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Chapter 163
Shortly before eleven o’clock on Saturday morning, Leesa and Dominic checked into a small motel along the side of a two-lane state highway about twenty miles south of Albany, New York. An off and on again drizzle made the drive more taxing than it should have been, forcing Leesa to concentrate more on her driving than usual and to constantly fiddle with the setting on the windshield wipers. At least it was daytime, she thought. Tonight, the water on the roads might freeze into slick patches of ice.
The small and very dated motel office was manned by a bored looking guy who appeared to be at least seventy years old, if not older. His face was lined with deep wrinkles and stained with dark liver spots. His bony hands showed even more spots than his face. Still, he flashed a friendly smile when Leesa and Dominic walked in. Leesa guessed the guy was probably happy to see anyone, whether they were customers or not.
They selected adjacent rooms, paid for in cash by Dominic
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Leesa's Advent Chapter 164
Leesa attacked her return to practice with such intensity that Dominic eventually had to tell her to calm down and relax.“You cannot the force the magic,” he said after they had been working for another hour. “You have to let it flow. You are its guide, not its master.”Leesa stopped trying to move the grapefruit sized rock Dominic had placed on the edge of the grass.“I’m sorry,” she said. “I just want to get good at this stuff.”Rave walked over behind her and began gently massaging her neck and shoulders. His warmth flowed into her through his hands and she felt the tension in her muscles begin to melt away.“I know you do,” Dominic said. “And you are doing great—beyond what I would have expected in so short a time. But you must be patient.”“I know. It just seems like it’s always two steps forward and then one step back. I wish I could skip t
Leesa's Advent Chapter 165
Despite her frustration with some of her magic and with the lumpy motel mattress, Leesa slept peacefully through the entire night, wrapped up in Rave’s loving arms. When she opened her eyes, his face was only inches from hers. His eyes were open, and he was smiling at her.“Good morning, beautiful,” he said.“Mmmmm…Good morning.” Leesa snuggled even closer to him. “I could get used to this.”“What? Sleeping on a lumpy mattress in a rundown motel?”Leesa smiled. “No, sleeping in your arms, you dope.” She reached up and brushed her hair back from across her face. “Did you sleep at all?” she asked, knowing how little sleep Rave required.Rave shook his head. “No.” He grinned. “I couldn’t take the chance I might have a bad dream and end up burning you to a crisp.”“Ha! Very funny.” Leesa stretched her arms out above her
Leesa's Advent Chapter 166
While Leesa was practicing magic, the storm outside had intensified. The rain was now coming down so hard it exploded back up off the pavement like a thousand miniature fountains. Leesa watched it with Rave and Dominic from the motel room doorway. It was really quite pretty.“Drive safely,” Rave said.He risked a quick peck on Leesa’s lips. The familiar thrill shot through her, rendering her momentarily speechless.“I’ll see you back at campus,” Rave said. He turned and began jogging away.Leesa watched him as he trotted out alongside the highway, to all appearances just some fool jogger in the rain. The storm didn’t seem to bother him in the least. And why should it, she thought? The rain certainly wouldn’t make him cold, and it probably dried almost as soon as it hit his skin.She was not quite so fortunate, however. Even the short dash to the Blazer soaked her cap and parka. As soon as she pulled t
Leesa's Advent Chapter 167
Ten miles away, Josef strode through a wooded hillside, his waziri senses guiding him unerringly toward the place where his vampire pets had been destroyed. He had received two more rides in his journey south, including one that took him from just south of Springfield all the way to Hartford. He had walked the rest of the way, in the rain for the last day and a half. He did not mind at all. Indeed, he scarcely noticed that the rain had just stopped.He was almost there, he knew, so he slowed his pace, not wanting to miss anything. If there was any trace of magic in the area, he would know it.Finally, he found what he had been seeking—two piles of soggy black ashes, pounded almost flat by the rain, scattered on the ground about twenty feet from each other. Josef stopped and focused on everything his senses could tell him.The first thing he sensed was vampires, many of them. He sorted through the vibrations and counted five, including his two pets. The pil
Leesa's Advent Chapter 168
Dominic’s grip on Leesa’s shoulders tightened.“You cannot come,” he said. The look in his pale blue eyes was hard, intense. “I forbid it.”Leesa tried to meet his stare with an equally powerful one of her own.“I have to,” she said. “I can help. I know it.”“It’s too dangerous.”“Your concern for me is keeping you from seeing this clearly,” Leesa said, her voice steady. “Hasn’t your plan all along been that your enemies will not be able to sense my magic? That’s how I can help.”Dominic shook his head, but Leesa could see in his eyes that his resolve was wavering.“My plan counted on you having mastered your magic, not having barely begun your training.”“I know. I’m not fooling myself. I realize I can’t hurt Josef in the slightest. Heck, I don’t think I could hurt even an ordina
Leesa's Advent Chapter 169
Leesa’s heart raced, her body shot full of adrenaline from fear and worry. Josef’s black bolt had pushed to within five feet of Dominic now. In moments, the black magic would overwhelm him. And once Dominic was out of the way, the black wizard could turn his full might against Rave. Rave wouldn’t stand a chance. She had to do something—but what?The growth spell had produced a distraction, but it was much too short-lived. She needed something bigger, something that would grab Josef’s attention in a much more solid way. As hard as it was for her to do it, she pulled her eyes from Rave and Dominic and scanned the woods around Josef, searching desperately for some kind of idea.Ten or fifteen feet behind Josef, she spied a small log. It was about a foot thick and maybe eight feet long. She had never moved anything close to this heavy. But she had sent Edwina hurtling through the air, and she was a vampire. If she could just get the log rollin
Leesa's Advent Chapter 170
The thought of the deadly enemies still searching for Dominic sent a chill through Leesa’s body that had nothing to do with the cool, damp February afternoon. She moved closer to Rave and slipped her arm around the back of his waist, pressing against his side. Sensing her agitation, he draped his arm around her shoulders and kissed her lightly on the forehead. Leesa sighed as Rave’s volkaane heat flowed into her. He felt even warmer than usual, his body and lips still heated from the battle. She wished his magical fire could melt away her troublesome thoughts as easily as they soothed her body. She looked at Dominic, whose mind was clearly elsewhere. His blue-grey eyes bore a vacant, faraway look as he absently stroked his pointed, salt-and-pepper goatee with the fingers of his right hand. He looked so ordinary, she thought, in his black shirt and khaki pants. It was hard to reconcile his appearance with the powerful magic he had just displayed. Leesa was pre
Leesa's Advent Chapter 171
Dominic reached into his back pocket and pulled out his old leather wallet. Holding it in front of him, it looked much too large to have fit in his pocket, but Leesa knew the wallet was magic. Not only did it fit in places it shouldn’t, but it somehow held more stuff inside than a good-sized suitcase. She had seen Dominic pull stacks of cash and handfuls of jewels out of it. She wondered what he was going to take out now.Dominic unclipped the brass fastener that held the walled closed and reached inside. His hand disappeared halfway up to his elbow as he rummaged around inside the magic container. When he drew his hand out, he was holding a thick, leather-bound book the size of a small dictionary. The book was much larger than the wallet that had just contained it. Leesa wondered if things shrank when they went inside, or if there was just more space in there than the normal laws of physics would allow. She guessed it didn’t really matter—magic was magic. T
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