Page 50 of Whiskey & Witches

CHAPTER19

Sabrina was different from any other child Aeden had ever met. More likehim. Like maybe she could speak to Anu, too. And as weird as it made him feel, he wanted to be Sabrina’s friend. With no little fear in his heart, he left the protection of Da and Mam and walked to where she stood next to her father.

If the Aether could read thoughts like he’d told Da, then maybe he could understand what Aeden needed without him having to struggle to say it.

When he was next to Sabrina, she held out her hand, and without any hesitation, he took it. Aeden didn’t really like girls, couldn’t say if they were pretty or not; they weregirlsand irritating most days. But with her strange dark eyes and black hair, she was pretty in the way his mam had once been, in the way that she stood out from all the others. He wanted to stare at her forever. Wanted to feel the warmth from her magical light every day.

She looked up at her da. “Papa, I think he wants you to fix his throat.”

Afraid to ask for what he really wanted, Aeden dropped his eyes to the floor.

The Aether knelt in front of him and tipped up his chin. “Is that true, Aeden?”

“Can you truly read minds?”he asked silently.

“Yes, I really can.” When the Aether smiled, all Aeden’s fear disappeared, and he wanted to fling himself in the man’s arms like he did with Da when he needed a hug.

“Does it drain your magic to help people, like it does Mam’s?”

“No. Mine is unlimited, for the most part.”

“Will you make Mam’s pain go away?”

“And what about you?”

Aeden shrugged. He felt he was being selfish asking anything for himself when Mam needed help the most. His throat didn’t hurt unless he tried to speak.

Once again, the Aether smiled, settling a hand on Aeden’s shoulder. “It speaks well of you that you want me to help your mother first.”

Mam gasped. “No! I—”

The Aether turned his easy smile on her. “No need to fear, Mrs. O’Malley. All will be well. I’ll see to it.” He rose to his feet and trailed a finger down Sabrina’s upturned nose. “Why don’t you take Aeden to your room and show him your toys? I need to speak with his parents and Ronan.”

A pout formed on her mouth, but her father lifted a brow and gave her a don’t-even-think-about-it look. The same kind Mam had always given Aeden when he was about to argue a point.

“But—”

“Beastie, there will be no debate. Go on now.”

She huffed out a breath and was a little rough when she grabbed Aeden’s hand. “Come on.”

Looking to his parents for permission, he halted Sabrina’s forward movement.

“It’s okay, Aeden,” Da said. “I’ll come get you in a bit.”

He smiled at Da and allowed Sabrina to lead him from the room.

Once they were in the main hallway, she put her finger to her lips and gestured to the front door. “Papa doesn’t like me to go outside when he’s not watching, but he worries too much. I want to show you the bird’s nest I found.”

Because Aeden couldn’t see why it would be wrong to look at a nest, he silently agreed and followed her outside.

* * *

As the childrenleft the terrace, Moira smiled. Recently, she’d blackmailed an ex-lover into putting a trace on Ronan’s phone, so she always knew where he was. It allowed her to be on par with him instead of always one step behind. She didn’t dare set foot on the Aether’s land. She didn’t want to alert him to her presence, but she could certainly scry and attach the magic to Ronan, so no one knew she was watching.

She’d only seen the Aether one time, but the man certainly made an impression, and the girl looked exactly like him in miniature form. There was no mistaking the child was his. Rumor had it, if you could kill an Aether, you could capture their abilities for your own.

The girl might not be as powerful as her father, but hers would be enough for Moira to defeat Ronan when the time came. And she hoped it came soon. She was tired of his orders and stupid rules. No war on women and children, pfft!Fool!

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