Lily shook her head. “No. Not even if the ruby is being destroyed. I can put myself in it, but can’t let myself out.”
“Good.” Naia popped the ruby in her mouth, then swallowed it. “Then your first command is this: you are not allowed to return to your vessel.”
Lily looked at Mike, who shrugged.
“This gem is now on its way into the deepest part of my spring. I recommend that you never go back to it, if given a choice. Your second command is this: you are never to prey on the innocent.”
“Oh. The good guy act. Great. I’ve done this before.” Lily shook her head. “So what are you going to have me do? Clean your house? Deliver pizzas? Whore me out? It starts innocent enough, but really soon it will be-“
“Your last command from me is to be free.” Naia crossed her arms. “I want you to go out into the world and just be free. Be who you want to be. Feel what you want to feel. Those are your commands.”
Lily’s jaw dropped, her eyes glowing.
Mike looked at Lily, then at Naia. “You’re sure about this?”
“I am.” Naia held out a hand to Lily. Hesitantly, Lily took it. “Her story is hers to tell, but trust me when I say that there is more sadness here than I can possibly begin to understand. Consider this place a home, should you ever need it.”
Mike couldn’t read Lily’s face, but he wasn’t surprised when she ran for the open window, wings spread wide. She jumped out into the sky and quickly vanished in the darkness. “You saw something, didn’t you?”
Naia nodded. “More than I wanted. I read her, much like I read you that first day. In a way, she is like me. Whereas I am bound to my spring, she is bound to her master. However, I love my spring, and my home. Only once has she loved her master, and that was a love long ago lost.” Naia touched Mike’s face. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
“I’m glad to be back, though I wasn’t really gone.”
“And let’s keep it that way.” Naia blew a literal kiss, a bubble shaped like a heart that popped on Mike’s cheek. “Get your sleep. Safely, this time.”
Mike smiled. “I love you. You know that, right? When I was lost, you somehow found me again. I can never repay you for saving me. Both my first day here, and last night. I don’t know what I would do without you.”
Naia winked in response and sunk into the water of the tub, vanishing from sight.
Mike walked back to his bed. Tink had fallen to the floor, and her snores filled the room. His body was suddenly tired, but his mind was rested enough. He picked Tink up and put her in bed, beneath the covers. He left the door open a crack and headed to the kitchen where he’d left his laptop. He was pleased when it started up, and even happier when the familiar text of Google appeared before his eyes.
There was work to do.
SARAH OPENED HER EYES. Lifting her head, she saw that she had fallen asleep in the library, the early light of day streaming through the skylight. She wiped a string of drool from her chin and picked up the spellbook she had been studying. She casually wiped away the stains she had left on it. Standing up, she scratched at the newly-healed skin of her belly. Curious to see if the deed had been done, she walked over to the safe on the wall.The combination was only known to a select few in the Society, the treasure within beyond the mere concept of money.
The objects inside glowed at her presence. A magic wand made of dragon bone, the cracked horn of an unknown creature, a ring with an emerald in it that contained an entire universe. In the back of the safe, next to a black silk bag and a book of human skin was the pedestal containing the succubus heart. Face slack in disbelief, Sarah grabbed the pedestal and held it out in the light to be certain.
The ruby had turned black. When Sarah picked it up, it quickly crumbled into nothingness in her hands.
“That’s not possible,” she whispered. Somehow, Mike had killed the succubus.
Sarah stormed out of the room. She knew what she had to do, and there was no time to spare. She couldn’t tell her mother, for Elizabeth would want to get the others involved. By the time they were done debating what they should do, it would be too late. Clearly Mike had discovered some of the more powerful secrets hidden inside the house. Magic, capable of destroying even a demon.
In her bedroom, Sarah threw open her closet. She stripped naked then slipped into the black robes of her old coven, robes that would protect her from weapon and magic alike. She opened the box by her bed and pulled out her weapons. A dagger, a wand, and a bracelet ringed with gemstones. With these three items, she had toppled fortress walls, brought an army to its knees, and even slain a werewolf pack intent on taking her head.
On this day, she would use them to personally take the life of Mike Radley, Society be damned. She would do by herself what they together could not. She slammed her closet shut and then left the building, climbing into a black sedan once in the parking lot. The sedan’s engine roared on its way out of the parking lot, and Sarah never once looked back.
Unwanted Company
Sarah sat in the black sedan, watching the old, Victorian-era home across the street. Through the gate and the hedges, she could only make out the upper levels, replete with turrets and large, ornate windows. Inside that home she would find her prey, but one problem remained.
Of the many magical enchantments the house had, the most annoying
