Page 25 of Wolf Trap

That was the thing with Austin: love him or loathe him. He was scatty sometimes. So I went from anxiety, guilt, to relief back to anxiety again…

I plonked down on his sofa next to him.

“But you said Lucius and Emma, she’s a-”

“Yes, he’s a demon, but she’s part mage and part shifter. Plus, maybe they have had problems. It’s just we don’t know. I wonder if it did upset the balance of magic when they stayed together? Best to be sure, eh? Before you get in too deep?”

Great!

I didn’t tell him about her connection to Adara, or how vehemently she’d stressed out about the whole situation. It had unnerved me obviously, but my mum was always prone to overreact. A small trickle of doubt tried to stick in my mind, but no...

I asked, “Did Lycaon take a phone?”

“No, not in the end. He’s at Marrock’s though.”

So I couldn’t contact him, either.

“I’m not asking Marrock where Lycaon is. Ugh, that’d be like checking up on him. This day is getting worse and worse.”

Austin put his laptop down and reached over to me.

“I know how you’re feeling. I’m a mage. Been there. But some space is exactly what I’m ordering for you. And actually, it could take the heat off you, as well.”

“I still need to cast a spell for Loren’s soul.”

“We can do that. I think.” He rubbed his chin. “I think it would be a good idea to text your mum. Better yet, I’ll do it. Now. I’ll say thank you for recommending me. Elsa and I are discussing it now. That way, Adara will be off your back for a time, at least. Then we can do the spells and see what we can find out about this spooky secret society?”

“You’re a gem, do you know that?”

His face flushed red as his grin widened. “I’m husband material. That’s me. And the Academy, I’d never thought. I wonder if Anthony would be their godfather? Hey kids, here’s your godfather, the King of Hell, no less!”

“Or Lucifer?”

“You see, we’re a team!”

Even though the hole in the pit of my stomach seemed to grow and my heart tightened, my friend had a charm that helped ease the hardest situation. He was right. I had fallen head over heels, and though it was blindingly obvious that Lycaon and I had a connection that seemed thicker than blood, well, I didn’t know him. For all I knew, he could’ve left, gone back to the Black Forest in Germany. Stalking around those ancient woods as he’d done for centuries.

“Aw, this will take an age. Look.” Austin reached over to his cluttered coffee table. I leaned over, too, clearing a space for his laptop.

Then, picking up his phone, he started texting.

“There, now your mum will be happy. Shall we get a blessing ready for Loren?”

“Why are you so kind?”

“I told you.”

“Yes, yes… Luna’s lucky to have you.”

“She is. We haven’t, you know… got that far yet. Just putting it out there, Elsa. Most witches run away when they see me. Not being academy material!”

“No, you’re a rebel mage. There’s no academy that could contain you!”

Whispering, Austin leaned in, “You know what I regret?”

I braced. “No?”

“When we fought Adara, I didn’t…” he glanced away, pausing for effect. “I didn’t use my wand! Next time I’m doing that. It pisses lots of mages and witches off when I’ve done that, especially if I wear a pointy hat!”

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