A Touch of Madness (A Recipe for Disaster Novel 1)

And I start to lose control.

I blinked back into consciousness a few minutes later. Somehow in the time between one eye blink and the next, I ended up in a guest bed, piled underneath blankets. I could smell Alex in the room even though I didn’t spot him right away. “Damn it Callahan, next time you start feeling dizzy, say something!” he fumed at me. Wow, he sounded pissed. Normally I have to kick someone in the shin to get that kind of anger out of them. Alex stomped over to stand beside the bed, leaned his face in and rested his forehead against mine. “You gotta stop scaring me like that Callahan.” He stepped away from me, towards the door. “Jessica is going to take care of you for a few days. Try not to get killed until I see you next.” And he was out of the door. Well that was just peachy because I had no clue how to respond. Refusing to ruminate on his weird actions, I slipped easily back into unconsciousness.

The next four days were a little tense and awkward. Tense because I couldn’t talk to anyone but Jessica and I was having horrible nightmares every time I closed my eyes for longer than a moment, and awkward because no matter how much I protested otherwise Jessica was convinced I was sleeping with Alex. But other than that, we got along famously. It felt strange to pretend normal; I’d almost been murdered twice. And then Friday came around and I spent the entire day trying to not set Jessica off. It was the night before the full moon and she was a wee bit prickly. I locked myself in the guest room except when I needed to eat or pee. If she wanted to, Jessica could simply go through the damn door, but it was a distinct reminder to her to behave. And that was how Alex found us, pretty much sitting on opposite sides of the door. It was also at this time that I finally put two and two together on certain things.

I’m a sensor, I feel magic but I can also hook into it. Ever since Halloween I could feel Alex’s specific signature and I couldn’t block it out. I think that because his magic is so strong with my magic in such a weakened state I didn’t have the strength to completely block him out. As he entered Jessica’s apartment, I could feel how close his Beast was to the surface, and even more I could feel its awareness of me as it brushed up against my mental barriers teasingly. I gritted my teeth and tried to bolster my mental defences despite the pain it caused. I blinked back tears as I heard Jessica move away from the door. The door opened and Alex came in like a descending thundercloud; I could practically see the Change energy radiating off of him. Jessica stayed back, body language cringing at the more dominant Changer near her. I had two options, I could cringe or I could be defiant. So I stood up and faced Alex square on. The bruises on my face and neck had entered the red and yellow stage, looking positively grotesque and my voice was still a little rough from the choking and smoke inhalation, but I met Alex’s gaze as if I hadn’t a care in the world. “Well, look what the cat dragged in.” I said lightly.

But apparently Alex really wasn’t up to my games today, he put a hand on my collar bone and pushed me back against the wall, which was turning into something he did a lot. Then he leaned his face in close to mine and actually growled. “I’m in no mood for your shit today Callahan. Tomorrow’s the full moon but we can’t leave you here alone. So you’re coming with us and I’ll be able to keep an eye on you myself.” His anger at my seeming resistance just stirred his Beast to push harder against my mental shields but surprisingly enough they held, though I ended up gasping.

“Then lead the way oh great and high mightiness.” I responded, voice a little more rough than my injuries accounted for. Instead of responding, he grabbed me roughly by the arm and pulled me to the front door. I broke his grasp on my arm sharply, much to Alex’s surprise. He turned a snarl at me but stopped as I slid into the cheap running shoes Jessica had picked up for me. Then I pulled on one of her old winter jackets. I was borrowing Jessica’s clothes but it was an awkward fit because I was a completely different shape and size than she was. But oddly fitting clothes was better than no clothes at all. After pulling on the jacket, I kept my mouth shut around a nasty comment and walked out to Alex’s waiting car. I slid into the back seat and slouched down, keeping my face turned down and away from the streets as we passed through neighbourhoods I knew. And I closed my eyes as we passed the wreck of my home. Seven people had died, everyone else had evacuated because I’d pulled the alarm to get help. My family home had gone up in flames and I couldn’t turn to my usual friends without putting them at risk as well. Needless to say, I wasn’t in a very good head space for the last week. It didn’t help that with my mind still torn up from magic, I had problems staying in contact with Cassie; she couldn’t stand the pain I was in. So I stayed bottled up, a feeling I’ve never enjoyed and this massive sense of betrayal was chasing me down every time I closed my eyes wasn't helping.