A Glint of Shadoewynne: Book 1 of the Shadoewynne Series Page 21

  “Okay, here’s what I found out. My source was able to confirm that Stefa is working with the Svikari, however, it seems that contrary to what we thought, she is pretty high up in their hierarchy. In other words, they are not just using her. While she is working with them, she was also hiding Evalia from them so she could use her as a bargaining chip if they ever decided to get rid of her. When they found Evalia on their own, it ruined her plans. She wanted Evalia because they plan to overthrow Orn, and put Evalia in as a puppet Queen, with them pulling the strings.”

  “Over my dead body!” I was furious.

  “Let me finish, Princess. Sit down!” I wasn’t even aware I had stood up. Sheepishly, I sat back down again. “The other leaders of the Svikari have recently noticed how unhinged Stefa has become, and have begun cutting her off from their troops. They no longer want anything do with her, which explains the crazed way she has begun attacking. It is her last-ditch effort to take the throne.” He stared at me for a second before continuing. “It appears she knew from the start who Jawn was and that was the only reason she married him. She thought she could convince him to take the throne, and she could be Queen. Obviously, that didn’t work. She also somehow knew I had been checking up on you, which is why she decided to give you my name. She was afraid that I would come to you on my own, which I would have, and expose the fact that she knew about me. We think she has been following you and was breaking into your apartment. We think that is how your glasses had the spell put on them. Now, her powers. It’s obvious she is Shadoewynne. Apparently, the Svikari have a way of shielding powers, so that other Shadoewynne can’t tell that a person is part Shadoewynne. This bothers me a great deal, as well as how they figured out who Jawn was. I have no answers for those questions yet.”

  “Can I talk, now?” The sarcasm practically dripped off my voice. Kait nodded. “That’s all fine and dandy, but since her powers didn’t work on me, doesn’t that mean I have electric powers, too? How did we not know?”

  Kait nodded. “Yes, it does. With beings who have mixed blood of two different classes of Shadoewynne, most of the time, the powers develop at different paces, depending on which is stronger. In your case, water powers preceded the electric powers. We don’t know why, but that is how it works.”

  I was spinning my braid around my finger as I thought. “So, what’s the next step?”

  Kait grinned evilly. “I have a plan.”

  Chapter 23

  I wasn’t happy with this plan, but Kait was the expert. If he thought it would work, I guess I needed to trust him. The small voice in my head asked why I would trust the plan, but not trust him with the bonding thing, but I slammed the door in its face. It giggled. I think I was going mad.

  “Hi, Mom. I’ve reconsidered. I want to meet.” I wasn’t a very good actress, so I was hoping that she was crazy enough not to ask questions about my sudden change of heart.

  “Great! This time, you will meet me alone. Leave the guys at home where they are safe!” Phew, she bought it.

  “Of course, Mom. Can we meet at the mall again?”

  “Sure, Honey. In two hours?” She followed the question with an insane giggle.

  “Sure. See you then. Love you.” I almost couldn’t say the last two words, but she would know something was up if I didn’t.

  “Love you too, Honey.” She hung up.

  I double checked my phone to make sure the call had ended. “Okay, two hours from now at the mall. Are you sure about this?” I asked Kait, as he rubbed my arms. My brain was screaming to push him away, but my heart said to hold on to him. I just couldn’t bring myself to listen to my brain right now.

  “Yes, Princess. I am sure. You can do this. Your mom has lost all reasoning, which will make it easier to capture her. I’m sure she will not expect you to have back up.”

  I sighed, and stepped into his arms. I laid my head on his chest as I wrapped my arms around his waist. “This better go as planned, or I’ll never forgive you!”

  He chuckled, the sound reverberating through my head. “I’m sure you won’t. Don’t worry, I’ve got this.”

  I didn’t understand how he could be so sure of himself, but whatever. I focused on the feel of him in my arms, and my breathing, trying to force the panic away faster. Eventually, he disengaged my arms and stepped away. “I have some prep to do before we leave. I want to get there early so she doesn’t see us. You will have to drive yourself.” We had already gone over the plan several times, so this was not news to me. I nodded, and he walked away.

  “Don’t worry, Sugar, we will be right there. We won’t let her take you, and I doubt she has any more tricks up her sleeve.” David replaced Kait, and I wrapped my arms around him too. I briefly wondered if he would mind being just one of three guys dating me, but I pushed that thought away quickly. David snorted. Shit, he heard that thought. I waited, but he didn’t say anything.

  A few minutes later, Kait came back in. “David, you need to get out here and prep too. You need to armor up and get your weapons together.”

  He sighed as I let go. “Alright, hold your horses. Geez. See you on the flip side, Evalia!” He booped my nose before he turned out the door.

  Travis held out his arms. “Do I get a turn?”

  I grunted. “Of course you do. Come here.” He walked over and I repeated the process, wrapping my arms around him. I rested my forehead on his shoulder as I breathed in his scent, which reminded me of the forest. With his hug, the last of the tension bled from my shoulders, and I finally relaxed. I knew that Kait’s plan was sound, and this was the best chance we had. That small voice pointed out that I needed all three guys through the door I had slammed on it earlier, but I was mostly successful in ignoring it this time. I just focused on the feel of Travis’ arms around me, and how soothing it was. Kait yelled from the other room, ”Travis!”

  He chuckled. “I guess that’s my warning bell. Be safe, Babe.” He kissed my forehead as he let go and walked away.

  I sat in the empty room for a minute, gathering my thoughts. Since I had time, I built my mental wall as strong as I could, so I didn’t have to focus on it later. The front door slammed. The guys were on their way out, going early to set up the ambush, and risk their lives again to save me. I couldn’t understand it, but I was very grateful for them. I pushed all my fear into that box, and slammed the lid. I didn’t have time to be afraid, or to second-guess myself.

  About fifteen minutes after the guys left, I left too. I had armored up, including gloves, as well. I tried to practice my electric powers before I called Stefa, but I wasn’t very successful. I couldn’t eat, so I hoped the pop I brought with me would sustain me through the confrontation. The entire drive there, I did nothing but focus on keeping my mind clear, and my breathing even. I couldn’t panic before I even arrived.

  When I pulled into the mall, I scanned the lot, looking for David’s car. I didn’t see it, but that was the point, right? Forcing myself not to worry about them, I started looking for the silver van with Pennsylvania plates. I found it, parked out by itself again, in the far lot. There were no cars for hundreds of feet. Oh shit, the guys weren’t going to have any place to hide.

  I focused on my breath, counting each one until the panic faded. I parked a few spots away from the van, and got out. Just like the last time, it looked abandoned. A second or so after I exited my car, the van rocked, and the driver side door opened. Stefa stepped out, looking as crazy as she was. Her hair was sticking up all over the place, and her clothes still had blood stains from David on them. She was even missing a shoe. What the fuck had happened to her?

  She giggled. “I told them you wouldn’t refuse your mom, but they wouldn’t listen to me.” The sliding door on the van opened, and two Lorgaire Scaths emerged. Standing in broad daylight, they were just as scary as the one had been in the middle of the night. My breath hitched. Oh fuck.

  Kait’s voice whispered in my mind, ‘it’s fine, Princess. Stick with the plan.’ We had practiced this min
d talk thing a little at home, but it still startled me when he did it. I barely stopped myself from jumping and looking for him.

  I held out my hand. “You don’t need them, Mom, I told you I changed my mind.” She glanced at my outstretched hand, but didn’t take it. Shit.

  “I know, Honey, but like I said, they wouldn’t listen. These guys are just back-up in case you change your mind again.”

  Dropping my hand, I took a step towards her. “I said I would go with you, Mom. Are you ready? I left a note for the guys, and I don’t want to be here when they find it.”

  “Leave your purse and your phone in your car. You won’t be needing them.” She was back to serious, with no sign of crazy in her voice now.

  “Okay.” I walked back to the car and put my purse in the car. “Do you need to search me?”

  She giggled insanely. “No, I don’t.” She looked at the Lorgaire closest to her. “Do you need to search her?” It eyed her as it shook its head. Hmm, interesting. Her allies don’t trust her. Maybe that was why the Lorgaires were there. I sent that thought quickly to David and Kait, who replied, ‘Good thought, but they are still a threat. Don’t underestimate them.’

  I walked back over to them, still holding my arms out. One of the things I had practiced was drawing all the water to one place without it condensing. I did this around both the Lorgaires, and I focused some right above my hand as well. It was the most I had ever tried at once, but I was fairly confident it worked. As I got within arm’s reach of Stefa, Kait yelled in my mind ‘Now!’ So I condensed the water around the Lorgaires, suspending them off the ground in a bubble of water as I jumped at my mom, ice forming in my hand to a knife. I grabbed her and held the knife to her throat, as Kait, David and Travis appeared literally next to me. I did a double take. “How did you do that?”

  Kait chuckled. “There’s a lot you don’t know, Princess.” David took my mom, and used zip ties to handcuff her hands behind her back. I had just started patting myself on the back when the water around the first Lorgaire exploded, followed quickly by the second.

  Kait jumped between me and them, and set himself in a fighting stance. “Travis, take them away.”

  Travis grabbed my arm, and Stefa’s elbow, and started pulling us back to my car as Kait attacked the Lorgaires. It was amazing to watch. They were all so quick, I could barely see them move. It really seemed like they were teleporting from one spot to another. Travis had forced Stefa into the back seat of my car, and closed the door while I watched Kait fight. I was mesmerized.

  A touch on my shoulder made me jump. “Come on, Babe, we need to go.”

  I turned toward the car, and reached for the handle, when a green blur hit the side of my head, and I could hear Stefa cackling as everything went black.

  When I woke up, I was still laying on the cold asphalt of the parking lot. There were a lot of sounds around me, but none of the them made sense, and the lights were too bright. I blinked, trying to get the lights to stop streaking, but it didn’t work. The world tilted back and forth, outside of my control, as I tried to sit up. David appeared in front of me, his shirt covered in green, and his mouth moving, but everything was too loud to understand. I tried to shake my head, but that made the spinning sensation worse.

  I braced my arms on the ground as I looked around. Stefa was out of the car, hands up to the sky, looking like she was laughing, with lightening streaking up from her hands, going everywhere. Travis jerked on the ground, as a bolt struck him over and over, while Kait still battled both Lorgaires. There was green spattered everywhere, which I could only guess was the Lorgaires blood, and Kait and David were both covered in it.

  I blinked. It didn’t look good for us, as Stefa advanced on Kait from behind. I had to save him. I stood up, the world going on a tilt-a-whirl around me, but I was determined to stop Stefa. I made a long pole out of ice, using it as a cane as I staggered toward the fight. Once I was right behind her, I whirled it around, clonking her right above her ear. She dropped to the ground bonelessly.

  The Lorgaires had Kait surrounded, one in front, and one behind. The one behind him had its back to me. I advanced on it, intending to beat the shit out of it too. When I got close enough, I raised my ice staff, and swung it. It grabbed it without even turning around. Its head spun 180 degrees on its neck as it grinned at me, and pushed the staff away from itself, knocking me on my ass as I gaped at it. That was not how it was supposed to go.

  David jumped between me and it. “Go!” Well, at least I could understand him now. I glanced around. Kait had almost taken out the first one, and David was fighting with the second. Stefa was out cold on the ground. I got to my feet, steadier now. There was no way in hell I was leaving the guys to fight alone. I used the skills I learned in Color Guard in high school, and spun the pole around me. I stepped in, and bounced the pole off the first Lorgaire, and used the rebound to hit the second. It wasn’t really hurting them, but it kept them distracted so that Kait and David could attack. Kait quickly dispatched one with a knife to its neck. It spurted green blood across his face as he backed away.

  David was kicking at the remaining Lorgaire. It looked around and saw it was the last one, and started backing away. Kait yelled “Don’t let it leave!” He renewed his attack with a ferocity I didn’t think he was capable of. His lips were pulled back from his teeth, and his eyes shone with a reddish light. He looked terrifying. Within seconds, the last Lorgaire lay dying on the asphalt.

  We needed to clean this up. It amazed me that no one had called the cops on us yet, considering it was mid-day, and there were shoppers just yards away. As I glanced around, I noticed a brief shimmer in the air, and I realized someone had put some kind of barrier up around us. That was handy.

  I walked over to Kait, and stared at him. The image of his face as he attacked that last Lorgaire would be etched into my memories for a long time. “Remind me to never piss you off! That was terrifying!”

  He blanched as he looked at me. “I wish you didn’t have to see that.”

  I shrugged as I went to help Travis up. His ferocity didn’t bother me. It actually made me feel better. I knew that he would do whatever he had to in order to keep me safe.

  David had hog-tied Stefa, and was shoving her into my car. Travis leaned on me heavily once I got him to his feet. I helped him into the passenger seat of my car, and kissed him lightly on the forehead.

  “Remind me not to do that again! It hurt!” He moaned. “Every muscle in my body is locked up. I can barely move.”

  “I’m sorry, Sweetie.” I smoothed the hair away from his eyes as he laid his head back.

  Kait came up to us, no longer covered in green blood. I glanced around him, and the bodies of the Lorgaire Scaths were gone. “You need to have someone else ride with you to help in case she wakes up. David is bringing our car over. Travis needs to ride in it with David, and I will ride with you.” Hmm, it seems like bossy Kait is back. I opened my mouth, but he interrupted me. “Don’t argue. This is for your safety.” I closed my mouth and just nodded.

  David pulled up alongside us, and we transferred Travis over. Kait got in the passenger seat. “Go straight to the safe house.”

  I couldn’t help myself. I saluted and said, “Sir! Yes, Sir!” Kait apparently didn’t think it was funny, since he just glared at me. Oh well. Most of the drive back to the safe house was silent, until we were almost there. Stefa began to wake up and started screaming obscenities at us. Kait just quietly told me to pull over, so I did. Once I did, he reached into the back seat, and tore some of her shirt. He quickly made it into a gag, and tied it around her head. She was still trying to scream the rest of the way, but now at least, we couldn’t understand her.

  Orn and two big, rocky things were waiting for us when we arrived. The rock guys had matching badges pinned to their shirts, so I guessed that they were a kind of police force. They took Stefa into custody when we arrived, and disappeared into the woods with her. My heart hurt for a moment. She may have been tr
ying to kidnap me for some nefarious purpose, and I may have disowned her, but she was still my biological mother. It’s not easy to just let go of that.

  Kait and David each stood by a shoulder and rubbed my back together. I let them for a moment, while I thought about my mother. After a moment, though, I turned on them. “No, don’t touch me.”

  Kait let go, holding his hand up away from me. “Okay, Princess.”

  David looked confused, but moved his hand off me as well. “I don’t understand. What’s going on.”

  “I told her about the bonding magic.” Kait looked upset.

  David facepalmed. “Why?”

  “I thought she needed to know.” It didn’t seem like he was going to apologize.

  I sighed. “David, I just don’t think magic should choose who I’m going to spend my life with.”

  Kait snorted. “She also wasn’t happy I told her all three of us bonded with her.”

  David’s eyes about bugged out of his head. “Seriously? No wonder she reacted like that!”

  “Guys, I’m right here, and this isn’t helping.” I crossed my arms in front of me. “By the way, where is Travis?”

  “Oh, I took him in as soon as we got home.” David waved a hand toward the house.

  “Fine, then, I’m going in. Maybe he won’t talk about me like I’m not there.”

  I pushed through Kait and David. I don’t think they appreciated how upset I was. I stormed into the house, calling for Travis. “I’m in the living room!” He sounded much better than he did when he left the mall.

  When I found him, he was laying on the couch, covered with blankets. He sat up when I came in and held his arms out. I shook my head, and crossed my arms over my chest. “I’m sorry, Travis, but I can’t.”