Page 41 of Magic Forsaken

“Inside.” Callum gestured with his head and leaped back in through the window, while Kira, Faris, and Draven headed towards the door.

The moment he stepped past the foyer, Faris stopped dead in his tracks. He began swearing viciously as he stared from the broken shapeshifters to the ruined wall, while Kira flung her arms around her brother and clung to him in a desperate hug.

“I’m so glad you’re okay,” she whispered, and as I watched, the fierce king of the shifters softened enough to wrap his arms around his sister and press a kiss to the top of her hair.

“I am,” he assured her, his voice still coming out deeper and harsher than normal. “But only thanks to Raine.”

She pulled back to look at me, eyes shimmering with unshed tears.

“Thank you,” she said softly. “Really. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

“He’s being generous,” I muttered, feeling somewhat uncomfortable with so much misplaced gratitude. She must have heard my teeth chattering as I spoke, because she immediately broke away from Callum and took my arm.

“We’re getting you out of these wet clothes,now,” she ordered firmly.

Draven spoke up from where he crouched over the prone body of the lion shifter. “What would you like done with these two?”

“Put them somewhere safe until I can talk to them.” Callum’s wintery tone suggested it would be more than just a simple chat.

Faris chuckled darkly, a low, rumbling sound that promised vengeance. “I’ll take care of it.”

“Are you claiming jurisdiction?” Callum asked in a carefully neutral voice.

The earth elemental glanced in his direction, and suddenly they weren’t just two men anymore, but two separate courts, debating who had been the most offended by the night’s events.

“Itismy city,” Faris noted, almost casually. “But they attacked your property, and they’re members of your court. I’d say it’s a draw.”

Callum nodded. “In that case, I would be pleased to cooperate with your investigation. With the caveat that their fate is mine to decide after it’s over.”

So… Faris got to ask the questions and then Callum got to punish them?

“Agreed.” The two shared a formal nod.

I shuddered, as much with my hatred of politics as with the icy chill from my wet clothes, as Faris dragged the two shifters out the door.

Must be good to be king—he didn’t even seem worried that someone might see him.

“Callum, you too,” Kira commanded. “You’re soaked, and even dragons catch colds.”

Wait. I could manipulate water. If I was ready to embrace that side of myself, surely there was more I could do with it than throw arrogant fae assassins in front of speeding pickup trucks.

I just didn’t knowhowI’d managed any of the things I’d done over the past twenty-four hours. It had all been pure instinct, provoked by a sense of immediate threat.

But I couldn’t afford to catch a cold, and neither could Callum. We needed to be dry, and we needed to fix the damages to this building. Which couldn’t happen while it was ankle deep in water.

I’d seen Talia do it the night before, when she helped clean up The Portal. Maybe if I closed my eyes again…

It was nothing like the brilliant cloud of color and light I’d sensed before. This was more like a hazy landscape of pastels, the faint colors wreathing my body and spreading out into the darkness. I could not simply reach out and tug. I needed to coax. Beckon. Urge them onward with a gentle touch.

As the colors blended together and brightened, they formed a peaceful river that flowed away from me into the darkness. I continued to pull them together until it was only the darkness that bloomed around me, and when I was satisfied, I opened my eyes.

The floor was bone dry.

My dark shirt and pants were no longer soaked with icy water.

I followed the trail I’d seen in my mind’s eye, saw the last trickles of water moving towards the door, over the threshold, and into the street, and felt a jubilant smile blossom across my face. I’d done it.

I looked up at Callum, expecting him to be either shocked or pleased, but was met by an expression of unmistakable dismay.

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