“Good.” I walked through the empty cafe, pulling the dagger out of the bag at my side. “I’ve brought the artifact. Will Orson be here soon?”
Claire came around the corner and took the dagger from me. “Yes. I told him I’d found the artifact that had been imbued with the Ubilaz demon’s magic and destroyed the magic. He’s agreed to come get the dagger.”
“Awesome.” The true point of inviting Orson to P & P was to see if he recognized me. If the blood spell had worked, he shouldn’t. Claire had emptied out the cafe so we’d be alone, just in case his memory hadn’t been wiped.
At that point, we’d have to deal with him.
“Have a seat, and I’ll bring you a drink.” She pointed toward the corner near the bar. Not my usual seat, but it would ensure that Orson saw me when he entered.
I sat, enjoying the fact that I didn’t have to shift to make a sword sheath fit comfortably. I’d figured out pretty quickly how to store my new blade in the ether and draw it whenever I needed. It meant that the talisman was always with me, but I didn’t need to carry it. And that meant no demons showing up randomly.
I pulled out my phone and began to idly scroll through it, waiting for Orson and trying to look relaxed. In reality, every muscle was tense.
“One mug of red wine.” Connor’s voice made me jerk my head up.
He grinned at me, holding the mug out in front of his usual obscure band T-shirt. Today, it was Alterbridge. Who the heck was Alterbridge?
“Thanks!” I reached up and took the mug.
He sat in the seat near mine and grinned. “I’ll keep you company while we wait. Nervous?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, we shouldn’t—”
The door opened behind him, cutting him off.
It was Orson, impeccably dressed as usual in a long black raincoat that had clearly been custom made. I stiffened slightly, then forced myself to relax and sip the wine Connor had brought me.
Connor, bless him, began to make inane conversation about Alterbridge while Orson stalked across the coffee shop.
His gaze passed briefly over me, and though it paused, it didn’t stick. My heart calmed slightly.
Claire came out of the back kitchen just as he reached the bar.
“Do you have it?” Orson demanded.
“Yes.” Claire pulled the dagger from underneath the counter where she’d stashed it and handed it over. “A mage helped me remove the spell. But the Ubilaz demon’s powers are gone for good now.”
Orson nodded. “Good. I can feel that there are no more disturbances in the demon power sphere. The Order of the Magica will be pleased. I should get a raise for this!”
I suppressed a scowl. If anyone should get a raise, it should be Claire. To her credit, she just nodded and smiled. She was used to her crappy boss.
I held my breath as Orson walked out of the coffee shop. He glanced at me one more time, but there was nothing more than disinterest in his gaze. As soon as he disappeared down the street, Claire came over.
“It worked,” she said with a smile.
“Yeah.” My shoulders loosened. “Thank fates.”
The door opened a moment later, and Cass and Aidan came in. Both looked vastly better than they had after we’d escaped the Underworld. Nix and Roarke followed almost immediately.
“You’re all punctual,” I said.
“You’re early,” Cass said.
“I was supposed to be.” Guiltily, I fessed up. “Claire and I arranged it so that Orson would come and pick up an artifact that was supposedly imbued with the Ubilaz demon’s power. We wanted to see if he recognized me.”
Roarke leaned down and kissed me briefly. My heart fluttered as he said, “He didn’t, I presume?”
“No. Thank magic.”
“Good!” Cass shook her finger. “But you’re an idiot for doing that without us!”
“I couldn’t let him know you were my accomplices if he did recognize me. You guys have already done enough.”
“Nah,” Nix said. “That little fight in hell was fun!”
“Fun. Right.” I grinned at her.
“We’re going to get some drinks,” Cass said. “Then you can tell us what the hell happened back there.”
While Claire got drinks for everyone, Connor hopped up and turned on some music. It was some obscure band I’d never heard of—maybe Alterbridge themselves—but that didn’t matter. I was so happy to be with everyone and have everything mostly back to normal that he could have played Gregorian chants and I’d have liked it.
Roarke was the first to join me, settling into the seat next to mine. He leaned over and kissed me briefly, sending my heart rate skyrocketing.
“How’re you doing?” he asked.
“Great. My magic feels totally in control. Like my whole body is in harmony.” I searched his handsome face, looking for any sign of the bruising he’d had yesterday. Those demons had done a number on everyone. “More importantly, how are you?”
“Good. All healed up.”
“Good.”
Cass plopped down in the seat next to me, a silver can of her horrible PBR clutched in her hand.
“So, spill,” she said.
Aidan sat next to her, and Nix joined us a moment later. Claire and Connor took the last two seats, rounding out our little private party nicely.
“Thanks for closing the cafe for this,” I said.
“No problem,” Claire said. “It’s usually a quiet night anyway. And I didn’t want anyone here when Orson came to get the dagger.”
“I’m so glad he’s off your tail,” Nix said. “Now tell us what happened back there.”
“Okay.” I sucked in a deep breath and told them about the tower room and the shadow. About having to make the right choice to prove I was worthy.
Once I’d finished, Cass asked, “So, you think by choosing us, you did the right thing, and that’s what made the sword blade appear?”
“Yeah,” I said. “I mean, it was a no-brainer. I’d love to know my parents and get some answers, but your lives were on the line. And you’re my family. I really think that if I went down those stairs, that I’d never have come back up. I’d never see you again.”
“Maybe that’s because of the shadow,” Roarke said. “Because if you ask me, that sounds a hell of a lot like a trap.”
I nodded, dread twisting my insides. “I think you’re right. And I think that shadow was what cursed me. But I didn’t kill it. It’s still out there.”
“But at least now you have control of your powers,” Nix said.
“And I’d bet big money you’re going to get a second crack at that shadow,” Cass added.
“Yeah.” I sat back, clutching my wine in both hands. “I just wish I knew what happened to Draka. I’m going to need her help.”
“You have our help,” Roarke said.
“And ours.” Claire grabbed her brother’s hand.
He grinned.
“Thanks, guys.”
Being surrounded by my friends—my family—was amazing. Having Roarke here made it even better.
I may have just obtained a bunch of crazy new powers, but at least now I could control them. I may not know what was in my past, but I had clues.
Best of all, I felt like I might actually have a shot at handling this Guardian thing. It’d scared me before—and if I was honest, it still scared me—but I could overcome that. With my friends at my back, anything was possible.
~~~