Black Magic Sanction

ribbon. 'Oh my God, what happened?'

I couldn't keep my eyes open, and they shut when we rocked to a halt in the dim hallway. My last sight was Bis clinging to the ceiling, his eyes red and frightened. The noise grew fuzzy, but I felt myself moving until the wonderful mix of kitchen scents hit me. Pierce's voice was soothing, rumbling into me. I caught the words 'Brooke' and 'university' and Ivy's hiss of anger—and then I drifted off...

'Rachel?'

It was worried and close, and my entire side tingled from the intoxicating scent of hyped-up vampire. Poor girl probably hadn't sated her hunger since last week. My head lolled as Pierce shifted, and the hum of the fridge fought with the sound of pixy wings. There were lots of them. But no Jenks.

'I'm fine,' I slurred, then giggled when my voice didn't finish the last part of it and all that came out was a messed-up, 'I'm-m-m f-f-f-f.'

'You're fed, all right,' Ivy said, and my eyes opened when her cool fingers touched me.

'The coven woman dosed her with something,' Pierce said, his hat gone and his hair disheveled. 'And then Lee knocked her out.'

'Lee?' Ivy yelled, and I remembered why my hip was sore. He'd dropped me, twice. And then hit me with a ley-line sleep charm!

'In the fireman's car!' I said, indignant, then hesitated, realizing I was still wearing Pierce's hat. 'Lee spelled me to shut me up. The b-b-bastard.'

Pierce winced. 'A body would think it was the only way to get here without, ah, wrapping our asses around a light pole,' he said, clearly repeating something Lee had said.

'Great.' Ivy's voice was dry. 'Remind me to drill him a new one next time I see him.'

'Ah,' Pierce said, and I sighed when he shifted my weight. 'He's, uh, ditching the car. We couldn't have escaped without him.'

'Escaped, hell,' Ivy muttered. 'It was probably his idea to summon you, then cozy up to Rachel with some fake story.'

My breath was coming back to me, warm as it bounced off Pierce's shirt. Turning my head, I looked up at them. 'Lee's okay,' I said. He was terrified when he thought I was Al.

Ivy's worried face was framed against the blah white of the kitchen ceiling, bright with the fluorescent light. Frowning, I stared at the hanging rack behind her. Why is there a dent in my little spell pot? 'I think I can sit,' I said, beginning to feel better. Or at least not so stoned.

Immediately Ivy pulled out a chair. With a marked gentleness, Pierce eased me into it. Ivy was so concerned she looked like she wanted to strangle someone, and Pierce was sweet with his stubble and shirt untucked. My bruises throbbed, but with the help of the table and Pierce's support, I sat and blinked at the ceiling, waiting for everything to stop moving. I was home. Oh, crap. I think I'm going to cry, I thought as my vision swam.

'Rachel? Rachel!' Ivy said loudly, bringing my attention back from the pixy kids whispering up in the pot rack. Crouched before me, she made me look at her. 'You said Lee. You mean Stanley Saladan? He summoned you for Brooke? Why is he helping you now?'

'You got a cast,' I slurred, seeing it stark white against her black T-shirt. 'Where's Jenks?' I looked at the ceiling for him, and Ivy turned my chin back to her.

'He had a bad feeling, so he went looking for you,' she said. 'Why did Lee help you?'

I blinked. 'Because Pierce can't drive for crap.' I started to list, and Ivy sat me back upright. 'You have beautiful eyes, Ivy,' I said, my words spilling out without thought.

She stared, a surge of vampire incense wafting through me as her eyes dilated to a sudden full black. Swallowing, she took her hands off me. 'What did they hit you with?' she asked as she stood and backed away. 'Will coffee help or make it worse?'

'I don't know.' A soft, contented hmmm slipped from me. She looked so sweet standing there with six pixy girls in their pastel silk dresses hovering around her head. Pixy princess. Pixy Princess Ivy with a pretty, pretty cast.

Jaw clenched, Ivy turned to a thumping in the hall. Pixies rose up, scattering. It was Lee, looking as if he had a right to be here, but unsure as to how Ivy might feel about it. Smart man.

'You've got three seconds to explain,' Ivy said, spots of red appearing on her cheeks. Not bad, considering what she'd done to Nick.

The black-haired man gave her a toothy smile and ducked his head. 'Hey, hi, Ivy. No hard feelings, huh?'

'Oooh, pretty, pretty shiny eyes,' I said, finding Pierce pushing me back down when I tried to get up. A tingle spread from his hand on my shoulder—the man just leaked power. His coat was on the table along with his vest and my stuff. He must have brought everything from Nick's when he came looking for Bis. What a great guy. Even my bag was there.

Ivy was wire tight. 'Time's up,' she intoned, starting for Lee.

Lee stepped back, hand raised. 'You try getting through Hollows traffic with a stoned redhead hanging out the window shouting, 'I'm king of the world!''

I didn't remember that, but a glance at Pierce told me it was true.

'You summoned her! Like a demon!' Ivy accused.

'She is a demon,' he said, and Ivy's face went hard. But if I was one, then Lee was one, too. 'I had to,' Lee added, his voice softer. 'I had a gun at my head. How many things have you done when someone held a gun to your head or said the word 'duty'? Give me a break, will you? I helped her escape.'

'You locked her in a boat primed to explode!' Ivy shouted.

Lee's expression lit up in understanding. 'That was over a year ago!' he complained as I gave Bis a bunny- eared kiss-kiss. He was atop the fridge doing his lurking gargoyle thing with the pixies. Some of them were getting pretty good at mimicking him, and I smiled.

'Besides, I wasn't the one who planted the bomb,' Lee said. 'It was Kisten.' Lee's face was serious in the sudden silence. 'I'm sorry about his passing. He was a good man. Come on, Ivy,' he coaxed, like the successful, suave bachelor from a wealthy West Coast witch family that he was. 'The boat was business. This is survival. Rachel forgave me.'

I was starting to see why Trent liked this guy, even while they were business rivals. I hadn't forgiven him, but I wasn't so far out of it to make the mistake of saying so. Ivy pressed her lips together, tension dropping as she turned away. Hand reaching for the center island counter, I stood. I had to find my calling circle. I wasn't going to wait another moment to get this damned mark off my foot and my name back—my beautiful, anonymous demon name that no one but Ivy, Jenks, Al, and my mother knew. God help me.

Someone took my elbow, and I blinked at Pierce, keeping me upright as I stumbled the two steps from the table to the center counter. His hat was falling off my head, and I fixed it, almost falling over. 'You're nigh asleep on your feet,' he said. 'Sit.'

'Al,' I said, breathing heavily when my hands smacked the top of the island counter. I'd made it. 'You'd better get in a circle. I have to call Al.'

Lee jerked. 'This is a setup? You're giving me to Al?' he exclaimed, and I started when I felt him tap the line out back.

Ivy ducked and I yelped when Pierce flung out a hand and the ball of purple aimed at us ricocheted into the sink. The pixies scattered, shrieking. 'Mr. Saladan!' Pierce shouted as I coughed at the smoke drifting out the open window. 'Dash it all, calm yourself!'

'I'm not going back to that!' Lee exclaimed, determined from fear.

Ivy rose from behind the counter, her eyes black and, as Pierce would say, all wrathy. 'Rachel doesn't give people to Al, you ass You may deserve to be tossed into the ever-after, but that's not what she's doing! As long as you don't owe Al anything, you're safe.' She hesitated, then added, 'It wouldn't hurt to get in a circle, though.'

Lee squinted at her, another ball of black stuff in his hand. Seeing them occupied, I dropped below the level of the counter, swearing as I slipped and fell on my butt. Moving carefully, I got to my knees and looked for my calling mirror. Al was going to pay up. I was going to make him. I was going to have one less tie to demons. It