Page 6 of Witch Queen

“Nothing you want to know.”

She was still watching Brimstone with a pinched expression when a familiar voice rang across the vestibule.

“Mae!”

Oh, look.Brimstone’s eyes shrank to amused slits.Here comes consort number three.

Mae’s eyes widened. “Roman?!”

A handsome young man with blond hair and tawny eyes was crossing the marble floor, a jade and sapphire chameleon clinging to his shoulder. Roman Volkov seemed oblivious to the admiring glances he was drawing from the coven members in the foyer as he closed the distance to them.

Mae stared.The Vissarion bloodline is really something, huh?

And you have two of them willing to be notches in your bedpost, my witch,Brimstone contributed with a grin.

“Could you not put it that way?!” she muttered under her breath.

Shocked gasps sounded from several onlookers when Roman took Mae in his arms and hugged her tightly. She rocked back on her heels and hesitated before returning his heartfelt embrace.

Filomena hissed out a friendly greeting.

Mae suspected from the avid stares locked on them like laser beams that this too would spread through the covens like wildfire. She swallowed a resigned sigh and sneaked a peek at Nikolai.

The sorcerer’s expression was turning thunderous.

Roman ignored Nikolai. He straightened and beamed at Mae.

“I’m really happy to see you.” His smile faded. “And I’m sorry about Hellreaver.”

A dull ache stabbed through Mae’s chest. “Thank you. How did your training go?”

“It’s been a good experience.” A fireball the size of an apple whooshed into life above Roman’s finger, the flames tight and precise. “Filo and I have finer control of our magic. We can even do wordless incantations. And accessing ley lines is becoming easier.” He raised a mocking eyebrow at Nikolai. “I bet he can’t do wordless spells, likeus.”

Mae masked a wince.

“No, but Icankick your ass all the way to Prague, kid,” Nikolai growled.

“Now, now, stop trying to wind him up,” someone drawled.

A figure appeared behind Roman. Nadia Hadid ambled leisurely toward them, her desert fox Horus draped around her neck like an expensive fur stole. The High Priestess of the Council of the Sun was wearing a lazy expression that failed to hide the sharp intelligence in her hawk-like eyes.

“I didn’t know you were in New York,” Mae told the witch.

Nadia shrugged. “The High Council called all of us in for the meeting, so I decided to chaperone young Roman here.”

“I don’t need a chaperone,” Roman protested.

Nikolai sneered. “You’re still under age, brat.”

“We’re having a meeting?” Mae said warily while Roman glowered at Nikolai.

“Budimir Volkov and Ludmila Vissarion will have my hide if anything happens to you,” Nadia reminded Roman thinly. “I might be a powerful witch, but those two’s constant nagging is enough to drive anyone into an early grave.” She waved an irritated hand at Mae. “And of course there’s a meeting. Why did you think Bryony called you guys here?”

“There you are,” someone interrupted brusquely before Mae could respond.

They turned.

Abraham was standing on the first landing of the grand staircase dominating the foyer.

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