Enchanter's Embrace

by A R DeClerck

  “Me? I have no plans to murder Elizabeth.”

  “Not yet. But black aether is a powerful thing, and it can create in us terrible desires. Make us do things we would never do without its influence.” Dooley leaned forward and a swirl of black aether became visible in his hand.

  “You know it has a short lifespan. When you force it to kill you’re destroying it.”

  “No matter. It will work long enough to have you kill Elizabeth.”

  “And you? What about you? What happens when she’s dead?”

  Delbert shrugged. “We leave Kensington forever. Our work will be done.”

  “This is insane! She’s just an innocent woman!”

  Delbert shook his head sadly. “That’s where you’re wrong, dear Lucia. Elizabeth is far from innocent.”

  Dooley approached her and held the aether close to her face. She closed her lips tight and turned her head away.

  “Hold her head, Del. She’ll fight this.”

  Delbert grabbed her chin and forced her head around, pinching her nose until her lips flew open in desperate need of air. When her mouth was open Dooley tipped his hand and the aether poured inside her.

  He wiped his hand and they both stepped back as she coughed and gagged at the particles swarming inside her.

  “Do we stay and watch?” Del asked, his eyes fixed on Elizabeth. She was staring in horror at Lucia, but Lucia could not manage to form the words to reassure her that she was in no danger.

  “No, we’d best get far away. She’ll be a killing machine and we don’t want to get in the way.”

  Dooley bent and kissed Elizabeth soundly on the lips, ignoring her disgusted splutter, and then Del knelt by her and touched her cheek gently. “I did love you with all my heart, darling.”

  “Go to hell,” Elizabeth spit, and he nodded sadly. Lucia could not speak or think clearly as the world began to go black around her. The men left and the bonds around them dissolved.

  Elizabeth jumped up from her seat and hurried to Lucia’s side. “Are you all right?”

  “R—Run,” was all Lucia managed to say before the darkness consumed her.

  Consumed

  “This way!” Archimedes ran across the field toward the isolated cabin nestled against the copse of birch trees. Smoke puffed from the chimney and a light was visible in the window.

  “Archie, slow down.” Corrigan pulled him to a halt with a hand on his arm. “We have to be sure this isn’t a trap.”

  Archie shook him off, but he stayed put. The captain was right, as much as it galled him to admit it. The path through the fields had been easy to read once they had asked the aether to illuminate it. They squatted at the edge of the woods and looked at the cabin.

  “A horse-drawn buggy left here not long ago,” Grayson said quietly. He pointed to the tracks that passed near their hiding spot. He held his pistol at his side, but his eyes were narrow and focused.

  “We need to know if they’re in there.” Archie’s wand was at the ready, his heart pounding hard in his chest. “They could be hurt.”

  “Or already gone,” Corrigan reminded him. “We go in slow and with purpose. We keep our wits about us and don’t get distracted by the way things seem. Agreed?”

  All the men knew the way dark mages could manipulate and confuse. They crept toward the cabin as quietly as possible, until a shrill scream rang out over the silent countryside.

  Archimedes wasn’t a fool, but something inside him snapped at the sound. It was so full of terror that a knot formed in his throat and tears in his eyes. He clutched his wand so tightly he wondered why it didn’t break, and he ignored Corrigan’s shouts as he slammed into the door of the cabin, leaving it hanging only by its bottom hinge. He stumbled into the room, but skidded to a halt as the scene swam before his eyes.

  “Lucia?”

  She turned at her name, blood smeared over her face and across the bodice of her dress. She tilted her head and looked at him. The large carving knife she held in her hand dripped bright red blood onto the floor. She didn’t drop it, but it lowered a fraction. Elizabeth cowered on the floor at Lucia’s feet, her arms over her head. Her arms were red with the gashes where the knife had cut into her skin.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Kill.”

  The word, spoken with the soft inflection one saves for a lover, sent goosebumps over Archie’s skin. He held up his hand to hold the others back as they came into the room behind him, their gasps of disbelief barely concealed.

  “Put down the knife,” Archie said softly, moving closer to Lucia.

  “Archimedes...” Corrigan warned quietly. “Be careful.”

  “Kill.”

  “No, darling. We don’t want to kill.” He moved closer, until the tip of the knife was against his shirt. “You are good.”

  “I’m not.”

  He did not wince as the knife pricked the skin at the edge of the plating where his human parts met his clockwork ones. “You are. You are good and kind. You are the woman I love.”

  With Lucia’s attention on Archimedes, Grayson crept forward and picked up Elizabeth, running from the cabin with her in his arms. Corrigan backed up to the door, in case Lucia tried to follow.

  “You lied to me.” The knife went a fraction deeper and a soft bloom of red blood flowered on his shirt. “I know.” It was a hiss.

  “I don’t lie, Lucia. Especially to you.”

  Her eyes were pupil less, the effect of the dark magic leaving her gaze a swirling mass of black. He touched her cheek with his human hand.

  “You knew what Edgar was doing to me. You saw it.”

  “I didn’t.”

  “You did!” She poked harder, and the blood dripped across the blade of the knife.

  Corrigan took a step forward, his electrified Bo staff out as he saw the blood. Archie shook his head and held him back with a wave.

  “You saw him hurting me. You saw the things he was making me do. You didn’t save me.”

  He cupped her face, forcing the soulless black eyes to meet his. He could feel the knife a quarter of an inch into his skin, but she was shaking. The dark magic would not control her for much longer. “I know I didn’t. I think about it every single day. I agonize over it.”

  “You didn’t save me. I saved myself.”

  “Yes, you did. Now you’re the strongest woman I know. You didn’t let Edgar Baiandelio control you. Don’t let dark magic control you now.”

  “Elizabeth must die. She is not innocent.”

  “We don’t kill. You heal people.”

  He felt her shaking, the knife clattering to the ground as she dropped it.

  “There is darkness inside me.”

  He pulled her close to his chest and she let him. He felt the blood from his chest soaking through to her dress. “There is darkness in us all. It is how we control it that makes us good.”

  “I’m not good.”

  He kissed the top of her head and handed Corrigan his wand. Carefully he bent, scooping her up against his chest so that he held her tightly. She was limp, but tears covered her cheeks.

  Archimedes had never felt so much rage. It raced unchecked through him and mixed with all the love and concern for Lucia that lived inside him. Corrigan approached cautiously.

  “Is she all right?”

  “She will be.” Archie nodded in thanks as the captain covered Lucia with his coat. She shivered uncontrollably in his arms as the ravages of the black magic ran through her body. Once she’d been addicted to it, and it had cost her months of recovery to fight the pull of the dark aether. Now it was a shock to her system to feel its effects again. “I want to know who did this and I will kill him.”

  “D—D—Dooley and Delbert,” Lucia whispered.

  “Atticus Dooley and Delbert Wicket are alive?” Corrigan hurried to the door to look out, as if he expected them to return at any moment.

  “G—Gone away. They wanted E-Elizabeth dead.”

  “Come on,” Archie said, p
ushing past Corrigan to start out across the field toward the entrance to the secret tunnels. “We’ll figure this out back at the house.”

  Corrigan hurried behind him; eyes open for any straggling demons. Thanks to the closing of the Hell Gate the most of them stayed close to the house.

  Archie tightened his hold on Lucia and he felt her hand touch the ragged tear in his shirt. “You let me stab you.”

  “It’s barely a scratch.”

  “You’re bleeding, Archie. Let me fix it.”

  “Not now. You are weak and you need rest. Bastion can fix me up at home.”

  “I hurt Elizabeth.”

  “It wasn’t you. It was the effect of the dark aether.”

  “It was me. I know the darkness is in me, it always has been. Edgar knew it, too.”

  “You were a child and Edgar manipulated you. He got you addicted to the blood magic and it made you feel things you wouldn’t normally feel.” He glanced down at her pale face. “You’re a good person, Lucia.”

  “I don’t feel like one.”

  He knew the guilt and horror at her actions that swirled around inside her head. He had the same feelings when he remembered what he used to do for a living before meeting Icarus. It was not something that would disappear, but in time it could be understood and dealt with. “I never knew he was hurting you. I didn’t know until that night. I swear it on my life.”

  “I know.” She let her head rest against his shoulder. “If you had you would have saved me.”

  “I would have torn him limb from limb.”

  “I’m glad you didn’t.”

  He knew she felt his step falter.

  “If you had saved me I never would have found the courage to save myself. I need the memory of that strength. Especially now.”

  “You can survive this,” he told her quietly as they entered the tunnels and neared the house. “I’ll do whatever you need me to do.”

  “Just stay close,” she said wrapping her arms around his neck. “Don’t let me hurt anyone.”

  “You won’t.”

  He pushed open the door to the secret room and Corrigan was right behind him. Atraxas rushed to them.

  “What the hell happened? Are they all right? Grayson took Elizabeth directly to the healer.”

  “Dooley and Delbert Wicket took them.” Archimedes pushed past the elder brother and headed for Lucia’s room. “Once I have Lucia tended to I want wards at every door and window.” He nodded at the tunnel door. “And I want that screwed shut.”

  “Delbert’s alive?” Atraxas’ face paled. “How the hell....”

  “We’ll talk in a while. Fortify and check on Elizabeth.” Archimedes did not let them stop him as he left and hurried across the hall to Lucia’s room. He pushed open the door and closed it behind him with his foot.

  “I’m going to put you on the chair,” he told her as he set her gently in front of the fire. She sat huddled as he went to the wardrobe and took out a soft flannel nightgown and a robe. “Let’s get this off you.”

  She let him untie the dress and pull it off her arms, not stopping him, but not helping him either. When she was in her chemise he pushed her back into the chair and took the pitcher of water and a washcloth off the vanity. Carefully he wiped off the blood from her face and neck and then scrubbed every speck from her fingers. When he was satisfied that she was clean he pulled the gown over her head and put the robe on over it. He looked at her mud-caked boots and bent to untie them last.

  He froze when her hands went carefully into his hair. She combed through it gently, sifting the strands. He pulled off the boot and let his hand linger on her calf. He took off the other boot and her stockings.

  “Come on, into bed with you,” he said quietly, taking her hands.

  “Let me fix the cut first.”

  He didn’t object as she unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it back to examine the small puncture just above his left nipple. Her hands smoothed over his chest, rubbing gently at the seam between human skin and copper plating. He felt her magic rise and the injury closed to a thin scar in moments. He drew in a breath and held it when her lips kissed the scar.

  “Thank you.” He helped her into the bed and pulled the blankets up over her, but as he went to turn away she grabbed his hand, holding him.

  “Stay.”

  “I need to clean up a bit.” He looked down at the bloody mess on his shirt.

  “Take it off and stay.”

  He stared at her for a moment, and there was no trace of the dark aether left in her brown eyes. Just a woman who needed him for comfort. He quickly pulled off the shirt and lay down next to her, on top of the blankets. He wrapped his arm around her and she rolled so that her chin lay pillowed on his chest. She breathed in deep and let it out in a long sigh.

  “What’s that about?” he asked quietly.

  “I like the way you smell.”

  He chuckled. “I like the way you smell, too.”

  “Promise me you’ll kill me if I ever try to hurt anyone again.”

  He froze with his hand a half-stroke through her hair. “You never hurt anyone. The dark aether and the mage controlling it did.”

  “Promise me, Archimedes.”

  “I won’t. I would never lay a hand on you in anything but love. I’ll kill any man who does.”

  “What if I try to kill you?” She leaned up on her elbow, staring down into his face. Her eyes were wide but they were not full of fear. It was something worse. A deadened acceptance, as if she’d already concluded that she was un-savable.

  “I would stop you. Without hurting you.”

  “Maybe. What if I killed Grayson, or Cora? Or Icarus?”

  “I won’t let you hurt anyone. We’ll purge the dark aether from your system and make sure you can’t be controlled by it again.”

  A tear squeezed from her eye and rolled down her cheek. “I can’t live in fear that I’m going to become a monster at any time. I won’t. I beat this once, but I’m not sure I can beat it again.”

  “You can. You’re stronger now than before, and you have a distinct advantage this time.”

  “I do? What advantage?”

  He wiped the tear away with his thumb and pulled gently on her head to bring her mouth to his. He kissed her carefully, showing her that she was cherished and adored. “You have me. You have your friends who will always protect you. And you have the strongest will of any woman I have ever known.”

  She held him tightly, her arms around his neck and her cheek pressed against his. “Save one.”

  He grinned and held her closer. “You might even give Cora Mae Jenkins a run for her money in the stubborn arena.”

  “If I have half her strength of will I’ll make it home after all.”

  He pressed a kiss to her hair and pulled the blanket over her shoulders. “Rest now. We’ll conference Icarus and Lucan in a few hours.”

  “You’ll be here when I wake up?”

  “Every single time,” he promised quietly.

  BASTION FINISHED HEALING the cuts on Elizabeth’s arms and sent her into a deep, healing sleep. He sighed as a pair of strong hands began to massage over his tired shoulders.

  “That takes a lot out of you, doesn’t it?”

  He looked over his shoulder at Stella. She was tired too, dark circles hanging below her eyes. Still, she’d stayed by his side for the whole thing, watching and handing him tools as he asked. “It’s not easy.”

  She stopped the massage and moved to sit next to him on the small bed. “What you do, it is amazing.”

  “It’s all I’ve ever known how to do.” He closed his eyes as waves of fatigue rolled over him. “The children should begin to heal if Wicket and Dooley have truly left town. Their magic is strong but it can’t reach over distances.”

  Stella’s hand took his and held it. He was still, unsure. He had never courted a woman before; never even considered the idea. He was far from rich and never very handsome in the modern opinion. At best, he had hoped to
live his life in the company of good friends and a steady clientele. Her thumb rubbed over his and her head dropped to his shoulder.

  “Do you know that I was once burned at the stake?”

  “I beg your pardon?”

  She laughed. “Well, very nearly burned at the stake. Romani are not trusted by most, and despised by some.”

  “They thought you a hedge witch?”

  “I allowed the wrong person into my trailer, and my herbs and potions convinced them.”

  “What stopped them from finishing the job?”

  “My father. He rode into the town with every man from the caravan, armed to the teeth. He was a fearless man.”

  “It couldn’t have been easy. Romani need work to live.”

  “It was a lean winter.”

  The smell of cinnamon and thyme that surrounded her was entrancing. Her thick curls tickled his nose, but they sat in silence for a while, the touch of their shoulders and hands enough.

  “Perhaps, when this is over, you will teach me about healing?” she said after a while.

  “It would be my honor.”

  “You are a serious man, Bastion Tinsley. Do you ever smile?”

  He could recall smiling at Cora and Icarus’ wedding, but not since. When he told her, she laughed. “Then you will teach me healing, and I will teach you smiling.”

  “I’d like that.”

  “So would I.”

  When she moved away he felt more alone that he’d ever felt before. Was this the way Icarus and Cora felt when they parted, he wondered. Archimedes and Lucia? It was no wonder they were so keen to stay close.

  “The time has come to sleep, healer. The men will keep watch over the house until the sun rises.”

  She left on quiet feet and Bastion took a last look at the sleeping Elizabeth. A beauty, to be sure. Her face was pale but smooth; a china doll’s delicate perfection. Still, she didn’t have a stubborn chin or a cloud of wildly curling hair. He stood and blew out the candle by her bed, sighing as he did.

  “You’ve become a smitten fool, old man,” he warned himself. Nevertheless, when he left there was the slight curve of a smile on his lips.