Page 40 of Madness of Her Mages

I palmed my hot mug, my spine stiffening. “The same reason you refused to come with us when we told you Mortimus had been attacked—we don’t trust each other.”

Her shoulders fell as she gave me the same look my mother used to give me whenever I’d sneak the berries she’d been saving for her jam. “I wonder if we’ll ever be able to trust one another.”

“I hope so.” I swallowed my unease. “More demons will come, and we will have to work together if we’re going to stop them.”

Her gaze centered on me, and for a moment, it felt as if we were the only two Fae on that mountain. “A witch gets her strength from love.” She frowned, stroking her horse’s snout. “I lost my mother and aunts and grandmother. Then I lost my twin. Mortimus is my only source of love.” Her eyes watered as she looked lovingly at her horse. “Those demons weren’t just trying to harm my stallion. They were trying to destroy me.” She wiped her eyes with the back of her hands. “Thank you for saving him.”

The moisture suddenly evaporated from my mouth, and I had to work hard to push out the words. “You’re welcome, Aunt.” I wondered why Malvolia would be so vulnerable in front of me. Did she finally trust me, or was she so confident in her powers that she didn’t consider me a threat?

Once the mages and witches were all lined up, Malvolia eyed them while whispering, “I’ve never dealt with demons. I don’t know where to begin. I know that those who require a human host are harder to detect. They are the naraka, the succubi.”

Naraka? I’d never heard of those kinds of demons before. Then again, until recently, I thought all demons had been banished to hell. Turning up my chin, I summoned a courage I didn’t feel. “I will force them to talk.”

Malvolia arched a brow. “Are you strong enough?”

I resisted the urge to laugh in her face. “I will have to be.”

I took Nikkos’s hand and slowly stood on shaky legs. “Stay put,” I mouthed to the girls. They nodded while clinging to each other. Ugh. It was as I’d feared. They were traumatized. I would have to work on soothing them later. For now, I had a demon to expose. I clung to Nikkos, warmth from his hand infusing into my skin, summoning the last of my strength from deep withinmy reserves, and was met with barely lit embers that stirred within my empty well of magic.

Nikkos squeezed my hand, his voice projecting into my head.I love you.

His admission of love sent a surge of magic racing through my veins. His love was exactly what I needed to regain my strength.

I love you, too. Leaning up on my toes, I kissed his cheek, then laughed when he turned his mouth into mine and kissed me, his soft lips melding against mine, making my magic pulse like a living thing.

I reluctantly broke the kiss when Malvolia cleared her throat. He stroked the side of my face while waggling his brows.There will be more of that later.

I bit my lip.Hope so.Infused with new strength, I turned to the line of Fae as they gave me wary stares. No doubt, they didn’t trust me. I was the daughter of the enemy, after all. Drae and Blaze took positions on either side of me, reminding me that I was not alone. They weren’t just my mates, they were my protectors and my support, and I was so grateful they were mine.

I sucked in a deep breath and shook nervous energy out of my hands before unleashing my siren voice. “Mages and witches, with the exception of my family,” I boomed, my siren voice flowing through me less like a raging river and more like a cresting wave, “line up in front of me.”

Drae and Blaze walked ahead of me, their hawkish gazes sweeping the crowd. Nikkos held onto my elbow as we followed Drae and Blaze down the line, looking at the lot of Malvolia’s mages and witches, all staring back at me with the exception of one squirrelly-looking, pale mage with a wingspan that was about half the width of my mates’ wings. He also wore an eye patch and a stained apron.

The cook,Drae projected, nodding toward the very large butcher’s blade he held in one hand.I’ll handle him.

I grabbed Drae’s arm.No,I said through thought.I’ve got it.

Drae nodded and stepped back, smoke rings rising from his hands as he snarled at the cook.

“Drop the blade,” I said to the cook, my words punctured by urgency.

He released the blade with a snarl, and it clanked on the rocks by his feet.

Nikkos and Drae growled at him.

Blaze quickly snatched up the blade, turning it over in his hands. “Disrespect my mate again, and I’ll use this to cut out your tongue,” he said with a sneer.

The cook blanched, but not before I saw a flash of bright red in his eyes.

I think he’s a demon,I projected to them.

Time to find out,Drae answered back.

I smoothed my hands down my skirts, swallowing back my fear. “Come forward if you are demon possessed.”

No surprise the cook came forward. Thankfully, the rest of Malvolia’s mages and witches stayed put.

Malvolia walked up behind me, Mortimus’s fanged snout hanging precariously over my shoulder. I feared the monster horse would try to attack the demon and snap off my head by mistake.

---