No repentance in her, not even a little, as Sassy's mother was dumped on her knees before the thrones. I kept my magic in reserve, just in case, though I knew Dad would never let the attractive scientist act against him.Still. Better safe than fighting a power-crazed and desperate demon looking to save her own skin."Sekaniphestat, Lady of the Fourth Plane," Dad said, "you are accused of aiding a foreign power in entering our plane and using your influence to assist said power to attack the Node which protects our home." Ameline's little helper. How quaint.So many dark promises to unravel.One of Dad's hands twitched as though he barely held back the need to choke her to death himself. "You are also accused of attacking the heir to Second Seat and drugging her with illegal substances for your own gain." No mention of Meira's addiction. She stood solid beside Dad, face a calm mask, so I could only guess what was going on behind the burning in her amber eyes.If I was Sekaniphesta
I followed Dad and my grandfather, Meira between them, Belkni gliding on the far side, to the back of the throne room and a private elevator I'd not seen before.Ram stepped from the shadows, bowing to Dad. "Ruler," he said with great respect."Rameranselot," Dad said. "Mother told me about you." My father glanced at me before returning his attention to Ram. "I take it your loyalty is not in question?""Never, Ruler," Ram said, vibrating with tension."I wish that were true of me," Henemordonin said, a little sullen.Ram didn't flinch, facing down the new Second Seat. "Ahbi saved my life," he said. "Raised and trained me as though I were her own. I owed her everything." His eyes met mine. "As I do her granddaughter."Don't tell me he'd fallen into some kind of hero worship. Not after I abandoned him back at the Node.My grandfather grunted softly and sighed. "She was a wretched old creature," he said, "but I loved her still." He set one hand on Ram's shoulder. "And I understand
I sipped the hot, rich cup of coffee, thick with cream and honey, smiling until my cheeks ached at the happy sight of the family on the sofa across from me. I didn't miss the feeling of Todd squirming around inside me, his spirit and power now back safely where they belonged. I'm not sure what Sassafras told Talee, but the moment she saw me standing on her front step, Tara rushing forward to hug her mother, the stranded demon woman burst into tears, leaving her human husband to lead me to the quiet back bedroom and the still form of their empty son.It only took moments to restore him, his hazel gaze filling with life before he sat up with a yawn and asked for a snack.The tall, black-haired Talee, with the wide green eyes and shoulders broader than her husband's, turned to beam at me from the couch as she cuddled her giggling son against her side."We can't thank you enough," Taleesharete said, the demon woman reaching out to pull her daughter closer, too, if that was possible whil
One thing was certain, my life was never dull.Not with a demon family to integrate into my coven while some of the older witches grumbled and fussed and threw around words like, "shocking" and "scandalous". That was, until the Lawrence sisters adopted Taleesharete and the rest of the Happern brood. The dissenters knew better than to cross Estelle and Esther.Way for the twins to step up.Mom didn't say a word past welcoming them to the coven, though I knew she'd probably catch some grief once she returned to Harvard and the Council. Still, our unusual family was none of the Council's business and I was happy Mom accepted that.I knew my grandmother approved by the way she grinned every time someone brought up the demon and her family, after that first breakfast/lunch. Obviously, she approved of the Happerns. And it was always nice of her to have my back.I took a more active stance in searching for Ameline, but she was doing a great job hiding and I knew I'd only find her when sh
Book Fourteen: Unseelie TiesClass bored me. Mostly. How could I possibly take interest in the chain reaction of fire, water, earth and air through tiny little samples on a glass slate when I'd flown with dragons, fought demons and evil witches, battled vampire queens, and almost died doing it? I sighed, chin on my fist as my lab partner, Tippy Meeks, prodded the small clump of dirt to start the show."Observe," Mr. Howermall, my Elemental Interactions teacher said in his low, dull voice devoid of anything resembling excitement or enthusiasm. Tippy tossed her thick red hair over one shoulder and crossed her eyes at me. She was the only saving grace in this entire stupid class. "Earth and water are in opposition."Right. I was supposed to be watching as Tippy's magic nudged the hovering droplet of water over the loose soil, scattering it. Wow. How awesome was that?Sarcasm, my best friend.One week into my second year of witch's college and here I was wishing something really awf
Bloodthirsty thoughts aside, I slid into a seat at our favorite table beside Liam, who beamed up at me, half-rising as I joined him. My handsome Sidhe friend leaned in to hug me with one arm while Tippy took the seat next to him. I felt him tense the moment she did, how his arm fell away, the sparkling green in his hazel eyes fading. His head dropped, strawberry blonde hair falling over his face as Tippy leaned up against him with a broad wink."Thanks for saving us seats, handsome."Okay, she was never, ever, ever going to be my second. And if she didn't stop pressing her gigantic rack against his arm I was going to tear her a new one.Temper, temper, Syd.Shut up, conscience.Fortunately, there was enough room I slid over a little, allowing Liam to pull away from the aggressive redhead while I clenched my teeth against my unwarranted jealousy. How many times had I told Liam we couldn't be together? And yet, I still went a little-okay a lot-crazy when Tippy hit on him.Who had t
It didn't take me long to go from stunned silence to fury. Okay, so Mom was right to worry. So. Right. The last time I'd seen the back end of Venner he'd been trying to kill me. Had almost killed Liam's grandfather, Fergus, forcing us to send the old Gatekeeper through the Gate so the seal could be rebuilt after we failed to answer the knock.All so whiny fairy boy here could run home to his Sidhe momma or something equally pathetic.Before I could gather myself enough to ask what the bloody hell was going on, a small, slender witch of advanced age stood from the leather chair she'd claimed in front of Mom's desk and smiled at me. Well, kind of smiled. More like barracuda'd. I'd never seen that many teeth in someone's mouth before."Welcome, Coven Leader," she said in a voice so graveled I was amazed she could speak. "It's a delight to finally meet you.""Sydlynn," Mom rushed into the conversation with a forced smile of her own and tension in every line of her body, "may I introduc
The first place I headed after leaving Mom was Liam's dorm. Normally, the Yard housing was only for freshmen. But that was a human rule. For the duration of our stay, witches had our own private floors in each of the brick buildings surrounding the Yard, the same rooms in fact for the entire three years. So I had no trouble tracking back across the grass to Matthew Hall and Liam's room.He answered my knock with a smile, as always, though his happy expression faded when he saw the look on my face just before I pushed past him and inside. Charlotte stopped outside the door, closing it behind me, giving us privacy. Not that we needed it, but I could only guess the weregirl had no desire to listen to me rant.Neither did I, for that matter. I clenched a firm hold on myself, swearing I wouldn't go nuts on my sweet Sidhe friend, and spun to face him."I just wanted to warn you," I said. Level voice? Check. Temper in control? Check. Plans for murdering Venner? Checkarooni, yes indeedy doo