Seacursed: The Mage Circle Trilogy: 1

by L. A. McGinnis

  With a shaky breath, she hesitated, then reached out and took his hand, the scent of water threatening to overwhelm him completely in the small, enclosed space. Stepping outside, he pulled her into the hall, then toward the kitchens, where he prayed one of the fridges held the food he’d promised her.

  He pointed to a stainless-steel table, and she jumped up onto it while he searched the shining bank of industrial fridges one by one, finally finding the stack of white cardboard boxes. Lifting the first lid, he took a breath. “Pepperoni and mushroom.” The next box looked mostly green. “Veggies and cheese, I think. Only one piece gone, so this was probably Alexis’s choice.” He offered her the box, and she lifted a slice out, took a bite and…smiled.

  Jesus, she was stunning. Radiant. And most definitely otherworldly.

  Which made what he was about to do especially tricky.

  But he had no other choice.

  There was only one thing that mattered to Kieran in this world, and Lucas was lying on a table getting his face cut open in the slim hope he might eliminate an age-old threat to their family. All because Kieran was too big of a pussy to do it himself.

  “Something to drink?” He pulled out a bottle of water and an energy drink, offering her both. She debated, then took the energy drink. And another piece of pizza. Then a third. When she was done, he put the cake box on the table, opened the lid and handed her a fork. Here at the Warehouse, they didn’t stand much on ceremony. Rhiannon was pretty much a savage, and the rest of them just followed suit. Alexis did what she could to civilize them, but in the end, they really were a bunch of heathens. After a second’s hesitation, and a covetous glance at the hunk of chocolate cake, Victoria took the fork.

  “You are going to do something for me,” Kieran told her, and her face turned to his, surprise written all over it. “You are going to do this for me, not because you want to. In fact, I expect you are going to hate me for it. But in the end, you’re going to do what I tell you.”

  She chewed slowly, as if digesting his words. “And if I don’t?”

  “Then you’ll stay here and I’ll get them into Obsidian Hall myself.”

  Fear spiked so high in the girl that it seared through him, the acid-hot taste of it coating his mouth, hitting him in the chest, a punch of potent power. “You can’t do that.” She gasped. “You can’t keep me here. I’ve cooperated. I told you I’d get your brother inside. And I swear to you, I will.”

  She’d said she didn’t need a magical leash, but there had to be a way the Mages controlled her, a means of jurisdiction.

  “Why do you need to get back, Victoria? Ever since you arrived, you’ve been checking that watch of yours. You practically freaked out when Luc told you the mission was tonight. And now you’re in a panic because you might have to stay here. Tell me what’s going on, and maybe we can help you.”

  “I can’t.” The helplessness contained in those two words told him everything he needed to know. She was a slave. Somehow, this life, this job, wasn’t of her design. Or her choice. “Let me go tonight. Please. I’ll get your brother close to Worton. And once he is, I won’t stand in his way. He can do whatever he wants.”

  “I can get you out of here sooner, but there’s something I want in return. And you need to swear to it. I’ll accept nothing less, because Luc is all I have, and losing him…” Kieran’s throat closed up. “You’re going to swear it to me, and then that will be the end of this, understand?”

  She nodded.

  “You get him inside. I’ll make sure he makes it past the wards. Once he’s done with Worton, you get him back out. I don’t give a shit how you do it, but you get him through the doors alive and breathing, and I’ll be waiting. Then we’re done, and our arrangement is complete.”

  “I swear.”

  “Oh no, it’s not that simple, sweetheart, and you well know it. Give me your hand.” He swiftly cut a gash across her palm, then a matching one on his, and clasped their hands together. Magic twined together, their blood binding the oath, making it everlasting. Until it was fulfilled.

  Victoria snatched her hand back, clasping it tightly, blood beading between her fingers while Kieran handed her a towel. “What did you do?” Her fear was palpable. “Are you completely crazy? I can’t be bound to you…they’ll sense it. The second I walk through those doors, they’ll know.” Her voice rose until it bordered on hysterical. “You just sentenced me, and your brother, to death.”

  Kieran eyed her even-paler face, the tightly strung muscles of her body, as she braced for flight. “I did no such thing. I wouldn’t endanger my brother.” He paused. “Nor you.”

  Half a thought and his magic settled over her, a blanket of protection, similar to the one he’d put over Lucas just before the surgery. The one that would make the two of them indistinguishable. The one that would save his brother’s life. And, quite possibly, this girl’s.

  “Worton wants me for a very specific purpose, one that he failed to complete the last time he held me prisoner,” he said. Her gaze wandered back along his scar. “He’ll be anxious to see you this time, anxious to get Luc in front of him. To gloat. He’ll want to take him down into the catacombs.” Kieran paused. “This must not happen. Lucas has to stay aboveground for my protection spell to work. So long as neither of you go below the dungeon level, you’ll be safe. But go past the third level, and…”

  “I thought you said you didn’t remember,” she whispered. “You said you didn’t know where the Hall was.”

  A short, bitter laugh barked out of Kieran. “I remember everything. How could I possibly forget? The Circle wouldn’t let me forget. I see what they did every morning, in this fucking scar on my face. But I can’t go back there. What happened, what was done to me…” He stopped seeing her, the room, as everything began to darken. “I can’t go back. You get Luc close enough to Worton to kill him, then you get him to the doors. We’ll get you both out of the city.” Her face seemed to fall. “We’ll get you both out,” Kieran insisted. “And then you can do whatever you want. Stay. Go. Come back here to New York; it matters not to me. So long as you keep my brother alive inside that hellhole, and keep your end of the bargain, you have nothing to worry about.”

  Something flitted across her face, her brow furrowing, before she murmured, “All right. I’ll do it. Not like I have any choice, though, is there?”

  11

  The noose tightened around Victoria’s neck, pressing against her windpipe.

  That was what this felt like. Feet balanced on an unsteady chair, ready to topple over. And when her neck snapped, and it was the final thing she heard, well, she hoped to Christ it would be fast.

  Jesus, how had she ever thought she’d skate along in this life? Bringing in bounties for the Mages, always within the required time frame? Ten years had probably been a long run, in retrospect. And miracle of miracles, the fact that nothing had gone wrong before should have been a tip-off that her luck was running out. Look at her now. Hours away from death, bound by a blood oath to a perfect stranger, and about to embark on a mission to betray the men who owned her. Bought and paid for her.

  Splashing cold water on her face only brought her a temporary clarity, and the face in the mirror definitely looked worse for wear. She’d held out a hand to Kieran when he’d tried to follow her in, and now he lingered outside in the hall, waiting. Victoria checked her watch again, like some sort of compulsion forced her to. Five hours. Not enough time.

  Something was bound to go wrong. Everything, more than likely, with this crew.

  But she scrubbed her face, peed and went back out to where Kieran waited.

  “My gifts will return once we’re outside this building and away from the wards, I assume?”

  “They will,” he replied. “But the bond and my magic should keep you in check. So be cautious, Tracker—use enough force with Luc to convince the Mages he’s your prisoner, but don’t hurt him. I saw the mark you left around his neck before; don’t even think about incapacitating
him completely. In truth, he’s more use to you aware and pissed off. If you can stand being around him, that is.” Kieran’s mouth twitched. “Don’t worry, I’ll give him the same little speech I’m giving you right now, so he’ll be on his best behavior. Just don’t expect too much.”

  Despite herself, Victoria liked him. His eyes didn’t lie, and she trusted him. More than she trusted the Mages, who’d only ever used her and manipulated her, each of them using her as a tool in their power plays against each other. “Don’t worry, I don’t have high expectations.”

  She might have left it at that, had he not asked, “How do you find them? Your quarry? How do you track them—how did you find me, for example?”

  No one had ever asked her. The Mages didn’t care. They’d bought her from a fisherman long ago, knowing full well what she was, and what she was capable of. And exactly how they’d use her.

  “I’m part nymph. I never knew who my mother was, but…I can sense and control any beings made of water, as easily as if they laid out a map right to their door. I can also sense their emotions and, to some extent, control them.”

  “That explains your smell.”

  “Please tell me I don’t stink.”

  “You don’t stink. You smell like water,” Kieran said. “The ocean.”

  “Really?” She was genuinely curious. She’d never talked to anyone like this before. Certainly not about her heritage, nor about magical things. And while part of her screamed at the risks, another part of her wanted more, more, more.

  “Like brine, the smell of the wind when it whips off the sea. That’s your scent. I should have guessed, actually, just from that, but I never met a nymph before.”

  “Half nymph,” Victoria corrected him. “My father was human. A fisherman on the coast. We lived far away from any towns or cities.” It felt so strange to give up something of herself, these secrets she’d held on to for her entire life. Saying the words out loud, it sounded like she was telling the story of a complete stranger, and yet they poured out of her as if the story couldn’t wait to be told.

  “He did his best, I think, but I was wild. Too wild. Out of control, most of the time. And then one morning his boat didn’t come back, so I looked for him. I found him at the bottom of the sea, and I carried him home. I buried him on land, since that’s where he should be.” She peered into Kieran’s kind grey eyes. “Did I do the right thing?” She’d always wondered. Always been torn between leaving him at the bottom of the sea and putting him in the ground, since he’d spent half his life on the water.

  Kieran answered gently, “Yes, humans like to be buried in the earth,” and the loosening in her heart was such a relief her mouth trembled. “You did the right thing, Victoria. How old were you?”

  “Twelve, I think. It was a long time ago,” she murmured, recalling how her life went to shit after that. “Can I ask you something else?”

  When all he did was stare, she asked anyway. “What would you do if you only had a few hours left to live?”

  12

  Lucas stared at his reflection. The new scar sliced his face in half, rendering him almost unrecognizable. It was the oddest thing. He hadn’t thought it would make a difference. A sort of disguise, a temporary masquerade. But Kieran had been right. This cut far deeper than he’d expected.

  His brow rose as the door burst open behind him, his brother a mirror image.

  “You can’t do this tonight. And you have to let Victoria go. She’s got to get back to London, right now.” Kieran, the steadfast, calm one, was panicked. And that was saying something, because he never lost his shit.

  “Whoa, slow down. We’re all set up, and everyone’s ready. No way I’m passing up this opportunity.” Lucas grinned, spun around and pointed to the scar. “Look, I even got this, just for tonight. My secret disguise. Can’t let Doc’s good work go to waste.”

  His smile faded when his brother grimaced in frustration.

  “Seriously, Kieran, what’s the problem? You spend ten minutes with her and now you’re freaking out. Tell me what she said right the fuck now. I’m not letting her derail this operation. I’ve waited too damn long for this, and you have too.” He sucked in a breath. “Even if you won’t admit it.”

  “She’s on a timetable, and it’s running out.”

  “Yeah, no shit, tell me something we didn’t know.” Luc turned away, caught his reflection again and frowned. “We’re all on a timetable, and I cannot wait to get inside those black walls and kick some ass.”

  “You misunderstand, brother.” Kieran’s gaze was unwavering, even in the mirror. “Her time is running out. Literally. When she told us the Mages don’t keep her leashed with magic, it’s because they control her another way. With a death spell.”

  Lucas froze.

  Death spells had been outlawed since the Dark Ages. And for good reason. Mortals hated magic and distrusted magic wielders. Power was always used against those less powerful, and back in the day, unscrupulous sorcerers learned that particular lesson all too well. Death spells had been used to enslave entire villages. And slavery, whether bound by iron chains or magical ones, had long been banished from their world. But like most men with power, the Mages thought they were beyond the law.

  “They can’t possibly have put a spell like that on her, Kieran. It’d be irreversible. She’d be a…”

  “Slave,” his brother finished for him, his voice flat. “She is, and has been, since she was twelve. Twelve fucking years old, when she was sold to them, for ten thousand pounds, by a friend of her father’s. Eighteen years she’s been tracking for them. A child, Lucas. A fucking child, working as a Tracker.”

  Kieran dropped his head into his hands, and Lucas felt like doing the same.

  “Still.” Lucas tried to find a way around it. Tried, and failed. “So we send her back. Follow her. I get inside and find Worton. Kill him. This might not be a total failure.”

  “She’s got less than five hours before the spell activates. Once she appears in front of Worton, he negates the spell. He’s the only one who can reverse it. If she fails to come in, she dies. If we let her go now, she’ll have a chance.”

  Lucas calculated her odds. She’d make it. But barely. “And if she shows up without her target in tow, what then?”

  “She didn’t say. I only got as far as the death spell. Then I stopped listening.”

  “Where is she now?”

  “Hallway. Outside of the bathrooms. I just…left her there, I think.”

  Which meant, if the girl was smart, she was already gone.

  Without a backward glance, Lucas took off at a run, not stopping until he spotted her, slumped down against the wall, exactly where Kieran had left her.

  It shamed him that he’d never asked her name. It shamed him that he’d threatened her, shown such terrible rage toward her. His voice raw, he said gently as he drew closer, “I talked to my brother.” Crouching down, so they were eye to eye, he said, “You didn’t deserve how I treated you. I was angry.” He pulled in a breath. “And I was wrong.”

  Surprise, and something deeper, shone in her eyes. And then she shook her head. “I came here to take your brother away from you. For good.” Such self-hate in the small smile she offered him back. “Trust me, I deserved everything I got from you.”

  “How much time do you have?”

  She flicked her wrist. “A little more than four hours. It could be enough.” He had to admire the dead calm of her voice. As if she was simply giving him the time. As if, for her, everything didn’t hang in the balance.

  “What happens if you return without Kieran? What happens if you fail?”

  “I’m not sure,” she said, shaking her head. “I’ve never failed them before. But there have been others…” She shifted backward, tilting her head back. “I was tasked, once, with hunting down one of my own. He begged me to kill him, rather than deliver him back to the Mages. I couldn’t do it.” Her eyes shifted up to his and held his stare. “I always wondered if I should
have. If, one day, I would regret it. If, one day, I’d be the one begging to be put down.” She shrugged her narrow shoulders. “I suppose in four hours I’ll find out, won’t I?”

  “No,” Lucas said, grasping her hand and pulling her to her feet. “Because we’re going in there, just like we planned. Worton is mine, and I’ll make it look like you had nothing to do with it. Keep down, so you don’t get hurt, and I’ll find my own way out. That way, you won’t be compromised.” He could offer her that, at least.

  “There are too many things that might go wrong, and there’s no way you’ll get out of that place, not without my help.” Victoria’s hand tightened around Lucas’s. “We stick to the original plan. That’s got the highest potential of success. With Worton out of the way…” A slight smile crossed her face. “With him out of the way, the Mages will be in disarray for a few days, even weeks. It could buy me some time. There is a place I might go where I’ll be safe.”

  She sucked in a breath and held it, as if waiting for his decision.

  Lucas considered. He’d waited forever for revenge. And whatever the cost, he found he couldn’t turn his back on this one chance, no matter the odds. “All right, then—we go in like we planned. Kieran’s agreed to accompany us to London, but that’s as far as he can go. What’s our entry point on that end?”

  “Wellington Arch. There are places in Hyde Park for Kieran to linger unnoticed until we come back out. What about the rest of your team?”

  “Positions to be determined,” Lucas answered, his thoughts focused on the next four hours. “Let’s worry about you and me. Are you planning on putting that leash around my neck again? Because last time, it hurt.”

  “Only because you fought me,” Victoria said mildly. “Don’t fight me this time, and it won’t hurt.”