Page 3 of The Blood Witch
It’s on the tip of my tongue to ask where Rogan is, but I swallow the question down, determined to choke on it if it will keep the words from escaping my lips.
“You’re in Chicago, at Order headquarters. You’re safe, I’m not here to hurt you,” he declares, his body relaxing ever so slightly.
Sucker.
I feign a kick, and he rotates his body away from mine to keep me from landing anything. I take advantage of his twist away and land a fist to his back, right in the kidney. Prek grunts, pained, but recovers quicker than I expect. His fist connects with my cheek, and my head snaps to the right. The vertebrae in my neck pop in objection, and I feel my lip split from the force of the hit. I growl, menacingly, suddenly rethinking this wholebones to dustthing my magic was pitching earlier, but my anger is drowned out by an outraged bellow, and suddenly Rogan is there grabbing Prek by the neck.
Rogan lifts him off his feet as though the Order member weighs nothing. “Don’t youevertouch her again,” he snarls in his face, and Prek claws at the hand around his throat, his legs kicking and searching for purchase to no avail. “I have let you have your temper tantrum long enough,” Rogan yells at him. “You want a shot at me, here I am. But you willnevercome for her again, or so help me by the goddess, I’ll kill you. Your ignorance or innocence will no longer be a factor, do you understand me?” Rogan warns, shaking Prek once for good measure.
“What is going on here?” an authoritative woman demands, marching into the room and assessing the scene. She looks like she’s in her mid-fifties, with gray streaks peppering her otherwise light brown hair. She’s dressed head to toe in a black military-style uniform with yellow symbols embroidered on the collar and cuffs of the pristine shirt that’s neatly tucked into her pants, which are neatly tucked into shit-kicker boots.
“An overdue lesson,” Rogan growls, his eyes never leaving Prek’s. They stare at each other for a second longer, and then Rogan lets the Order member go.
Prek drops to his feet, but he doesn’t crumble to the ground like I expect. He coughs and sputters as he rubs at his throat and pulls deep breaths into his starved lungs. He shoots a glare at Rogan, but there’s something else in his gaze, suspicion, confusion, I’m not quite sure what it is, but I don’t get to examine it any closer as the woman barks a command at Prek tospeak.
“Apologies, Major. I entered Osteomancer Osseous’s quarters to deposit clothing. She was awake ahead of the healer’s schedule and attacked me. I attempted to de-escalate the situation, which is when Kendrick attacked me from behind,” Prek recites, straightening up to attention at the woman’s commanding presence.
I look down at the ground and find a black bag with clothing spilling out of it. I look up, my eyes landing on Rogan’s, and I quickly snap my gaze away as though I’ve just accidentally touched a hot surface and am trying to keep from getting burned.
“I was told you’d keep your pets on a leash,” Rogan lobs at the woman venomously.
“And I was told that you’d keep your feral ways to yourself,” she snaps back. Her brown eyes find mine, and we study each other. “I am Major Griego,” she offers and pauses, waiting for me to complete the introduction ritual.
I say nothing.
Amusement flickers through her stare. “You are in the Chicago head of the Order, and you’ve been brought here for your own protection.”
“Funny,” I retort with a hollow laugh. “Brought here for my protectionfeels a lot like assault and kidnapping,” I tell her, pointedly looking from her to Prek and back again. I refuse to look at Rogan. I want to scream and rant at him and then banish him from my presence forever, but right now, I’m trying to figure out if it’s better or worse for me to put on a united front.
“Nobody thought to just ask me, give me a heads-up that I was in need of bodyguards? No? Instead, I get a needle to the neck? I mean, you guys make one hell of a fucked up first impression for an organization that’s so worried about my safety and protection,” I point out.
She nods once as though she understands my vitriol and isn’t offended by it in the slightest. “I am sorry for the circumstances surrounding your arrival here. We did not know what to expect from someone who had aligned themselves with a renounced witch. We took extra precautions to protect us and you, but I can see how it would be received as, how did you put it...right, a fucked up first impression,” she tells me, her gaze filled with understanding and a cheeky smile pulling at one side of her lips.
“I assure you that you are not a prisoner here, and we will not treat you like one. We’re here to keep you out of the hands of whoever has taken all the other Osteomancers, nothing more and nothing less. You are not confined to your quarters. You are allowed to leave the building, but be aware that a security detail has been assigned to you, and they will accompany you wherever you may wish to go for—”
“My protection,” I interrupt, shaking my head in irritation. “Yeah, I got it,” I huff indignantly, wanting to rub my temples and the headache blossoming behind them. I stop myself, refusing to show any weakness in front of this witch. “So, I take it your team is my security detail?” I ask, my annoyed glare settling on Prek.
He nods once.
“Right, because that makes sense. Stick me with the crew of witches that tried to kill me, but hey, it’s for my protection, right?” I snark at Major Griego, shooting her a look that sayscome the fuck on, you really think I’m buying this?
“We weren’t trying to kill you,” Prek defends, but one look from the Major and he goes ramrod straight and silent. I raise an impressed brow despite my irritation.
Sign me up for that super power.
“Captain Prek and his team have been assigned for your protection. Each of them will forfeit their life if that means keepingyousafe. I understand things between you started off aggressively, but make no mistake, no harm will befall you at their hands,” she assures me.
“Does that look like no harm,” Rogan interjects, motioning to my split lip and the warm line I can feel slowly dripping from it.
“She was attacking me; am I not supposed to defend my—” Prek immediately shuts up again as a small impatient noise escapes the Major.
“Are you equipped to handle this, Prek?” she questions, her brow raised in judgment, and he stiffens even more.
“Yes, ma’am,” he barks in response, and weighted silence creeps in all around me as some kind of unspoken exchange goes on between them.
Major Griego flicks her hand in my direction, and I feel the slow trickle of blood running down my chin stop and my lip knit together. My cheek ceases its throbbing, and my head clears of pain. Shock moves through me as the Soul Witch does what Soul Witches do best, she heals me.
Athank youalmost pops unbidden out of my mouth, but I crush it between gritted teeth, refusing to be polite and well-mannered after everything that’s happened. I figure my Aunt Hillen would understand if she were here.
