Dark Heart of Magic

by Jennifer Estep

  More woot-woots rang out, along with a round of applause. But eventually the cheers and claps died down, and a charged silence filled the room. Everyone leaned forward, perched on the edge of their seats in anticipation, especially the guards, waiting to hear the names Claudia would call.

  She smiled. “I think the first name will please you all: your bruiser, Devon Sinclair.”

  Another, louder round of applause rang out, while Felix let loose with some ear-splitting whistles. A faint blush colored Devon’s cheeks, but his green eyes were warm and happy as he got up, walked across the room, and stood beside his mom. He looked at me, and I grinned and flashed him a thumbs-up, which made him blush even more.

  His selection was hardly surprising, though. Bruiser was one of the most important positions in the Family, so Devon’s not being in the tournament would have been the real shock. But everyone knew how hard he worked, how tough and strong he was, and how he genuinely cared about and looked out for everyone in the Family. That’s why the guards, workers, and even the pixies were cheering so long and loud for him. Devon deserved to be in the tournament, and he’d do his best to make everyone proud.

  Claudia called out several more names, all guards whom I’d sparred against a time or two. I clapped and cheered with everyone else, approving of the selections. Claudia, Reginald, and Angelo had picked a good mix of people with a variety of Talents, including speed, strength, and enhanced senses, all of which would come in handy during the tournament.

  “Vance Groves,” Claudia announced.

  I rolled my eyes, but I clapped politely for him. Vance might be cocky and arrogant, but he was a good fighter. Vance pushed back from his table, high-fived his friends, then strutted up to the front of the room, preening and taking his place with the other participants.

  “And now, for the last person who will be representing the Sinclairs in this year’s Tournament of Blades.”

  Claudia paused and looked around the room, her gaze going from one face to the next. Silence fell over the dining hall again, even more intense than before, since this was the last chance to be chosen. People froze, eyes wide, hands clenched tight, breath caught in their throats. I just wanted her to go ahead and say the lucky name already. It seemed kind of cruel to keep everyone in suspense for so long.

  Claudia turned her head, her green gaze meeting mine. Her sly satisfaction filled my body, and I finally realized what she was up to. I cringed, even as she called out the last two words I wanted to hear.

  “Lila Merriweather.”

  CHAPTER SIX

  Shock surged through me, as though some magick had just blasted me with a lightning bolt.

  I’d never, ever thought that Claudia would call my name. I’d only been here a few weeks, and some of the guards had served the Family for years. Sure, I’d saved Devon’s life a couple times, but that had been more sneakiness and luck on my part than anything else, along with a fair amount of help from the lochness. So why pick me to compete in the tournament?

  My shock and surprise quickly melted into absolute horror as every eye in the room fixed on me. I was a thief who did her best work in the shadows when no one was looking. I hated being the center of attention, but that’s exactly what I was right now.

  Mo beamed at me, his black eyes shining with warm pride, and Felix and Oscar were grinning like fools, all three of them clapping as hard and loud as they could. Oscar’s transparent wings were twitching so hard with excitement that I thought they might fly right off his back.

  Mo nudged me with his elbow. “Go on up there, kid. Take a bow with the rest of the competitors. You’ve earned it.”

  Everyone was still staring at me, so I had no choice but to get up and take my place with the others. Vance snorted, but the other guards gave me friendly smiles. Devon scooted over so that I could stand next to him, but I still shifted uncomfortably on my feet, trying to sidle behind him as much as I could so that I wouldn’t be quite so front and center.

  By this point, everyone in the dining hall was standing, clapping, cheering, and whistling for all the folks who’d been chosen. I fixed a smile on my face and clapped along, even though all I really wanted to do was slink out of the room as quickly and quietly as possible.

  Devon leaned over. “I know you didn’t expect this, but I’m glad you’ll be part of the tournament. Out of all of us, I think you have the best chance to win.”

  “But what about the competitors from the other Families? What about Deah and Katia?”

  He leaned even closer, his crisp pine scent washing over me. “You’re the best fighter I’ve ever seen. And more important, you’re smart, especially with your magic. You’ll win. Trust me, Lila. A couple of days from now, we’ll be standing here again, celebrating your victory.” He hesitated, his voice dropping to a low, husky whisper. “And I’ll be cheering louder than anyone else.”

  His green gaze locked with my blue one. My soulsight kicked in, letting me see and feel all his emotions—warm pride, rock-hard certainty, and that hot, hot spark that made an answering heat sizzle through my entire body. He really believed what he said. Devon really thought that I could win the Tournament of Blades.

  And in that moment, I desperately wanted to do it, if only so he would keep on looking at me the way he was right now.

  Everyone left their tables and streamed forward, wanting to congratulate all the folks who’d been chosen to compete. I shook hand after hand and endured back slaps from Mo, Felix, and countless others. Oscar buzzed around my head, whooping, hollering, and throwing his tiny cowboy hat up into the air, then darting forward to catch it.

  “I still don’t understand why Claudia picked me,” I muttered.

  “Relax, Lila,” Felix said. “It’s not like no one’s never heard of you before. All the other Families have seen you with Devon and me in the Midway. And all the Sinclairs know what you did for Devon at the lochness bridge. They know you’ve earned this.”

  Maybe that’s what was making me so uncomfortable. I didn’t earn things. I was a bloody thief. I took what I wanted whenever I wanted it. So this was a whole new experience for me.

  “You should be happy that Claudia picked you,” Oscar piped up.

  “Why is that?”

  “Because the tournament winner gets a gold cup and a check for twenty-five thousand dollars.”

  “Oh.” My eyes widened. “Oh.”

  The pixie laughed. “I thought that might interest you.”

  “Lila is sure to win.” Mo clapped me on the back again. “You know what, kid? I should be your trainer. Keep you focused on the tournament.”

  I gave him a suspicious look. “Why do I think you’re mentally playing the Rocky theme music in your head right now?”

  Mo grinned. “I’m sure I can find you some steps to run up somewhere around here.”

  I groaned, wondering how much more this was going to complicate my life.

  Felix and Mo went over to talk to Devon, with Oscar flitting along behind them. I headed in the other direction, hoping that I could escape from the dining hall, but Vance blocked my retreat.

  “Well, I see it pays to date the boss’s son,” he sneered. “That’s the only reason you’re in the tournament.”

  “And I see that they must need a rodeo clown for the tournament,” I shot right back. “Guess the organizers are lucky you volunteered, huh?”

  “I’ll see you on the field tomorrow, Merriweather,” Vance snarled.

  “Looking forward to it, Groves.”

  He stormed off, his black cloak flapping around his shoulders.

  I glanced around, but no one had noticed our confrontation, and I was finally able to slip out of the dining hall.

  Instead of going back to my bedroom, I headed to the mansion’s library, which took up three levels, all of which featured balconies bristling with bookshelves. The square area sloped up to form a tower, with the ceiling made out of alternating panes of black-and-white stained glass. With the sun setting, the glass cast
more shadows than light.

  Claudia had left the celebration as well and was sitting behind an ebony desk on the first floor of the library. Behind her, a series of glass doors led out to a balcony that offered more sweeping views of the grounds. A pair of silver reading glasses perched on her nose, but she didn’t glance up from the papers she was poring over as I stalked toward her.

  “I was wondering how long it would take you to charge in here,” Claudia murmured. “You’re late. I expected you five minutes ago.”

  “Sorry,” I sniped. “I got waylaid by well-wishers.”

  Claudia arched an eyebrow, but she kept right on reading.

  “What’s so fascinating?” I sniped again. “Are you jotting down all your secret desires there in your diary?”

  That finally got her to snort, pull off her glasses, and raise her gaze to mine. “Hardly. I was reviewing Devon’s report about the tree troll incident in the square. What did you bribe the troll with to get it to stop throwing fruit at people?”

  “How do you know that I bribed it with anything?”

  “Because that’s what your mother would have done.” Claudia leaned back in her chair. “Serena always preferred trying to reason with the monsters to killing them. It was one of the things I admired most about her.”

  I stared at her, wondering at her soft, sad tone, but Claudia knew better than to look into my eyes and let me see what she was really feeling. Annoyance spurted through me. That was the problem with letting people in on your secrets, especially your magic and what you could do with it. They started figuring out ways to get around your Talents. I liked knowing what other people were feeling—it had helped me stay alive this long.

  Talking about my mom was another one of those things that made me uncomfortable, so I wandered over to a bookcase that took up one wall of the library. All sorts of pretty knickknacks gleamed on the shelves—porcelain keepsake boxes, sterling silver letter openers, crystal picture frames. I scanned the items, wondering if I might pocket one or two while Claudia wasn’t watching and use them for my game with Mo. I might ostensibly be going straight these days, but it was good to keep in practice. You never knew when a pair of light fingers might help you out of a sticky situation.

  So I bent down, pretending to admire a photo of my mom with a blond woman I didn’t recognize. There were lots of shots of my mom in here, since she’d been a member of the Family for years before she’d left Cloudburst Falls. But she seemed especially happy in this photo, grinning at the blond woman as if the two of them were good friends.

  “See anything you like?” Claudia called out.

  As I turned to face her, I dropped my hand down by my side and palmed a small jet statue shaped like a lochness, complete with sapphire eyes and several small tentacles, off one of the shelves.

  I shrugged and slid the statue into my pants pocket. “Nothing that would interest Mo.”

  Claudia scowled. As part of my agreeing to work for the Sinclairs, I’d forced Claudia to appoint Mo as the Family broker, the person responsible for, well, brokering all the Family’s business deals. Claudia and Mo had some history I didn’t know about, but she seemed to almost openly loathe him at times, while he enjoyed needling her like it was his new favorite sport.

  I leaned my elbow on one of the bookcase shelves, knocking a few pictures out of alignment. Claudia’s nose wrinkled. She was almost as fussy about things being in place in her library as Reginald was about the rest of the mansion looking up to snuff. I grinned. I liked annoying her. It wasn’t smart, but it was the only bit of rebellion I could get away with, since I was stuck here for the next year.

  Providing I lived that long, of course.

  “Where are we with the Draconis?” Claudia said. “Have you heard anything new?”

  Everyone was always interested in gossip about the other Families, especially the Draconis, since they were our main rivals. But Claudia had even more reason than others to be concerned about them. A few weeks ago, I’d used my soulsight on Victor Draconi, and I’d realized that he was plotting against Claudia and all the other Families.

  Something big.

  Something dangerous.

  Something deadly.

  “Nothing out of the ordinary,” I said. “We ran into Blake and Deah today, but all they were interested in was crowing about how Deah’s going to win the tournament again this year; especially since there was another girl there, Katia Volkov.”

  Claudia nodded. “That’s to be expected this time of year. I doubt that even Victor would try something before the tournament, since it’s such a big draw and moneymaker for everyone in town, mortals and magicks alike. He’ll wait until afterward to put his plan into motion, whatever it is.”

  She rubbed her forehead as though it was aching. I didn’t have to use my soulsight to see the tension pinching her face. Whatever Victor was up to, it worried Claudia more than anything else. And she had good reason. I’d seen into the black, rotten depths of Victor Draconi, and the only thing that beat in his dark heart was cold, cruel calculation—and his icy desire to destroy Claudia and all the other Families.

  “Maybe we’ll get lucky and Victor will let something slip during the tournament,” she said. “At the very least, I can see who he meets with and talks to. That might tell us something about what he’s planning.”

  “Yeah. About the tournament.”

  She arched her eyebrows.

  “Why did you pick me to compete? I thought we had an agreement. I would be your eyes and ears and find out everything I could about the Draconis. Kind of hard to be a spy when you’re the center of attention.”

  “Because I think you can win it.”

  I snorted. “Bullshit. Devon has just as good a chance to win as I do. So does Vance, for that matter. So what’s the real reason?”

  Claudia paused a moment, considering her answer. “Because your mother was the only person that Victor was ever truly afraid of.”

  Her soft words punched me in the gut, but I didn’t let any of my hurt and heartache show. “He certainly didn’t seem to be afraid when he cut her to pieces.”

  Claudia stared at me, her green eyes blazing with conviction. “Victor was always afraid of Serena—of her sight magic, of her fighting skills, and especially of her ways of communicating with the monsters.”

  “And what does all that have to do with picking me for the tournament?”

  “I want him to know there’s someone else he should be afraid of.”

  My mouth dropped open in surprise, but Claudia kept staring at me, the conviction in her gaze burning even brighter and hotter than before.

  I didn’t know how to respond, so I turned toward the doors, desperate to leave and trying to hide my shock, sorrow, and all the other emotions surging through me.

  “Good luck,” Claudia called out in a soft voice.

  I didn’t know if she was talking about the tournament or my turbulent feelings. Probably both. But I didn’t trust myself to speak, so I nodded, strode over, pulled open one of the doors, and left the library as fast as I could.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  “It’s too early for this,” I grumbled. “Way too early.”

  It was seven o’clock the next morning, and I was lying in bed, the covers pulled up to my chin, watching Oscar zip around the room putting clothes into a black duffel bag sitting on the couch. The pixie had been up for an hour already, rustling around in my closet, flying from here, into the bathroom, and back out again, and muttering to himself all the while.

  “Why can’t they start the tournament at a reasonable hour?” I grumbled again. “Like noon-thirty.”

  Oscar stopped in midair and slapped his hands on his hips. The pixie had ditched his formal cowboy getup from last night in favor of a black T-shirt boasting the Sinclairs’ white hand-and-sword crest, faded jeans with holes in the knees, and black cowboy boots. A black cavalier hat with a plume of white feathers perched on his head, while a tiny black cloak fluttered around his shoulders. It
was an odd mix of redneck and ren-faire. He’d even dressed up Tiny in a matching hat and cloak, although the tortoise had already knocked the hat off his head and was busy sniffing the feathers to see if they were edible.

  “The tournament starts so early because it is an entire day of awesome,” Oscar said. “Trust me. You’re going to love it. Now get your lazy tuchas out of bed, cupcake—unless you don’t want any breakfast bacon.”

  “Are you crazy? I always want breakfast bacon, and noon bacon, and afternoon bacon—”

  Oscar threw a black T-shirt with the white hand-and-sword crest at me, hitting me in the chest and silencing my argument. A pair of matching black athletic shorts followed a few seconds later, landing on top of my head.

  “Don’t make me bean you in the face with your own socks and sneakers,” he warned.

  Bullied by a six-inch-tall pixie at seven in the morning. Yep, my life as a mobster was certainly a glamorous one.

  “Do you want any bacon or not?” Oscar snapped.

  And just like that, he won. I groaned and crawled out of bed.

  After a quick breakfast that was extra heavy on the bacon, I went outside and got into the back of an SUV, along with Devon and Felix. Angelo was driving, with Mo in the front passenger’s seat. Another SUV rolling down the driveway in front of us held Claudia, Reginald, Oscar, and some of the guards chosen to compete in the tournament, including Vance Groves, who’d been as arrogant and insufferable as ever at breakfast, showing off some of his fighting moves for his friends. Behind us, several more cars held other members of the Family, everyone from the Midway workers to the other guards to the pixies.

  “What’s with the convoy?” I asked.

  Mo glanced over his shoulder at me. “The tournament is a big deal to all the Families. Practically everyone attends all the rounds, except for the bare minimum of folks needed to work the booths, patrol the Midway, or watch over the compounds on the mountain.”

  “Even then, the guards and all the other workers take shifts so that everyone has a chance to see at least part of the tournament,” Angelo chimed in. “It’s almost like a minivacation for everyone in the Families, and we all try to put aside our differences. At least while the tournament is going on.”