Visions of Skyfire

Chapter 29

Thousands of miles away, Kellyn felt the rise of power shake the boundaries of the universe and she knew the witch Teresa and her Eternal had begun to mate.

Fingers closing around her crystal wineglass, she threw it across the room and watched it shatter against the far wall. The explosion of glass did little to calm her. Nothing much could. Still, her gaze locked on the red wine splattered like blood as its tendrils trailed down the cream-colored wall. That sight did cheer her slightly, but it didn’t last.

Inside her, she felt a flicker of something like … hope. A foreign sensation fought to rise up within her and Kellyn deliberately pushed it back into the darkness. “I’ve lost another witch,” she muttered grimly, “not the war.”

That bright, flickering light within her dissipated and she sighed in satisfaction even as her temper began to burn again. Memories of finding and losing Shea Jameson only the month before to her Eternal and the call of white magic nearly choked her. Now another one had started along Shea’s path.

“There’s still time, though,” she murmured, tightening the slender belt of her silk robe around her waist. Her naked skin was soothed by the kiss of the cool, luxurious fabric, but her spirit was less easily appeased.

Teresa Santiago had taken the first steps in the Awakening, but she wasn’t completely out of reach just yet. Of course, Kellyn wouldn’t lower herself to traipse through a Mexican desert after the witch, but there were others nearby. There was still time to stop Teresa before she found the Artifact. Before she returned it to Haven like a good little witch.

Kellyn hated not being able to do something. She was not accustomed to feeling powerless. She couldn’t approach the next witch until she was awakened to her powers. She wouldn’t be able to find the next one until her awakening power sent ripples through the magical world. One Awakened witch at a time would be called to her power. So Kellyn was now faced with nearly a month of downtime before she could take up the reins of this chase again. Which only made her more irritable. After all, there was only so much drinking, sex and shopping a witch could do to kill time.

Tapping her finger against her chin, Kellyn smiled softly as another thought occurred to her. There was something she could do after all, while waiting for word from the desert. Tomorrow she would make a trip to Virginia. Maybe it was time to sit in on Henry Fender’s interrogations to cheer herself up.

“Babe.”

She whipped around and glared at the tall, well-built human standing in the open doorway of her bedroom. As a concierge at this hotel, he was only passably competent. As a lover, though, he had proven to be more than adequate. A dick that seemed to never deflate, indefatigable stamina and a brain with the wattage of a guttering candle.

He yawned hugely, stretched his arms over his chest—the better to display his impressive rippling muscles, no doubt. Then he gave her a grin and reached down to stroke himself. His very impressive cock leaped to attention. “I got something for you right here, babe. You coming back to bed or what? ’Cuz if you don’t want it, there’s plenty others who do.”

No respect, she thought in a sudden fury. This insignificant male thought to bring her to heel? To threaten her with his pathetic human whores? Irritation spiked. Just another pitiful symbol of how badly her day was going, this male was, as the humans often said, the last straw.

In her mind’s eye, Kellyn indulged a whim and imagined the man’s eyes exploding. She could see his skin peel from his bones. Hear him whimpering, pleading for mercy.

Some of what she was thinking must have shown on her face because he immediately shifted gears. “C’mon, baby. Let me take you on another ride. Let me show you something new.”

Slowly, that flash of irritation drained away. Nothing to be gained by killing him now. If she did, she’d have to change hotels and then be forced to spend who knew how many hours finding another lover. And the next one might not be so well endowed. No, she wasn’t finished with this one yet.

Still, he needed to learn just who was in charge around here.

Kellyn lifted her right arm, pointed at him and clenched her fist. Instantly, the insolent male’s eyes bugged and his mouth dropped open. He lifted both hands to his throat and clawed at whatever was closing off his airway. Desperate, his eyes snapped to her as his skin mottled and his choking, gurgling groans sang into the room like the sweetest of music.

Slowly, she walked toward him, taking her time. She dropped her robe and felt the chill kiss of the air on her skin as she stopped alongside him. She flicked her fingers at his neck and he wheezed in his first easy breath since Kellyn had closed off his throat. Gasping, choking, he bent over at the waist, gulping in air.

As he did, she ran her fingertips down his spine, over the curve of his behind, until she cupped his balls in the palm of her hand.

He went absolutely still.

To make sure she had his attention, she gave a single, hard squeeze. He whimpered, but didn’t move. Smart boy.

“Show me what you’ve got, then,” she said, leaning in until she could lick the top of his ear. “But do yourself a favor and don’t speak again.”

Carefully, he turned his head, looked into her eyes and gave her a sharp nod. When she released him, he followed her into the bedroom like a well-trained puppy.