White Witch, Black Curse

"Stop!" she shrilled, letting the toddler slip gently to the floor, where the little girl stood, gripping her mother's leg, her eyes wide, and silent at last. "Remus, stop," she said softly, her voice elegant and holding an odd accent. "This isn't going to help me. This isn't going to help Holly. Listen to me. You're going to hurt Holly if you do this. She needs a real father, Remus, not a dead memory. She needs you!"

The man brought his attention from the upper floors and focused it on his wife. Grief marked his expression. "They'll take you from me," he begged. "Mia, I can get us away. I can keep you safe."

"No." Mia started for Remus, and Ivy intercepted her, holding her in a loose but unbreakable grip, six feet back. Holly wobbled unsteadily after her, again latching on to her mother's leg for support. The I.S. personnel watched, tensing.

One hand on her daughter's blond head, Mia gave Ivy a mocking look, then focused on Remus. "Love," she said, her well-born voice full of persuasion. "It's going to be all right." She glanced at Ivy, and in a voice carrying strong conviction, she said, "Let me go. I can calm him. If you don't, he's going to kill that officer before you can move, and I will lose the only man I can love. You know what he means to me. Let me go."

Ivy's grip tightened, and Mia frowned. "I can give him peace," she insisted. "It's what I do."

"You hurt my friend," Ivy said softly, and a shiver ran through me at her anger.

"It was an accident," Mia responded coldly. "Leaving him like that was a bad decision. We will accept our mistake and do what's necessary to make reparations. I have not lived this long by risking my life or letting my instincts rule me. I can calm him." Her voice changed, becoming softer, but her eyes were almost black with what looked like vampire hunger. "No one will get hurt," she said. "Let me go. The law can decide what is just."

Yeah, like I believe that.

Remus's breathing was harsh, and the man under him was gasping in pain, eyes trying to stay open as the agony pulled them shut. Mia hadn't said "trust me," but I'd heard it. Ivy must have, too, for she hesitated only briefly before she slowly released the banshee. My pulse hammered as the woman stood free, shaking her coat as if she were shaking off the memory of Ivy's touch.

Edden shouted, "Back off!" and I felt the tension wind tighter even as everyone retreated. A faint dusting of gold was sifting down, and Jenks dropped to my shoulder.

Mia picked up Holly, and with the toddler on her hip, she went to Remus as calmly as if they were shopping for peanut butter. "Let the officer go," she said, laying a light hand on his shoulder.

"They will separate us," he pleaded. Behind him, FIB officers were creeping closer, but Edden waved them to a stop when Mia caught sight of them. "I love you, Mia," Remus said, desperate. "I love Holly. I can't live without both of you. I can't go back to that place in my head."

Mia made a shushing noise and smiled at him. "Let the man go," she said, and I wondered if this had played out in their living room before they had fled, leaving Glenn for dead. "Once they hear what happened, we can return to the way we were."

I doubted that, but Remus shifted in uncertainty. Around me, the officers tensed.

"Let them cuff you," she whispered, the small woman on tiptoe to almost whisper the words in his ear. "I will protect you. We will not be separated. If you love me, trust me."

My eyes narrowed in suspicion. Trust me? Jenks's wings clattered, and I glanced at him.

"I don't li-i-i-ike this," he said in a singsong voice.

Yeah. Me either. I was a witch, damn it. Banshees were way out of my league.

Mia put a small hand against his cheek, and with Holly happily babbling between them, Remus exhaled, his shoulders slumping and his chin dropping to his chest. "I'm sorry," he said, carefully sliding the safety on the gun before tossing it to spin on the floor, away from everyone.

"Thank you, love," she said, smiling, and I wondered if the young-seeming but age-old woman was going to throw him to the mercy of the court, letting him take the blame for Glenn's injuries while she hid behind the excuse of being a bystander. She was up to something. I could feel it.

Remus let go of the man's wrist, and the FIB officer cried out in relief. Edden gestured, and the men behind Remus moved, jerking him off their fellow officer and cuffing him. From the other side of the food court, the I.S. officers buzzed, some of them swearing, most laughing. Ivy pulled herself together, trying to find her usual svelte elegance. Her eyes were black when they met mine. A pulse of fear went through me, then vanished. She looked away, and I resolved to keep my distance for a while. I should have brought my perfume…

"Be careful!" Mia demanded as the officers handled Remus roughly. A woman cop had closed in on her and Holly, and seeing it, Remus stopped, his arm muscles straining and a fearful look in his eyes.