Defender of Magic

by Martha Carr

  Defender of Magic

  The Leira Chronicles™ Book 9

  Martha Carr

  Michael Anderle

  This book is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Sometimes both.

  Copyright © 2020 (as revised) Martha Carr and Michael T. Anderle

  Cover Art by Jake @ J Caleb Design

  http://jcalebdesign.com / jcalebdesign@gmail.com

  Cover copyright © LMBPN Publishing

  LMBPN Publishing supports the right to free expression and the value of copyright. The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to produce the creative works that enrich our culture.

  The distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), please contact support@lmbpn.com. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  LMBPN Publishing

  PMB 196, 2540 South Maryland Pkwy

  Las Vegas, NV 89109

  Version 2.00 August 2020

  eBook ISBN: 978-1-64971-097-0

  Print ISBN: 978-1-64971-098-7

  The Oriceran Universe (and what happens within / characters / situations / worlds) are Copyright (c) 2017-2020 by Martha Carr and LMBPN Publishing.

  Thank you to Early Readers

  Debi Sateren and Kathleen Fettig

  If I’ve missed anyone, please let me know!

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Free Books

  Author Notes - Martha Carr

  Author Notes - Michael Anderle

  Other series in the Oriceran Universe

  Books by Michael Anderle

  Connect with The Authors

  From Martha

  To everyone who still believes in magic and all the possibilities that holds.

  To all the readers who make this entire ride so much fun.

  To Louie, Jackie, and so many wonderful friends who remind me all the time of what really matters and how wonderful life can be in any given moment.

  And finally, a special thank you to John Nelson of the Austin, Texas Police Department who patiently answers all of my questions. I hope I made you proud. Thank you for your service.

  From Michael

  To Family, Friends and

  Those Who Love

  To Read.

  May We All Enjoy Grace

  To Live The Life We Are

  Called.

  Chapter One

  The loud ring of Leira's cell phone broke through her deep sleep. She groaned, rolled over in the bed and slapped at the nightstand. Correk stirred in his sleep and swatted at the air. "Yumfuck, those are mine," he muttered, his face pressed into the pillow. Leira gave a crooked smile and put one hand on his back, brushing aside his long hair. She pulled the phone toward her face and squinted at the bright light from the screen.

  Blocked number. Her heart rate picked up, hoping it was one of her new contacts.

  It was taking some effort to cultivate the hidden eyes and ears in Washington DC. Turner Underwood was helping with the start of a network among the magicals and there was some progress. Still, no one was giving up Wolfstan Humphrey. Well, almost no one.

  The Dark Families were easier. There were more disgruntled witches and wizards willing to talk for a price. Family, go figure.

  I went out on my own to hunt these motherfuckers. Still takes a village... just a slightly darker one.

  Leira sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed, kicking a moving box with her toe. "Fuck me!" she hissed, swallowing the rest of it. She glanced back at Correk and got up, weaving around the boxes to get out of the bedroom and down the hall.

  "For the love of..." Her foot recoiled from a piece of broken stone in the unfinished part of her new house. Their new house.

  "Hello?"

  "You're coming in hot. Everything okay?" General Anderson barked into the phone.

  Leira swallowed, balancing on one foot and leaning against the kitchen counter. "Yeah, just stumbling around in the dark. Hit a few domestic land mines."

  "I have a tip for you that should make you feel better. I know you don't work for me anymore, but this one is going to take your unique skill set."

  "One that can't wait until the sun comes up?"

  "No... Good info never lasts long, you know that. I got it from an old contact of mine who operates off the grid."

  "You mean a felon."

  "No, he's never been caught. If we only gather intel from vetted sources, we'll always be a few yards behind. I want to get ahead. I'm sending you the coordinates. A powerful artifact was left behind by an old wizard who jumped back to Oriceran. You might be able to get it before word spreads."

  "Okay," she yawned. "I'm on it."

  "Best of luck. Stay in touch. You can use this number. It's analog and untraceable."

  "Will we need to chat that often?"

  "I have a feeling we will need each other more than we can imagine right now."

  The general hung up without another word. His usual sign off. Leira hung up and took a deep breath. There was never a bad time to get a powerful artifact out of reach of darker sources, especially with Wolfstan Humphrey out there. She tiptoed back into the room and kissed Correk on the forehead, grabbing her pants, a UT t-shirt, and boots from the table and headed to the bathroom to get dressed.

  She saw the tiny troll's green hair poking out of the top drawer of her dresser. He was neatly tucked in a pair of pale blue panties and was snoring softly. Her constant companion bonded to her for life. Yumfuck Tiberius Troll, formerly of Oriceran.

  "Should I take you?" she whispered, rubbing the top of his head. He trilled and curled into a ball. "Nah, it's early. And this one should be a grab and go."

  It was about time something was simple. She finished getting ready in the one bathroom in the Georgian row house, pulling a brush through her dark hair and heading down two flights to the empty living room on the first floor.

  She caught sight of something shiny and orange poking out from under the couch and leaned down closer in the darkness to get a better look. Underneath were piles of empty Cheetos bags. "Oh Yumfuck, you've been gaslighting Correk and sneaking his stash. This will come back to bite you, my little furry friend." She pushed the trash further back. "An argument for another day."

  Leira looked down at the coordinates on her phone. London. Nice change of pace.

  The Jasper Elf closed her eyes and drew energy from the ground, up through her body. "Almost as good as coffee." Symbols flashed across her skin, changing at a rapid pace. She held up an arm and read the first few lines. "Damn, there's already a few lookey loos." She formed a ball of light in her hands, pulling it apart and whispering into it the coordinates.

  Sunlight streamed into the living room, making Leira blink as her eyes adjusted. "My own kind of jet lag." On the other side was a narrow alley behind a cluster of three-story b
uildings. "How does he manage to get coordinates to an alley?" She pulled her jacket closer against the damp air, the portal closing with a snap and a fizz, sparks dancing across the blacktop.

  "You're a bit late."

  Leira startled, putting her hands up, ready to fight, as a Light Elf leaned out of the shadows, dressed in a windbreaker and jeans. "I was expecting you an hour ago. I thought you Federal types were punctual."

  "Who the hell are you?"

  The Elf circled her, sizing her up. "Didn't your general tell you? He's a cagey one. I guess he figured we'd sort it out. I'm a Light Elf, born here in Clapham and stayed here all my life. My name's Daniel and, no, there's no last name."

  "You're a little short for a Light Elf."

  "Not a good way to start a relationship, dearie. I have feelings, you know. Come on, the sun's already up. We don't have a lot of time."

  "I'm Leira."

  "I know... I've heard of you."

  "You're the source, I take it."

  "I am. The general and me, we go way back. He saved my ass a few times and I owe him." He gave Leira the side eye as they came out onto the street. "You're that Jasper Elf everyone's talking about, aren't you?"

  "Does it matter?"

  "I suppose not. Come on, we're meeting in the park. A Dwarf got his hands on the artifact and it hasn't turned out well for him. He wants it gone."

  "What does that mean?"

  "You'll see. Bit of an issue."

  They walked swiftly across the park, avoiding the path of a few runners and made their way to a bandstand topped by a blue ornamental dome supported by thin iron pillars.

  "Empty. Damn. He must have gotten spooked. Not your lucky day. I don't see him anywhere."

  "Give me a minute." Leira took a deep breath and set an intention. The magic took over, sending out an orb of light that shot up into the sky and moved across the landscape. It was searching for the hum of an artifact, absorbing traces of nearby magic.

  Where are you? Aha! There you are. Quite a bit of dark magic in you.

  "Gobshite!" Daniel looked up with his mouth wide open, watching the light bob and weave high in the trees, jumping over a trio of ponds, circling the entire two hundred and twenty acres.

  Finally, it split in two, half of it turning back, zipping overhead and landing in Leira's hands, the glow shining under her chin.

  "Who the hell taught you that neat trick? Can you teach me?"

  "The Fixer and no." Leira smelled the piece of orb, a metallic residue lingering in her mouth There was a whiff of darkness in the orb, but not enough to put Leira on high alert.

  "Well?" Daniel leaned closer, snorting in air. "I don't get it. Nothing."

  "Your buddy is still here." Leira headed quietly across the trails, keeping to the edges just in case.

  "I never said friend. More of a useful acquaintance." Daniel took to a stumbling trot, trying to keep up with Leira as she began to run, following the dissipating trail. It felt good to stretch her legs. It's a run in a London park. This job's not all bad.

  She got to the edges of the tall sweet chestnut trees, running her hands along the moist bark for added grounding, just like Turner Underwood had taught her.

  "There." The remnants of the orb, a tennis-ball-sized white ring of light, bobbed up and down at the top of the hill, across from an old church. A magical placeholder.

  "Circle marks the spot," she whispered.

  "Very clever."

  She glanced up at the stately red brick church topped by a white steeple sitting on the edge of the park. The ring of light waited patiently just in front of it, moving in the shadows of trees fluttering in the chilly breeze. She walked toward the magical tracer, letting out a deep breath and concentrating on sensing the artifact's pull. As she got closer, she shook her head, wrinkling her forehead.

  "Something's off." The metallic taste was getting stronger, but there was the trace of something else, crossing its path.

  Zing!

  A streak of blue light flashed overhead and struck the ring dead center, exploding it into a puff of smoke. Leira crouched down, pulling in magic as a wizard in a long navy blue woolen coat came down the stairs. Sirius.

  "Fuck me. It's a trap."

  "Now what? There's still a Dwarf somewhere clutching an artifact. He is having the worst day ever. Damn wizards. They ruin it for everybody." Daniel crouched down next to her, lighting a fireball in his palm. "What? You didn't think I was gonna run, did you? Bollocks. I'm a little hardier than that."

  Sirius smiled menacingly at Leira, tapping his crooked wand in his palm.

  "Hello bitches."

  "Well that hurt," said Daniel, pitching the fireball. Sirius flicked it away without taking his gaze off Leira. The wizard chuckled as he strode toward her, the hem of his coat dampening in the wet grass. "I didn't actually think this ploy would work. It must be the human in you."

  "Looks like you bent your wand there, Sirius," Leira called out, ignoring the dig as she rolled a dark fireball in her hands, burning a brilliant orange in the center. "You lose to a Dwarf?" She held up the fireball and whispered, "Find your target."

  The fiery ball of light whizzed straight at the wizard. Sirius swiped his wand through the air, leaning back, forcing it to curve to the right and circle, burning him along his back. He gritted his teeth in pain, muttering a spell and sent the remains of the fireball into one of the nearby ponds.

  "I liked this coat," he said, breathing hard, his face flushed and still walking toward Leira and Daniel.

  "What do we do? Should I try flanking him?" Daniel glanced over at a stand of red maples, judging the distance.

  "You didn't think you could get my dear wife killed and not have to face consequences?"

  "You created that scenario, Sirius when you decided to dabble in dark magic and shifters."

  "Shifters? Shite." Daniel spit out the words.

  "Get to the church. Your friend is in there. I'll follow as soon as I can."

  "I like your optimism." Daniel took off at a run, crouching down and keeping an eye on Sirius. The wizard ignored him, closing in on Leira. She felt herself relax and she stood up, bracing herself for the attack, another dark fireball in her hand, burning at its core.

  "You gave that Gnome the artifact, didn't you?"

  Sirius shrugged, stopping a few yards from her. "It was an old family heirloom gathering dust in a vault. Too dangerous to be used, really. Till today."

  "Let's do this." Leira centered her mind and sent out an intention. Take his power. The energy coursed through her body and glowed from her eyes and her fingertips. She looked down at the symbols on her arms flipping over furiously, showing possible outcomes of the fight.

  They were moving so fast she could barely make them out, but one caught her attention and she wrinkled her nose, perplexed. Shifters? What do they have to do with this?

  The light left her hands just as Sirius flicked his wand, weaving a cloud of blue powder that formed into a spear heading straight at Leira.

  The energies collided, pushing back and forth, edging closer to Leira. She growled in irritation, counted to three and dropped to the ground, letting the spray of magic shoot over her head. She rolled to the side and hurled another fireball, watching it split into four, circling the wizard.

  Sirius swiped away all but one. The burning magical ember hit him in the shoulder, singeing through his wool coat and burning his flesh. He screamed in pain and anger and sent fireballs back at her, shaking the embers off his clothes as she neatly dodged them.

  "I should have brought the troll." She bit her lip and stood back up with her hands on her hips, setting a new intention. "Fuck second thoughts. Today's not your day, Sirius."

  The energy rolled quickly along the ground in front of her, seeking out Sirius, making the bracelet on her wrist rattle as it worked at grounding her. Heat radiated through her body and the scar on her belly ached.

  Sirius raised his wand and braced himself against the light. "Defendendum lu
cem!" His feet dug into the grass, the energy pushing him backward toward the church steps.

  "You should have brought your minions," Leira growled, feeling the energy push harder against her bracelet.

  Sirius bellowed in anger, the sound cutting through the whine of the energy coursing through her. He was barely visible through the glare of the white light, but she pushed harder, determined to strip him of his magic. "I can do this." She bit off the words, gritting her teeth.

  A crimson red flare burst, splintering and digging holes through the white light. The shards of dark energy came at her, too fast to dodge and hitting her square in the chest.

  Leira sucked in air, disconnecting her connection to the magic as she was thrown backward. She landed on her back, grabbing her chest, the flare sizzling in small red dots against her skin.

  A fireball exploded next to her face, and she winced as she pulled herself into a crouch.

  "No one's coming to help you, Leira." Sirius smiled, raising his broken wand. "We are finally at the end of this story."

  Leira pulled herself to her knees, pushing off the ground, determined to face Sirius on her feet. Sparks showered around her, a portal tearing open next to her. Correk stepped through, his longbow already armed and Yumfuck leaping off his shoulder.

  "You were saying?" Leira steadied herself, ignoring any pain.