Of Witches and Warlocks: The Complete Series

Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Images began popping into my head as soon as I allowed my mind to relax. I knew I should lift the barriers Hex had taught me, but the fact of the matter was I wanted to see Vance and what he was doing. Walking on the wild side or not, I still had to face the facts. I missed him. Soon, I realized Vance was up to no good once again when the images began to sharpen in my mind.

He was in a city somewhere; that much was obvious by the tall structures surrounding him. I recognized some of the architecture and soon realized he was somewhere in the French Quarter of New Orleans. Leaning against a wall near an alleyway, he was watching the people who passed by him on the street.

Dressed all in black tonight, his dark t-shirt emphasized the toned body beneath as my eyes trailed lower to the black jeans, and lace up boots. His arms were folded, which made his muscular arms look even more defined, and I noticed several young women sent appreciative, flirting glances in his direction.

They were quickly disappointed when he looked back at them with that unnerving blank stare of his, not responding with any interest at all. He was being rude on purpose and enjoying it. It coursed through him, practically radiating from him. He did not want to be trifled with tonight—he was feeling antsy and thirsty.

His attention suddenly perked up when he saw a couple of young women walking across the street, laughing together. One girl had shoulder length brown hair, but the other had long black tresses. I didn't need to be a rocket scientist to understand why she, in particular, caught his eye. She appeared very similar to me, and while it felt good to know he was looking for me, a moment of fear streaked through me when he pushed away from the wall and began stalking after the girls.

I could feel his senses reach out, testing the air around them.

"Don't do it Vance," I said in a mental message to him. "She isn't me. Don't hurt them."

To my surprise he answered immediately, seemingly unaffected by the wards that I was protected by. Our mental link had gotten stronger somehow and I wondered if it was because he'd drunk my blood.

"If you want to protect them, Portia, then you're going to have to come here and stop me."

"They probably aren't even witches," I replied, trying to dissuade him. "What good could they possibly be to you?"

"Oh, they're witches. They're even wearing all the appropriate jewelry."

It was then I noticed what he was seeing. Both girls were wearing beautiful amulets similar in design to mine, and the brown haired girl sported a charmed ring on her finger as well, like those the coven had previously enchanted for Vance.

Pausing at the entrance to one of the buildings, the girl who resembled me stepped inside. "See you later, Val," I heard her call to the girl she'd left on the step.

"Bye, JoAnna," Val replied, continuing on down the street.

Vance paused for a moment, glancing between the door JoAnna had just disappeared through and Val. I saw Val turned down a darkened alleyway and I wanted to scream at her to stay on the brightly lit street. Vance actually started chuckling under his breath at her movements. He was going after her.

Jumping out of bed—I quickly donned some baggy sweat pants Hex had given me under the t-shirt of Vance's I was wearing. I tried to be as quiet as possible so I wouldn't wake Hex.

The connection was still going strong in my mind, and I noticed Val finally realized she'd been followed, turning with a look of trepidation.

Vance was suddenly all charm as he strode up next to her. "Excuse me. I seemed to have gotten turned around here. Can you help me with some directions?" He smiled widely, effectively hiding the predator lurking behind the exterior.