Barden squeezed my shoulder, almost as if he were aware of my thoughts, and I glanced up at him, nodding.
“Perhaps she is stronger than she appears,” Roland said.
“This marker was given to me by Jean-Pierre Rorsch.” I watched Roland as I said it, part of me expecting him to ignore the comment—as if he could ignore that I had earned the token—but he only smiled.
“Is that true?”
“You understand why I question whether you are aware of what happened last winter.” Barden remained fixed in place, watching the other man.
For his part, Matt had remained silent, though I doubted he had remained powerless. When I glanced in his direction, there was a coin in his hand, much like he had held onto before. I didn’t know what use he had for the coin, but I suspected there was a way of accessing power tied to it.
“I am aware of what happened last winter. Does that make you feel better, Barden?”
“The better question is does it make you feel better? If you’re aware of what happened last winter, then you will know that someone from within the families was responsible for revealing that your elder was visiting the city.”
“You don’t know that,” Roland said.
“Don’t I? Does an elder meet with any of the familiars?”
“No.”
“Does an elder travel with any familiars?”
I knew the answer to that one, though I hadn’t known the answer to the first. When Jean-Pierre had been in Minneapolis, he had come with two other vampires he said he had worked with for nearly a hundred years. One of them had died during the journey—the man I had found in the park, killed by the strange weapon the organization had used. The other had managed to survive, though he had been maimed. I still didn’t know whether he had any long-term consequences from that injury or not.
“They do not,” Roland said.
“No, they do not. Which means that for someone to recognize that one of your elders was visiting Minneapolis, the elder must have been betrayed.”
“Are you accusing me?”
“Why would I accuse you, Roland Vangalor? Do you fear that you have something to answer for?”
“I had nothing to do with the elder’s attack. If you knew anything about the families, you would know the elders are of all families. That would be like attacking my own blood.”
“That’s an interesting choice of words coming from you.”
“Why are you here, Barden?” He glanced down to the coin resting on the table. “Why have you brought her to me with that?”
“Because, Roland Vangalor, we need your help.”
A hint of a smile spread on his face. “What kind of help do you need?”
“The kind of help that involves you reaching out to Jean-Pierre.”
“You only come here because you know I can’t do that.”
“And why is that?”
I glanced over to Barden. I had the sense he knew why that was, though I did not. What was there to prevent Roland from reaching out to one of the elders?
“I refuse.”
“That marker means you cannot. She was given a promise by one of your elders—one of your family, as it were. And we are calling that favor in.”
11
After Roland had left the room, I looked over to Barden, frowning. “What am I missing here?” I asked, glancing from him to Matt. The tension had left Matt after Roland walked outside, though I could still feel an edge to him. It was a strange thing to be aware of, as if he feared doing—or saying—too much.
“Roland has been disciplined by the Council of Elders. Unfortunately for him, that involves a distinction I suspect he fears revealing, and yet—“
“You know about it.”
Barden nodded. “I do. I suspect he was surprised to learn I knew about it, but it can be of use to us.”
“What did he do?” Matt asked.
“Why would he have to have done anything?” I asked.
“For him to be disciplined in such a way, it means he did something,” Matt said. “What I am curious about is what exactly that might have been.”
Matt kept his gaze fixed on Barden, watching him for a long moment. Barden only smiled, staring at the door Roland had disappeared through. He hadn’t moved from the circle he had marked around him, and though I didn’t feel any surge of power through the bracelet—nothing that would tell me that he was holding onto any considerable magic—I had a feeling he was.
“Roland took a gamble and lost,” Barden said.
“What sort of gamble?”
“The sort of gamble that didn’t lead to him losing control of his family, but it did lead to discipline from the Council of Elders.”
I waited for Barden to elaborate, but when he didn’t, I realized he would not. It was interesting. Whatever had happened between him and Roland was the reason Barden was here. “That’s why you came here, rather than the Icahrn family?”
Barden shrugged. “It serves an additional purpose.”
“And what is that?”
“It reminds Roland of what he did.”
“One of these days you will have to tell me what that is.”
“Perhaps,” Barden said.
“Did you really not go to the Icahrn family because of it?”
“Oh, there would be some benefit in going to the Icahrn family. Donovan is aware of what happened, and he knows your role with the elder, but at the same time, I would rather maintain that favor a little while longer.”
“Wait a minute, what favor?” I asked.
“By bringing the elder back to the Icahrn family, we have accumulated a debt from them.”
“We have?” I stared at Barden for a moment. “Is that why you wanted to come with me when I brought him back to them?”
“Not entirely, but there was value in my accompanying you. In this way, they owe both of us. A vampire debt owed to a hedge mage doesn’t have nearly as much value as a vampire debt owed to a member of the Mage Council.”
“And the head of the Dark Council,” Matt said.
Barden glanced in his direction, nodding. “Yes. And that. If we are going to cash in on one favor, it might as well be only one. Seeing as how Roland recognizes what he owes me, he was the logical one to approach for this.”
I shook my head. “I get the sense you are quite devious when you want to be,” I said to Barden.
“Only then? Why, Dr. Stone, I would like people to believe I am devious all the time.”
I laughed. “I’m sure they do.”
The door opened and Roland entered. When he did, there were two other vampires standing behind him. They were large, heavily muscled, and there was something about them that put me on edge.
“What is this?” Barden asked.
“I have reached out to the elder,” Roland said.
“Then why are you here with them?”
“Because the Council would like me to offer her whatever protections I can.”
Barden smiled, but the way he said it left me a little bit on edge. “Good. I had begun to worry you might have a change of heart.”
“They provided a little direction otherwise, as well.”
Barden stiffened, and I tried to stand, but he kept his hand grasping my shoulder. It kept me sitting in the chair, but it also connected me to him, I realized. Because of that connection, there was a sense of power that vibrated within him. What spell was Barden pulling on? Better yet, what was he worried about? That was the real question. I could tell—and feel—that there was something that troubled him.
Matt fidgeted with something in his hand. It was a small disc, and he slipped it from finger to finger, almost as if it was a nervous habit.
“You see, while the Council did instruct me to offer Dr. Stone whatever help she needs, there was no such instruction when it came to you,” Roland said.
At first, I thought he was talking to Barden, but then I realized he was referring to Matt. “He’s with me,” I said.
“I�
�m afraid the Council does not see it that way. The Council is most appreciative of your support, but unfortunately, they also recognize that this one is responsible for what took place.”
Barden raised his other hand, holding it out. “He is responsible for helping Dr. Stone rescue the elder. As I’m sure you learned when you reached out to the Council. The fact you are approaching it in this way suggests to me that either you didn’t contact the Council, or you are gambling that you need only act on part of what they ask of you.”
Roland shrugged. “You may believe what you like, Barden Leifan. As it is, you came to me for help. I am offering what I can.”
The other two started forward, and power pressed out from Barden. It created a wall the vampires couldn’t pass through. Roland hadn’t moved forward, and he stood, watching Barden. He was almost amused, and I wondered if this wasn’t exactly what he had wanted. “Now you have come into my home and attacked me?” Roland asked.
“I haven’t attacked you at all. I am merely preventing your people from attacking mine.”
“I think we can both agree that he is not one of yours, Barden. She doesn’t even seem to be one of yours, but given that the Council believes you were working together the last time on the elder’s behalf, I will give you the benefit of the doubt. Unfortunately, when it comes to one of them,” he said, nodding toward Matt, “the same cannot be said.”
Barden didn’t move. The power built, and as it did, I became painfully aware something was going to happen. I doubted we would be able to get out of the vampire compound. I remembered when it had been just me before and how helpless I had felt. I might not have been as helpless as I had believed, but trapped as I was within a home of vampires, I had been certain there was no help that would come to me.
It was the same now. Even with Barden here, even knowing how powerful Barden could be, I didn’t feel as if we were in a safe situation. Instead, it seemed as if we were in a far more precarious situation than before.
“It’s okay,” I said, getting to my feet. “We’ll just go.” I turned my attention to the vampires, and then glanced over at Barden. “If this isn’t going to work, I don’t want to stay here and risk ourselves.”
“Dr. Stone—“
Shaking my head again, I tapped Barden on the arm. “Don’t. What do you think we can accomplish if we try to fight our way out of here?”
Roland glanced at Barden. “Perhaps you should listen to the good doctor. She is making sense, unlike you. Do you really think you should risk the goodwill of the vampires, councilor?”
I hesitated for a moment, uncertain what to do, and worried what might happen if the vampires actually attacked. I certainly didn’t have the necessary strength to oppose them, and while I didn’t know if Matt did, I suspected he had a way of overpowering them. When he had first told me he fought off five vampires on my behalf, I hadn’t believed him, but now I did. Especially after having seen the way he was able to use his magic, borrowed or not.
“Step back, Dr. Stone,” Barden said.
Roland watched us, the smile on his face dark and twisted. “I think that you should be careful.”
“I am being careful,” Barden said.
“If you were being careful, you wouldn’t have allowed this one to be quite so impulsive. I’ll admit, the elder does have a certain fondness for her, which protects her, but how long do you think that will be the case? The moment he learns she led an attack inside the Vangalor family home, any protection he might have offered will dissipate. It won’t be long before it disappears altogether.”
As I watched Roland, I wondered if that wasn’t his plan. I slipped the marker into my pocket, keeping it close to me. The one thing I knew about the marker was that it was valuable. Whether or not Roland honored the promise Jean-Pierre had made by giving it to me didn’t matter. All that mattered was I had this marker. More than that, there was a question about whether or not Roland had even done what he claimed. I had a hard time believing he was so willing to attack without permission, especially with the threat of one of the vampire elders over his head.
“I would like to speak with Jean-Pierre Rorsch,” I said.
Roland hesitated. Power pushed on me, the same persuasive power I had felt from him ever since he first tried to use it on me. There was no subtlety to it the way that there had been before, merely a sense of him trying to get me to acquiesce, to abandon any attempt on my behalf of speaking with Jean-Pierre.
“I would speak with Jean-Pierre Rorsch.” I glanced at the other two vampires before turning my attention to Roland. “As I have his marker, I should be given that opportunity.” I wasn’t sure whether Roland would give me that opportunity or whether he would try to prevent me from speaking with Jean-Pierre, but if he did grant it, then I had to hope Jean-Pierre could be reasoned with. I had saved his life—twice—after all.
“I’m afraid that is not possible.”
“Why?”
“As I said, the Council of Elders has made their position clear.”
“I’m not asking to speak to the entire Council. All I’m asking is to speak to one member. Besides, I very much doubt you would allow me to meet or speak with the entire Council of Elders.”
If he would, that would grant me far too much information about the inner workings of the vampire world. I had a feeling it was unusual that I knew about Jean-Pierre to begin with, so for me to know even more, for me to know who sat on the Council of Elders, would be unheard of. It was something Barden would want to know. It was also something valuable to the organization. For some reason, I was starting to feel as if I were caught between two competing attempts to use me and my connection to the vampires.
“Unfortunately, that will not be possible. As you can see, I have an escort to guide him away.”
“No,” Barden said.
Roland glanced over at him. “No? You might sit on the Mage Council, which means that as much as I hate it, I need to allow your safe passage, and she has a Mark of the Elder, which allows her a certain leverage, but him, on the other hand… As you can well imagine, I have no qualms about taking him and escorting him elsewhere.”
“You might not, but I do,” Matt said.
The vampires watched Matt. Did they know what he was yet? I had a feeling that Roland was aware Matt was something more than just a hedge mage. They had to, didn’t they? “Are you threatening us? As you have seen, we don’t take well to threats.”
“Neither do I,” Matt said. “You have already made it clear you are aware of who I work for. I suspect you understand what that means.”
Roland merely watched him. There was a hint of amusement in his eyes, and though I didn’t like the idea of being caught in the middle of a vampire attack, a part of me wanted to see just what Matt would be capable of doing against a vampire of his stature.
“Yes. The mysterious organization.” Roland took a step forward, but barely that. “I have been alive as long as your organization has existed. Do you think that should scare me? You who believe that you somehow work outside of the magical world, as if your organization is somehow able to influence others.”
“Roland—“ Barden started.
I glanced at him. It was a warning, and here I had thought Barden had no interest in working with the vampires, but the caution that he’d just given to Roland was such that I wasn’t certain if there was more to it.
“Stay out of this, Barden Leifan. This one—and others like him—feel as if they should be able to influence events beyond their comprehension. Look at him. He is a hedge mage, with barely any power of his own. Anything he has is borrowed.”
“You’re right.”
Roland smiled. “See? As I said—“
Matt flicked his wrist, and it happened so quickly I was barely aware of what he did. With it came an explosion of power, a surge of magical energy, and it slammed into Roland and the other two vampires. They were all thrown back, the two vampires pinned against the wall, and Roland tossed out into the hallway. Ma
tt strode forward, a knife appearing from somewhere, and he crouched down next to Roland. He positioned the knife over Roland’s chest, and the vampire thrashed, trying to escape, but whatever Matt had used on him prevented him from doing so.
It was quick, brutal, and incredibly effective. And I had wondered how Matt had managed to incapacitate five vampires. He had done so with these three, with nothing more than a flick of his wrist.
“My power is borrowed, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less effective. In fact, considering how it is honed, I would argue that what I can do is even more specialized and effective than what you can counter.” Matt leaned close, putting his face near Roland’s ear. I thought he was whispering, but his voice still carried to me. It took a moment to realize Barden had used a spell to enable me to continue to hear. “I have killed more vampires than you are old. And yes, I am quite aware of how old you are, Roland Vangalor. Do you think the organization is that unprepared?”
He held the knife in place, and it hovered just over the surface of Roland’s chest. There was an emotion I hadn’t seen in Roland’s eyes since we had come. He had been arrogant and irritable, but now he looked afraid.
“You can call them off.”
“What?” Roland said.
“The rest. You can call them off. If you don’t, this knife will sink into your chest, and trust me when I tell you I know how to kill a vampire with a single blow so that you can’t restore yourself. I count a dozen, possibly more, making their way toward me. All of them will be destroyed as easily as you three were taken down.”
There was a flicker of Roland’s eyes, nothing else, and he looked back at Matt. “It’s done.”
“Good. Now, as I think we were discussing, we had business to attend to. Unless you aren’t interested.”
Roland nodded once.
“Good. I have no interest in killing the head of a family. There has been enough upheaval within Minneapolis as it is, and you haven’t been head of your family for all that long.” Matt stood up, glancing along the hall, and as he did, he flicked something I couldn’t see.
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