Page 32 of The Maestro's Mates
Sebastian turned back to the paused video, staring at the image. How the hell had his sister gotten in?
“What about you, vampire?” his mother asked, crossing her arms and swiveling on her chair until she was facing Justin. “How do you think she did it?”
“His name is Justin, mother.” A hot flash of protectiveness flared in Sebastian’s chest. “And he is here on behalf of the Grosvenor coven, so don’t treat him poorly.”
She rolled her eyes. “Alright. Justin. And I’m Linda. Linda Walker. There, we’ve met. So, what do you think?”
“I, uh, don’t know anything about witches and spells and?—”
“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Sebastian’s mother said, gesturing dismissively. “Take a stab at it anyway.”
Justin’s gaze went to Sebastian, his eyes tight. Sebastian shrugged and nodded encouragingly. This was his mother.She was going to do what she was going to do. She was a steamroller. If you stood in the way, you were likely to get squashed, so he’d learned to go with the flow.
“Well,” Justin said slowly, “if she didn’t break the spells?—”
“Wards.”
“Okay, if she didn’t break the wards, then maybe…maybe you’re not looking at the right time.”
Linda didn’t say anything for a few seconds, but Sebastian knew his mother, and he knew the look she was giving Justin. She was trying to decide if he was phenomenally stupid or secretly a genius.
“Go on…”
Justin swallowed and powered through. The grit and determination he saw in Justin made him proud as well as turning him on. The vampire obviously struggled with anxiety and doubt on occasion, but when push came to shove, he demonstrated a persistent inner strength, like a flexible willow sapling with an unexpected core of metal. It was hot as hell.
“If you’re certain no one from the Circle let her in,” Justin continued, “then maybe she set this up a long time ago. Back when you were on better terms. She was part of the Circle, right? Maybe she built something into the wards. Something allowing her to circumvent whatever you did to keep her out.”
No one said anything. Sebastian stared at Justin. He knew Linda was doing the same. If Justin was right, Veronica had been planning something like this for years. And he had a feeling Justinwasright.
“Like I said, I don’t know anything about witchcraft but…”
Linda shook her head and blew through her pursed lips. “Holy shit. Well, fuck me, I guess.”
Justin locked eyes with Sebastian, clearly confused and not knowing if Linda’s reaction was good or bad. Sebastian smiled, and Justin’s shoulders relaxed.
“It must have been subtle, if no one noticed,” she continued, then stopped. She turned back to the desk, rummaging through a drawer and ultimately pulling out a small silver bowl, a small index card, a pen, and a silver lighter, tossing them haphazardly next to the computer keyboard.
With practiced casualness, she drew a symbol on the index card and held it up. She flipped open the lighter and set the card aflame, holding it for a moment before tossing it into the bowl. The whole time, she muttered under her breath. She kept doing so until the index card had been fully reduced to ash.
“We’ll see what my little spirit friend turns up.” Linda turned back to Justin. “Okay, vampire, what are you doing here, and why do you think you’re good enough to mate with my son?”
Chapter 13
Justin
Justin tensed at her words. This woman was a lot. He had expected a powerful witch: aloof, fickle, and mysterious. He hadn’t expected this brash familiarity. He hadn’t expected this directness. And he certainly hadn’t expected this question.
“I, uh… We’re not…”
“I know you haven’t completed the bond, I’m not blind.” Linda rolled her eyes and gave her son a look clearly indicating she thought Justin wasn’t very smart.
“Mother,” Sebastian warned. Worry lined his eyes.
“And…a third one, too? None of them fully solidified, but it won’t be long, I’m sure,” Linda said, ignoring her son. “So, what do you bring to the table?”
“Ms. Walker?—”
“For fuck’s sake, call me Linda.”
