Page 13 of Destiny of the Witch

He blinked. ‘I can honestly say I didn’t expect that.’

‘It’s an undercover circus,’ I explained. ‘Everyone there is Other, but they live and exist in the Common realm, hidden from their enemies and – or – the Connection. A few witches and seers know about it and help direct people in danger there. The ringmaster either settles them into circus life or helps them start a Common life somewhere while they’re moving up and down the country. There are whole pockets of hidden Other-realm communities content to stay away from magic if it means they keep their lives. That’s where I hid Ria and Meredith. At the circus.’

His expression cleared. ‘And now?’

I sighed, my shoulders tight with stress and tension. Worry for Meredith coiled in my gut. Worry, and guilt. I’d promised that she’d be safe at the circus. ‘And now the evil witches have found them. So we’re off to theLiverpool Arena.’

He stood. ‘10-4. I’ll get the others on standby. Can you pack your bags and be ready to move out in five?’

I loved it when Bastion used military lingo – and he knew it. I suspected he was trying to distract me from that little kick of guilt he’d no doubt felt through our bond. That made my heart melt a little too. Damn, but the man was the complete package: considerate and sexy. None of that showed on my face, however, and I nodded calmly. ‘I’ll just grab some of the rarer healing potions. Cain didn’t specify what I’d be dealing with, only that Meredith had been attacked but was still alive.’

As I went to pass him, he thrust out an arm and caught me around the waist. I squeaked as he pulled me close. ‘Bastion! We’re in a hurry!’ I protested. I could read the intention in his eyes, and the intention was salacious.

His eyes were dark. ‘There’s always time for us, Bambi.’ He leaned down and kissed me like we might never get another moment alone together. His lips were firm and unyielding, and his tongue slid into my mouth like he was conquering me. In seconds he had fanned a wisp of desire into a full-blown roar.

When he pulled back, his eyes were satisfied. ‘Much better,’ he purred. ‘Go pack. We’ll finish this later.’

I tried toget my synapses to fire but he’d short-circuited them. There had been a time when I’d thought nothing and nobody could boss me around, not even my baser instincts. How things had changed. It turned out I was quite happy for my primal urges to rule me sometimes.

‘Healing potions,’ Bastion prompted with a smug smile, pushing me towards the fridge.

Right. Meredith. Healing potions. I consider myself an intelligent, cerebral woman, so it still amazed me that Bastion somehow knew how to shut down my overthinking brain and connect to my more improper impulses. Impulses I’d never really had a chance to explore properly. But now was not the time to dig into them.

Meredith,I reminded myself and kicked my bum into gear. I grabbed a bunch of healing potions, including some Whole Remedy, the leftover brain swelling potion and an incredibly strong burn salve. I didn’t know what ailed Meredith, so I had to be prepared for as many eventualities as possible.

It was time to save Meredith. And then it was time to find whoever had harmed her and make them regret it for the few fleeting seconds of life that Bastion allowed them before he put an end to them. Permanently.

Chapter 8

I knew the Other circus almost as well as I knew my own Coven tower. Every month I painted complex warding runes into each caravan, which meant that over the years I’d frequently met the occupants.

For most of them, I was their sole connection to the Other realm, a way to get news and gossip about what was happening in the magical world that they’d forsaken. I was a bit of a celebrity, which wasn’t a feeling I enjoyed. I’m not a gossipmonger, though I tried to dredge some up for the circus occupants. Sometimes they needed – and deserved – a slice of normal life.

The previous month I’d let Hannah Lions accompany me to the circus to help with the warding, and now Meredith had been attacked. That, together with Hannah’s name being on the Coven Council’s list, put Hannah slap bang at the top of my suspects’ list. The thoughtmade me feel rather ill. Hannah was hard working and conscientious, and I saw a lot of myself in her. But maybe hard work was too much and she’d taken shortcuts. Maybe blood work had turned to pain work, and pain work had turned her to the dark side. Maybe she was an evil witch.

I hated the thought but it buzzed loudly in my brain for the whole journey. I even logged onto the Coven systems to check where she was. It noted her as having an allotted day off yesterday and today.

Witches don’t work a Monday to Friday week. We have a rolling schedule that ensures we have coverage twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. The attack had fallen on Hannah’s two days off. A smart evil witch would have done it on her working days and manufactured some fake jobs to give a concrete alibi. Perhaps Hannah wasn’t as smart as I thought, or maybe she really wasn’t evil.

Though my brain was stuck on the latter, I would not ignore the facts because I didn’t like them. In life we all have to face facts that challenge our beliefs, and I was determined not to be wilfully ignorant. But dammit, I really didn’t want Hannah to be the culprit.

I strode confidently towards Cain’s black caravan; it was top of the line, his one indulgence as ringmaster. That waswhere he would help anyone who was injured or upset, so no doubt I would find Meredith there.

Stu caught sight of me. ‘Amber’s here!’ he yelled loudly. He looked behind me and blanched when he saw Bastion and Benji on my heels, then gaped as he caught sight of Frogmatch riding shotgun on the golem’s shoulder. Oscar stayed in the car, protecting the vehicle from tampering and ensuring we could make a quick getaway should one be needed. ‘She’s brought allies!’ he called.

‘Yes, thank you, Stu,’ I chastened. ‘No need to announce the colour of my knickers as well.’

He blushed. ‘Sorry, Miss Amber. We’ve been worried. Mere is in a bad way.’

I quickened my pace then launched myself up the caravan steps, knocked once and let myself in. Ria looked up as I entered. Her blue eyes were red-rimmed and her flaxen hair was loose around her shoulders in total disarray as if she couldn’t stop carding her fingers through it. She was sitting next to Cain and his arm was tucked around her.

Cain’s face was lightly lined and he had a sprinkle of silver in his dark hair, but he was still devastatingly handsome. His eyes were tired but he still held himself with purpose.

‘Clark,’ Bastion said in surprise.

Clark Farrier – now known as Cain Stilwell – gave Bastion a small nod. ‘Bastion. I trust I can rely on your discretion, not just about my death but about the whole circus.’

‘Yes, of course. I give you my word that no one will learn of it from me.’

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