“She is…” He huffed. “I cannot deny the change in Link. I have hope that she—Laura Reid is a suitable mentor. Clearly, I am biased since Familiar Treasures thrives. I worry about the growth too fast and us tying our fates to it.However, she is aperson, and we are not assigning the points of her star like she’s a mare.
“She is not ours to manage. The way some of you speak of her like she’syourfamiliaror new pet disgusts me to my soul. This has gone too far, and if it takes more men on their side forsanityto return to some of the people here, then figure it out.” He turned to Tracey. “My suggestion would be to stop allowing everyone at your home. It has blurred the lines.”
“I agree, thank you, Councilman. I agreed with Mrs. Oliveria that charging would have made the boundary clear since others have home offices or their businesses there, but things have escalated. Because of one, but now that there was a chance, others aren’t hurrying to denounce it.”
And that was the problem. Five of them wouldn’t start the problem, but they wouldsidewith Conrad if they got the result they wanted which was me under their control. I thought we’d made more progress than that, but after they saw the power I’d “given” Link… The greed came back in their hearts.
That was the nicest way I could say it.
And five of thirteen was way too many. The others said their piece and I outed the sixth.
“Be honest,” I told him. “You side with me because you actually have faith in my intelligence to be CEO of such a successful business and figure I have an ace up my sleeve. You really want me under control though and think the council should rule Wyatt isn’t fit—no one I pick is fit until it’s someone you think you can control.”
He opened his mouth to lie but then slowly looked at his familiar and cursed under his breath knowing he was busted.
I pointed for him to join the others. Six of thirteen—so half.
“We were at only four and doing better, but now I’m beingpunishedbecause of what I helped Link achieve.” I focused on Link, glad he was shocked at least. “It’s all about power and how much you’ve jumped. They want control of that—to control who I will allow to become more powerful like that.”
“I’m sorry, Bev,” he whispered, his voice cracking.
“Me too.” I let out a shaky breath and pulled out my phone, playing the recording I took of what happened with Conrad… While smirking at him. “You are a petty, vindictive asshole like you said, but you are afool. Hurrying to announce it was a stupid move. Trying to rally after you werecaughtwas a worse move because you underestimated me.
“I was raised withsnakes, Conrad. If you can’t have me, you’d have me dead? Oh no, I’ve never faced that before.” I rolled my eyes. “My parents wanted to sacrifice me atseven, so you should have tried another fucking threat.” I smiled evilly at him. “So, you played your hand, but now here’s mine.”
I gestured to those standing on my side, physically even since we were split in the room.
“You werewrongon where people would land. I have the majority.” I went over to him and squatted down in front of him, being a brat and booping his nose as his eyes filled with rage and my death. “My ‘emotional outburst’ to the media wasn’t emotional nor on a whim. It was calculated because it gave you an inch to try and exploit.
“And that bad move led us here to a very loud response to what you did so the next idiot doesn’t try for the same next.” I booped his nose again. “You may be almost double my age, but one of us is actually smarter and moreexperiencedhandling these mattersbecauseI grew up as a Shaw.”
I held out my right hand and wiggled it.
“You were so busy beingdistractedby what I did with the media, pleading your case and running your mouth about my ignorance, you completely missedmy play. Yours was to show up and put your disgusting hands on me, threaten me and make it clear that I’m yours or I’m dead. So sure I have no play or way to fight back because I’m just a naïve little girl.”
I pushed to stand and backed away, wiggling my left hand out in front of me.
“I wonder what I was doing while you were distracted?” I mocked. I tilted my head and winked at him. “Why don’t you ask your familiar?” I framed my face with my hands and smiled when he frowned and then horror filled his eyes. “You can’t, can you? You can’t even feel him, right?”
“You didn’t, Bevin,” Mrs. Oliveria begged.
“His familiar is fine,” I promised, not willing to let her worry that I’d gone evil, not even for a second. “And what I did is reversible but only by me.” I squatted down again so we were at the same eye level. “Because the gods choseme, Conrad. Not you. You’re no one. Oh, wow, born of powerful parents.”
I gestured around the room.
“There are a few dozen of us here with that on our resume.” I bounced towards him and booped his nose again. “But we do something with our lives. You just ride those coattails of your father thinking it will help you break rules and laws at every turn.”
I stood and spat on him.
“The ones the gods bless matter, not insignificant shits like you who think they can lie, cheat, and threaten to get what others deserve. You want to out me? Fine, then your familiar is mine and that power was given to me by agod, Conrad. What you want to do marks your soul and magic. You want a fight? Youhave it. You just should have made sure you wouldwin.”
“Even I would think the gods didn’t mean for you to use your gifts this way, Ms. Millen,” a different councilman worried.
I opened my mouth to argue but then turned towards Quinn who had switched to Wyatt’s shoulder. I studied him a moment and smiled. “Apparently not. The guide the gods blessed me with made it clear that if I misuse power it will be taken.” Iturned towards the councilman. “And I can still do what I did to Conrad’s familiar.”
“You were blessed with the power to put people in a time-out if they won’t use their magic for good,” Mrs. Reid muttered.
“What guide?” Councilman Hanson demanded. “There’s no records of goddess witches having guides or—we must meet them immediately.”
