Hot Magic by Holli Bertram Read Free Book Online Page B

dead.
     
    “I s she dead?” Harrison asked. The pace of the blood thundering through his veins had nothing to do with the angel who had just left the room. It had everything to do with fear. The unfamiliar emotion made him want to roar in protest.  
    The angel had absorbed the excess energy, allowing Julie’s own system to begin processing the energy, but had left her slumped and unconscious. Angels were never chatty, and this one, after a long look at Bas, left without saying a word.
    Bas contemplated the still body sprawled on the floor. “No, she’s alive. It’s night though. Since she’s triggered, she’ll be more attuned to the power rhythms of light. She may not wake until morning.”
    Harrison knelt beside Julie and gently picked her up. She felt cool to the touch, her skin faintly pink. He pulled her close for a moment and caught the faint scent of cinnamon. Each angel had an individual scent. He’d heard it said that while humans usually have no conscious memory of their contact with the Seraphim, that scent could invoke feelings of comfort and safety afterward.  
    He moved to the bed and pulled off the covers with one hand. He laid her down, removed her black loafers and then pulled the sheet and blanket up to her shoulders.
    “I never knew you were so nurturing.” Bas stood near the wood laminate cupboard that held the television and watched him.
    “I’m not,” Harrison said shortly. He moved to sit where he could see the bed.
    “How many times did you get tucked in at night?” Bas asked softly.
    “You know the answer to that.” He glanced at Bas. “I couldn’t leave her on the cold floor.”
    “Two minutes ago I’d have predicted that’s exactly what you’d do.”
    Bas was right. Harrison didn’t spend much time worrying about how comfortable anyone was. His worries were confined to restoring the Triad and to seeing justice served.  
    He stared at Julie’s face. Her eyelashes fluttered as if she fought to regain consciousness. Most people who had their conception of reality torn apart would welcome the quiet respite of sleep. This one’s mind refused to close down. He could almost feel her neurons firing and her brain sifting information.
    He admired her spirit. He admired the way she protected her daughter like a fierce lioness. Perhaps that’s why he didn’t want her scared or cold. He glanced at Bas. “She’s over forty, and her powers just triggered.”  
    “I told you she’d been raised human.”
    “But she still should have come into her powers, whether she developed them or not. Why did you send me to her? How could a powerless Dancer help me?”
    “She was never powerless.”
    Harrison had no patience for Bascule’s riddles. “I’d like to keep her here until she regains consciousness. Her family will hover, and I need to talk with her. Is that all right with you?”
    “Of course.” Bas looked at the woman on the bed. “I was planning on leaving this evening anyway. The room is paid for until tomorrow morning.”
    “Thanks.” Harrison looked toward the balcony. “Where are we?” Judging from the angle of the sun, they were in the same time zone as Michigan.
    “Just outside of Tampa.”
    “Is there trouble here?” Prior to the Rift, the Farnsworth family had been one of leading Triad families in Florida. Jerry Farnsworth had recently agreed to assume the position of Lion of Florida and was beginning to rebuild trust here, along with a governing structure.
    “No. Jerry was a good choice. The Farnsworth family has branches throughout the state and are well liked.” Bas picked up a piece paper from the small desk and crumpled it into a ball before throwing it in the empty metal wastebasket.
    Harrison didn’t miss the fact that the paper hit the can with more force than necessary. “You’re here searching for your mystery person.” About five years ago, Harrison had deduced that Bas was looking for something or someone. Bas had never confirmed nor denied