He quickly got off the couch. “I love you, Colina, and I’m not going to lose you without a fight.”
I started to say something, but he held up his hand. “When all of this is over, I’m not just going to give up. I’m willing to fight for you. Fight for us.” He reached out and grabbed my hand again before I could stop him. “You have to stay strong.” He pulled my hand and placed it over his heart. “You have to live.”
I looked into his face and tried to find the words that would make him understand. But what could I say to make him believe it would never work between us? He stood there, his eyes shining with love. He loved me. He had made it clear he wanted to fight for me. How could I ever make him see that Luke had my heart and my soul?
* * *
We broke into the boathouse the same way we had the house. Dean smashed a window, and Luke heaved Jamie up. She crawled through the opening and once inside she opened the door for the rest of us. Inside the place looked like a garage for boats. The floor was open to the sea, at least a dozen feet below, and the low waves seemed well under the high tide marks on the pylons. There were no garage doors. Instead, the boats were pulled under the bays and hoisted up with pulleys until they were above the tide and safe from the elements. The larger of the bays was empty, but the smaller one contained an aluminum fishing boat with a small outboard motor.
The idea of getting into this small craft and going out into the ocean terrified me. It was large enough for all of us to sit without crowding, but piloting it onto the open water seemed beyond mad. Mildred, however, seemed to think it was the perfect plan.
It took a bit of time to lower the boat and get it all ready for us to travel in. It took careful maneuvering and balance to get everyone on board without capsizing the vessel. Dean was at the helm. He pulled the cord at the motor a few times. It sputtered and roared to life. Then Dean steered the craft away from the house and headed toward the open water.
Mildred was sitting next to me. She patted my shoulder. “It’s only a few miles, child, and the weather is perfect. Just close your eyes and we’ll be there in no time.”
We sailed out onto the gently rolling sea and into a vivid orange sunset. The small motor pushed the little boat along with surprising speed, and salty spray blew back over us as we cut through the swells. I leaned over and trailed my hand in the water. We were heading into the unknown, perhaps never to return. Together, we were a force to be reckoned with, and I couldn’t help but think that Gage was the one who should be afraid.
The sun was dipping below the horizon and the first stars had begun to appear in the sky before we came in sight of our destination. We all quickly became chilled as the dusk air began to cool. The sea grew rougher, and the small waves tossed the craft up and down as we approached the rocky shore. I caught a glint of light in the corner of my eye and turned to see the glinting ghostly form of what looked like a sea lion. It rose silently out of the sea beside the boat where Jamie sat. Jamie reached out a hand and touched its head fondly. It leaned into her for a moment, seemingly solid against the little girl’s hand, and then dipped back under the waves.
Jamie was somehow tied to my spirit pack, and I had no idea what to make of it. Had the old gods given her a gift or was it something else entirely? If we survived the night I promised myself I’d do my best to answer the question, and the first person I’d go to for answers was Mildred.
The old woman was singing softly to herself as she looked up at the stars. Mildred was our expert in all things demon, yet she doled out the information slowly and in random chunks. Why didn’t she just tell us everything she knew? Why was she being so secretive? She kept telling me that I’d no idea what I could do. Did she worry that I could somehow become dangerous if I had too much knowledge of the creatures?
Back during the mage wars, when the demons had been set free, those who fought the creatures had been considered heroes for their efforts in banishing the beasts. But once the danger was over the demon killers were looked on with fear. They were too powerful and were suddenly a threat. People tried to expunge their very existence. I had brought a demon forth and tonight we hoped to bring another one across the veil. And then we planned to use every ounce of our combined powers to send it back. If we didn’t die in the attempt and were successful, what would the world think of us?
This island was different than any of the others we’d seen. A tall and dramatic rock structure towered in the center of it. On the shore closest to us, steep rock embankments were topped by thick trees. But beyond the trees we could see warlike battlements stretching out into the sky. The whole thing looked very uninviting and medieval. Not a pretty fairy-tale castle, but a square, blocky thing designed to withstand a siege. It was the size of a small office building, but made of gray rock rather than glass and metal. A tower stood at each corner, and thin windows, designed for firing arrows rather than seeing the view, were barely visible. The castle should have seemed out of place, but it strangely seemed to fit the island.
“A Norman castle, transplanted from southern England. It’s almost a thousand years old, and all of the military reasons they built it don’t make sense anymore, but it’s still impressive.” Mildred didn’t seem to be talking to anyone. She spoke quietly to herself as she stared at the castle, lost in her thoughts.
Our boat whizzed around the island, and it was easy to see that it was shaped like a jagged L. We made our final approach from the back. The castle sat at the junction of the two legs of the island. There was nowhere to make landfall on our side, so we motored around the peninsula to the east, farthest from the structure, hoping to get a good look at the place before we got too close.
As we rounded the broad headland, we were met with a surprising sight. In the sheltered cove made by the two legs of the island, a large wooden dock had been built. And at the dock sat the ferry, but not just any ferry, our ferry. The one we had spent much of the day riding in. For a moment, I was angry. If the ferry had been scheduled to come to this island, we could have avoided a lot of trouble and just ridden it here. No need to steal a tiny boat and risk our lives on the waves. But I’d looked at the ferry schedule myself, and it wasn’t supposed to stop on this island. Its next stop after dropping us off was a much larger island twenty miles to the north, where it was supposed to stay the night.
Luke turned the boat toward the shore, killing the engine and coasting onto the beach just out of the line of sight of the ferry. On this side of the island, the bank was more shallow, with a rocky beach leading into the trees. We splashed into the cold water up to our knees and moved quickly to pull the boat ashore and farther out of sight. But we needn’t have bothered. Pounding dance music filled the cove, and bright lights from the ferry threw the rest of the island into shadow. Something very odd was going on, and despite the danger of our situation, I wanted to know what the heck was happening. I wasn’t the only one, it wasn’t any real dialogue that set our course.
Luke motioned toward the ferry, everyone nodded in agreement, and we all started heading closer to the commotion. Single file with Luke in the lead, we made our way to the treeline and then began slowly working our way toward the dock. The closer we got, the more chaotic the scene before us became.
There were bodies mingling around on the ferry and the dock. People danced under the lights in time to the beat of the music, which was blaring through the night.
The music suddenly cut off, and we could hear a male voice shouting. “Look, I have a receipt! We rented the island for a full week.”
A familiar female voice answered him calmly, “Buddy, you have the wrong island. This island is not for rent.”
Through the trees, I could just make out Sonja’s fiery red hair. It truly surprised me that I was relieved to see she was still alive. She had always treated me cruelly, and she’d never lifted a finger to help me. She was one of Gage’s henchmen but had she become one willingly? I suspected that Gage had cast the Haitian love spell on her, and if it were true, it could mean
that she was actually a victim and not another villain.
“Honey, a looker like you is always welcome at our party, but we’ve paid for this place and we mean to have a good time!” I caught sight of the speaker through a gap in the trees. He was a clean-cut young man in jeans and a sweater. He waved his arms dramatically along with his words, almost overbalancing himself off the edge of the dock. He stumbled forward and grabbed Sonja clumsily, almost dragging her into the sea with him.
Raucous laughter rolled through the rowdy crowd. A dozen men and women stood bunched by the rail of the ferry, calling out encouragements and waving a variety of drinks, which I assumed were alcoholic judging by their behavior. I recognized several of the faces from earlier in the day. They had traveled with us, but on our trip they’d been very quiet and almost antisocial. Apparently alcohol had loosened them up quite a bit.
Then out of the dark came a small, fat man with fiery red hair. It was Fintan.
He rushed down the dock and the boards creaked loudly under his pounding tread. His face was almost as red as his hair.
I moved closer to get a better look. Both he and Sonja were dressed in formal evening wear. Fintan in a tux that, if possible, made his belly look even bigger than I remembered. Sonja wore a low-cut, red sequined gown that sparkled in the light.
Fintan suddenly rushed forward and slammed a meaty hand into the drunk boy’s chest, shoving him forcefully back.
The drunk bounced off of a pylon, stumbling to his knees. As he fell he toppled into Sonja, throwing her sideways.
A slew of cuss words flew out of Sonja’s mouth as she fell hard against the dock.
“It’s time for you to leave.” Fintan’s voice was dark with menace, but the group on the boat seemed to think it was just part of the show. The crowd laughed loudly and jeered at their fallen comrade. Someone shouted down from the top deck of the ferry, “Don’t let him do you like that, Adam! Show that fat pig who’s boss!”
That’s when movement from above the dock drew my attention. At the end of the dock were stairs that led up to the castle. Shapes began to ghost out from the darkness at the top of the stairs. Half a dozen men and women dressed in formal evening wear stepped into the bright circle of light. I recognized a few of the faces, though I’d never known their names. Gage’s followers, a combination of death dealers and other mages, men and women who’d sold their souls for power. They stared silently down at the scene, looking curious but unconcerned. A few sipped what I imagined was champagne from tall glasses. We had two partying groups before us—one rambunctious and probably harmless, the other more formal but deadly. The ferry partiers had stumbled onto the wrong island.
No one looked our way as we continued to work our way along the peninsula. It seemed like every light the ferry possessed blazed into the night, reflecting off of the water. That worked in our favor. There was little chance people would see us with those lights blazing in their eyes. The main spotlight on the ferry swiveled now and again, throwing glittering light against the trees and casting long shadows through which we moved.
Luke, who was at the front, motioned for everyone to stop. We huddled around him. “We need to make it to the castle while everyone’s distracted,” Luke said, using his best stage-whisper. But he needn’t have bothered. The group on the ferry was whooping and laughing and making enough noise to cover the approach of an army.
Mildred watched the partiers. “This distraction was heaven-sent.”
I wholeheartedly agreed. I motioned toward the castle. “If we’re lucky, we can get in, find Wendy and the supplies we need, get the knife, get Gage, and get out again before Gage’s people finish dealing with the gate-crashers.”
Without another word Luke turned and the rest of us trailed after him. He picked up his pace and we followed suit. We all began to jog from shadow to shadow, quickly closing in on the castle.
Back on the dock, the fallen man rose to his feet. On unsteady legs, he turned toward Fintan with his fists raised in a comic fighter’s stance. “Put ‘em up, big man, let’s see what you got,” he shouted.
Fintan made no move to protect himself. Instead he stood with his hands at his sides, fury evident in his face. “Sonja, get back to your duties.” He didn’t even look at her as she rose to her feet.
There was blood dripping down her face. She had a nasty cut across her forehead. I watched her raise a hand and press it against the blood oozing down her nose. She limped along the dock and up the stairs where she pushed her way through the well-dressed but silent audience. None of them offered to help; they just stared at her with rapt fascination.
Something about the way Fintan stood sent a chill down my spine. Pure menace radiated from his face and stance. Adam advanced on Fintan in a dramatic boxer’s pose that looked ridiculous. It was like watching a puppy bark at a cobra.
Adam swung a wide punch, staggering into it with all his weight. Fintan didn’t even try to move out of the way. The punch landed solidly on Fintan’s left cheek, sinking into the thick folds of fat and whipping Fintan’s head to the side, but he didn’t fall. He didn’t even seem to move as Adam’s momentum carried him past Fintan.
We continued toward the house, but when we reached the edge of the broad lawn, we saw that the lawn was lit almost as bright as day from the lights shining out of the lower castle windows. Sonja walked into the light less than ten feet away from where we hid amongst the trees and shrubbery. She was close enough that I could hear her crying quietly. She paused on the lawn, turning back to shout another curse toward the dock. I wasn’t sure who she was cursing, Adam or Fintan, but while she continued to stand there, we couldn’t get close to the castle.
How much longer would the circus go on? We didn’t have much time, and until Sonja made it inside we couldn’t break cover and make a dash for the closest castle wall. I looked back toward the dock. Adam had slowly righted himself and turned back to face Fintan. Adam raised his fists again.
Fintan grinned slowly, blood showing in his white teeth. He spat a gob of bloody phlegm at the young man’s feet and then laughed heartily. “Nice hit, kid, but you only get the one. I repeat, its time for you to go. This is your last chance.”
Adam seemed to gather himself. His stance became surer, less comical, and his face quickly sobered. He squared back up on Fintan and moved in slowly, seemingly much more ready to do damage. Maybe the activity had sobered him up, for he stood straighter as he moved in. Once he came into reach, he began to pepper Fintan with short punches. They landed with audible force, but Fintan’s bulk seemed to absorb them without effect. After a flurry of blows, Adam stepped back, lowering his hands with a look of shock on his face.
Fintan hadn’t even flinched. His bloody smile hadn’t wavered. He slowly raised his hand and took a heavy step forward.
Without knowing why, I turned back toward the castle. My breath caught, and for a long moment it seemed that my heart stopped.
Gage strode out of the shadows, tall and striking in an impeccably tailored black tuxedo. His dark hair slicked back, the streak of white that shot through his hair glowing in the light… He was devastatingly handsome. He looked like the hero from a spy film—good-looking and cultured with charm and polish to spare. I struggled against the urges that raced through me. I wanted to run to him. To throw my arms around him.
He’s no hero, I reminded myself. He’s the villain.
I lost my will for just a second and started forward, but Luke grabbed my arm before I revealed us.
“Where you are going?” he hissed under his breath.
“Gage needs me.” The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them.
Luke’s grip tightened.
“It’s a powerful spell.” Mildred was beside me. She grabbed my other arm.
A part of my brain screamed at me that the surge of emotions was fake. I knew it was caused by a spell that Gage imposed on me, but that didn’t make the feelings any less powerful. I felt both drawn to Gage and violated at the same tim
e.
I watched as Gage strode quickly across the lawn and down the stairs to the dock. As he stepped onto the dock, he called out loudly in his most charming voice, “Fintan, my friend, why don’t you let me deal with our uninvited guests?” But he was too late. Fintan had already closed the distance between himself and Adam, reaching out and gently laying his palm against the surprised young man’s cheek. For a second, nothing happened. But then Adam screamed as black lines spread from Fintan’s hand across his face.
Adam cried out, covering his face with his hands. When he dropped his hands, I gasped in shock. Ulcerous wounds peppered Adam’s cheeks and forehead. His face looked distorted, like some hideous Halloween mask. And as he stood there his skin began to peel, and a stream of puss and blood ran down his face. He fell to his knees, screams gurgling out through ruined lips.
In seconds, he collapsed on the boards of the dock. He wasn’t moving. The stench of rotting flesh carried by the gusting breeze rolled over us. Adam’s body lay on the dock twisted and motionless, obviously dead.
Fintan laughed heartily.
Gage stopped a short distance away, his face showing impatience. “Fintan, my dear man, was that really necessary?”
There was a flurry of motion, someone shouted, “Now!” from the ferry, and all hell broke loose.
Dark shapes rushed out of the darkness from the trees on the opposite side of the broad lawn from where we hid. Dozens of people dressed in camouflage plowed into Gage’s henchmen, and screams of anger and pain filled the night. I could see the light flashing off of swinging blades, and sparks of unfocused magic began to fill the air. In such close quarters, it was more of a street melee than a battle, but it was no less bloody for the chaos.
The magic pouches, the enchanted blades, the same tools as the men who had jumped Luke and me in the woods… I rocked back on my heels at the realization—these were Redeemers, and they were in league with the fake party-gooers on the ferry.
Legion Page 23
