Darkness Splintered (DA 6) (24 page)

“Risa, Azriel,” she said softly, as I approached. “Please follow me.”

We obeyed, our footsteps echoing softly on the marble tiles. The energy of this place was so strong that every step was accompanied by a spray of golden sparks. The Brindle’s interior tended to be somewhat austere, though the foyer’s brickwork had been painted a rich gold that added a warmth that the entrance otherwise lacked. We were led to the end of the hall and down some stairs, then into a wide hall that was lined with darkly stained timber and filled with shadows, despite the morning light. Sconces flickered on as we approached, then went dark once we’d passed, fueled by magic rather than electricity.

We turned right at the end of this hall, and went down a second set of stairs. After traversing another hallway, we reached the end and two large, intricately carved wooden doors. The slender witch opened one of these, ushered us through, then closed it. The room beyond reminded me somewhat of a medieval hall, with its gabled wooden roof and walls lined with tapestries. But it was the large protection circle that caught my eye – that, and the four women standing within it. Ilianna, Mirri, Kiandra, and Ilianna’s mom, Zaira.

I stopped immediately. Magic eddied around us – tides of power that itched at my skin – and I didn’t want to risk getting any closer in case my presence disturbed it in some way. For several minutes, no one moved; then Ilianna sighed and glanced my way.

“Are you having any luck unravelling the cord?” I said.

“Not yet.” Ilianna stepped carefully from the circle, then walked toward me. Her face was pale, strained. “Neither Mom nor Kiandra have come across anything like this before now, but I guess that’s natural, given the source. They’re relying on my limited knowledge in their attempts to unpick the various layers.”

“Well, you did reroute the magic in the warding stones my father left at Mom’s.”

And I had to wonder if
that
had been deliberate. After it, those stones were all that was stopping the Raziq from entering our home – the thought stalled, and I blinked as excitement surged. Maybe the damn answer to the Raziq problem had been sitting right in front of my nose all the time!

“Rerouting the magic of the stones was easy compared to this,” Ilianna said. “This collar is interlaced and complicated. I just don’t know if we’re going to have the time to dismantle it.”

Tears briefly shone in her eyes, but were rapidly blinked away. No time for tears. Not yet.

I looked at Mirri. Her expression was stoic, but fear lurked in the depth of her eyes. “You will. Have faith.”

“Faith is something I’m rapidly losing.” Ilianna paused, and glanced at Azriel. “Sorry, but it’s hard to keep believing when your bosses are doing squat to help the situation as far as I can see.”

“They tend not to interfere unless absolutely necessary.”

“Seems to me the opening of hell and the possible destruction of both Earth and the gray fields would make interference a
necessity
.”

“Hence the reason I am here,” he replied. “More Mijai are not practical in this situation.”

“Meaning if it was warranted, more would come?”

“If necessary, then yes.”

“I guess that’s something.” She returned her gaze to me. “I’m gathering you’re not just here for a progress report.”

“No.” I hesitated. “But I have a question about the warding stones before I get into that. Are you able to replicate the spell on the stones? And if so, would it be possible to make some sort of personal protection circle using it?”

She frowned. “I could repeat the spell, no problem, but I don’t know —”

“It’s possible,” Kiandra cut in.

I glanced past Ilianna. Kiandra’s attention was still on the cord wrapped around Mirri’s neck, but she’d obviously been keeping tabs on our conversation, despite the fact we’d been speaking softly.

“But,” she continued, “the spell would need to be fed into the energy of the wearer to have any long-lasting benefit.”

“That sounds like we’d be stepping into blood magic territory.”

“No, we would not,” Kiandra said. “Tapping into the wearer’s aura or life force is no different from drawing strength from the elements or from the earth.”

“But,” I said, “drawing power from the elements or the earth has its cost – it saps the witch’s strength and leaves her vulnerable to attack from darker forces if the drawing isn’t done within a protection circle. You can hardly employ a protection circle in the case of a portable warding device.”

“Who’d have thought you knew so much about magic,” Ilianna murmured, a smile touching her lips.

“I have been hanging around a witch for most of my life,” I said dryly. “Some stuff rubs off, even on someone as thickheaded as me.”

Azriel’s amusement rolled through the back of my thoughts, soft and enticing.
If I had said that, you would be very annoyed.

You may not have said it, reaper, but you certainly thought it.

That,
he replied, amusement stronger,
is undoubtedly true.

“The difference in this case,” Kiandra said, “is that the wearer would be performing no magic, so there is no need for a protection spell of any sort.”

Which didn’t mean it wouldn’t still drain the energy of the wearer. “How would it work?”

“It would be similar to the micro cells you wear. Four stones would need to be worn on four points of the body, which would then create a self-sustaining continuous circuit of energy and provide protection against any force they were set to.”

“In other words, if they were set to protect against the Raziq, the Raziq would not be able to either physically or mentally harm them?”

“In theory, yes.”

Right now, theory was all we had. “How soon could you start making half a dozen sets of these stones?”

Kiandra blew out a breath. “Mirri is our priority —”

“I know,” I cut in. “I meant once Mirri is safe.”

“A few days, at the very least. And only if Ilianna is willing to be involved in their creation.”

I frowned at the odd note in Kiandra’s voice. Ilianna didn’t immediately reply, but her expression had clouded over. She looked… wary. Scared.

“Ilianna,” I immediately said, “you don’t have to do this. We can find another way.”

I might not know what was wrong, but I didn’t want – in any way – to put her in a position that would give the Brindle some sort of hold over her. Because I suspected that was what was involved. That her staying there, creating magic, would be a step onto a road and life that Ilianna had fled when she was a teenager. A path that Zaira had said, not so long ago, would find her daughter again.

“Are these stones really necessary?” she asked eventually. Her voice was even, but her expression was still troubled.

“The Raziq snatched me again tonight.” I hesitated, but she had the right to know exactly what we were all facing. “They threatened to not only kill everyone I care about, but make them ghosts. If these stones don’t work —”

“Heaven help us,” she finished, then nodded. “Fine. Once we unravel the energy imprisoning Mirri, I’ll help the Brindle make the aural wards.”

I couldn’t help but give a silent sigh of relief. Ilianna might well be stepping onto that path, but better that than her being dead. Or worse, a ghost. “Thanks, Ilianna.”

She nodded. “Anything else?”

I hesitated. “Yes, but it doesn’t matter now given you can’t really leave Mirri —”

“Just tell me what you need,” she cut in, voice flat. “If I can help, I will.”

“We need someone to create some sort of doorway into a warding circle.”

She frowned. “I do not think I could spare —”

“You do not need to,” Kiandra cut in. “I’ll send one of the fifth-year trainees. They will be more than capable of handling such a task.”

Being a trainee at the Brindle didn’t mean you were new to magic. It was quite the opposite, in fact. Witches came here to hone their skills and to become both a master and a teacher. I knew it took at least ten years to reach the master rank, so she was sending someone pretty damn proficient.

“Thank you, Kiandra.”

She nodded without looking at us. “Ilianna, I believe Rozelle is available. But look after her, reaper, or I will be displeased.”

Azriel bowed, the movement regal. “You have my word no harm will befall her.”

Ilianna caught my arm and guided me back out the door. “Has there been any word from Tao yet?”

“No.”

She grimaced. “I fear for him, Risa. I can’t see anything but fire in his future.”

“He’ll pull through this. He’s stronger than you think.”

“I hope you’re right.” But her expression said that I wasn’t.

And maybe she
was
right. Maybe there wasn’t any future for him. But that didn’t mean I could give up. I wouldn’t, not until every single option had been explored and abandoned.

We went back up to the next level and into a section that I knew from past visits held the sleeping quarters for the witches stationed here. Rozelle was tall, pretty, and looked all of twenty. Which meant she had either become magic proficient at a very early age, or she was much older than she looked. Most witches didn’t usually begin the master’s training until they were at least thirty.

Ilianna explained who we were and what we wanted, and Rozelle bounced up from her seat, gathering magical bits and pieces and carefully placing them into a carryall.

“Right,” she said, “Let’s go.”

Her warm tones held an edge of excitement that made me smile. Obviously, things had been a little slow here at the Brindle lately. I gave Ilianna a hug, then said, “Keep strong. We’ll all get through this, I promise.”

She smiled, but didn’t say anything. Because she knew, like I knew, my promise was empty. No one knew how all this was going to pan out.

Not even, I was beginning to suspect, fate.

Azriel transported us, one at a time, back to the warehouse.

“Wow,” Rozelle said, blinking rapidly and wavering a little as she reappeared. “That’s certainly a novel way to get about. Not something I’d like to do too often, though.”

“Yeah, sorry,” I said. “But we’re on a tight deadline and it’s the quickest way to travel.”

“Then let’s get on with —” she stopped, and her gaze widened a little. “That man’s not dead, is he?”

I glanced down at the shifter. “No. He’s merely in an enforced sleep.”

“Oh, good.” She cleared her throat, then added, “Let’s get to these stones. Although I’m hoping they’re not the ones creating the barrier around this building, because that is
way
beyond my capabilities.”

My eyebrows rose. “You can sense that?”

She nodded. “Although it has an energy that feels rather weird.”

“That’s because it was created by a dark sorcerer, and designed to keep me out,” Azriel commented. “It will not, however, prevent you from entering, nor will it harm you.”

“Oh, good,” she repeated, then paused, her eyes narrowing a little. “In case you’re interested, the source of the energy seems to be coming from under the building, which is rather odd. Shielding stones usually have to be placed at each corner for them to work efficiently.”

I glanced at Azriel.
If the source is underground, maybe that’s what the smaller circle is protecting.

Possibly. What we need to discover, however, is what this building might be protecting beyond the shielding stones and the transport gate you found. There
has
to be something else here.
He paused, then added out loud, “Be careful.”

“You keep saying that,” I said, amused. “Anyone would think you don’t trust me to look after myself.”

“Well, you do have the unfortunate habit of stepping into trouble.” His voice was dry. “And remember, I cannot help you if you find it here.”

“I have Amaya. We’ll cope.” I dropped a kiss on his lips, resisted the urge to do a whole lot more, then said to Rozelle, “Follow me.”

I led the way into the building, retracing my steps to prevent creating too many obviously new footprints in the muck coating the floor.

“Well,” Rozelle said, her gaze narrowing as she stopped several feet away from the inky wall that masked the stone circle. “That’s particularly nasty, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.” I lifted my hand and showed her the red marks where the blisters had been. “I wouldn’t get too close, either.”

“I wasn’t intending to.” She handed me her carryall, then walked the length of the wall, examining it warily. She stopped close to the back wall and said, “Okay, here’s the sorcerer’s point of entry.”

“How can you tell?”

She glanced at me, her expression amused. “Because I’m a witch and that’s what I’m trained to do.” She walked back around until she was standing on the opposite side of the circle to the doorway. “We shall make our entrance here. Our sorcerer is less likely to sense it. My bag, if you would be so kind.”

I handed over the bag. “Won’t he sense the break in his magic?”

“Perhaps, if he is looking for it.” Her gaze met mine. “There is no other way to enter this circle, though.”

“Then do it.”

She drew out her athame and made a protection circle, then sat cross-legged on the ground and began the incantation to create the doorway.

After several minutes, the shadows began to retreat, until a gap that was about two feet square had formed. It revealed not only several black stones but the concrete and metal steps beyond them.

Rozelle sighed and opened her eyes. “That is the best I can do. The spell around these stones is more intricate than I first thought, so if I create anything larger, it may be visible to our sorcerer.”

I frowned. “Surely he’d notice the fact that there’s now no shadows around one section of his circle?”

“No, because it was designed to be visible to only you and me. But as I said, if he’s looking for intrusion, he
will
notice the threads I have woven into his magic.”

“A chance we’ll have to take. Thanks for your help, Rozelle.”

She nodded, but didn’t move. “I’ll wait here, just on the off chance you need me down there.”

I frowned. “I’m not sure that’s wise. Azriel can’t get into the building if something goes wrong, and we promised Kiandra —”