“Maybe, but that was the past. Let it go.”
She snorted. “Is that what you’re doing? Letting it go and forgiving? I thought you had more sense than that.”
“Uh, hello?” Jak said, his voice a little hoarse. “Remember me? Still stuck to the door here, and it’s getting rather uncomfortable.”
I gave her a pointed look, and she sighed. “If you insist.”
She made another flicking motion, and there was a thunk as Jak was released from the door.
“So nice of you,” Jak muttered in a dark voice.
Ilianna snorted again. “Trust me, if it weren’t for the rule that states whatever harm I do to you will be returned to me threefold, I would have done a whole lot worse than try to force you out the door.”
He climbed slowly to his feet, then rotated his shoulders, as if trying to work out a kink. “Look, I can’t take back the past—”
“And you wouldn’t, even if you could,” she snapped.
“True, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have regrets—”
“The only thing you regret is not being able to unleash the second part of that damn story because you were under the threat of jail time—or worse—from her uncle.”
“Well, yeah, but—”
“Guys,” I interrupted before things could get more out of hand. “Let it go. That’s not what we’re here for.”
Ilianna gave me a somewhat cross look. “I don’t care what he’s here for.”
I walked over and caught her hands in mine. “Thank you,” I said softly, “for caring so much. But right now we need all the help we can get, and I’m afraid that means using Jak. Just trust me, okay? I know what I’m doing.”
Her gaze searched mine, concern evident in those rich depths. “No, I don’t think you do.”
Unease slipped through me. I might have inherited clairvoyant abilities from Mom, but my abilities were nowhere near as reliable as either Mom’s or Ilianna’s. She could predict a sparrow’s fart to the second if she wanted to.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Bringing him”—she cast another scathing glance in Jak’s direction—“back into the fold is dangerous, for both the quest and you.”
“He’s not in my bed, nor ever likely to be.” As for our quest, could it really get any more dangerous? Somehow I doubted it. Yet even as the thought crossed my mind, I had to wonder if I’d just tempted fate. “And as far as my love life goes, it’s surely impossible for that to get any worse.”
“I wouldn’t bet on it.” She touched a hand to my cheek. “Just be careful, okay?”
“I will.” It wasn’t like I wanted another bout of pain and heartache—though I had a horrible suspicion that was exactly what I was headed for. Only the source wouldn’t be Jak, but rather a stubbornly distant reaper.
“Good.” She glared at Jak once more. “And if you do anything to hurt her again, I will cast a spell so strong that you’ll never even fancy a woman again, let alone get it up.”
Jak winced and held up his hands. “I promise. I don’t intend to hurt her or write another story about her or anyone else related in any way to her.”
“Good.” She tossed her hair, her eyes sparkling. A mare enjoying her victory. “Now, tell me what you need.”
“Holy water,” I said.
“Of course you do.” Her voice was dry. “Because it couldn’t be something easy like demon deterrent, now, could it?”
“You have demon deterrents on you?” Jak asked, walking a little closer to the lounge.
Ilianna cast him a look that stopped him in his tracks. “Not on me, no.”
“But you have got them?”
“I can make them—”
“Holy water,” I interrupted, in an effort to keep the conversation heading in the right direction. “Have you got any?”
“Of course. Given the shit that has happened of late, I thought I’d better keep a good supply at the ready.” She paused. “What is it this time?”
“Hellhounds. Maybe.”
“Oh, fuck.” She shook her head. “Why are you two tackling hellhounds?”
I gave her a quick update, then added, “We need to get into that warehouse and see what we’re dealing with.”
“Which means you actually need me—”
“No,” I interrupted forcefully. “Absolutely not.”
“Ris, I know magic. You don’t—”
“I don’t care. Azriel said the warehouse isn’t on the ley intersection, so until I know for sure that’s what we’re dealing with, you’re not going anywhere near that place.”
“You don’t have to be in the intersection to use the power of it,” she said. “There’s going to be magic there, trust me.”
“Yes, but we don’t know if it’s been leashed or not.”
“If the sorcerer has used the intersection to hit the gray fields and open the first gate, it’s been leashed.” She paused, her concern deepening. “And if he has leashed the magic, then he’ll have more than hellhounds protecting it.”“Undoubtedly. Which is why I don’t want you in the middle of it until we’re sure what we’re facing.”
“So why does he get to go, when he knows jack shit about magic?”
“Because risking his life means less to me than risking yours.” I flashed him a smile to take the sting out of the words.
“I love you, too,” he muttered, but there was amusement in his eyes.
I snorted softly and returned my attention to Ilianna. “I need you to do a couple of other things, too, if you wouldn’t mind.”
“Like?”
I hesitated. “There’s two things I need.”
Actually, there were three, but one I couldn’t—wouldn’t—ask with Jak present. I wasn’t about to give him that much information about the current state of my love life.
“So tell me,” Ilianna said.
“The first—can you contact the Brindle and ask if they’ve sensed any dark magic at work on or near the intersection? If he did use it, they’d have to know about it. Maybe they can tell us about either the magic or the man behind it.”
She frowned. “Not necessarily. It depends what sort of protection circle he’s using. It could be inclusive—keeping the magic and the spells within the circle and undetectable beyond it.”
“But surely the ley line itself would not be contained so easily?”
“I don’t know. I’ll ask. The second task?”
I hesitated. “Tao’s struggling to pull himself together after the accident in the kitchen yesterday. I was wondering if there was some sort of potion or charm that might help him.”
She frowned. “Whatever I give him would be more illusion than reality. I’ve told you before, there’s no magic beyond time that will help him heal.”
If he ever does. She might not have said the words, but they nevertheless hung in the air between us.
“The illusion of help might be all he needs right now.”
She slowly nodded. “I’ll see what I can brew up.”
I hesitated again. “Good.”
Her gaze swept me shrewdly. She’d guessed that neither of my requests was what I’d really wanted. But all she said was, “The minute you sense anything magic related, you ring me. At the very least, I can advise you long distance.”
“That I can agree to.”
“Then go get something to eat before you collapse on your feet.”
“I do wish people would stop ordering me to eat,” I muttered, but nevertheless headed for the kitchen.
“Someone has to,” Ilianna said. “You seem damn determined to run yourself into the ground lately.”
“Which is an echo of what Azriel said not too long ago.”
“You should listen to him more often.”
I glanced back at her. “How much is he paying you to say that?”
She rolled her eyes at me. “Speaking of our reaper, where is he?”
“Sulking.”
“What have you done to the poor man?”
I snorted softly. “He’s neither a man nor poor, and you should be on my side, not his.”
She shook her head, amusement tugging at her lips as she headed for her bedroom. I opened the fridge to study the contents, then decided on lamb sandwiches.
I glanced up at Jak. “You want a sandwich?”
“Yep.” He propped his butt up on the counter. “What sort of accident did Tao have?”
“That is none of your damn business.” I slapped thick slices of lamb between slices of bread and handed it to him.
“Huh.” He bit into his sandwich, then added, “So what is going on between you and Azriel?”
“Nothing. He’s a reaper.” I squashed my sandwich down with a little more force than necessary. “They don’t do love or life.”
“Which, interestingly enough, does not preclude them doing sex.”
I pointed the knife at him. “Drop it. Now.”
He grinned and held up his hands again. “A little too close to the mark, huh?”
“More wide of the mark, and still none of your business.”
Thankfully, Ilianna chose to call me into her bedroom at that moment. It was a cool green and normally very calming, but it didn’t do a lot to ease the tension suddenly coursing through me. She closed the door, then crossed her arms and said, “Out with it.”
I plopped down on the edge of her enormous bed. “Is it possible that some sort of attraction spell has been placed on me?”
Surprised flitted across her features. Whatever question she’d been expecting, that obviously hadn’t been it. “Why on earth would you think something like that has happened?”