Page 99 of His Wicked Charm

“What is it?” Alex asked, watching them closely. “What’s happening?”

“I’m not sure.” Con’s voice was a trifle breathless. “Lilah can sense it. She feels the force of whatever’s down there.” He gazed into her face. “Better?”

Lilah nodded. “Yes. At first it was almost unbearably strong, but you took away some of it.” She offered a shaky smile. “I think I’ll be able to control it now.”

“I’ll be right here with you.” Con linked his hand with hers.

Lilah straightened her shoulders and turned to Sabrina. “Can you feel it?”

Sabrina nodded. “There’s this little low...” She wriggled her fingers, searching for the right words. “Hum. Only it’s inside me.”

They looked toward Alex, who shrugged. “I don’t feel a damn thing except confused.”

“I think Lilah and Sabrina sense it because of their family bond with the Sanctuary,” Con offered. “All I got from Lilah was a surge of strength and a sharper focus. She makes me better.”

Alex laughed. “I’m sure that’s true.”

Con grimaced at him. “What I mean is, her ability heightens mine, but I don’t feel the connection to the Source the way the ladies do.” He looked back at Lilah. “Are you able to explore further?”

“Of course. Surely you don’t think I’m going to stop at this point.”

“No.” Con grinned. He glanced over at Alex.

“I’ll get the lanterns.” Alex loped off across the courtyard.

The tumult inside Lilah had settled down—though she wasn’t about to test it by letting go of Con’s hand just yet. She turned toward Sabrina. “Are you all right?”

Sabrina nodded. “Yes. It was unsettling at first, but I’m growing accustomed to it now. What are we to do with this thing? I’m not in favor of donning robes and chanting incantations every few months.”

“Nor am I. I also don’t like the idea of living here with that pulling at me all the time. Yet if what Mr. Dearborn says is true, we must renew the bond to keep this power from ruining everything.”

The door opened, and Alex entered, carrying two lanterns. “Your butler thought I was mad, wanting a lantern in the daylight—and two of them, at that.”

Con shrugged. “He’s already convinced of my insanity.” They lit the lanterns and turned to the open entrance. Con started to step onto the first step, but Lilah put a restraining hand on his arm. “No. I should go first. I can scarcely believe I’m saying this, but the Sanctuary seems to recognize me.”

Con frowned. “We don’t know what’s down there. What if the stairs collapse?”

“The same things apply to you.”

“Lilah’s right,” Sabrina said. “She’s the Holcutt, the owner of the land under which it sits. And, as the descendent of another of the Blessed, I should go after her.”

The twins looked at one another, clearly uncomfortable with that idea, but as they scrambled to come up with a good argument, Lilah settled it by picking up the other lantern and starting down the stairs.

“Oh, the devil.” Con leaned in and said, “Promise me you’ll come back up if it looks risky.”

“Of course. I always follow the rules, remember?” Lilah smiled up at his scowling face. She was beginning to understand why Con enjoyed teasing her.

She continued down the stairs. The wooden planks were sturdy beneath her feet, but she could see only a few steps ahead of her, even with the lantern, because of the tightly coiled nature of the stairs. It gave her the uneasy sensation that the stairs were endless and she was descending into the void.

With every step she took, the pull became stronger. The energy inside her had risen from a vibration to a throb. Without Con there to absorb some of the power, it was multiplying. She envisioned it sweeping through her, taking her over as it had long ago at the séance. Her hand trembled, making the light dance, and she thought for a cowardly moment about turning around and fleeing.

But the sound of Sabrina coming down right behind her steadied her. She had to go forward. This energy belonged to her, and she must deal with it. And suddenly Lilah understood how to control it.

It wasn’t a battle. She must cease fighting it and make the power her own. Lilah consciously relaxed her will as she continued down the stairs. She imagined opening her mind, dropping all barriers. When she reached the bottom of the stairs, the full force of the Sanctuary’s power rushed into her. For one terrifying moment, she thought she had been wrong, that she had lost herself. But stubbornly she held on, refusing to fight the power and instead accepting it.

The pressure eased, and suddenly the energy was flowing through her unimpeded, filling her head and singing through her veins, sweeping downward into the earth beneath her feet. A conduit, that was what Con had called her. The power moved through her, not consuming but strengthening. The pull that had been there was no longer a compulsion but an offer, beckoning her home.

Lilah turned as Sabrina joined her, and they stepped back to allow room for the men, clattering down the stairs at a more rapid pace. In the golden light of the lantern, Sabrina’s face glowed. “Do you feel it?” Sabrina asked, taking Lilah’s hand. “How it got stronger but somehow easier, as well?”