Kaine.
“What are you doing to me?”
Evie’s breathless question made Kaine draw in a sharp breath.
Oh, shit. Was this her fault? Was she somehow triggering Evie’s magic?
“Okay.” Kaine took a step back toward the door. “No problem. I’ll just—” The door swung shut, knocking Kaine to the ground with the force of its motion.
As she stared up at Evie from the floor, Kaine had only a few seconds to think, Shit, this is bad, before Evie lost control.
As if she were watching a scene from one of the horror films Nic loved, the taps in the sink in the kitchen turned until water spewed from the faucet and the few candles in the room burst into flame.
But when the floor began to shake beneath her, Kaine stood and headed straight for Evie.
The woman stared at her with fear and confusion in her eyes.
Kane shook her head. “I’m so sorry.”
Then she cold-cocked Evie with a roundhouse to the jaw and watched as the woman crumbled to the floor unconscious.
And power in the room dissipated like smoke on a breeze.
For five seconds, Kaine let tears well. Then she blinked them away, took a deep breath and lifted Evie into her arms to place her on the couch.
Pulling her cell phone out of her jeans pocket, she hit speed dial.
“Sal. I need you.”
* * * * *
It took only minutes for Sal to get to her, but in those few minutes Kaine worked herself into a pretty decent panic attack.
So when he finally appeared in the living room, having magically transported himself from his home to here, she could barely breathe as she paced from the living room to the dining area to the kitchen and back again.
Sal took one look at her before grabbing her hand, leading her to the chair by the couch and forcing her into it. Then he grabbed her head and pushed it down between her knees.
“Breathe, Kaine. Slow, deep breaths.”
“Evie… John…”
“No talking. Everything else will wait, baby girl. Just breathe.” The steady, familiar tone of his voice helped calm her more than anything. She let her body relax as Sal rubbed her back like she was a baby being lulled to sleep.
Keeping her eyes open so she didn’t get nauseated, she focused on Sal’s sneakers.
Gone were his goat legs and hooves. At least to the naked eye. He’d pulled on the glamour he wore when he went out among the eteri . Instead of a fortyish looking man with the lower body of a goat, he looked like an eteri boy around ten or twelve wearing a knit ball cap. For some reason, Sal would never magically erase his horns. Maybe he couldn’t.
When she finally felt she had her body under control, she sat back and took a deep breath.
Sal met her gaze head on, no accusation or anger evident in his eyes or his stance.
He simply waited for her to speak.
“I met John at the bar. I didn’t even go looking for him, if you can believe that. He was in Lacey’s. I came home with him. We had sex and as I was leaving, Evie walked through the door. I think whatever’s going on with me triggered whatever had been done to her. She started to pull power. She had no idea what she was doing. She could have brought the building down around us.”
She stopped to take a breath, closing her eyes as the realization of what could have happened hit her again.
Her fault. This was her fault.
“I had to knock her out before she…before she lost control.” Sal sent Evie a thoughtful look before turning back to Kaine. “I thought the streghe took care of this?”
“I thought so too. I think they did. I think it’s me. I think I did something to her.
What if it’s me, Sal?”
Sal reached for her hand and gave her a squeeze. “Now, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. First, we’ve got to figure out what’s going on.”
“That’s exactly what I’d like to know,” John said. “Why don’t we start with who the fuck you are?”
John’s head ached like a sonuvabitch and he felt so damn tired, he wondered if Kaine had drugged him.
He had no idea what’d woken
“What are you doing to me?”
Evie’s breathless question made Kaine draw in a sharp breath.
Oh, shit. Was this her fault? Was she somehow triggering Evie’s magic?
“Okay.” Kaine took a step back toward the door. “No problem. I’ll just—” The door swung shut, knocking Kaine to the ground with the force of its motion.
As she stared up at Evie from the floor, Kaine had only a few seconds to think, Shit, this is bad, before Evie lost control.
As if she were watching a scene from one of the horror films Nic loved, the taps in the sink in the kitchen turned until water spewed from the faucet and the few candles in the room burst into flame.
But when the floor began to shake beneath her, Kaine stood and headed straight for Evie.
The woman stared at her with fear and confusion in her eyes.
Kane shook her head. “I’m so sorry.”
Then she cold-cocked Evie with a roundhouse to the jaw and watched as the woman crumbled to the floor unconscious.
And power in the room dissipated like smoke on a breeze.
For five seconds, Kaine let tears well. Then she blinked them away, took a deep breath and lifted Evie into her arms to place her on the couch.
Pulling her cell phone out of her jeans pocket, she hit speed dial.
“Sal. I need you.”
* * * * *
It took only minutes for Sal to get to her, but in those few minutes Kaine worked herself into a pretty decent panic attack.
So when he finally appeared in the living room, having magically transported himself from his home to here, she could barely breathe as she paced from the living room to the dining area to the kitchen and back again.
Sal took one look at her before grabbing her hand, leading her to the chair by the couch and forcing her into it. Then he grabbed her head and pushed it down between her knees.
“Breathe, Kaine. Slow, deep breaths.”
“Evie… John…”
“No talking. Everything else will wait, baby girl. Just breathe.” The steady, familiar tone of his voice helped calm her more than anything. She let her body relax as Sal rubbed her back like she was a baby being lulled to sleep.
Keeping her eyes open so she didn’t get nauseated, she focused on Sal’s sneakers.
Gone were his goat legs and hooves. At least to the naked eye. He’d pulled on the glamour he wore when he went out among the eteri . Instead of a fortyish looking man with the lower body of a goat, he looked like an eteri boy around ten or twelve wearing a knit ball cap. For some reason, Sal would never magically erase his horns. Maybe he couldn’t.
When she finally felt she had her body under control, she sat back and took a deep breath.
Sal met her gaze head on, no accusation or anger evident in his eyes or his stance.
He simply waited for her to speak.
“I met John at the bar. I didn’t even go looking for him, if you can believe that. He was in Lacey’s. I came home with him. We had sex and as I was leaving, Evie walked through the door. I think whatever’s going on with me triggered whatever had been done to her. She started to pull power. She had no idea what she was doing. She could have brought the building down around us.”
She stopped to take a breath, closing her eyes as the realization of what could have happened hit her again.
Her fault. This was her fault.
“I had to knock her out before she…before she lost control.” Sal sent Evie a thoughtful look before turning back to Kaine. “I thought the streghe took care of this?”
“I thought so too. I think they did. I think it’s me. I think I did something to her.
What if it’s me, Sal?”
Sal reached for her hand and gave her a squeeze. “Now, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. First, we’ve got to figure out what’s going on.”
“That’s exactly what I’d like to know,” John said. “Why don’t we start with who the fuck you are?”
John’s head ached like a sonuvabitch and he felt so damn tired, he wondered if Kaine had drugged him.
He had no idea what’d woken
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