Page 41 of Wind Called

Marc’sfirst reaction to hisprima’swords was utter shock…but then he did his best to reassure himself by recalling that Zoe had said “tried to.”

So…all those magical books and grimoires were still safe?

“But you’re all right?” Tricia asked, even as Levi and Allegra scooched closer to her so they could also see the de la Pazprima.

“I’m fine,” Zoe replied, and now she sounded more irritated than anything else. “They didn’t get in. The books are safe. But I thought I should give you a head’s up that there’s a rogue witch or warlock out there who’s decided it’s a good idea to help themselves to some magical goodies.”

Next to him on the couch, Bellamy shifted positions, her expression almost nervous. Marc thought he could see why — he highly doubted that Connor and Angela had told Zoe about the amulet, figuring it was safe and McAllister clan business, nothing that the de la Pazes needed to worry about.

Clearly, though, it was. Or rather, he had a feeling the attempted thefts must be connected.

The work of the Collector?

Why else would the wind have been whispering at Bellamy, warning her about that very person?

“Did you see who it was?” Levi inquired.

At once, Zoe shook her head. “No. This was more a magical attack on the wards we have set up, someone trying to brute-force their way past them. Luckily, they held — I and the other witches and warlocks who set them up worked really hard to make them as strong as possible, and I have a feeling this person, whoever they are, wasn’t expecting them to be that tough.”

Had the Collector…if that was who they were really dealing with…somehow learned about the way the books had been pilfered from the de la Paz clan before and thought the grimoires must be an easy target?

Well, they’d just learned the hard way that his clan wasn’t about to get caught with their pants down again.

“We also had someone try to steal an artifact from us,” Levi said, his tone precise, controlled, as if he hoped by speaking carefully that he might be able to defuse some of the tension in the situation.

“‘Artifact’?” Zoe repeated, voice sharpening. “What kind of artifact?”

The elders looked at each other, and once again, Marc got the impression they would have preferred to keep this information within their clan.

However, if someone was going around trying to steal any magically charged objects that weren’t nailed down, then it sure felt as if it was time for the Arizona clans to close ranks and protect everyone against the interloper.

“An amulet,” Tricia said. “Something that was brought to us out of the past by one of our clan members. It strengthens the magical gift of anyone who holds it, so you can see why it might be a target.”

“Like Hayley’s talent?” Zoe asked, voice still far too sharp. Most of the time, Marc thought her the most laid-backprimahe’d ever heard of, even more casual than Angela, but clearly, she was disturbed by this information.

And he wondered, not for the first time, exactly how Zoe felt about Hayley McAllister. Sure, all that had happened more than twenty-five years ago, and yet, once upon a time, Zoe had summoned Levi to this plane when she was desperate and sure her consort search had gone completely sideways. She’d been happily married to her husband Evan ever since then, but did she ever feel a twinge when she thought about Levi, about what might have happened if Evan hadn’t turned out to be her soul mate?

Well, whatever Zoe’s feelings on the subject might be, Marc doubted he had the guts to come right out and ask her. Some topics were better left alone.

“More or less,” Levi said. “I’ll admit we haven’t done many tests with the amulet to determine the exact scope of its powers. Angela and Connor both thought it safer to keep it locked up.”

“But someone tried to steal it.”

“They did,” he replied, his voice still calm, soothing. “They didn’t succeed, however.”

He stopped there, and Marc wondered if he was going to confess that the thief had managed to break into theprima’shouse. Sure, the wards had prevented him — or her — from removing the safe and its precious contents from the premises, but the incident had still proved that their magical defenses weren’t quite as impregnable as they thought.

“I suppose that’s something,” Zoe said. She paused there for a moment, expression more troubled than ever. “We’ll all need to be on high alert until we find the person responsible. Any other valuable artifacts lying around that I should know about?”

Her dry tone seemed to suggest she wasn’t too thrilled with the McAllisters for keeping such an important matter from her. Although Marc was sympathetic, he also knew that whatever information the Arizona clans shared amongst themselves — or with the Castillos in New Mexico, since theirprimawas Angela’s younger daughter — was done purely out of mutual understanding and not because there was some sort of formal treaty or other agreement in place that might compel them to do so.

“No, only the amulet,” Tricia said. Her tone was very businesslike, and Marc had the feeling she was doing what she could to defuse the situation. “Or at least, that’s the only one we know of. But I have to believe if any McAllister had stumbled across something powerful, they would have let us or Angela know about it.”

Wishful thinking? Marc didn’t want to think so, mainly because everything he’d seen or heard from the McAllister clan seemed to suggest they were forthright people, not the kind who would keep secrets from others.

Especially if those secrets might turn out to be dangerous.

Zoe seemed to take Tricia’s words at face value, because something about the tense set of her shoulders appeared to relax a little, and although she didn’t allow herself to lean against the back of her office chair, she also didn’t seem to be sitting so rigidly upright.

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