Page 16 of Forged In Magic

“No problem.”

“How did you come up with Morgana’s design?”

“Sometimes ideas pop into my head. Or like Morgana’s, I see them in a dream.”

“You definitely outdid yourself with that one. I know you put it on both sides of her body to help break the spell cast on her, but man… it’s beautiful the way it frames her.”

“Thanks. I’ve done a lot of vines and flowers, but I’ve never done anything exactly like that design before.”

They chatted for a few minutes about some of the tattoo designs that Isaac considered most memorable. Then they lapsed back into a comfortable silence while Isaac worked.

“I’ve never known you to be an overly chatty guy,” Damon said about an hour later. “But you seem quieter than usual. Any chance your mood has something to do with you refusing to tattoo Kate last week?

“You could say that.”

“Morgana and I went to my mom’s for dinner the other night, and Kate was there. She was still pretty grumpy, although sometimes that’s just par for the course with my sister.”

Isaac didn’t look up as he continued to work. “Yeah, grumpy is a good description for Kate. Stubborn works too. I don’t know why she won’t just accept that I can’t give her the tattoo.”

“Really? You’re surprised?” Damon laughed. “I thought you knew my sister.”

Isaac smirked. “Right, okay, she’s a bit tenacious when she wants something. And stubborn. I’ve never met a more stubborn woman.”

“She’s driven, that’s for sure. But she’s also been hurt in the past so it’s hard for her to trust people.”

Stilling his machine, Isaac looked up and met Damon’s gaze. “Who hurt her?”

“Not my story to tell. You’ll have to ask her. But I am curious about you.”

“About?”

“Why won’t you give Kate the tattoo?”

“I listen to my magic.”

“And it told you not to tattoo Kate?”

“Sort of.” Since Isaac’s magic worked on feelings and sensations, it wasn’t always easy to explain. Sometimes he got a definite response, like he’d had with Isabella the other day. Other times, he got an inkling of what it was trying to tell him and he hoped Damon would understand his explanation. “It’s not always black and white, so I have to guess what my magic is trying to tell me. With Kate, it felt like a warning not to ink her.”

“In a way, I get that. There have been a couple of times when I’ve gotten some pushback on my persuasion.”

When Damon paused, Isaac prepared to start up again, but then continued speaking.

“So, let’s say you got a warning and you ignored it. What’s the worst that could happen?”

“Death.”

“Fuck. Really? One of your tattoos could kill someone?”

The familiar weight of guilt settled on Isaac. And like always, he wished his magic specialty was more precise. “I’m not sure. I refused to give someone a tattoo once, but they wouldn’t stop bugging me, so I gave in. The tattoo caused them to sink into a deep depression until eventually they committed suicide.”

“Fuck, man, I’m sorry.”

Isaac nodded and got back to work.

“Did you warn the person about what you sensed?” Damon asked a few minutes later.

“Yes, but like I said, they wouldn’t drop it.”

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