saw all the blood through the window and decided to get some towels. Holy shit, Lucien, your neck!”
Baer got his first good look at the man, and it was like his neck had been run over a cheese grater. He was barely holding on, his eyes shut against the pain, his lips in a tight grimace. His blue T-shirt was ripped, the color more black now from the blood. Dane didn’t hesitate. He kneeled on the floor in front of the couch and gently held his hand over Lucien’s throat. The Fire Weaver didn’t even wince, he was so far out of it. Soon, a faint glow came from under Dane’s palm, and the flesh began to repair itself. Lucien remained slumped for a long time before his eyes opened in shock.
“It’s working,” he whispered, his voice raspy. “I can’t believe this.”
Dane’s arm trembled. Clay came forward and put his hand on Dane’s shoulder, offering him strength and comfort—possibly even magic. It seemed to boost Dane, and he moved his hand to another wound on Lucien’s shoulder as his neck, though still covered in blood, was no longer gaping open in places.
Baer glanced over to find Wiley watching him and he held his arm up. Wiley came to him and snuggled under his shoulder. “You’re hurt, too,” he said softly, lifting Baer’s arm that held a long scratch from his inner elbow to wrist.
“I’ve got nothing like Lucien and Grey, so we’ll save the healing for them. You okay, baby?”
Wiley nodded, a small smile playing about the corners of his lips. “We won.”
Baer nodded. “We sure as hell did.”
Dane looked over his shoulder. “The witch?”
“Dead,” Baer said. “Hopefully, it’ll take them a while to get another group of pestilents together.”
Clay nodded. “Whoever they send will be more powerful. We should start practicing more spells. I caught a glimpse of the one Wiley and Grey did tonight—it was impressive.”
“I can’t wait to hear about that,” Dane said as he moved to Grey. Damn, his face looked bad, covered in burns and blood. Dane put both hands over his cheeks, causing Grey to jerk back from him. “Sorry,” he murmured. “I have to touch you for this to work.”
“It’s okay. Just…startled,” Grey murmured, his voice low and strained.
Again, the glow came from his hands. It didn’t take long for Grey’s face to look better. There was still blood, but the harsh burns and cuts were all gone. Baer held his breath, hoping to see a return of Grey’s vision, but the man continued to stare off into space.
“You still can’t see, can you?” Dane asked, his face twisted with worry.
Grey shook his head slightly, wincing at even that motion. “All black.”
Dane’s shoulders slumped, and he slowly lifted his bloody hands from Grey’s cheeks. “I’m so sorry, Grey. I…I don’t know that I can heal your eyes. They’re tied into your magic, and I’m scared to screw something up. If I do this wrong, I could potentially cut you off from your magic. I’d really like to have the goddesses here to answer questions, maybe look for some proper healing spells.”
“I understand.” Grey’s lips tightened as he closed his eyes.
“Hopefully, it won’t take long,” Dane said. “They should be showing up anytime now.”
“Thank you for trying.”
“Are you in pain?”
Grey started to shake his head but stopped and winced. “Dull ache in my head. Slight throbbing behind my eyes. Balance feels off.”
Dane placed his hands carefully on the top of Grey’s head, and the glow resumed. “Probably from the concussion. I’ll see if I can ease it a little.”
“Grey,” Clay said carefully. “Your powers…”
“Without my sight, reading people, their thoughts and who they are, is completely out. You’re gonna have to check the delivery people.”
“We’ve got that, Grey,” Baer said as worry streaked through him over his brother. The Soul Weaver was a prickly SOB, but Baer didn’t doubt that he cared for all of them. He’d kept his promise and protected Wiley with his life.
“I can feel hints of emotions around me, but it’s like they’re all under a heavy blanket. Muffled. I get worried, angry, and scared from all of you, but since you’re close to each other, I can’t tell exactly who’s feeling what.” A tiny smirk lifted one corner of his mouth and then disappeared again. “It’s not nearly as overwhelming as it was before.”
Wiley kneeled beside the couch and picked up one of Grey’s hands in both of his. “Maybe you’ll have a mini vacation for a day or