Defensive Magic: A Paranormal Urban Fantasy Tale (Lost Library Book 3) by Kate Baray

could feel her eyes getting wider. She knew there was a story, but that wasn’t at all what she’d expected. “And?”
    “And what? That’s it. She disappeared. She’s a part of Logan’s past. It’s been so long, I’m surprised he still thinks about her.” He shook his head. “Even more surprised he’d mention her to you.”
    “Did he go look for her? Or did he find her later—you know, dead?”
    Lizzie remembered feeling panicked, fleeing, and the feeling that she—or, rather, Clara—couldn’t go any further. Lizzie frowned. The whole idea of being Clara when she was connected to the book was unsettling. Especially if Clara was dead. If that flight Lizzie experienced through Clara’s eyes had failed—if Clara hadn’t gotten away—then it wasn’t so farfetched to think Clara might be dead.
    “No, he didn’t look for her. You have to understand—things were different back then.”
    She waited. After a moment, when he didn’t continue, she poked him.
    He flinched slightly, as if he’d been lost in thought. Ordinarily, she never managed to surprise him, so either he was still worn out by his lack of sleep, or speaking of Clara was upsetting him. She sighed. Maybe both. There were still a lot of things she didn’t know about John, but she didn’t want to push.
    “It was all a long time ago.” He gave her ear a soft kiss and said, “We need to head out if you’re feeling okay.”
    She nodded. “Absolutely. And I’m packed for a few days. Let’s get going.”
    But she intended to give the question of Clara and Logan some serious consideration on their way to Smithville.
    John must have seen something in her face, because he gave her an amused half smile and said, “I can see the wheels turning in your head.” More seriously, he added, “We’ll talk about it later, all right?”
    She nodded her agreement.
    “And the book—”
    Lizzie interrupted him. “I won’t look for any more information on Clara unless someone is with me.”
    Grim-faced, he said, “Maybe it’s best if you don’t do anything with the book unless someone’s with you.”
    Lizzie remembered how angry he’d looked when she first recovered her awareness of her surroundings. And then she realized: he’d not been angry. He’d been scared.
    “Absolutely. Promise.”
     

Chapter 8
    J ohn eyed the road ahead of him and shook his head. Anything that required him to hurt his mate was guaranteed to put him in a shit mood. Not okay. Pinching an earlobe obviously wasn’t going to really hurt her—but still, she’d cried. He’d be happier if she was just a little more cautious. His fingers tightened reflexively around the steering wheel. But realistically, he wouldn’t have thought the book was risky. She’d dug some information out already without any ill effects. Why had inquiries about Logan’s lost love created such a drastically different response? One or two of his suspicions weren’t particularly flattering to the Pack, unfortunately.
    They’d been on the road for twenty minutes before he decided it was unavoidable. And he’d rather she hear it from him.
    “We should talk about what happened.” It was past time for some of the Pack’s history to see the light of day.
    “Not if you’re going to get all protective and weird, we’re not.” Snarky, and yet she said it with a smile. When he didn’t immediately respond, she eyed him suspiciously and said, “You have that look.”
    “I want to talk about some Pack history.” He paused. He preferred to keep this particular part of the Pack’s history in the past. But it might be important.
    “Ah. Okay.” Her tone was suddenly chipper.
    “Clara was a member of the Pack a number of years ago. She and Logan knew each other.”
    “You already told me that,” she reminded him gently.
    He glanced down and saw his knuckles were white against the steering wheel. He immediately loosened his grip. “She left the Pack during a very turbulent time.”
    When he