The next two days of working with Laerith have my mind blank and fired up all at the same time. She’s a taskmaster, demanding I not work at Alkemi while she’s here so we can spend every minute together.
“Focus, Lou,” she snaps, breaking through my thoughts.
“Why can’t we just golookfor him?” I whine for the millionth time.
Laerith plants her hands on her hips and sighs, staring up into the sky. She mutters something I can’t quite make out, but I’m pretty sure I hear the words “asshole” and “reprieve”.
I stare at the side of Higher Grounds, focusing on a bag of trash that I’ve been trying to light on fire for the last ten minutes. Conversation from Main Street distracts me, and I turn to see.
“Lou,” Laerith sighs, rubbing her face with both hands. “You won’t always have the benefit of a quiet forest to use your power in. Focus, girl. Must I repeat myself a thousand times?”
“Pretty sure it’s already been two thousand,” I mutter.
Laerith stalks closer, bringing her lips to my ear. “If it’s three thousand before you get this, I will begin to question my skills as a teacher.”
“Noted,” I grumble. “Scoot, you’re distracting me. You’re too hot.”
She slaps my ass before stalking a few feet away. When I glare over at her, she grins. “Didn’tmeanto distract, Lou.”
Riiight. I’m beginning to internalize more of what I learned about blue witches and sexuality. I’ve always loved sex and had a healthy sex life, whether dating or not. But there’s something about the magic that amplifies all of that. I can barely keep my hands to myself when I’m around Connall and Dirk. It was like that from the very beginning. Laerith told us last night that most blue witches take multiple mates to deal with their sexual demands.
“I know exactly what you’re thinking about,” she croons, slipping across the space between us. She leans down and moans in my ear, sounding like she’s getting off right here. Her moans go rough and ragged as she pants into my ear. “Laerith, right there, please. Oh fuckkkk!”
“Stop it,” I hiss, slapping her boob. She’s all talk.
“And so,” she snaps. “You gonna wait all day? Or can we commence with the training? Or perhaps you need further distraction…” She slings an arm around my waist and hauls me against her taller figure so our boobs mash together.
“Maybe.” I bat my lashes playfully just as something appears out of the corner of my eye.
Shadows blur by the trash can. I freeze in place as they twist and form into a now familiar shape.
“Leighton,” I breathe, begging my lungs to fill with oxygen. I shove my way out of Laerith’s arms.
Has he already hurt someone? Is he about to?
Blue flames leap from my fingertips, curling up my arms.
Laerith spins to my side, alert in a moment. She looks where I’m looking, but I know she can’t see him. They’re not bound together like he and I are.
“You see him right now?”
Balling my fists, I nod. Laerith straightens next to me, matching my stance.
“Do as we discussed, Lou,” she instructs. “Focus on imagining your power as a weapon. We must release Leighton from his revenant form so his soul can return to his goddess.”
In my mind’s eye, I picture the glowing, long sphere she taught me to think about. It’s blue, because of course.
My blue moon wolf.
My blue lightning sylph.
The tiny blue flames licking over my palms.
Leighton sneers at me and hover-walks backward toward Main Street. I jolt forward to follow him as Laerith snatches at my arm but misses. I hear her comm’ing Arkan, but everything past that blurs as Leighton’s figure backs toward Main.
Despite Arkan’s public warning about what happened to Amatheia and Bellami, Main Street is busy. I recognize a dozenfamiliar faces as Leighton moves into the crowd, looking around like he’s picking his next victim.
A tiny voice shouts my name. Leighton and I spin at the same time to see Iggy barreling through the air toward me, his wings flapping chaotically at his back. Time slows. Leighton and I look at one another. His half-smile turns into a wicked grin, and he moves toward Iggy.
