Hollows 11 - Ever After (43 page)

“An unbound gargoyle?” Ku’Sox said, the disgust in his voice obvious as he watched Etude. “What do you hope to accomplish there?”

“You kidnapped his son!” I said, then elbowed Quen in the ribs. The line had gone slippery. “Let go of the line, damn it,” I muttered, then I filled my chi when he did. “We need to work on this sharing thing,” I said, and he grimaced.

I dared a look at the line humming clean behind Ku’Sox. “Your sludge is out of the line,” I said boldly. “It was your aura signature on the curse that broke it. Give me Bis and Trent, and I might not press charges.”

Ku’Sox smiled, and I couldn’t help my shiver. “In a moment,” he said, smile fading as Etude paced between us. “It
looks
clean, and I don’t sense any . . . trickery. What
have
you done, Rachel? You can’t have fixed it. You moved it, but where? Curious.”

I stiffened as he looked to the sky then took one sharply angled step sideways into my line like it was a river. “You lose!” I shouted, adrenaline pouring into me, and Quen caught my shoulder to keep me from striding forward. “I’m calling Dali. Your ass is mine, and you will admit you broke it!”

“I . . . don’t think . . . so.” Ku’Sox was in the line, tasting it, almost, making sure it was truly clean. It was. I could guarantee it.

“Your aura signature is at the bottom of that sludge line!” I asserted, and Ku’Sox laughed.

“Perhaps, but I don’t see a sludge line.”

“That’s because I got rid of it!” I shouted, and then I fell back, my folly falling on me. I’d moved all the imbalance, yes, and his curse with it. Until I got all the imbalances where they belonged, no one would be able to see his curse. Damn it! Couldn’t I catch a single Turn-blessed break?

“Tell me how you did it,” Ku’Sox said, seeming to be genuinely curious. “You couldn’t have destroyed it. You put it somewhere, holding it in your chi perhaps? Is that why you stole a pair of elven rings?” He simpered at Quen. “Needed some help holding that much slop?”

My head hurt, and I lifted my chin. I didn’t think he knew which rings we had, or he would be more aggressive. That I hadn’t proved he was responsible for the event horizon was infuriating, but if we couldn’t prove we were stronger than him, it wouldn’t matter. C
owards! Why am I helping them?

“I wonder,” Ku’Sox said, standing in my line and soaking it in, bathing in energy. “Can you defend yourself while hiding all that imbalance?”

Etude’s ears pricked in alarm, and I stiffened, imagining a circle around Quen and me. Ku’Sox shifted, and my eyes widened. I reached for the ley line, shouting “
Rhombus!
” only to fall to a knee, fumbling for the line running through my fingers like sand.

Quen pushed out, and I ducked as the sparkles of his thrown energy lit the dark. I could feel the line flowing through me, running into him. I was adding to Quen’s defense, but I might as well have been a cat with the help I was being.

Etude roared, his hands grasping as he lunged at Ku’Sox. “No!” I cried out, but Ku’Sox shouted a satisfied-sounding word, and Etude was flung back, flipping head over tail, headed for . . . us.

“Rachel!” Quen cried, jerking me out of the way as Etude crashed into the retaining wall. Rocks and dirt sifted down over him. I shook off Quen’s hand and ran to him, brushing the dirt from his huge, pushed-in face. The gargoyle was breathing, but out cold.

“Quen?” I stammered, looking up at him. His lips were pressed together hard, but his anger wasn’t at me as he helped me up. I didn’t think it was directed at Ku’Sox, either, who was advancing slowly. We were up shit creek, and I didn’t even see the “if” that got us there. The rings were not working well. Quen was way outclassed.

“You’re not holding the imbalance,” Ku’Sox said, curious now. It was the only thing keeping him from hammering us into the ground. “Who is? Is it Newt?”

I am wearing a slave ring
. . . echoed in my head, and I looked at my hand in horror.
What have I done to myself?

“No, not Newt,” Ku’Sox mocked, misunderstanding the look of terror I knew I was now wearing. “You’re all alone at last, Rachel. It took me longer than I thought to get you isolated. Everyone
likes
you.”

I am wearing a
slave
ring!

Ku’Sox threw something at us, and Quen knocked it away. I hid behind him, unable to think, to comprehend. I had to get this thing off!

“She’s not alone,” Quen said, and Ku’Sox laughed.

“You?” Ku’Sox stopped eight feet back, not trusting my fear, I think. “You don’t count,” he said lightly, looking at his nails. “They’re letting us fight it out, even if they do like her best. Isn’t that nice? They want the strongest parent possible for the next generation.” He smoothed his clothes in satisfaction. “That would be me.”

Letting us fight it out? Yeah, that sounded about right. We were making enough noise in the ley lines to pique the interest of the most sedentary demon, and the chicken squirts hadn’t shown up yet. That didn’t bother me as much as the fact that I couldn’t get the ring off my pinkie. Scared, I leaned to Quen’s ear. “I want the ring off.”

“I know. You can’t tap a line worth the salt in your veins. I’m sorry,” he said, and then I cowered as I felt a huge tug on me and Quen’s bubble flashed into existence, glittering a fabulous green before it faded. “If we take them off now, we will die. The only reason my circle is holding him is because it’s made with both our strengths.”

Crap on toast, he was right, and I stood beside him, not knowing what I could do to make this better. I knew the demons were watching. Why didn’t they help us? “You’re insane!” I shouted, knowing they were listening. Besides, Etude was stirring, and I didn’t want him taken out before he recovered.

“My state of mind is not the issue here!” Ku’Sox shouted, his face red even in the faint light. “It is about strength!”

“It’s about adaptability and resources, and all you are is psychotic! You can’t fix psychotic!” I yelled back as Etude staggered to his feet, a low rumble of his anger flowing about me as his wings opened and funneled the sound forward. His growl resonated through me, and I swallowed hard.

With a crack of stone, Etude pulled a chunk of wall away and threw it over our heads. Ku’Sox swore, deflecting it to thud into the thick grass.

“Quen, take my ring off!” I exclaimed, tugging at Quen’s coat as I felt a huge pull through me. It was Quen, prepping a spell, and I let it flow, knowing I could do nothing wearing this stupid band of silver.

Looking magnificent, Quen threw a ball of black-hazed energy at Ku’Sox. The harried demon deflected it within a breath of contact, and it went whizzing into the river, lighting the bottom of the trees in an eerie glow. Etude was tossing great clods of earth at Ku’Sox, darting from the ground to the air to make a difficult target.

“Quen!” I shouted as the man ran for Ku’Sox, his fist swollen with a green haze. “No!” I shouted as Etude and Quen descended upon Ku’Sox together. Etude’s rock fell harmlessly to the side as Ku’Sox sidestepped it, but Quen’s blow landed, the man’s fist plowing into Ku’Sox’s face to make the demon scream and fall back.

Teeth clenched, I lunged forward to pull Quen away before Ku’Sox could retaliate. Fire licked the soles of my feet as we ran, and we were both picked up and flung into the grass, the distance muting Ku’Sox’s last curse. My face planted into the clover, and I sat up fast, spitting dirt. Nearby, Etude was shaking his head, a tear in one wing bleeding slowly. Beside me, Quen slowly sat up, his hand touching his lip. “Damn.” Quen licked his bleeding lip, almost smiling as he looked back at Ku’Sox, lost under a thick black sheet of ever-after. “Think he gave up?”

“No! He’s turning into a bird to eat us!” I shoved my hand into Quen’s face. “Take the ring off. Take it off now!”

Quen’s face was guilty. “I can’t,” he said flatly as he got up.

“The hell you can’t!” I tugged him around to look at me. “I can’t tap a line worth crap. You admitted it yourself. And I can’t get the ring off!”
Oh God. Had Al been right?

“I told you, the only reason we are doing so well is because of your strength and my skill. If I take it off, your strength won’t keep us alive.”

“Maybe you didn’t notice,” I said, pointing to the cocoon Ku’Sox was in, “but we’re not doing so hot right now!”

Quen’s jaw clenched. The misshapen form inside was growing larger, and like watching a chick develop, I saw Ku’Sox’s legs thin and lengthen, his arms grow into wings, his head mutate until a wicked, long beak formed.

“Etude, go!” I shouted, waving him off as Ku’Sox punched through the shell of ever-after, screaming a harsh, ugly call that echoed against the trees. “He’s going to eat you!” I exclaimed, heartsick when the gargoyle beat heavily into the air, his silhouette a darker blackness against the night sky. Ku’Sox was already his size and still growing.

“My God, Trent was right,” Quen said in awe, and I rounded on him.

“Yeah, he’s a big badass stork that eats people. Quen, we have a problem!”

Awestruck, Quen watched Ku’Sox flap his wings and croak, daring Etude to attack. “We can circle him. Now’s our chance.”

“Circle him? It won’t stand,” I started, and Quen’s attention came back to me.

“It will if we work together.”

I could not believe this. “We tried that,” I said, hunching when the breeze from Ku’Sox’s wings flattened my hair. “I want the ring off, and I want it off now!” I reached for his hand to take his ring and use it to take mine off, and Quen jerked away from me.

Shocked, I stared, three feet between us.
No. Not Quen.

Above us, Etude and Ku’Sox met in a clash of talons and wings. Jerking, I watched as Etude tried to bite the back of Ku’Sox’s neck, and they fell, wings beating madly. Descending slowly, they crashed into the trees at the far end of the clearing. They were down.

My heart was pounding as I looked at Quen, hand extended. “Give me your ring.”

Taking my shoulders, he spun me around to the fight. “We can do this.”

Distrust blossomed in me.
Do this, and I give you your freedom.
I’d seen that in the history books before. Ku’Sox screamed, his black shadow rising up from the trees. Etude was bellowing from the woods, so he was still alive. Ku’Sox was coming right for us, his wings making the air shake, and yet Quen still stood, a green haze about his closed fist.

“Get down!” I shouted, ducking to crouch next to the retaining wall as Ku’Sox swooped over us, his huge claws reaching. The memory of seeing pixies slip down his throat rose up, and I cowered, the wall pressing into me. Fire lanced my shoulder, and I screamed.

“
Immuluate!
” Quen shouted, and I choked as the line raced through me, making the new rip in my shoulder burn like lava.

And then Ku’Sox was gone, swinging around for another strike. Hand clasped to my shoulder, I stood, watching his dark shape against the sky. He was playing with us.

“Rachel! Are you okay?”

I looked at Quen sourly as his enthusiasm paled. It was all I could do to not yell at him that no, I was not okay. “Fine,” I said, pushing at the edges of the cut and seeing very little blood.

“Maybe you’re right,” Quen said as we watched Ku’Sox turn and come back like a deadly pendulum. And then he brightened. “The line!” he said suddenly. “You can jump them. At least to the one in the garden. You can jump us both.”

My eyebrows rose. “You want me to jump a line? Carrying you? That’s what got us into this in the first place.”

“Down!” Quen said, his hand on my shoulder, and we flattened as Ku’Sox buzzed us again. I think he was enjoying himself, but he wheeled sharply, landing twenty feet away, wings outstretched and bill snapping loudly.

“You can do it,” Quen said. “If we’re sharing mental space, you can carry me. You know the signature. You just dumped the imbalance there. Even if Ku’Sox follows us, the gargoyles will help.”

Perhaps long enough for me to sit on him and make him take the slaver ring off.
Beyond him, Ku’Sox snapped his beak and strode forward. I nodded—burning to death in the lines was better than being eaten.

“Keep him off us,” I said as he took my hands and nodded. “And try not to hog the line!” I shouted, feeling it strengthen around me.

Ku’Sox hesitated, head cocked as I tapped the line and my hair started to float. Letting out a murderous caw, he began to run, guessing our intent.

“Now!” Quen shouted, and I bubbled us, shifting the hue and sound of it to that of the line ten feet away. I knew it by heart now, and it was easy.

I heard Ku’Sox scream in defeat as the beauty of the line took us, and the swirling warmth of the line washed the ugliness of the grove away. Everything went silver in my mind. Quen snapped a bubble around his thoughts, making me wonder how often he’d traveled the lines before.

Home,
I thought, recalling the harsh jangle of the chaos I’d made of the line in the garden. It was a mass of orange, blue, black, and red, and though I could see it in my mind, I couldn’t shift the resonance.

Home!
I thought again, starting to panic. The damn slavery ring was interfering.
Quen, help me tune the bubble to match my aura!
I cried out, but he couldn’t hear me, and I couldn’t leave him there.

Quen!
I tried again, and a cool/warm thought slid into mine with the bright sparkle of butterfly wings.

Got you!
came Bis’s cheerful thought, and with a shimmer, Quen’s and my auras flashed to a strident purple.

I was real. Stumbling, I sucked in a huge gulp of air, shocked when my boots skittered across electric-light-lit tile, not the starlit red slab of cement I was aiming for. I looked up, hearing a groan as Quen hit the floor behind me a second later.

My face became cold, and Trent turned, his rolling chair making a clicking sound as he cocked his head at my battle-dirty clothes and tangled hair.

“This isn’t my garden,” I whispered, and Trent’s smile chilled me to my core.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

T
rent stood, a hard eagerness obvious on his blond-stubbled, tired-looking face. Fear slid through me, and I hid my hand with the ring behind me. Quen could give him the master ring and, with it, me. Trent would be the most powerful elf in generations. He could save his people. Why would he ever take it off?

“I didn’t expect you until tomorrow,” Trent said as he swooped to us, his lab coat billowing behind him.

“The deadline was moved,” Quen said. “Sa’han, you were right. This isn’t working.”

“Obviously. If it was, you wouldn’t be here.”

He was reaching for me, and I pulled away, standing before he could help me.

“I got you!” Bis almost sang, and my heart sank. We had left Etude alone with that monster. “I snagged you. Right. Out. Of. The. Line!” he crowed, his wings spread and his red eyes sparkling in the fluorescent light. “I’m go-o-od. I’m go-o-od. I’m so bad I’m go-o-od,” he sang, doing one of Jenks’s hip wiggles, his tail curved over his head and wings spread wide.

I had just left Etude there, and I fought with the desire to go back. Beyond the thick plate glass, the babies slept, the light dim and making the glass somewhat reflective. Trent was gesturing sharply as he and Quen talked in hushed whispers, and I didn’t like the chagrined expression that Quen was now wearing. Al was right. I was a fool.

My hands were shaking, and I leaned against a counter, wondering if I was going to throw up. Ku’Sox would figure out where we’d gone eventually. The slaver glinted on my finger, and I wanted it off. “Thanks, Bis,” I said when the adolescent gargoyle finished his well-deserved “happy dance” and dropped to the counter, his claws scraping. His smile was wide, and I didn’t know how I was going to tell him about his dad. Taking a breath, I whispered, “Your dad is a wonder.”

Bis’s ears pricked, and the hair on the end of his tail stood straight up. “You saw him?”

I nodded. “He came to the church, then helped keep Ku’Sox off us at the castle. We left him there, but Ku’Sox was after us, not him. I think he’ll be okay.”
God, please let him be okay.
A baby was crying, and I turned to the nursery windows. The woman was furtively weaving her way to the cradle—as if she’d be punished. “Bis, start jumping the babies and women out of here.” I was down to salvage, but I knew getting their children back would mean the end of a nightmare for a handful of families. At least, until their children started doing demon magic, hosts to Ku’Sox’s favorites.

Bis took to the air in little hops. “You bet. Where do you want them? Trent’s place?”

I was going to say the church, but if Bis knew the line in Trent’s office . . .

“My office?” Trent exclaimed, and I pushed myself up from the counter, angry. His hands were in the pockets of his lab coat. Quen’s were behind his back. I didn’t know who had the ring, and suddenly it was really important.

“The church’s garden is full of pained gargoyles right now,” I said as Bis crawled on the ceiling into the nursery.
Oh God, what if Ku’Sox was there now? Looking for us?
“I want the ring off, and I want it off now.” Neither one of them said anything, and I stiffened. “Did you hear me?”

“Yes, of course,” Trent said, but neither one of them was moving. “Can it wait until we get out of here? Apparently you and Quen working together is the only way you survived this long. It would be foolish to halve our strength until we are sure we can afford it.”

“Survived!” I blurted. “That’s the word for it. This isn’t working! We need to go!”

Trent jerked into motion, rolling his chair across the lab to a bank of cabinets. Maybe I should just cut my finger off. I didn’t really need ten fingers, did I? Trent got along okay with less than that. “I’m not leaving until the infants are gone,” Trent said, rummaging in a drawer. “And until they are, the rings stay on.” His gaze went to the blood seeping from the scratch Ku’Sox had given me, and I tugged the torn fabric to cover it.

I glared at Quen, feeling betrayed. “Soon as they’re out of here, the ring comes off.” But neither one of them said anything, and I headed for Trent, hands clenched. “And then it comes off!” I said again. “I am not going to be your battery to try to kill Ku’Sox. Understand?”

“Yes, of course.” Glancing at Bis, Trent stood, his hands full of bandages and ointment he’d taken from the drawer. “Sit, you’re injured.”

“My arm is fine!” I said, glancing behind me to see only seven, then six babies left. Trent had dropped his head, and then it hit me. I wasn’t the only slave here. “How much can you do?” I asked Trent, and his lips twitched. “I mean, are you like his slave slave, or do you still have free will?”

Trent glanced at Quen. “Ah, as long as Ku’Sox isn’t paying me any attention, I have my will. And when he makes one mistake, he’s going to die.”

He was looking at my hand, and suddenly my warning flags tripped. Ashen, I hid my hands and looked between Quen and Trent. There hadn’t been enough time in that hushed conversation for Quen to bring Trent all the way up to speed. “You knew I reinvoked the slavers,” I said, and Trent seemed to freeze. “How? Did you have Quen pull Riffletic’s rings to force me to reinvoke these . . .
slave rings
! So you could use me to kill Ku’Sox?”

Quen’s eye twitched, and Trent reached for me. “No, well, fight maybe,” he said, his eyes pleading. “You’ve got it backward, but they’re the only way to even hope to make a strong enough bond between demon and elf. I was afraid if I told you, you would have said no.”

“I put this on because I trusted you! And you forced this decision on me?” I jerked away from Quen. My hand was in a fist, slaver gold glinting between my knuckles.
You tricky little bastards, what have you done?
I thought, glaring at Quen, then shifted my eyes to the glass behind him. It was shining with a red, rosy glow.

Suddenly the room flashed white, a muffled explosion making the glass tremble. I gasped, falling to my knees when it cracked. Trent went for the floor as Quen spun. A boom of sound shook the air, and the glass shattered inward.

Quen was flung back, arms flailing as he hit the tile a second before the safety glass pattered down on him. Crouched and head covered, I was struck by shards. Babies were crying, at least three, maybe more.

“Where are you taking them, you little swamp rat!” Ku’Sox shouted, and I felt a tug as Bis popped another baby to safety. Ku’Sox didn’t know Quen and I were here, and my heart pounded. Shit. Who had the ring? Trent or Quen? Ku’Sox owned Trent. Would he own me by default too?

Quen shifted, and glass slid from him. The faint tinkling went unnoticed as Ku’Sox shouted at Bis. Thumps and pops were coming in through the broken window, and I peeked over the shattered edge of the window frame. Bis was swooping madly, his face alight and his sparse hair bristled. He was enjoying himself, but I was scared to death for him.

“Hey!” I shouted, standing up, and Ku’Sox spun, the demon actually looking surprised for one—blessed—moment.

Black teeth showing in a grin, Bis used the distraction to pop another baby to safety.

Ku’Sox glanced at the gargoyle, then back to me. Looking grim, he walked toward us, snatching a wailing infant from his crib by his leg, his blue blanket falling to the floor. “I don’t know if you are incredibly stupid or incredibly clever,” he said, carelessly dangling the screaming baby upside down. “Are you seeking a way to implicate me in your . . . foolhardy attempt to destroy the ever-after, or just really, really stupid?”

“I’d go for incredibly clever,” I said, then yanked on the line as his free hand clenched, turning a violent black before he threw a curse at me.

“Now!” Trent shouted, and I felt a twin tug on the line as both Quen and Trent threw up a bubble. Ku’Sox’s energy tore through both of them, bouncing off my smaller bubble. Black and gold shimmered like oil as Ku’Sox’s magic slammed into mine. I gasped when my hold on the line faltered, then held firm. Ku’Sox’s magic hung, stuck as it tried to burn through, and I panicked, not knowing what to do. It was better—my hold on the line was firm. I didn’t think anyone was wearing the ring. I could do this. I could fight back.

“
Eram pere!
” I shouted, exploding my bubble out. It took Ku’Sox’s magic with it, slamming it into the ceiling to rain down like evil pixy dust.

Trent tripped on something and went down, hand reaching for a counter. “Bis!” I shouted as the gargoyle darted to the last screaming infant as Ku’Sox ducked. “We have to go!”

Trent pulled himself up, tall and proud. “
Digitorum percussion,
” he intoned, the heavy black in his hand growing darker, his golden aura racing over it to make it glow. My eyes widened as he pulled back, aiming for Ku’Sox. I could feel him pull on the line, he was so desperate. But he was aiming for Ku’Sox.

My God. The baby.
“Trent, no!” I cried, and I lunged for him. Quen’s foot tripped me, and I plowed into Trent, grabbing him about the knees instead of his middle where I’d intended.

We went down, my teeth clenching as we hit the floor. Trent cried out in anger as his magic went wild, slipping from his hand to roll into a bank of machines. I ducked as it hit, sparks flying as machinery suddenly vanished, replaced by the smell of ozone and twisted metal.

Shouting, Quen launched himself at Ku’Sox. The two of them went down in a tangle of arms and billowing fabric. Twin bursts of aura-tinted magic flared, and then Quen was flung back, sliding to a halt against the machines, his expression showing his pain and one hand clenched into a fist against his chest.

“What are you doing!” Trent shouted at me, pushing me off him as he stood, and I backed up onto my knees before spinning to face Ku’Sox.

“You might hurt the baby!” I yelled back at him, hunched and ready for the next attack.

“That child is already dead!” Trent shouted, furious.

“Put the baby down!” I exclaimed at Ku’Sox, moving to stand between him and everyone behind me. I didn’t know how I was going to stop him, but I was having a much easier time now that I was a slave with no master.
Can I trust him?
asked a small voice inside me, and I ached at the coming betrayal.

“This child?” Ku’Sox said, swinging the screaming baby like pendulum, tossing him into the air to land in his arms. Behind him, Bis tensed, too far away to snatch him to safety. His eyes went behind me. “
Dolore adficere,
” Ku’Sox whispered, his fingers moving.

I tensed, but all Ku’Sox did was smile as the child in his arms wailed even louder, hardly able to breathe.

Fire suddenly erupted against my back, thought-stealing pain radiating out from my spine. I couldn’t breathe, and I collapsed to the floor, my fingers scrabbling behind me to find what it was. The heat spread to my hands, and I cried out, pulling them to my front to see that they were covered in a burning, golden-hued aura—burning me from the outside in. Ku’Sox’s curse had come from Trent.

“
Valeo,
” I gasped to counter it, flooding my mind with a numbing cold, sucking in the air as I heard Ku’Sox laugh and the baby scream. His shoes were crunching on glass, and fear gave me the strength to force my head up, seeing him past my strands of hair. Heart pounding, I scuttled backward. Quen was struggling to stop Trent. Trent had hit me. He had cursed me. But by his frustrated, pained expression, he hadn’t done it by choice. My God, Ku’Sox was nuts. He was laughing, knowing full well I’d rip his head off if I could. But maybe he knew I’d never get even half a chance.

“This is not me!” Trent shouted, his face creased and sweat darkening his hair as he shoved Quen off him. “It’s
not
me!” he said again, grunting with the effort to keep his hand from rising. His eyes widened in a sudden fear. “Flee, Rachel . . .”

“Sa’han!” Quen cried out, ducking behind a bubble when Trent threw another spell. It was aimed at me, and I threw up a circle, but my reaction was too slow and it tore through it, the spell hitting me square on before my barrier could fully form.

Pain crawled over me like ants, skittering from my chest and working its way through me, and I screamed. If it reached my mind, I was dead. “
Valeo,
” I sobbed again, curled on the floor within my bubble, shaking as the pinpricks faded and died.

“Interesting,” Ku’Sox said, that baby still wailing in his arms as he sat on the broken window frame and crossed his ankles to watch. “Do that one again. I want to know if she can do it any faster.”

“Damn it all to hell!” I shouted at Trent as I looked up, seeing Ku’Sox’s frown; he was not entirely pleased that I could counter that one. “You do that again, and I’ll smack you!” I said to Trent as I trembled with adrenaline.

“I can’t help it,” he rasped through gritted teeth, and then he dropped to one knee, groaning as he fought whatever Ku’Sox was making him do next.

“Yeah, well, sorry then,” I said, gathering my will. “
Alta quies simillima mort!
” I shouted, flinging half of the curse at Trent, holding the rest in my palm, burning. The curse tore through my bubble, absorbing it and pulling it over and around me like a dirty shirt. It smacked into Trent, and the man went down, his neck nothing but cords of muscle. He gave one spasm, then lay still, his chest rising and falling peacefully.

“You struck him!” Quen said, clearly shocked.

“He hit me first,” I said, then flicked the rest of the charm at Ku’Sox.

The demon deflected it with a hasty pop. I knew it wouldn’t land, but at least he had stopped laughing. Trent lay unconscious. It wouldn’t last long, and I got up, hurting, tired, and pissed. Flee, Trent had said. It sounded like a good idea. If Bis could snatch us from a ley line, then he could by God jump us out as he had the babies.

“Rachel?” Bis said, looking scared as he landed beside me on the rolling chair. “He’s got the only baby left.”

“I’ll get him,” I said as I stood up and tugged my shirt straight. “Get Quen and Trent out of here. Catch me when I jump.” If Trent wasn’t here, then he couldn’t try to kill Ku’Sox using me to do it.

“No!” Quen said, arm up to fend Bis off, and then they were gone.