Page 78 of Untraced Magic
I pulled the van out of the driveway in the direction of Colt’s converted warehouse. He lived on the opposite side of the cove from Skye, the eerily calm side.
Sheltered by the decayed trees that even after death refused to bow to the pull of nature, they stood bare in the water, almost protecting the town in a way, and no one dared go beyond them. There were tales of deadly fae who lived beyond the tree line where a wall of magic supposedly kept them from entering the human realm.
I’d never encountered one, but it wouldn’t surprise me if the tales were true. Nothing was out of the question where the supernatural was concerned.
“What is this place?” Morgan asked beside me as I steered the van into the driveway of Colt’s warehouse.
Its iron-clad walls made it look like some sort of workshop, but I knew the disguise well.
With Reid’s help, Colt had made the place his own, and for his own reasons.
“Welcome to the world of Colt.” I gave her a sidelong look. “He’s a private guy and likes to keep his business to himself. Just remember, he’s an earth mage,” I said quietly.
Curiosity quirked her lips as she scanned the building, nodding at my comment. After parking, I led her up the gravel driveway.
Pushing the door open, I let her in before me.
“Wow!” she gasped, looking to the ceiling where daylight spilled into every crack of the room from the sky above. “There’s no roof!”
My hand found the small of her back. “There is… You just can’t see it.”
“This is insane…” she gushed in awe at the greeneryeverywhere.
I followed her train of sight as they took in every inch of the warehouse covered in plants. The foliage crawled across the walls, twisted around beams, and covered the ground in separate beds of every kind of living fauna imaginable.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” Morgan whispered. “I don’t even know these plants… didn’t know they existed.” She admired a bright purple flower in bloom, tentatively reaching out to stroke its petals.
“They don’t,” came Colt’s voice from above. “Not outside of here.”
I looked up to find him descending the stairs from the loft on the second floor, where I knew his living quarters were. When he reached the ground, he walked toward us, his strides casual and unhurried.
“I grow these for Scarlet’s Apothecary. She purchases them from me,” he explained.
“Stunning,” remarked Morgan, more to herself than anyone else.
Colt moved closer, his blue faded jeans ripped at the knees and a white tee hugging his torso. “It’s one of a kind. Flowers once every five years.”
“Colton, this place is incredible.” Morgan gaped in wonder at the other plants, hesitantly walking around the space.
He laughed. “Thanks. It’s not for everyone. Here to train I hear,” he stated.
Morgan’s gaze moved between the two of us. “Apparently so.”
I innocently raised my hands in the air. “Hey, if you’re going to learn, you should learn from the best.” I pointed at Colt. “And I learned from him.”
She placed her hands on her hips with an amused grin. “Okay, so where do we begin?”
Colt moved away from us, his finger curling toward him. “This way.” He led us through what I could only describe as the greenhouse into a separate room set out like a gym with an assortment of weight machines against all four walls. In the middle was vacant space.
He veered his gaze to me. “First rule…?”
Morgan beat me to it. “Keep your friends close but your enemies closer.”
Colt’s knuckles grazed the light stubble on his jaw, his head turning to mine with amusement in his eyes. He moved to the center of the room, motioning for us to follow again.
He was a man of few words, but over time I’d gotten used to it.
“Rule number two,” he continued, “wherever you are, be aware of your surroundings. If you’re inside, know where the exits are. Read the room or the situation. You can tell a lot from body language, but ultimately, your gut instincts will tell you if something is not right.”
