“Yes!” she shouted to Ethedra when she found what she wanted. “Bruin the big fat BOGI is rushing home to save his brother, and he’ll bring his mate with him, and his mate will bring hershiftsegen…”
“Which soon will be yours,” Ethedra said.
“Mine! Mine! Damn straight!” Abigail looked up at theshiftsegenencased in metal and magic and hanging above their heads. If it heard, it gave no indication.
Abigail returned to checking messages. DirtyvodvodTroy Burbank had texted seven times. FilthyvodvodCanyon Wheeling had texted once. Police dispatch had called twice and left several messages. Fire dispatch had called 16 times.
Abigail muttered to herself, becoming impatient as the messages grew less and less relevant to her business. She pressed thefheargachato the texts and muttered several spells. Living power, like tiny iridescent spiders, skittered out of thefheargacha, down her finger, to the phone screen and merged with it. Recent texts and messages disappeared. The living power would block all calls and messages in or out for several hours… except to or from Sage, and then when the living power was about to die, it would explode itself, taking all electronics with it, essentially turning Conri’s phone into a brick.
Finished, Abigail put the phone down, then pulled another phone out of her pocket—Sage’s phone.
Sage had dozens of messages from Reed Marion—Sage’s friend who’d already been bitten by dirtyvodvodTroy Burbank. Abigail read each one.Reed was looking for Sage. Reed had something important to tell Sage. Reed hoped Sage was ok. Blah, blah, blah.
Deleted, all of them.
Abigail played a message from an unknown number. Her heart lurched in her chest, as the deep male voice spoke. “Miss Greene, this is Trevor Burbank, lieutenant with the Serenity Police Department. We have reason to believe you’re in danger. Contact me immediately please. Call this number or call the police department.”
“Deardeae, give me strength,” Abigail muttered.
There were dozens of messages from family, and Abigail deleted all of them, except one from Mina saying good things about Reynard. There were also several messages from Mugshots saying Sage was fired and Abigail left those, but everything else had to go. Abigail pressed the point of thefheargachaonto the screen and said her spells. More tiny spiders skittered, and most of the messages disappeared, andSage’s phone was magically limited for a few hours, and then it would internally combust, never to start again.
Abigail dropped Sage’s phone to the table and grabbed Conri’s again. She found his text messages to Sage and read through them, picking one to emulate. She typed a message and pressed send.
Hey chick, chick, chickee. I have some super important and urgent news about you-know-what! I know who was responsible. Where are you? Can I come to your place?
Sage’s phone chimed. Abigail dropped Conri’s on the table. She returned Ethedra’sfheargacha, then went to the altar where she had six memory threads and placeholders laid out. She’d already taken memories from Conri and given him false memories to replace them. Each stolen memory and fake memory was represented here. She picked up a pre-prepared strand and molded it, speaking into it, telling Conri what he’d done all weekend, and leaving him the memory of texting Sage.
When it was done, she tore the thread like it was string cheese, then stuffed the torn thread into her cask's mouth. The fox pelt slurped it up like a strand of spaghetti and she patted its little head. Abigail took the rest of the memory thread to the well that held Conri and stood over it, sendingvvystdown in a stream. The stream grabbed Conri by the head, and she sent the memory thread down it until it entered his head through his ear. The thread, combined with the drink from Ethedra and suggestions from Abigail would ensure the next time Conri saw Sage, he would claim her.
Abigail used thevvystlike a microphone in Conri’s ear.
“When you see the bare shoulder, you thrust and strike, you aim and bite.”
“Thrust and strike,” the big male rumbled from the bottom of the well. “Aim and bite.”
Abigail nodded sharply, then sent morevvystdown to the male and hauled him up the well feet first. Once he was at the top, she placed him upright andvvystheld him that way. His head lolled. She shoved his wallet into one back pocket and his phone into the other.
She went to her fomenter and opened it. Inside was a mud jar containing the potion she’d gotten from Ethedra. She took it out and sniffed it, smelling power, control, and contrivances, all mixed up with nutmeg, coriander, star anise and sweet flag.Good and strong.
She poured three-quarters of the potion into a water bottle, capped it, then handed it to Conri, over hisrenquaon his left shoulder, so he thought it came from Rhen herself.
Abigail mimicked a soft lilting feminine voice and said, “Drink this, it will soothe you.”
Conri uncapped the water and drank heartily.Vvystpuffed around his body for a moment.
After half was gone, Abigail, in that same lilting voice, said. “Stop. Drink the rest the moment you get to Sage’s apartment.”
He spoke, his tone wondering.“Drink the rest the moment I get to Sage’s apartment.”
“Leave the bluff and drive toward Chicago. Avoid home, avoid all family, all friends, allwolvenandbearen. You’ll get a text or a call from Sage. At that moment, turn around and go to her apartment. Her text means she wants you, Conri Henri Conrad Bloom, to bite her, to take her, to claim her. She’s your mate.”
“Bite her,” Conri mumbled. “Take her… claim her. My… my…m—”
“Yourmate,” Abigail hissed.
“My… mate.”
Satisfied, Abigail dropped a temporary hood ofvvystover Conri’s head.
