I had to rely on my ancient trained instincts of an assassin.
The hair on the back of my neck prickled in warning, and I scanned the parking lots without turning my head. A black car to my right caught my attention, but even from this distance, I knew there was no one inside.
I continued up the stairs to the second floor.
I stopped in front of Gwen’s door and knocked just in case.
I didn’t know if I expected someone to answer it, but I wasn’t surprised when no one did.
With a slow breath, my eyesight slowly turned blue, and the wall became nothing but lines where the wooden support beams stood. No one was in the apartment, just stuff.
My vision returned to normal, and I walked through the door.
I closed it behind me and stepped onto the carpet.
Instantly, I felt electricity tear through my body, and I gritted my teeth as the force dragged me to my knees. Once my knees were on the ground, orange vines of magic wrapped around my wrists, pulling them behind me, and bound me securely.
This was bad.
How had I not seen the hex? Maybe it wasn’t a hex. Witches cast hexes, and I didn’t know of anyone from the mafia using witches. Of course, they could have written a rune under the carpet, but that would have required a sorceress or wizard. This spell was more than a hex, more powerful than a witch.
I shook my head. “How is it possible I can be captured without the item I’m bound to?”
I tugged against the restraints but stopped when I heard the key in the lock and looked over my shoulder. The electricity no longer attacked, but I couldn’t wrench my body free.
The door opened, and a man stepped in. He wore black jeans, a light-blue shirt, and a suit jacket. I knew immediately he was a descendant of Stewart, my previous master. Aside from the color of his eyes, his slanted jaw and curve of his nose was just like Stewart’s.
The man smiled and stepped around me, closing the door. “My name is Oliver. My father owned you for a period of time, and his father before him.”
“I know how it works, I wasn’t gone that long,” I replied.
“Of course.” He shook his head as he eyed me like I was some sort of treasure. “They talked about you so much . . . the perfect assassin. Unseen and expertly trained . . .” He chuckled and met my gaze. “Finally.”
“Look, kid, I know this is going to be hard for you to swallow, but it doesn’t matter how long you have me here. You can’t keep me bound forever, and you can’t control me without you being in possession of my artifact.” I tugged in futility at the magical bindings.
“I’m aware of this. I’m also aware of Guinevere Sarah Peshton.” He pulled his phone from his pocket and tapped a few times. “Or shall I call her Zenja?”
He held the phone out to me and showed me a picture of Gwen looking over her shoulder. Her mane of black hair was tied back in a high ponytail. And then he swiped his finger, and Zenja’s painted image appeared on the screen.
“That’s a little far-fetched,” I said, looking up at Oliver.
“You’re not as clever as you think you are,” he said and tucked the phone in his pocket. “I know who she is. When she used magic a few days ago, I had my best men research her. Turns out she’s someone very important indeed.” He looked at me. “Someone important to you. I know her family died in an accident almost ten years ago, and I also know where the family home is, which is also where you’ve been hiding, is it not?” He stopped directly in front of me, his hands in his pockets.
I clenched my teeth together and flexed my jaw.
He smirked. “That’s what I thought.”
“What do you want?”
“We need your help again, assassin.”
“My name is Doren.”
“Whatever.” He put one hand in the pocket of his jeans and began to walk. “The task is simple. You get us the item you’re bound to and return it, and I’ll make sure no one lays a finger on Guinevere.”
My lips tightened and anger boiled in my chest. “Or what?”
He stopped and slowly turned to face me. “She’s a sorceress. Untrained, but still a sorceress. We can use her powers as well, you know.”
“Leave her out of this!” I snapped. I knew I should have been calm, but this man couldn’t have pulled Zenja’s name out of thin air.
Oliver nodded. “Then we are in accord. You bring me your artifact, and Guinevere will remain safe. Come back here tomorrow at six in the evening.”
“Can you at least answer why you want me?” I asked.
“Because there’s someone we need you to kill. Someone who is about to tear this world apart.” He faced me with coldness in his eyes.
“Who?”
He smirked. “I’ll tell you tomorrow when you return. Remember, she showed more than just us she has power. You don’t know if anyone else is hunting for her.” He crouched, drew a dagger from his sleeve, and cut into the carpet.
Suddenly, the vines and lightning disappeared.
Oliver nodded once and left the room.
I slowly lowered my arms and rubbed my wrists, not because they hurt but because I didn’t know what else to do. Gwen would be dragged into my mess if I didn’t let her go. The pain stabbed my chest like a knife.
I had to let her go.
But how could I do that to the woman I loved?
At the same time, what choice did I have?
I returned to Gwen, who was lying on the bed I’d stolen from a nearby store. Taking things from other people was far more productive than using my personal magical energy to summon things from nothing.
She bolted upright and then got to her feet, frustration mixed with worry in her voice. “Why have you been gone so long? It’s been hours!”
I shook my head. “It’s not safe for you to return to your apartment yet.”
“There’s something you’re not telling me.” She put her hand on my arm and looked up at me, her chocolate-brown eyes searching mine.
“They raided your apartment and it’s a mess?” I shrugged. “How did your practice go? Do you feel Glupin will be able to teach you what you need to know?”
Gwen tightened her lips and folded her arms. “You promised not to lie to me anymore.”
I sighed. “I ran into one of the men. The one in charge. It’s as I suspected, he’s the son of a previous master, and he wants me back in his control. There’s a man they need me to kill.”
“But he can’t take you, right?” Her eyes were wide, and she held on to my arms like I might disappear right there.
I put my hand on her cheek. “He has to have the painting.”
She exhaled in relief and put her head to my chest.
I hadn’t felt anyone this close in ages. I wrapped my arms around her small frame, and she squeezed me in a hug. It was . . . pleasant. A long-forgotten tingle rushed through my body.
Gwen’s cheeks were flushed when she stepped away from me. “I think training with Glupin will work out. He’s patient with me.” She walked to the coffee table and started rearranging the papers. “When I try and cast certain spells, I can feel that I’ve done it before. And you were gone for four hours, Doren. There’s no way it takes four hours for you to walk around the apartment complex just to come back here and tell me it was nothing.”
“She’s got a point,” Seymour piped in.
“See?” She gestured to the beagle.
Seymour stuck his tongue out.
I softly bit my lip and released it. “I can’t risk dragging you any deeper into my problems.”
“So there is more to the story.”
I nodded. “I told them no.”
Her eyes narrowed. “But?”
I drew a breath. “But they know where you’re hiding. They know you’re a sorceress.”
“What?” she gasped.
“They said if I didn’t give them my artifact, they would take you, too, and use your magic. I . . . I can�
�t drag you into anything that will end up with you imprisoned too. I can’t risk you getting hurt because of me. Not again.”
Guinevere eyed me, tightened her jaw, and smacked my shoulder. “I can help you! Can’t I just wish them to go away or something?”
“The only way I could make someone disappear is to kill them . . .”
She flinched. “Okay, bad idea. Then I can take on a different name or persona.”
“That won’t change who you are.”
She crossed her arms. “Why aren’t you helping me find a solution to this problem?”
I gave her a sad smile. “Because I already did. The only way to keep you safe is to give them my painting.”
“What’s to stop them from still capturing me and using me once they have you in their possession?” she retorted.
“Gwen, please.” I truly didn’t know. I didn’t know if she would be safe with me there or safer with me gone. I didn’t know if the mafia would give up the chance to use a sorceress for whatever evil deeds they wanted to be done. A powerful sorceress could be a valuable tool.
I felt her hand on my arm. I looked down at her stunning eyes.
“You aren’t alone anymore,” she said gently. “Please . . . let me share something with you.”
I reached out and touched her cheek. “When we were alive at the same time, when I was an assassin and you a sorceress, we fell in love. The moment I saw you, I was in love. Gwen, even if you are reincarnated, you are not my Zenja.” I lowered my hand. Discreetly, I slipped my hand in her back pocket.
Her brows pinched. “Doren.”
“I keep trying to make you her, keep trying to . . . make something between us. I’m sorry.” I stepped back, my miniaturized painting in my hand. “I can’t hurt your chance of having a full life now.”
Before she could wish otherwise, I disappeared from her home, her presence, her big brown eyes so full of confusion and hurt.
I appeared in an office, where a man stood at the window. He turned to look at me, and I put the painting in his hand, thus transferring ownership from Gwen to Oliver.
He looked at me, down at the painting, then back. “And who are you?”
“Don’t worry, Gwen doesn’t know anything about you,” I said.
The confused man’s brows lifted in realization. “You’re Doren.”
It was my turn to be confused. “You came to me earlier and threatened me.”
“Ah.” He looked at the painting in his hand. “That must have been my twin. Oliver?”
“Yes.”
He nodded. “I’m Jesse, the older brother. We received a text a few weeks ago that you had been summoned but couldn’t track you on our GPS for a while.”
I blinked. “A text?”
“Like an email to your phone.”
I nodded slowly. “And GPS? That’s the tracking thing?” I held up my arm where it had once been.
He leaned his backside on his desk and put his hands on the top beside him. “You fooled us for a little while when you dropped it on someone else. Because it had been inactive for so long, our new programs struggled to find you. When you got away, Oliver was frustrated. I tried to reason a better way to get you, but apparently he is more impatient than I thought.”
I glared back. “What is so urgent that you needed to threaten a woman’s safety?”
Jesse frowned. “He shouldn’t have done that, I agree. In honesty, we don’t know what else to do.” He walked around the desk, typed on a keyboard, then turned a flat piece of metal toward me. On it he had displayed a picture. “Do you recognize him?”
“Of course. That’s King Taotin.”
The image was a painting, one familiar to me.
Jesse touched a button, and the picture changed. A man smiled back with the same face, only he wore an expensive navy suit, white shirt, and red tie and handkerchief.
“What . . . is this?” I breathed, fearing the answer.
“I believe you understand,” Jesse answered. “He goes by the name of Hayes DuBoi now.”
I narrowed my eyes in a glare. “Why should I care?”
Jesse leaned back, rested his left ankle on his right knee, and massaged his bottom lip with his fingers. “I guess now would be as good a time as any to tell you the whole story.” He climbed to his feet and walked back around the desk to face me. He slipped the ring from his left middle finger, then held it out toward me.
I cautiously held out my hand, allowing him to drop the ring into my outstretched palm. I felt the tingle of magic the instant it touched my flesh. I looked up at him, then lifted the ring to get a closer look.
The band was gold, but inscribed to the precious metal was a symbol of a circle with a larger circle around it. In the gap between the two rings was a zigzag of triangles, and in the center of the circle was a geometric triangle overlaid by a star.
I quickly lifted my eyes. I knew what this symbol was. “You’re magi.”
He nodded. “Specifically, the house of Elamite.”
I silently weighed the information. There were four distinct houses of magi, the least of which was the House of Avesta, then the House of Smerdis, the House of Magpet, and the highest, the House of Elamite. I knew because I had been chosen by the House of Elamite as a child and raised to assassinate for them.
Each house bore their own symbols as well. Avesta had the same double circle with small triangles between, but at its center stood a lone triangle. Smerdis had the same, though the center triangle was filled with small circles. Magpet had the central triangle as well, but two wider triangles met at its center.
Jesse’s brows furrowed. “You didn’t know.”
“No.” I handed him back the ring. “I used to serve the house of Elamite when they tried to gain strength. I was an assassin when I was alive. But I don’t see how this information matters now.”
“You really didn’t know?” he asked as he slid the ring back on his finger.
I smacked my lips in a feigned tired expression and folded my arms.
Jesse shook his head. “Doren, my entire family line has been magi since King Taotin reigned thousands of years ago. That’s how we also knew about Zenja. Contrary to belief, we have never been magical but have been the enforcers of peace.”
“What you deem as peace, you mean,” I said. “I was a slave to the magi even then.”
“Did you know grandfather used you to assassinate the priests of Taotin?”
“I know now. Still, I don’t see why it matters.” I shrugged my shoulders.
His lips tightened briefly. “You’re taking this rather well.”
“The magi have always tried to dictate the course of history. You’ve always nosed your way into governments. Illuminati? Notice how the symbol is a triangle? I’m aware that’s the House of Smerdis. Not to mention the Freemasons or, as they were once known, the House of Magpet.”
A red color began to creep up the collar of Jesse’s shirt collar and into his cheeks. His hands tightened in fists, and I couldn’t resist a smirk.
“Struck a nerve there, didn’t I?”
“You have a skewed understanding of what we are and do!” he spat.
I laughed out loud, dropping my arms and slapping my knee. “I can’t imagine why that would be! I mean, it isn’t like I’ve been a slave to your family for generations, doing your bidding, murdering whomever you command me to. And now I’m back again. You threatened the one and only person I care about so you could have me back under your control.”
Jesse stormed to the window. He yanked it open, allowing fresh air to gush into the suddenly stuffy room. “You don’t understand,” he said through gritted teeth, clutching the table.
“What is there to understand?” I asked. “You command, I obey.”
“You don’t understand because . . .” He drew a deep breath of the cool air and slowly turned back to me, the redness of his anger fading from his face. “This isn’t the first time Taotin h
as been reincarnated.”
Chapter 15
Gwen
I stared at the flurry of colors as Doren disappeared, and I felt as if he had ripped my heart out of my chest.
Why are men so oblivious?
I practically told him to his face that I cared about him!
Annoyed wasn’t the correct word. Furious, that was better.
I faced Seymour and balled my hands into fists. “Are all guys that stupid?”
He cocked his head. “I don’t know.”
“Well, now we have a problem!” I stormed out of the bedroom, grabbing my jacket along the way.
I heard Seymour’s nails on the floor as he padded after me. “What problem?”
“We have to rescue Doren, of course.”
“How are we going to do that?”
I stopped at the front door. “I don’t know. But there’s got to be something we can do.” I pulled the door open, only to gasp when I came face-to-face with an enforcement officer about to knock.
“Oh, hello,” he said, giving me a flashy smile. “Are you Guinevere?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“I’m afraid we need you to come with us.” He stepped aside, opening the doorway and my path, revealing a waiting squad car in the driveway.
I wished I had Doren right then, but nothing happened, and my stomach sunk. “Why?” I repeated.
“Because we received information that you are an unregistered magic user, which is against the law. You can come willingly or make this difficult.” He shrugged his wide shoulders. “Your choice.”
I looked down at Seymour, silently asking for help.
“Well, Julene did tell you to register,” was his only response.
“Can I take my dog with me?” I asked, scooping down and lifting Seymour into my arms.
The officer looked at his partner, who nodded silently.
“Sure. Come on.”
I walked out of my house, down the steps, and out to the car. They had me sit in the back like some kind of criminal, and I clutched Seymour to my chest.
He licked his warm tongue over my chin. “Your heart is racing.”
I nodded, not wanting to say out loud how afraid I was. I’d lost Doren, was being arrested for not registering as a magic user in spite of the fact I’d had magic for less than a month, and who knew what was about to happen next?
Curse of a Djinn Page 10
