Page 20 of Anywhere

“Why do you keep doing that?” Rook asked and grabbed my arm again.

Once more, the connection erupted like a storm. I staggered with the sheer power I felt. I could feel him and his power through the connection as clearly as if I was running my hands over his skin.

I whipped around, and Rook’s face said it all. His mouth hung open as he leaned forward like he might collapse from the sensation. His hand grabbed his stomach, and his eyes began to glow as bright as any moon stone. Jerking away, I stumbled back and took a shuddering breath. Every part of my body was shaking, and as wrong, as it was, all I could picture was riding Rook to the ground and fucking him as hard as I could.

“No touchin’ me. What do ya no get? Da more ya touch me, da harder dis is. I only ‘ave so much control.” I closed my eyes. Sweat trickled down my back as I tried to suppress the power and burning desire. This was not the time or place for any of this.

“Ahh,” I yelled, pushing the building magic out in a harmless, glowing ball. It sailed out over the water and dropped out of sight. Panting, I bent over and looked at Rook. He was sweating and shaking hard like he was in the midst of a seizure. His head turned slow and jerky like he was trying not to look at me, but as soon as our eyes met, it felt like I was caught in a laser beam.

I held up my hand as he licked his lips. “Don’t ya dare. Rein it in, Rook,” I ordered.

His eyes glowed a little brighter, and his muscles shook. A growl ripped from his mouth.

“Ah, shit,” I said.

He leapt for me.

Twisting away, I turned into smoke. Rook flew through my body, grabbing at nothing. Floating the short distance to the car, I reformed. Rook’s dark, hungry gaze found me, making me shiver.

“Fir fuck’s sake! I no should be havin’ ta do dis, ya no dat right?”

Rook ran at me like he was playing a game of rugby. I knew what would happen if he tackled me. It involved a lot of nakedness on the grass. With this much death around us, we wouldn’t come up for air for days, and that couldn’t happen. At least my brain was working. It was obvious Rook was lost in the sea of power and the amped-up sexual desire.

I didn’t want to do this, but he left me no choice.

Lifting my hand, I said, “Petrobile!”

Rook froze in place.

“Samhach,” I said, and his mouth sealed shut. “Leibheis.”

Rook rose into the air like a strange balloon and hovered behind me as I walked to the edge of the cliff. Twisting my hand, he floated out over the water. Like some elaborate dunk tank, I flicked my hand, and he dropped. I lifted my hand, and he rose.

I had to admit I was having a little more fun than I should have. Seeing the shock and then fear on his face as I dropped him into the water and pulled him back up again was extremely gratifying. Even drenched like a rat, Rook still looked sexy. It was incredibly annoying, but at least the heat was gone from his eyes. In its place was fiery anger.

“Din’t fuckin’ look at me like dat. Ya were power drunk. Ya needed ta cool off,” I said as I lifted him over land again, letting him hover a few feet away, then snapped my fingers, releasing all the spells.

Rook wrapped his arms around his body, his teeth chattering. “Y-y-y-y-ou a-a-a-ssss-h-h-h-hole. I-I-I th-think. Shit!” He shook himself off and looked down at his clothes. They clung to his body like a second skin. “I th-think something g-g-grabbed my leg in the w-water. I can’t believe you fucking did that to me!”

“Be mad all ya want, but ya were about ta fuck me on da ground.” I spun to walk away but stopped and turned back to face him. Waving my hand and releasing some magic, Rook’s clothes shook and instantly dried. “I dinnie know about ya, but fuckin’ among the smolderin’ bodies of dead villagers is no’ me idea of a good time.”

“Agreed, but still. That’s the ocean and a huge ass drop. You could’ve killed me,” Rook growled.

Again, don’t tempt me.

“Give me a wee bit more credit, aye. Me know what me doin. I’ve been practicing with me power since I was a wee lad, and in case ya hadn’t noticed, I’ma tad powerful.”

Putting space between us, I went to find clues as to who had done this. Anything would do. A power signature or maybe one of the spirits still lingered so I could ask them.

I could feel Rook moving around behind me. It drove me crazy that my body warmed, cooled, or tingled as he walked by. It felt like a grown-up version of the hot/cold game Mari, and I used to play. Except that was more innocent than the images running wild inside my skull and the incessant heat burning in my lower stomach.

“I dinnie get it. There be no soul left, no spark, just da feel of power and dis,” I said, and held up a handful of ash that, at one point, had been a person. Little white bits of bone fell from my fingers, but whoever or whatever did this was able to disguise their signature.

“Why would someone do this?” Rook asked as we made our way to the car.

“Why does man do anythin? Power. They wanna war, and whoever did dis is gonna get one. I’ll hunt dem down and make ‘em pay.”

Rook stopped walking, but luckily he kept his hands to himself this time as he spoke. “I’m here too, Rhys, and I have a right to know what’s going on.”