“Vernen.” I met his eyes. “Do it. Give it to her.”
His blue eyes dark with anger, Vernen stepped forward, looking like he was having trouble lifting his feet, and placed the amplifier into her waiting hand. She snatched it away, cackling. “Oh, it’s mine. Finally, it’s mine!” She walked backward, joining her sister. “I will remember this, Irina. Although it probably doesn’t matter. Parnaby will have your head by the end of the day.”
“But first I will have yours,” a new voice snarled.
Everyone froze in place.
Parnaby was here.
HE STOOD AT THE EDGE of the walkway to the mansion. Flanking him was Leonid and Elyse, and Aden stood slightly behind them, his sword already drawn. Even from a distance I could see the rage on Parnaby’s face, but at the moment, at least, it wasn’t directed at me.
Aeonia paled. For the first time since I’d met her, she looked uncertain as she slowly turned around to face Parnaby, the amplifier cradled against her chest. Her sister pulled her sword free from the sheath that hung at her back and stepped in front of Aeonia, shielding her.
“Aurora, wait.” Aeonia held up a hand. “Stay behind me. I don’t want him hurting you.”
I blinked. This woman had ordered the deaths of innocents and carelessly stabbed Raynard, but she actually cared about what happened to her sister?
“You will hand that over to me,” Parnaby said, his tone of voice leaving no room for argument. “Right now.”
Aeonia shook her head slowly. “And if I refuse?”
In the distance, thunder rumbled as the biting winter wind grew even fiercer. As my curls flew into my face, I wondered if Parnaby was responsible for the drastic change in the weather. He hadn’t moved from the end of the walkway, but I swore I could feel the magic radiating off of him.
Stay back, little bird, Jaegger advised. You do not want to be caught up in this.
I looked down at Quinn still nestled in my arms. Her face was scrunched up in confusion, as if I’d abruptly woken her in the middle of the night. “Quinn,” I said, gently guiding her toward the front door of the mansion. “You need to go inside.”
She bit her lip. “But…”
“No. It’s not safe. Stay in the foyer, all right?” I didn’t want her venturing too far and running into Dillon. “I’ll come find you when this is over.”
Thankfully, she listened to me, but she did pause before escaping into the mansion. “Irina, if it’s not safe for me, how is it safe for you?”
I exchanged a grim look with Vernen. That’s a very good question. Obviously I couldn’t say that out loud, so instead I gave her a reassuring smile and shooed her inside. Once the door shut behind her, my smile slipped away.
“Vernen, stay close to me,” I said.
He unsheathed his knife as he watched Parnaby confront Aeonia. I did the same, although my gaze was focused on Leonid. I wanted to tell him to run, but I knew he never would.
What was going to happen? Would Parnaby and Aeonia fight to the death? I didn’t think Parnaby would battle in Rise, but what choice did he have? It wasn’t like he’d let Aeonia escape with the amplifier. Having never seen Parnaby battle with magic before, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I could only hope that he could hold his own against Aeonia and reclaim the amplifier.
And then, maybe, he wouldn’t have to kill me.
You should run while he’s distracted, Jaegger said half-heartedly. We both knew I’d never do that. Even with my life in danger, I wouldn’t leave my friends.
We stay and fight, I thought.
The air crackled with energy as the two magic users squared off. Parnaby said something to Leonid and the others, and they took a step back, although I could see Elyse wasn’t happy about that.
Parnaby began walking toward Aeonia. “I don’t know who you are, nor do I care. You are holding something of mine, and if you continue to refuse to return it, then you leave me no choice but to eliminate you.” He paused. “It will be fast, but I can’t promise it will be painless.”
Aeonia laughed, her shoulders quaking. “You think you can beat me while I’m holding this?”
My heart was racing. Would Aeonia even know how to wield the amplifier without taking a moment to study it? I knew nothing about the workings of magic, so it was possible. I’d just assumed she would need time to practice with it before she used it.
Parnaby seemed to share my opinion as he shook his head and said, “You have no idea what you’re holding.”
“Oh, but you’re wrong, my dear president.”
A flicker of surprise danced across Parnaby’s face, which quickly transformed into alarm as Aeonia did something I couldn’t see, not with her back to us. She whirled around—
And Vernen was pushing me out of the way as the branches of one of the trees on Parnaby’s property began growing at an impossibly fast rate, aiming straight for us. They crashed into the corner of the mansion, sending clay tiles, twigs, and dust scattering everywhere.
I landed hard, the skin on my burned hand scraping painfully against the ground. But I ignored it, instead climbing to my knees as I called Vernen’s name frantically.
As the dust cleared, I saw him lying a few feet away, tiles scattered around him. There was a small gash on his head, where a piece of debris had struck him, and blood trickled from the cut, inching down his cheek and escaping under his coat’s collar. “Vernen!” I dove toward him, shaking him. Across the lawn, I could hear Leonid screaming our names.
Vernen groaned, his eyes fluttering open. He coughed once, twice, before shakily sitting up. “I’m all right.” Dust coated his hair and clothes, but I paid them no mind as I hugged him tightly.
“You saved me,” I said in his ear as above us, the newly formed branches creaked ominously.
“That was to make up for yesterday, in the maze.” He patted me once on the back before letting go and rising to his feet. I followed suit, my gaze drawn across the lawn to where Parnaby and Aeonia were engaged in a duel of sorts. Each of them was tossing magic at the other, but the blasts weren’t making contact. I frowned, confused.
They’re using shields made of magic, Jaegger explained. That’s how they’re able to protect themselves.
Oh. I blinked. That made sense. But how long could they keep those shields up and continue to toss magic at their opponent at the same time? Especially Parnaby. He wasn’t the one holding an amplifier to aid him.
“Irina!” Leonid, followed by Aden, came running toward us. They’d given Parnaby and Aeonia a wide berth as they crossed the lawn, and while I wanted to scold Leonid for not staying put where it was safer, I couldn’t. Elyse, meanwhile, had stayed behind, her stance tense as she watched Parnaby fight. I wondered if she’d ever seen him wield magic like this before.
I threw myself into Leonid’s arms, blurting out, “This is my fault!”
“What?” Leonid drew back, confused. “What are you talking about?”
“Later,” Vernen said before I could explain. He was watching the battle with a look of deep concentration on his bloodied face. “Let’s survive this first.”
“But what can we do?” Aden asked, his sword still drawn. The blade was visibly shaking, and he had to swallow a few times before speaking again. “We’re just soldiers. We can’t use magic!”
Before anyone could answer, the front door of the mansion opened. I turned, expecting to see Quinn, but instead West stood there, his eyes wide with astonishment as he took in the scene before. “I’m incapacitated for thirty minutes and this is what happens?”
“Where were you?” Leonid asked.
“Me? Up until a minute ago, I had a knife pressed to my throat.” He pointed to the thin line of blood on his neck. “Then that girl, Quinn, showed up out of nowhere and threw a vase at Dillon, hitting him on the side of his head and causing enough distraction for me to break free.”
My mouth dropped open.
“Kid has got great aim, let me tell you,” West continued cheerfully. “After knocking Di
llon out, I told her to stay in the foyer while I came to see what was going on out here.” He nodded toward Parnaby and Aeonia. “Who’s winning?”
“I have no idea,” Leonid said, looking a little astonished at West’s story. “Wait. Why was Dillon holding a blade to your neck?”
West kicked at the ground. “Ask Raynard. Where is the blowhard, anyway?”
Vernen pointed to Raynard’s crumpled form. Behind me, Leonid let out a string of curses.
“Is he… dead?” Aden whispered.
“We can only hope so,” West muttered. When the rest of us looked at him, he sighed loudly. “Fine. I’ll go see if the bastard is still alive, and then I’ll try and keep him alive, although I really, really want to let him bleed out. It’s only fitting. He’s the reason we’re in this mess, you know.”
“Go with him,” Leonid ordered Aden, who paled but didn’t dare disobey. Sheathing his sword, he followed West down the pathway to Raynard’s crumpled form. “I really wish you’d tell me what’s going on, Lark. Why is that fortune teller mixed up with Raynard?”
“She was using him to get what she wanted. That stone she’s clutching in her hand? That’s an amplifier. It makes your magic stronger,” I said, watching as Parnaby ducked to avoid a blast of magic. It flew across the street, crashing into one of the mansions. The window shattered, and the sound was deafening. “This isn’t good, Leonid. If this keeps up much longer, everyone is going to find out about Parnaby and how magic still exists. There’s going to be riots!”
“I know, but… What are we supposed to do?” Leonid gestured toward the two still fighting. “I hate to admit this, but Aden’s right. We can’t use magic. Trying to stop those two would be suicidal.”
Vernen cleared his throat. Too late, I realized what he was about to say. “I can.”
“Vernen, no.” I grabbed his hand and squeezed tight. “Don’t.”
“But what you said is true.” He gently pulled free from me. “If we don’t do something, Dusk will fall.”
“What do you mean, you can?” Leonid watched our exchange, his brows furrowed in confusion. “You can’t use magic, Vern.”
“I can,” his friend replied simply.
“Stop it, Vernen. Don’t do this!” I pleaded. “Parnaby can’t know.”
“But Dusk—”
“I don’t care about Dusk!” I shouted. “Parnaby will kill you if he finds out you can use magic, and I swore I wouldn’t let that happen!” Tears pricked my eyes. “I watched you die once, Vernen. Don’t make me watch that again. Please.”
Besides me, Leonid had stiffened. “Parnaby will… kill Vernen? Why?”
“Because he thinks I’m corrupted by Bantheir,” Vernen said with a sad smile. “His life for mine, right? Part of him came along for the ride when I was brought back, and now…” He lifted his arm to show a small, flickering fire resting in the palm of his hand. “Now I can do things like this.”
“HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?” LEONID whispered. His face had paled noticeably, and he took a step back, away from both of us. “How long has this been going on? And how come you didn’t tell me, Irina?”
“Because I couldn’t.”
He flinched. “So you’ve been lying to me.”
This was not the time nor the place for this conversation, but I couldn’t just leave things hanging, not when Leonid was looking at me like I’d just stabbed him in the heart. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. It wasn’t like I didn’t know this was going to happen. The lies kept coming, and eventually they would catch up to me.
But even though I knew that, I still hadn’t planned what I was going to say to him.
“I had to.” I swallowed hard. Leonid’s mask, the one he’d worn when we’d first met, had settled into place, and seeing him like that unnerved me. “Leonid, I had to. If Parnaby realized I knew what he was planning, he would have killed me. And with me out of the way, who would protect Vernen?”
“Parnaby wouldn’t kill you.” Leonid shook his head stubbornly. “This is ridiculous! He wouldn’t kill you or Vernen.”
He didn’t believe me. But why should he, when I’d been lying to him all this time? “He told me himself, Leonid, that he would kill Vernen if he showed even the slightest hint of magic. And then he tried to manipulate me into going along with the conversation. After what he did to us, to you, you know he’s capable of doing things like that to get what he wants! None of us matter to him, and killing Vernen would not affect him in the slightest.” I gave Vernen an apologetic glance.
Leonid raked his hands through his hair, exhaling loudly. He wouldn’t look me in the eye, so I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. “He tried?”
“What?”
“You said he tried.” Leonid finally looked up, his dark eyes locking onto mine. There was a gleam in them, that clever look he got when he was listening to his instinct. “Parnaby tried to use his magic on you, but it didn’t work. Why?”
I curled my left hand into a fist as my heart began racing. Did I tell him? Did I dare?
Would he even believe me?
Tell him, Jaegger whispered. He’ll believe you.
“Leonid, I—”
A piercing scream cut through the air and we turned toward the forgotten battle. I expected to see Aeonia on the ground, bleeding, but she was still standing, the amplifier gripped tightly in her left hand. If the scream hadn’t come from her…
My gaze darted to Elyse. She was still standing at the edge of the walkway, but now Aurora, who I’d completely overlooked, had a knife to Elyse’s throat. The silent woman’s other arm was wrapped around Elyse’s waist, making it impossible for her to get away.
“Oh, look at that,” Aeonia purred. “You better let me go, Parnaby. Or is your sweetheart’s life not as important as the amplifier?”
Parnaby was breathing hard, his face contorted with anger. “Don’t you dare. Or else…”
“I really don’t think you’re in any position to threaten me.”
“Parn, don’t,” Elyse said. “Don’t let her get away!” She cried out as Aurora tightened her hold around Elyse’s waist.
Parnaby snarled and raised his arms high above his head.
“I wouldn’t do that!” Aeonia shouted as she held up the amplifier. “I haven’t even used this yet, Parnaby. Do you really want to see what I’m capable of with the extra boost?”
I thought Parnaby would laugh at her and attack anyway, but to my surprise, he wearily lowered his arms and quietly said, “You win.”
“What was that?” Aeonia asked, clearly enjoying this.
“Parn, no!” Elyse shouted. “Don’t!”
“I don’t have a choice, Elyse.” Up and down the street doors opened as residents and their servants exited their fancy mansions, staring and pointing at us. Parnaby gestured toward them. “I can’t risk Dusk—” His voice broke. “I can’t risk you.”
“Parn, you idiot…” Elyse twisted her body suddenly, like she was falling. Caught off guard, Aurora’s grip on her loosened. Taking advantage of that, Elyse bent over and pulled a knife from her belt. The blade was a silver blur in the air as she slashed up and toward Aurora, cutting her on her arm. Aurora grunted in surprise before backhanding Elyse across the face.
Everything seemed to happen at once. As Elyse toppled over, one hand pressed to her cheek, Parnaby bellowed with fury and raised his arms in the air, preparing to attack Aurora. Aeonia struck first, piercing through Parnaby’s defenses and hitting him in the shoulder. It wasn’t enough to incapacitate him, and his magic flew from his fingers, smashing into the mansion across the street in a fiery explosion.
The people in the street screamed and dove out of the way as the house exploded, sending shrapnel flying in all directions. The ground shook, causing my stomach to lurch dangerously as I toppled over.
I wondered if we were all about to die.
The silence after the explosion was deafening. There was a ringing in my ears, so loud I couldn’t hear what Leonid was sayi
ng despite the fact that his lips were only inches from my ear. The air was thick with dust and smoke, and I choked on it as my eyes watered. Vernen put a hand on my back, steadying me.
Sound returned, and the first thing I heard was screaming. We stumbled to our feet, looking like a group of drunks as we swayed back and forth. Across the street, the house—no, the rubble was on fire, and it was quickly spreading. Leonid raced toward the fire, Vernen at his heels. I was slower to follow them, and I was about to plunge into the burning rubble when I spied Elyse, still on the ground. Crouching at her side, I turned her over, calling her name. I nearly wept in relief when her eyes fluttered open and she began coughing. The smoke was growing thicker by the second, and I helped her up and led her away from the burning rubble and toward Parnaby’s mansion.
“Irina!” West and Aden met us on the lawn. West took one look at Elyse, who was unsteady on her feet, and scooped her up into his arms, carrying her to the safety of the mansion. I hoped the fire wouldn’t spread across the street.
“Where are the others?” Aden asked, his face frantic.
I had to clear my throat a few times before I could answer. “They ran across the street…”
“To look for survivors,” Aden finished for me. “Stay with West.” He took off before I could answer, leaving me alone amongst the chaos.
I didn’t want to stand around doing nothing, though. Not with Aeonia and Aurora still out there—
No, Jaegger hissed. The coward took her sister and fled.
My stomach dropped. Aeonia still had the amplifier. Now what would happen?
Focus on the more pressing issue, little bird.
Jaegger was right. People were hurt, and they needed us. I found West as he emerged from the mansion, his sleeves rolled up and his satchel thrown over his shoulder. “Elyse?” I asked.
“She’s bruised, but she’ll survive. I’ve got Quinn watching her,” West said. He raised his brows when he noticed I was following him across the lawn. “You’re going to help me?”
“Yes. Whatever you need me to do, I’ll do it.”
“Good.” We got to work immediately, with West calling out instructions to the people who’d gathered in the streets. Some were injured, but others weren’t. The ones who weren’t were sent to their homes to fetch blankets, towels, and fresh water. Anyone who was injured was placed on the lawn of Parnaby’s mansion, and West went to each person, assessing the damage. When I spotted Leonid helping a young man limp across the lawn, I heaved a giant sigh of relief. There was soot on Leonid’s face, but he was otherwise uninjured. Our eyes met briefly, and then he was gone again, looking for more victims.
The Burning Chaos (Smoke and Mirrors Book 2) Page 18
