Page 85 of Captivating Magic

“I’m not your baby,” Ebba croaked. “When will you get it through that thick skull? I’m not youranything, Spencer! I love Laszlo!”

His look turned to one of horror, and Ebba experienced a similar sensation. She’d let her anger get the better of her, leaving Kyrella room to take over.

All of Ebba’s bones began the excruciating breaking process as the skin of her arms tingled, then thickened. The amulet around her neck heated, and as the temperature of the stone rose, a scarlet light pulsated and lit the room. A scream was torn from her throat as it seared her flesh, and from a distance, the slamming of a door registered.

Her last conscious thought was that Niall, her ever-vigilant protector, would be charging into the apartment at any second. There was no telling what he would do if he saw Spencer in the foyer with a wolf at his throat.

“Yesssss.”

Kyrella padded toward Spencer, taking great pleasure in seeing his fear. Since her merge with Ebba, she’d grown to double her size. Her prey always froze when they saw her, allowing her the advantage.

“Kyrella,no!”

She hadn’t heard Laszlo return but had felt him the instant he materialized beside her. Head positioned at his chest height, she tilted her chin to meet his worried gaze.

“Please, Ky. If he hurts you, it’s the end of Ebba, too.”

“He’s not strong enough to beat me.”

“Perhaps not physically, but his magic is,” Laszlo replied, scratching behind her ear. “Please stand down.”

“You know nothing about me or my magic,” Spencer said, but his fear hadn’t resided.

“There’s a man at the door,”Kyrella warned.

“Fuck.” Laszlo closed his eyes and teleported. Leaving her alone with the evil entity.

She grinned a second before she lunged.

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Laszlo teleported behind the Mountain, aka Niall, sparing only a moment to knock him out. Although he should probably feel bad because the lug was only trying to protect Ebba, he experienced no remorse when Niall’s head thudded off the tiled floor.

After a quick check to make sure the guy was still breathing, Lo teleported back into the apartment. Not in time to prevent Kyrella’s lunge, but at least he was able to create a rebound effect for the wall, causing her to bounce off without penetrating the barrier.

Spencer looked both relieved and disappointed. With a certainty, the guy had something up his sleeve.

“If you want to get out of your cage, my dude, I’d suggest you show whatever you’re packing.” When Kyrella and Spencer did a double take with a shocked stare, Lo replayed what he’d said and cringed. Yeah, it sounded dirty to the most innocent of minds. “Not that! For Christ’s sake! The artifact.”

Spencer’s expression turned crafty. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

The wolf growled and scratched at the barrier.

“Yeah, sure you don’t,” Lo replied dryly. The guy was fooling no one, especially not Kyrella, whose innate instincts were like a built-in lie detector.

Whipping out his phone, he dialed Alastair. “Can you contact the Aether? We’ve got a serious problem on our hands.”

Within minutes, the magical dream team had gathered.

A knock sounded during their discussion.

“I invited your cousins, Spring and Nash,” Alastair said. “If an artifact exists that allows a body swap, they’ll know about it.”

Though she refused to budge from her spot in front of the circle, Kyrella lifted her head and yipped, assuring Laszlo their company was friend, not foe.

He opened the door and offered a moment of silence for the beautiful couple before him. One had to do that when they met Spring and her husband, Knox. If or when AI robotics gained traction, inventors should design robots to look like this couple. The wordflawlesscame to mind. With her chestnut hair, sparkling green eyes, and dainty build, she was the perfect foil to his blond-blue-eyed gorgeousness.

“Lo!” She kissed his cheek in passing, pausing only when she sensed the circle’s rim. As she edged around to reach the others, she called back over her shoulder, “Did you know a guy was lying on your doorstep? I healed his headache and sent him on his way.”

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