Page 46 of Ignited Spirits
Hopping up from the sofa, I rush over to him. When I slam into his hard chest, I wrap my arms around his neck and hold him as tight to me as I can.
He hugs me close and buries his face in my hair, inhaling my scent.
Reluctantly pulling back, I process what Archer said. “You remember turning into a hydra?”
I’ve definitely heard of hydras before, but I can’t really remember anything about them.
“Yep. I remember Legion yanking control from me and turning into whatever the fuck that was. I was watching the whole thing but unable to do anything the entire time. I’m so damn glad you’re okay, sunshine. And I never want to watch you hand yourself over again.”
I snort. “I, too, would like to avoid a repeat of that, sunny boy.” My mirth fades when I remember that I’m responsible for everything that happened to him. “I’m sorry.”
He tilts his head in confusion. “For what?”
“For injecting you with a many billions of years old snake monster dude who can steal control of your body.”
I had worried so much about his wolf being gone that I didn’t give much thought to the possibility that I would give him new magic. Having another entity that can hijack his body seems almost as bad as losing his wolf. And we still don’t know if he has his wolf or not.
Archer tilts my chin up so I’m forced to look into his swirling blue-green eyes. Instead of anger or blame, all I see is concern for me and understanding in his gaze. “It’s okay, sunshine. None of this is your fault. You did the best you could with the options you had available. And, anyway, it’s not so bad turning into a two-story-tall serpent thingy. It certainly has its advantages in battle.”
My lips tip up into a half smile at his attempts to make me feel better, but I should be the one reassuring him. Not the other way around.
Levi pushes to his feet when I don’t say anything. “Now that the wolf is back, we should go find Hades and your mother. We need to come up with a new attack plan to deal with the council. They’re almost as big of a problem as LuaMater.”
“You’re telling me,” I grumble.
If the council can pin draining young mages on me, I don’t think there will be any winning over the people of Hawthorne Grove. And as much as I despise most of them, I think we’ll need public opinion in our favor to have a chance of effecting lasting change.
Simply installing a new council doesn’t fix all of the systemic problems the old one has. All it does is change who is abusing their power and how.
I know it’s probably too idealistic, but I have to hope there’s a way to help mages come out of this better than they have ever been.
As everyone else stands up, I make a beeline for the door. Not that I can lead anyone anywhere in this castle, but that’s really not the point.
When my hand brushes the door, I realize I forgot someone. “Fuck. I need to go back for Joseph.”
“Who is Joseph?” Dad asks hesitantly, like he’s not sure he wants to know.
“A mage we rescued from the prison. I sent him to South America, and I need to help him get into an underground city run by jaguar shifters.”
“Isabel…” Dad trails off. “Are you sure you should be pulling people out of prison? As much as you don’t like the council, there’s usually a reason people are locked up.”
I raise my eyebrows at my dad, not believing that he’s really spouting the same bullshit that the council does. “Yeah, and most of the time the reason is they pissed off the council. There are a ton of morally corrupt people in Hawthorne Grove that they leave alone while they waste their resources chasing people with ‘forbidden’ magic like Joseph and me. Look at you. There was literally no reason to lock you up.”
“My daughter killed a council member,” he counters. “There was plenty of reason to arrest me.”
I’m shaking my head before he even finishes. “Butyoudidn’t kill a council member. That’s not how justice should work. Family and friends shouldn’t be punished for the actions of someone else.”
His shoulders slump. “You’re right. I just don’t want to see you hurt, Izzy.”
“I know, Dad. But Joseph won’t hurt me.” At least I don’t think so, but I refrain from saying that part out loud. “He’s justa scared twenty-something with magic he didn’t ask to have who made a mistake. I wish I had someone to help me when I was in his position, and I want to be that for him.”
Dad shoves a hand through his hair, that is so dark brown it’s almost black, before sighing. “You’ve convinced me. Go on. Your brothers and I will be waiting here for you when you get back.”
I open my mouth to say that I can go alone so that my mates can help him find Mom, but I know them well enough to understand that won’t go over well. “We’ll be right back.” Turning to Cerberus, I arch a brow. “Are you coming with?”
All three heads shake. Russ shakes a little too enthusiastically and bumps into Cer, which earns him a disgruntled growl. Cer tells me,“You should be safe with the jaguars. We need time to rest, so we won’t be accompanying you.”
“That’s good with me. Thanks for leading Lua away and helping with the council. I know it was dangerous, so I really appreciate it.”
