Page 77 of The Guardian's Curse

By the time alarm rang to make Alistair’s breakfast, she had accomplished nothing but making herself angry at her inability to figure this out. She stomped into the kitchen. The harsh LED inside the fridge made her wince, and she actually missed on her attempt to grab the blood bag. Everything was blurry and moving, as if she was staring at it through water.

It had to be magic overload. She simply wasn’t accustomed to this kind of heavy work. One of the first things she’d learned in her adept training was the importance of rest and being mindful of her body and its limitations. An exhausted witch was not only ineffective, but dangerous. There was a good reason she’d told Eduardo her work here could take weeks.

She gritted her teeth and leaned in close to the fridge, getting so close that her nose nearly bumped the shelf. Guiding herself with her hands along the counter and the shelves, she managed to get out the double boiler and begin preparing Alistair’s meal.

The water had just begun to boil when her phone rang. “Hey, it’s me,” Ruby said. “I can’t come in the gate.”

Shoshanna hurried to the front door and pushed the button on the keypad to open the security gate. A few minutes later, Ruby’s little red car pulled up to the small porch. Her glossy black ponytail swung as she bounced up to the house. Her eyes lit up, and she came in hot for a hug. “Uh, you failed to mention that you were living in a mansion.”

“It’s pretty nice,” she admitted, leaning into the hug. Maybe it was best friend mojo or something about Ruby’s magic, but her hugs were the best around. The savory smell of fried noodles smacked into Shoshanna as Ruby followed her into the house. “Did you cook?”

“I love you but not that much,” Ruby said. “Auntie K was cooking so I stopped by to get us something to eat. She says hello and to come over soon so she can find you a boyfriend.” Ruby raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t tell her about Hottie McFangs.”

Shoshanna laughed. “Thanks.”

Ruby nodded. “That was as much for me as for you. I didn’t want to be there all night explaining why a pretty witch like you was shacking up with a bloodsucking undead monster,” she said. “That would be her reaction, I’m assuming. Anyway, you should eat before you drink this tea or it’ll make you puke.” She froze as they walked into the kitchen. “Hi.”

Alistair stood at the end of the stone island, his face in shadow. “Who are you?”

“Oh!” Shoshanna exclaimed. “This is my best friend, Ruby Wang.” She gestured to Alistair. “This is Alistair Thorne.”

Ruby gave him a stern look, which was no doubt matched as Alistair gave her an appraising look. Though she couldn’t see his eyes, there was no mistaking the way his head dipped and rose again.

“I wasn’t aware we expected guests,” he said mildly.

“I had a bad headache,” Shoshanna said. “Ruby is a top-notch green witch. The Wangs are the best in Atlanta.”

“Did you tell anyone where you were going?” Alistair said.

Clearly unfazed by Alistair, she said, “Yeah, I put an ad on Facebook and invited everyone I know for a sex party. I hope that’s not a problem.” She rolled her eyes and set the bag on the countertop. “I’m not an idiot.”

While Ruby took out plastic dishes stuffed with homemade food, Shoshanna brushed past her to get to the cabinet. Her fingers slid off the closest glass, and it toppled onto the hardwood floor. Glass shattered, and she jumped out of the way. “Shit!”

“Let me get it. You sit and eat,” Ruby said.

“There’s a broom in the closet around the corner,” Shoshanna said, fumbling for another glass. Alistair gently pushed her out of the way and took the glass. But he set it aside, ignoring his meal.

His cool hand tipped up her chin. “What’s wrong? Your heart rate is elevated, and your pupils are dilated.”

She shrugged. “I started working on Lucia’s curse, and it didn’t go well. I just overdid it a little, that’s all.”

“Armina was extremely powerful. You must be careful.” He squeezed her arm gently. “Can you trust this friend?”

“She’s my best friend,” Shoshanna said. “I trust her more than anyone I know.”

He hesitated, then gently took her arm and guided her away from the glass and onto one of the barstools. A minute later, Ruby returned and swept up the broken glass. Shoshanna watched with dread turning in her stomach. She couldn’t see the pieces of glass, even as she heard them scraping against the tile. It had to be this headache. In the past, she’d had ocular migraines that caused pulsing auras in her vision.

When Ruby was done, she found plates and dished out a massive pile of thin fried noodles with vegetables. It smelled heavenly. She glanced at Alistair. “You don’t eat, right?”

“Correct,” he said coolly.

Ruby nodded. “Good. You can find me a teapot while we eat.”

Shoshanna wished she could see the expression on his face at being ordered around, but the little huff was satisfying in itself. While he got up to follow Ruby’s orders, Shoshanna took a pair of chopsticks and ate a tangled knot of noodles. The burst of flavor made her swoon. Much better than the quick salads she’d been eating between work sessions. “This curse is serious,” she said. “I thought I could just untangle it like a normal sigil, but it’s really strong.”

“Makes sense,” Ruby said. “And it’s old, yeah?”

Shoshanna nodded. “Is there some way I can...God, this sounds stupid. Can I power myself up somehow? I grabbed one of the threads and it just about knocked me out.”

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