Page 33 of The Blood Widow

Memories of last night slammed into me. Ugh, I hated magical alcohol. The memories hit you all at once. Who invented that shit?

I gasp as I hear myself say Blood Widow. Fuck! This was all Cole’s fault. I was telling him my story. If he wasn’t there, I wouldn’t have opened up like that. I was a fucking idiot.

The memory of what they said when I walked away had me pausing. Did they mean it? No. I mentally shook myself. This didn’t change anything. The seer was clear, anyone at my side would die. If I wasn’t willing to kill one, there was no way I was killing three.

I needed to let out some of this anxiety. My hands shook with it.

Instead of moving and waking the men, I summoned my portal and vanished. Good thing I thought of my house before I did because my magic showed up under me. It was a risk to use my portal with so many people around because the magic could have appear under them. But my magic wasn’t that spiteful, it just was a brat when it wanted to be. I fell through the yellow swirling circle onto my bed. After making sure no hands were in the way, I closed it.

Beaut was sprawled out on the couch with four male brownies around her. Ugh, we lived different lives if that was a normal occurrence for her. We should trade.

With a quiet sigh, I grabbed a bag filled with weapons. I needed to work some of these emotions out of me.

Slipping in and out of portals was straining, so I rested against one of the many trees around the cabin once I was back. I let the cold air wash over me. I was so confused and overwhelmed. Bell was a bitch for doing this to me. I needed to be alone for a week after this with my blood ice cream andNetflix. Spending too much time with people wasn’t good for me, especially, the sexy kind.

I pulled out several knives and placed them on various parts of my body and propped the spears up for later. Standing in the middle of at least a dozen trees, I took a deep breath and let what was going on in my life fuel my movements.

Closing my eyes centered me. Two knives were in my hand ready to strike, so I counted to three, squeezing my hands with every number. Then, attacked.

My weapons flew through the air, landing in the tree to my left with a thud. The one in front of me was next. I spun and hit another. Not even my plumper form deterred my movements. They flew out of my hands faster than a human could blink. My muscles pulled and stung as I used all my force to get them to the intended targets. A small amount of sweat trickled down my forehead. The exertion soothed me, clearing my mind, so I pushed harder. With my staff, I maneuvered it around my body, fending off the invisible attackers.

“Whoa.”

The sound of another person had me whirling around, my heart skipping a beat. I was so focused I didn’t hear the woman step out of the house. These emotions were making me stupid. I should have gone further away from the house. How long had she been there?

“What are you doing?” I asked, but she didn’t answer.

She tucked a long strand of her blonde hair behind her ear, blushing. When she ducked her head, I could see all three of the men on the porch, watching me. They had mugs of steaming coffee in their hands.

I held my breath to see how’d they react about learning about me.

“Nice moves, sweetcakes. Maybe I should change your nickname to something feistier? How does pretty panther or feisty cheetah sound.”

Letting the breath out at his normal behavior, I snorted. “Why am I a feline?”

“Because you purr in your sleep.” Dominic’s answer had all of them chuckling.

Ezra shook his head. “She’s more of a pussy cat with sharp little claws.”

I growled. That annoying fucker. He crossed his massive arms pleased with himself.

The woman smiled at him with too much familiarity for my liking. Flashes of her flirty smile at the guys last night had jealousy rising fast. It was difficult to swallow down, but I wouldn’t get mad at another female for going after what she wanted. Even if they did date her, I couldn’t be mad at her for it.

Cole sat in a chair on the porch. He lifted an extra mug up for me, but I didn’t want to go over there. I shook my head and turned away from them.

When she still didn’t answer me, I tried again. “What’s up?” I asked, turning my attention away from the guys, putting the staff back against the tree.

She licked her lips. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to sneak up on you.”

I shrugged. “I’m not usually so easy to sneak up on. It’s been a rough week. Did you need something?”

“No, I was just marveling at your skills. I wish I could do half the stuff you just did. Maybe my life wouldn’t suck all the time if I could.”

I nodded that I understood. It didn’t take a genius to know that she had been a victim of some type of incident. And all women should get to feel strong in their own skin. “Tell you what, how about I teach you a few things?”

“Really?” Her face lit up in surprise.

“What’s your name?” I asked and gestured her closer.

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