Wilder Mage (27 page)

“Wait. Give her some space. Sable is going back to the shop,” she said.

They began to backtrack down the trail to the park entrance. To his surprise, Sable waited on the curb.

“I have one question, about the magically inclined who Tiarra hasn’t caught. What happens to the wizard she doesn’t bond with? How are they handled?”

“Tiarra doesn’t allow them to remain unrestrained.”

“Everyone bound to her must obey her,” Macy’s voice thrummed. “A wilder acts on their free will, and she cannot abide that.”

“So a wizard, who she hasn’t forced into her Imperium’s order, is a threat to her. That wizard could turn others into a force against her, become a rebel-warrior.”

“Until the day he died,” Dayne said. “He would be on the run from morning until night, every day of the year. Eventually, his time would run out and a company of wizards under Tiarra’s control would wipe him out.”

To the empty street, Sable said, “I think that is why the mages who are free have a ‘wanted’ poster on them. They are the only force standing between the world and a sorceress who would become a god.”

“You’re killing me here, dude. What’s going on?” Bert asked.

Justus had gone silent after feeding the teenager the conversation between Sable and the hunters. Now, as he looked at Bert leaning over the edge of the office desk, the kid was twitching in a combination of worry and excitement.

“They are hunters, but they don’t seem interested in taking her, at least not right now,” Justus said. He stared without seeing at the far wall of his office.

Chapter Twenty

T
he best-laid schemes of mice and men…

Robert Burns had it right
, Justus thought.

Maggie had opened her arms to the hunters. She loved that Sable’s parents had hired them to locate their daughter—proof, she said, that they wanted only the best for her. Her motherly traits bloomed, and Justus settled back to watch the show. Sable shrugged and played her part well. But sometimes, Justus caught her leveling a grim look at the couple.

Under dire warnings, Bert was absent in all meetings with the Mathon couple. His enthusiasm for all things magical was too much of a temptation. Matched with his tendency to commit oral diarrhea, and it was a recipe for disaster. With promises to keep out of sight, the teen sighed and roamed with his buddies, rather than play acolyte.

Maggie’s house marked the demilitarized zone, and the players circled warily. It was the Fourth of July, and explosions of Silver Salutes echoed over the town. Celebrating the day with outlawed fireworks mirrored the American-style of independence. But fireworks weren’t the only incendiary device this day. Tempers threatened to explode in the McIntyres’ back yard as well.

Maggie insisted on meeting the hunters, Dayne and Macy. She was a gracious hostess, plying her guests with food and hospitality. It wasn’t her fault when the conversation kept dying in torturous agony.

Dayne and Macy were poised stiffly in the weathered teak chairs. Emmett gave Dayne a sidelong look from under his bushy eyebrows when the hunter made a comment about the local politics. The older man didn’t respond. Justus chuckled behind his mug of brew, hiding his reaction to Emmett’s suspicion.

After exchanging wary looks with the hunter for the first few days—the equivalent of two dogs circling each other—Justus called a silent détente. But the peace treaty did not include the smarmy man who oozed charm like a leaky oil well.

Wesley’s story got a laugh from the women. But when Wesley patted Sable’s knee and then left his hand there, Justus felt his ire grow. His palm itched to pull a bit of Fire from the charcoal pit and slip it into the man’s pocket. A sound from his right made Justus flick his eyes to Dayne, who grinned, seemingly enjoying the show. The hunter turned to whisper something into Macy’s ear, and she frowned but managed to keep from looking at Justus.

Maybe he would save a briquette for Dayne also.

Justus crossed his arms over his chest and sat back, ignoring the hunters.

Sable stood and swayed out from under Wesley’s hand. She began to pick up the remains of the cherry pie from the wrought iron table and benches.

“Here, let me help,” Macy said. She stood and helped Maggie to her feet.

Wesley followed the women through the kitchen door, chattering about wanting another piece of pie. He gave Justus a smirk before he disappeared. Justus looked murder at his back and started to get up to follow.

“Hold on, son,” Emmett said. He chuckled and held out his hand, motioning Justus to sit down again. “Let him dig his own grave. That way it’s his fingerprints on the handle of the shovel, not yours. And your gal can’t gripe at you.”

“Your gal?” Dayne said in a surprised voice. “Sable?”

Justus didn’t respond, but something in his face must have satisfied his question. Dayne sat back with a grin.

“She is a sweetie, I give you that. Very independent. I can see why your nephew likes her,” Dayne said slyly. His hooded eyes sparkled, and again, Justus saw that secret smile, at once hopeful and conniving.

Emmett snorted. With one eye on the open kitchen window, he lowered his voice as Wesley’s hearty laugh drifted from the kitchen.

“Just cuz Wesley likes her don’t mean anything. Around here, we say wanting and getting are two different things, and just cuz he wants her don’t mean he’ll get what he wants. He hasn’t learned how to treat a lady. And that’s a fact. Sable won’t have nuthin’ to do with him in the long run. You just watch and see. She’s too bright for his nonsense.”

Emmett stretched and patted his distended middle. He groaned as he stood up. “I’m gonna work off dinner, get the blood pumping and take a walk down the road before the main fireworks start up. See ya in a while.”

He disappeared around the corner of the house, leaving Justus alone with the hunter.

Dayne seemed to lose his earlier amusement. His face was thoughtful, and for a while, the men sat in silence, watching the intermittent fireworks on the horizon. Several towns were putting on their displays, and since the McIntyres’ home sat on a low hill, it was possible to watch several celebrations of rockets and fireworks at once. When the red and blue flares faded in the south display, a large white chrysanthemum rocket burst to the west. Before those fires settled back to the earth, a new rocket went up from the north from a neighboring town. It was a fine way to spend a night.

“She is a good person,” Dayne said suddenly. He solemnly watched the glittering fire on the western horizon.

“Yes, she is,” Justus said. “I’m surprised her parents suddenly took an interest in her after all these years. My understanding is she put herself through college without a penny from her folks. And now, suddenly, they are worried about her welfare? They must have a motive.”

“I don’t know. Maybe they reconsidered… Whatever. I’m earning my pay. I found her and she is doing fine, so, as far as I am concerned, my job is done,” Dayne said in a curt tone.

The men sat in silence, each with their separate thoughts.

“It was for her own good,” Dayne said. His voice was touched with anger. “They just want to know she is all right.”

“Obviously, she is fine,” Justus said quietly.

The hunter frowned and looked away. “They want her to reach her full potential,” he said.

“By whose definition?”

Dayne remained silent, looking at Justus’s innocent face.

“She has a life,” Justus continued. “She is happy.”

As if to underscore his comment, Sable’s muffled voice floated from the kitchen, joined in laughter by Macy and Maggie.

“It seems to me, Sable has made something of her life all on her own, and interference from an outside influence can only disrupt that. It isn’t needed. Or wanted.”

Dayne looked upset, his frown coloring his face. Absently, the hunter began rubbing his temple, as if to relieve a sudden headache.

Justus heard the tones of a cell phone, and Dayne jumped. He took the cell from his back pocket, looked at the caller ID, and mashed his mouth into a hard line.

“Macy,” Dayne said, his voice strained.

She came to the kitchen door, wiping her hands on a towel. She smiled, her eyes sparkling, but the good humor vanished when she saw Dayne’s expression. Her glowing face shut down into a hard mask.

Dayne switched from the congenial acquaintance to something cold as he nodded to the front of the house. He answered the phone. “Yes?”

Macy followed him as he walked with the phone pressed against his ear around the house to the front yard.

Justus sat back in the chair and augmented his hearing using the fixed magic of his ward stone. He closed his eyes.

“Yes,” Dayne was saying. “Things are progressing; it just takes time to—”

The female voice on the other end seemed annoyed.

“No. There are no problems. It isn’t that.”

Again, a long pause, and then: “It isn’t necessary. I tell you, the plans are proceeding just fine.” Dayne’s tone seemed desperate. His voice moved farther away to the street.

Justus stretched his ability to hear as the hunter’s voice faded. He wanted to know what the female caller said.

“…vacation. You and your wife need to move along, my Imperator,” the female voice was saying.

Justus felt a chill that dropped into his stomach.

“Enjoying yourself isn’t a part of your assignment.” Her voice faded again as they moved farther away.

Justus pushed his hearing ability again.

“And follow protocol with this
tener
…” The voice faded.

He upped his energy again. “…this isn’t up for discussion…”

“Wait.” Dayne’s voice came hard and rough. “There’s a signature of another mage in the area. I’ll call you back.”

Justus opened his eyes and froze, quickly comprehending his mistake. He realized that without thought, he had reached for more than the fixed magic of his ward stone; he had pulled the swirl of magic energies around him in order to hear the hunters and their mistress. The sound of footsteps from the front of the house made him steel his mind. He stood and prepared himself to face them.

From the beginning, when she stepped through his shop door, he felt the time was coming. He knew the eventual outcome of his involvement with Sable would result in a confrontation with the Imperium. He felt the mage gather his Fire element into a ready position. And Justus prepared to do the same.

He closed his eyes as he extended his arms away from his body and made his mind ready to gather the phantasms churning around him.

The banging of the kitchen door jolted him, interrupting his concentration. A soft feminine body collided with his and wiped away his focus on his magic. He suddenly had a double-armful of an adept, and she was kissing his mouth. He responded with animalistic fervor.

She molded against him and opened her mouth against his. Justus was marginally aware of the two hunters, who stopped their headlong rush from the front yard at the corner of the house.

An amused cough should have made him release Sable, but she burrowed even closer, and he barely heard Macy whisper, “See, it’s just Sable.”

Sable dug in deeper.

A low laugh. “I’ll call her back and tell her false alarm,” Dayne said. “We need to get back to the motel anyway.”

Justus heard the footsteps recede. A vehicle started up.

He broke his mouth away from Sable and looked down at her, gasping. Her chuckle was low and throaty, and Justus almost pulled her back into his body.

A low human snarl made him release her. Wesley stood at the kitchen doorway, fuming.

“Dishes all done?” Justus asked sweetly.

He rested his chin on top of Sable’s head and watched as Wesley bared his teeth. Seeing the man’s backside as he returned to the kitchen gave Justus all the reward he needed.

Into her ear, Justus said, “Thanks. Good thing I have you looking out for me. That could have been bad.”

She broke away him. “You. Are. An. Idiot. You were about to—”

He threw his hands up. “All right, lookit. Truce for now, okay? We should talk where it’s not quite as, er, crowded. And it is a bit crowded around here.” Justus rolled his eyes meaningfully toward the back door of the house.

Her brow swept up. Then she curled one hand around his forearm.

“Would you like to take a walk in the moonlight?” Sable said. She wiggled her eyebrows.

“Oh, my. At the risk of losing my reputation, I guess I’ll say yes.”

She snickered again and took the lead, pulling his arm toward the path to the clearing.

“I don’t know,” Justus said. “It’s awful dark down there. We might get lost.”

“You’re already lost, so shut up.”

He laughed and quit resisting.

He listened for footsteps coming from behind them, the sneaky, Wesley-type of sound he had grown to dislike. But there was nothing, no sounds but the lingering booms and pops of the celebrations echoing in the night.

Sable didn’t speak but held onto his arm, and he was content with the feel of her brushing against him. Her head tilted down, watching the path or thinking. He didn’t know. When she stopped on a short rise, he stood at her side. Justus felt his heart pounding.