Free [Southern Arcana 2.0] Crossroads by Moira Rogers Page B

her hips. “A trip?”
    “I may have to go to New York, after all.” She slipped her fingers through his hair, seemingly unconcerned by Alec’s presence. “I have to find another way to give Enrica what she wants. A way that’ll keep Michelle safe.”
    Now he felt vaguely queasy. “ What way?”
    “She wants to take control of the Conclave. That may not happen for her, but it can happen for Luciano’s kids. If—if no one else has a better claim.” She shrugged. “So I’ll give up mine.” www.samhainpublishing.com
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    Chapter Six
    Jackson met them at the door to the safe house. He muttered a few words, and the heavy press of magic that reverberated through the walls eased. “You’d better get in here, Nicky.” His stern expression scared the hell out of her, and she shoved him aside, already searching for Michelle. “What is it? What happened?”
    The few necessary items in the front room were in disarray. Jackson’s mother knelt near the kitchen, sweeping up broken glass. Michelle was nowhere to be seen. “Jackson—”
    “She’s fine,” he interrupted. “I think. Hell, I don’t know.”
    She gripped Derek’s hand, took a deep breath, and called her sister’s name.
    The air on the far side of the room shimmered, and an open door appeared in the middle of the wall.
    Through it she saw her sister curled on the bed, shoulders heaving as she buried her face against Aaron’s chest. He looked up and caught Nick’s gaze, and his green eyes looked exhausted. “Shelly, sweetheart.
    Your sister’s here.”
    Nick let go of Derek and rushed into the room, heedless of the magic that still rippled through the air.
    She didn’t stop until she was on the bed, her arms around Michelle. “It’s okay. I’ve got you.” Jackson leaned against the open doorway. “She’s been upset. All kinds of weird stuff’s been happening. This door?” He knocked on the doorframe. “It’s been disappearing. With fair regularity, actually.”
    “It’s not disappearing.” Michelle’s voice sounded hoarse and, when she lifted her head, Nick’s chest ached at the bruised exhaustion on her sister’s face. “I think it’s an illusion. But I don’t know, because I’m not doing it.”
    Derek stood behind Jackson, watching helplessly. Nick tried to smile at them both. “Can you guys go out and get the things we brought? Take your time.”
    Jackson hesitated only a moment. “Mama, yell if y’all need anything, okay?”
    “Shelly?” Aaron’s hand hovered over the back of Michelle’s head. “Do you need time with Nicole?”
    “Please.”
    Aaron shot Nick another worried gaze, but he inched from under Michelle and rubbed the back of her shoulder. “I’ll be just outside if you need me. If you need anything.” It was almost worth everything to see that quiet happiness on Michelle’s face, and the way Aaron’s fingers brushed her cheek in the softest of touches.

    Crossroads
    Nick felt like she was intruding on a private moment, so she averted her eyes until Aaron had left the room. “Do you need some water, Micky? Have you eaten?”
    “Yes.” It came out a little forceful, and Michelle took a breath. “I didn’t mean it like that. But if one more person asks me that question, I think I’ll blow something up on purpose.”
    “We’re worried, that’s all.” Even as she spoke, dread still weighed in her belly like ice. “You just…have to bear with us.”
    “I don’t know how .” Michelle pulled back and rubbed her hands over her face. “Damn it, Nick. You know what my life is like. Dad’s not exactly demonstrative, and having this many people acting concerned about me is making me nervous.”
    Nick fought a growl. The thought that her sister’s life had left her unable to accept even the most basic concern from others filled her with fury and guilt, mostly in equal measure. “I’m sorry.”
    “They just keep hovering. And…trying to hug me.” A tiny, almost hysterical-sounding giggle