Page 16 of What The Hex (The Family Spells)
“We should finish getting ready,” I said, avoiding Con’s question entirely. He jumped down to the floor and purposely sprayed the expensive couch, coating it in cat urine as he smirked. Well, as much as a cat can smirk anyway. Small victories, right? “You might think I’m being a little bitch by going along with this, but you didn’t have to feel that … that all-over agony. Why resist now when it doesn’t matter? If I’m going to kill myself fighting direct orders, I’ll wait for a coup.”
Con didn’t look convinced, but I made sure the crown of thorns was perched on my black and orange hair, the kohl around my eyes thick and dark, my robes pressed and hanging in perfect folds. There was all sorts of stupid jewelry I was supposed to wear: bangles made of bone, a small demon skull necklace, earrings made of krampus finger bones.
I finished up, dipped my fingers in the waters of Hael, and drew an upside-down pentagram on my forehead. It turned to ash immediately, a smear of gray that I soon mixed with blood, cutting my finger with a bejeweled athame and retracing the design.
The door opened behind me, and I glanced over my shoulder to find Lulu frowning at me.
“What the fuck did I do now?” I asked her, feeling this empty, woozy feeling. There was nothing I wanted to do more than lie down and let sleep take me, let myself tumble into oblivion. But that wouldn’t help me or Grace, and hiding from my predicament wouldn’t get me out of it.
“Don’t act like manners no longer mean anything to me,” Lulu scolded, sounding for the briefest of seconds like her old self. “There’s something wrong with your bride.” She frowned, and I raised an eyebrow. I could tell by her expression that it was so much more than that. “We’re delaying the ceremony by a few hours. You are to stay here until Violet or I tell you otherwise.” Her words rang with an order, and I felt my skin tingle with my own magic. Essentially, I was keeping myself prisoner. Being a demon sucked.
“What happened?” I asked, but Lulu ignored me, stepping back and slamming the door as she went. I curled my lip in irritation but at least for the moment, I was alone. And if I was alone, I could plan.
I doubted anything would work, but I had to try.
For Graceley … I had to fucking try.
I glanced over at the clock and cringed. We had eighteen hours left to save her mother. Eighteen hours to escape a summons, defy my coven, piss off a demon cabal, and help an annoying potion shop owner I barely knew.
Huh.
Sounded like a Hex Sorciere sort of thing to do. I grinned, pushed up the sleeve of my robe, and took a nice, long look at my tattoos … and the spells sleeping inside the ink.
Son of an unwed warlock … Violet Enfer, the prodigal daughter of the Cabal Ungeist Underboss, was blind.
When I first stepped into the room, she was weeping softly into her hands, showing more emotion than I’d ever seen in the years I’d known her.
It shocked the shit straight out of me.
“Inma, annoit sidhe vien grou,” she moaned, and since I knew, like, a Hooked on Phonics level of demon, I could only half make it out. ‘The damn sidhe did it,’ is what I think she was saying.
I stood near the door with Con on my shoulder, my long robes covering the gold shackles on my wrists and ankles. Vy glanced up in my direction, but even though she was looking at me, she wasn’t seeing me. That much I was sure of.
“Don’t stare, Hex,” Lulu snapped near my ear, and I felt a surge of heat in my body as my magical bonds kicked in. My head forcibly turned to one side, and I growled low under my breath.
“Hex? Is that you?” Vy asked, even though she could smell me, and she damn knew it was. “Oh Hex!” She rose from her chair and came running for me, tossing her arms around my neck and kissing my mouth in a way she’d never done before.
I’d literally never even gotten an inkling of an impression that Violet actually liked me. So, even though I felt a little sorry for her, I didn’t buy the act for a second.
“Kiss your poor fiancée like you love her,” Lulu tsked, and I found myself panicking, my arm muscles seizing as my limbs went around Vy against their will. I tried to fight it, gods I really did, but I soon found myself opening my lips, swirling my tongue against Violet’s.
I seriously thought I might puke; that would teach them all a lesson, yeah?
But instead, my body was moved like a puppet, and I kissed the demon princess like I might kiss Graceley Spells.
