Page 29 of A Witch Out of Time
My heart ached for my Riders. For Asa, who’d lost so much. For Nox, who’s idolization of his father had been based on a lifetime of lies. For Tan, who truly believed Asa had chosen me over him. I had little experience with romantic relationships, but this situation of ours seemed exceptionally challenging, despite how fated it supposedly was. However, I was determined to fulfill my legacy with these men, and I knew that required the four of us to coexist as a powerful unit.
“Stopfuckingreading her mind,” Asa hissed, suddenly standing over Marena and pulsing with a threatening glow.
I blinked at him in confusion, but Marena guiltily winced and rose to address Asa. “I don’t mean any harm—it's a habit born of a deep need to problem-solve. My sight allows me to see things others can’t, including what one tries to hide from themselves.” She cocked her head at him with extreme interest. “If you would let me inside your head, I could find out what happened to you in Koschei’s lair. And learn how you ended up in the Water of Life.”
“Not a chance,” he growled, arms crossed and beautiful face transformed into the hardened mask I noticed all my Riders wore in dangerous situations.
Almost like they’ve been conditioned to lose their humanity...
“It’s all right, my Beautiful Sun,” I cooed, sitting up and shifting closer to Tan so Asa could take a seat on my other side. “I appreciated your protectiveness. However, I would be surprised if Marena had saved me all those years ago—had helped me return to the world of the living—only to harm me now.”
The goddess shot me a grateful smile, but backed away to continue our conversation, as if respecting Asa’s wishes for space. “Please, call me Rena. And I completely understand how defensive you get for each other’s well-being. I believe the powers you all possess work best when your connection with each other is strong and healthy, when you’re all physically safe. So it’s not just an emotional need to protect, but a matter of survival of the whole. Which is where your thoughts were going anyway, Vasi…” she trailed off, glancing at Asa warily.
I shot Nox a look as he moved closer. He’d attempted to convince Matthew not to separate us by claiming his power required our close proximity. While I suspected Nox only said that to protect me, I wondered if his father had already been aware of the truth when he agreed to it. As thankful as I was to be out of the horrid man’s presence, I regretted not taking advantage of his unsavory interest to uncover more about what he knew.
Marena had been watching me closely again, but her attention suddenly snapped to Nox. “Your father knows who Vasi truly is?” My Darkest Midnight simply frowned and crossed his massive arms across his chest, glaring enticingly. The goddess smiled broadly, whipping her gaze to Tan next before whistling low. “Impressive! Vasi, you should take lessons from these men on how to guard your mind. All three of them have locked me out completely!”
I rolled my eyes, decidedly unimpressed with their behavior. Regardless of whether my Riders trusted Veles and Marena implicitly, we could all agree we shared the same goal—saving my forest and the creatures who inhabited it.
“Well,Iam willing to share any information that may help further our cause so, yes, Matthew knew I was Vasilisa of the old legends. In fact, he could somehow see me in my true form…” Noticing Tan and Asa pulsing with angry auras, I cautiously continued. “He also claimed that I was rightfully his...”
Unsurprisingly, I immediately found myself awkwardly sandwiched between my Dawn and Sun as they both growled reminders that I belonged to them.
“Yes, yes, so I’ve heard,” I waved off their declarations with feigned annoyance, although the blood in my veins was purring like a satisfied cat. Neither moved away, which was fine by me, since I wanted nothing more than to feel both men against my skin.
Naked would be preferred.
Marena was frowning at me, all earlier cheerfulness erased. “Hmm, we should probably keep this little tidbit about Nox’s father a secret from Veles. It would be just the thing to set him off since he already has issues with that particular mortal.”
It was Nox’s turn to interrogate. “How does Veles know my father? Did they have something to do with my grandmother…” he abruptly stopped, swallowing his words and I held my breath, bracing myself for Marena’s answer, claws twitching beneath the surface.
If Matthew is responsible for his grandmother’s death as well…
But the goddess only sadly shook her head. “No, Nox. Yourbabawas killed for the same reason so many of her kind were. Ignorant human superstition.” She then paused for a moment, as if in respect of his grandmother’s memory, before continuing. “Truthfully, I only know that Veles has had your father in his sights for a very long time. It wouldn’t surprise me if whatever happened between them is why Vel has always been so interested inyou.”
I scowled as Nox schooled his expression into an impenetrable mask and noticeably avoided my gaze. Amidst all the excitement, I’d completely forgotten to continue questioning him about whathisconnection to the god of the underworld was.
“One problematic man at a time, Vasi,” Marena chuckled, and I begrudgingly allowed Nox to escape my wrath—for now. “And in the interest of problem-solving,” she smiled with a fierce glint in her green eyes. “Let’s focus on how to remove Koschei’s death from Asa.”
Chapter 24
Vasilisa
Iraised a hand to shield my eyes against the harsh orange sunlight, trying to determine which direction we should travel over the rolling fields. As Veles was mysteriously absent the night before, we’d dined with Marena alone, which gave her free rein to share her theories on how to save Asa. She strongly believed if we could locate a “blessing” somehow related to my past, it would be enough to rid him of Koschei’s death. While the goddess spoke more plainly than most deities, I still wasn’t entirely sure I understood what I was looking for.
Especially with the cryptic directions we were given...
“Soooo, Vasi, tell me what the plan is again, ya?” Tan grinned, adjusting his various packs in preparation for our journey. “And feel free to explain it to me like I’m five, because honestly, I didn’t understand a single thing Rena was saying.”
Nox blew out a puff of air. “Thankfuck. I thought I was the only idiot here who didn’t know what she meant by maidens and crones and following your inner knowing or whatever the hell she was babbling about.”
Asa walked over to Tan to assist with tightening a strap on his back, almost as if it were an automatic part of their usual routine. My Beautiful Sun stepped back to check his work before blushing slightly and clearing his throat, as if realizing he’d overstepped.
“I think I understand what Marena meant by ‘intuitive nudges’” He scratched the back of his neck self-consciously as the other men waited expectantly. “I’ve been noticing these...gut feelings lately, and it seems that when I follow them without thinking too hard about it, I end up heading in the right direction.”
I was proud to see the others carefully considering what Asa had said as we walked, instead of their usual playful teasing. I’d received extensive training from the last Yaga on how to access my intuition through source—that intangible wellspring that connected me to the earth’s energies. However, I was unsure how to instruct others, especially humanmen.
Inner knowing wasn’t inherently a female trait, but it required a certain level of connection with your feminine side. My Riders were three extremely masculine specimens who’d clearly been conditioned to behave that way, although they softened a bit with me, especially Asa. I wasn’t surprised he’d tuned in first, especially with how close he’d been with his own mother.
