Page 23 of Witch Unexpected
“I need to call Fee.”
Elijah met my eyes in the rearview mirror. “You can use my phone. Bramble, it’s in the glove compartment. Pass it to Cora, please.”
God, how could he be so fucking calm? Heck, why was I surprised? This was Elijah. Collected, in control, Elijah. Enigmatic, powerful, and my unofficial mentor, he didn’t get ruffled easily. Still, the darkness lingering in his eyes told me he wasn’t as chill as he was making out.
Bramble retrieved the phone and handed it to me. “Sorry, all right. I was tryna protect ya.” She sounded almost sheepish.
I hadn’t gotten a good look at her until now. She was young, teenage young, and we all knew how impulsive the young could be.
My anger melted. “I get it. It’s fine. I needed a new one anyway.”
She looked surprised, and then she grinned. “Right? It was kinda shoddy.”
“Don’t push it.”
I dialed Fee, and she picked up on the third ring.
“Hello?” There was a wary tone to her voice.
“Fee, it’s me.”
“Cora, what the fuck? What happened? Your house… The windows. Where are you?”
“I’m fine. Honestly, Fee. I’m not hurt. I’m safe.”
“You lied to me.”
Yep, she’d switched from concern to being pissed off.
“Hey, I didn’t know I’d be attacked.”
“I could have been there.” And she was upset now. Upset that I’d left her out.
I sighed. “I know, but Fee, you can’t always be there for me. There are some things I need to do for myself. Just like there’s stuff you need to do yourself.”
She took a shuddering breath. “I get it, Cor. I get you need to find yourself, but you can’t do that if you’re dead. Please, don’t shut me out.”
“I’m not. I won’t. I just… I need to do this alone.” I locked eyes with Elijah in the rearview mirror.
“What is this thing you need to do? Cora, where are you, babe?”
“I’m with Elijah Black.”
“This is about the Grimswood Coven, isn’t it?” she said.
“Yeah.”
“I can come with you.”
“I know you can, babe, and I’d love to have you here, but my gut tells me I need to do this solo. I got this.”
“I love you, Cor.” She sounded almost resigned about that fact.
“Love you, too. I’ll call you once I’m settled.” I hung up but didn’t hand Elijah his phone back. Instead, I caught his eye in the rearview again. “Now, tell me exactly what the fuck I’ve been propelled into.”
* * *
We’d slippedonto a narrow road with hedgerows rising up on either side and only moonlight to illuminate the way, but it didn’t seem to bother Elijah. He drove confidently, as if he could see exactly what was around each bend.
