Page 40 of A Witch-ish Guide to Protectors and Pendulums

“No. And it’s annoying.” This wholeprotective matebit. But then again, I wouldn’t have been too pleased with Jeffery going completely buff in front of other people. Not that he couldn’t have done it if he’d wanted to. His body, his choice, and all that. I just wouldn’t have liked it much and Ireallydidn’t like the idea of Connor baring it all to the masses.

“How are you feeling?” he asked.

“Still a bit tired. I should’ve asked what she’d given me.”

“From now on, we ask before you drink.”

The door to the mausoleum opened. Connor started down the stone spiral steps. The door closed again behind us.

Luc stood at the mouth of the hallway with his arms folded over his chest, glaring at my mate and me. “Took you long enough. Do you realize how late you are?”

Connor gestured to Luc’s office with a tip of his head and continued past the fallen angel without stopping. Once the three of us got to the room and the door was shut, Connor walked over to the closet that I hadn’t noticed the last time I’d been in here. He changed to a man, only giving me a glimpse of his tight behind as he ducked inside.

A few moments later, he stepped out in jeans and a T-shirt. Blue jeans. Red T-shirt. He had socks and a pair of red-and-white-checked Vans in his hand. He walked over to the infamous sofa, the one we’d first—ahem–on. Yeah, that one. And he dropped down to slide on the socks and shoes.

I stood mesmerized, watching him. “Damn…” I accidentally let slip. Both Connor and Luc looked at me. “What?” I asked. “I’m a lucky woman. I get to hit that.” Connor chuckled as I pointed at him.

“So why are you late?” Luc asked. “You should’ve started hours ago.”

“Shit. Forgot to call. Simone was visited by a woman in her dream. She had some important things to say to Simone, but we didn’t understand it all. We met with a witch to see if Simone could remember when she was born and we were attacked.”

“Attacked?”

Connor nodded.

“By who?”

“That’s the ten-million-dollar question,” Connor added. “His face was blurred.”

Luc cocked his head. “Blurred?”

“As if a spell had been put on him to purposely obscure his features. He was large and wore head-to-toe black.”

“That could have been anybody,” Luc unhelpfully answered.

“Luc,” I said to get his attention. When I had it, I asked, “What do you know?”

His chin jerked back as if I’d hit him. “Excuse me?”

“I don’t mean you were involved with my attack, but when Connor and I first met, you told him to get to me, that ‘something started’ or something along those lines. My gut tells me that everything going on is a whole lot bigger than me. I think there’s a reason Jeffery died, and that Connor’s sister disappeared. And I think they’re both related to why I was attacked.”

Luc walked over to sit at his desk. “We all have quadrants down here.” He pulled open a drawer to grab an ancient-looking—but in remarkably good condition—map, unrolling it. “Obviously, this area falls under my jurisdiction.” Luc’s quadrant encompassed all of North America, Central America, and South America, along with all the islands in close proximity. “Lev gets the oceans because none of the rest of us wanted to take that on.” Luc then went on to point to different quadrants on the map with different names in each quadrant. “As you can see, some of us have larger quadrants than others—Mo was so ticked that he didn’t get South America. He’s always thought of himself as a Latin Lover.”

“Mo?” I asked and both he and Connor narrowed their pretty eyes on me like I was the dim kid in class.

“AsMOdeus,” Luc replied. “Demon of Lust. You might have heard of him.” I crossed my arms over my chest and shot him my meanest ‘say one more word and I’ll end you’ eyes. “Anyway,” he went on, looking back down at the map while snickering. “It has the potential to equal out because some smaller quadrants have vastly larger numbers of people to corrupt.”

“Right.” I checked my temper. “That makes sense. But what does any of this have to do with Connor and me?”

“That, I don’t know. Think of it like the mob. Bosses want more territory.”

I nodded my understanding.

“We all keep track of the goings-on in the other quadrants. When Connor first met you, even though he wasn’t sure it was you… Actually, I have a theory about that. I think your powers were bound as a baby. Whatever you are, you’re too strong to keep them bound forever. But that’s why our boy here didn’t exactly know it was you.”Wow!That made total sense. “Anyway, when you two first crossed paths, the other quadrants lit up. I’d had a feeling that something was coming; I’d had that feeling a long time. When the quadrants lit up, I knew whatever is coming started that day and it started with you and Connor meeting.”

“And you neglected to tell me this why?” Connor practically growled at his friend who I felt, even as a fallen angel, was taking his life in his hands.

“I told you what I could. You knew I had that bad feeling. You also knew when I felt it start. But I can’t tell you everything. It would take away the fun of watching you swing.”

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