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Once we landed, someone screamed, and I felt instantly empty. I gasped, falling to my knees, my chest tight as hot pain flared through my heart. I drew in a short breath and groaned, gripping my shirt.
Alijah called out my name, his hand on my shoulder, and I tried to focus on it, but the crying girl drowned out his voice.
“What?” I gasped.
“Ms. Freyre, please calm your daughter,” Alijah said over the crying, and I shook my head.
“What?” I asked again.
“I’m so sorry,” Alijah said. “Once she calms down, you’ll be fine.
“Fine?” I couldn’t think. I felt so empty. Like my very existence was nothing more than dust in the wind. No purpose. I had no purpose. I couldn’t live like this. I couldn’t.
I sobbed, wanting to just end it. My life wasn’t worth it.
“No, baby, you’re okay. I promise you’re okay.”
I wheezed. “I can’t,” I said, not sure what I meant. I felt wrong. Off. I shouldn’t be. I shouldn’t exist. I couldn’t live like this.
“Stop! Stop, Laila, please,” Alijah begged. “Look at me. Please look at me.” The plea in his voice drew me to him. When had I ever heard Alijah plea? Never.
I blinked past the blurry tears to see his imploring eyes, the gold flecks in them shimmering. He cupped my face and kissed my cheek, just at the corner of my mouth. His touch was feather light against my skin. A reassurance.
“I promise. You’re okay. I promise. So please, don’t think like that. You’re okay.”
I gripped his hands with my own as I sobbed. “I don’t understand.”
“You will. I promise, you will.” He turned his head. “Winne, it’s me. It’s Lija. You’re okay. Please calm down. I need you to be a big girl, can you do that?”
“Lija?” a tiny female voice spoke up.
“Yes, it’s me. I won’t hurt you. But you’re hurting my lady friend. Can you breathe for me? Take a deep breath and calm that beating heart of yours? Can you do that for me?”
“Yes,” the tiny voice said again, and she sniffled a few times. I heard her take in a breath and release it.
Alijah turned back to me. “Laila?”
“I’m okay,” I croaked out and felt some of my magic trickle back in. It wasn’t much, but it was enough. I shuddered, reaching out to my magic and touching it. If I could, I would’ve jumped into it and let it reassure me. It was back and it had no intention of going anywhere if it could. “I’m okay.” I rested my head on his shoulder, closing my eyes and just breathing, calming down.
“I’m so sorry. I had... shit...” Alijah said. “I’m not sure what I hoped. We had to come. I should have warned you. I know I should have so you were prepared. I just wasn’t thinking straight. This whole situation has me not thinking straight. And her gift works probably twenty percent of the time right now.”
“What is going on?” I whispered.
Alijah wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close. His hand rubbed my back.
“Jacynth and Winne Freyre. Jacynth is a fae and Winne is her four-year-old daughter. She’s half fae, half witch, and a nullifier.”
“Nullifier?” I asked, my thoughts still too scattered to understand what that meant.
“Yes. She generally has more control, but I should have figured that her being scared would activate her powers. She didn’t mean it.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked.
“I have no excuse. I should have and I didn’t. I’m sorry. Only a handful of us even knows about her.”
“I can’t... I can’t feel like that,” I whispered, feeling nauseous.
His hold tightened around me. “You won’t. Never again.”
“You can’t promise that.”
He didn’t reply. I pushed away from him and rubbed at my face. I gave the other two a watery smile and cleared my throat. “My name is Dr. Laila Porter. I’m a lab technician here.” My voice came out strong despite the fear and anxiety clawing at me.
“What is going on?” the woman asked. She had straight brown hair framing a long pale face, with big blue eyes, and thin lips. Smooth skin covered a small nose and high cheekbones. Fae.
“We’ve had a break-in,” Alijah explained. “They put up a ward so we can’t get out of here.”
The woman paled and looked at the little girl who was almost an exact replica of her, except with the chubby cheeks and a lighter shade of brown hair with streaks of red through them.
“Are they... are they here for us?” she asked.
“We don’t know. They are currently making their way up, clearing each floor as they do,” Alijah said.
“We’re here to get you out,” I said. “I can transport us out of here.” I frowned and glanced at the little girl. She met my eyes and there was a deep sorrow etched in the depths, speaking of horrors she should have never had to witness so young.
A nullifier. She was dealt a harsh life and she already knew that. My heart ached for her. I didn’t know of any nullifiers, and those who did exist were in hiding—if they weren’t already hunted down.
The little girl’s eyes widened slightly before she tucked herself into her mother, hiding behind her legs.
“Winne, are you ready to get out of this room?” Alijah asked.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“To our main security room. There are more guards there and we will be able to keep you safe,” he said.
She nodded.
“Okay, grab onto each other,” I said.
Once we were all touching, I grabbed onto as much magic as I could and pictured the security room. When I released my magic so it could do its job, nothing happened.
At all.
I blinked open my eyes to see Alijah frowning at me. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
“I don’t have enough magic.” I glanced at the little girl and he caught on. “I don’t have it all back.”
Alijah frowned and then kneeled in front of the girl.
“Winne, you’re scared, right?”
She nodded.
“Do you want to get out of here?”
She nodded again.
“Can you calm down enough to release your gift? The pretty lady next to me can’t use hers with yours on.”
“I can’t,” she said and tears filled her eyes. “I’m scared.”
Her mother kneeled down next to her. “I know you are, baby. Me too. I’m so scared too.” The mother tucked a strand of the girl’s hair behind her ear and the whole scene was sweet and bitter at the same time. I stepped back and looked away, unable to watch. A small part of me was jealous and there was no room for that. The bitterness inside of me crawled up my throat, and I learned that bitterness tasted rotten and sour.
I hated it.
They went back and forth, but I could hear the time ticking away. We didn’t have much of it left. By my calculations, they should be in the stairwell to this floor now.
“It’s okay,” I said and turned back to the scene. “It’s okay.” I kneeled in front of her. “You use your gift. It’ll keep you safe. Don’t worry about trying to tuck it away.”
“Laila,” Alijah said and I gave him a slight shake of my head.
I turned back to the little girl. “You’re scared and this is your gift’s way to reassure you. You’re going to be okay.” Her shoulders slumped in relief, and I gave her a tight smile.
“What are you thinking?” Alijah asked.
“What is her range on her gift?” I asked.
“About ten yards,” her mother answered.
“We can work with that,” I said and met Alijah’s eyes. I bit my lip before pushing on. “Alijah, you’ll take them to that secret emergency stairwell Ami mentioned.”
“No.”
“Once she is far enough away, I’ll be able to teleport out.”
“No.”
“Get to the first floor. I’ll draw them away so you can get down to the security room.”
“Laila, no.”
“Shut up!” I snapped at Alijah. The little girl whimpered, and I sighed, swallowing back frustration. Softening my voice, I said, “Winne, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to yell.”
“We aren’t doing it,” Alijah said.
“They’re going to be on this floor any moment now. We need to. You can keep them safe. You can fight. I can’t.”
“Exactly.”
“I’m going to put up a ward to slow them down and they’re going to come after me. You’ll slip through. They won’t ever get within fifteen feet of me. I can transport myself as soon as Winne is far enough away. She should be, right? Far enough away?”
He nodded. “Then get her and move. I’ll keep them busy. Then I’ll be able to distract the ones on the first floor.”
“It’s dangerous. This is the exact opposite of what you’re supposed to be doing.”
I glared at him. “Then why did you agree to me coming in the first place?” I asked. “Why agree for me to come with you to get them? You’re being a hypocrite right now.”
“That’s different. There was no danger in transporting around. But now, you’re going to interact with those assholes.”
“And if I go with them and you stay behind? Tell me? How is that going to work? How are you going to get away? You can’t fight all of them. You can’t transport. And while you’re up here getting your, ah, butt”—I glanced at the girl—“handed to you, what will happen to us when we reach the first floor and have to slip through the three baddies down there? Plus with this building on lockdown, you’ll be able to get into the stairwell to go further down. I can’t. I don’t have the password to open the door. It was designed like that for a reason. What I can do is transport myself the moment she is far enough away. Just get her away and it’ll be fine.”
The muscle in his jaw ticked. He glanced at the little girl as she clung onto her mother. “Fine,” he gritted out, probably hating the set up now.
The emergency doors could only be accessed by certain people once the building went into lockdown. It was created to keep baddies from using them to get around the building and anyone inside would be escorted out once they were cleared as not a threat. In theory, it should have been okay.
“Fine.”
He stood up and paced. “I hate this.”
“I know.”
“Don’t do anything. As soon as you’re clear, as soon as you do what you said you would do, get away. Don’t hang back. Don’t get caught.”
“I won’t.”
Muttering something, Alijah came over and pulled me into him. In the next breath, he planted his lips against mine. His kiss was violent and demanding, bruising my lips as he tried to lay claim to my very existence. My response was desperate as I pressed against him, loving it when he growled against my lips.
After a few long seconds, he pulled away. His eyes closed as he leaned forward and rested his head against my shoulder.
“This isn’t how I wanted our first kiss,” he growled out. I ran my hand through his hair to reassure him.
“On the bright side, my lips are red and plush, and my heart rate is definitely up. So you did fulfill your promise,” I said, keeping my voice light, trying to add humor to it.
He groaned. “You know this isn’t what I meant.”
“Maybe so, but this is reality. You know roses and candlelight dinners are awkward for me. I don’t do romance well.”
“I know.”
“This. I wouldn’t trade it. I needed it. So don’t regret it.”
He straightened up and leaned forward, pressing his lips against my forehead. “I don’t. I needed it too. But I will give you a proper one when this is all over.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
“Can’t we just stay here and hide?” Jacynth asked.
Alijah shook his head. “Since Winne’s gift is leaking, the wards are either down or weak. When they make it to this floor, they’ll easily get inside.”
“And we don’t understand all their strengths right now,” I added. “What we do know is that they easily broke through four doors with four different wards on them, plus the ward around the property. Before them, I was confident no one would ever be able to break our ward. They’re too strong.”
Jacynth nodded, acceptance causing her shoulders to lower in what looked like defeat.
“Don’t give up yet,” I said. “You have a daughter to protect.”
That seemed to do the trick as she straightened up and moved to the door with Winne at her side. Her eyes flashed with her magic. She was ready.
“How are we doing this?” Alijah asked, looking at me.
“I’m going to go first and make my way down the hall. Once I do, you’re going to slip out and go the other direction. Where is the hidden door?” I asked.
“To the left,” Alijah said.
“Perfect, since I have to go right. Don’t leave until I give the go ahead. I’ll go to the corner, and after I check to make sure it’s all clear, I’ll give you a wave to get your butt moving. You move, Alijah. Focus on what is ahead of you. Don’t worry about me.” I pointed to the woman and daughter. “They are your priority. Understand?”
His expression blanked as he went into bodyguard mode. “I understand.”
“Good.” I swallowed back bile and cracked open the door, peeking out. The hallway was empty. I went right and ran on light feet until I reached the corner and looked around it to the stairwell at the end, about five yards away. Once I verified it was safe, I sent a wave to Alijah. He grabbed the woman’s upper arm and herded them in the opposite direction.
Shots were fired, muffled, but I still jumped, staring at the closed door with wide eyes. I glanced back and glared at Alijah. He had paused to look at me. I waved at him furiously until he turned and went to the wall at the other end. He lifted his hand and rested it against a panel for a moment. A second later, the three of them were gone.
I stepped out into the middle of the hallway and the next moment my magic flooded me, threatening to drag me to my knees with the overwhelming sensation swirling inside. It felt like I was being welcomed home after a long, grueling day. I dug out the keys in my pocket, wincing. This was all I had. I dug the pointed end of my key into my hand until a well of blood filled my palm. Once there was enough, I imbued it with my magic, feeling the blood growing hot. The door banged open and I jumped as people flooded into the hallway. They paused when they saw me.
I gave them a smile, hiding the dread that sent my heart into overtime. I recognized Jaylam Reese. His mouth popped open to yell something and the mage with the sigil on his cheek lifted his hand. I reacted first, flinging my blood out. It sailed through the air and I sent my magic with it. Once my magic and blood mingled together and powered up enough, it flared to life, enough to create a thick barrier between me and the bad guys.
The mage’s dark eyes met mine. His widened, and I knew it was because mine glowed a bright green as I used magic. He wasn’t expecting to face someone like me. Maybe they should have done more research.
“Break this one,” I said to them. They were the anal type, they’d break the ward before moving on because they’d need to make sure it was clear. I backed up and went to the door into the suite and popped up another ward, this one weaker.
I turned, forced more blood into my hands and did another ward on the other side, so if they went around, they still wouldn’t be able to so easily get inside.
With a challenge in my eyes, I briefly met Reese’s eyes before ducking into the guest apartment. Once inside, I put up another ward in the doorway, fighting against the exhaustion wanting to take me with it. Not yet. I had more work to do. I couldn’t rest yet. It became a mantra as I wrapped magic around me and left the fifth floor.
A moment later, I popped into a small closet on the first floor. I pressed my ear against the door and listened. Not hearing anything, I slowly opened the door and looked through, seeing no one. My heart pounded, adrenaline coursing through me. I stepped into the hallway, looking both ways. Knowing three others were on this floor, I cautiously moved to the back of the building, listening and watching carefully. My muscles were tight, soreness seeping into them as I moved. My breaths were short and shallow, my chest painful, as I continued to creep toward danger instead of away.
Once I spotted a figure, I ducked into the doorway of a room. The witch was standing guard down here. The earrings twinkled from the building’s fluorescent lights, and she leaned against a wall, arms crossed as she repeatedly checked the hallways that intersected where she stood. The stairwell to go down was right next to her. Alijah and the other two would have to come out near there. I wasn’t entirely sure of the setup for the hidden passageway, but my best guess was that it came out very close to that door. I needed to draw her away and far enough so she didn’t feel Winne’s gift rip her magic away. Granted, it would be a good way to make her vulnerable, but if they didn’t know about her, I didn’t want them learning of her existence.
Winne’s gift would be a prize for anyone who could get their hands on her. And if they were here for her, I didn’t want them to be completely sure that we had already moved her. If she was their target, I was hoping they thought we had barricaded ourselves on the fifth floor.
Taking in a deep breath, I reached out with my magic until I felt the other two. They were on the other side. One of them just had to step into this hallway and look down to spot me. I didn’t have much time.
Gathering magic into the palm of my hand, I stepped out and shot a light purple ball of magic toward the witch.
Her senses and training had her reacting nearly instantly as she dodged. When she saw me, she threw her own magic my way, and I threw up a quick and dirty barrier that fell apart as soon as her magic smashed into it. Since the barrier was weak, it was only a pulse in my brain, nothing debilitating. My head still swam though, but more from exhaustion rather than having a ward torn down. I shook off the weariness as I moved down the hallway, forcing her to come chase after me.
“Found one!” she called out to get the other two’s attention.
I blew out a breath and smashed into a door, my shoulder aching against the impact as I used my magic to force it open. I pushed against the ward until it let me through, and I fell as the ward popped back up behind me with the help of my magic.
Three figures came into view as they crowded the door, unable to pass.
“Just give up,” the witch snarled. “I’ll have this down in a couple of minutes.”
I licked my lips, hoping the other three used this as a chance to get to safety. “I only need a few seconds,” I said.
She frowned, her eyes lighting up as a clear sign of magic use. She lifted her hand and held it just inches from the ward. “This isn’t strong enough.”
“It doesn’t need to be,” I said.
One of the guys, a tall black man with a full beard, lifted a gun and shot the ward. The bullet didn’t go through, but somehow wedged itself into the magic. Vines shot out and began wrapping around the magic, and my insides ached as I felt the ward get devoured, feeding the vines as it grew.
“What?” My mouth popped open. I’d never seen anything like that and I stared at it in fascination. The vines started as green, but as it grew and devoured the magic, it turned a dark blue. The ward was weakening.
I swallowed my fear and forced a grin, praying to Goddess Hekate that enough time had passed, because I couldn’t stay here any longer.
I pulled on my magic; it felt sluggish as I forced it to do my bidding. Too much. I had done too much too quickly, especially after going through being nullified. The image of the security room came to mind, and I focused on that.
My skin prickled, the air brushing against it as I moved and then I was in the security room, everything spinning and people calling out my name.
