Gods of Chaos (Red Magic) (31 page)

Samuel’s jaw tightened, but he turned on his heel without speaking. Frances stared up at Marcus for an instant longer, her eyes brimming with tears. Then she turned and followed her son into the house.

I glared at Marcus. “You didn’t mention that part.”

He shrugged. “Doesn’t really matter. Just because we’re blood doesn’t mean there’s any love lost between us.”

“But still. It makes sense now, how bitchy he was to me before.”

Marcus smiled, but it looked more like a snarl. “He’s always adored Izzy. Everyone does.”

I nodded hopefully. If the entire Coven felt that way about Izzy, maybe they’d be willing to help us.

The hair on the back of my neck stood up as we passed over the threshold, and my skin tingled with magic. We followed Frances and Dr. Farren into the room with the fireplace that I remembered from before, but this time the large space felt small. All nine members of the Coven were gathered in the room. A woman with rich, black hair streaked white at the temples sat on the settee next to Julia. A young woman who looked like a youthful copy of the black-haired beauty stood behind her mother’s chair.

There were also two men I hadn’t met before. One looked about my father’s age, and he was sitting peacefully on the floor, his legs tucked into full lotus position, his eyes closed as if he were oblivious to everything in the room. The second man stood by the window, his back to us as he looked out at the winter sky.

Frederick cleared his throat. “I suppose I should make the introductions, but I’ll be brief about it. Marcus, Darlena, this is Julia, Jewel, Lorna, Matthew, and Roy. You know Dr. Farren, and I heard,” he said dryly, “that you’ve encountered Samuel and Frances already.”

Marcus nodded, and I surveyed the Witches with interest, trying to remember their names.

I cleared my throat. “Thank you for helping us.”

Julia spoke up, her voice as sharp as her parrot’s. “We haven’t agreed to anything yet.”

Dr. Farren glared at her. “But we haven’t turned them away. We agreed to hear them out.”

“What I want to know,” Samuel began, “is what you bloody well think you’re doing waltzing in here after all this time.”

I looked at Marcus, confused. “How long were we in the Black Forest?”

He shrugged. “A couple days. Less than a week.”

An agitated whisper snaked around the room. Samuel opened his mouth to speak, but Dr. Farren beat him to it. “What are you talking about? Darlena, you vanished over a year ago.”

I stared at her, not understanding. “You took me back to Edinburgh before the New Year.”

She shook her head impatiently. “That was the last New Year. You were gone for—”

“They were gone for a year and a day.” Samuel spoke quietly, but his words caused an explosion from the others.

Confused, I looked at Dr. Farren. “Why is the time frame so significant?”

“It’s significant,” Frederick began, “because it means we know exactly where you were.”

“I never would have thought any Witch would be foolish enough to enter Fairy.” Julia brushed her hands across her skirt, smoothing the fabric in agitation.

“It wasn’t just Fairy.” Marcus spoke quietly, and I could see them straining to listen. “Darlena entered Annwn and found me there. But then we ended up in Hel.”

“Two Underworlds! It’s a wonder you came back at all!” The younger Witch stared at me with interest.

“That’s enough, Lorna. You shouldn’t make them any more arrogant than they are.” Jewel rapped her daughter’s knuckles sharply with her hand.

“What in the world were you thinking? Didn’t we tell you not to take action?” Samuel glared at me.

Exasperated, I threw up my hands. “But I had to try to find Izzy! She sent a Seeming to guide me, but I lost her when we shifted to Hel.”

“How did you make it out alive?” Julia leaned forward. Her parrot squawked at her shoulder.

I glanced at Marcus and he shook his head slightly. No one else noticed his gesture, but I didn’t need to be told twice. I spoke with caution. “There was a volcanic eruption, and we rode the fire out.” There was no way I wanted to tell these people about Loki. No one but Marcus needed to know about our deal.

The women gasped and Samuel grimaced. “This is why we do not have dealings with Reds!” He gestured to us. “They are too dangerous to be dealt with safely.”

“Samuel! Be kind.” Frances spoke urgently, but her son shook his head.

“You all felt it the minute they walked in. Don’t pretend you didn’t!”

One by one, the other Witches dropped their eyes, refusing to meet my gaze. Samuel crossed his arms in triumph.

“Felt what?” I looked around, searching their faces. It was Dr. Farren who answered.

“The force the two of you give off is almost tangible. I’ve never experienced anything quite like it before.”

Marcus shot me a quick look and I shrugged. I had no idea what they were talking about. I mean, I got zapped whenever we touched, but other than Frances’s hug, we hadn’t touched any of the Coven. What kind of force could they feel?

Dr. Farren pressed on, trying to steer the topic away from animosity toward us. “Did you learn anything in the Underworlds about Isadora?”

“Well,” I began, trying to find the best way to tell them our suspicions, “we think—”

“Set has her,” Marcus spoke bluntly and I stared at him open-mouthed. He hadn’t acted like he’d known where she was before; what had changed? Lorna gasped, and Frances swayed beside her husband.

Dr. Farren looked from Marcus to me. “He hadn’t told you, had he?”

I shook my head. “We’d figured out she might be in another Underworld, but he never mentioned who he thought had her.” I glared at him, angry that he hadn’t trusted me with his suspicion.

Samuel shook his head in disbelief. “Set would never be so bold. Isadora is—”

“Isis’s chosen one. It does make a certain amount of sense.” The gentle-looking man who was still sitting on the floor spoke quietly, and everyone turned to look at him.

“Set has always wanted those who are dear to Isis. First it was her husband, Osiris. Then it was her son, Horus. It would make sense that he would take the child she raised as her only daughter.”

“Then she’s not in the Duat.” Jewel spoke softly, fear in her eyes. “That is not a place of power for the Lord of Chaos.”

The title of the god rang warning bells with me. “Wait a minute. Set’s another Red god, isn’t he?”

Dr. Farren nodded. “One of the fiercest. His powers of destruction and deception are rivaled only by one other god.”

I felt my hands go cold. “Who?”

Marcus looked at me in warning as Dr. Farren said, “The Norse god Loki.”

Frances made a hissing noise and pushed her hand in front of her, fingers bent in the ancient gesture for averting evil.

“So where would Set have Izzy?” I asked quickly, trying to mask my sense of guilt at hearing Loki’s name. Marcus shot me an inscrutable look, but he didn’t say anything.

“The Egyptian land of death is under the control of Osiris, his brother and rival.” Frederick spoke slowly, thinking. “Set’s realm is to make a hell on earth.”

Julia snorted. “You don’t really believe all that old propaganda, do you?” She turned to me, smiling slightly. “You might like Set, child. True, he is a god of chaos, but the Egyptians understood that chaos was a necessary part of the balance of life.”

I ignored her. “But where would he have Izzy? And why?”

The Witches looked around the room at each other helplessly. Finally, a voice I hadn’t heard before spoke.

“If Set has had the girl for all this time, then she’s lost. It doesn’t matter where anymore.” He turned from the window and I felt Marcus stiffen beside me. I gasped; the red-headed man might have been a mirror image of Marcus, from his piercing green eyes to his hard jaw. Speechless, I stared at Roy and realized that I was looking at Marcus and Izzy’s father.

“Don’t say that!” Marcus turned to face his father. “Don’t you dare give up on her.”

“Son,” Roy began, ignoring the way Marcus’s shoulders stiffened, “she’s been missing for over a year. We have to think logically.”

“Do you think she’s dead?” Marcus stared accusingly at his father.

Roy paused, then looked back out the window. “Actually, no. But,” he went on, “Set has had her this long; whether she’s still among the living or not, we may as well consider her to be lost. The Lord of Chaos bears no love for Isis, nor would he care much for her sworn Witch.”

Marcus sank onto the sofa, his head in his hands. After a moment, I sat down beside him, close but not touching.

“We’ll find her.” I spoke softly, but my words seemed to echo through the room, and I felt a prickly sensation that told me the eyes of the other Witches were suddenly on us.

“Does the Coven agree to offer whatever aid is in their power to command?” Samuel’s voice rang out suddenly, surprising me.

There was a pause, and then Julia began to nod. Lorna smiled and inclined her head, and one by one the rest of the Coven silently agreed to help us.

“Shall we incorporate them into our circle?” Jewel’s voice was breathy with excitement. Samuel turned ashy, and Dr. Farren looked at us for a long minute.

“That’s a question for them, isn’t it?” She crossed the room until she stood before us. “Marcus, Darlena, we offer you our aid, but there are certain rules that bind us. If you were one of our Coven, we would be more free to help you in your quest.” She paused, letting her words sink in. “Would you join with our group willingly and experience the full aid we can give, or will you remain separate and accepting of the least that we can do?”

I looked at Marcus. Finally, he met my eyes. He shook his head imperceptibly, and Samuel let out a quick sigh of relief.

“We understand that you cannot do everything,” I said, trying to match Dr. Farren’s formal tone. “But we accept what help you can freely offer.”

The tension in the room lessened somewhat, but I felt the weight of my words sinking into my skin, binding me to this strange group. I’d never worked magic with another Witch before, other than with Marcus in the woods, and suddenly, the prospect of working with the Coven was overwhelming. Nobody said anything for a minute, but I could feel tension swirling around the room like an invisible current. Excusing myself, I slipped outside to the wraparound porch.

The air was cold, and heavy clouds hung in the sky, threatening some kind of winter storm. I shivered and rubbed my arms. Looking out at the barren landscape, I realized that I was lonelier than I had ever been. I hadn’t had contact with Persephone since the day Marcus disappeared, and even though I’d spoken to my mom earlier that morning, it felt like nothing. I thought about calling her again, or calling Justin, but I stopped when I pulled my phone out of my pocket.

I realized that I’d been lucky before, to call when Persephone was out of the house. If I called while I was supposed to be home, I might throw the goddess’s careful plans out of whack. Not that I knew what her plans were, but I had to assume she had my best interests at heart. Especially after learning how long Marcus and I had been in the Underworlds, I was grateful that Persephone had taken action to help my parents not worry about me.

Still, I missed them. And I missed Justin. I’d avoided thinking about him ever since Marcus kissed me, but now I let myself remember his warm brown eyes and the way he said my name. I thought about the fragile steps we’d been taking to repair our relationship before I left for Scotland. Most relationships can barely survive mundane concerns, but ours had weathered the storm of my misguided use of Love magic. I knew that what we had was something special, and I closed my eyes, wishing I could feel Justin’s arms around me. I tried to surrender to the fantasy, but for some reason, it wasn’t Justin’s familiar brown eyes that haunted me. I wanted to ignore the thought, but my mind was fixated on a pair of sharp green eyes.

Gradually, I became aware of another presence on the porch, and I stiffened. I didn’t know how long Marcus had been watching me, but when I turned around to face him, the expression in his eyes frightened me. He looked as desperate as I felt, but he wasn’t gazing off in the distance. He was staring intently at me. I felt my spine begin to tingle and heat crept up my face. Did he have any idea what I’d been imagining?

Quickly, I looked away. Trying to kill whatever I had seen in his eyes, I brought up his family. “Have you met Roy before?”

He clenched his fists, and his eyes hardened. For a moment, I felt a pang of regret that I’d distracted him, but I ignored it. We didn’t need to complicate our relationship any further, and there was no way I was going to tell him I had been thinking about the kiss. “Barely. But blood will out, they say. I knew him as soon as he turned around.”

“Will he help us?”

Marcus laughed harshly. “He has to, doesn’t he? The Coven is bound to us now.”

I hesitated. “Did you want to join them?”

“Gods, no. The last thing I need is a sniveling democracy trying to control my magic. I work alone.”

“Except for me,” I pointed out. He looked at me sharply, and I felt myself blushing again.

“A temporary arrangement, if you remember.”