“Maybe if we place it on both of them at the same time,” Turner suggested. Maria looked closely at the two patients. At least her sleeping spell kept them unconscious and unknowing to the pain they kept going through.
“And your best healers know nothing about witch magic?” Maria asked for a second time of Nessa.
“No, it’s illegal to practice any type of magic beyond sidhe magic. If anyone did so, they would be thrown out,” Nessa explained again. She now was wishing the sidhe were a bit more open-minded.
Maria went back to mixing herbs. Once her bowl was filled, she handed it to Turner who began to crush them together. They started the process again, but it wouldn’t work. Something deep down inside her told her why. The one thing she dreaded. Their bond wouldn’t let them heal, just as life would be if someone attacked Devin.
“It is the bond, isn’t it?” Nessa asked. The bond could be very helpful—it had gotten Devin and Nessa out of trouble on more than one occasion—but this time it wasn’t good. Their bond made the magic work. “So they would be cured by now if they weren’t bonded?”
Maria’s head snapped up. She nodded vigorously. “That’s exactly it.”
“Exactly what?” Nessa asked.
Maria crushed the herbs with a new fury. Turner noticed and tried to keep pace so that his was done at the same time as Maria. Luckily he was strong enough to mix his herbs in half the time as her, and they both stopped within seconds of each other. Turner waited for Maria to explain more, but she set her bowl down. Reaching over to the pile of magic supplies, Cassie had been working with, she found a bottle that was unlabeled and said a silent prayer.
“I hope she got this right,” Maria muttered more to herself than anyone.
Nessa wanted to ask what was going on, but she trusted the older witch. Something about the woman screamed that she was trustworthy.
Maria bent down and carefully opened Lele’s mouth. Two drops of the golden liquid were placed in her mouth. Nessa gasped as the female sidhe glowed a bit brighter. She had no clue what was going on. Maria waited with expectant eyes, as did Nessa and Turner, who were both completely confused by the situation.
“What is that to do with?” Nessa finally asked.
Maria seemed to be holding her breath. Soon the glow faded, and Nessa saw the string that bonded Lele to Liam start to retract. Nessa watched in wonder as it pulled back further and got thinner. Then suddenly, it broke.
“Now quickly put that on her,” Maria told Turner, picking her bowl back up and slathering the salve on Liam’s face.
Nessa stared in shock. She wasn’t completely sure what she had just seen, but it looked like the bond had been broken.
Liam’s skin grew back quickly, as did Lele’s. Soon their faces were completely back to normal as they both lay on their respective tables, peacefully sleeping.
“Did you just break their bond?” Nessa asked. Her grandfather told Devin it wasn’t possible. He would have known that. He could do just about anything with sidhe magic … except break a bond. It wasn’t possible.
“Not me. Cassie. She made this spell,” Maria explained. Happiness lined her face as she spoke. Liam and Lele were fine now. They had been saved, even though the witch had tried to keep them hurt.
“Do you need to break the bond often in your night human world?” Nessa asked.
It seemed like a funny thing, to break a bond. Why even be able to form a bond if you were just going to break it? She had spent a long time wanting the bond gone with Devin, but once she realized that it was permanent, she was happy.
“Cassie didn’t make this for us. The bond we use is different, and can’t be broken with a spell. Well, at least not a witch spell. Maybe that’s the key,” Maria seemed to be off thinking in her own world now that the pressure to save Liam and Lele was gone.
“Why would she make that for the sidhe?” Nessa was still confused.
“Oh, he hasn’t spoken to you yet?” Maria asked like she just realized she let out a secret.
“Spoke to me? Who?” Nessa had a clue as to who, but she didn’t want it to be true. There was only one “he” who would want to talk about breaking bonds with her, and who would have had the chance to ask Cassie to make the spell.
“Devin wanted you to be able to choose who you would marry without the bond making you feel like you had to choose him. He asked Cassie to make a spell to break your bond. I thought he talked to you. I really did. I’m sorry. I really thought you had spoken,” Maria apologized.
“Why?” Nessa asked in shock.
“Well, some of it’s gone. I thought he used it already,” Maria answered the why she thought she had been asked.
Nessa’s world came crashing down. Maybe there was more to why she couldn’t feel Devin.
Cassie grabbed Devin and pulled him to the ground as another spell flew over their head from the other direction. It didn’t take long to realize that they didn’t want to be in the barn. Way too much magic was bouncing around, and Devin had no clue how to counter it. The only thing that seemed to stop the spells were the swords each man was swinging. Cassie grunted as a spell hit the ground only inches from them, and she didn’t complain when Devin started to drag her outside the barn to protect her. They paused behind some stacks of hay. It would make a barrier before they could get out.
“I didn’t know magic could bounce around like that,” Devin told her as he stared at the open doors. The three men continued to fight inside the barn. In fact, if they hadn’t just come from inside the barn, Devin would have walked right by without knowing there was a magic fight going on inside it.
“Neither did I, but I don’t really have that much experience with it,” Cassie added. “I really didn’t know you could use it for combat like that.”
“I suppose not. You’re what, a junior? Just starting out your training?” Devin replied. He knew a little bit about the system of how the witches were trained, and he figured her knowledge was limited.
“Actually, Maria’s been training me on the side for a couple of years. I plan to go for my apprentice test when I go back to school in the fall,” Cassie explained, keeping one eye on the other side of a barn. “So what are we going to do about that?” Cassie nodded to the guys.
They were all standing, staring at each other. It was still silent, but too many spells blocked their exit for now. They’d have to either look for another way out, or chance running through the spells while hoping they didn’t get hit by one.
“You are going to stay here, and I’m going to see if Ronan needs any help,” Devin stated.
He stayed low to the ground and kept up to the one opening in the hay. Peering through, he saw that the fight was still going on. Ronan hadn’t done much beyond disrupting the fight momentarily and then starting things back up. He now was unconscious on the ground on the edge of the circle as the two men continued to where they must have been before they came to a standstill. Old Man Winters was surprisingly agile for his apparent age. He dodged everything Rolf was throwing his way before countering with his own spells. Cassie gasped as she looked on the other side of the barn. Devin froze and watched. Winters would throw a spell, and Rolf would react in turn.
“That’s why the place looked like it had been hit by a spell war. It had,” Cassie exclaimed.
Old Man Winters wasn’t the only one throwing spells. Rolf was doing the exact same thing. Cassie couldn’t tell which sidhe was the witch because they both were. Things had just gotten messier, and Devin was just as confused. Did that mean that all they thought was wrong? Who was the bad guy? Were they both in on it? It didn’t seem so, but he couldn’t be sure. Was there a way to tell one witch from another? And what was he to do with them if he could get them both under control? Witch magic in the sidhe village was illegal, even if one of them wasn’t the one trying to kill everyone.
They continued to fight. Neither one paid any attention to Ronan, who was passed out on the ground. As spells came awfully close to him, Devin knew th
at before he stopped the two men in their battle he needed to get Ronan to safety. It was possible Ronan was involved, but he didn’t have time to worry about that. If he left him in the barn, Ronan would more than likely get killed in the middle whether he was a witch or not.
“You’re going in to get him,” Cassie told Devin as she scooted closer. Devin nodded. “What can I do to help?”
“Stay right here,” he answered, slowly moving toward the opening of the hay bales. Cassie shifted to join him.
“I’m serious. Stay right here. I don’t know what sidhe magic works against witch magic, and we don’t need to test your combat skills. I’m pretty sure you don’t learn anything like that until after you’re an apprentice, so stay back and stay safe. Maria would kill me if anything happened to you,” Devin told her.
He could use the help, but he wasn’t confident Cassie even could. She was naïve about everything, and he highly doubted Maria trained her to fight. All knowledge was great when you were sheltered, but it wasn’t great for Devin right now. The only people that could stand by him at this point were battle-tested, like Turner, but he didn’t have his wing man.
Cassie reluctantly nodded and moved to the opening to watch.
Devin peered around the hay. Rolf and Winters were going at it hard, attacking and blocking each other. Neither even looked his direction. Devin slid around near the door and into the dark shadows that lined the walls. Luckily for him, Ronan was on the right side of the barn opposite the stacked hay, but not so far away that Devin would have to completely go around the barn to get him.
Devin inched his way forward as the room shook from the spells. He had no clue what sort of spells Winters put on the place, but he was sure that it was well hidden. If they’d been causing even an ounce of the same noise only ten minutes ago, Devin would have been able to track the witch sidhe as easy as Cassie. They hadn’t heard a thing in the silent village. Devin needed to get Ronan out now, and then get help. No one would be coming as the battle was well contained.
Devin reached Ronan, and he stirred only a little. He bent down while keeping his eye on the fighting, pulling Ronan’s arm over his shoulder. Ronan was heavier than Devin expected, but he kept his grunt to himself. So far neither man noticed Devin was there and taking Ronan out. The trek back around the barn was even slower. Now he had to look out for both himself and Ronan. A few spells ricocheted off the walls and came close, but he was sure he could make it. As he neared the opening of the door, he realized the spells had stopped. Devin froze in his tracks and turned slowly to face the two men.
Winters was on the ground now, and the sword he had was kicked out of his reach. Devin was sad to see the old man defeated. He didn’t want to believe the man was bad. He had never felt anything but kindness from him. Devin didn’t even think Winters had a bad bone in his body. Devin felt the crushing feeling of betrayal, and knew exactly what Nessa had been going through time and time again ever since she had returned.
Winters looked at Devin with the weight of Ronan on him.
Sorry, he mouthed before lifting his hand to send a spell Devin’s way. Rolf noticed Devin’s position at the same time and realized that his son was with Devin. Rolf stamped down on the charm in Winter’s hand before turning to Ronan and Devin.
Cassie stepped in at the last moment and raised her own hand. The magic hit her and blew her backward into the wall of the barn, knocking Ronan out of Devin’s arms. Without hesitation, Devin called to the plants outside to take Ronan from the barn where they could then move him farther away to safety. One down and only Cassie left to get out of the barn. Devin called to his plants again, and they sneaked into the barn. They seemed to be unaffected by the spells that lined the ground.
“You thought you could stop me. I guess you were wrong,” Rolf spat at Winters. He picked up the crushed charm and grinned in an evil way at the old man. Devin had no clue what the charm was, but he didn’t want to stay around and get in the way when they started their fighting back up.
Old Man Winters continued to lie on the ground, defeated.
Cassie coughed a little as she stood back up from the blow that had shoved her into the barn walls. Maria was right in that she was still alive, but the wind had been knocked out of her.
Turning to Cassie, Rolf glared at her. “It’s you. Young witch, you’re just getting in the way.”
Devin was confused. Cassie had just saved Ronan. Devin turned to Cassie and found she was struggling to stand. She had hit her head hard on the wall of the barn. His protection seemed to fail the moment the witch magic touched her. Devin sprinted to her when Rolf raised his hand to attack. She successfully blocked the last spell, but Devin doubted she would be able to a second time with her head not completely on straight. Rolf let go of the spell, and Cassie teetered a bit. Devin sent up plants to block the path of the spell, but it went right through them. The spell aimed at her chest broke through the sidhe barrier protecting Cassie and hit her in the shoulder. She staggered back to the wall but remained conscious. Devin had been too slow, and his sidhe magic wasn’t effective against the witch magic. Devin turned to Rolf.
“What are you doing? She’s here to help us,” he yelled at the older man.
“Help us?” Rolf replied, stalking two steps closer to Devin and Cassie. “Help? She’s the reason I’m here now fighting with this old man. The sidhe would have gotten rid of you days ago, and no one would have known I set it up. I would have never run into him, and he never would have found out that I have been using his barn for over a decade to store my potions. This all would have been kept a secret. Now I have to kill both of you and find a way to blame it on the old man here.”
Devin was shocked. He didn’t think either of the two older men we untrustworthy, but to find Nessa’s uncle was trying to get rid of him was another blow.
“Don’t you care about Nessa at all? If you killed me, it would kill her, too.” Devin was stunned. He hadn’t expected her uncle to be the witch sidhe causing problems.
“That’s what everyone thinks of the bond. Well, I know the truth. If I kill you fast, the bond can’t activate to hurt Nessa. She’ll be fine. She will mourn you, but she’ll get over you. Soon enough, she will marry a true sidhe and everything can go back to normal around here.” Rolf was certain.
“And what if that isn’t how it works? What if you screw up and kill me just a tad bit too slow? Would you take that chance with Nessa’s life?”
Rolf looked at the field outside the doorway. Ronan was still asleep on the grass.
“It’s a risk I’m willing to take to clean up this place. If it does accidentally kill Nessa, my son will just have to step up and accept responsibility for being born a McKinny.” Rolf shrugged like he didn’t care which way it turned out.
Devin shut away the pain at hearing Rolf talk so harshly. It was his way to deal with emotions, and it was helpful now. He didn’t need to dwell on the older man breaking all trust Devin had in him. He needed to find the strength to stand up to him. Rolf was older than Devin by several decades. He was the previous king’s younger brother, trained in all the sidhe fighting tactics, and he was a witch. He might have been older, and probably a little less physically challenging than Devin, but his vast knowledge would make him an impressive enemy. Devin didn’t have time to worry. He needed to plan a way to defeat the sidhe. It wouldn’t be the first sidhe that Nessa loved that Devin had to defeat, but he hoped it would be the last.
Devin had been using the conversation to inch closer to Cassie. The burn on her shoulder wasn’t too bad. A little night human blood would clear it right up, but he couldn’t let Rolf attack again now that Devin knew his sidhe shield didn’t work against witch magic, and the plants couldn’t help, either.
“So everything about wanting to help bring a new era to the sidhe, it was all talk?” Devin asked.
He had to keep Rolf focused on something else so that he could get close enough to Cassie. The young witch didn’t deserve to have to fight this b
attle, and he couldn’t help but be protective of her. To him, Cassie would always be that oddball witch that no one wanted to be friends with but had the biggest eyes and ears of them all. The reason she was advanced was because she could see magic in everything. Cassie was special, and she didn’t need to be part of the sidhe battle going on.
‘Nessa?’ Devin called to her in his mind. They needed help, and they needed it right now. Devin waited a moment and called again. ‘Nessa?’
Nothing. There was no connection. There was no reply. Silence.
Rolf smiled at Devin like he already knew what Devin was up to.
“Do you know anything about witch magic?” Rolf asked Devin, who inched closer to Cassie. “They use nature, just like the sidhe, but their power comes from within themselves. They don’t need to draw on the power of nature, like the sidhe, but they can still harness that energy. Witches and sidhe are very similar. The best part of witch magic is that you can set it up, leave it places, and make things such as charms.”
“Charms?” Devin asked, trying to keep Rolf talking and distracted as he moved ever closer to Cassie.
“Charms. Like this one.” Rolf pointed to a wad of leaves to the side of the barn. “Do you know what this charm does? I’ll even let you have a guess.” Devin waited for him to continue talking.
“No clue,” Devin replied, noticing that Rolf wanted an answer.
“This charm here cancels out some of the effects of the bond. Even more the reason I think this is the perfect time to get rid of you. You worry that maybe I won’t kill you quick enough to keep Nessa alive. I think these charms might make that even easier for me to do just that. Now you wouldn’t be so kind as to just lie down and let me kill you, would you?”
“Not really my style,” Devin replied, in position and now fully protecting Cassie from any attack.
“I thought you’d say that,” Rolf replied, flinging the same fireball of magic at Devin that Cassie had been hit by.
The Day Human Way Page 18
