Page 77 of Witch Untold
“Cora, this is Mel from Magiguard HQ.”
A prickle of unease skated up my spine. “Hi, Mel, is everything okay? I’ve been trying to get hold of Ursula all day.”
“Ursula is on a mission right now, but she left me your number so I could contact you about Sloane and Wren. We’ve administered a modified version of Pire X to Sloane and are monitoring her. We’ll know more in a few hours, but it looks positive. If it works, she should be infection free in twenty-four hours.”
I exhaled in relief. “Thank you, and Wren?”
“We’re running a few more tests. I’ve come up with an inhibitor that could stop him from morphing.” She sounded excited. “You can administer it once a month.”
“And what does Wren think about that?”
“Excuse me?”
“The inhibitor? What does Wren think about it? Does he want to be inhibited?”
“I…well, I never asked.”
Fucksake. Typical. “Why not?”
“I don’t…I guess I didn’t think…”
Yeah, a common mistake with a lot of people. “Wren may look like a cute little teddy, but he’s a person perfectly capable of telling us what he wants. Morphing is a part of him. I won’t take that away from him unless that’s what he wants me to do.”
Mel was silent for a long beat. “Okay. We can discuss this when you pick him up tomorrow.”
“I’ll be there bright and early.”
“Foyer, please,” Mel said quickly.
“Yeah, I know. No security breach.”
“Look, Wren isn’t dangerous right now, but that could change; we don’t know. So it might be worthwhile keeping an eye on him, maybe bring him back in a couple of weeks so we can run a few more tests to make sure everything is still stable.”
“Sure, I can do that. Can I speak to Wren?”
“He’s asleep right now, but I can wake him if you want?”
“No, that’s fine. I’ll see him in the morning.”
I hung up and tucked the phone back into my pocket.
“All good?” Lauris asked.
“Yeah.”
“Good, because we’re here.” He brought the car to a halt.
Bramble peered out the front passenger window. “Shit, Lauris, where exactly is here?”
I shifted across the back seat to look out the window on Bramble’s side. An alley glared back at us, dark and forbidding, and townhouses rose up on either side of it. The street was wreathed in an icy mist that clung to the yellow light of the lampposts like ethereal smoke rings.
Lauris killed the engine and got out. “Come on. Follow me.”
He led us across the road and up the path to the house to the left of the alley. I expected him to knock but instead he pulled a key from his pocket.
“Is this where she lives?” Bramble asked. “Why do you have a key to her house?”
Was that a hint of jealousy in the pixie’s tone?
