Closing my eyes, I inhale a deep breath, letting it out on a sigh, then try to tap into Dru again. I don’t know why, but I think that if I can tap into her, I will feel better about this situation. If she is still at home, then the prophecy has not been fulfilled yet and isn’t completely set into motion.
Also, if I can tap into her, maybe I can transport myself to her and get the fuck outta dodge. As much as I don’t want to leave Colt, because I do love him, I’m also not a masochist and I know that a lifetime with him this way would be a lifetime of pain for me.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
COLT
Florence is brought to me, Jeremiah arches a brow as soon as I dismiss him. I also ask him to grab Thatcher and Markus before heading up to guard Birdie’s door. Not that it would keep her there at this point, she can transport and materialize herself in other places, which is beyond anything I’ve ever seen before, it’s actually quite terrifying.
I expect Florence to start speaking immediately, but she doesn’t. Instead, she walks over to a chair across from my desk and slowly sinks down, her gaze flicking from me to Ernest, then back to me.
“I was only going to absorb her powers for a short time, see if I could teach her how to control a smaller amount of magic.”
“She has more than just a small amount,” I point out.
Florence nods her head once. “She does. More than I’ve ever witnessed. Her power grows day by day, probably minute by minute.”
“She cannot control it,” I snap. “Taking someone’s power, this does not seem like something you or anyone else should be doing.”
Ernest growls beneath his breath, but doesn’t say anything. I’m sure since he’s started some kind of affair with Florence, he doesn’t want me to be angry with her, but I can’t help it. This is not only the woman I love, but it’s my country at stake.
“How did she transport us to a place she’s never been to before. What if she isn’t truly Birdie who is meant for me, what if she is a mirage?”
Florence’s eyes widen, then she shakes her head once. “What if it is a devil come up to play with the gods’ plan?”
I think about her suggestion and I would be lying if I said that I haven’t thought it possible myself more than once since this whole situation came to light, but I cannot know if it is true and there is no way to test the theory, not without harming her in some way.
“Are there any witches stronger than you?” I ask.
She presses her lips together, then focuses her gaze on my own. “There are.”
“In my country?” I ask, clarifying.
She shakes her head, inhaling a deep breath. She lets it out on an exhale. “Just one, but I hesitate, Colton.”
“Why?” I demand, growing angry that she has not told me of this woman before.
I am the ruler of this entire country, I should know who resides within it and the powers they yield. I should know everything.
“She deals with the darker side, Colt. As far as I know, she keeps to herself, but to ask her for anything, it comes at a price.”
“A price?” I ask. “I’m the leader. This is my country, there will be a nice price,” I growl, slamming my palms down on the desk and slowly rising to my feet.
Florence doesn’t even flinch. She arches a brow toward me and tilts her head to the side. “This you are not in control of, Colton. This is magic and there is no place for leadership and control when it comes to magic. You will have a price to pay and it will likely be hefty.”
“Bring her to me,” I snap.
She shakes her head once. “You will not like the process, nor will you like the outcome. I would not challenge dark magic, Colton. Perhaps the witches of Bunafi can offer aid. You have a messenger here.”
“They will take too long,” I grunt. “I need to know now, before this goes much farther between us.”
Florence stands to her feet, her gaze searching my own. “You are wading in waters where you do not belong, Colton. Black magic is not for you to dabble with, nor is it for you to attempt to control or use at your whim. You are risking much, unnecessarily. Whatever this woman does, I cannot combat and I cannot undo, remember that.”
Without another word, she turns around and I watch her walk out of the room. Ernest is quiet for another moment, just long enough for me to wonder if he’s still standing behind me before he speaks.
“Florence is a good woman. She is a good witch and she would not steer you wrong, sir.”
“Is there a but there?” I ask.
He doesn’t say anything immediately, which always drives me batty and right now is no different. He clears his throat, then finally graces me with his opinion and if I didn’t value his opinion so much, I wouldn’t even hear him out right now. I’m that irritated about the entire situation.
“Not necessarily, I just want to remind you that inviting unnecessary people and ideas into your life is not always wise.”
I dip my chin in a quick nod, then clear my throat and take out a sheet of paper to pen a letter to the King of Bunafi, the man that tomorrow, will supposedly be my brother-in-law. My mind does not stop thinking about the situation with Birdie.
This woman, this stranger that practices what I assume is black magic, I’m not sure that I should invite her in, and yet, it feels like I must. My entire body jolts as I think back to the book in my library, the one I read long ago.
The women are tempted by the Devil himself. They fall
