Bruja

“Watch it!” I waved my hands at the road.



He jerked the steering wheel, bringing the car back onto the road. “Sorry. But demons?” He shouted. “I knew we shouldn’t have…” He paused, but I really wanted him to finish that thought.



They shouldn’t have what?



“Daniel’s dead? That’s a shame. He was always nice to me.”



A shame? That was much too tame a word for how I felt about it, but I merely nodded as I tried not to let the sadness take hold. “He was a nice guy,” I finally managed to say. “I miss him a lot.”



We were quiet for a little bit, before Matt spoke up. “Are you sure you know what you’re talking about?”



Could he be any more patronizing? I willed myself not to lose my temper. Allies. We need Allies. We’d have a better chance against Luciana and the others if we had more witches on our side. “I’m certain. And not only that, she called up a demon to raise Daniel from the dead. He… It wasn’t right. His skin was gray and starting to rot. She turned her own son into a monster. She’s has to be stopped.”



He scanned my face, most likely looking to see if I was lying.



“Watch the road!” I yelled as the tires skidded on gravel again. He faced frontward in time to swerve away from the oncoming traffic.



God. He was going to kill us. “Just watch the road,” I said it much softer the second time.



“Raising demons is really bad. That’s not gray magic, that’s black. Why isn’t your coven standing up to her?”



Where did I start? “The thing about Luciana is that she’s a good speaker. She’s convinced everyone that what she’s doing is what’s best for the coven and now they follow her like lemmings. And she’s got a massive hatred for the wolves. Any complaints that the coven had, she found a way to blame them on the pack.”



“Come on, Claudia.”



I ground my teeth together as he said my name. Clod-ia. With that one word, I knew douchebag Matt was back. All the hope that he might help us fled.



“You have to realize that the wolves aren’t our friends.”



No. I didn’t realize that. So far, they were the only ones willing to help. “Why not?”



“Because of a centuries-old feud. That friction isn’t going to end just because you made a few friends.”



“I know all about the feud. And I know it’s not going to end just because I want it to, but she’s evil. She’s willing to start a war with the Weres just because my cousin was bitten—”



“Sounds like reason enough—”



“But,” I spoke over him, “it’s just an excuse. She was even working with one of the wolves. She has a bigger plan to expose all supernaturals to humans. This affects everyone—even you. I know they’re going to find out about us. It’s only a matter of time. But if she does it her way, she’s going to make enemies not just of the pack, but of the humans, too.” He started to speak, but I kept on talking. I had to get this out. “And all this fighting with the pack isn’t necessary. They weren’t out to get us. All we had to do was reach out and they would’ve been friends. Allies. We’ll need a lot more of those once the world finds out about us. I mean, am I the only one who’s heard of the Salem Witch Trials? The humans have hunted us in the past, and they could again. So yeah, it’d be nice—for once—to have someone protect us—which is what the wolves have been doing all along. From vampires and fey gone bad and all other bad supers out there. Instead of thanking them, we try to kill them? Try to help an evil man get control of the pack? And,” I drew the word out. “She stripped Tessa of her power—”



“She managed to do it? Was it successful?”



I narrowed my gaze at him. “Yes. It was. And it was horrible.”



He grinned for a second, and then a serious mask came over his face.



But that smile stuck with me. Chills broke over my skin.



He cleared his throat, as if nothing had happened. “That seems really far-fetched. I can’t believe she could do that. I’ve never heard of a witch being able to.”



I was quiet for a second, studying him. I didn’t need my intuition to tell me not to trust him when all the signs he was giving off were screaming it. “You don’t have to believe me, but Luciana is raising demons she can’t control. She’ll destroy us all and then anyone who survives will be running from the humans. All it’ll take is one photo leaking in the news and we’ll have another rash of witch-hunts. Guaranteed.” I took a breath. “It’d be good if you were willing to work with us and the pack.”