Witch Infernal (Infernal Hunt Book 3) (20 page)

I sighed and saw no reason to argue with him; rage boiled just beneath the surface. Elise sat next to me and Lysander was at my feet.
 

“Let me heal you, Evie, then you need to centre yourself and speak to my lady. You can’t stay as you are.”

Once again I nodded and accepted the words. Quin and Kadrix left the room before Elise helped me out of my clothes and went through the agonising process of patching up my wounds. The curses had been savage, but my connection to Lysander had dulled them at least a little. It seemed being bound to an infernal beast had some advantages. He held my hand and kissed my knuckles and my inner wrist while I tried to keep my breathing even through the pain. Once Elise was done and I was dressed once more
,
she ushered me into the main room where I was directed to her altar.
 

“Kneel, centre yourself. My lady will put you right.”

I was aware of Lysander lingering nearby
,
but I closed my eyes and did as I was told.
 

I'd never dealt with the gods before; I'd felt the sensation of the moon goddess on the periphery before, but not had a solid conversation with her. I didn't even know if conversation was the right word. I focused on my breathing, slow and deep, trying to allow the excess emotion to drift away. A soothing voice formed in the back of my mind, reminding me that I was a protector and a guardian, not a cold-hearted killer. The emotion began to dissipate and my mind cleared. The pain faded and everything gradually felt bearable again. It was unfortunate to lose the flat, but it was also an opportunity to settle somewhere new. Lysander was a part of my life
,
and a new flat would allow him to put his mark on our home. I took one last long breath and smiled; the witches would pay, when the time was right.
 

I opened my eyes to find Lysander curled up next to me asleep. A glance around told me it was dark outside
.
I didn't know how long had passed. I stroked my hound's hair and allowed my fingers to linger on his collar before I traced the patterns on my own bracelet. I wouldn't have chosen him, but I wouldn't be without him. He stirred and looked up at me with a small smile.
 

"Evelyn, I'm glad to have you back."
 

I brushed my thumb over his cheek
.
"You never lost me
,
dear hound."

His smile spread and he sat up pulling me into his lap. "I was worried about you."
 

His breath was hot on my neck. Memories of our earlier activities unfurled in my mind.
 

Elise cleared her throat and said, "I'm glad you're back to yourself, Evie, we were a bit worried for a while. I've made up a room for you both, it's small, and simple, but it'll do while you find a new flat."

I stood
,
stretching out my sore muscles
.
I must have knelt for a good while.
 

"The witches haven't broken yet; Quin and Kadrix left to get some sleep. There's some food for you in the kitchen. I'm going to bed, try not to make too much noise."
 

She gave me a big grin. I blushed and thanked her before heading to the kitchen; I hadn't realised just how hungry I was. The food was lukewarm
,
but I didn't care; I'd have been happy to eat just about anything at that point. Lysander watched me with some amusement and handed me a large glass of cold water when I was finished.
 

Without warning
,
he scooped me into his arms and said, "I believe we have unfinished business."

"Oh?" I said as innocently as I could muster.

He gave me that sexy growling laugh that sent shivers down my spine.
 

The room was as Elise had described, small and simple
,
but I remained eternally grateful. Lysander pushed the door to with his foot before he crossed the space to our bed in two strides and gently lay me down on the bed. He lay next to me, his fingers entwined in my hair as he brushed his lips against mine, asking. The day had been too long, any semblance of restraint I may have had had turned to dust. I pulled him to me and kissed him fiercely
.
I explored his mouth with my tongue while I tugged his shirt upwards
,
eager to feel his skin tight against mine. He moaned into my mouth as I slipped my hand down over his jeans. He was clearly as focused on continuing where we'd left off as I was. I undid his jeans, pulling them down over his hips and continued to stroke down over his boxers; we pulled back to remove our shirts.
 

I whispered in his ear as I ran my hand over his increasing hardness
,
"I am a lucky woman."

He growl-purred and scratched up my inner thigh, bringing me to arch my back and give him easier access. Suddenly he stopped, his entire body went rigid and his head shot up. His eyes went wide before he trembled. I stroked his face, the stubble rough beneath my palm.
 

"A demon walks this plane,” he said.

I gently pulled him close to me and stroked down his back while I kissed from his temple down to his jawline. "I'll keep you safe
,
dear hound."

He stopped trembling and whispered, "I felt it
,
Evelyn, that was no runt."

Elise knocked on the door before she pushed it opened and walked in. She smirked at our state of undress, and I was glad we hadn't gotten as far as we'd hoped. I was quite fond of my dignity
,
after all.
 

"You felt it too
,
didn't you?" She looked at Lysander with a frown.

He nodded and settled against me.
 

She sighed. "I will not allow them free rein in this city. We will destroy the demon and everything will return to as it should be."
 

She muttered something about celestials; I caught a few choice curses, but nothing coherent. "Do not fear
,
Lysander, you will be safe. We won't allow harm to come to you."
 

Her pale blue eyes maintained a grey hue. The calm I'd come to know her for was slowly shattering.
 

She gave a small nod and said, "I will speak to my lady, good night both."

With that
,
she left
,
closing the door softly behind her.
 

I wriggled under the covers and pulled Lysander close to me. We didn't say a word as we lay in the dark; his breathing slowly eased and settled as I stroked down his back. Sleep didn't come easily that night.
 

Forty-Two

Breakfast was quiet and tense. Elise's make-up was pristine, but it failed to hide the shadows under her eyes or the tension around her mouth. Lysander didn't say a word and remained locked in his own thoughts. Quin and Kadrix only stayed for a moment to make sure we knew they were around before they went down to the witches. Once Elise had finished with her small breakfast
,
she retired to her altar, leaving me with Lysander.
 

"I know you will do your best Evelyn, but my master was not someone to take lightly."

I squeezed his hand. "We fought off those that came through the hellmouth
,
didn't we?"

He nodded but didn't look at me.
 

Quin stormed into the room, his expression dark. He put some water on to boil and muttered under his breath. Kadrix wasn't too far behind him, he sidled up to Quin and wrapped his arms around Quin's waist and leant his head against his. I looked at them, waiting.
 

Quin ground his teeth together before Kadrix said, "The witches committed suicide. We got nothing from them."

"Our home was lost for nothing!" Quin spat.
 

Kadrix held him close and kissed his cheek
.
Quin relaxed under his touch and gave him a soft smile. He poured the water into a French press to make more coffee and sighed heavily.
 

He narrowed his eyes at Lysander and me. “What happened?"

"A demon came through to this plane,” Lysander growled.
 

Quin's hands tightened
.
Colour flushed his face before he calmed himself.
 

"I miss the good old days where we killed redcaps and told lycans to behave themselves like good dogs."

Lysander's lips pulled back, but Quin's charming smile disarmed him.
 

"So, what's our plan of action?" Quin asked.

"Find a new home. Kill the demon. Shove something large and pointy up the celestial's asses so they don't bother us again,” I said.

Kadrix's face lit up at the last item on the list; I leant back in my chair
,
trying to subtly put a little more space between us. Elise walked in and poured the coffee for herself.
 

She kissed Quin's cheek and said, "Thanks, you're a star."

Quin laughed and the tension dissipated when she sat down. "I have had many words with my lady as of late. She assures me that these complications aren't without some benefit somewhere." She shifted her weight. "The demon is being hidden by someone
,
so we can't do anything about that at the present. The witches' untimely death was inconvenient
,
but such is the way of things. We need to take this moment to pause, regroup, and heal. This war is not done yet."

I didn't like how that sounded.
 

"We'll find new a new flat; I found a few that look as though they have potential if you'd like to look at the specs." She looked at me.
 

My stomach churned
.
I wanted my old home.
 

I smiled
.
"That'd be great, thanks."

Lysander refused to leave my side, and in truth, I was happiest with him there. After everything over the past few days and with the demon loose, somewhere, I enjoyed the contact with him. Quin and Kadrix joined us when we returned to our old flat and we packed up everything we wanted to keep: the rest of our clothes, some hidden bits Quin had. There wasn't all that much, really, and I wasn't sure how I felt about that.
 

Elise had arranged some viewings around the city for the rest of the day; Quin made his excuses and said he trusted Lysander and I to be good judges. In truth
,
I suspected that he'd be spending more time at Kadrix's flat than ours. I missed the days when we shared everything; he was my twin, but he had to do what was best for him. Lysander kissed my temple and held me close as we walked away from our flat for the last time. The clean-up crew would make it presentable; the rest was dealt with.
 

The rest of the day was devoted to travelling around the city looking at what felt like hundreds of flats. We were ready to give up for the day when we walked into the last flat of the day. It was perfect. Light flooded in through large windows, the entire flat was spacious and airy. I grinned at Lysander before Elise arranged for the paperwork to be signed the following morning. We had a chance at a fresh start.
 

Forty-Three

I walked into Kadrix's workshop in a fantastic mood; there was a bounce to my step and a grin on my face.
 

It evaporated when Quin waved his hands, snarled
,
"I'm fucking tired of being a pawn,” and jars around him exploded.
 

The room went silent, save for the quiet tinkling of shards of glass settling on the benches, books, and floor. All colour left Quin's face as he looked around. Powder filled the air, gloop clung to the edge of shelves and splatted from the ceiling.
 

"Did I...?"

Kadrix held him close and gave him a small smile. "It seems that your skills are evolving, but we do need to tidy up this mess before something else explodes."

As if on cue some of the purple gloop mixed with the small balls of electric blue on a bench and promptly emitted a puff of green smoke before it all caught fire. Kadrix ran and waved his hands
,
using elven magic to put out the fire. Quin stood wide-eyed looked around him.
 

"So... we found a new flat,” I said tentatively.

Kadrix shot me a dark look. I shrugged.
 

I didn’t dare get involved in the cleanup process; I had no idea what the powders and such were, nor did I have any intention of finding out. Quin muttered and grumbled under his breath as he scrubbed at old books and tossed bowls and such in a large sink. Kadrix worked around him as quickly as possible; his presence didn't seem to relax Quin quite as much as it usually did. I glared at the elf. If he'd hurt my twin
,
I'd castrate him. Lysander nuzzled my neck and growl-purred when I tensed, the possibilities of Kadrix's betrayal growing in my mind. Once the workshop was clean again
,
Quin approached with a half-hearted grin.