Page 25 of Blood on the Ice

“Hate… magic… assholes…” Lucas grunts, and I snort.

We agree on that.

“Despite your feelings, man, you’ll have to allow me to check you out. I’m sure Zuzanne would like to take her samples to the lab while I do so?”

Zuzanne also snorts, looking at Iggy as if she’d like to nut punch him. She gathers her stuff and walks over to the door, addressing him directly. “You can portal jump, Ignatius. I hope you packed better excuses than that in your bag for when the Dean tears you a new one.”

“Portal?” I feel Des move underneath the cover of my normal hair, and I know my temper just rocketed into the stratosphere. I’m going to lose control of the girls if Iggy doesn’t quit acting like a douchebag. “You could have arrived here in seconds.”

Lucas tugs on my hand and gives me a small wink. I tilt my head and he darts his tongue out to lick his lips quickly. I’m not sure if that means he’s figured out I have a hissing problem or if he’s thirsty. One eyebrow quirks, and I turn away so I can smile. Now I know—he either heard or sensed my snakes and is trying to calm me down.

That’s also never happened before. Magnus never, ever saw my snakes or my fangs coming.

“Relax, Morgana. He’ll be okay.” Ignatius clicks his tongue as he pulls things out of his bag and I watch him suspiciously.

Arrogance normally makes me want to smash things, but here I am trapped in between two men who have the market cornered on self-confidence and I’m indulging both of them.Oh, how the gargoyle has turned…I quiet my obnoxious inner voice, knowing I’m only allowing Iggy to behave this way because I’m so damned concerned about Lucas. Of course, I’m letting Lucas behave like this because… well, we’re not going to think about what Zuzanne told me before the polar bear almost passed out in the waiting area. That’s just more bullshit than I can process right now.

“I’m not sure why you expect me to believe that when neither you nor Zuzanne have any proof it’s true yet.”

“Because sometimes you have to have faith, that’s why,” he mutters as he lays a bunch of magical crap on the table. “You should know about that—isn’t your mother a witch?”

“Yes, my adoptive mother is a witch. No, I didn’t inherit any of it, and she never taught me much of anything. I’m hopeless with it and since my dad and I share a species, I focused on that.” I pause and study him for a moment. “Not that I owe you an explanation or the courtesy of using my given name.”

Iggy laughs, and the sound rumbles over me like a caress. “I’d heard you were sassy, and I can’t say I’m disappointed. Is that whatyousee in her, young shifter?”

Lucas’s eyes pop open and he glares at the professor as if he might just rip his arm off and beat him with it. “Who said I have any opinion on the Dean? I’m just lucky she was here.”

“Oh, yes. I forgot the lovely Morgana flits about campus, holding the hand of every student in need like a teenager. Please forgive my assumption.” He fiddles with his instruments, obviouslytrying not to laugh at us as he puts together something in a bottle that smells oddly tasty.

My cheeks flush and I grit my teeth, tilting my neck until it cracks loudly. I don’t enjoy being condescended to even if I deserve it and this little shit is going to find that out. Always the troublemaker, Des shoots out from under my raven locks and hisses loud enough to startle the wizard. Lucas covers a laugh with his other hand, turning his head away so he’s not looking at us. The errant snake darts her tongue out and bobs back and forth for a moment before hissing again and I sigh.

“Your sarcasm isn’t helpful, Ignatius. I don’t know what research you’ve done on me, but it must have included my notorious and now felonious temper. Don’t push me—everyone knows I have very little to lose at this point.”

Instead of looking angry, he looks absolutely delighted, and I have no idea why. “It’s been years since I’ve encountered a gorgon. This will be so much fun. And so very helpful if Zuzanne finds different things than I do.”

What? Lucas is already cursed or poisoned—he certainly doesn’t need me to make it worse.

“Start talking, dickhead,” Lucas murmurs, and I nod.

“What he said.”

i put a spell on you

Non-magical supes are irritating.

Despite what they may have been taught in schools or at home, they always seem to think I can wave a wand like that kid in the human movies and whatever they need will appear. That’s simply not how it works and the time I spend explaining magic has a process is exhausting. However, I’mquite interested in the new dean, even if it is for selfish reasons, and I’ll indulge her rather than the snooty beefcake she’s clinging to. So I smile and nod at their demands, if only to make peace.

“There are several possibilities that might explain this sudden onset. One is some sort of poison, be it organic or man-made. If the needle went unnoticed, it could have been inhaled, ingested, or injected. That’s what Zuzanne is busy running tests for.” When they nod in understanding, I almost sigh in relief. It would be much harder if either of them was too stupid to understand that basic breakdown. “If it’s not a compound identifiable by science, it may be from a magical source. Unfortunately, that would make it much more difficult to pinpoint quickly.”

“But you can, yes? Zuzanne seemed to think you were the person to call, Professor Ignatius.”

I like the way my name rolls off her tongue and, for a second, I get distracted. Slade told me she was enchanting, but I didn’t see it as clearly as I do in this proximity. “I can, but time is a factor. I’ll need to scry for hexes, curses, spells, potions, and magical poisons in order to determine the source. Then we need to figure out what form of enchantment it is and what it entails. I’m very good; Zuzanne is right. However, this is one of those times where you can do it well or do it fast.”

A low growl comes from the big shifter, and I look at him with an arched brow. He tries to hide that he’s squeezing Morgana’s hand, and I smile to myself. The big, burly hockey player is scared, and he doesn’t want me to know. I’ll play his game for now because I think pushing on him too hard will make my true target angry. Something is happening between them, unsure if it’s just Mrs. Robinson or more. It’s interesting, that’s for sure.

I’ll have to talk to Slade and see if he can pump Channing for information.

“Don’t worry, big guy.” I smile brightly as I pull an athame, a talisman, and several other necessary tools from my bag. “But I hope you’re up to one more poke. I’ll need to have a few drops in my little travel chalice here and one on the talisman.”

---