Secrets and Spellcraft

by Michael G. Manning

  And for Selene, he told himself, though he knew she would be furious when she learned how he had died.

  He lifted his head and stared back at the embodiment of evil. It terrified him to his core, but when his lips opened the only thing he could think to say came straight from his memory of his grandfather. “First, you can go fuck yourself, then you can wipe your ass with a porcupine, you ugly son of a bitch!” He wasn’t sure if he’d ever heard Arrogan use that exact phrase, but he was sure the old man would have approved.

  Another pressure wave shook the room, and the circle failed. Will fell, tumbling backward and landing on his backside. Leykachak raced forward with a grace that made his frightening speed seem almost languid. The demon lord’s skin and features healed themselves almost instantly.

  Let’s fix that, thought Will, and he released the demon-lance spell he had prepared earlier, overloading it with half of his remaining strength.

  The blazing red beam shot forth and struck Leykachak full in the face as he was reaching for the wizard who had tormented him. It blasted away part of the demon’s head and sent him falling back, ass over head.

  Will scrambled to his feet and tried to run. The exit was his only hope, but Leykachak recovered almost instantly. A black line of power raced from the demon’s hand, wrapping around Will’s ankle, searing his skin and dragging him back. “Not so quickly, my pet,” crooned the demon lord.

  Looking back in horror, Will saw another spell forming above the demon’s hand. Without thinking, he formed a point defense shield and put it directly in front of Leykachak’s hands. The demon’s spell exploded harmlessly against it and Will released his spell.

  The demon lord seemed surprised, and Will turned to look back at the exit. He knew he wouldn’t make it. Ignoring his enemy, he formed a force-lance spell and tried to aim for the archway that led to freedom.

  Leykachak laughed. “Idiot. Destroy the ward. You’ll only make my escape from here easier, but don’t expect me to thank you for the favor.”

  Will released the spell, firing it directly at the arch. The distance wasn’t great, but it was far enough that he could conceivably miss.

  His long hours of practice paid off, and the stone arch exploded as the lance of power struck the keystone at the top of the arch. Will turned back to Leykachak. “I’d like you to meet the goddamn cat. He’s a friend of mine.” The air seemed to shake as a low growl reverberated through the room.

  Will barely managed to erect a second shield in time to prevent the demon lord’s next spell from obliterating him. Then the Cath Bawlg flew past him, no longer in the form of a grey tomcat. The beast that filled Will’s vision was beyond anything he had expected. It was a cat of enormous dimensions, with deep, shadowy fur and burning gold eyes.

  The Cath Bawlg landed on the demon lord, and the fight that ensued was almost entirely one sided. The demon that had seemed unbeatably powerful just a moment before crumpled under the goddamn cat’s ferocious assault. Black ichor sprayed the walls, followed shortly after by entrails as the mighty cat disemboweled his prey.

  Will stood back, watching in awe. It was a scene that would have horrified him an hour before, but his mind and body were numb. All he could feel now was a sense of amazement as the Cath Bawlg quite literally tore Leykachak limb from limb.

  The demon’s body continued to struggle feebly, until the goddamn cat pulled his heart free and devoured it in a single massive bite. Only then was the fight over. Will remembered Tailtiu’s words about the cat from long ago, “whatever it eats does not return; its prey remains dead—forever—including us.”

  “Good riddance, asshole,” Will remarked.

  The giant cat left the ruined carcass and walked over to sit down in front of him. “I was beginning to think you had decided on suicide,” observed the cat’s deep voice.

  “Aislinn told me to keep him contained as long as possible to weaken him,” explained Will.

  “Did she also tell you to use potions to extend your strength? The demon was weak enough for me to easily destroy after the first minute of punishment you subjected him to. The rest of your effort was merely an exercise in self-torture.”

  Will gaped at the massive cat. Son of a bitch! “You mean I was wasting my time?”

  “Not entirely. I was impressed by your stubbornness.”

  Feeling angry and foolish, Will turned toward the metal book-stand. He wanted to finish cleaning up the scene and go back to the dorm, but his leg collapsed under his weight. When he looked down, he realized that the demon’s spell had done him far greater harm than he had known.

  The Cath Bawlg wandered over and gave his lower leg a long, slow, and excruciatingly painful lick, but after the tongue came away Will found his leg whole once more. That saved me a regeneration potion, he thought. “Thank you.”

  The cat turned one eye to regard him solemnly. “It is I who should thank you. You have brought me a great gift. Today’s vengeance was sweeter than I imagined.”

  “Does that mean I can call on you for a favor?”

  “Do not insult me. I do not deal in favors and gifts as your accursed fae do. I will repay you in time, as I choose.” The great cat padded toward the stairs, diminishing in size with each step. “Remember, do not call me.” Then it was gone.

  I should have expected that, thought Will sourly. Getting back up on his newly restored leg, he went and collected the book the duchess had used and stored it in the limnthal. A moment later he recovered what remained of his elixirs of turyn.

  After that he surveyed the chamber, wondering whether he should try and remove any of the evidence of what had happened. As things currently stood, it appeared as though someone had broken into the house, murdered most of the guests, then used the duchess to initiate a dark ritual. “Then again,” Will muttered, “I guess that’s exactly what did happen, though they’ll likely misunderstand the purpose.”

  He wondered what the king would think if he found out that Will was the culprit. Based on past experience Will figured he’d either be beaten and told he deserved a reward or executed. King Lognion’s personality was too bizarre to guess which option the man would choose.

  Will was too tired to care. “Fuck him. I have to kill him eventually anyway.” On that positive note, he headed for the exit. He stopped when he noticed something bulky lying in his path. It was the breastplate that Leykachak had worn. Whatever it was made of had remarkable strength, for while the Cath Bawlg’s claws had left scratches in it, the piece of armor was still in one piece. The inner straps had failed, allowing the goddamn cat to pry the backplate away and extract his prey, but the dark bluish metal had held its shape.

  He stored it in the limnthal, thinking it might be useful someday. Then he went up the stairs. For a brief moment he considered searching the house, since it probably held a fortune in valuables, but he was too tired. He wanted out, and he had no idea how long it would be before the city guard descended on the place. It might be hours or minutes. He had no way of knowing. It depended on whether anyone came calling and got suspicious when no one answered at the gate or door.

  With that in mind, he chose to exit via the kitchen door. Will covered himself with a chameleon spell, then added a silence spell. He didn’t have a key for the door and didn’t feel like constructing the unlocking spell, so he used a force lance instead, blowing the heavy wooden timbers apart. The noise might draw attention, but he was done, and no one was likely to spot him now.

  Outside, he made his way around the house and down the street. As he went, he saw another carriage come down the road, one of particularly extravagant construction. He realized it was one of the king’s personal carriages as it passed by. Damn, that was fast, thought Will.

  He quickened his step so he would reach the next side alley sooner. He wanted to be away. When he looked back, however, it wasn’t the king who emerged from the carriage, but Selene. I told her to stay away, he thought with some irritation. What will she think if she sees the interior?
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br />   For a second he was tempted to return. Perhaps he could explain, but then he saw a second figure emerge from the carriage, his old friend Count Spry. Will turned his back and kept walking. I don’t care anymore, he lied to himself.

  Chapter 57

  Despite everything he had been through, Will slept without dreams that night. The tension and anxiety that had been building for a week was finally over. His last thought as he closed his eyes was simply to wonder whether armed men would show up in the middle of the night, beat down his door, and arrest him, but when he opened them again, it was morning.

  He was beginning to develop a certain fatalism. Will’s life was such that he was convinced he would die soon, so he woke with few expectations. He was simply glad to see the sun once more. He opened the window and let the sunshine warm his face. For a moment, he was at peace.

  Until a vision flashed through his mind, that of the duchess bleeding slowly to death. Will’s stomach knotted and he tried to get to the chamber pot before it emptied itself. He didn’t make it. When the heaving finally passed, he was forced to use a cleaning spell to get rid of the vomitus.

  Will dressed, and he tried to ignore the fact that his hands were trembling as he struggled to lace up his trousers. Then he went downstairs to find breakfast. He was ravenously hungry.

  In the dining hall he found a table where he could sit alone, but Rob spotted him and came over to join him, followed a few seconds later by Janice, who seemed strangely subdued.

  As usual, Rob failed to read the mood. After shoveling several sausages down, he paused to announce the news of the day. “Did you hear about what happened last night?”

  Will focused on his porridge, but he felt Janice’s eyes on him.

  “Someone broke into a party at the Arenatas’ home! Everyone was murdered! Well, except the servants, who somehow don’t have a clue what happened. They said the front room of the house was ankle deep in blood and guts. The duke had a hole the size of man’s fist all the way through his chest.”

  More images flashed through Will’s mind and he found his food refusing to go down his throat. He stifled a gag and put his spoon down.

  Janice gave Rob a cool look. “Would you mind if we saved such talk for another time? We’re eating.”

  “Oh! Sorry.” Rob glanced at Will. “Are you all right? I didn’t mean to make you gag.”

  Will shook his head. “It wasn’t you. I think I’m coming down with a stomach bug.” He got up to leave. Janice rose to follow him, but Will held up a hand. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine in a day or two.”

  The look on her face made it apparent she would be along to see him shortly, but Will shook his head. “Tomorrow.” He went back to the dorm.

  Will stepped into his room and shut the door, grateful to be alone again. Then he walked to the bed, sat down, and put his face in his hands. He felt like crying, but that pleasure was denied him for some reason. Instead he let out a long, low groan that seemed to resonate with the ache in his chest.

  “What’s happened to you, Will?” came a woman’s voice, thick with disappointment.

  His head shot up and the force-lance spell that he’d prepared before bed appeared in his hands, but his eyes found no one. That was Selene’s voice. He put the spell away and scanned the corners of the room carefully, assuming that she had used the chameleon spell.

  Before he could spot her, Selene dismissed the spell and her body came into view, standing beside the window. She was staring out at the campus.

  “Nothing,” he responded. “As you can see, I’m doing well. I never expected you to show up here.”

  “I wanted to try the spell out,” she replied evenly, her voice dead. “You shouldn’t be the only one who gets to sneak into people’s rooms.”

  He scratched his head. “I’ve often dreamed about you appearing like this. I just wish it was on a better day.”

  “Feeling guilty?”

  Will nodded. “That’s a reasonable diagnosis. Is there a treatment for it?”

  He could see the muscles in her jaw working. After a few seconds, she replied, “Depends on who you ask. The most popular remedy for your condition would be a public execution.”

  “Are you here to deliver the treatment?”

  Selene’s head snapped around and she fixed him with a red-eyed gaze. “Is that what you think? I’m worried. I saw the inside of that house. At first, I was worried that you might be among those who died in the front room. They’re still trying to figure out if the duchess’ body is among them, but the parts they’ve recovered don’t add up properly.”

  “She isn’t there.”

  “I know. I found her, but no one else will.”

  Will felt a strange sensation, but he had no name for it. Was it hope, companionship, or simply relief? “You saw that?” he asked.

  She nodded. “I sealed the top of the stairs with stone. No one will even know there was a passage there.”

  “Why would you do that?”

  “At the time I told myself the chamber should be hidden, so that no one else would try to misuse it, but I was lying to myself. I didn’t want anyone to see what you did.”

  “The only one I really care about is you. If you’ve seen it, then I could care less what anyone else thinks.”

  She moved closer and sat down beside him. “What I saw was horrific. Tell me what happened. Some of it I understand already, having seen the circle and the remains, but there’s a lot that doesn’t make sense.”

  Will felt as though the world was crashing down on his head. He wanted to tell her, but one fear lay underneath everything else. She won’t love me once she knows what I’ve done. He took a deep breath and held her gaze for a moment. “I kept most of what I knew from you, but now that it’s over, there’s no reason not to tell you, other than my own selfishness. You deserve the truth.”

  “Selfishness? You think I—”

  “Let me tell it, then I’ll accept whatever you think of me afterward.” And with that, he launched into a retelling of the night before. He began with what he had learned from Aislinn, for that was his only justification. As usual, he didn’t mention the ring. That was a secret he didn’t intend to share until Selene was free of her father’s control, assuming such a day ever came.

  He described his reasoning and his plans, then went on to explain the parts that had gone wrong, leading to the massacre in the parlor. The ending was the part he dreaded most, for it had gone exactly as he had planned. Perhaps it had been necessary, but what he had done to the duchess still horrified him. It was a dark stain in the back of his mind that he avoided looking at.

  Except that now he had to tell it to Selene.

  Somehow he did, and then he fell silent. A miserable cold filled him then, as he knew the knowledge would stand between them. Until a shocking sensation swept over him, Selene’s arm moved across his shoulders and she embraced him.

  “Before you get the wrong idea,” she warned, “I’m furious with you, but probably not for the reasons you think. This is so you’ll stop thinking stupid thoughts.” He felt her lips brush his cheek. “I could never hate you.”

  He turned his head to stare at her in surprise. “But the duchess—”

  “I don’t give two figs about what you did to that woman,” she interrupted coldly. “She deserved it. I care much more about how you hurt yourself to do it. What I’m truly angry about is the people who died because of your accident in the parlor.”

  A terrible thought came to him then. What if some of them were friends of hers?

  She read his mind. “No, I didn’t particularly care for any of them. The Arenatas were unpleasant to say the least, and they kept similar company. That isn’t to say those people deserved it. I’m fairly certain most of them were innocent of her plot.”

  Will nodded.

  Then she added, “Next time tell me so I can help you. Maybe we can prevent such accidents, and if not, at least I’ll share the blame. I would rather carry the burden wi
th you than see you suffer like this.”

  “Next time?”

  She arched one brow. “Knowing you, there will be a next time. Don’t forget who my father is. I’ve been raised with unpleasant choices. Part of the reason I continually feel compelled to help people is to make up for my own guilty feelings.”

  The knot in his chest was beginning to relax, and a question that had been bothering him came to his lips. “I chose not to tell the king, but if I had—”

  Selene pursed her lips. “I love my father, but I’ll make a confession to you now. He’s cruel and callous when it comes to ruling and decisions of power. I like to think his choices are correct, even when they’re distasteful, but in this case I’m glad you didn’t tell him.”

  “What do you think he’d have done?” asked Will.

  “The same thing, up to a point,” she replied instantly. “Except he would have only minimized the deaths and given some of his enemies and detractors to the demon lord to mollify it. Overall, I think your answer was the best one, other than what happened in the parlor. Although, if I’d known what you planned, I would have insisted on helping. I won’t let you off easily if you cut me out like this again.”

  Will shrugged. “Well, you are getting married. I can’t drag you into my affairs.”

  “It was my fiancé and my father who were to be murdered. Even if our lives were entirely separated, it would still be my business.”

  “Point taken. Next time I have to kill a demon lord I’ll only keep it a secret from you if it doesn’t involve your family.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “You’d better tell me anyway.”

  “What about your husband?”

  “Future husband,” she corrected. “I’ll do whatever’s necessary and we’ll figure it out afterward. He saw the ritual circle, by the way, and the duchess’ body. I had to tell him that that was the reason I tried to avoid attending the party.”

  Will winced. “Does he know that I was the one?”