Hallow's: Witch's Brew

Thirty-Eight

Bad Omens- Concrete Jungle 

This was an eventful weekend with Lily. She cut my hair. It stops right under my chin. I feel lighter. A little more like myself. It's amazing what a good haircut can do for the soul. The guard uniform is actually nice and it's lined with silk for extra warmth. 

I am still really upset that Ahsan made me climb up a dangerous fucking cliff when I could have gotten myself up here by car. There are so many ways I could have gotten up here without getting caught. 

Orientation is basic. Lily and I are assigned to the top floors where all the former fringe enforcers are placed. I'm marking each pillar we pass on our tour with a small tracking spell so I can feel what direction I need to go when I get into the air ducts later. To those who have never used tracking spells, it just looks like I've got a thing about touching random shit. 

I had to be extra careful on the floor they had the witches and mages in. A lot of hateful eyes follow me as Lily and I are escorted through the open cell blocks. They feel it—the power of the storm around me. Even without our magic, we always know when a big player is around. The way the elements bend for their magic without them even having to expose themselves. If nature is willing to submit to them, they're not someone we want to fuck with.

And blessed moonstones, the elements are bending for me here. The walls aren't as protected as they should be. It's cold here. The glass skylight has been broken for a while, that much is obvious. Snow falls through all the way down to the bottom levels that have been shut down because they were once flooded. Blocks of ice are all they are now. I understand that this place is a prison for the worst of our kind, but these conditions are terrible. 

"Why hasn't the ceiling been fixed?" I ask the warden as we make our way back to his office. 

He's an incubus. Not like the Reaper, but an actual incubus. These things can be powerful if fed properly and by the size of him, he's very well fed. Why wouldn't he be? This place must get really chummy at night. Lust is like that. Unsolicited and all-consuming. 

"We can't afford to," he answers. "The rooms are heated. It's all the fringe has been able to provide," 

"Why not have a witch fix it?" 

"You're the first we've had come down here for work in centuries. They don't last long. Storms like this are taxing on magic," he explains. He's not wrong. "You're here as punishment I hear," 

"Something like that," I nod. 

"What did you do?" 

"Insubordination," Lily answers for me.

"That'll do it," he smirks. 

Aleksei Agapov is a beautiful creature. He's enormous for starters. Six feet, maybe eight to ten inches tall. It's hard to tell because he slumps forward a lot. He has a slender build for a man his size, but it really doesn't matter because his glorious body is hidden under the massive gargoyle wings wrapped around his body to conserve heat. Under them, he's wearing a black and gray fur coat that matches his furry hat. His eyes are a lovely lavender shade that stands out against his pale porcelain skin and smokey gray hair. I'm sure he's ancient, but he doesn't look a day over twenty-five. 

"If you'd like, I can fix it and your lower-level problem," I suggest. He pauses just outside his office door. Lily lowers her gaze when he jerks his head to tell her to get lost. 

"What would you like in return?" he asks. 

"We'll call it a favor," I shrug. 

"That's a very big favor all things considered,"