Page 87 of Charming Her Monsters

Quickly, I realize that this might be a unique opportunity. She believes I am her master. Perhaps she will be in a state to answer questions she doesn’t have access to otherwise.

I sit down on the edge of her cot. With one of my rarely used talents, vocal mimicry, I ask, in Rob’s voice, “Do you have a spirit with you now?”

“He won’t come forward.”

“Is it Osen?”

“Yes, he’s hurt and hiding.”

My chest aches with the thought of Osen still hurting. I thought in death he could rest, but apparently that blessing is not for him.

Time to get answers—for all of us.

“Do you remember the other times you’ve helped me?”

“Yes,” she answers succinctly.

“Were you there when Osen died?”

“No.”

Okay… one-word answers aren’t getting me very far. I must use open-ended questions from now on. I’ve never been good at this sort of thing. I’m not the interrogator. This is the sort of job that Maxum or Osen used to do.

There’s another rumble from above. I take heart that it likely means Flint is still alive and fighting.

“Do you know how spirits come to you?” I ask the spellbound Jade.

“You send the spirits to me so you can speak to them.”

Damn, I hate pretending to be that asshole, Rob. “What happens after I talk to them?”

“After you finish asking questions, you take them from me. You absorb their power… their magic.”

This explains why Rob has become powerful in unusual ways. He’s stealing magical souls.

“What sort of beings have you hosted?”

As if listing a boring grocery list, Jade says, “Witches, warlocks, fae born, shifters, demons—”

“Okay,” I cut her off. It’s what I suspected. Osen wasn’t a fluke. For some reason, Jade can channel the spirits of supernaturals, which should be impossible. Or maybe it’s as Maxum says and we just never knew about someone like her before.

“When you arenotunder this spell, you don’t remember doing this?”

“You told me to forget. Do you want me to remember now?” Jade asks with a hint of confusion. I’ll give her credit. Her mind and reasoning processes are strong enough to be able to formulate a deduction even while under a spell.

“Yes, I want you to remember everything that’s ever happened to you after this conversation,” I answer, hoping I can snap her out of this state soon.

Something occurs to me. If Osen is still with her and hiding, maybe I can call him forth. “Osen? It’s me, Calder. I need to talk to you.”

Jade intakes in a sharp breath. Her eyes, that had been closed this entire time, pop open. They are the swirling shadows of black irises of an incubus…Osen.

I doubt our witch can fake something like this.

Our witch?Ugh. I think I’m definitely maybe falling for her charms.

“Osen?”

“Calder? What’s going on?”

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