by Linsey Hall
Emile was leaning against the counter, drinking a cup of coffee, while Ralph and Rufus sat next to him gnawing on a huge hunk of cheese.
“Hey, Sleeping Beauty.” Nix handed me a cup of coffee.
I inhaled the scent, energized. “Did I sleep too long?”
“Nah,” Del said. It’s only five thirty. We’ve got plenty of time left today to beat the bad guys.”
“Excellent.”
Aidan stepped up behind me and pressed a kiss to my head. I leaned back against him, comfort and happiness filling me. Sometime soon, we’d face the battle of a lifetime against Victor. But for now, things were good.
“Food’s up!” Connor called.
We all gathered round, taking plates and filling up with eggs and bacon. It was the weird British kind, sorta like Canadian bacon, but it smelled good. It was a tight fit around the table, but we managed.
I’d shoveled down half my plate by the time Aidan said, “We need a plan.”
“True story,” Del said.
“I’m going to call Elenora, the leader of the Alpha Council,” Aidan said. “I’ll plead our case again. See if they see reason.”
“We can only hope,” Nix said.
“While you call Elenora, I’ll practice my magic a bit,” I said.
“We’ll come help you,” Del said.
“No way.” I shook my head. “Too dangerous.”
“Aidan told us how last time you just knocked him over,” Nix said. “So you’re clearly getting better. It’ll be fine.”
“Still…”
“No arguments,” Del said. “We’re running out of time. Shit is going to get real faster than we expect. You’re going to need the full force of your magic soon, and you’re not going to be alone in a calm environment when you need it. Better to practice with people around. Real life scenario kinda shit.”
She had a point. I didn’t have ages to get my magic under control. More than likely, this was the last chance I’d have.
“And distractions might be good for you,” Claire said. “It’ll keep you from overthinking.”
“Oh, all right,” I said. “Nix and Del, you can come along.”
“Excellent,” Del said.
We finished eating and headed out. Connor, Claire, and Emile stayed to clean up. They were all going to work on creating more potion bombs for Emile, using things found in the forest.
Nix, Del, and I tugged on jackets before stepping out into the cool morning air. Birds chirped their morning songs as we made our way through the woods to the clearing where I liked to practice.
“So, uh, something happened last night,” I said.
“Yeah?” Nix asked.
“Yeah. Aidan told me he loved me.”
“No shit, Sherlock,” Del said. “‘Course he loves you.”
I socked her in the shoulder and she grinned. “Did you say it back?”
“No.”
“Idiot!” Nix said.
“I wasn’t sure!”
“‘Course you’re sure!” Del said. “I’ve seen how you look at him. And speaking of looking at him—meow. You picked a hot one.”
“I didn’t really pick him,” I said. “It just kinda… happened.”
“However it happened, I’m happy for you,” Nix said.
Del started humming the wedding march, and I punched her again.
She grinned. “Touchy, touchy.”
We reached the clearing, thank magic, and could stop talking about Aidan. Though they were right. I probably did love him.
Del’s gaze traveled around the disturbed dirt and the torn off tree limbs. “You do all this?”
“Yeah.” I nodded. “This is what we call me having control.”
“So you do need some practice, I guess,” Nix said.
“Maybe we’ll stand back a bit.”
“Ten yards, at least,” I said.
They stepped back into the tree line. Dappled sunlight lit up the ground around us, turning the place into a fairy glen. I rubbed my fingertips over the wide gold dampening cuff on my wrist.
“Okay, I don’t think I should start with lightning,” I said.
Del nodded emphatically. “Agreed.”
“I’m going to try mirroring Nix’s conjuring powers,” I said. “Cool, Nix?”
“Yeah. Try to make a car. That’s way hard. Even I can’t do that.”
Nix did have trouble with complex mechanical items. All conjurers did.
“All right.” I pulled off the cuff and tossed it to the ground, almost staggering from the power that flowed through me.
“Whoa there, tiger,” Del muttered. “You’re strong.”
“Try to dampen your signature,” Nix said. “I’d be able to feel you from a mile away.”
I sucked in a deep breath and tried to gather up my magic, shoving it down deep inside of me. I’d still have access to it, but hopefully no one else would be able to sense it. My skin prickled from the effort and my head buzzed a bit, but I felt more in control. Contained. Almost like a bottle of soda that’d been shaken up.
I just needed to not lose control, or I’d blast magic everywhere. We’d seen where that had gotten me.
“Nice,” Del said. “I don’t feel you at all anymore.”
“Same,” Nix said. “Now make us a car!”
A tiny grin tugged at my mouth as I pictured my old junker, Cecilia. She wasn’t impressive, but I was most familiar with her and that would help.
I tried to keep control of my magic as I reached out for Nix’s signature. After a few moments, the taste of vanilla exploded on my tongue and the scent of flowers seeped into me.
Got it. From there, it wasn’t hard to pull her talent toward me, to borrow it and manipulate it. I fed it my power, envisioning creating Cecilia from nothing.
I didn’t often mirror Nix’s conjuring gift because it was a difficult one that took a lot of practice. Better to let the experts do it. But I needed to gain control.
My fingertips tingled as I tried to build Cecilia. The clearing in front of me sparkled with light as my magic swirled on the air. Slowly, the shadowy form of a car appeared. It was transparent and looked slightly misshapen, but it was definitely a car.
Magic vibrated in my chest as I tried to perfect it. But my vision began to blur. Black crept in at the edges. My heart raced. What was happening?
“Quit screwing with our vision, Cass!” Del called.
That wasn’t me! I didn’t mean to!
I tried to pull myself back from the magic, shut it off. I was losing control in a totally new way. But I couldn’t escape. The black closed farther in on my vision as another magical signature began to fill the air.
What the hell was happening?
Was someone coming? I was almost blind.
Panic cut the last hold I had on my magic. It burst out of me, an explosion of light. I did everything I could to keep it inside of me, like a sneeze I didn’t want to let loose.
I stumbled backward onto my butt. Through my hazy vision, I saw Del and Nix on the ground as well, but they looked okay.
“Why the hell can’t you stay on your feet? Is walking new to you?” a sharp feminine voice said.
I shook my head, trying to clear my vision. But instead of the clearing, two figures appeared in my mind’s eye. As I blinked, they became superimposed on the forest.
“Mordaca? Aerdeca?” I asked.
“Who else?” Aerdeca said. She looked just as perfect and put together as usual, even in my vision. Her slender form was draped in one of her favored white suits, and her ice-blond hair flowed straight down her back.
“They’re a bit simple.” Her sister Mordaca arched a dark brow. Her usual plunging black Elvira dress looked out of place in the forest. So did her bouffant black hair and dark, winged eye makeup.
They looked like they were standing in the middle of the clearing. To their side, Del and Nix stood, dusting leaves off their pants. They didn’t look any worse for wear. I climbed easily to my feet as well
, grateful I hadn’t done us any damage when I’d lost control of my magic. It’d been a minor slip, even smaller than the one before.
“What are you doing here?” Del asked.
“And how?” Nix gestured around. “You can’t get through Aidan’s barriers.”
“We know.” Aerdeca elegantly crossed her arms in front of her chest. “We’re not actually here. We’re visions inside your mind.”
I blinked and squinted, trying to follow what she was saying. But she was right. Even though she kinda looked like she was here, she wasn’t. Not really.
“Nice gift,” I said.
Aerdeca tilted her head toward her sister. “It’s Mordaca’s.”
“I’m very talented.” Mordaca’s blood-red lips curled up in a confident smile.
I grinned back. Mordaca was cocky, but I liked it. I didn’t like how women were expected to apologize for their accomplishments and practice extreme modesty. Mordaca was on the far opposite end of that, but it made me like her even more.
Even though I was pretty sure she didn’t like me.
“Why are you here?” I asked.
“Aethelred had another vision.” Mordaca’s smoky voice was sharp. “A bad one. Ever since your last visit, he’s been scrying for you. He’s finally seen something.”
“What?” I asked.
“When you confront your enemy, one of the Triumvirate will fall, only to rise again.”
My skin chilled, and my stomach dropped. “What the hell does that mean?”
“That one will die?” Aerdeca looked uncomfortable saying it. “I don’t really know.”
“But we’ll rise again? Like Lazarus? Or a zombie?” Del asked.
“I don’t want to be a zombie,” Nix said.
I was feeling vaguely ill. Seers couldn’t see all, but what they could see always came true. One of us would fall? That sounded terrible.
“This is all fated,” Mordaca said. “There is no escaping it.”
“So what can we do about it?” Del demanded. “Because at this point, it just seems that you’re here to deliver bad news. It’s not exactly helpful.”
“Of course it is.” Aerdeca’s voice was sharp. “I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings, but quit complaining and use what we’re giving you. And I do have information that might help. Aethelred said that you must find what Victor seeks on Alpha Council land.”
“Where on their land?” Del asked.
“He wants something that is under Glencarrough. Perhaps to help him destroy the Shifters, or for his own purposes.”
“Under Glencarrough?” I asked.
Mordaca nodded. “That is what he said. Under. There is an entrance through an ancient broch east of Glencarrough.”
I hadn’t seen a broch when we’d approached the stronghold by car. The Iron Age stone towers were often at least twenty feet tall, so I’d have noticed. It must be in the woods.
“How do we find it?” I asked. “That’s a lot of land to cover.”
“Go there and you will have help.” Aerdeca shrugged. “At least, that’s what Aethelred said.”
“All he said,” Mordaca added. “That’s all we’ve got.”
It’d have to be enough.
“And you can count on our assistance should you need it,” Aerdeca said. “Aethelred explained what was at stake.”
“Thank you.” Before the words were entirely out of my mouth, Aerdeca and Mordaca disappeared.
My vision cleared immediately, and I staggered slightly, suddenly alone in my mind again.
“Weird,” Del said.
I looked at them. Del was rubbing her temples, and Nix was blinking hard.
“I don’t think I like that kind of impromptu visit,” Nix said.
“Me neither.” I approached them, grabbing my golden cuff off the ground and putting it on as I walked. “And I don’t like what they told us.”
Nix grimaced. “Yeah, that sounded a lot like one of us would die.”
My skin chilled again, and it had nothing to do with the early morning breeze.
“But she said we would rise again,” Del said.
“I don’t know about you guys, but I sure don’t feel immortal,” I said.
“No, you’re right.” Del frowned. “We can’t focus on that now. Just on what needs to be done. It sounds like the greater power he seeks is underground. Accessed only through the broch.”
“Yeah.” I was glad to have a direction. “Let’s go tell the others.”
As we left, I glanced at the clearing behind me. My practice had been going well. Perhaps I’d snag another few hours later today, but right now, at least I wasn’t injuring my friends while using it.
12
No one liked hearing the news we had to share, least of all Aidan. While I’d been practicing my magic, he’d called the Alpha Council, and they’d agreed to speak to him again, but only in person.
“I think we should check out the broch first,” I said. We all sat around the kitchen table in Aidan’s cottage, coffee steaming away in mugs in front of us. “They could still imprison you for associating with a known FireSoul, so if you’re going to speak with them in person, you’re better off having more information on your side.”
“I agree,” Aidan said. “And the broch is on the way to Glencarrough. We’ll check there first, then I’ll meet with them on neutral ground, outside of the stronghold.”
“Smart,” I said. I hadn’t liked the idea of him walking into their fortress again.
“We can leave soon, if it works for everyone,” Del said. “I really think we need to move quickly on this.”
Everyone nodded. I stood and said, “I’m going to call Dr. Garriso and see if he can give me a better idea of where the broch is. He has maps of almost all the archaeological sites in Britain.”
I left everyone to gather up their things and went into the bedroom to call. I had to plug in my cell just to get some battery, and once the screen flared to life, I punched in the numbers.
Dr. Garriso answered on the fourth ring. “Hello?”
“Hi, Dr. Garriso. It’s Cass. How’s my favorite historian doing?” I asked.
“Excellent, my dear. Top notch. What can I do for you?”
“I was hoping you could tell us the location of a broch on Glencarrough land. To the east of the main compound.”
I heard him shuffling around, no doubt getting up to consult his maps. “I can do that. Not a problem. I believe that land was surveyed in the 1930s. Someone would have marked it down.”
“Thank you,” I said.
“My pleasure. I’ll send you the information by text when I find it.”
“Perfect. Have a good one, Dr. Garriso.”
“You as well.”
The line disconnected, and I hit End. I was glad to hear Dr. Garriso sounding like himself again. It’d taken him some time to recover after his abduction last month, but it seemed like he was back to normal.
Nix stuck her head in the room. “You find something?”
“I think so. Dr. Garriso will let us know. Shouldn’t take long. I think we’re good to head over there. The drive will take a couple hours.”
“Excellent. Let’s get cracking, then. I’m ready to get to the bottom of this mystery.”
So was I.
13
I frowned down at the text message on my phone. “Dr. Garriso says that the broch isn’t on the map.”
Aidan looked over at me from the driver’s side of his Range Rover. “But the land was surveyed.”
“Yeah. And Dr. Garriso confirms it. They did the survey in 1931. There are a few archaeological sites on the map that were created then, but no brochs.”
“That’s weird,” Nix said from the back seat.
She was piled in with Connor and Emile. Del and Claire sat in the fold-up seat in the very back.
“I trust Aethelred,” Del said. “He said we’d have help finding it, so I say we give it a go and see what happens.”
“Yeah.” I wan
ted whatever answers Aethelred said were at the other end of this broch. “We’ll just have to split up and look for it.”
I shoved the phone back into my pocket and looked out the window at the sweeping vista of mountains. They rolled softly into the distance, covered in late summer heather. It was now mid-afternoon, and we were close to the Alpha Council stronghold. As we neared the eastern side of the compound, the road dipped down into a valley.
I kept my eye on the compass indicator that flashed blue from the rearview mirror. When it showed that we were directly east of Glencarrough, I said, “I think we should pull over here.”
We were deep in the valley in a large section of woods. Aidan pulled the car over onto the side of the road, and we all piled out.
The light was dimmer here, cut off by the gnarled old trees on either side of the road.
“I’d say we’re on the right track,” Del said.
I glanced around at the forest, which had a distinctly ancient and creepy vibe.
“So, where is the help that Aethelred promised?” Emile asked.
Ralph and Rufus sat on each of his shoulders, their little noses twitching as they took in the woody scent of the forest.
“I have a feeling we have to look for it.” I peered into the dark forest. Whatever kind of assistance we could expect, I didn’t think it’d be hanging out by the roadside.
“Let’s split up then and look in different directions,” Aidan said. “We have a lot of ground to cover.”
“Nix, Del, and I have comms charms,” I said. “So we’ll each go with a different group. We can call if we find something.”
“Dibs on Emile and Ralph and Rufus!” Nix said, scratching Rufus’s little head.
“Good.” Del grinned. “I want Connor and Claire.”
Though I had no memory of it myself, I’d seen kids pick their sports teams this way on TV.
“Then I’m with Aidan.” I smiled at him. “We’ll set off directly west. Del, how about your group goes northeast and Nix, yours goes southeast? You find anything, you contact the rest of us.”
