“And your magic,” Holly pressed. “How did you come by that?”
“I traveled to Gallant Green. There was a coven there. Their matriarch took pity on me. She taught me enough to protect myself. Once I left her, I continued my studies alone.”
“Did you ever meet the witches here?”
Elise’s eyes went wide. “No way.” She shook her head. “Those bitches are crazy. I can’t believe you let them into your house.”
“They’re the ones who made the protection spell that lies upon it.” Holly shrugged. “If they wanted to do any harm, they’ve had plenty of chances.”
“Maybe so.” Elise dipped her chin. “Just don’t turn your back on them.”
“Noted.” Holly pressed her lips together before speaking again.
She wanted to choose her words carefully. Elise had been through so much. Holly didn’t want to make things even more unnecessarily painful than they already were.
“How do you think we can help him?” Holly asked.
“I don’t know,” Elise whispered. “I still don’t understand what’s going on in his head. I hear him at night, though, muttering to himself. He scribbles in all these notebooks. I peeked in one once. It’s completely illegible. If it is written in a proper language, it’s one I don’t know.”
Holly pursed her lips.
“I’ve told you everything I know,” Elise said, mistaking Holly’s silence for doubt. “If there is anyone on this earth I would lay down my life for, it’s my brother.”
“But why pretend to help him in the first place?”
“I told you, I’ve tried reasoning with him, but he’s so convinced he’s on the right path that he can’t be told otherwise.” Elise pressed a hand into her temple. “Besides, someone needs to look out for him. The shifters who follow him would turn on him in the blink of an eye if it suited them. He’s all alone now that I’m here.”
Holly closed her eyes. “I’m sorry. If I’d have known, I wouldn’t have trapped you like this.”
“Maybe it’s for the best.” Elise shrugged. “If you can help him, then it’s all worth it.”
“I have to tell the others about this,” Holly said. “We’re both in over our heads.”
“They won’t help him,” Elise scoffed. “They see him as someone who can take you away. They’ll sooner kill him.”
“You don’t know them,” Holly pled. “They will listen if I ask them to. It’s their duty, after all.”
“I hope you’re right, for Trevor’s sake.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE—Holly
The witches didn’t emerge from their cave for another week. They only did so because Garret threatened to trash their cozy little living room and cause a cave-in. In all of the confusion that came with setting the witch trap, those sneaky little witches escaped without giving Holly the promised spells.
Now, everyone in the house except for Elise wore pendants.
Holly had planned on negotiating another protection spell for Elise to wear, but the witches didn’t want to strike a deal.
Johnny, Garret, and Keller wore stones of glowing amber on stripes of white leather around their necks. The amber would darken to black should danger be near. What near was exactly wasn’t specified, but they would find out sooner or later.
Holly now wore a deep blue stone on a silver chain. As long as the stone remained blue, she was in trustworthy company. What the stone would change to should she be near someone untrustworthy was also yet to be determined.
Holly believed the witches had been deliberately vague out of spite. She didn’t care. As far as she was concerned, her business with the witches was concluded until she dealt with the dark shifters.
“Keep your hand steady,” Loch called to her as she took up a bow.
After Holly lost her training staff in the forest when the dark shifter attacked, she and Loch had to scramble to find other weapons. As it happens, Grandmother Pearl had an entire damn arsenal locked away in what they had thought to be a guest room.
The swords were dull and rusted, most of the spears had wood rot, and the single bow in working condition was heavy as hell, but they were prepared to make do.
Holly took to the bow quicker than she had anything else. She wasn’t a great shot yet, but she enjoyed the training. “It is steady,” Holly insisted.
“I can see you shaking from here.” Loch chuckled.
“As your Maiden, I command you to say I’m holding steady.”
“I’ll say it over and over again if that’s what you want, but that won’t make it true.”
“She should try her hand with daggers,” Elise said from her seat on one of the deck chairs.
“No, thanks.” Holly laughed. “I like having all my fingers attached to my body.”
“I only sliced myself a handful of times before I got the hang of it,” Elise said with a dismissive shrug. “And they were able to reattach my thumb before I suffered nerve damage.”
Holly fumbled with her bow, eliciting a cackle from Elise.
“Kidding!” She laughed.
“I like her.” Loch grinned. “Her brother, on the other hand, I’m still on the fence about. I don’t usually forgive people who locked me in a cage.”
“You mean, that’s happened to you more than once?” Elise arched a brow.
“Get to know him a little better, and you’ll see how plausible that is.” Holly smirked.
“Oh, I believe it’s plausible, but how many people in the area have the resources to pull it off?”
“Let’s not got there.” Loch rubbed the back of his neck. “Like I said, I did odd jobs to get by for a long while.”
Holly and Elise shared a look, then returned their gazes to Loch.
“You say that like it gives some sort of clarification, but it only spawned more questions,” Holly said.
“Questions I have no desire to ask.”
“Good because you don’t want the answers, either.” Loch winked.
