Witch Hunt, A Paranormal/Urban Fantasy (The Maurin Kincaide Series) (27 page)

That got a laugh out of him.
“Let's try a different approach. Imagine that you are at one of those fancy restaurants that humans are so fond of. You've ordered one of the dozen menu selections. A waiter brings your meal in one of those covered trays. He sets it before you. Right up until the moment you lift the cover all twelve selections are still possible. It is not until your mind tells you that it is chicken does that become the reality,” he explained.

“That’s probably the best explanation of quantum mechanics that I've ever heard.
Seriously, where were you when I was in high school?” I asked.

“Now that we are on the same page, a
lternate realities are the same way. When you are in the between, any reality is possible. Your mind simply needs to decide on what your reality will be. For example, I followed the Blue Man across the globe. Each time, I arrived shortly after him. That is until I tired of the chase and put an end to it,” Arawn said.

“You're talking about Baylen?” I asked.

“Yes. It saddens me to say, since I take no pleasure in ending any race, that the Blue Men are no more. But that is not why I bring it up. I was able to follow him across Europe, more than once, by opening myself up to the between. Every time that Baylen and his fanged friend made a decision about their destination, I would envision the same in the between. It is how I am able to chase my quarry relentlessly. They move by horse or plane or train and all I have to do is wait for them to decide. Then I slip into the between and choose the reality of my being in the same place at the same time,” he said matter of factly.

“But how do you know when and where they decide?
How do I open myself up to the between?” I asked.

"One thing at a time. The between is a
lways there. It is the basis of all reality. Not everyone can see it. You have obviously inherited the gift from me, however,” he said.

“Then how was my mother able to do it if she was just a Druid Priestess?
Are witches able to move through the between?” I asked

“To some degree, yes.
Your mother's magic was very powerful. I have never seen another who could manipulate magic and the between the way that she could. Their teleportation spells are very similar, but you will not need potions or magical relics to move through the between. Take my hand,” he said.

I hesitated.
My mind was reeling. Every time I thought that my life couldn’t get any weirder, it did. Big time.

“Take my hand, Maurin,” he repeated.

The moment that my hand touched his, I felt the world fall away. I slammed my eyes shut when the weightlessness set in. It was a good thing that I hadn’t eaten for a while, because my stomach threatened to empty its contents as soon as my feet hit terra firma again. The cold air felt good against my clammy skin and eased the motion sickness that was fighting to take over. I took a couple of deep breaths and tried to find my center.

“Open your eyes,” Arawn said.

I had to fight the urge to close my eyes tighter. I opened one eye and then the other.

“I think that I'm going to puke,” I said.

“It will pass in a moment.” he assured me.

We were standing in the middle of Ga
llows Hill Park. He had transported us both through the between and brought us back to Salem.

“Not that I'm not grateful to be back, but why are we here?” I asked.

“This is a place of great importance for you. You spilled your blood and the blood of your enemies on this ground. You wielded the Retaliator for the first time only feet from here. And it is where I found you after spending a lifetime believing that you were lost to me forever. Step into the between here and I will meet you,” he explained.

I didn't know if that was a good thing or not.
The fact that he would know that I was in the between at all was enough to make me never want to do it again.

“Now take us to the warehouse,” Arawn said.

“How am I supposed to do that?” I asked.

“I just showed you,” he said, sounding a little frustrated. “This is going to be more difficult than I thought.
Try to break down this reality. The castle isn't here; nothing is here. Peel away the layers of detail that make this place real to you. There is only space," he said.

I tried. I really did try, but I kept getting distracted by thoughts of the final frontier.

“You're going to have to do better than that. Focus!” he demanded.

Not wanting to risk irritating him fu
rther, I concentrated on finding the between. I thought about the place where everything began - before it became real. I questioned the reality and felt the between move a little closer. It was there, rolling just beneath the surface like an underground river. That was how I imagined it. It was a stream of possibilities; all I had to do was learn to control the current. I dipped my hand in and let the cool power of the between move across my skin.

“Very good, Maurin.
Though I don't recommend you use this as an escape route yet. You'd be dead already if an enemy were after you,” he said.

“
Shhhhh. You're going to break my concentration. I've almost got it,” I told him.

Without further instruction, I focused all of my attention back on the between.
I soaked up its power and spindled it in my mind until I couldn't hold any more. Once my head was full of the between, I started envisioning the warehouse. I imagined what the cold dampness that comes from being surrounded by concrete felt like against my skin. I pictured the circle on the floor and the scent of the candles and incense. I saw the people who were there when I’d left in my mind. I could actually feel the new reality forming around me and hear their voices - and a few that weren't in the warehouse before as well.

I was out of the between and back where I had started. Well, almost.
I wasn't in the circle any more. I was closer to the main door. Masarelli pulled his team from security detail and moved them inside. Guns were drawn and the guys from SPTF were yelling, “Put her down!” It took me a second to figure out what was happening. Aidan had Graive jacked up against the wall by her throat. It was hard to tell from where I was, but it looked like his fangs were out. I turned to tell Arawn that I'd be right back, but he was already gone. Damn! I knew that I was going to have a hard time explaining what had happened without him around. I turned back just in time to see that Oberon had worked some sort of spell and had aimed it at Aidan. It was time to rejoin the party.

21

“Don't kill her on my account,” I said, loud enough for everyone to hear over all the commotion.

Masarelli and a couple of his guys turned their guns on me.
Two agents kept their sights on Aidan as he turned to look over his shoulder. His eyes were wild and his face contorted with rage. There were two small red dots on Aidan's back – their sights were set on him already, but two guns wouldn't stop him. If I had arrived even a couple of seconds later, Graive would have been dead and Aidan would have been arrested. There was no way that Masarelli would have let him get away with murder - even though Graive was a necro and Masarelli was a bigot when it came to the Others.

“Easy boys. It's just me.
Masarelli - tell them to lower their weapons before I end up getting shot in the head,” I said, watching the newest recruit to SPTF and his itchy trigger finger.

“Sir?” one of them asked, waiting for orders.

“How do we know that you're really you?” Masarelli asked.

“It's her,” Aidan said, finally letting go of Graive. She hit the floor hard.
It took both Amalie and Oberon to pick her up. Aidan had nearly strangled her to death. He was not controlling his emotions well at all. I was practically choking on the anger that he was projecting.

“What makes you so sure?
You said that you saw her vanish with the demon. How do we know that it didn't kill her and then change into her form?” Masarelli asked in rapid-fire fashion.

“I know that's the same suit that you were wearing the last time I saw you, right down to the mustard stain on your collar.
Don't they encourage good personal hygiene at SPTF anymore?” I asked, trying to get under his skin.

“Screw you, Kincaide.
I've been working nonstop since you left me to clean up your mess at the station,” Masarelli snapped, clearly irritated.

“My mess? There wouldn't have been a mess if you hadn’t been so hell
bent on cuffing me and stuffing me in a cell. I tried to tell you not to do so, but you had to try to prove that you were better than me once again,” I retorted.

“It's her, all right.
Lower your weapons. Even a demon couldn't be this obnoxious,” Masarelli replied.

I gave him the finger.
Aidan had regained enough of his cool vampire composure to come over to me.

“Don't ever do that again,” he said, grabbing me by the shoulders.

“What? Get banished with a demon? Trust me, I don't plan on it,” I told him.

He slipped one hand behind my head and one around my waist, pulling me to him.
His breath was cool on my neck, giving me goose bumps. His fangs brushed against my skin and my body tingled in anticipation as if I were hooked up to jumper cables.

“As much as I enjoy your sarcastic sense of humor, it won't save you from my wrath if you ever do that to me again,” he said softly.
Only a vampire could make a threat sound like sweet nothings.

I knew that he was serious; he had told me that vampires were protective, but there was something strangely exciting about the threat that he had just whispered in my ear.
He let me go and I felt a little weak in the knees. Everyone else would think it was exhaustion, but Aidan knew the effect that he had on me.

I stepped around Aidan so that I could see everyone in the warehouse, but more specifically Mahalia.
I wanted to look my betrayer straight in the eye. She had lied to me about so many things.

Mahalia met my gaze and said, “You never cease to amaze me, Maurin.
When we realized that the Afrit was trying to take you with him, it was too late to stop the banishing spell. I have to admit that even I was worried that our magic wouldn't be enough to bring you back, but you made it on your own. Not only did you kill the demon, but you managed to find your way out of the between. I'm so relieved. I should have known that you wouldn't need our help.” She exuded her usual confident demeanor as she finished her monologue of bullshit.

There was something in her eyes that b
elied her relief to see my safe return. Mahalia knew that Agrona would ensure that she lost her seat on the Council for her deceit. She meant to trap me in the between with the demon. She obviously didn't think that I would be able to kill it in its own domain. She thought that it would drain me dry and leave me for dead with no way to escape, but she forgot about Arawn. It never occurred to her that he would be able to sense me in the between. What about Aidan? He would still tell Agrona the truth. He was there when Mahalia had confessed what she had done. He would make sure that she forfeited her seat to the Fey. That's where Masarelli had fit into her plan. She knew that Aidan would blame Graive; she knew that the vampires were looking for an excuse to get rid of the necro. Masarelli would be clueless about what was really going on. She was counting on him to try to stop Aidan. When Aidan turned to defend himself from the onslaught of bullets, Graive would be freed from his grasp. She would use her necromancy to control Aidan and SPTF would have finished him off. Oh my god, that fucking bitch!

I wanted her to pay and I had a plan.
The rational part of my brain said that it was a bad idea, but my temper was getting the best of me. I knew that there would be consequences for my revenge. I was digging myself in deeper with Arawn, but I didn’t care. I grabbed Aidan's hand and pressed forward.

Mahalia knew that I had figured out what she had tried to do.
She backed up, but I was faster than she was. I caught her by the wrist and started breaking down the reality just as Arawn had shown me. I managed to deconstruct the warehouse more quickly than before. I guess it was because I knew exactly where I was going. I felt Aidan try to pull away, but I held on tighter. I could barely hear Masarelli’s panicked shouts as we vanished into thin air. I was going to have a hell of a time explaining my disappearing act this time.

I moved through the between easier than I had expected, despite the weight of the two extra beings that I had with me.
I thought about where I wanted to be and who I wanted to find when I got there. The "landing" was a little rough, but I managed to move all three of us through the between and into Gallows Hill Park. Everyone seemed to be intact. For the moment.

“How the hell did you do that?
What the hell is going on?” Aidan asked in disbelief.

“I'll explain later,” I promised, brus
hing him off.

“Maurin,” he said, demanding an explan
ation using only my name.