Captivating Magic (The Thorne Witches #14)

Chapter 31

31

“ H e’s the stuff of heroes, isn’t he?” Lo said with a smidgeon of envy in his heart as Knox stepped away to join Spring.

“So are you,” Ebba assured him. “You time-traveled back to save me. Who does that if not a hero?”

“Don’t say that too loudly, or Casto?—”

“It’s nice to be recognized for my better qualities,” Castor quipped.

Laszlo hung his head. “Damn. I thought we’d be able to avoid all his preening.”

Their grins were his reward.

“I’m discovering everyone has a different skill. What’s Knox’s?” Ebba asked, her focus on the couple by the circle.

“His element is metal. He’s able to bend and transform it,” Castor explained. “And unlike standard witches, his magic was infused in his soul. No matter how often he’s reborn, he’ll possess the same power.”

“And he’s able to call metal objects to him,” Alastair added, joining their trio. The keen satisfaction in his voice said it all. “He’s a master.”

Although Laszlo wanted to see the man in action, he focused all his attention on Ebba’s expressive face. It tickled him to see her so fascinated by each new bit of information revealed to her. Currently, her eyes were rounded with wonder as she watched Knox hold out his hand and draw the molecules from the room to create a blue ball. It crackled and sparked, causing the metal objects in the room to rock.

Fear lit Spencer’s eyes, but he hid it well. Still, Lo could see the color of his emotions beneath Clutch’s faux-calm exterior, thanks to his particular gifts. Alastair’s empathic ability would make his cousin aware of Spencer’s innermost feelings, too. There was no fooling one as clever and experienced as Al.

“My wife asked you nicely, Barlowe. I won’t be as nice,” Knox said, tone solid steel.

“I would hand it over, but I’m the only one capable of controlling it.” Spencer smirked to hide his worry. “We wouldn’t want her to be sucked inside it, would we?”

The Aether approached him, and sweat broke out on the man’s head. One solitary bead of moisture dripped down his temple and ran to the hard edge of his jawline. “Your time is limited, Barlowe. There are a few ways this can play out.” Damian crossed his arms to show he meant business. “One, I can simply kill your host, leaving you nowhere to go but hell. Two, I can drag your soul from that body and decimate it, which is excruciating, by the by. Three, you can place the object on the floor by the edge of this circle and back away from it. Then, you’ll tell us exactly how it works.”

“He doesn’t need to,” Nash said as he lifted an ancient-looking book up. “I know. It’s all right here.”

“Oh?”

“I suspect he holding an excision circlet. Its primary use is to draw a soul out of a body so another can enter. As long as one retains possession of the object, they control the physical form they inhabit.” He skimmed the page. “But it can also draw multiple souls into its center, leaving a body open for a spirit to possess, so be careful.”

He didn’t need to elaborate. If Damian’s soul were drawn in and Spencer jumped into his body, he would possess unimaginable power at his fingertips.

“Informative. Thank you, Nash.” The Aether’s expression darkened, and the temperature dipped a good ten degrees. “Decimating the soul it is.”

“Wait!” Spencer quickly withdrew the circlet and tossed it away. “Just wait, please!”

“Who did you intend to use this on next, Barlowe?”

“Him.” He pointed to Lo. “Ebba doesn’t love him. She’s physically tied to him because of the wolf. But if I could possess his body, she might love me instead.”

Oddly, Laszlo understood the man’s pain and obsession. When he would’ve stepped forward, Ebba placed her hand on his arm.

“Let me.” She walked to the edge of the barrier. “Spencer, I’ve loved Laszlo since I was sixteen years old. I only dated you because he was married, and I refused to do anything to destroy his happiness.” Compassion softened her face. “That’s what true love is. The willingness to bury your wants and desires so the other person can find their joy.”

“But I love you, and if given a chance?—”

“You’re not hearing me. The answer will always be no. Remember our conversation in the car the night of the accident?” She hugged herself and shook her head, looking pained. “I tried to tell you then. I don’t feel any chemistry with you. There’s no love. Friendship would’ve been nice, but you wouldn’t settle for that, and I had nothing more to offer you.”

“It’s the bond with the wolf. The excision circlet can remove her, too. Give me a chance,” he begged.

“If she dies, Ebba dies, and with them, so does Laszlo,” the Aether informed him. “You’d be killing three separate souls. You weren’t paying attention that night.”

“It’s hard to hear the truth, isn’t it?” Ebba asked Spencer softly.

His face crumbled before them, and tears filled his eyes. “Why can’t you see we’d be perfect together?”

“Because we wouldn’t be.”

“What if I could take that feeling away?” Damian suggested, not unkindly. “It would allow you to move on without the earthly ties, and I can speak to the Goddess on your behalf. Perhaps they will allow you to reincarnate with your fated mate in the next life.”

The light died from Spencer’s eyes as he watched Ebba. “I do love you, Ebba.”

“If that’s true, let Damian help you move on so I can be happy.” She dropped her arms, and her voice was raw when she said, “Please, Spencer. Let me be happy.”

“Okay.” He nodded his agreement.

The Aether glanced over his shoulder. “How do we neutralize the object and release McClutchin Adams, assuming he’s still alive in there?”

“There’s the catch. He has to reverse the spell.”

Damian didn’t appear pleased, but he faced Spencer. “Barlowe, are you willing to release your host while inside the protective circle?”

“Yes.”

“Pick up the artifact and make the switch. If I detect any artifice or duplicity, I will destroy you immediately. Understood?” The Aether’s no-nonsense tone left little doubt that he’d follow through on his promise.

“Understood.”

“Good.” With a nod toward the circlet, Damian said, “Proceed.”

Spencer inched closer to the object as if afraid the Aether would go back on his word. Placing it against his throat, he said, “I release you from this hold, McClutchin Adams. Come forth from the prison to which I sent thee.”

Sparkling lights filled the circle, obscuring their view, and Lo hated that he couldn’t see what was going down. He prayed Damian and Alastair would sense deceit. When the shower of sparkles landed on the ground, Spencer’s ghostly self stood beside Clutch.

“Thorne, you know him best. Please ask your friend a question only he’d know,” Damian instructed.

Spencer appeared resigned, while Clutch was enraged. But there wasn’t the standard malice in his gaze that Spencer always failed to hide. Satisfied the switch was made, he turned to Ebba. “Present a question only Spencer would know the answer to, and I’ll do the same.”

“Where did we first go to dinner?” she asked Spencer.

“We met for coffee or lunch. Once a movie, but no dinner.”

She nodded. “That’s right.”

Turning to Clutch, Lo asked, “Where was our first training session?”

“The church graveyard, where I held services prior to my reaping career,” his friend replied in a gravelly voice. “Now, can I throat punch this motherfucker or what?”

Lo laughed. “Yeah, that’s Clutch.”

“You still hold the excision circlet, Mr. Adams. Toss it to your left and step to your right with Mr. Barlowe.” Damian put himself between Lo and the barrier. “Please usher the others to the far side of the room.”

After he did as instructed, Lo rejoined him.

“You were meant to stay there, too,” Damian said dryly. “You shouldn’t be in temptation’s path.”

“I’m the last line of defense between him and Ebba.”

“No. You’re the reason she’ll die if he finds a way to attack and kill you.”

Lo swore, turned to go, and came face-to-face with Ebba. “What the hell are you doing?”

“He won’t hurt me,” she replied in a low voice with a glance beyond his shoulder. “But I want to put myself between him and Damian, just in case he tries something with the circlet.”

“No.”

“I wasn’t asking, Lo.”

“Ebba—”

“If he manages to trap the Aether’s soul, he gains an undefeatable weapon.” She placed her hands on her hips. “Tell me I’m wrong.”

“You’re not.”

“Right. So if someone has to go, it should be me. Everyone is here because of my mess anyway.”

He shoved his fists deep into his jeans pockets. “And what about me, Sweet? You go, I go, remember?”

“We’ll beg the Goddess to pair us up again in the next life, if it comes to that.”

He considered her words.

“Okay. You go, I go.” Wrapping a hand around her neck, he hauled her close and kissed her hard. “I fucking love you and your warrior’s spirit.”

“I’m getting that impression.” After delivering a saucy wink, she marched toward Damian.