Page 10 of Mending Mayhem
“And before whoever else is looking for it finds it,” Chaos said. “Did she tell you anything about it?”
“She never mentioned it to me,” Patrice said.
“Not even in a villainous monologue when she rooted you to the basement floor?” I held the cranium while Miles glued the rest of the orbital bone into place.
“No, sorry. But the coven has sealed three rifts today, and it’s not even noon.”
“Thanks, Patrice.” I pinched the bridge of my nose. “It’s only going to get worse from here. Stay vigilant.”
“We will.”
I hung up and glued a tooth into a section of jawbone. “What would the fae want with the amulet?”
“If they’re even the ones looking for it.” Ash handed me the rest of the mandible. “It could be Boston making it look like the fae.”
“Shit. You’re right.” I fastened the two pieces together, completing the jaw.
“The amulet grants immeasurable power to its bearer.” Chaos cracked his knuckles. “The half-blooded fae prince and the High Priest of Boston would both benefit from finding it.”
“Great. So it’s either Ignacus the Imbecile Insect, or it’s Adrian the Asshat pretending to be the Imbecile.” I arched a brow at Miles. “Can you talk to Wendy and find out which?”
He closed his eyes and let out a slow breath. “For the greater good, yes. But if I have to watch her pick her nose one more time, I might put her out of her misery myself.”
“Hey now. That’s not what light witches are about.” I balanced the top part of the skull on the jaw.
“I’m happy to do the dark work for you,” Chaos said, and Ash backhanded him on the shoulder, making him laugh. “I kid.”
“Uh-huh. Something’s off. It’s not fitting right.” The skull slipped off the jaw.
“It’s missing a piece. Look.” Ash turned the left side toward me, and sure enough, a half-inch chunk wasn’t where it should have been. “That part probably got pulverized.” She ran a finger through the granules in the box.
I held the skull in my hands, staring into the vacant eye sockets. The piece could have been smashed beyond repair, as she said, but something in the core of my being told me that wasn’t it. Setting Mayhem on the table, I rested one hand on his skull and put two fingers into the pile of granules, closing my eyes and letting instinct take over.
A faint pricking sensation made my palm tingle, and I focused on what was left of the demon’s essence. I pictured his face, the amusement in his eyes when he goaded me, the surprise when I one-upped him with my retort.
My stomach tightened, and the urge to return to my bedroom had me on my feet before I realized I had moved, my mind’s eye showing me exactly where the missing piece lay. I strode down the hall and lowered to my knees, peering under the bed. Sure as sugar, there it was, right where I’d seen it in my mind.
Strange. I’d never been able to locate stuff like this before.
I returned to the living room and held it up triumphantly. “Maybe I have a little bit of Dad’s magic too.”
Ash looked at Chaos, and he nodded, opening his mouth to speak before I cut him off.
“It is not more proof of your soulmate theory, so don’t even try.” I ignored the looks they all exchanged and glued the final piece into place. “Now he’s complete. Has Wendy replied?”
“I haven’t texted her.” Miles tugged his phone from his pocket and typed on the screen.
I gingerly picked up the skull and laid it in the box with the too-small-to-assemble pieces. “This is all of it. I’m positive.”
The moment I let go of Mayhem, the skull trembled. The pieces vibrated against each other, shaking back and forth as if every seam were a fault line. Smoke rose from the glue, spiraling upward and dissipating in the air.
Every fragment we had carefully put together crumbled apart.
“Why is it doing that?” My pulse sprinting, I reached into the box, hoping to save the pieces, but the moment I touched bone, it turned to sand, sifting through my fingers as if it had never been a solid object. “What the hell?”
Chaos leaned forward, scrunching his brow. “It’s as if the glue has broken the bonds of the skull…a chemical reaction unlike anything I’ve seen.”
“Oh, crap.” Ash grabbed the tube of superglue. “Crappity crap. It’s the magic.”