Page 111 of Elora and the Crow

Jonah reached across the seat and took her hand. “We know, baby.”

She took in a shuddering breath. “My magic has never been this strong before, and it’s kind of freaking me out, but it’s good, right? If I want to defeat Malencia, I need more power.”

“Elora, maybe I should -”

“No, Jonah.” She scowled at him. “Don’t tell me you should go alone. I don’t want to keep having this conversation with you. You need me if you want to have even a chance of defeating her. It’s the only way to save Caleb.”

“I don’t want to save him at the expense of losing you,” he said.

“You won’t.” She squeezed his hand. “I’m not going anywhere. We are going to find Malencia, and we will take Caleb back.”

“You’ll have to kill her, Elora. You know that, right?” Jonah said, his voice hoarse.

“I know,” she said, still staring at the darkness.

They drove the rest of the way in silence. As they parked in front of the townhouse that belonged to Malencia’s daughter, Jonah’s stomach was a stew of guilt, fear, and regret. This was his fault. He had brought Malencia into Elora’s life, and now there was the real possibility that she would die because of it.

For a moment, he thought he might throw up. He swallowed the bile rising in his throat, willing his churning stomach to calm the fuck down.

Elora turned to him when he didn’t open the door, studying him before reaching out and taking his hand again. “Hey, you okay?”

“No, I’m fucking not,” he rasped. “All of this is my fault and -”

“Stop,” she said. “I told you before, this is not your fault. This is Malencia’s fault. She’s the one who used dark magic to trap you. She tried to kill you.”

“If I hadn’t slept with her daughter, then -”

She leaned across the seat and cupped his face. “You had no way of knowing what that decision would lead to, Jonah. Stop beating yourself up over it. I could have walked away from you after I broke the spell. I didn’t because I wanted to be with you, even if being with you means rescuing your brother from a crazy dark witch. Okay?”

He nodded, putting on his game face and hoping it was convincing, even though the guilt was still eating him alive. Elora kissed him, her mouth soft and warm and exactly what he needed. He returned her kiss, sliding his hand into her silky dark hair and deepening it with an almost frantic type of need.

“Hey, friend in the back seat, remember? Don’t make this weird,” Cece said.

They broke apart, and Jonah had to grin when Elora blushed and said, “Sorry, Cece.”

“Okay, let’s go talk to Malencia’s daughter,” Cece said and climbed out of the car.

Jonah and Elora followed her up the neatly shoveled sidewalk. Elora rang the doorbell, and Jonah’s stomach clenched tight when a woman opened the door. Her dark hair now had a pure white streak at the front and she was a little thinner than before, but it was Shawna. She had a toddler on her hip, and the little girl stared at them as Shawna said, “Can I help you?”

Jonah stepped into the light. “Hello, Shawna.”

“Hello,” she said, giving him a blank look.

He glanced at Elora before clearing his throat. “It’s Jonah.”

Shawna made a half-shrug, and feeling weirdly embarrassed, he said, “We, um, we spent the weekend together about three years ago.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Is that right? Well, if you’re looking for a repeat performance, I’m married and not interested.”

“We’re looking for your mother,” Elora said.

Shawna’s face turned cold. “You’ve come to the wrong place.”

She started to shut the door, and Jonah grabbed it. “Shawna, please. We need your help. She has my brother.”

Shawna sighed, studying the child in her arms before stepping back. “Come inside.”

Ten minutes later, they were crowded around the small kitchen table. Shawna’s daughter had glommed onto Cece the moment she sat down, sitting in her lap and giving Cece a stuffed animal to hold. Cece smiled at the little girl as Shawna studied Jonah.

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