Page 29 of Magic of the Damned

He looked at the modest building. The entire complex wasn’t as spacious as his home. It wasn’t surprising when he followed me up the three flights of stairs to my door.

Despite me leaving the door open, he stayed at the threshold, awaiting an invitation.

He was rather selective in practicing good manners. Attempts to burn me alive, direct threats, and abduction attempts—no problem. But entering my home without an invitation was where he drew the line of impropriety? Maybe he couldn’t. Like vampires in movies, he couldn’t enter without an invitation. But once he was invited, could the invitation be rescinded?

“No, I don’t require a formal invitation,” he said with a grin.

My mother always commented about my expression speaking volumes. It made communication easy most of the time but rarely gave me the advantage.

“Nor do vampires,” he added. “Something else that The Discovery of Magic got wrong.” It seemed like the only information correct in the book was the existence of the supernatural beings. It was definitely a work of fiction.

“You can come in if you’d like.”

He nodded, entered the apartment and surveyed it.

“It’s you,” he said in a neutral tone. His attention quickly moved to the book. He picked it up, flipped through it, examining each blank page as if it’d reveal something. Even my blood had been absorbed into the book. His long fingers traced the markings on the spine of the book.

“Do you know what it means?” I asked.

He nodded. More beats of silence. Damn, he was exhausting.

“What?”

“Awakening,” he whispered in a breath. “A story for another time.” And that was the only thing he offered. He returned the book to the counter. “What are your work hours again?”

“Ten to three.” Before I could question him more, he plucked strands of hair from my head and was out the door. Just so very selective about demonstrations of propriety. Who just snatches hair from someone’s head without warning them?

He knelt, allowing his fingers to glide just above the threshold, then he dropped the hairs over it. They ignited into a quick burst of flames. Upon his command, a rust-colored shimmer of light flared and disappeared.

“It’s a temporary protective field. Once you cross the threshold, it will be disabled. No one can get in.” There was a moment of hesitation. “The Caster may be able to break it, but it will be with great effort. You should be safe.”

I went to bed but sleep didn’t come easily. I had no idea what to do with all the new information. The most pressing thing: Could my life return to normal after this?

CHAPTER 9

The next morning, I tried to be more optimistic. Dominic would find the Dark Caster, the prisoners would be returned, and I’d spend my life forgetting everything I’d learned, or at the very least pretending that people I passed on the streets weren’t more than what they appeared to be. Which was what I was doing as I walked to work. Scrutinizing everyone I passed, wondering. Were they a shifter, witch, vampire, seer, or whatever Anand, Helena, and Dominic were?

Thinking about the people in the latter category tugged at my curiosity, but admittedly, there was comfort in not knowing. Every curtain pulled back revealed something more portentous, making the new world I was exposed to disturbing.

A man sidled up next to me as I hitched up the overnight bag I’d brought with me in case I stayed too long in… damn, in the Underworld. I’m just hanging out in the Underworld, like it’s an overnight trip to my Nana Reed’s. Ugh, what is my life now?

“What, Kane?”

“Such hostility,” he drawled.

“I get that way when people abduct me and then attempt to bite me. I’m so irrational that way,” I snarked back.

“Perhaps my past action warranted your response.”

“Perhaps?” I stopped to look at him, hoping to see some regret, shame, or basic remorse. Nothing. He held my gaze, his dark eyes narrowing, a hypnotic beat to them, pulling me to him. My eyes remained transfixed, unable to pull free from his.

“Luna.” His voice was satin smooth and demanded compliance that I gave wholeheartedly. Pulled into the depths of his eyes, I was unable to do anything but look at him and be attentive to his commands.

“Do you hear me, Luna?” he asked, his voice a gentle caress.

“Yes.”

Pleased, he gave me a small smile. “I need you to do something for me, Luna.”

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