Witchlock

by Sherrilyn Kenyon

  The druid continued, "-claimed to have killed a demon on top of that mountain, but no evidence of such was found."

  Evalle kept staring at the body. "I didn't kill a warlock, Tzader."

  "I believe you."

  Cathbad shouted, "Do you deny that is your dagger?"

  Evalle lifted a stunned gaze to the gallery. "It is my dagger, but I killed a Reisc Dubh demon that night. The demon had a human glamour and was hunting humans when I first saw him. When I approached him and identified myself, he dropped his glamour and attacked me and I defended myself."

  Cathbad asked, "What is your testimony, Sen?"

  "I was called to the top of Stone Mountain two nights ago, specifically to the cable landing platform." Sen spoke as if he had been nothing more than a bystander to a terrible crime. The son of a bitch continued, "Evalle claimed she killed a demon. Her shirt was torn and bloody, but there was no sign of a demon inside the cable car she said contained a body." He shrugged.

  That set off Cathbad. "Torn clothes and blood can be manufactured."

  Tzader's trepidation rose at the scene unfolding. This was too fucking perfect. Sen played the role of the innocent VIPER liaison sent to clean up a mess and was now feeding Cathbad lines with the skill of a straight man in a dark comedy act.

  Justitia called out, "How plead you, Evalle Kincaid?"

  "I did not kill a warlock, goddess."

  The goddess cocked her chin in the druid's direction. "What do you offer as conclusive evidence, Cathbad?"

  "The dagger, goddess. No one has been able to remove the blade. I request the Skinwalker try to withdraw the dagger."

  Oh. Shit. Tzader looked at Storm who was clearly torn over what to do. Evalle gave Storm a watery smile. "Go ahead. Do what they ask."

  Storm sent the promise of death in the look that he swept around the room.

  Loki, of course, found that amusing.

  Storm dropped onto one knee and put his other knee on the corpse's chest to hold it down. He gripped the dagger handle with both hands and lifted. Muscles strained and bulged in his arms. Veins stood out on his neck.

  The head moved up with each new yank.

  After pulling for a full minute, Storm released the grip and dropped his head.

  Cathbad was on a roll and said, "This Skinwalker was brought into VIPER because he is an exceptional majik tracker. I request that he give testimony of the energetic residue left on the body and reveal if it belongs to anyone in this meeting."

  Storm's head snapped up and he jerked around, looking at Evalle.

  She kept her hands at her sides, but Tzader could see the tremble in her fingers. She told Storm, "Do as they say."

  Storm's gaze landed on Tzader with accusation burning. Storm had come here at Tzader's request and now he was forced to give testimony against Evalle, because Tzader and everyone else in here knew that dagger wasn't coming out unless she released the spell and removed the blade.

  Loki asked, "Is there a problem?"

  Tzader told Storm, "We'll handle whatever comes of all this." Then to appease Loki, Tzader explained, "This is Storm's first Tribunal appearance and I failed to inform him of how things work."

  Storm sent one more gut-wrenching look at Evalle then turned and lowered his head, sniffing.

  When he paused, hesitating to state what he'd discovered, Loki shouted, "You will immediately reveal what you have found or be banished from this world. No one defies a Tribunal."

  Evalle whispered, "Please, Storm."

  Storm stood and said, "There is a residue and it belongs to Evalle Kincaid."

  Fuck. Tzader might be the one banished if he killed that druid.

  "There you go, goddess," Cathbad called out, sounding as if he'd just rested his case.

  Storm asked, "Where was the body found?"

  Cathbad frowned at the question. "At the base of Stone Mountain. This warlock made a call for help and when one of our elite Scath Force warlocks arrived, this one was dead and that dagger had been embedded so that it could not be removed."

  "That is all," Loki said in Storm's direction.

  Storm walked back to Tzader and Evalle with fury spilling from his pores.

  She whispered, "It's okay," before Storm turned to stand as close to her as he could.

  He whispered, "No it's not and I won't let them take you."

  Tzader's sensitive hearing picked up Storm's soft words. He had to get those two out of here without upsetting the Tribunal. He'd risk pissing off deities if it was his own neck on the line, but not when Evalle's future was at risk and Storm stood ready to take on the universe to protect her.

  Cathbad said, "Evalle is known to carry a dagger that holds a spell she controls. I request that Evalle now try to remove the blade."

  Justitia called out, "Granted. If the dagger is being held in place by a spell, you will release the spell and remove your dagger, Evalle. Understood?"

  "Yes, goddess."

  Evalle wiped her hands on her pants as she stepped up to the corpse. She bent over the body, placing one hand on the grip, then whispered something and the blade pulled free without any resistance.

  Not a surprised face anywhere in this meeting.

  Standing up, Evalle said, "I've removed it, goddess, but on my honor as a Belador and on my life, I swear I did not kill a Medb warlock on top of Stone Mountain."

  "Then explain that body," Cathbad yelled.

  Tzader had had enough. He stepped forward. "We will. I request appropriate time to do so."

  Sen spoke up. "I suggest the Alterant be put into VIPER custody in the meantime."

  Tzader shouted, "No!" He turned to Sen. "Who are you to have any say in these proceedings? You're only a delivery person. Stick to your job."

  For a moment, Tzader thought there might be some risk from the saying "if looks could kill," because murderous intent filled Sen's eyes.

  Justitia announced, "All argument regarding this evidence and claim is to be delivered to this Tribunal only."

  That was her reprimand of both Tzader and Sen.

  Tzader quickly said, "I intend no disrespect toward the Tribunal, but as Maistir I have a responsibility to every Belador alive when I represent Macha. I require Evalle's aid in determining exactly what happened for her dagger to end up in this body."

  Cathbad muttered, "We know what happened."

  Tzader argued, "What we have is inconclusive evidence. Yes, that is Evalle's dagger and, yes, she would have had to be the one to order the dagger to stay put, but there is no evidence to prove that warlock was not in the form of a demon when she faced him."

  Cathbad snarled, "There you go again, blaming the Medb for creating demons."

  "That's not exactly news considering the history of the Medb, but we're here for one concern and the Tribunal does not want to listen to constant complaining about an old issue." Tzader caught the nods of the deities, letting him know he'd earned a few points. "Let's focus on this issue only and resolve it satisfactorily for both sides."

  "You're just delaying the inevitable and wasting Tribunal time," Cathbad countered, picking up a few points of his own, dammit.

  Tzader asked, "If you're so certain that Evalle killed your warlock, explain why she hasn't lit up red in this Tribunal every time she claimed not to have killed him?"

  Silence answered Tzader's charge so he added, "Evalle has been proven truthful in this Tribunal. For that reason alone, she has a right to bring proof that she did indeed kill what she believed was a demon. If that warlock was in demon form when she killed him, the Medb have no legitimate complaint, but should they take an interest, this Tribunal would certainly have the prerogative to question why a Medb warlock was disguised as a demon. Since Evalle must prove her innocence, I request that she be granted leave of absence from her duties as the Medb-Belador liaison until the question of her innocence is settled." Cathbad's jaw clenched at that. "I also ask for an additional day to gather evidence, so that I can fulfill my duties while I determine the truth
behind this killing. Without that additional time, the lack of my availability to VIPER may create more imposition for the Tribunal."

  The deities huddled and Cathbad scratched his chin.

  Did I throw you a curve ball, druid?

  Loki turned back around. "Agreed. You have forty-eight hours to deliver your counter argument with evidence."

  Tzader blew out a breath. The argument about her not turning red should have been enough to clear her name, but at least she'd be going home with Storm.

  Now he had to make sure Storm didn't grab her and run for the hills.

  Chapter 27

  Veronika watched two warlocks from her perch on top of a two-story building, where she was hidden by early morning dark and cloud cover from turbulent weather brewing.

  Few vehicles moved in the hours beyond two in the morning here, but Atlanta would soon become a noisy place as human businesses started a new week.

  Loud music blared from a lone car creeping by.

  She missed the KievRus castle, where music never sounded like animals screaming in terror. Too many buildings and too much noise here for her, but she would change all of that once she held control.

  The warlocks below were arguing. Why?

  Veronika had located dark witches with deep purple auras walking everywhere in this city, which confirmed that the Medb really had been allowed to infiltrate the human world. Thanks to Ragan's power pulsing through Veronika, she'd had no trouble identifying the Medb auras, even if she hadn't been close enough to smell the Noirre majik around them.

  These two warlocks had been the first to show any potential for what she needed.

  The larger one had cornered a troll an hour ago, and while she gave him points for capturing the nasty beast, he hadn't shown any inclination toward killing it, even though she'd heard him mention using a troll to power a spell.

  What was the warlock doing?

  He did have the dark aura color, but he did not emit the repugnant smell of a Medb. She wanted a warlock capable of doing her bidding, and he seemed to fit her requirements for a minion. Having a powerful being to hunt Adrianna would allow Veronika to remain hidden as long as possible.

  And once he found Adrianna, he would find the woman Ragan's twin had brought with her into the ancestral realm. The one who had shifted into something the Guardians called a gryphon. Why would a Sterling team up with a gryphon instead of a Medb, who might have been more helpful?

  Veronika certainly appreciated Adrianna's poor planning, but it did make her wonder about the dark witch's intelligence.

  The Medb were a deplorable coven, but a powerful one.

  Once Veronika took control of both white and dark witchcraft, she'd weed out the weak and control the powerful leaders. Then she would teach them how to properly run a world.

  KievRus had always watched over the people, but they'd wasted their talent on mere humans.

  Veronika would follow in her ancestors' footsteps, taking control of the powerful of all races who governed, and they would keep the sheep in line.

  Witchlock had changed the course of history more than once ... and would again.

  She dropped silently to the narrow street that stretched between two buildings. Her robe floated gently around her until her booted feet touched the ground and she could walk.

  The warlock who appeared in control raged at his companion.

  She'd listened from above them, but down here it was even easier to hear the taller one say, "We are grabbing two more trolls tonight, and a warlock, then I can try a change in the spell."

  "Bad idea, Donndubhan. Word is that VIPER's cracking down hard, looking for the troll killers. We get caught we got more problems than VIPER. We'll have to face Maeve and Cathbad, or have you forgotten what you told me they'd do to us?"

  "I haven't forgotten a damn thing, Imar. We're in too deep at this point. You need to stop acting like a pussy and do whatever I tell you, especially after I saved both of our asses by handing that warlock's body over to Cathbad. That was brilliant on my part. You do as I say or you're gone, and I don't mean walking away kind of gone."

  Imar mumbled something under his breath.

  Donndubhan confirmed they were definitely Medb. He must be hiding his scent. Oh, yes, these two would be perfect.

  Veronika wanted to test her powers now that she had Ragan close at hand. Her family would not be happy to find out she was testing her skills, but neither did they have her vision. Her family had spent years teaching her about world politics and how KievRus was the balance between dark witchcraft and light. She loved her family in spite of their limited points of view.

  Every step Veronika made toward managing and wielding the power she'd gained thus far would shorten the learning curve for controlling Witchlock.

  "Take your time learning how to handle Witchlock," one aunt constantly cautioned.

  "Do not try to direct the power too soon or Witchlock may turn on you," her grandfather had warned.

  "Concede your will to Witchlock," another had said.

  Veronika's lips twisted with distaste. She would not concede anything to anyone, certainly not her own will to a power that would be hers to wield.

  Pushing away distracting thoughts, Veronika eased toward the warlocks. They were just the resource she'd been searching for in this city.

  Ghouls had been approaching her, offering deals for a handshake.

  What was that about?

  She'd given them a wide berth. Ghouls couldn't be trusted. They weren't worth the use of her power to control since they were so limited in abilities.

  Continuing toward the pair of Medbs, she noticed movement to her left.

  A human scavenger, based on his rough clothes and the way he tried to sneak up on the warlocks.

  He thought he could mug a warlock?

  Oh, right. Humans didn't know about the Medb or VIPER's corral of mercenaries. Veronika would enlighten humans when the time came, but since this human had no idea whom he thought to attack, he'd slow her down and create an unnecessary delay.

  Veronika had kept her sphere hidden by tucking her hands into the opposite sleeves of her robe. She brought it out now.

  She called up a small sample of power and felt it roll through her arm as she pointed, sending an arc of light shooting to the would-be mugger.

  The man froze with a look of disbelief on his face.

  At the whooshing noise and bright light splitting the early morning darkness, the warlocks whirled to see what went on behind them.

  Veronika's beam of light struck the human, igniting him. He glowed red for a moment, then like an ember, blown upon to bring up the heat, he burst into a six-foot-tall tower of fire. The flames sucked into themselves and winked out of sight, leaving a chunk of black coal the size of her fist on the ground.

  Hmm. That was expedient, and all the better that no one had seen it.

  "Who are you?" the warlock called Donndubhan demanded.

  Well ... no one except the warlocks had seen her little display. Which was exactly as she'd intended.

  Donndubhan strode forward with Imar waddling quickly at his side.

  She moved her hand so the sphere pointed at Imar and drew on the power again, but this time she directed the energy differently. White tendrils from the sphere covered her hand and shot a twisted bolt of white at Imar.

  Donndubhan was quick.

  He pointed at her, his power crossing her blast with one of his own, but hers knocked his aside as dust tossed by a strong wind. Her bolt streamed past him on its way to Imar.

  When her twisted stream struck the shorter warlock, Imar lifted off the ground and his eyes rolled back in his head. He spoke in garbled murmurs for the next moment, then his feet touched the ground and he stared at Veronika.

  She bent her finger, calling him to her.

  He walked forward as Donndubhan watched, dumbfounded.

  Taking control of Imar had gone better than she'd hoped, but he had not been much more challenge than the hum
an. Disappointing.

  When Imar reached her, he knelt on one knee and bowed his head. "I am yours, mistress."

  "Yes, you are, and I have plans for you. Stand to the side and wait."

  When he did as she ordered, she turned to Donndubhan, who threw up his hands. "Hold it. We can work out a deal."

  She tsked. "I thought you were a Medb warrior, but warriors do not beg."

  "I am a warrior and not just any kind. I'm Scath Force, one of the most elite of the Medb coven. I do not beg, but if you attack me, you will waste the opportunity to gain a strong resource." He walked forward with an arrogant stride. Brown fuzzy hair had been cut short, probably for convenience, since she couldn't imagine how one would tame it otherwise. She'd seen bigger warriors than his decently muscled six feet, but she'd never known one to negotiate instead of retaliate.

  He'd piqued her curiosity, but she should clear up his confusion as to where he stood on the power scale. "Attack? That sounds as though you think there would be question about the outcome if you were struck by my majik."

  She admitted only to herself that she had no idea if she could control an elite Medb warrior--yet--especially one who showed no emotional vulnerability.

  "Why put us both to the test when we could work together?"

  "Are you so disloyal that you would leap away from the Medb without any thought?"

  "Don't judge my actions until you know everything. I've spent my life locked away in TAmr Medb, serving Queen Flaevynn in the past. As bad as that was, Queen Maeve has returned with Cathbad the Druid. I'm tired of being a slave. I'm an elite warrior, but I'm reduced to little more than errand boy most of the time. I want to use the skills I've honed to perfection, and I've been looking for someone powerful enough to utilize what I have to offer."

  Interesting. "What have you been doing with trolls?"

  He hesitated before speaking, but must have realized that she knew too much already. "Cathbad bestowed upon the the entire Scath Force the ability to shield the Medb scent. We used that ability to take the life force of trolls, then use it to create demons that could never be traced to the Medb. Our warlocks have been disposing of demons and have thus won enough favor to gain access to VIPER."

  "You're part of the coalition?"

  "Yes, we are and we're here to stay."