Draven had come to me because he’d heard I could break shady curses, and that me and my rag-tag crew of magic users might be able to handle certain matters without bringing in the authorities.He’d been tossed out of his clan because they found out he was gay.Bi, really, but it was the liking men bit that the bears couldn’t stand.He had become a hermit, living all on his own out in the woods, taking care of the creatures who lived there and minding his own business.
But then someone in his old clan was cursed with a nasty killing curse.Draven, being the soft-hearted brute he was, had come to me with every last cent he had to his name—which still wasn’t nearly enough to cover the cost of curse removal—and begged me to save the life of the man who’d gotten him thrown out of the clan in the first place.The man who just also happened to be Draven’s ex-lover and who had allowed Draven to be exposed and ridiculed and exiled, while he pretended to be innocent.
If that curse removal was a little bit more painful for the host than it had to be…well…I tried to help people whenever I could, but no one ever accused me of beingnice.
That was my bear—kind to a fault, gentle, the exactoppositeof every male shifter stereotype.And of course, we’d all fallen in love with him and practically kidnapped him from his cave in the woods.
No one told my merry band of idiots “no” once we’d set our sights on a prize.
I watched as Draven’s illusion slowly faded.The cute, stocky guy ran a hand over his thick brown stubble and shook his head.“Worst dream I ever had.”Then his pretty, chocolate brown eyes met mine and he quirked a smile.“Chaotic good,” he muttered.“That’s what you said when I questioned how you could be a thiefandhelp people.”
I snorted with laughter.“I had to tell you something.You weren’t about to take up with a bunch of thieves and people of questionable morals otherwise!”
His grin just grew as he looked around at all of us.“Shows what you know.I woulda followed you villains to the ends of the earth the day I met you.”
I leaned in and pressed a kiss to his mouth to shut him up.“Don’t get all gooey on us now,” I said with a smile.“You know it drives us all crazy, and we don’t have time for that right now.We’ve got work to do.”I narrowed my eyes.“And a Bumblebottom to kick.”
Melvin stood with a tired sigh.“I’ve got a plan.We just need to grab Hedwig first.”
I turned to stare at him in horror.“Hedwig?Why the hell isHedwighere?”
Mel shrugged.“He’s your best friend.I’m pretty sure Belinda wanted to humiliate everyone you love—that list is pretty small and tight knit.Of course she grabbed him too.”
I narrowed my eyes as I recalled the stuffy, aging butler who’d played a part in this horror show.“Oh,shit,” I muttered.
Mel clapped me on the shoulder and gave me a sympathetic grimace.“Yeah.Good luck dealing with him after this.”
I put my head in my hands.Maybe we should just stay here in the crumbling illusion world.Had to be better than dealing with a pissed-off Hedwig.
Chapter 11
Acouplehourslater,andHedwig was still…displeased.
“…andallowedme to appear as some stuffy, uptightold man!”the flamboyant fifty-year old said with a toss of his head and a sniff.He’d found the magical closet.At least…Ihopedhe had, and that bright purple boa wasn’t made from one of the peacocks.My best friend liked to hide his more murderous qualities under a veneer of queer glam.It was terrifying how often that ended in death and maiming.
“Over here, please Heddy,” Melvin said with an impatient gesture.Hedwig crossed his arms andflouncedinto position, his perfectly manicured silver brows still canted at a bitchy angle.
I rolled my eyes.“Oh, quit your bitching, you drama queen.”
He narrowed his eyes at me, and if looks could kill, I’d be dead about a hundred times over already.“Iama queen.And I’mnevergoing to let you live this down, Mary.Never.That bitch gave mewrinkles!” He patted a hand over his now flawlessly smooth, ageless skin as if he was reliving the nightmare.
I suppressed a grin.“Good to know you’re feeling more like yourself, Hedwig.”
He lifted his nose in the air.“See if I do the gossip rounds for you ever again.”
I patted the old owl shifter on the shoulder in sympathy.“I know.It was awful.But Heddy, we’ve all suffered.She made me wearpink.”
He arched a perfectly plucked gray brow at me.“Heavens forbid.We both need a stiff drink.Or a stiff cock.Maybe both.”
I shrugged.“Let’s just focus on one thing at a time, maybe?Like getting out of this fucking pocket dimension.”
He sighed dramatically, but finally shut up.
“Okay,” Mel said, gesturing for me and Cass to join him.Linking arms with the others, the magic users in the group put our hands on the little piece of crystal Melvin had found in his explorations of the mansion.The final bit of anchoring magic, or so we hoped.“Count of three,” he said in a cheery voice.
I shook my head.He might sound all chipper, but his eyes were wild and skittish.We were probably about to blow ourselves up.
“Remember,” he reminded me and Cass.“We have to wait until the last possible second to push, when the spell is almost completely gone.”It would give us the ability to force our way through the thin magic barrier and out of the pocket world.But if we timed it wrong…we’d get stuck in the ever-imploding vortex between worlds as it collapsed.
