I sift through the rubbish, tossing old feathers and used candles aside until I get to the books. The standard spellbook Aunt Star gave us both isn’t useful. I have my own copy packed away in a storage locker. Summoning spells or dimensional travel definitely isn’t in here. The other books are smaller and covered in soft leather.
As I flip open one titledNecromancy, a chill walks down my spine. This is not standard. And nothing like what we studied when we were younger. I don’t even understand why Lark would want to know about necromancy. Reanimating dead bodies? No thank you. Unless she was planning on killing me, then reviving me just to do it all over again.
I grit my teeth, not sure whether to laugh, cry, or throw the book when I spot Lark’s perfect script on a note tucked inside.
Mari-
Stop digging through my things. I’m not about to make an army of zombies. This is about plants. Not that you’d care. Go back to your slimy clay.
It’s not dated, but it’s from a few years ago when I went through a sculpting phase. Finding a hobby isn’t as easy as it looks. I’ve tried a whole host of them, never fully settling on one. I shoot a guilty glance at the forgotten knitting project lying in a basket next to the couch. It’s a mess of yarn with random knots I made somehow. I still don’t know how to knit, but I also found out I can’t count.
I toss the book aside, not caring whether it survives the trip, then wince. I don’t have it in me to be angry with her. She knew I’d snoop with a cover like that. Frustration takes over, and I swipe my arm across the top of the table. A strangled cry leaves me, and I sink to my knees.
“Where are you?” I choke out, then gasp for breath between sobs.
I let Dimitri distract me, but no more. As my forehead sinks to the floor, I vow not to let a demon derail me from doing what I need to do.
I have to find her.
“Dimitri!”
Omen’s voice ricochets around my head, leaving my ears ringing. I mask my confusion with a grin when I spot Clara. The last thing I want to do is scare her. Being a witch in Hell isn’t exactly the easiest thing in the world. Throw in she’s shacking up with Omen and I feel for her. Omen was my roommate way back when, and I almost threw him off a cliff. She doesn’t seem any worse for wear. Her spell sickness appears to have resolved itself, though there are still dark rings under her eyes.
“Hey, Clara. Nice to see you’re still in Hell.” I turn to Omen and my eyes widen. “Uh, why do you have a dragon egg? And how the fuck did you get it away from the horde?”
“It was just sitting in the coals. I just grabbed it. She needs eggs.” He gestures to Clara, and I take in the dough covering her hands. “Not this egg. Like, squawking eggs.”
“Chicken,” Clara says in amusement.
“I know, but they squawk. Funny little fuckers.”
I press my lips together. I’m not about to bring up the time a flock of chickens attacked him when we were sent on assignment to another dimension. He had pinpricks all over his arms for a week afterward. From the hardness in his eyes when he glances at me, I should keep my mouth shut.
“Perhaps you should take the dragons back their egg. I’ll keep Clara company.” I lean against the counter. Twin flames flare to life in his dark eyes, and I suppress a chuckle. It’s so easy to rile him up.
“The fuck you will. Get your own witch,” Omen snarls, shoving the egg into my chest. “Take this back and get us the right egg.”
His words send a chill down my spine. An image of Mari pops into my head before I can stop it. She’s not my witch and I doubt she will be anytime soon, if at all. I thought we were getting somewhere in the kitchen. At least, I was trying to get somewhere. Instead, I got thrown into the void. The more it happens, the more it’s like being sucked through a straw. My body can’t take much more. Eventually, my magic will bottom out and I’ll be defenseless—useless.
“Please and thank you, Dimitri,” Clara says softly, not quite a reprimand for Omen, but close enough.
He doesn’t care if he snaps at me because I don’t give a shit. Her? Yeah, he’ll think twice then. We’ve lived together for so long I don’t take him too seriously, and he puts up with my erratic ways. It works for us most of the time. If he starts in on Clara despite his better nature, we might have problems. It has nothing to do with another witch I’ve recently met either.
Pain shoots through my temples at the thought of Mari, and my magic rears up. I turn to Clara. “Fine. But I’m doing this foryoubecause you’re actually nice to me. And you have manners.”
I snatch up the egg I dropped on the counter and step into the void, leaving thunder in my wake. I don’t have time to take thedragon spawn back. Getting the chicken egg is more important. No use interrupting Omen and Clara when they inevitably make up. I’ll deliver the iridescent one back to the horde after. I tuck it into my pocket for safekeeping. With a little magic, the egg fits perfectly. The tough exterior should keep it from being smashed. Hopefully.
It doesn’t take me long to step into the dimension Omen got attacked in. It’s on the same plane as Hell and doesn’t expel enough energy to send my magic into a tailspin. If I get yanked topside again, though, it’ll be one helluva storm. I’ve never been so lopsided in my travels.
I drop right into Omen’s kitchen, declaring, “Got it.”
Omen grabs at Clara as if I’ll whisk her away to the netherland or something. I roll my eyes as she hops down and takes the eggs with a thanks. I open my mouth to say something to cut the tension when Omen latches onto my arm and yanks me from the room.
“Hey, hands off the merchandise. This shirt cost me a kidney,” I grumble as he pulls me into his tiny-ass backyard. I kept telling him he should have a greenhouse back here. It’s close enough to the lava geysers to be the perfect environment for potatoes. Then he could make me fries. Not that he knows how to cook, but that’s neither here nor there. Now that Clara’s here, maybe she’ll make me more.
“What in the fuck is going on with you?” he demands, crossing his arms as fire licks up his arms and sets his hair ablaze.
“Projection much?I’mperfectly fine.You,on the other hand, had better get your shit together.”
