Devious Magic (31 page)

“Okay, okay, guys.” I raised my hands, waving at them to calm down, wincing as the movement pulled at my side. Étoile and Anders glowered at each other, but not with any real anger, seeing as they both had a point. We were all tense. It had been a long, dramatic night and it still wasn’t over. The clock on the bookcase behind Anders signalled it was six in the morning and the sun would rise soon. “We can figure all this stuff out later,” I finished and, after a moment or two, where it looked like an argument might erupt, both Étoile and Anders shrugged.

Once conversations had started up in smaller groups, and some people left, fanning out through the house, I crossed to the window and looked out. It was still dark, but there were the faint fingers of light now signalling the sun was ready to rise. I could see a few people sitting around in the garden, the occasional beam of a flashlight illuminating one of them. Whether they were wolves or witches, I didn’t know; but it seemed comforting that there were so many people here, on our side.

Far in the distance, I saw smoke rising as Hawkscroft smouldered. Looking back at Daniel, he looked completely beaten and I felt a rush of sympathy for him. I wondered if we would ever interact like we were family; maybe we’d call each other and email and he would come stay with me? I’d seen how my foster families interacted with their wide arrays of children, siblings, as well as past foster children and extended families, but I had no idea if that would work for me. Perhaps it took practice and I was just at a disadvantage? I could learn the family stuff, especially as Daniel was now alone. Perhaps he’d always been alone, just like I had.

“Stella?”

I realised someone had repeated my name a couple of times, and I looked around. “Yes?”

It was Étoile, beckoning me away from the window. I followed her into the small hallway where Anders was waiting. For once, Étoile looked nervous. Then Evan and Daniel joined us, and Anders signalled us to follow him into another room, some kind of study where he could shut the door and face us. “What is it you’re not telling me?” he asked astutely.

“Anders, we think there...” Étoile started again, picking her words carefully. “We think there is a traitor, someone who is double-crossing us.”

“What makes you think that?” Anders frowned.

“Because someone knew we were going to take that tunnel out, and they made sure the Brotherhood were waiting for us,” replied Evan.

“There were patrols everywhere,” Anders said cautiously. “They were on alert.”

Daniel looked from Evan to me, then to Anders, as he thought about it. “Not in the tunnels,” he said, his voice strong and clear, more assured now there were only five of us. “No one goes in them. Only me. I’m not even sure Morgan knew about them; not all of them anyway.”

“Maybe he just never used them?” Anders suggested.

“I’ve been using them for over ten years. I swear, I never once saw Morgan use them, or saw any sign that he or anyone else had. I used to leave markers, pieces of string stretched across the passages, things that would have been broken or moved if anyone else passed through, and they were never broken.”

“That’s not all though,” interjected Étoile. “What about the group supposed to be watching the tunnels, ready for when we came out? They should have been ready for us if anything happened. Instead, we were forced out the wrong exit, right into the Brotherhood’s hands again.”

“I don’t need to point out that I only found three of them,” added Evan.

“They were ambushed,” said Anders, but his voice betrayed a lack of conviction. “The others will turn up.”

“And what if one of them is a traitor?” I asked, studiously avoiding mentioning any names. “I know it’s horrible, but we’ve got to consider that possibility.”

Anders turned on me, his face drawn with tiredness. “Why would any of our witches help a member of the Brotherhood? That’s not just being a traitor; that’s tantamount to murder.”

“Anders, we can go in circles talking about this for ages, or we could perform a spell.” Étoile looked around the room, at the nodding heads. Sure, none of us liked the idea that someone here would betray us, but if a simple spell provided an answer, that seemed preferable.

Anders thought about it. Finally he said, “Do it.”

“Wait,” I said, as they turned, starting to leave. I grabbed Daniel’s arm, pulling him to stand next to me and, for a moment, he looked panic-stricken. “I need to tell you something. Daniel and I need to tell you something.” And I spilled. I told Anders and Evan what Étoile already knew, that Daniel was my cousin and that Auberon had wanted to recruit me too. I told them about Auberon and my mother being siblings and of the rift that had sprang between them, of the magic that had apparently skipped Auberon but was strong and clear in the rest of our family line.

When I finished, Daniel chipped in his version, telling us of Auberon’s growing dissatisfaction with magic, of his conviction that witches needed to be eradicated. In a cool voice, he told us about the punishments he’d received for performing magic, for the times he’d been punished when he’d done nothing. But there was something that could not be explained. He told us about losing his mother, and how Auberon’s madness got worse after that, and he began recruiting. The Brotherhood seemed like a cult to him at times. He told us what happened the day Auberon realised he could harness Daniel’s magic and use it against us. Finally, exhausted, he collapsed into the chair by Anders’ desk, his head in his hands and I stroked his back softly, the way a mother would a child.

Étoile was, surprisingly the most sympathetic, but then I remembered that she understood what it was like to have a family member targeted and exploited. “We’ll help you, Daniel,” she said, patting him awkwardly on the head. “And no, you’re not homeless. Let’s think of this as more of a homecoming.”

He raised his head out of his hands to look up at her and I could feel the fizzling, nervous energy contained within him.

“Any more family members we need to know about?” Evan asked.

“That’s it from the Morgans,” said Daniel. “Just me and Auberon. And if he’s dead, then... just me.”

“And me,” I said. “You’re not alone.” And neither was I now; I had a relative.

“If there is a traitor, we need to find him or her fast,” interrupted Anders. “Let’s call everyone to the barn. We won’t all fit in the house. You can head out the kitchen door, the barn’s unlocked.”

Anders made his way past us, sticking his head in and out of rooms, passing on his instructions.

“Let’s go,” said Evan, herding us on. As we passed into the hallway, Bree joined us.

“Bree, this is Daniel, my cousin. You haven’t met properly yet,” I said to her.

Bree smiled at him. “Hello,” she said, her voice like a whisper.

“Daniel likes plants,” I told her. “He’s very good at growing things.” She smiled a little more brightly at Daniel and turned to walk alongside him, asking him about what he grew. If nothing else, at least I’d gotten Daniel a friend, another person to reassure him as we followed the line of people making their way to the barn.

“Uncle Auberon, eh?” said Evan, softly so no one else could hear us.

“Don’t remind me,” I muttered back. “All my life, I wondered if I had a family, and this is what I get?”

“I don’t get any sense of malice from Daniel.” Evan pulled me to one side, and I saw we were in what appeared to be a garden, bordered by a stone wall. A little further was the barn, the lights flickering on, briefly lighting up the courtyard and the fields beyond. Étoile walked past, frowning at us but I waved her on. “But keep your head together. If his father lives, and he appeals to him, it might be hard for Daniel to resist. People do all kinds of stupid things.”

“You really think Auberon would reach out to Daniel?”

“I think he’d do anything to destroy every last one of you, including Daniel. He’d mourn him, but he’d think he’d done the right thing. That’s his twisted reality. I don’t want you to be a casualty of that.”

“Ditto,” I said, because there wasn’t much else to say after that. “Let’s go hear what Anders has to say.”

Seventeen

People seemed to emerge from everywhere, far more than could have been in the house or garden. By the time Evan and I walked in, making our way behind the assembling crowd, to Étoile and Daniel, it struck me that there were close to fifty people and still more streaming in. The barn easily held us all; it seemed to be a storage facility for animal feed and farming equipment of some variety, everything stacked in orderly piles. I perched on a hay bale, my side aching and my legs heavy while I tried to stifle a yawn.

Some of Bree’s folk had arrived. None were quite as pale as she, but they had the same ethereal quality she possessed and some were barefoot, despite the cold. She moved away from us to stand with them.

I spotted Beau, searching the small crowd, before he saw us and waved him over. When he saw Annalise, he grasped her in a bear hug, completely oblivious to the people around us and kissed her full and hard on the lips. “I’m never letting you out of my sight,” he told her.

“No one ever greets me like that,” muttered Étoile, trying not to smile.

I nudged her in the ribs. “Don’t look at me. I’m not that into you, but Jay wouldn’t take any persuading.” I reminded her of the Wilding wolf she had been out with a few times and she smiled happily.

“Knew you liked him,” I teased.

“Yes, I do, and hush,” replied Étoile. “I’m not going to tell you a thing.”

“Spoilsport.”

“Friends,” Anders called and we all turned to him. He spun slowly in a circle, spreading his arms out, including everyone. “I thank you for your help in assisting us with retrieving our sister witch, Stella Mayweather. The Brotherhood lies in ruins.” A solitary cheer went up and there was some clapping. “That does not mean we have defeated them,” he continued, more ominously. “We must continue our fight for freedom from their persecution. It’s time for us to rise up!”

“He’d make a great politician,” whispered Étoile in my ear. It was my turn to shush her.

Anders turned again, silently this time, and the whispers that sprang up around the barn fell silent. His next words pealed out across the barn. “But we suspect there is a traitor in our midst. Someone has sold out to the Brotherhood. Someone has betrayed us.”

A low rumble travelled around the assembled crowd as they darted looks at us. I glanced up at Evan, stock still, staring them down, slightly reassured when he squeezed my hand. Anders’ people seemed slightly less welcoming now, though I might have imagined it. Maybe it wasn’t that they thought we were traitors, but that we were the accusers. They were right, we were the ones disturbing their relative peace and I knew exactly how it felt to find out that someone close to you was working against you. Though I hoped we were wrong, I knew we weren’t. I took my cue from Evan and Étoile and didn’t flinch or fidget. Instead, I stared straight back and refused to be intimidated.

“We ask that person to step forward.” Anders looked about him. Not a single person moved. He nodded, like he’d expected that. “Again, I ask that the person step forward so that they can explain themselves.” He waited a few seconds, then glanced towards me, then Étoile. She inclined her head and something imperceptible passed between them.

Drawing a canister from his pocket, Anders shook it briefly then walked in a tight circle, spraying a larger circle on the floor around him. As he walked around twice more, Étoile and I linked hands, waiting as the spell fell from Anders’ lips.

“They’re the traitors,” shouted a voice. “Or their daemon is!”

Anders repeated the spell, enunciating every word carefully and, this time, Étoile and I joined him, lending what power we could. After a moment, I heard Daniel, too.

I could feel the magic in the air; I could feel it searching. One more time, and the traitor would be pulled forward. We were close to finishing our second round when Evan leapt at us, pushing us to the ground. Overhead, the air parted as something sailed past to lodge in the wooden strut holding up the upper level of the barn. When I looked up, I grimaced. Wedged there was an axe. “Whoever it is, they are telekinetic,” Evan whispered. “Anders would know who amongst his coven has that sort of power.”

“And they’re in this room,” said Étoile. “You were right, Stella.”

“I wish I wasn’t.”

We scrambled to our feet. Most of the witches remained still, even though they didn’t look too happy about the turn of events. The nymphs looked startled and they huddled together, slightly away from all the witches. Anders was unmoving in the middle of us, his eyes searching the crowd. Then he started to glow. No, it wasn’t a glow; magic was pouring from him, filtering into the air. I could feel its power and purity. The barn doors slammed shut, bolts shot into place from the outside. Anders had us all trapped.

“Stella, I don’t think Anders is just any witch.”

I looked at Étoile sharply. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, he’s not just coven master of this region, I think he’s the head of the UK. Possibly more by default than design, given that so many are dead,” she added. “But he’s powerful. I wasn’t sure before but I am now. Can you feel it?”

I nodded. Magic rolled in waves from him. “We’re teamed up with the head honcho without knowing it?” I asked and waited while Étoile nodded. “Yay for us!”

“Not so ‘yay’ right now. He’s angry. Let’s finish the spell.” We stayed low. Gage and Annalise moved over to us, then they and Evan surrounded us as we completed the chant. The magic reached out, rolling around us and reaching back for Anders. At first, it seemed like nothing was happening and I wondered if our magic conflicted with Anders. Or if his powerful spellcraft had weakened ours in some way. Or if I were simply too weak to boost the power that the spell needed.

A shuffling and a shout went up and I searched for where it came from, finally finding it. A fight had erupted on the far side of the barn. A couple of people were pushing and shoving and one of them went down, rolling into a ball to avoid being trampled. Climbing back up on the hay bale, I stood carefully, straining to get a better view. No, they weren’t fighting; they seemed to be defending themselves as a person was dragged through them by invisible hands. She was kicking and fighting and grabbing at people, trying to keep from being dragged to the circle Anders drew. Momentarily shocked, the people were trying to help her. Then, as they realised what was going on, they started hitting back, trying to free themselves from her grasping hands.