Page 16 of The Soulless Witch

He was just saying something when I stepped out of his arms and headed toward the bar. Keeping my shoulders back, I made a point to stare at each person I locked eyes with, smiling invitingly. Most looked like normal humans—young, drunk, and full of desire—but my swirling magic told me there were others.

Werewolves. Witches, too. There weren’t enough of them for a full-scale attack, so maybe they were there to watch. Or just having fun, as I supposedly was.

Stopping at the bar, I raised my hand to catch the bartender’s attention. When he spotted me, he almost dropped the bottle he was holding. He handed the drink to his customers without even looking at them, then hurried to my side. Holding his gaze, I watched him prepare my order, when a body slipped in the spot on my left, brushing against my arm in a seemingly innocent manner. When I looked at the tall man who was leaning on the bar, there was nothing innocent in his eyes.

My magic slipped over his fingers, tasting. Human.

The bartender put the drink in front of me, eyeing the tall man with narrowed eyes before taking his money. I just smiled in gratitude, feeling another hand touch my back. I looked over my shoulder casually, finding another man standing there. The bartender waited for him to order, but the newcomer just stared at me.

Another lick of my magic. Human.

“Hey, sexy, would you care to dance?” the second one asked, brushing my hair off my shoulder. I looked at the first man, who seemed just as ready to do whatever I wanted. Raising the glass to my lips, I gulped the drink in one go, then took a step away from the bar. I offered a hand to each of them and waited.

They exchanged a brief look before slipping their fingers into mine and following me to the dance floor. The music changed just as I stopped in the center of swaying bodies, a slower melody charging the air with promise as their hands glided over my waist, my arms, my breasts. I didn’t bother asking their names. I allowed them to touch, to hold, swaying and teasing while their warmth slipped into me, making me feel truly alive for the first time since I crawled out of that cold earth.

I had missed this. The feeling of being held, of being wanted, of…not being hurt or hunted. Even if these humans didn’t want more than a single night of pleasure, it didn’t matter. They didn’t hate me and they didn’t fear me and, for a little while, that was enough.

I opened my eyes as the man in front of me ran his tongue over my neck, his fingers digging into my hip while he pressed me against him. Ignoring the way he undressed me with his eyes, I switched my attention to the balcony above.

As fun as this was, I wasn’t here for that. If all went well, I could indulge myself with these fine bodies, but first came the hunt.

My eyes stopped on a figure standing in one of the deeper shadows on the second floor, staring directly at me. I couldn’t see his face, but one swipe of my magic told me everything I needed to know.

A werewolf.

My trap had finally caught something.

Chapter 10

Isaac

Throwingmydrinkback,I winced as the fiery liquid burned my throat. I put the glass on the nearby table and locked my eyes on the dancefloor below. My anger flared and my nails elongated, ready to tear through flesh and bone.

Too many humans. With them there, it was hard to move, hard to fight, hard to kill. Andshewas right in front of my eyes, with no protection but a flimsy spell that didn’t even stop others from touching her.

Why was she so exposed? Was it because she had died so many times that she no longer feared death? Or did she have some kind of trick up her sleeve?

My eyes flickered to her face. She had thrown her head back, her coppery hair falling over the shoulder of the man behind her. A pleased smile danced on her lips while she ground her body against his, completely unabashed by the looks they gathered.

Jealousy, lust, anger. They all wanted to be her, or to be with her.

And I couldn’t blame them.

The woman I remembered was older, her gaze hollow and skin covered with the blood of my people. Her hair had been darker and lifeless, her eyes dull and angry. The woman I was looking at now was all curves and softness, with a face that could melt the defenses of any sane man, and a body that made even my blood run faster. Her dress was so short and tight that it barely hid what lay underneath.

I shook my head, chasing those thoughts away. It was the spell she had on that was doing that to me. The spell made the humans open to her allure. A voice in my head reminded me that my inhuman senses should let me see past the magic, but I wasn’t sure if it was working. She was the strongest witch that lived—or so everyone kept saying—so maybe she managed to strengthen the spell to affect supernatural creatures as well.

Our eyes met, and I froze. I was standing in half shadow, a group of humans screaming and laughing nearby, and she was just a witch. She couldn’t see that well. But I could swear she was looking right at me. Did she spot me? Did she sense me watching her? If she got spooked, she could hurt the humans around her and that would be a mess.

Holding my gaze like I was the only person in this place, she licked her lips. A painful throb shot through my dick and I adjusted myself as I watched her slide her hand around the neck of one of the men. I held my breath, expecting her to snap it, but she just pulled him closer and kissed him.

I gritted my teeth and headed for the stairs. I had no idea what she was up to, why she was even here. Was she planning another massacre on the humans this time? A big and loud‘I’m back, bitches!’painted with innocent blood for the world to see.

I couldn’t let her do that. It didn’t matter if it was humans or werewolves; I wasn’t going to let her kill again. I needed to get her somewhere with fewer people, or even better—somewhere where it was just the two of us. I could take her down then. She didn’t feel nearly as powerful as other witches I’d met.

Even Regina had a stronger aura than this girl—than thishagwith a young woman’s appearance—so she had to be weak. I couldn’t get much information about her, not more than what I already knew, but if she was like other witches in that regard, she would need time to refill her magic after using it all. And getting back from the dead would surely require a lot of magic.

I made my way around the dance floor until I reached the bar. I found a seat in one of the empty high chairs, angling my body so I could see her. Her back was turned to me, the short blonde guy behind her teasing the edges of her dress as if he wanted to peel it off her.

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