Page 55 of Incubus with Benefits
They led me out through a side door, past a hallway that smelled like burnt coffee and old filing cabinets. Gina was waiting for me, leaning against the wall, arms crossed, her expression unreadable.
She pushed off the wall and walked toward me. “You owe me big time,” she said.
“Don’t I always,” I replied, stepping forward with the clunky anti-magic ankle monitor. It felt like cold iron laced with static. “Thanks for coming.”
I followed her toward the exit, the weight of the restraint already making me feel slower, heavier. But I was out. And that meant I still had a chance to fix this before they made me the villain in their story.
The first thing I noticed when I stepped into my apartment was that Lily was gone, and so was Shadow.
“Before you ask, Lily’s staying with her friend,” Gina said, leaning arms-crossed against my counter. “The one who lives above the coffee shop.”
I nodded, suddenly overwhelmed by how empty my place felt without her and her little black cat. But I hadn’t expected her to stay, had I? She didn’t live here.
Gina rolled her eyes. “You look like a lovesick fool. How about this, I’ll keep an eye out on your little witch until crap is over. And you start figuring out how to get out and disappear if shit keeps going sideways and we can’t clear your name.”
She pointed to a laptop I’d never seen before sitting on my coffee table. “That right there is protected seven ways to Sunday with both magic and technology. You can search whatever the fuck you want on there and no one will know. Oh, and Lily removed any cameras they might use to spy on you. Just don’t use your regular devices. They got that shit on lockdown while you’re on house arrest.
“Thank you, Gina. I really do owe you one.”
“Of course you do.” Her look turned sly. “And you know what. I won’t even seduce your witch… unless she wants me to.” Then she was gone in a puff of jasmine-and-sandalwood-scented smoke.
Her words had me thinking of that night with Lily’s friends.
The silence that followed was heavy. I moved through my home, unsure what I was even looking for until I saw my robe tossed over the back of the couch. The one Lily wore so often it still smelled like her.
I tried to blink away the pair of jeans and fitted T-shirt I’d formed around myself earlier so that I could throw the robe on without them, and found that I couldn’t. Fuck this wretched anti-magic device. I threw the robe on top. Technically the clothes didn’t really exist anyway because they were just a part of me. But it still sucked that I’d be stuck wearing the same outfit from now until who knew when.
A soft, insistent pawing at the balcony door caught my attention. I frowned and walked over. There, pressed against the glass,was Shadow, her sleek black body silhouetted against the muted glow of the setting sun.
The moment I slid the door open, she strolled in like she owned the place, rubbing up against my legs with a low purr.
“How did you get here?” I murmured, crouching down. Lily wouldn’t have left her behind. But then again, Shadow had been an outdoor cat before, and Lily's small apartment probably cramped her style. Had she come back to check on me? Or had she claimed my rooftop as her turf? Either way, it was quite a distance to cover to get here.
She stepped back outside onto the balcony, then headed up the stairs. I followed her to the rooftop and sat on the bench, watching as she began digging around in the flowerbeds. As she did, I took in the mess around me. Maybe it was time to finally fix this up and get some cat-friendly plants in and more places for her to explore.
Deep inside, I knew that I was doing this only because I wanted Shadow back here more often. Currently, she was my only link to Lily.
After a while, Shadow sauntered up for one last scratch behind the ears before trotting down the stairs to the lower balcony. By the time I got there, she’d already leaped onto the light post, then over to the fence. With one last look over at me, she sashayed away like she had somewhere better to be.
And considering she was probably heading back home to Lily, I had to agree.
Iglaredattheinfernal contraption strapped to my ankle, wishing I could tear the thing off and send it to the ninth ring of hell where it belonged.
Centuries. I’d spent literal centuries roaming this earth, avoiding every wizard, warlock, and wannabe sorcerer who thought they could bind me. I’d never been bound by anything.
Until now.
This thing was basically a jail cell for demons. I couldn’t phase. Couldn’t shift. Couldn’t even pop through a damn wall. I had to walk. Like a normal fucking person. With my feet.
I hated it. It was insulting and humiliating.
It had only been two damn days of wearing it, and I was losing my fucking mind. It didn’t help that I wasn’t allowed out of my house. And I had to rely on Gina to bring me everything.
To make things worse, I couldn’t even call Lily because I was forbidden to contact any known witches. They were allowed to contact me, though, so I kept looking at my phone like a lovesick loser hoping she’d call. She never did.
And even though Gina had explained that it was because she worried they’d use further contact with known witches against me, it didn’t make it any easier.
I wanted her here. I wanted her in my home, waking in my bed. I wanted her where I could see her, talk to her, touch her. But what was I supposed to do? Break my bail conditions and beg her to come back? That bordered on crazy, and with suspicion already circling me like vultures, I couldn’t afford to add more fuel to the fire.
