RoadBlock (11 page)

Betony watched Wade in awe. He was clearly upset, the idea of anyone hurting Dagger had gotten him up from his chair quickly, but he was thinking, and doing a better job of planning than any of them. He was pacing behind Dagger protectively as he spoke, and Betony thought he probably didn’t even realize he was doing it. “Wade’s right. Dagger might seem like an easy target because he’s going in, but the only thing they need to do is break us up somehow. Any one of us would be enough. And they might not kill whomever they took. They might just keep us apart long enough to start whatever it is they’re going to do. I wish we knew more about that…”

“Me too. I’m sorry, guys, I just can’t see anything about it. Dagger, what if you just don‘t go. How bad would that be for you?” Calderon had spent hours thinking about this, trying to see ahead, trying to fight through the block. So far, he’d had no success.

Dagger saw the worry on Cal’s face and considered just telling his boss he couldn’t do it. But losing his job was a real possibility now, and there was no reason to believe the service call was a trap. He’d been there, met these people. He’d be fine… he hoped. “Are you telling me you
really think
I’ll be in danger here? Or are you just being paranoid?”

Cal and Wade exchanged a glance, and Cal shook his head. “I don’t feel anything. It
might
just be paranoia…”

“Let’s practice communicating without a circle while we get ready to go.”

For the next half hour, as they cleaned up from breakfast, they sent small, simple messages back and forth to each other through their tenuous connection. Dagger wished they had a few weeks to practice communicating and to strengthen the bond before it had to be tested, but he hoped it at least was strong enough to work in an emergency.

An hour later Dagger pulled up to the job site. He had stopped by his office and picked up his tool bag and the job ticket, apologized again to his boss, and left without incident. Now his stomach fluttered with nerves as he walked up to the main door. He could feel Wade’s reassuring thoughts from his position in the rear of the building, and he saw Cal and Bet in their car along the side street.

The receptionist was polite, and after checking his badge she directed him to the server room. No one paid much attention to him as he walked down the hallway, and when he reached the long narrow room he took out his bag and began work. The problem was minor, and he was on edge. This was something anyone in this company could have taken care of, not an issue that needed a service call. Cal felt the alarm in Dagger’s mind and sent a questioning thought his way.
I’m fine.
He finished the repair as quickly as possible.

Dagger was just zipping his bag and standing up when he felt someone behind him, but he had no time to turn before a hard blow to his head knocked him out. In his car, Calderon felt the strike and Betony winced. Wade lost his balance and almost dumped his bike, but recovered himself and looked around cautiously. He spotted a man and a woman in matching suits leaning against the rear door, smoking and eyeing him. He was sure they hadn’t been there a moment ago. When they caught him staring at them, they ducked back into the building, flinging their cigarettes out into the street.

Wade rode past the door and stopped, leaning down to scoop up the still burning butts, and broke off the tips, putting the two filters into his pocket. Maybe Betony could use them for a charm. He rode towards Cal’s car, hoping they were all right. He found the alley empty, and sent out a silent plea for them to answer. In response, an image of the local playground flashed in his mind. He rode there quickly and found Cal and Bet parked under an elm tree. Wade pulled alongside and cut his engine, leaning down to talk to Cal through the window.

“We can’t talk here. We have to go home.” Cal’s face was red with anger and his voice was shaking. “Follow us, quickly.”

“But, Dagger-”

“I know, I’ll explain there.”

They were home in fifteen minutes, and Wade practically ran into the house with Cal and Betony.

“When they took Dagger, the block on my visions broke. I think whoever took him was the one blocking me, and they needed to use some power for it, so when they were too busy with Dagger they faltered.” Cal took several deep breaths, trying to calm himself enough to continue speaking. The thought of Dagger, helpless and alone, at the mercy of those lunatics, was just too much.

“They’ll keep him there. In the back, there’s a room. An office I think, but it’s big. There are six of them. The rare-witch, who they call ‘the awaited one’, two other men, and three women. That’s the whole Theodosian group, plus the two that died chasing us. They wanted to get us today, too, but when the block lifted I knew they were coming and left before they could find us. They can only kill us all together, that’s why they tried the car attack yesterday. But it’s also why they won’t kill Dagger. If they kill us singly it will diminish their power, and the awaited one won’t kill anyone in any case. He’s not willing to pay the price.”

“
Fuck!
What do we do?”

“Cal, did you learn anything about their plan? How are they planning to attack the covens?”

Cal swallowed hard. He’d felt sick and hopeless ever since he caught the flash of insight into their plan. The Theodosians were evil and cold, and he had no idea how to stop them. “The awaited one has a rare power. He can absorb the powers of other witches, in a ritual. They need to be willing, so he has to do it on children, or people he can easily trick into allowing him into their minds. It’s kind of like our bond, only he doesn’t need a charm, the power is
in him
. And when he bonds with someone, he can siphon off their skill. They plan to do this to coven kids, so that when they come of age there’s no power to develop, nothing left to pass down, and eventually the covens will die out.”

“Shit. That’s just…”

“How do we even fight that? I mean, I see what Adelaide was saying, and clearly this awaited asshole has to die, but
how
?”

“I don’t know.” Calderon laid his head down on his knees, curling into himself. He was close to freaking out, but he didn’t want to scare Betony any more than he already had.

“Let’s make a circle and try to contact Dagger. We can see if he’s okay, and maybe learn about where he is, maybe we can get him out or something.” Betony took Cal’s hand and led him out the door. Wade found a box of matches and a bottle of water and followed them to the patio.

Dagger woke with a pounding headache, and realized his hands and feet were tied to an office chair. The chair was propped in the corner of a small closet, wedged between boxes of copy paper and office supplies, which at least allowed him to rest his head back against the wall. He appeared to be alone, but he couldn’t see the entire office beyond the closet door, so he wasn’t sure. The restraints were fairly loose, but he cursed out loud when he got a look at them.
Plastic zip ties
. Rope, he would have been able to coax open with his telekinesis, but the zip ties would need to be cut. He still might be able to manage it, if there were scissors nearby. He scanned the desk across the room, but it’s top was neat and clean, only a small stack of papers piled in one corner, a phone and a cup of pens in the other.

The outer door opened and two women in matching gray suits walked in. Both wore calf-length skirts, opaque tan stockings and matronly pumps, which to Dagger seemed a strange choice for August, even in a formal office setting. They pulled chairs out so they could sit at the desk but still keep him in their line of sight, then sat down and started flipping through magazines. Dagger thought it best not to speak first. Instead he watched them and tried to maintain an innocent air.

They seemed sociable towards each other, and relaxed. But a prickle of alarm danced across his shoulders, the spell warning him these were Theodosians. If he hadn’t been tied up he’d have thought them friendly, if fashion challenged, and the spell might have been useful. As it was, he needed no further notification. One of them, a tall woman with short auburn hair, turned to him and noticed his eyes were open.

“You’re awake.
Good
. You can start answering some questions.”

“Um, okay. You didn’t need to tie me up for that, you know. I answer questions without bondage all the time.”

“Uh-huh. You know who we are, we know who you are. There’s no need for games. Where are your friends?”

“I don’t know. Someone knocked me out and tied me to a chair, so I haven’t been able to reach them.”

“Cindy, this guy thinks he’s funny.”

The other woman, ‘Cindy’, a shorter woman with longer ash blonde hair in a severe ponytail, walked over and crossed her arms over her chest, staring at him with narrowed eyes. “We can wait. The funny will probably wear off in a day or two.” She gave him a cold smile and Dagger’s stomach cramped. Cal had been right. They were just going to keep him here. He could feel the hum of large fans through the wall at his back, and knew the closet abutted the server room. He could scream and bang against the wall, but no one in the office would notice.

The women went back to their magazines, talking too quietly for him to hear. Dagger closed his eyes and searched for the connection he shared with the others. He silently thanked Wade for insisting he hide Betony’s charm where it wouldn’t be found. It had seemed a silly precaution, earlier, but now the tiny bag duct-taped to the skin on his hip was a lifeline to him.

Dagger… Safe?
He knew it was Wade, and his heart warmed at the worry in his old friend’s thought.
Yes. Tied up.
He sent a mental image of the office, including the partial view from the window he had from his vantage point and a picture of his own legs and arms tied to the chair. Calderon’s anger flashed over their connection then, frustrated and wild. Betony sent calm to both of them, then asked
Danger? Plans? Super-witch?
Dagger responded calmly.
No. Two women. No plans, no danger. They want you.
Wade’s thoughts were clear and smooth next:
We’ll get you out. Don’t be afraid.
Dagger worried about the plans they might be making, and who else might be outside the office, or the building waiting for them.
No. Wait to know more. I’ll listen. Wait. I’m okay.
Cal’s desperation overcame him, his fear and anger pulsed through their bond, and Dagger sagged under the weight of it.
Cal. Stop. Be calm. I’m okay. Please.
Cal’s anger ebbed slowly, and Dagger breathed a silent sigh of relief. Calderon’s apologetic thoughts were shaky.
Sorry. Afraid for you. I’ll wait.

Dagger opened his eyes, making sure the women were still ignoring him, then slid them closed to concentrate on the bond again.
Stay safe. Call Adelaide, warn coven. Be open, I’ll contact you when I know more
. Dagger repeated the thoughts, hoping they went through clearly.
Okay. Love you
. Dagger had no idea which one of his friends sent the last message, or if they all had. He opened his eyes again and watched Cindy.

Hours passed, and Dagger rested, never slipping into true sleep, but allowing himself to be calm and still, saving his energy for a potential escape. The desk phone rang and not-Cindy picked it up and spoke quietly into the receiver. Then they spent a few minutes tidying the magazines and putting them into a desk drawer, throwing away the foam coffee cups they’d been nursing, and straightening the chairs.

The light from the window was fading as the office door opened and three men walked in. Two of them stood near the wall, and Cindy and not-Cindy stood with them, making a boy-girl-boy-girl lineup of dorky evil. The third man walked straight up to Dagger, and used a strong wave of telekinesis to pull the desk chair eight feet across the floor towards him, then sat down on it without looking back. Dagger kept his features blank, but he was impressed. That was more power than he had, and more control. The super-witch was a badass.

“You know who I am, I presume?”

Dagger nodded, and focused on blocking his thoughts, keeping his mind as blank and isolated as possible. He had no idea what powers this witch held.

“Your friends, the other members of your little circle, have disappointed me. They were supposed to come for you. I wonder why they haven’t?” He tilted his head quizzically and his icy blue eyes bored into Dagger’s.

Dagger squeezed his eyes shut and forced a lie from his lips. “Are…are they okay?” He tried to sound weak and worried.

“I don’t know. Why would they leave you here?”

“They wouldn’t.” Dagger tried for scared and confused. He was fairly certain the witch could read his thoughts if he wanted to. And if he was the seer Cal thought he was, diverting him into a false reading was Dagger’s only chance of getting out of there.

The super-witch got up and swiveled on his heel, pacing the small room. Dagger was impressed with his size and presence. If he hadn’t known the man was just past twenty he’d have thought him at least in his early thirties. His hair was dark, almost black, and he wore it short in a conservative cut. Dagger recognized him as the boss’s assistant, who had signed his job tickets on prior service calls here. He slid his eyes over the other two men, and found the shorter, older man who ran the software company, and had hired him for this job.