Page 11 of Witch's Betrayal
"For?" I blinked.
"That apology." He leaned back, easing his lithe body into the chair. "You said you owe me one, spouted your ass-kissing bullshit so you won't get in trouble with the elders, now I'm waiting for what you owe me."
My hand at my side clenched into a fist. No matter what I'd do, this smug bastard wasn't going to take it easy on me. I had a feeling our lessons would go much the same way.
"I'm sorry," I spat after a long silence. "For being a jerk to you."
He dipped his chin in a nod and sat up, reaching forward to accept my hand. The moment his fingers touched mine, my body felt like it experienced a power outage.
My vision darkened until it went black. Sounds and smell faded to nothing. It was like the dreams I had before my memories returned, surrounded by impenetrable blackness. But this was even scarier because my other senses felt cut off. My heart crashed against my sternum and I had enough time to think one panicked thought.What's happening?
And just as suddenly, it all came back.
Seth stood before me with a smug look, clasping my hand. Crickets chirped in the brush surrounding us and the cool, dewy night air kissed my skin. Distantly, a raven cawed.
"Apology accepted." Seth pulled his hand away, revealing a full-on smirk as I stood blinking dumbly. "So three lovers, huh? I knew you had a freaky side."
"What was that?" I demanded, staring at my hand like it betrayed me. "What did you do? How do you know that?"
"I read your shadows," he said casually. "Rule number one of shadow work and magic in general-- not everything is literal. Everything in the physical world casts a shadow. The same goes for the metaphysical and the intangible. Normal humans refer to them as secrets and the subconscious."
"You can read my mind just from touching me?"
"No. I have no way of knowing what you're thinking or feeling. My magic searches for what's hidden." His smirk grew. "I find out what you don't want people to know."
My heart jumped into my throat. How much had he seen?
"Sometimes," he growled softly, leaning even closer to me. "I see things you don't even know about yourself."
"Great," I muttered, trying to keep my panic from showing as I folded my arms across my chest. I was well-dressed against the cold but felt naked and exposed in light of his ability. "So what else did you learn about my three lovers?"
"Not much," he admitted with a small shrug. "Your shadows are deep and incredibly dark. You have more hidden away than most people I've touched." He tilted his head like a curious animal. It almost would have been cute if he didn't piss me off so much. "Rough childhood, babe?" he mocked. "Did Daddy hurt you?"
"Okay, you know what." I backed away, holding my hands up. "I'm this close to calling off our truce and taking back my apology. You don't get to be an asshole just because I swallowed my pride and gave this a chance."
"You want to learn shadow magic or not?" he challenged. "You want to learn your true self and protect your mind? Or leave it vulnerable for dark witches and incubi to fuck around with until there's nothing left? What good is your earth magic if you don't know your thumbs from your asshole, let alone unable to cast it again?"
A long, tense pause passed between us.
"This is personal to you, isn't it?" I asked, my voice low. "You feel responsible for protecting people in the coven?"
He shrugged, trying to look nonchalant but I could see the tension in his brow.
"I'm the only one that can, really." The arrogance was gone from his tone. He was telling me the simple truth. "I've seen horrors you wouldn't believe. You think humans are capable of atrocities? That's nothing compared to those with powers like ours."
I bit my tongue, fighting the urge to tell him I'd seen plenty of exactly what he was talking about, and across hundreds of lifetimes. The chance was good that my three lovers coordinated such violence. To maintain balance, it was necessary.
"So the reason why you're such an asshole is because you can't be a superhero?" It was my turn to mock him. "You can't save us all, so you have to resort to teaching people how to save themselves."
He stood abruptly but didn't rise to my bait. Towering over me, his chest just inches away from my face, he flung a hand out toward the house.
"Feel free to walk away," he sneered. "Like I said, I won't waste my time with someone not willing to learn."
I sucked in a breath, not willing to go through that door a second time.
"I'm willing to learn as long as you keep the assholery to a minimum," I said. "If I have to behave, so do you."
He cocked his head to the side again, scratching the stubble on his chin thoughtfully.
