was building though. If my mind didn’t know what it was, my body did.

“I know. I’m glad she’s not alone. Damien needs to get off his haunches and sweep her off her feet.”

I felt his hands rest on my shoulders, and I leaned back into him, closing my eyes as he started to knead the tension from my muscles.

“Harley isn’t the sweep-her-off-her-feet type of girl, if you hadn’t noticed.”

“No, but neither were you, and I swept you off your feet.” I felt him dip just before I felt my legs come off the ground.

“Noah!” I squealed, my arms wrapping around his neck as he caught my legs.

“Come on, admit it, you’ve been effectively swept.”

I laughed. I laughed long and loud, and kept laughing until Noah made me whimper with need. Laughter kept the pressure at bay. The lights we turned on as he carried me to the bedroom kept the darkness at bay.

With Written’s renovations under way, that freed up Harley to come over early to Noah’s and help me mentally prepare for my traveling. We cleansed a space in Noah’s woods, and created our circle. Once that was done, we made our offerings to our patron Goddesses, and set about meditating.

The Morrigan, the Celtic goddess of war and battles, was who I made my offering to; a cup of red wine, a red apple that shined like a ruby, and pomegranate seeds to symbolize blood spilled on a battlefield. I was pretty much going in to battle and needed all the help I could get. I needed focus, determination, and power over my fear.

On one side of the circle, Harley meditated on her issues, whatever those might be. Maybe she was asking for guidance, or strength to help me through it.  Harley’s mind of late was clouded, and I didn’t want to pry. I was just plain nervous.

I talked a big game, and was mostly able to follow it up with action, but this was a huge step I was taking. Deliberately going into Padraigan’s world was a scary proposition, but I had to try. I was tired of being controlled, and now was the time to do something about it. I was prepared for any eventuality.

When I was finished, I patiently waited for Harley to wrap up, then we closed the circle and walked quietly together toward the house.

“Are you scared?” Harley asked suddenly.

“Yes. Terrified. If I didn’t have you and the gang to watch over me, I probably wouldn’t be able to go through with it.”

We walked another few feet without saying anything, but I could tell there was more that Harley wanted to say. I was about to say something when she reached out and placed her hand on my arm. I stopped and turned to look at her, and was surprised to see tears in her eyes. She knew tears made me uncomfortable, so what she was feeling had to be bad.

“Harley, what’s wrong?”

“I’m scared for you. I don’t know if we can protect you or not, and I couldn’t bear to lose my sister.” Her words were muffled and choked; she was trying hard not to burst into tears.

“Hey, I’m not going anywhere! I’ll be fine! Besides, if something happens to me, you’ll be without any meaningful relationships, and I can’t let that happen.”

She gave me a watery laugh and punched my arm lightly.

“You’re my
only
meaningful relationship. All joking aside, I
am
worried. I won’t let it affect me when the time comes tonight, but it’s gnawing on my nerves. Something is off about this, and I got a bad feeling.” Harley said, her latent Southern accent coming out, which happened when she was stressed.

“I am confident that nothing is going to happen. I have faith in my friends! I wouldn’t be able to do this if it weren’t for all of you being there with me. It’ll be fine.”

I said the words to comfort her, but she was right; something was off, something in the air, and I almost called it off right then and there. I couldn’t though. I had to go through with it.