by Jan Stryvant
Moving to the end of the booth, she got ready to spring to the exit, where Chad was using another wand on the people at the front.
"Rufus, let's run!" Peg yelled as she made a dash for the back.
Something heavy came crashing down on her as soon as she left her seat, and that was the last thing she remembered.
Running back towards the pub, Sean saw the teams pile out of the two vans as the inside of the pub lit up with a bright flash. Someone had cast a fireball inside!
The men from the van cast some sort of spell, all the windows on the front of the pub exploded into a million shards of glass, and as they did, Sean could hear the measured shots of someone firing a gun.
"Roxy!" he growled and started slinging spells at the mages who were firing spells into the pub as he dodged several cars that were suddenly trying to get away from the violence in front of them.
Ducking behind a parked car as one of the magic users turned to face him, Sean drew his pistol and fired, dropping two of them before someone realized they were taking gunfire from another direction and erected a barrier.
Sean grunted as someone shot him in the back. Turning, there was some random guy with a gun pointed at him. Sean hit him with a sleep spell, and as the guy went down, Sean shifted into his lion hybrid form and charged the attackers as the sounds of more gunfire reached his ears. He could only guess it was random citizens, because they'd sent the security team off a while ago when they'd realized how conspicuous they were.
Sean cast a fireball into the midst of them, then as it exploded, he charged in and started to physically beat the attackers, using the pistol as a club in his right hand and clawing the others with his left. Looking into the pub, he saw the dead body of Owens lying over the table, but he didn't see Peg's father anyplace.
Just then the van behind him exploded, lifting him up and flinging him into a wall, which he hit with enough force to crack bricks and break a lot of his bones, leaving him stunned for several long moments. There were people screaming everywhere, he could hear the sounds of sirens, and the gunfire was starting to die down.
Checking his own power levels as he regained his wits, he saw he was low, but not so low he was in trouble, yet. The multipliers he was wearing had cut the cost of the spells he was casting, so his body was having no trouble healing.
Shifting back to human form and growling in pain, Sean put his pistol away and looked around. There were a lot of dead people on the ground, and the other van was now driving off. Stumbling towards the bar, he noticed one of the magic users was slowly trying to crawl away, so Sean hit him with a magical bolt to the head, killing him, and continued on into the pub.
The place was a mess; there were dead and dying people everywhere. Pushing his way to the back, he saw part of the ceiling had come down, and Rufus was lying on the floor, dead. He'd obviously been hit with a powerful spell. The way out back was now blocked from the collapsed ceiling, so turning around, Sean made his way back to the front, pausing only to cast a heal spell on the man who'd been their waiter, and he got outside just as the police showed up.
"Sean! Over here!" Turning, Sean saw Roxy, and he ran to her.
"Cali's hurt, she got shot, twice. You need to help her!"
Swearing, Sean followed Roxy back to the van. Jumping in the back he saw Cali, who was looking pale under her dark skin and was covered in blood. Putting his hands on her, he immediately started to pour healing spells into her.
"Did you see Peg inside the pub?" Roxy asked him.
"No! Isn't she with you?" Sean asked, glancing back at her.
Roxy shook her head. "She was bringing up the rear with Rufus, because she was shielding us from their attacks."
"Rufus is dead," Sean growled and turned back to Cali. "How are you feeling, Cali?"
"Is my baby alright?" Cali gasped, worried.
Sean nodded, he'd checked on their child while healing her. "Yes, our baby is fine." Turning back to Roxy he asked, "What happened?"
"Wilston must have recognized one of us or something. Suddenly he cast a fireball into the back as those two vans pulled up out front and attacked everyone. We ducked out the back, but there were a couple of people out there waiting for us. Cali and I took the brunt of it, along with Jace. Steven and Chad followed us out."
"Where are they?"
"Looking for Peg."
"If I had to guess, I'd say her father grabbed her and left."
"Why would he do a thing like that?" Roxy said, looking surprised.
"Because I didn't kill him when I had the chance," Sean growled. "Now go find Chad, we're going to attack."
"Now?"
"Now."
Roxy took one look at Sean's face, jumped out of the van, and ran off to gather the others.
"Don't be too hard on them," Cali said softly, "it's not their fault."
"You should have let me kill him," Sean grumbled.
"Hindsight always sees the furthest, my husband. I still don't think we should have let you kill him, but we should have done it differently than we did."
Sean sighed and nodded, slowly reaching down to take her hand and hold it. "You're right, Cali. But I'm afraid for Peg! What is he going to do to her?"
"It's obvious, is it not? He wants a hostage to use against you."
"I'm afraid you may be right."
Cali smiled up from the seat she was lying on. "Of course I'm right. Now, do you think you could find me a pillow? I think I'd like to sleep for a while."
Sean helped Cali get comfortable, then he got his phone out and dialed Daelyn.
"Sean! I heard! Roxy thinks they got Peg! What do you need?"
"I need to get everybody over here as quickly as possible. Where are you?"
"I'm about to fly up to the marshaling point Chad had assigned, with Jolene and the assault team."
"The troops Chad was going to release, are they still there?"
"Yeah, I can send them up, but it'll be a couple of hours before they can get there, or more if the traffic is as bad as I hear."
"Lean on your brother, hire some helicopters, as many as you can get your hands on, stuff everybody in them, and then call me. We're going to attack, and we're going to attack now. I need bodies, Dae. I need them as fast as you can get them."
"I'll lean on him, but I don't think it's going to be cheap!"
"Yeah, well, I got deep pockets," Sean said as the doors opened and the others piled into the van.
"Got it!" Daelyn said and hung up.
"Who was that?" Chad asked.
"I told Daelyn to hire all the helicopters she can get her hands on and fly everybody up here."
Chad nodded. "Roxy told me you want to attack immediately."
"Yes." Sean nodded. "They got Peg, and I'm not going to wait another minute. Steven, call your people, get their asses in gear. Use that rich wife of yours to hire some helicopters and fly them in, if you can. Or better yet, fly to the marshaling point we set up this morning and start ferrying people over."
"We need a plan, Sean!" Chad told him.
"Great, you've get ten minutes, make one!" Sean growled back.
"Jace! Drive us up to Gradatim." Chad said. "Steven, make some phone calls or I'll be sure to kill you before Sean kills me! Sean, sit your ass down, call Sapientia, and tell them we need their mages!"
"What are you going to do?" Sean growled at Chad.
"Pull a fucking rabbit out of my hat! What the hell do you think I'm going to do?" Chad growled, pulled out his own phone, and started making phone calls.
Sean smiled and sat down, looking back down at his phone. Chad was pissed, and Sean knew from experience that when Chad was pissed, shit got done. One of the few constants in his world, it seemed. Dialing the number for Arthur, he put the phone to his ear.
"Who's calling, please?"
"James, it's Sean, for Arthur. It's an emergency."
"Isn't it always?" James chuckled. "Just a moment."
Sean didn't hear anything for a few mome
nts, then Arthur came on the line.
"Sean, what's wrong?"
"What's wrong is Gradatim just broke the silence up here, attacking my friends and family in broad daylight in a bar in the middle of Portland. They probably killed at least a dozen mundanes and injured a couple dozen more."
"Damnation," Arthur swore, "and you're going to attack them next. Am I correct?"
"I'm going to attack them now," Sean said with a growl. "Tell the local council if they don't want us breaking the silence up here in a hell of a big way, they need to get their butts in gear and head on out immediately. I'm about to fall on them like a ton of bricks. They kidnapped one of my wives, and if they hurt her, god himself won't be able to save them."
"Hold on a moment," Arthur said and Sean could hear some mumbled conversation.
Arthur came back on a moment later. "Dean says it's already making the news sites, there's even some pictures of the destruction. Idiots," Arthur said with a sigh.
"Yeah, dead idiots."
"I'll call Leonard and let him know, and I'll give him your phone number. Please try to give him a chance to at least show up, Sean."
"No promises," Sean said and hung up the phone.
"Thirty minutes," Chad said.
Sean looked up at him. "What?"
"Thirty minutes," Chad said angrily. "I can get this clusterfuck on the road in thirty minutes. It's the best damn deal you're gonna get, and if you won't take it, have Jace pull over and let me out, 'cause I'm done."
Sean nodded. "Thirty minutes is good. Pull this one off, and I'll buy you all the helicopters you can use."
"That's good, 'cause I want five."
"Five!" Sean said, surprised.
"Just be glad I'm not asking for more," Chad growled, "and I want Black Hawks, none of this antiquated crap."
Sean nodded. "Deal."
Dirty Deeds
Peg groaned and opened her eyes slowly. She didn't need to be told that something wasn't right, she could smell it. Even without her now enhanced senses, she knew the cologne her father wore.
Also, her hands were tied behind her back, and it felt like her feet were tied together as well. But at least she wasn't wearing a hood. Rolling over slowly, she sat up. She was on a thin mattress on a floor. At least that's what it felt like, as her vision slowly came into focus.
"What, no hood? You're slipping, Dad," Peg grumbled.
"How did you know it was me?" Sam asked.
"I bought you that cologne. What, you think I'm stupid? Sheesh. Why do you have to be such an ass, Dad?"
Peg looked around the room she was in. It was an actual prison cell, with bars instead of a door. The walls were made of wood, but the floor was concrete. The walls were whitewashed, which led to some unpleasant speculation, and other than the mattress and an oversized bedpan, there was nothing else in the room. The only light came from a fixture set in the ceiling.
"That's no way to talk to your father, young lady!" Sam said.
"Oh stuff it, Dad. You were going to whip me to death! Hell, I was already bleeding to death when you ran off. Any parental respect you deserve ran off when you did."
"I did it so you could be saved; if I'd stayed, the fight would have gone on longer."
Peg looked towards the cell door where her father was standing.
"Knock off the lies, Dad. Mom's dead, Ben's dead, hell it's just luck I'm not dead too."
"Ben's dead?" Sam said, surprised.
Peg snorted and nodded her head. "At least you cared about one of us. But yes, he's dead. He was visiting when they came and got us, wanted to talk to you about something and was waiting for you to come home."
"I, I thought he was out of town." Sam sighed and shook his head. His son, his only son. He was supposed to have been in Phoenix.
"What about Mom? Didn't you care about her at all, Dad?" Peg grumbled. "It's obvious you at least cared a little for Cam, as you decided to whip me to death first."
"Of course I cared about your mother! Why do you think I was willing to whip you and your sister to death? So I could get my revenge!" Sam said hotly. "You were both as good as dead, it didn't matter what I did to you! They were going to hand whatever was left over to Charles. So what was I supposed to do?"
Peg just sighed and shook her head. "Why am I here?"
"Why do you think? You're here because you're my daughter!"
"Knock off the lies, Dad. If that were the case, I wouldn't be bound and locked in a cell."
"You were with that lion! I've heard the rumors, that you're one of his now."
Peg didn't like the sound of that. She wondered how much her father really knew?
"So why didn't you just leave me there? Why the sudden caring when you didn't give a shit if I lived or died before?"
"Because that lion has been causing problems, big problems. They told me if I took care of him I'd be reinstated, they'd forget what I tried to do to Roger."
"So it wasn't enough for you to screw my life up once, now you have to come back and do it a second time." Peg shook her head. "Mom would have your ass for this."
"Don't tell me about what your mother would or wouldn't do! She's not here, and I can tell you she wouldn't approve of you sleeping with an animal!" Sam yelled at her. Peggy had always been a bit of a willful brat. When he'd learned she and his toy were fooling around, he'd figured he'd raised a lesbian. Apparently he'd raised something worse.
"He saved me, Dad. Unlike you, he took the time and used the magic to heal me. Did a damn good job too. So yeah, I'm Sean's girl now. So what? He treats me better than you ever did!"
"You and all the other women he's sleeping with," Sam retorted.
"Yeah, this from the guy who bought an expensive lycan sex toy. He also took her, by the way, got her to tell us all sorts of interesting things about you, Dad."
"You're not too big to spank, young lady!"
Peg smiled and hoped he'd try. She'd show him a thing or two.
"So, why am I here?"
"I thought that would be obvious even to you, Peggy. You're the bait. Your lion boyfriend will have to deal with me to get you back, and trust me when I tell you, we're going to make it a costly experience for him."
"What makes you think he'll be willing to deal if he's got all those other women to satisfy him?" Peg asked, looking up at her father.
"Because animals are nothing if not predictable. He'll want you because he's claimed you."
"So you're saying he cares about me?" Peg asked innocently, then frowned. "Unlike say, you, my father."
"That's enough out of you!" Sam said, scowling, and cast a sleep spell on her.
Closing her eyes, Peg fell over on the matt. She could tell her father had removed all of her rings and bracelets. The only thing he hadn't gotten was the lycan collar, because it was locked, and only she could take it off. But even though she didn't have the protection amulet Sean had given her, she'd learned the spell from Jolene, and had it running all the time now out of habit.
But her father wouldn't know that, and it was better if he thought she was asleep. Once he was gone, she could see about breaking the ropes they'd tied her up with, then try to figure out how to get out of here. She didn't doubt her father meant to use her, probably even kill her. Just as she didn't doubt that Sean would be here a lot sooner than later.
Sam shook his head and swore softly; his daughter had always been such a willful brat. Not like Camellia, which was undoubtedly why Richard had made a play for her. Camellia had always been the perfect child. Unlike Peggy, who had run wild so many times he'd eventually had to give up on her. What his wife had seen in the girl he never understood, and now never would.
He'd have to find a new wife soon and see if he could replace Ben. Who knows, after all this was finished, he might very well have his pick of the younger women. Maybe this time he'd get lucky and find one that would give him more than one son.
"How's she taking it?" Ethan asked Sam as he joined him back in the main building.
Sam snorted. "It wasn't a happy family reunion, if that's what you're getting at."
"I'm a bit worried about leaving her alone in a cell; she is a magic user, after all."
"Peg was never very powerful, plus I took all of her rings and bracelets, then cast sleep on her and left her sleeping on the floor of the cell."
"And how do you plan to use your daughter to catch this lion?"
"Simple, I have her phone; he's on the speed dial. I'm going to call him up and arrange a trade."
"Oh? And what does he have that we could possibly want?"
"Him. We want him. I'll offer to trade her for him."
"You really think he's going to fall for that?" Ethan scoffed.
"Oh, I suspect he'll try to figure out a way to trick us or take advantage of the situation. I don't care either way."
"And why not? If she's our bargaining chip, why would we risk her?"
"Because, plain and simple, the whole thing will be a trap. Like I've said before, when the kid loses his temper, he gets irrational. We set up a nice little trade, and just as we're about to start it, we kill her. Something messy, like run a sword through her and rip her guts out."
"You'd do that to your own daughter?" Ethan said, looking at him askance.
"She's been sleeping with an animal, hell, she loves animals. She's a lost cause!"
Ethan sighed and nodded. "Yeah, I get your point. I'd kill my daughter, too, if she did that to me."
"The kid'll flip, and any plans he made will go out the window as he attacks me. That'll be our moment to strike."
"And just how are we going to strike? He's a lycan and a magic user. He's not going to just drop like a mundane, and we already know silver won't stop him."
"High explosives," Sam said with a smile.
"Explosives?"
Sam nodded. "We make the exchange at a nice public place, set it up for tomorrow night. Someplace where they figure we won't try anything too outrageous. But tonight we have our guys station a couple of cars full of explosives to either side of the road. The second he's in the killing zone, you trigger it."
