"What… what's going on?" he said, his voice rough. His messy light brown hair stuck out in every direction, his face still covered in dust from the construction site. I'd meant to clean him up after I ate, but he'd woken up too early.
"Calm down," I said, clearing my throat. "You're safe here." But I wasn't sure we were, now that he was awake.
"Safe?" He tried unsuccessfully to tug the chains of the cuffs off, then looked back at me. "You chained me to a window."
He wasn't angry, though—just confused. I nodded. "A precaution. I don't know you, and I tend to assume the worst." No shame in that.
His brown eyes trailed over me again, slower this time, and then scanned the room, probably looking for something he could use against me. The desk by the door was the only real furniture here, plus an old armchair. I'd made sure of that.
"Okay," he whispered, then nodded as he pulled himself upright. Color had returned to his cheeks by now, and he looked perfectly normal. Strong. Very good-looking.
"Okay, I get it. My name's Luca. But I'd really like to know what happened…" He glanced out the window at the sun. "…last night?"
"Hi, Luca. I'm Red. Nice to meet you." Feeling a bit more at ease, I tucked the knives into my back pocket and stepped closer to the bed. "Why don't you tell me what you are, so I can explain what happened last night?" I had no idea how I'd explain it with my limited knowledge, but I'd sure as hell try if he was honest with me.
His brows furrowed as he shrugged. "I'm a witch."
I smiled. "What kind of witch?"
Did the blood drain from his cheeks, or was that just my imagination? "Green."
"Lie." If he'd been a Blood witch, the thoughtless things wouldn't have drained him. I'd seen them ignore Blood witches like they weren't even there.
"Who are you to ask, Red? What are you?" Luca's stomach growled.
I glanced at the pizza box. "Want some?"
But he shook his head. Too bad. I sat down on the floor again. I couldn't go too long without food or I'd get all wonky, so I'd learned to eat in the strangest situations. No sense feeling weird about it.
"Let's start with why you were in that building last night."
Trying to push the thin blanket off himself, he cleared his throat. "We were looking for someone."
I raised my brows. "Someone?"
The place had been a construction site, just columns and floors—empty at night, which was why I'd chosen it.
"You, I suspect."
I stopped chewing and swallowed hard. "Me?" That didn't sound good.
"Yes, you," Luca said. "We were looking for someone like us."
"Like us?" It sounded like my worst fear and greatest revelation all rolled into one.
"A witch," he said, frowning. "A new kind of witch."
So he was… No. I couldn't make sense of it. "You lost me."
"A new kind of witch," he explained, clearing his throat. "Listen, Red, if you could get these cuffs off me, I'd feel a lot better. And you need to bring my friends here, too. Together, we can explain things better."
I grimaced. "I think you should try explaining yourself."
A new kind of witch. Was he serious? Because that was my first thought. There were no "new kinds" of witches. Were there?
Silence stretched between us for a moment. "Where are they?" he asked, voice laced with fear.
"They're safe," I assured him, but he shook his head.
"Where are they?"
"Well, they're not here." I was getting a bit nervous, too. If they all woke up this early, the thoughtless things might find them, and…
"Tell me where you took them," Luca demanded, voice tinged with anger, as he struggled against the cuffs again.
"They're scattered around the city in rooms like this one." I gestured around the sparse room. "It's for your own safety. Trust me."
"What safety? Why separate us?" he shouted.
"I don't appreciate you raising your voice at me, Luca," I said, keeping my voice calm. When I was nervous, I could lose my temper pretty quickly, but now wasn't the time. "I saved you last night, as you probably remember, and if I say I put you far apart from each other for your safety, you need to trust me."
"I don't know you!"
He had a point. "And I don't know you. Yet here I am, helping you."
Clamping his mouth shut, Luca lowered his head, letting out a frustrated sigh. "At least tell me why," he whispered, desperation edging his voice.
"Because of the ones who attacked you last night," I replied, keeping it vague for now. "And if you tell me everything, I'll share all I know. I promise."
At the mention of the attack, Luca's face went pale again. He swallowed so hard I could hear it across the room. He was afraid, and rightly so. Maybe now he'd tell me what he meant by a "new kind of witch."
"The others and I have been keeping a low profile for months now since we got together. Our magic has never fit into the normal types, and we believe it's a new kind of magic—something unheard of before."
Holy hell. It was like hearing him tell the story of my life. I pushed the pizza box away, my hands curling into fists so he wouldn't see them shaking.
"Have you tried this? There are odd witches everywhere." No, there weren't. I just wanted to tell myself that.
"No, no, we're all the same. Our powers come from the same source."
His certainty was unnerving, yet something in me trusted his words.
"And what is that source?" My voice had gone dry, my heart pounding faster than when I'd fought the thoughtless things.
"The weather."
I regretted the pizza instantly. My stomach turned, rumbling like there was thunder inside me.
"How sure are you?" I asked, barely above a whisper. I couldn't even put words to what I felt. Relief? Fear? Probably both. But what I wasn't feeling was alone.
Dear gods. I wasn't alone. Which meant the thoughtless things could feed off others like me, too.
"Very sure," Luca said with a decisive nod. "I have no doubts. I've spoken to people from every coven, young and old. I've read every book I could find. This isn't just odd; it's new."