Witch's Pyre (Worldwalker 3)

I don’t like it, but right now the more protection you have the better, Caleb answered in mindspeak.

Everyone in this room looks like they want to take a piece out of you, Una said in mindspeak, by way of agreement. Tristan, Breakfast, and Juliet gave their grudging assent.

“He can come,” she said, avoiding Rowan’s eyes.

As they passed on their way out, Mala hawked Lily’s every step.

. . . and the piece she’d like to take is your head, Una added.

Toshi came alongside Lily while they crossed the courtyard. “I could find another place for him,” he said quietly, gesturing to Rowan, who was lagging behind the rest of the coven.

“It’s okay,” Lily said. “Distance doesn’t make a difference.” She smiled ruefully. “I put a whole continent between us and that still didn’t help.”

Toshi frowned. “Is that why you came west? To get away from an ex?”

“Not exclusively.” Lily looked up at him. “And how do you know he’s my ex?”

“Experience, unfortunately.” Toshi looked sheepish. “I’ve made one or two girls angry enough to throw things at me. Never had a girl try to throw a whole ballroom at me before, though.”

Lily’s shoulders shook with a silent laugh, and Toshi watched her with an indecipherable look. “What?” she asked.

“I like making you laugh,” he said, surprised. His face suddenly clouded over. “Grace wasn’t kidding about the Hive not allowing another show of aggression from you.”

“I know,” Lily replied.

“But will you be alright with him?”

“I’ll be fine. I can control myself,” she said. She hoped. She gave him a weak smile. “I fought the Hive once, and I’m in no hurry to do it again.”

Toshi stared at her for a moment. “Incredible. No one fights the Hive,” he whispered under his breath, and then left her at the door to the guest suite.

Lily and her coven went straight to the men’s sitting room to have it out. She could feel them already arguing in mindspeak, although they hadn’t included her yet. The silence was like a scream.

Lily sat, waiting for someone to engage her while she stared at anything but Rowan. Someone had brought fresh flowers into the rooms while they’d been away.

She reached out to Lillian again, craving some kind of counsel. Rowan’s back, she said.

Good. You need him, Lillian finally replied. Forgive him and count yourself lucky that you have him back.

I don’t have him. He left me, remember?

He’ll always be yours—and you his. Stop wasting time. Lily sensed sweeping, jaw-grinding pain before Lillian quickly severed contact.

“Lily!” Tristan said sharply.

“What?” she replied, snapping back to the here and now.

“You’ve been blocking us all out again,” he said, his eyes narrowed.

“Oh.” Lily hadn’t been aware. That was the second time she’d barricaded them out of her head without realizing it.

“Who were you mindspeaking with?” Rowan asked with narrowed eyes. Lily didn’t respond.

“Do you want to chime in here, Lil?” Breakfast asked. “There’s a lot going on.”

She kept her face neutral, which wasn’t hard to do. Now that the excitement had passed she felt exhausted. “There isn’t much for me to say, is there? Rowan followed us, probably on Alaric’s orders, and he got taken by the Hive just like we did. That’s the why of him being here settled. Now, as to what he intends to do, it doesn’t really matter, does it? He’s too far to contact Alaric through mindspeak and I have no intention of allowing him close enough to me to be a threat.” She stood and smoothed her kimono, not looking at him. “If he tries to get too close, I’ll make him suffer. What was that he told me about Scot and Gideon? Claim your enemies. Well, I’ve already claimed him, and he may have surprised me once, but it won’t happen again. So that’s settled. Am I missing anything?”

“You don’t want to say anything to him or ask him any questions?” Juliet asked. Her big eyes were round with worry and a whispered name ghosted across her mind. Like Lillian.