5

HER new assistant eyed her from the doorway as if she wasn’t entirely sure whether to kick Molly’s ass or give her a hug.

Molly smiled, hoping for the latter. “Hi, Rita. What’s up?”

“You’re perky.”

“I am. It’s a terrible flaw.”

Rita narrowed her eyes until she harrumphed and came into the office. “Are you a morning person?”

“Why are you asking? Just curious.”

“I’ve been doing this job for thirty years. It helps if I know the person and their habits.”

“I’m not really, but now that I’m on the West Coast I’ll have to be.”

“Why?” Rita wasn’t rude, she was just blunt and straightforward. Molly liked that quality in a person.

Molly sat back, crossing her legs. “A lot of the media we’ll be reacting to or interacting with will come from the East first. New York, D.C., and so forth. So I’ll have to be alert first thing and ready to handle any emergencies that might arise. Most likely I’ll be up at five or so to read ahead, but at this time I’ll be in the office by about six thirty. You don’t have to be though.”

“If you’re here, I’m here. That’s the job.”

“How about you and I make our own rules instead? I write my own press releases because I’m a control freak. I generally try to do things in order. Morning is time for reading. Press releases, news articles, that sort of thing. I don’t need you here for that stuff.”

“All of us are.”

Molly leaned forward. “What do you mean?”

Rita waved a hand. “All witches are control freaks. Oh, some of us are better at hiding it or regulating it, but we’re all control freaks in some way or other.”

That was good to know. It wasn’t that she didn’t know any witches. She did, but her circle had been a dozen or so witches and she only knew the Falcos well enough to have said if they were control freaks or not.

Rita nodded. “Including me. This is my job and if you’re here, I’m here. I’m not perky though.”

Molly bit the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. “All right then. In the mornings I read. I like to be up on everything that might affect my client.”

“In this case, witches?”

She nodded, approving of the way Rita started taking notes.

“Not just witches. We’re all connected, all Others I mean. So I’ll be reading about shifters and vampires too. I expect I’ll need to meet with their communications people as well.”

“I can handle setting all that up for you.”

Molly looked up at the new voice to catch sight of Gage standing in the doorway. In faded jeans and cowboy boots. He was ridiculously hot as the light glinted off the hoops in his ear. Three. His hair was gold-blond, thick, but short and neat around his face. She bet it started to curl when it got any longer, or maybe when it was wet from the shower, and then slapped herself for thinking about it. She wasn’t there to meet boys, for god’s sake.

“Handle what?”

“The introduction to the shifter and vampire people. Do you have a few minutes to talk?”

Rita frowned at him. “Gage, she hasn’t even had lunch yet. Give her a break.”

Gage smiled easily at Rita. “Hey there.”

“Hey yourself. Have you eaten? I was telling your mother just yesterday that you’re getting too thin.”

Rita gave him the same stern tone she’d used on Molly. Molly steepled her hands in front of her mouth to keep from smiling.

“You’re the reason she showed up at my house the day before yesterday with eight bags of groceries!”

Molly couldn’t help it, she let go of a delighted laugh and both the others turned to look at her.

Rita waved a hand in Gage’s direction. “He’s too skinny. You should see him when he’s all filled out. “

Damn, he was even more lethally gorgeous than he was right then? She wasn’t sure if her hormones could handle that.

Gage appeared to be counting to ten. “I’m a little busy lately.”

“What? Too busy to have a cereal bar or something? This is my grand-nephew, by the way. Just in case you thought I lectured strangers this way.”

Gage snorted. “Which she does.”

Molly could totally believe it.

“You can take me to lunch and tell me about what neighborhoods I should be looking for an apartment in after we talk business.” Molly looked at her watch. “Say in half an hour? I need to finish this meeting with your aunt.”

He appeared to be amused, which looked good on his handsome face. “I’ll be back for you in thirty minutes.”

She turned back to Rita. “All right then, where were we?”

They went over her expectations and schedule and at thirty minutes exactly, Gage poked his head into her office. “Ready?”

“I really am.” She grabbed her bag and headed for the door.

Rita was out there, guarding her office door like a teeny, frizzy-haired pit bull. She looked Molly over and then nodded. Molly felt like she’d gotten an A on a test.

“I’ll be back in an hour. I have my phone if you need me.”

“Take an hour and a half; it’s business after all.” Rita sniffed. “And be sure that one eats or I’m going to tell his mother again.”

* * *

“DO you have a preference for lunch?” Gage headed to the elevators and she followed. He pressed the button and then looked down her body. “Maybe not walk too far.”

“Why would you say that? Is it raining again?”

He laughed. “It’s always raining. If you don’t walk in the rain, you won’t be doing much walking at all.” He gestured, and she preceded him into the elevator. “Use your keycard like this.” He pulled his out and put it in front of the reader on the number panel. “It’ll give you access to all the lower floors. There’s a food court down on five. There are several choices.”

“I can walk in the rain, you know. I have a coat. I’m from Chicago. It was snowing when I left.”

He looked her over again. “I bet you can. But you have heels on. I was trying to save your feet.”

“Ah. I can walk in heels. These aren’t that high anyway. Do you have any favorites? I should be learning Seattle now since I’ll be relocating.”

“Do you like seafood? McCormick and Schmick’s is up the block. They’ve got lunch specials, that sort of thing. It’ll be quieter and less . . . food court–ish than downstairs.”

She fought a smile. “Food court–ish? I like that.”

He didn’t fight anything apparently. Instead he turned the full force of that damned mouth on her, with a smile that sent her senses into full-blown standing ovation.

“Seemed apt.”

“McCormick and Schmick’s sounds good.” She hoped he didn’t hear her gulp.

He walked to the outside, shielding her. She allowed it, making a note to ask him about it once they’d settled in at the restaurant.

* * *

MOLLY Ryan was the kind of woman men looked at.

Not in the same way they looked at the woman at the bar in the tight red sweater and a short skirt with heels. No, they looked at Molly the way people liked to look at pretty, elegant things.

The light seemed to hit her just right. She moved with the kind of grace he rarely saw in people who weren’t dancers. She charmed the hostess. He knew this because they got a great table.

“You’re like a Disney princess.”

Startled, she looked up from her menu. “What?”

“Birds sing, the clouds part, people turn to you expectantly. Is this part of your gift?”

The server came so they suspended the conversation briefly while they ordered.

“Am I so horrible then, Gage Garrity, that only magick would make someone turn to me expectantly?”

He paused, abashed, and then realized she was teasing. “Not horrible at all. Excuse my manners. Don’t tell my aunt or she’ll tell my mother and then I’ll have lectures about how I speak to women, as well as casseroles and my mom’s special tea blends showing up in my kitchen.”

She smiled. “Your aunt is formidable. I’m glad to have her working with me. I bet people will think twice before they give her any guff to get to me.”

Gage laughed. “Yes. Well, she’s a tough old bird.”

“To answer your question, I’m told that charm is part of my power. Rosa, she’s my other mother of sorts, anyway, she said people with my gifts often go into politics or entertainment. Maybe I should be an actor instead.”

He could totally see her as an actor. “Hours are probably better. Pay too.”

“Weather as well. Los Angeles is sunny today I bet.”

But then he wouldn’t be having lunch with her and Meriel would still be at risk too.

“So is there a good reason then? For your mother to be plying you with food?” Her eyes were beautiful, probably the most striking thing about her. The blue of deep, deep water, with flecks of gold around her pupils. Long, dark lashes.

Those eyes of hers saw right through him, he realized. It wasn’t entirely comfortable.

“Been a bit hectic here.” He shrugged.

“I don’t know much about it. About what happened I mean. What I do know is . . .” She shook her head quickly. “I know it’s not the time or place.”

“You’ll need to know it. For your job I mean. When we get back, have Rita get me on your schedule and we can go over it. For now, let’s get to the day-to-day stuff. What is your daily schedule going to look like? What sorts of events will have you leaving our building?”

He watched as she very precisely put sugar and cream into her coffee, stirring without making a single sound. She sipped and he saw it, the pleasure skittering over her features at the taste.

The moment was just a breath of time. And yet the intimacy of it shocked him. A flush heated through his belly.

She tore her attention from the coffee and back to him. “I needed that. Why do you ask? I’m assuming scheduling if and when I need security?”

He spoke under his breath and the spell dampened all sound around them. “We can hear when we’re being approached, but we can speak without being heard.”

Her eyes widened and the wonder on her face chipped away a little of his bitterness. “Really? Can you teach this to me? Oh, that would be brilliant.”

He found himself smiling more with her than he had in some time. “I can, yes. For now, the answer to your question is yes, I need to know for security reasons.”

“I expect for the next several days it’ll be a lot of catch-up and getting some structure into place. Then I’ll be doing the things Meriel does now. Interviews, that sort of thing. Do you have a website?”

“Hm? Uh, yes. Locked to Owen members only.”

She nodded and pulled a pad from her bag and began to write.

“I apologize. I wanted to note something while I was thinking. There’ll be legislative visits. But I can make the drive down to Olympia easily enough if the maps are correct. I’ll probably only need your help occasionally. Appearances will take up a lot of time some weeks and others I’ll be at the office. I’ll have Rita let your office know in advance if I’m doing something I feel will need an escort.”

He held his finger up briefly, breaking the spell as the server approached with their food and then recasting once they were alone again.

“You seem to like blunt talk, am I correct?”

She took him in, her eyes narrowing slightly. “Yes, I prefer it.”

“Things are bad. We get multiple death threats weekly. Meriel and Dominic have given Lark and I the ability to run the security needs of the clan and its witches. Lark and I believe your job will be as dangerous as it was when Meriel did it. By that I mean the moment humans find out you’re our spokesperson, you will be under increased threat. It’s my job to be sure we protect you against that threat level. As such, all appearances outside the building will be with a security detail. The clan will provide you with a guard who will also serve as your driver.”

“Driver? That’s ridiculous. I can drive my own car.”

“Three days ago, a witch in Arizona was pulled from her car and nearly beaten to death by thugs who found out she was a witch. We routinely get reports of nails in tires. A witch in Spain, part of their council, was killed just a week ago. An IED planted at the end of her driveway. You will have a car the clan secures when you are not in it and you will have a trained driver, who will be your guard as well. This is not negotiable.”

One of her brows rose and she cocked her head slightly.

“Your home, once you secure a place to live, will be warded by one of the witches the clan trusts. Meriel’s father is one of the best. Sami is also quite powerful at warding.” He paused to eat and let it sink in a little.

“Welcome to war, Molly Ryan. It’s my job to be sure you’re tough enough to make it out alive.” Even though he knew it wasn’t a promise he could keep every time. The truth was, he couldn’t protect them all.

* * *

GAGE, true to his word, had assigned her a guard and a driver named Faine. Faine, who was a great deal like a flesh-and-blood tank, was Lycian. She’d discovered Lycians were sort of like werewolves and they came from the other side of the Veil, like the Fae. There were Fae. She was still sort of reeling over that.

Anyway, Faine was Simon Leviathan’s younger brother and once she got past the fact that he was nearly seven feet tall, she discovered he also had a very sweet way about him.

He’d been given the room next to hers at the hotel and had come inside Molly’s room to give it the once-over. Apparently someone from the clan had come over earlier to ward the place as well.

Once he’d finished, she touched his arm briefly. “Thank you. I’m sorry your life has been uprooted just to be next door.”

Faine smiled again and she couldn’t help but respond with a smile of her own. “This is what I came here to do. I’m pleased to be able to help. Have you eaten dinner yet?”

She shook her head and took a peek at her watch. “Didn’t realize it was already after eight.”

“How about I order us up some dinner? We can get to know each other a little and I can explain to you just why it’s necessary that I’ll be your shadow for the next little while?”

She sighed. “All right.”

“I’m going to shower and order the food. I’ll be back over in about twenty minutes.”

Molly used the time to change into sweatpants, thick socks and a sweatshirt. She called her mother quickly while she had the chance.

“I’m sorry it’s so late!” she said when her mother answered.

“I can’t sleep anyway. I’m glad you called. I feel better now that I’ve heard your voice. So tell me.”

“I accepted the job. I started pretty much immediately. Wrote a press release even.” She snorted. “I’ve got an awesome dragon as an assistant. She knows stuff and no one is getting through to my desk unless they deserve to.”

“Good to hear. They’re good people? These Owens?”

She smiled. People sometimes considered Molly’s mother to be a bit of a stone-cold ballbuster. But underneath the ambition that had driven her to such success was a person who loved her family. Molly would be seventy years old and her mother would still worry. That filled her up.

“They seem to be. They’re footing the bill for this hotel I’m in. One of those extended-stay dealies. They offered to help me find an apartment. My assistant even made me a list with places they consider safest. I have a driver and a guard.”

“A what?”

Molly sucked in a breath and explained. “This is more than me being a witch and outed on television. Here I’ll be associated with the clan in a much more open way. They seem to think it’s a necessary thing so I’m going with it.”

“I don’t like it.”

“Me neither. But what can I do? Hide? Pretend it’s not happening? You should see some of the background material I read today. There is some seriously bad stuff happening to Others all across the globe right now.”

It turned her stomach. Outraged her that it had barely even been spoken of on the news. She needed to remedy that. Humans needed to understand and Others needed to realize just how threatened they were.

Her mother spoke again, interrupting her mental planning. “When do you think you’ll be back to pack up?”

“I don’t know. My schedule is already full.” Molly rubbed her eyes, suddenly exhausted.

“I just spoke with Rosa earlier. Why don’t you let us do it? At the very least we can get your clothes and shoes packed up and sent your way.”

“You’re so good to me, Mom.”

“I’m your mother, it’s my job. Also it gives me something to do so I won’t miss you so much. So . . . what’s it like? I feel bad, not having you grow up knowing this stuff. I never meant—never knew it would be like this.”

“Please don’t apologize for the choices you made. I wouldn’t change a thing about the way I grew up. I promise. It’s different here. It’s not that I’ve never been around witches. But they’re very, I don’t know, it’s a big part of who they are. I mean, you should see this building they’re headquartered in. It’s like a giant corporation of witches. They have a landscaping business. A chain. A legal department. All sorts of stuff. They offered me lessons. So I can learn how to use my power in new ways. Classes on clan history, which will be helpful in my job. Some of them are wary of me. Most of them have been welcoming. I’m overwhelmed, but so busy it hasn’t really sunk in yet.”

“That’s probably for the best. You always do better when you have lots of things to do. Anything new on the stuff with the firm?”

“I’m not going to get my job back. Which is pretty much what we knew. I mean, Jim said he could fight it and maybe we’d win. But the partnership agreement was violated in that my whatever—existence, identity—had brought negative attention to the firm and cost it clients. That was true, even though the reasons were stupid. I don’t want to fight it for years, spending all that money. Their settlement to me will be double what they offered originally.” And that was a great deal of money. Though, of course, money she’d made anyway. “They have to change the name of the firm, and Jim crafted a better statement on my departure that didn’t cast them as saints and me as a witchy whore.” She sighed. It still hurt.

“I hate them.”

Molly grinned. “Thanks, Mom. It sucks. A lot. But the money will enable to me buy a great place out here and get a car and still have some in savings. I suppose I need to look for the bright side for the next little while.”

“It’d be more fun to punch them all in the throat.”

“Ha. Yes, much more fun. Alas, the police look down on such problem solving.”

They chatted a while longer before hanging up and she felt a lot better. More settled after she’d touched base.

* * *

FAINE came over shortly after, tapping lightly. She noted the food on the big tray in his hands gratefully.

“I hadn’t realized how hungry I was until right now.” She stood back and he came in. They settled at the table and he pulled two beers from a bag.

“Bless you.” She grinned his way as she opened things up and grabbed a carrot.

“I didn’t think to ask if you were a vegetarian or had special dietary stuff.”

“You have very good manners. Your mother must be proud.” She took a long drink from the beer.

“My mother would not tolerate anything else. She’s not even four and half feet tall, but no one would dare to disobey her.” Faine grinned.

“So was your, um, world affected by the Magister?”

“It didn’t manifest on our side of the Veil. We knew it was bad. The Magister I mean. Simon and Lark came to us to warn and get our pledge of support. But we didn’t . . . we had no way of . . . The night it came was the stuff of nightmares. But even though I knew about it, I still can’t quite get over it. I came over with some of my family when we got word about it. Lark nearly died. I don’t know if my brother could have gotten over it if she hadn’t come through.” He paused and then changed the subject. “You’re what they call outclan, yes?”

“I don’t know what they call it. I was sort of an extended member of a coven. But it wasn’t part of my daily existence really. I had a life and my being a witch was like having blue eyes or a quick wit. Part of me, but nothing I really thought about a lot. And then suddenly it was everything and I didn’t even know what all was true.”

He pushed her plate toward her. “Won’t do you any good to get sick because you’re not eating.”

She ate because it seemed as if he wouldn’t unless she did. It was automatic, but it got the job done.

“I spent pretty much the entire day today reading reports about what’s been happening. All the assaults, threats, violent attacks, people losing jobs and homes.” She shook her head.

Molly was used to being good at everything she did. She was in over her head right then, needing to just go step-by-step, but having someone she could talk to was a hugely important resource. “I’m still sorry you have to be here babysitting me instead of out living your life.”

“My life has been pretty much consumed with the aftermath of the Magister. Guarding you gives me something to do. I’ve been staying with Lark and Simon so it’s a nice change of pace to have a space of my own. And room service is better than having to cook. This is my job.” He shrugged. “I’m good at my job.”

“As your job is keeping me safe from thrown eggs and nails in my tires, I’m grateful.”

“You read it yourself. This is far more than egging or mean-spirited op-ed columns in the newspaper. We’re talking death threats, Molly. Don’t let yourself forget just how dangerous it is out there. Witches look human, so you’re safer than some Others. But those assholes in PURITY want you dead just the same. And many have ended up that way.”

She swallowed hard. “I don’t want other people in danger because of me.”

“I don’t want you in danger because you’re trying to help our people. So, we’re even.” He winked at her and it broke the tension.