Rendal held a glass of wine. “Are you sure you don’t want anything, Harold?”
“Yes, Your Grace. I need to be alert.”
Rendal took a sip from his chalice.
“Would you call us friends, Harold?”
“No, Your Grace. I am your servant.”
Rendal chuckled. “I suppose that’s right. I did threaten to kill you a few weeks ago, didn’t I?”
“Yes, Your Grace, you did.”
“I suppose friends don’t do that to each other, so perhaps you’re right.” Rendal was smiling, although Harold’s face remained stoic. “Well, you’re probably the closest thing to a friend I have, or need, for that matter. That’s why I called you up here—so that we can look at all we’ve done.”
“I appreciate it, Your Grace.”
Rendal was quiet for a few moments. Of course, he hadn’t called Harold up here to shoot the shit or look at what they’d conquered. There was no they; there was only him. Rendal. It was his mind that allowed this to happen, and it would be his mind that allowed them to go further.
“Is this all there is?” he asked.
“What do you mean?” Harold responded.
“I mean, here we are. We’ve got what we wanted. New Perth is mine. Yet, what am I to do now? What’s next?”
“I do as you tell me, Your Grace. That kind of strategy is beyond my ability.”
Rendal nodded. “I know, I know. It’s just… I thought it would be more than this, I guess. I find it kind of…boring.”
“It’s not enough?”
“Maybe the world isn’t enough, Harold. I don’t know yet, but I do want to find out. First, though, I need Riley. I need to know whether she is dead or alive. If she’s alive, I either need her with me or dead.”
“No one knows where she is, Your Grace. No one knows what happened to her,” Harold answered.
Rendal knew his second in command wanted nothing to do with this. He didn’t want to be anywhere near the young sorceress.
“We have to find her, whatever it takes. I can’t leave this place and move out into the wider world if she’s still here. I’ll return to find that everything I worked for was stolen from me.”
Rendal glanced at his second in command. The man wasn’t pleased, although he would do as his master bid.
“I want you to go find her. Take as many men as you need, as many mages as you need, and bring her back here. This will be the last time I ask you to do it. She will either bow to me, or she’ll die. Riley’s time in Irth—at least as she currently lives it—is at an end.”
“She won’t come,” Harold replied. “She’ll kill us, your Grace.”
“Then overwhelm her with force. Empty out half the fucking kingdom if you need that many people, but ensure she’s ready to return.”
Harold stood. “You’d like me to get started now?”
Rendal nodded. “You understand perfectly, as I knew you would.”
Harold turned to go, but Rendal spoke up again. “And Harold, if her sidekick is with her—William—I want you to know that I expect you to kill him when you both return. I expect to watch it. I haven’t forgotten. There is no room for weakness in my tent, you understand?”
“I do, Your Grace,” Harold answered.
He left Rendal alone on the rooftop.
It was almost over, this stage of Rendal’s growth. He was done toying with Riley. He was done begging. He’d done everything he could for her, hadn’t he? He’d shown Mason mercy. He’d shown her mercy, yet she continued to defy him. Rendal couldn’t wait forever.
In truth, he’d gone above and beyond trying to show her how silly her loyalty to New Perth was. He’d done more for Riley than anyone.
Now she would choose, and if she chose wrong, she would die.
Harold wanted to punch a hole through the castle wall. The fucking problem was that the damn thing was made of stone.
He didn’t know where Belarus was or how to get in touch with the damned fool. Rendal was obsessed with this woman, and Harold could barely take it anymore. Everything had been about her since she had first walked into their lives.
Harold made his way down to the guards’ barracks.
“Anyone seen Belarus?”
Some of the guards were playing cards, and others laying on their bunks. They all jumped to their feet at the sight of Harold.
“No, sir. He left an hour ago,” one of them said.
“Where did he say he was going?”
“Sir, do I have permission to speak freely?”
“Yes, please do.”
“He was going to one of the local whorehouses.”
Harold breathed in deeply. “Which one?”
“Maggie’s, sir.”
“As you were.”
He turned and left. This was his fault, not Belarus’s. He should have had the man killed months ago, but no… Harold had kept him around.
Because I’m always busy with Rendal’s shit. The moment we finally make headway and find a bit of stability, he’s telling me how much more we have to do.
Harold walked through the dark streets until he found the madam’s place of business. There was no sign that said Maggie’s, but the guards had all quickly found the whorehouses. Belarus was freaking addicted to these things. Was he not capable of finding a regular woman?
Dumb question, Harold thought.
He knocked on the door, and after a few seconds, a small window slid open. A pretty woman’s face peered out from the other side. “Can I help you?”
“There’s a man named Belarus inside. He’s a damned bumbling idiot, and he works for the Prefect. Tell him he’s got about two minutes to get his ass out here or I’m coming in there.”
The woman’s eyes narrowed, but she saw that Harold meant business. The window slid shut, and Harold stepped back into the street.
About a minute and a half later, the door burst open and Belarus stumbled out. His shirt was halfway on, and he was struggling to get his second leg into his pants.
“Boss, sorry, boss. Didn’t know you was gonna need me.” He got his foot stuck in his pants and hung like that for a moment, his face growing more and more concerned as he realized what was about to happen.
The idiot can’t figure out how to stop it, Harold thought. I’ve got to make sure he dies, or at least demote the bastard.
Sure enough, Belarus tipped over.
He fell into the street, and the whores behind him started laughing.
“Shut yer damn mouths!” Harold hollered. “Shut ‘em, or I’ll come in there and beat each one of ya ‘till yer black and blue!”
The door swung shut, but Harold could still hear the laughter from inside.
“Do you think with anything besides your dick?”
Belarus had sat up and was finally managing to get his pants on. “‘Course, boss. But at night, a man needs a little rest and relaxation, you know?”
“Well, that’s over for now. We’ve got business to attend to.”
“‘Course we do, boss. ‘Course we do. How can I help?”
“We’re going after the woman again.”
Belarus eyes narrowed, and he looked up. “That Riley bitch?”
“Yes, that Riley bitch. Rendal wants us to go find her and bring her back.”
“Boss, don’t nobody know where she is. I done asked like you told me.”
“Yes, and I’m sure your questioning was very in-depth,” Harold mocked. “Just get up and listen to me. We’re going to get together a group of three hundred soldiers, and one hundred mages—the ones we brought from Sidnie. And by we, I mean you’re going to do it. I need them ready to go by tomorrow morning.”
“Where are we goin’, boss?”
“That’s what I’m going to figure out. Just do your part, and don’t worry about mine.”
Belarus finally stood from the cobblestone street. “Okay, yeah. ‘Course. We’ll be ready by the mornin’.”
“Don’t fuck this up, Belarus. My temper is short ri
ght now.”
“Shoot, I won’t boss. Everythin’ will be ready, promise.”
Harold left Belarus standing alone in the street, the laughter from the whorehouse finally quiet.
Rendal had better not be lying about this being the end of the woman. Harold was sick and tired of her, and all that went on with her. They had the kingdom. They were capable of actually leaving here and going out into the world to conquer more. They didn’t need her.
She needed them.
Or she needed to die.
Chapter Eight
Riley’s eyes opened, and her body started moving before she was actually able to think.
She rolled off the bed, grabbing the sword that sat beneath it, and leapt to her feet. Her eyes lit red, and fire washed across her blade.
Rendal stood in front of her—the dark mage, wearing his red robe, the color of his eyes matching hers.
Electricity covered his hands.
“Hello, Riley.”
The electricity ripped from his fingers. Riley was barely able to spin to her right, avoiding the blow that would have killed her. She went to a knee and brought her left hand forward, slinging tiny arrows of flame toward the mage’s face.
They slammed into a forcefield, one she hadn’t been able to see. It glowed blue, and the tiny arrows disintegrated.
“That’s all you’ve learned in our time apart?”
Rendal brought both hands together, and this time a tunnel of electricity shot forth. It slammed into the concrete floor and spread out outward in an ever-widening circle.
Riley let the point of her blade touch the ground, leaping into the air and levitating there. She thrust the sword forward, aiming it directly at Rendal’s heart. It flew through the air, but the mage moved nearly as quickly as she had, dodging it.
The movement forced his electricity to halt. Riley called the sword back as she dropped to the ground.
Rendal raised a hand, and the sword stopped in mid-air. The hilt faced the ground and the point the ceiling; the two mages were locked in a stalemate, because Rendal was calling it to him as well.
The sword shook in the air, unable to go either way. Riley felt Rendal’s power, massive like a mountain. Immoveable. A force that could not be reckoned with.
“Riley,” he said, “you’ve already lost.”
Rendal pushed the sword forward—it whipped toward Riley, both mages flinging it at her. It moved faster than her eyes could see; she had no chance to move.
And then it stopped, the point a half-inch from her throat.
Riley blinked.
Rendal wasn’t standing in her room any longer. Linda was. No red robe, just the drab clothes the old woman always wore. Her eyes weren’t red, but brown. No electricity covered her hands, nor was there any blackened concrete where Rendal had thrown it.
The sword started falling, but Riley’s hand whipped out like a rattlesnake and grabbed it before it touched the ground.
Her heart thudded in her chest, and there was sweat across her brow.
“It was you the whole time?”
Linda nodded.
“How?”
“That’s another element of psychic magic. I made you see what I wanted you to see.”
“But I didn’t feel you,” Riley told her.
“I wasn’t inside your head, so you wouldn’t have felt me. You didn’t see through the disguise until I wanted you to, then all was revealed.”
“You realize you’re not making any damned sense, right?” Riley grinned slightly. The woman was talking, but instead of words, it was like a gray cloud was coming from her mouth.
“I’m making sense to the initiated.”
“I’m not initiated?”
“You got one foot in and one foot out, girl.”
Riley smiled again. “That’s a dance we used to sing as kids. We called it The Hokey-Pokey.”
“You’re going to hokey-pokey yourself into death’s embrace if you don’t start paying attention.”
“Okay, what am I missing?” Riley asked. She turned around and laid the blade on the bed.
“Did you see Rendal fully? Was there no part of me behind the mask?”
Riley nodded, her back still to the woman. “Only him.”
“Do you know why?”
“Of course not.” Riley laughed. “If I knew why, I could fix it.”
“Because you fear him.”
Riley whipped around. “I don’t fear him. I’m ready to attack him. I’m ready to leave right fucking now and go get him.”
“You’re courageous, that’s for sure, but you do fear him, even if it’s way, way down. It’s because you still don’t think you can beat him. It’s not your own death you fear, girl, but the death of your loved ones. The death of your kingdom.”
“Why can’t I use psychic magic? I can practically fly, but I can’t create masks like you just did. Why?”
“Psychic magic is different than the other kinds.” Linda moved a chair into Riley’s room and sat down. “Other types of magic involve manipulation of the outer world. Psychic magic, for the most part, only uses your mind. You can’t use it because you don’t believe in yourself.”
“But you do?”
“Yes, I do. I have for a very long time. It was the only way I could give up on the mission Ezekiel set out for me.” She stared at Riley. “Why didn’t you beat me?”
“They say you’re one of the greatest mages to ever live. How could I expect to beat you?”
“Girl, you are dumber than any human has a right to be.”
Riley smiled.
“I’m ninety-two damn years old. I’ve been able to fend people off from this place primarily because of my psychic magic and weather magic—”
“Weather magic?” Riley asked.
Linda waved the question away. “They call it different things in different places. Just means I can make the elements do my bidding. Even at this age, I might have been able to fight off Worth and Alexandra when they showed up, but probably not. I made a good showing, and that’s usually half the battle.”
Riley sat down on the bed as Linda grew quiet for a second.
“I’m old, is what I’m saying, girl. I’m old and frail, and you could wipe the floor with me if you wanted. I might be able to battle back for a few minutes, but in the end, my strength would give out.” Her face grew really stern. “That didn’t happen just now, though, and unless you’re dumber than a bag of nails, you know why.”
Riley sighed and looked down at her feet. “Because I didn’t think it was you. I thought it was Rendal.”
Linda raised her hands in the air and looked into the sky. “Father and Mother, finally she says something halfway intelligent. Praise be to you!”
She grinned as she looked back at Riley.
Riley wasn’t smiling. “I don’t know what to do except go back and try to fight him. I can’t learn this shit. I can’t learn psychic magic. I can’t get over this block with him.”
Linda nodded. “I think when you finally learn the psychic part of this, you’ll be through your block. I think when you learn that, you’ll be able to kill Rendal.”
William was fed up with the dead city and the nearly dead woman.
He’d spoken to Riley a bit ago, but he didn’t want to push her. He needed her ready for when they got back to New Perth. He needed her able to beat Rendal’s ass.
The old woman, though? William was fine pushing her.
He found her in the center of the crumbling city. She was sitting next to a statue whose head had long ago fallen off. It only had one arm, and although its chest was clearly that of a woman, the rest of the thing was a disaster.
The fallen statue stood in the middle of what had once been a fountain. Linda sat on the fountain’s outer edge.
“They did a great job of capturing your likeness with this statue,” William said as he arrived.
“Even if I wasn’t a mage, I could have smelled you coming the moment you turned onto the road,” Li
nda retorted. “You need to go sit in the ocean for an hour, and leave your clothes on, too. You smell like a diaper that’s been in the sun for about twelve hours.”
“When they built this thing, they missed your head. Was it because it’s too ugly? They didn’t want to scare off tourists?” William grinned.
“There’s actually a male statue of you a little ways to the south. I imagine it’s perfectly lifelike, because it’s missing a dick.”
“All right,” William said. “Enough. I didn’t come here to banter with you, ya old biddy. I need to know where Riley’s at in terms of being ready. Each day we spend here with you is a day that Rendal rules my kingdom.”
“You’re right. Your kingdom. Not mine. What’s your point?”
“We need to leave,” William said. He’d been standing behind her, but now circled around so the two faced each other.
Linda raised her eyebrows as she looked at him.
“So leave. Trust me, fat man, I’m not keeping you here.”
William ignored the barb. “Is she ready?”
Linda shook her head. “Nowhere near.”
“Why not? You’re supposed to be some kind of grand mage or something, right? We’ve been here for days, and you’re not making any progress.”
Linda smiled, her teeth gleaming through the wrinkles and tan. “Well, William, you’re more than welcome to pick up my slack if you think it’ll be beneficial.”
“Enough with the jokes. I'm serious here. Rendal isn’t a joke; he’s a severe threat. He sacked the largest kingdom on this continent, and now he’s taken New Perth. He’s taking everything.”
“Go stop him then. I’m not going to get in your way.”
William wanted to pull his axe off his back and chop the old woman’s head clean off, make her resemble the statue behind her.
Instead, he sighed.
“Will she ever be ready? Are you going to be able to help her? Tell me true, because if it’s no, we need to leave. We have to try to stop this.”
“You’re a hero, aren’t you, William?” Linda glanced around the broken kingdom she ruled.
“I don’t know if I’m a hero. I know that there are things that need to be done, and I know I’ve sworn to do them.”
Hand of Justice Boxed Set Page 63
