Page 49 of The Most Wanted Witch

“Definitely went better than I thought it would,” Zab said.

“Yeah, me too,” I added, feeling tired already when I knew I had a full night ahead of me.

Bibbi’s scowl deepened. “Why do you look like that when things went pretty well?”

“Xazier sent notice for a meeting tonight,” I deadpanned.

She grimaced and shook her head. “Oh.”

“Yep.”

21

“You look nice, if a little less inviting than in your first meeting outfit.” Bibbi stood in my door as I finished getting ready.

“I’m not sure he wants to get in my pants as much as he wants to dig around in my head.” I tugged my hair back into a ponytail, not caring how it emphasized my unique brand of highlights.

“Oh, that doesn’t sound nice at all.” She crossed her arms, as if getting ready to fend off an attack not aimed at her.

“It’s a bit tiring.”

“Don’t let him have free rein in there.” She twirled her finger toward my head.

“Definitely not trying to, that’s for sure.” I grabbed the jacket lying on the bed and threw it on, hearing an annoyed chirp. “If you insist on being invisible, how am I supposed to know where you are?” I asked Dusty before turning my attention back to Bibbi. “Anyone downstairs?”

Why I felt like I was sneaking out past curfew every time I met Xazier was beyond me. But I did.

“No,” she said. “I haven’t seen Hawk since the meeting, and everyone else went up early.”

It was strange how that seemed to happen on Xazier nights, as if no one could quite stomach my interaction with him. It made what was to come somehow lonelier, even if that was the most absurd thought. I didn’t want to make a big thing of it, and yet the loneliness was killing me. What did it matter if most of them didn’t want to be there for my departure?

I threw on my jacket as Bibbi moved out of the doorway.

“Good luck, and keep your mind closed,” she said.

“I will.” I hoped.

I walked down the stairs, not caring if they creaked. The office was dark but the smell of cocoa still lingered, as if I needed salt in the wound. Would Gillian have stepped up and offered herself to buy Xest time? I doubted it. It was surprising she hadn’t asked for a chariot to bring her back and forth across the street yet.

Helen’s gears ground.

I looked back at her. “Thanks. I’ll need it.”

A wet nose wiggled its way in between my boot and pants. I reached down, giving Dusty’s head a pat. I hadn’t realized it had followed me down. “I’ll be back soon.”

I walked from the office. No one stopped me on my way to the square or fell into step with me. Xazier was right: I was a schmuck. I’d done this for Hawk and them, and they hadn’t wanted me to.

No, that wasn’t entirely true. I hadn’t done it just for them. I’d done it for me, for Xest, this magical place that had made me finally come alive. I’d done it because it was the right thing to do. I didn’t want to die knowing I hadn’t stepped up, left it all on the field, when it counted. If everyone else thought my actions had been a mistake, or couldn’t come to terms with it, I’d accept that because my motives had been pure.

Xazier was waiting for me, smiling. He glanced at my outfit. “That won’t do for where we’re going, but I’ll take care of it.” He held out his arm and we were in a nightclub. I didn’t know where, but it felt distinctly European.

The place was so dark and crowded that our appearance out of thin air was barely glanced at.

My outfit was replaced by a velvet dress with one shoulder bare and a hem that nearly grazed my hip before descending on the other side to barely respectable. And again, the most useless little straps of leather held spikes onto my feet, as if he were hoping I’d fall and die on the next set of steps we encountered.

He motioned us toward a roped-off corner where a booth awaited us. A bottle of iced bubbly was on the table in front of it.

He poured me a glass of champagne, not bothering to ask if I wanted one. I took it, knowing I couldn’t let myself have more than a sip or two. At least here, it would be hard to talk with the music blaring so loudly.

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