Chapter 10

Kasta watched as Jess bit his lip to keep from groaning. They had spent the entire night in New York. Jess had worked with Abby in perfecting her telepathy. The smile that had come over that girl's face made her wonder just how light-hearted the Wind Master was. He worked well with children and would be a great teacher if given the chance.

Elijah arrived just after midnight. He talked with Emery for a little bit before talking with Jess and Keldin about what was going on. It took Keldin a little while before he made any leeway in letting Elijah in on anything that was personal for Austin.

They had taken him in the room and allowed him to looked Austin over. Because they had argued with Keldin, Jess refused to leave the room while Elijah worked on Austin. He knew what being in the same room would be like but he hadn't told her.

Kasta watched as sweat beaded on his forehead and dripped a steady trail down his skin. His breath came in short gasps as he tried to hold on to consciousness. He was in excruciating pain. She had wondered why he hadn't eaten anything at breakfast. Now she understood that if he had, it would have ended up in the garbage can with the rest of the contents of his stomach.

Jess shuddered and leaned over in his chair. He buried the heels of his hands into his eyes and groaned. He didn't need to be in the same room but he wasn't going to leave his friend. There was nothing Kasta could do.

She watched as the silver glow that had been around him since she had met him begin to fade. It was tied to his vitality and since he was losing strength, it was going with him. She wanted to help but didn't know how.

Elijah looked to be glowing mystically. It could have been because he was a wizard but she wasn't sure. His power flowed from him to Austin who, like Jess, was utterly miserable. He was sweating even more profusely than he had been. He was trying to get away from whatever it was that was causing him discomfort but he couldn't. Both men were going to need time to recover.

Elijah finished what he was doing and slumped down on the edge of the bed. He looked at Austin. The young man had finally settled down and was sleeping peacefully. His skin color was slowly going back to normal, starting with his ears and traveling to his face.

Jess was worse for wear. He was still slumped over in his chair with his face buried in his hands. His skin was tinged gray, but not the gray of his eyes. This was an unflattering gray that didn't look good on anyone.

"You might want to lay him down somewhere," Elijah said as he looked at Jess.

Kasta shook her head. "He won't leave Austin until you're done."

"There's nothing more I can do. I had to unravel the web that was surrounding him. Marissa used enough peyote that it was starting to suffocate him. The web of magic didn't help matters any. It kept the smoke around him and no one else."

She had no idea what he was talking about, her knowledge of the mystics very vague compared to her father's. "Did you take it away?"

"I did the best I could. The rest is up to Austin." He looked at Jess once again when he started swaying in his seat. "At least lay him down so he doesn't bash his head in. With the state he's in, he'll bleed out before he recovers."

Kasta caught Jess's arm as he pitched forward. She pulled him against her. He sighed and nestled his head against her shoulder. It made her face burn. No one had dared touch her the way this man did casually. Any elf who laid a hand on her would be punished according to their laws, but here was a human leaning against her like it was a daily occurrence. He was also unconscious so she couldn't blame him too much right now.

"Will you help me?" She refused to look Elijah in the eye because she didn't want to see the knowing look there.

It was a few tense moments before Elijah took Jess's free arm and pulled him up. Kasta stood and helped the other man move Jess to a small couch across the room. They placed a pillow under his head and draped a light blanket over him after pulling off his boots and socks. Jess snagged Kasta's hand and gripped it tightly when she went to pull away. She didn't fight him.

"The glow on your skin will fade soon," Elijah said suddenly.

"What do you mean?" she asked as she pulled away from Jess.

"Jess may be a gentleman but he knows he can't live without you. He knows that. It's instinctive for him but he's not going to do anything until the compulsion becomes too great. Don't be surprised if he suddenly binds you to him." He crossed over to the door and opened it. "You can come in now. I'm finished."

Bryony and Keldin pushed past them. Kasta watched as they looked over both men. Elijah closed the door and turned towards the hall. She followed him to the library where Emery had set up his shop.

He was sitting at the massive oak table typing away on his computer. Abby sat with him, soaking up everything he talked about. Mayor Lundberg sat at the other end with his computer. Every now and then he'd look up, smile at his daughter's eagerness, then go back to his own work.

Kasta suddenly felt relieved that Austin's second in command was competent enough to take over when his leader was incapacitated. She was certain if Paycen had taken over, it wouldn't be as simple. From what she had heard, the red head had a temper that could easily get out of hand.

Abby looked up and came around the table as quickly as she could. She pulled on Elijah's hand and looked up at him expectantly. He smiled down at her and mussed her hair.

"They'll be fine. It will take a couple hours for the effects of my magic to wear off," he said. He pushed her gently back towards Emery and looked up when the mayor stood. "Have you found anything, Andrew?"

The mayor shook his head. "I can't find who sent her. It's like they don't exist."

"Maybe they paid cash for her to work. If someone wants to assassinate a person, they don't leave a paper trail."

"That's what Petey and Tyler think," Emery replied. "They have better systems than I do. While Petey runs information on Marissa, Tyler is running background checks on everyone that they have brought in before the twins were born. He's halfway through the list. I don't know what else to search that they haven't."

Elijah pulled out his phone, which struck Kasta funny. Seeing a magically inclined man use a modern device was out of the ordinary. "The Coven keeps a record on our jobs. Did you search that?"

"I tried but it's password locked. I don't have those skills."

"Let me try something." Elijah leaned over Emery's shoulder and typed something. He made a face that told everyone it didn't work. "This shouldn't be happening. I'm the one that made the password."

"Who else has it?" Andrew asked.

"Mathew. He's the only other person I know who can change it."

"Can you call him here?"

Elijah shook his head. "That's the problem. Mathew is out of the country. He went to Ireland to visit his grandfather and said he wouldn't have internet access. He doesn't have the extra settings on his phone."

Emery leaned back in his chair and ran his middle finger over his thumbnail. "Someone's messing with us and I don't like it."

"Neither do I. I haven't worked this hard so my people can be harmed. I want a place where my daughter can live and use her powers without being criticized or bullied," Andrew said. "My wife couldn't teach my daughter the ways and I am severely lacking. You have been a blessing in disguise. I need this as much as she does."

The door to the library opened and Bryony walked in. She was smiling as she came up to Kasta. The Elf tilted her head to look at her, confused on her good mood.

"Jess is up and asking for you," she said.

Kasta looked at the others, unsure whether she should go or stay and held. Emery waved his hand in her direction.

"Go on. He's more important right now. We need to get him up and out of here before we can do anything more. I'll work on getting the password and getting it to Tyler."

The Elf nodded and followed the woman back down the hall. She got the feeling she was just being pulled one way or another. She hadn't had a chance to figure out what was going on. She knew something was going on between Jess and her. She knew she felt something for him but she hadn't figured out where it was going.

If she followed what was pulling at her, she would go against so many teachings her father had instilled in her. But if she ignored what she was feeling, she would miss something even more important. In the grand scheme of things, her father had always told her to follow her heart no matter where it may lead.

The door to Austin and Jess's sick room was open. Keldin was moving around the room with fresh blankets. His color was better than his brother's. Austin was sitting up but he looked horrible. Jess was sitting in the chair beside him. He didn't look any better than Austin, but at least he could move by himself.

Austin smiled tiredly as they came in. He tried to sit up even more but Keldin made a noise in the back of his throat that had his twin stopping. He rolled his eyes but listened.

Bryony moved to him instantly. She sank down beside him on the edge of the bed. She wrapped her arm around his head and pulled him against her. Austin didn't argue. He sighed when he was settled, forehead pressed in her neck as if it belonged there.

As Kasta moved towards the bed, Jess wrapped his hand around her wrist. She stopped. When he was certain she wasn't going to pull away from him, he gently pulled her to him. She sat on his knee without argument. He was shocked for a few seconds then he wrapped his arm around her waist.

"Elijah worked wonders," Keldin said as he sat on the edge of the bed. "Austin may have gotten sick but it worked. I don't feel anything around him."

"That's good," Bryony sighed. Austin hummed his agreement.

Jess tilted his head up to look at Kasta. "What is it?"

She looked down at him. "What do you mean?"

"Something's on your mind. What is it?"

"Elijah can't access their account. He says someone has hacked it. We think they're helping take your people down. They may be the ones who showed the person how to poison Aiden."

They looked up when Bryony made a noise. Austin was struggling to get out of the bed. Keldin got up and tried to help his sister-in-law get his brother back in bed. Austin, though he was sick, shoved his brother lightly to the bed.

"Stop it. I'm going. Aiden needs us and I won't let my illness stop me from helping her," he said as he stumbled into the bedside table. He knocked the lamp off, staring at it as the bulb shattered with a bright light and a loud pop.

Keldin caught him then tapped him lightly on the forehead in reprimand. "At least let us help you get dressed. You can barely stand up."

Kasta watched as they moved around the room. This was what family did for each other and it confused her. They were more than family. They were so integrated in each other's lives they couldn't function without each other.

Jess turned around and looked at her. She was going to have to get used to it if she lived around his family. They helped each other to the point of getting on each other's nerves. But at the end of the day, they knew they had each other's backs.