“I wouldn’t expect anything less from you,” Winter murmured. The idea of Fox in the middle of the coming fight might scare him to death, but he knew his witch would want to protect his back, help protect the family that meant so much to Winter. He turned his attention to Zelda. “Is there any help or advice you can offer in dealing with Damon?”
“Dealing with Damon largely falls on Aiden’s shoulders, and I know that vampire has been avoiding it because he’s more concerned with what comes after beating Damon.” Zelda paused, a frown pulled at the corners of her mouth. “You’re going to need to give him a swift kick in the britches for me, because that stubborn man refuses to listen.”
“If we’re free of the prophecy, that means the Variks can plan an attack on Damon. Get rid of him once and for all,” Fox said.
Winter nodded. “I’ll talk to Aiden and Marcus. We can start coming up with a plan.” The thought of taking the fight to Damon was both frightening and thrilling. It felt as if they’d been stuck in his limbo for far too long, the threat of attack looming over their heads. Winter was anxious to have it done and gone. He didn’t want the lives of his brothers or their mates threatened, but it was time to have this done.
“Well, it sounds like you don’t need me for anything else.” Zelda started to rise from the couch, but Fox quickly captured her hand.
“Please. I know you are very busy, but please, teach me something. Anything. A spell. A ward. I don’t want to be such a waste anymore,” Fox begged, and Winter’s heart broke for his lover.
Zelda instantly sat, wrapping both of her hands around one of Fox’s. “Sweetheart, you have never been a waste. You saved that man’s life over there from his own stupidity.”
Winter blushed, but he didn’t care. He was worried about Fox’s happiness. He was ready to beg Zelda to teach him something to make him happy. “Please, Zelda. I’ll give you anything you want.”
The old witch’s eyes slid over to him and she smirked. “A lesser woman would take advantage of that offer, but I’ll be good…this time.” She looked over at Fox and touched his cheek. “I wish your mother had been given the chance to train you.”
“You knew her?”
Zelda shook her head. “No, but I heard about her. A good, kind soul.”
“She always did what I thought of as useful magic—made the dishes wash themselves, the feather duster flew around the house like a bird determined to capture all the little dust motes.”
“I think I can spare a little time. At least teach you enough that if you just happened to somehow end up with a spell book, you wouldn’t blow yourself up.” Fox yelped and grabbed Zelda in a tight hug. To Winter’s surprise, she smiled and hugged him right back. When Fox released her, she looked at Winter and waved her hand. “You go off and talk to your brothers. Tell them crazy Zelda made it all up. I’m going to work with your boy for a time.”
Winter didn’t need any further nudging. He stood and leaned over to Fox, grabbing a quick kiss before walking to his office. Zelda was right. He needed to make a few phone calls to his brothers. They needed to know about the prophecy and Fox. He also needed to check in with Rafe to make sure his reckless brother wasn’t contemplating something stupid since the Blush fire. Philippe was good about reining him in and talking sense into him, but sometimes Rafe couldn’t be reasoned with.
God help them all if Rafe was plotting something and not telling them.
Chapter 26
Fox was floating on a cloud when he climbed the stairs to the second floor later that morning. Zelda left a little before the sun rose, and Winter lingered downstairs long enough to make sure everything was locked up properly prior to grabbing a shower. The poor vampire looked drained.
Fatigue should have been weighing heavily on Fox as well, and he was tired, but it seemed like such a small thing in comparison to the evening he’d just spent with Zelda. The witch was everything he’d always dreamed of finding in a mentor. She was kind, patient, and so damn knowledgeable. She welcomed all his questions.
And at long last, he felt like he was in touch with a part of himself that had been locked away since the death of his mother. It was the heritage he’d been born to but wasn’t allowed to claim. He felt free. He felt like he was finally who he was meant to be. And he was proud of himself. He wasn’t useless or a waste.
But then, Winter had done a wonderful job of showing him that he wasn’t useless without the magic. He had saved Winter’s life with every touch, every laugh, every moment they spent together.