Demon's Moon: A Celia Winters Novel Book 2 Read Online Free PDF Page A

much more difficult now, when her emotions
and thoughts pulled her in different directions she wasn’t sure yet where that
balance should be.  That’s what she needed to figure out, what her new limits
were.  She was different now, a shifter, a tiger that couldn’t be monogamous
with one person her whole life.  That didn’t mean she couldn’t be a serial monogamist
though.  Maybe that could be her new line.  One person at a time, for as long
as it could last.
    The idea of one night stands didn’t appeal at all, it
sounded to lonely, and empty.  Well, on one level it did appeal, but it wasn’t
hard to ignore.
    When she finished the run she waited outside until Ed parked
the car, and they made their way upstairs to her apartment.  She got out some
sheets, a blanket, and a spare pillow and piled them on her couch before
jumping in the shower.  She got dressed in comfortable shorts and a t-shirt,
she refused to wear the new clothes in the comfort of her own home, and took a
seat on the couch with Ed.  He was watching the news channel.
    Well isn’t this cozy.
    She said tentatively, “So… I’m not sure how long this is
going to take us to figure out, so make yourself at home.  Feel free to grab
food or drink without asking.  All I ask is that you stay away from my ritual
room.”
    He said gruffly, “Thanks, I won’t invade your personal
space.  I’ll stick to out here and the kitchen.  We need to go by my place
tomorrow though, I need some clothes and to grab some toiletries.”
    She frowned, “We should have done it earlier.”
    He shrugged, “Its fine, I didn’t think about it until after
Berny left, by then it was too late.”
    She nodded, thinking about her safe in the floor a few feet
away.  She’d wanted to do some research, but that wasn’t happening tonight. 
She trusted Ed well enough, but not enough to risk her family’s legacy and
spell books.
    She fidgeted a bit, then excused herself and went into her private
sanctuary and ritual room.  Was she attracted to Ed?  Had she always been and
didn’t notice because she’d been panting after Paul so bad, or was she simply
horny and Ed just happened to be there.  She pushed that all down and lit her
candles with her power and sat down. 
    She took a deep breath and slipped into a trance.  Separated
from her feelings, it was a bit easier to sort out.  She liked Ed as a friend,
but that was it.  That didn’t mean he wasn’t attractive, because he was, plus,
she really… wanted sex, which was what confused things in her mind.  She’d have
to deal though, because she wasn’t giving in to a one night stand mentality
just to scratch an itch.
    Even if she did think she might be going a little more
insane from resisting the urge.
    She saw another one then, in the flames out of the corner of
her right eye.  Part of the flame looked darker… and somehow thicker.  She
couldn’t really make out the shape, it was too small.
    She whispered in frustration, “What are you?”
    “We are fire, daughter of magic.” It answered in a
multi tonal voice directly in her mind.
    Her head snapped in its direction in shock, but it wasn’t
there.  She turned her head back forward, still not there, it must have left. 
We are fire… and they called her daughter of magic… why did that send chills
down her spine?
    Crap!
    She didn’t need to research what they were, because it was
obvious.  They were elementals.  Air and fire, the two elements she had control
over.  But… she’d never dealt with, summoned or even considered summoning an
elemental.  So why were they watching her, and why didn’t they let her look at
them directly?
    Elementals were from other planes of existence.  They
weren’t evil like demons… more neutral as far as good and evil were concerned. 
But they were completely alien in thought, and amoral, in the sense that right
and wrong had no meaning to them.  It was risky for a witch to deal with them,
almost as bad as