Page 18 of The Maestro's Mates
“How much do you two know about where witch powers come from?”
“Nothing,” Justin said, his voice a little louder and more confident now. Pavel shook his head. He was in the same boat as Justin. Witches guarded their magical secrets with their lives.
“We have affinities for certain natural forces and elements, and we harness them through spells. Each witch has a small amount of personal power that doesn’t require any spellwork ahead of time, but for a significant working, there has to besomekind of advance preparation. The ingredients, the meditation, the words, all of it combines to create an enticing pathway for the spirits we wish to command.”
Pavel didn’t speak. He had a few guesses as to how it all worked, and so far, Sebastian hadn’t said anything shocking.
“My sister, Veronica… Her affinity is wind. That doesn’t fit with what happened. I expect the cause of this was probably electrical spirits, or maybe mechanical ones. My sister can’t command either of those. Which means she’s working with at least one other witch. Although…”
Sebastian went to the nearest wall and pressed his ear against the hammered metal wall. His eyes went hard.
“There is air moving around the elevator car now. That’s all Veronica. If we manage to get out of this box, we’ll have to fight our way through a wall of wind.”
“Leave the wind to me,” Pavel growled. The air was his domain, and he wouldn’t be stopped by some crude witch with a vendetta.
Sebastian swallowed. “Even without worrying about the wind, this won’t be easy. There’s another witch involved with either earth or metal magic. They’ve reinforced the carriage.”
“Oh, have they?” Pavel asked, suddenly filled with rage. How dare these witches come after his mates?
Gently moving Justin off him, he began to transform, his skin taking on its familiar gray cast. He would bash the witches' heads in now and worry about the rest tomorrow.
As Pavel changed into his transitional form, transforming into a being of living stone, fear sprang up in Justin’s eyes. Pavel’s chest clenched at the sight. His gargoyle nature wanted Justin to love him, to adore him, to let Pavel take care of him.
No. It would be better if Justin were afraid, if both of the men were. The fear would keep his mates away from him, safe. They wouldn’t witness his slow descent into oblivion. Not if he had any say about it.
Pavel’s wings stretched out behind him, covering the whole wall of the elevator with his stony webbing. The fear in Justin’s face intensified, and he stumbled back. Good. The vampire should be afraid. Pavel would bring nothing but sadness to Justin’s life.
Pavel glanced at Sebastian. The witch wasnotafraid. He was standing there with his arms folded, one eyebrow raised, and…licking his lips? Had Pavel’s stone form turned him on?
This man would be trouble.
No matter. Raising his fist of heavy rock, Pavel reared back and slammed it against the elevator doors. He didn’t put the full might of his stone muscles behind it, but it still hit with a force more powerful than any man or vampire could manage.
His fist bounced right off. Pain burst in his hand as his stony flesh met the impenetrable metal.
This was not okay.
Sebastian held up a hand. “Pavel, you won’t?—”
Pavel roared, letting his gargoyle fury at his inability to protect those around him take over. This would not stand.
He brought two fists up now, raising them above his head and bringing them down against the doors. This was a strength that had crumbled buildings and carved out rivers.
More pain. His hands could not penetrate the barrier. This time, Pavel was thrown back as he bounced off, landing on the floor of the elevator. There was a loud ringing as his stone wings connected with the metal floor.
“As I was about to say, you can’t force your way out.” Sebastian ran his hand along the walls. “It was definitely some kind of elemental witch, probably someone with a metal affinity.”
Pavel breathed heavily for a moment, then raised his head. Justin was in the corner with his arms wrapped around himself, his eyes glued to the floor.
He… Yes, it would be helpful if Justin stayed away from him, but he also couldn’t stand being the cause of this fear. He took a deep breath, calming himself and releasing his grip on his form as the living stone shrank and softened until he was human once more.
A chuckle escaped Sebastian’s lips, and at the sound, Justin brought his eyes up to Pavel’s, then immediately blushed.
He was naked.
Pavel grabbed his now-shredded trousers and covered his crotch. His face warmed, and he knew his cheeks were likely as pink as Justin’s. Damn.
“Anyone have another solution?” Pavel grumbled, pushing aside his embarrassment.
