The Mage in Black (35 page)

As more mages joined us to fight, I felt Maisie pull away from my back. We were finally making a dent. I shot one of the few remaining vamps in the chest. As he exploded, I took a deep breath, but when another horde flashed into the clearing it changed into a gasp. Suddenly, the area was swarming with vampires and demons again.

Rhea ran up with Giguhl and Adam. “Everyone circle up!”

Everyone nearby—about twenty mages and demons—fell into a circle, our backs toward the center of the circle. Rhea grabbed my left hand in a tight grip and Adam took my right.

I jerked my head toward her. “What are we doing?”

“We need to combine our magic if we’re going to defeat them.”

“Rhea I don’t—” I began, panic gripping me. I wasn’t sure if I could handle zapping anyone anymore. Just the memory of zapping Hawthorne had made me puke.

Rhea’s intense gaze burned into me. “You can do this.”

“But—”

She squeezed my hand and turned to address the circle. “Tap the line!”

A low hum of energy pulsed up from the ground. I wasn’t sure exactly what we were doing, but I concentrated on trying to pull the force up through my bones. I closed my eyes and focused. My hands burned as Adam’s and Rhea’s hands filled with magical energy. Pressure built in my chest, my lungs, my throat before condensing into my diaphragm.

“Now!” Rhea yelled.

The force jerked my eyes open and pushed a scream out of my mouth. A blinding burst of light exploded from our circle. A wide band of energy radiated out of all of our bodies in a ring of power. The force of it tore through the vampires and demons surrounding us. The ones closest exploded instantly. Those farther back weren’t killed, but they were knocked back, writhing on the ground.

Every nerve in my body felt raw and exposed. Tremors shook my limbs—magical aftershocks. Someone bumped into me. I looked around, feeling drunk and disoriented.

“Sabina?” I recognized the movement of Adam’s lips but was having trouble hearing.

I blinked and tried to focus. He grabbed my shoulders. “Sabina?”

I swallowed against a wave of nausea.

Orpheus ran over, covered in blood. “Lazarus, you take several guards and comb the area for survivors.”

Adam nodded. “Yes, sir.” He squeezed my shoulder before he ran off.

Orpheus rounded on me. “Where’s Maisie?”

“She was just here.” I frowned and looked around, not seeing her familiar form anywhere. “Rhea? Have you seen Maisie?”

Rhea knelt next to a mage with a wicked-looking neck wound. “No. I thought she was with you.”

My heart slammed against my ribs. “Giguhl!”

“Yeah?” He and Valva were helping Orpheus look for surviving mages among the wreckage.

“Did you see Maisie?”

He frowned. “Not since right before we circled up.”

I cursed. “Help me look for her!”

We split up, combing the area and calling for her. When I ran into Adam near the Sacred Grove, dread had spread through my veins like venom.

“Sabina, what’s wrong?”

“I can’t find Maisie anywhere.”

He paused, his face morphing into a mask of worry. “She has to be here somewhere. I’ll help you look.” His face and hands were covered in blood from staking vamps who’d survived the magical blast.

“No, you need to be sure none of those assholes live. I’ll find her.” I forced a smiled. “Maybe she went inside the house or something.”

He looked unconvinced. “Okay, I’ll ask the weres to sniff around, see if they can pick up her scent.”

I paused. With all the craziness of the fighting, I’d totally forgotten about Michael and his pack. Once I found Maisie, I needed to check and make sure they were all okay.

“Good idea,” I said. “I’ll let you know if I find her.”

The lights from the manor’s windows created macabre spotlights on the battlefield. I ran toward the glow inside, hoping to find Maisie there.

I ran through the rooms, screaming for Maisie until my voice went hoarse. Finally, I made my way up to the Star Chamber, drawn there because it was the room she loved most in the house. I threw the door open and walked in with my gun drawn. But the room was empty except for Maisie’s lingering scent and her art supplies. I slammed my fist into the wall.

“Godsdammit, where are you?”

I walked deeper into the room, fear for Maisie knotting my stomach. Then I saw the canvas propped up on an easel next to a window. My heart stopped.

Against the stark white of the canvas, the rust-colored medium was unmistakable. In blood, someone had written: “Checkmate.”

A
dam found me a few minutes later. I was sitting on the floor, panting. All around me, splintered easels and art supplies littered the floor like assault victims. My hands were sticky with drying paint and stung from the splinters I’d collected during my brief freak-out.

But now that the anger had passed and fear took its place, I couldn’t rip my eyes from the canvas to acknowledge his arrival. “Sabina?” He knelt beside me.

“She has her.”

Despite my unclear statement, he seemed to get I was talking about Maisie. “Who has Maisie?”

I pointed a trembling finger at the canvas. “Lavinia.”

His eyes turned to look at the canvas. When he saw the message, he cursed under his breath. I could smell his anger rising, intensifying his sandalwood scent. “How do you know?”

I didn’t tell him that this one simple word had told me everything I needed to know. I didn’t tell him that even before I’d sniffed the canvas, I’d known it was Maisie’s blood. And I didn’t tell him that even before I’d found the canvas painted in blood, my gut told me that Lavinia had somehow managed to take Maisie.

Checkmate
. The word banged around in my brain like a stray bullet.

“I just know,” I said, finally.

He nodded, seeming to take my word as proof enough. “But why take Maisie? If she could manage to kidnap her under our noses, surely she could have gotten you instead.”

I turned my face on my knee and looked at him. His tone was calm, but his eyes burned with the same mixture of fear and rage boiling inside me. “That would have been too easy. This is punishment. She’s wants me to know she’s running the game now.”

A muscle worked in Adam’s jaw. His fists clenched so hard his knuckles turned white. “Like hell she is. We’ll figure out how to get her back.”

I shook my head. “There’s only one way to get Maisie back now.”

“Sabina,” Adam said in a warning tone. “Don’t say it.”

I raised my head. “It’s the only way.”

“Bullshit. You think Lavinia will just let you trade places with Maisie? They’ll never let both of you out of there alive. It’s bad enough Maisie’s life is in danger. I won’t risk you, too.”

I threw up my hands. “What other choice is there?”

He ran a hand through his hair. “We’ll figure something out. But first we need to break the news to Orpheus.”

He held out a hand and helped me stand. His arms wrapped around me. This wasn’t a romantic gesture, but one of comfort. I accepted the strength he offered, absorbing it into my skin along with his sandalwood scent.

“Am I interrupting something?”

I pulled back to see Slade standing at the door. Adam turned, too, but kept an arm around my shoulder. “Lavinia has Maisie,” I said.

Slade’s face went hard as he cursed out loud. “Gods, I’m sorry.”

“We were just about to go let Orpheus know. We’ve got some decisions to make now.”

“Actually, that’s why I came to talk to you.” He looked pointedly at Adam.

Adam took the hint. I missed the weight of his arm as he withdrew. “I’ll just go tell Orpheus.” He shot Slade a look. “Will you be okay?” he asked me.

I nodded. “Thanks, Adam. I’ll be down in a minute.”

Slade watched Adam as he crossed the room. Earlier, when we’d been rushing into battle, I hadn’t had the luxury of comparing them side by side. But now I was struck by how different they were.

Slade, even covered in the detritus of battle, looked like he belonged more in a boardroom than a battlefield. The years had polished off his rough edges, leaving him lean and distinguished-looking. Adam, with his muscles and goatee, looked tougher—more like a street brawler. But the truth was, each man was dangerous in his own way. Slade with his fangs and assassin background. And Adam with his magic and his experience as a special-ops mage. Looking at both of them now, I realized they were each dangerous to me in different ways, too. But where Slade was dangerous because he knew me so well, Adam was dangerous because he knew who I had the potential to become. But none of that mattered now. Not with my sister missing and my grandmother waiting for a showdown.

Adam shot me one final look before exiting. Slade shut the door behind the mage with a click. “Should I assume I have some competition there?”

I shook my head. I so was not going there right now. “What did you want to talk about?”

He sighed and came forward. “From the looks of things, the mages will be on the move soon.”

I nodded. “I assumed they wouldn’t stay now that the compound is compromised.”

“Will you go with them?”

I shook my head. “I have other business to take care of.”

“You’re not seriously considering going after Lavinia by yourself, are you?”

I crossed my arms. “I haven’t decided yet,” I lied.

Slade raised an eyebrow. He knew me too well to believe that. “Don’t be an idiot, okay? Take someone with you. I’m sure the mage”—he nodded to the door to indicate Adam—“would love to help you.”

I noticed Slade hadn’t offered to help. Maybe I should have felt hurt or at least surprised, but I wasn’t. “You’re staying.” It wasn’t a question. What was the point of pretending I didn’t know he’d already made up his mind?

His expression didn’t change. No guilt crept into his eyes. “You know this isn’t my fight.”

I raised an eyebrow. “If that’s true, why did you fight tonight?”

“Because it was on my turf.” He shrugged. “But I’m not going to tuck tail and run like the council’s planning. I put too many years into building a life here to leave.”

I understood his reasons, but part of me was disappointed. This wasn’t the Slade Corbin I’d come to know. Now he was The Shade. And The Shade looked out only for himself. I crossed my arms. “Fine. See ya.”

“Sabina, don’t be like that.”

“Me?” I laughed humorlessly. “Like it or not, this war is going to affect all the dark races. It’s only a matter of time before it comes right to your door. I thought you were a fighter, Slade.”

His eyes narrowed. “A smart fighter chooses his battles. And I’m afraid this isn’t one I think I can win. Better to cut my losses now and try to survive.”

“Fine, you go look out for your self-interest. While you’re doing that, the rest of us will be fighting the battles for you.”

“Spare me the self-righteous indignation, Sabina. I have a responsibility to the dark races in this city. The mages might be leaving, but there are still thousands of vamps and weres here who need leadership. I’ve already talked to Orpheus and promised to help any way I can from here.”

That took some of the wind out of my sails. “Oh.”

He smiled. “The same applies to you, by the way. If you need help, all you have to do is call.”

I smiled ruefully, embarrassed that I’d jumped to conclusions about his motivations. “Thanks.”

He moved closer, taking my hand. “I don’t suppose I could convince you to come back here after you find your sister.”

The subtext of his casual request glowed like neon. He wasn’t asking if I’d come back and work for him. He wanted to know if I intended to continue what we’d begun last night. I shook my head. “If I manage to survive rescuing Maisie, the council will need my help.”

The corner of Slade’s mouth twitched. “I suppose I should be happy you didn’t use the whole ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ line. Thanks for sparing my ego.”

I laughed. “I highly doubt your ego was in danger where I’m concerned, Slade. We both know it would never work out between us.”

“I suppose you’re right.” He sighed dramatically. “But if you ever need to use my body again, it’s at your disposal.”

I grinned and pulled him in for a hug. He dropped the teasing and squeezed me back. As we hugged, he whispered into my hair, “Don’t get yourself killed.”

I smiled against his chest. “Ditto.”

With that, I pulled away. He let me go and smiled one last time before he walked away. Part of me wanted to call him back, but I didn’t. Slade and I had our own paths to follow now. Maybe they’d intersect again somewhere down the road, but for now I was just happy we’d parted ways on better terms this time than the last time we met.

It’s funny how someone you thought was an enemy can turn out to be an ally.

I glanced at the canvas—a parting gift from my grandmother.

It’s funny how someone you thought was an ally can turn into your greatest enemy.