For today how about a scene from GOING UNDER – a little bit of Molly with other people and some with her and Gage going at it…

Bound By Magick: GOING UNDER by LAUREN DANE
Copyright 2013, Lauren Dane
All Rights Reserved, The Berkley Publishing Group
Releasing February 5 in mass market paper and digital formats

Senator Albright gave her a considering glance. “Just why did you keep your existence a secret? If you’re not a harm to the rest of us?”

“Senator, all you need to do is look back over recorded history for your answer. We’ve been burned at the stake. Drowned. Tortured to death. Imprisoned. Every time humans found out about us, they tried to wipe us out. So we learned from that and kept what we were private. Not to trick anyone, but to protect ourselves. And as many of us have begun to suffer from the reaction to our existence, yet again, it can’t be that hard to understand why we did it.”

She sipped her water. “We too understand your fear of the unknown. Of finding out overnight that no only were there werewolves, who you’ve known about for several years, but witches and vampires too. And yet, you can also look to see we have not harmed you. When you didn’t know about us we did not perform satanic rituals in your yards. We did not steal your children. We lived our lives just as you lived yours.”

“How do we know you didn’t? How do we know all our criminals weren’t witches or vampires or whatever else unholy things? Animals disappearing, serial killers, war, famine! How do we know you people aren’t responsible for everything bad?”

Molly looked at Alison Moore, not surprised by her ignorance, just exhausted by it. “This is small-minded and petty nonsense. We’re not trying to track humans or take away your basic human rights. We’re simply asking the same of humans. Anything else is a waste of precious time and energy. And as someone who has lost loved ones, along with Mr. Sawyer and pretty much every single Other I know, we understand just how precious that time is now. This is our moment, as Americans, to shine. To set an example, as we have over and over through our history. It is not time to crawl back into factions and throw rocks. We want all that we had before the Magister showed up. That is all.”

Molly took up every last second before she let go, knowing many of the senators on the committee had another meeting right after this one ended. It worked as they thanked everyone for their testimony and headed out.

“Ms. Ryan.”

Molly turned to face the woman coming toward her. Her stomach clenched and it felt . . . wrong.

Gage shoved her from the way so hard she hit the corner of the table on her hip, sending a shock of pain through her body.

“Back up, right now.”

Power radiated from Gage, and Molly again found herself fascinated by how Gage used his magick.

Police had come around, weapons drawn. Gage put his hands up. “This woman has something in her right hand.”

The police moved toward Gage and Molly was not having it. “Did you hear what he said? No! He’s not the issue. She is. At least get whatever she has before she drops it.” Molly pulled every last bit of authority that had been handing in the air and drew it around herself. It worked as one of the police officers moved to the woman.

He held it aloft. “Looks like paint or ink. Maybe blood.”

The woman spit at the cop, who really got pissed off, spinning her and cuffing her wrists.

Molly’s would-be attacker began to scream. “She’s a monster. They’re going to kill us all! How can you all just sit there calmly while they take over? Every last one of them needs to be killed. They are ungodly. An abomination on our lands.”

“Do you see what you’ve done, Molly?”

Molly turned to face Alison Moore, who wore that damned smirk again.

“Excuse me?”

“There is no excuse for you. You are unholy, a blight sent upon this land sent to test us. We will not fail.”

“Ms. Moore, I did this. Back in third grade. I believe I know you are, but what am I would be the next line. But I’m not in third grade anymore and neither are you. So let’s be absolutely clear on this. We will not allow you to terrorize or threaten us. We want peace. We want to help you understand us. We don’t need you to love or accept what we are. We just won’t tolerate being assaulted. You need to understand that point.”

“Or what?”

“I’m not being coy. It would serve you not to be either. Lastly, it’s Ms. Ryan. You don’t know me well enough to use my first name.” Molly turned back to Gage, who’d just finished speaking with the police.

“She’s one of those flour-bomber types. They’re not going to punish her for it. She’ll be fined. Are you all right? I pushed you out of the way a little hard.”

She rubbed her hip. “Oh, that little bit of fluff didn’t scare me. I just . . . it felt wrong. I don’t know why.”

“I could feel it too. She projected menace pretty clearly.” He smiled. “You listened to your gut pretty well there.”

“Hm. Let’s go before they get out the blood and try to make it a scene from Carrie.”

“I don’t know,” Gage murmured as he ushered her from the room out into the chaos of the hallway, “might be nice to see that scene where she started blowing up cars and shit with her mind.”

People pressed in on all sides, but she’d be damned if she allowed any of them to make her afraid. Or at least to look it in public. She held her head up high, kept close to Gage and Faine and hoped she didn’t trip.

“Next time we do this we’ll need more security and to leave by a different door,” she said as they finally got to their car.

“Next time? What the hell do you mean?”

“Testifying. Not just here, but I’ve been asked to go to D.C. next Tuesday with a group of Others to address a new committee they’ve established to deal with the Other issue.”

“Issue? Like we’re measles.” Gage snarled it and she was glad Faine was in the car behind theirs.

“Look, this is reality. We can’t pretend it away. Some of them do think of us as akin to a communicable disease. We can’t get anywhere until more people don’t think that. And the only way to do that is to be out there countering what those PURITY people say about us.”

“Why bother? I could have shut her up with the flick of my wrist.”

She rolled her eyes. “Oh yes, that would have been peachy keen. Then she could have talked about how we used magick on her to shut her up.”

“So?”

“So then she can get everyone wondering just what we do to them without their knowing it. We can’t give them anything else to use against us. She’s dangerous, Gage. PURITY is dangerous. They will do whatever they have to to harm us.”

“So why are we wasting our time on diplomacy? Fuck this and those assholes. Why are we even letting them get close enough to throw ink on you? They’re not worthy of your time.”

“Of course they’re not worth my time. But that’s not the issue here.”

“So what is the issue here then? Don’t you think your talents would be better utilized elsewhere?”

“Oh, for goodness sake, Gage! What do you think my talents are? I’m not a big badass witch like you or Lark. I’m not some whizbang, awesome-at-everything witch like Meriel and those other full-council witches. The God’s honest truth is that this is exactly where my talents are best utilized. I am good at what I do. Better than that hack Alison Moore, that’s for damned sure. The issue here is that the walls are closing in around us and fast. Every day there’s something new. More dumb legislation aimed at stripping more of our rights away. The issue is, I’ve got to work to stop it and I can. I am totally capable of doing it. Better than most anyone I can imagine. And that when I do I will be slapping the spit out of those thugs in PURITY is just icing.”

“Your talents could be better utilized for something good. Where people don’t want to hurt you all the time. That’s all I’m saying. Those PURITY people aren’t going to change their minds. They like to hate something. They lost Russia and have been looking for something else as big-bad-evil ever since. We’re it.”

“I don’t care about PURITY. No, we won’t change their minds. Small minds are often closed anyway. It’s everyone else. Do you want PURITY’s voice to be the only one out there? Where we’re Satan worshippers barbecuing the family pet to call demons?” She snorted. “God, they’re dumb. Anyway, if there is no answering voice, that’s who we are. And I refuse to let that hang out there without being the counter to it. A woman with my taste in shoes would never eat a kitten.” She sniffed.

Molly was hot with anger. It filled her body and fired her up. Oh, she was mad now and it didn’t happen very often. But when it did, well, she didn’t stop until she’d won. Until she’d vanquished the person who made her mad.
Only the situation was far beyond a cheating boyfriend or someone who stole a client. This was big and she was quite sure she’d never felt like this. More than anger, she was offended by the hateful things she had to deal with every single day.

“Also, PURITY has, oh, I don’t know, offended my something. In a big way. I’m so angry at them I’m not articulate. That horrible, evil bitch is going down. Satanic rituals? Oh my god, fuck them sideways!”

He laughed then. “You’re going to make me get into an accident with the stuff you say.”

“Before I continue, I believe your next line is, “But you’re right and I’m sorry for being such a jerky dookie head.”

“Dookie head? You just said fuck them sideways and I get dookie head?”

“Rosa can’t abide insults to family. Or to people you like in general. So she’d get so mad if you called your brother or best friend stupid or anything bad. Dookie head was as rough as it got round their house.”
“So you like me?”

“Most of the time.” She gave him side eye.

“Well, a guy like me can’t ask for much more I guess.”

“I don’t lose.” She said it quietly, but he heard it straight to his heart. She sounded angry, yes, but maybe just a little bit lost too.

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