by Bryn Donovan
“Neither one was your fault! You’ve saved so many lives. I’ve seen you do it. Cassie thinks you’re about the last thing from a curse. Maybe she hasn’t told you she loves you yet, but—”
“She did.” It lit a small hope in him, shining in the darkness.
Val smiled. “The bond between you two is so strong.”
Did he catch a note of wistfulness in her voice? As far as he knew, Val had never dated anyone. To him, she was simultaneously a child and a Mage of formidable power, although he supposed the first thing wasn’t true anymore. Relationships were so difficult for strong empaths that they often remained alone. The thought made him appreciate even more how lucky he was to have Cassie.
After a little while, Val left him again, and he looked at Cassie where she lay in serene, deep sleep. They could have the things Samir and Lucia had wanted, things many people wanted: a wedding, a shared life. A family, maybe—the thought of it filled him with longing. If Cassie were a fellow Knight, they could always be together, or at least as long as they lived.
The idea of her becoming one still scared the hell out of him. After seeing what she was capable of, though, it was almost hard to imagine her doing anything else. And if she were a Knight, she’d know how to defend herself in more ordinary ways, as well.
No matter what one chose, there were no guarantees of safety. Maybe that was all the more reason for them to do what they wanted most and to get as much joy out of their lives as they could.
Cassie woke up in a hospital bed with Jonathan lying next to her. Panic sent her heart into overtime, and she grabbed his shoulder. “What happened? Did I hurt you?”
“Cassie! Hey.” She’d woken him up. “No, no you didn’t.” Tenderness filled his voice.
She remembered Lucia. Then the attack of the birds. “Oh my God.” In her disoriented state, it was too much, and her throat tightened with sobs. Jonathan pulled her close to him. Someone had put her in a hospital gown, but he was wearing a T-shirt and jeans—he wasn’t a patient. She sank into the blessed comfort of his strong, warm body.
“You passed out,” he said. “At first, we thought it was a stroke. The way you were glitching.”
She frowned, remembering her babbling. “And Val was in my psyche.” Or had she dreamed that part?
“She didn’t erase the memory of her being there?”
Cassie shook her head. Maybe it meant she and Val were friends now. “She said you all had to make sure nothing was damaged.”
“They did an MRI, a bunch of tests. You’re completely fine.”
They had time to do all that? She drew back to look at him. “How long have I been out?”
“A little more than a day.”
“God.” She rubbed her eyes.
“They say you burned up too much energy with the animal spell. Controlling something across the world…” He gave a wondering shake of his head. “You told me, but I didn’t believe you.”
“I didn’t know for sure.”
He stroked back a strand of hair that had fallen into her face. “How are you feeling?”
“I think I’m okay. I’m sad.” The shock of Lucia’s death had settled somewhere deep in her bones. She hurt all over. “How are you?”
“The same.” He grabbed her hand and kissed it, a quick, impulsive gesture familiar to her by now. “But a lot better, now that you’re conscious.” She’d given him a scare on top of everything else.
“Wait. Were there any other animal attacks?” Maybe her spell had found the other men who attacked Lucia.
“Andre’s team was watching for them, but no.”
“What about the Knights in Rome? Did they track any of them down?”
“No. I’ve been getting updates on everything on my phone.” Had he been here the whole time? His face settled in grim lines. “The Knights went through Lorenzo’s apartment—the palaeographist who got killed. Lorenzo had started helping Lucia on her translation of the codex, but the Tribunal took Lorenzo’s computer and ransacked his books and papers.”
So strange that a group of humans would exist for centuries, trying to bring Manus Sancti down. Or maybe it wasn’t any stranger than Manus Sancti itself. “They think you’re like the Illuminati,” she said.
“Yeah.”
“Well?”
His brow puckered. “You’re asking if we want to secretly take over the world? Don’t you think I would have told you?”
“No,” she said. “Because it would be secret.”
“Well, there’s nothing like that.” He looked beyond weary. “I’ll always tell you anything you want to know, I promise. And probably some things you don’t.”
She kissed him on the cheek, and they were quiet for a minute. Her mind returned to the codex. “So they have the translation.” They could find someone else who could use the animal spell. She gritted her teeth at the thought of those monsters using her magic.
Jonathan shook his head. “Lorenzo and Lucia wouldn’t have used the computer. Lucia wouldn’t have trusted it for security. She mailed the latest translations to our safe house in Taos, tucked in a big stack of Italian fashion magazines.” Damn, that was clever. “We’re sure they didn’t get anything from Lucia about the codex or about us. She dropped too fast.”
Cassie’s stomach felt like a lead weight. “Did they find her body?” Jonathan barely nodded. “Did they do anything to her?”
He gave her a pleading look. “You don’t want—”
“You have to tell me!”
He’d just told her he’d never keep secrets, but he looked like he was about to be sick. “They gouged out one of her eyes. They must have done it immediately.”
Oh no. Oh God. Her hands flew over her mouth.
Jonathan pulled her close again. “I know.”
Hatred coursed through her veins. “I’m going to kill them,” she whispered. “Why didn’t my animals get to all of them?”
“We talked about that, too. It seems like you have to know what someone looks like.” That sounded right to her. “I’m so glad you didn’t,” he added with soul-deep sincerity. “Multiple long-distance attacks… That much power might have broken you.”
“Maybe it would have been worth it.” She wanted them torn to shreds.
The corner of his mouth turned up in a rueful half smile. “It’s no wonder Capitán wants you with us.”
“Right,” she said, cautious. Her heart couldn’t take another bitter fight, not now.
“Does knowing what happened with Lucia… I wonder if that changes your thinking about it.” He didn’t want a fight, either. She could hear it in his voice.
“It does.” She looked in his eyes—beautiful eyes the color of the sky before a rain. “Now I know I want to join.” He said nothing. “They killed Lucia because of me.” Jonathan began to object, and she cut him off. “I never even heard of them before, and they killed her and some old guy I never met over my codex. And I hear about your guys’ missions. There are bad people and bad things out there, and I can help fight them. I want to.” He still didn’t say anything. That drove her crazy. “Are you mad at me?”
“No. God, no.” He let out a harsh sigh. “I know it’s your choice. I’m scared for you, and at the same time, I’m…very proud of you.” He shook his head. “And I can’t help it. I’m so glad you’re going to be here with me.” His forehead creased. “Not that you’re committed forever. I mean whatever happens, I’ll always be your friend—”
“Shut up,” she interrupted him. “You know I love you.”
He cupped the side of her face and kissed her like he was drinking the words from her mouth.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
“I want to join,” Cassie told Capitán Renaud in his office. Excitement shone on her face, and Jonathan, standing mutely next to her, felt another pang of misgiving.
“Good,” Capitán said in a hearty tone and then turned to Jonathan. “I’m curious. West. How do you feel about this?”
Giving a complete answer t
o that question would’ve taken all day. “She’s a powerful force to have on our side.”
Cassie ducked her head. “I don’t have a bunch of training like him and Gabi.”
“You’ll never have anything close to their fighting skill,” Capitán agreed. “But you can learn some basics. We can develop your marksmanship even further. And you have magic. Even more than you’ve used so far.”
Jonathan cocked his head. “What do you mean?”
“Did Dimitriou tell you?” Capitán asked her. “The codex includes a spell for immunity to psychic attack.”
What? Cassie nodded. How had she not told him this? “Any psychic attack?”
Capitán nodded. “It’s temporary, but yes. Anyone trying to enter the psyche. Demon possession, mind control spells, you name it.”
“That’s fantastic.” If it worked, her risk on missions went down dramatically.
“But it might kill me to do the spell,” Cassie mentioned. “So that’s kind of a drawback.”
Jonathan went from feeling hopeful to wanting to punch a wall. Why the hell were they even talking about it?
“It’s challenging,” Capitán acknowledged. “But promising. Our enemies would’ve loved to have had it.”
It would be a long time until Cassie would be a Knight going on missions, Jonathan reminded himself. There was no sense getting mad about it yet.
Cassie asked, “How did the Tribunal learn about the codex?”
“Val and a few other Mages are Reading everyone at El Dédalo, looking for a mole,” Jonathan told her.
“Everyone?” she exclaimed. “That’s going to take forever.”
“They’re halfway through,” Capitán said. “Everyone’s clean so far. Vega may meet with you at odd hours as a result. She’ll oversee your initiation.”
Val was going to be exhausted. And Jonathan never would’ve expected Capitán Renaud to put her in charge of Cassie’s ritual. That was going to be hard on her…though not as hard as the ritual would be on Cassie. And there would be nothing he could do to help her.
Capitán added, “Samir Hassan will be your mentor for training.”
“I can be her mentor,” Jonathan said without even thinking.
“You know it doesn’t work like that.” He did know, of course. Family members, lovers, and even close friends were too emotionally invested. Capitán was probably giving Samir the job to distract him from his grief. Jonathan couldn’t fault the logic. He’d have to assume that Samir would be able to focus enough to give Cassie the training and knowledge she needed to survive. Maybe, having lost Lucia, Samir would be all the more determined to do so.
Cassie asked, “Will I always be here at El Dédalo?”
“You’ll be wherever we need you.”
This would probably be in the States, since she didn’t speak anything but English. Either here, or in Saint Augustine or D.C. She was working on Spanish, though, with videos Lucia had given her, and she’d told Jonathan she wanted to learn Arabic, too. Just as well, if she were going to join them.
The whole topic of her deployment disturbed him. If they’d been engaged or married, Capitán would have never ordered them to serve in different guarídas, but he didn’t make any special dispensations for those who were merely dating. It would’ve been impossible to accommodate all relationships like that. At least, in the short term, she’d be here, since Samir would be her mentor.
Cassie asked, “How often will I get to see my parents?”
“You’ll get a few days off every month. You can do anything with that time.”
“That’s not so bad.”
“We won’t separate you from your family,” Capitán said. “But we do want to keep them safe. And us, too. Go meet with Andre. He has your cover story and a communication plan. It’ll start with a call to your parents.” Capitán’s eyes flicked to Jonathan. “Rios is no longer your responsibility. She’s shown herself loyal to us. She’s controlling the animal magic. If she fails in the future, that’s on her.”
Jonathan nodded. Cassie didn’t need his supervision, and he should be glad that his Capitán trusted her.
“However,” Capitán added, “feel free to keep following her around.”
Cassie’s mind was a tangle of thoughts as she and Jonathan walked to the Diviner lab.
“Samir will be a great mentor,” Jonathan admitted. “He’ll push people, but he won’t humiliate them. And he’s the best warrior we have.”
“I thought that was you,” she teased.
“Ha, no. Telekinesis makes you very hard to fight. And Samir was raised as a Knight pretty much from the time he was born, because he had it. He and Freya both were. ‘Course, he can’t teach you to throw things with your mind.” He crooked a grim smile. “He’s a big fan of your animals, though.
“I don’t think he’ll want to start right away,” she said.
“No.” The expression in his eyes dulled. “Lucia’s service is tomorrow.”
Cassie had heard they’d returned her body to El Dédalo. She and Jonathan got on the elevator.
“Are you sure you want me in the meeting with Andre?” he asked. Maybe Capitán Renaud’s comment about him following her around had affected him.
“Definitely. You’re going to see my mom again. And meet my dad. I want you to have the story straight.”
They found Andre in the same spot as before, in a room full of computer geeks, but he took them to a side room and shut the door behind them, He gave Cassie a binder full of papers. “Here’s your story. You can go over it in detail later, but today, you’ll be telling your parents that you’ve taken a job at Freemont Mining Corp. in New Mexico.”
She’d heard of the company. “But I told them I was glad I was getting out of mining.”
“Oh, people who get fired say lots of things,” he said easily. “Now you have a high-paying, high-pressure job that’ll require a lot of travel. You also have government contracts that you really can’t talk about.”
“That’s pretty good,” Cassie admitted. They’d probably be proud of her. “But what if they want to visit me? I have to tell them no?”
“You put it off,” Andre said. “If it’s unavoidable, we do have a few very nice properties set up nearby, which you can claim as your own for a weekend or so.” He flipped to the next page. “We’ve made a basic call script.” A series of boxes in a flow chart outlined statements and responses. “Make it sound as natural as you can.”
Cassie knew it was for their protection as much as Manus Sancti’s. Still. “You guys have no idea how weird this feels.”
“Actually, I do,” Andre said. “My parents in Mobile think I work for a federal laboratory.”
She gaped. “You were recruited. How did you wind up here?”
“My thesis project at MIT got their attention.” He handed her a phone that looked like Jonathan’s, a solid black rectangle. “That’s yours to keep, by the way. Your parents’ numbers are already in there. I took the liberty of putting in a few other numbers, as well—Samantha, Ana Quintero, Jonathan, Valentina Vega, and Samir Hassan, since he’ll be your mentor.”
Having a phone full of contacts in her hand pleased her more than she would’ve expected. “Can I get yours and Gabi’s, too?” As soon as she asked, she felt embarrassed. Maybe he would tell her they weren’t really friends.
“Sure thing.” He took it back, input the information, and returned it to her. “Whenever you call your parents, your old cell phone number will show up for them. Let’s get started. We’ll be listening in.” He put a silver disk in his ear and handed one to Jonathan.
At first, the call went smoothly. Cassie told her mom about the new job, and then she made Cassie wait until she got her father on the other line so she could fill him in, too. “Good for you, Cassafrass,” her Dad said. Jonathan smiled at her childhood nickname.
Cassie mentioned that she was house hunting in Albuquerque. “So honey,” her mom said, “Are you and David breaking up then?”
“Uh, no.” She looked to Andre, who shrugged with an expression like, You’re on your own. “I think we’re pretty serious, actually.”
“You should bring him for Christmas dinner. You’re still coming for Christmas, aren’t you?” her mom added. “Sam will be home on the twenty-second. You know she doesn’t get that much vacation.”
“I…” Cassie looked to Andre, who nodded. “Yeah. I’ll see if David can come, too. I don’t know what his plans are.”
“Oh, and tell him to bring your grandpa’s journal back,” her mom said. “I don’t want to lose track of that.”
They held Lucia’s memorial service in the library. After Jonathan got dressed in the same suit and tie he’d worn to Michael’s funeral, he met Cassie outside the library doors. She was wearing a black dress and pumps that one of the Stewards had procured for her. He’d never seen her dressed up before, except for the party he’d seen in her memories, and even though it was a modest outfit, her appearance stunned him. When she turned and saw him, her eyebrows rose. “You look very nice,” she said quietly when he drew near. Obviously, the occasion left her subdued.
“I was thinking the same of you.” She’d never worn any jewelry in the short time he’d known her. Would she like some? Her ears were pierced. Maybe he could give her emerald earrings. People often gave them to lovers because the earth elementals considered them the best love-stone. Earrings like that might be impractical for days spent training, but maybe someday they’d have a positive reason to get dressed up.
Like a wedding. He pushed the stray thought out of his mind. It would be a long time before Cassie would ever be able to consider that, given that her first marriage had been a disaster.
Rows of chairs filled the big open space in the middle of the library, surrounded above and below by the clear shelves lined with books. Because it wouldn’t be a religious ceremony, several people who loved her would say some words—Lucia’s family, Samir, a couple of the Scholars. Then there would be a full minute of silence, followed by a ceremony in which her name would be written down in a large ancient book filled with the names of Manus Sancti members killed in action over the centuries.
