Wilder Mage (32 page)

By swaying under his hand, she came up underneath and put her nose close to the scratches. She sniffed his arm, and when he started to pull away, she gently laid one paw on his hand. He held still for her inspection. She tipped her head and trilled a question.

“Spirit,” Justus said.

The cat turned away to watch the horizon.

Silence enfolded the porch and house, cloaking the surroundings in a deep, sullen blanket. It moved like a slow flood of syrup, into the yard and then the street. Justus sensed wild magic, untamed by any mage, used by no one. Magic soared, wild energies made of every element.

It mounted, crashed down, and swelled again. The energies like a wave that rolled over the land, unseen by the humans. But animals and birds were aware of its passage, running blindly from its path or huddled in burrows and nests. The elements searched, hunted, its goal all too apparent, and the land groaned under the weight. It sought a master, and time narrowed to a pinpoint.

Maybe it was too late for anyone to run.

Where was Sable?

He stood when he heard the sound of a car. An adept approached, and he recognized her magical signature. He waited, his hands loose at his sides.

The adept’s eyes were on him even before she killed the engine. Hesitantly, she left her vehicle and with leaden steps walked to him.

“Justus,” Macy said. She licked her lips.

He waited.

“Justus. They took Sable.”

He tipped his head to one side. Fire burst to life inside him, but he held it still. Her voice was so soft, he could barely hear the next words.

“I know who you are,” she said.

“Who am I?” he asked softly. Her mouth must be dry, he thought absently.

“You are the one they call the wilder, the one who got away.” Her lips barely moved. “I’ve known since the day we met on the street, the day we found Sable. I saw you and knew you then for what you are.”

He waited.

“You are the one Tiarra wants,” she whispered.

His eyes flicked to her car and then back to her face. “Is Dayne with you now?” Justus asked quietly.

“He is…” She stopped to suck in a breath, and then her mouth firmed into a line. “He is coordinating the operation to transfer Sable to Tiarra. And find you.”

The spark inside him roared to life. It manifested and grew, but crouched like a predator readying for the kill.

Though he hadn’t moved, Macy held her hand out, as if to stop his advance. “He is under a compulsion. They all are. A compulsion to follow Tiarra’s orders, no matter what. To go against her wishes causes pain. But Dayne knows about it. He is trying to fight it.”

Justus’s eyes narrowed.

“He agrees with me, Justus. He has begun to question Tiarra’s motives and subjecting adepts to her bonding process.”

Macy closed her eyes and spoke through the tears gathering on her cheeks. “He will fight the compulsion. He wants the truth, you have to believe that,” she said.

“Where is the transfer taking place and when?” Strange, with so many emotions coursing through him, that his voice was so flat.

“Street fair in Wallagrass at seven this evening. There will be a crowd, making it less likely there will be a scene. Too many witnesses.”

“Who took her?”

Her face hardened. “Wesley,” Macy spat. “He is Tiarra’s creature, apparently. He had an object of fixed magic that negated Sable’s elements. He will transfer Sable to Tiarra at the street fair.”

“Tiarra will be there.”

Macy nodded. “As will at least three adepts. And Dayne.”

Justus stared into the distant sky, watching the cotton ball clouds as they formed shapes. “We need to leave,” he said softly.

She nodded. “I think you shouldn’t even leave a note, just get the hell away by any means necessary. They don’t know about you or what you can do…”

Her voice trailed off when his fierce eyes pierced her.

“I mean, we need to leave now if I am going to get there before the transfer,” Justus said. He ignored her gasp and stepped off the porch, striding quickly to his car. Footsteps trotted behind him, and Macy opened the passenger side door and slid in as he got behind the wheel.

Justus started the engine and put it into gear. Macy half-turned to him. “You would risk Tiarra finding you? To save Sable?”

“Of course,” he said easily. Justus turned to her and grinned.

Macy drew back, covering her open mouth with her hand.

“What?” Justus said.

“You, uh, you reminded me of someone just then.”

He shrugged. It would take nearly thirty minutes get to the street fair. Twenty, the way he drove. Cops were the least of his worries for now.

“How is it you don’t feel this compulsion to follow Tiarra’s orders?” Justus asked.

Macy pulled a black chain from her blouse and held out a muddy-colored pendant that swayed at the end. “This is a shield from her influence, given to me by a man who stopped me on a jogging path. I had never seen him before, and I haven’t seen him since, but he told me about the compulsion, how it worked. He also told me to not tell anyone unless absolutely vital, that it would spotlight my lack of complicity for Tiarra’s plans.”

Justus’s eyes stayed on the pendant briefly, and his hands tightened on the steering wheel.

“This thing evidently acts as a shield or something, augmenting my magic to form a barrier.”

“Does it work on people around you also?” Justus asked lightly. He didn’t look at her.

“No,” she said slowly. “It only works on me.” Macy huffed a short laugh. “That would be great, using it on other people. I could have helped Dayne.

“In a way, it broke through your shield. I mean, I saw you were a mage in that first meeting, but I didn’t feel your signature. I still don’t feel it, even sitting so near. How do you do it? Shield yourself?”

He showed his teeth in a humorless smile. “Fixed magic,” he said. “But gathered magic…” Justus shrugged and his smile turned inward. “Well, that’s a different story.”

“No need to ask if that was you earlier today, that eruption of the elements.”

His smile widened. “Now, if I use even a morsel of gathered energies, I might as well throw out a welcome mat. They’ll see me right away. And then I. Will. Get. Nailed.”

“I don’t know,” Macy said. “I don’t think your definition of ‘nailed’ is the same as mine. I doubt you have much to worry about, power-wise. It’s the publicity we have to think about.”

She drummed her fingers on the armrest. “Since you might get, um, nailed, let me do the hard lifting. I’ll toss some inconspicuous elements if you need anything. That way you can focus on finding Sable—and Wesley.”

Justus ground his teeth together.

“What is the plan, anyway?” Macy said.

This time, genuine humor curled his lips into laughter. He glanced at Macy, his eyes sparkling. “Beats me.”

She subsided. Weathered road signs began to appear, extolling the attractions of Wallagrass. Nearly every small town had them on the outskirts, the gas station advertising night crawlers and beer, the church’s sign with a verse from Romans. A brightly painted sign advertised the street fair.

Cars wandered the black-top road, looking for a parking spot. The grownups walked to the wheeling lights of the carnival, dancing children towing them forward. The noise and bustle drew them forward into the city’s downtown.

Justus parked as close to the street entrance as he could, shut off the motor, and left the vehicle. Car horns blared and people yelled, but he paid them no attention. Macy quickly joined him, and they strode to the busiest section of the fair.

One man stood in their way, gesturing at them, his face red and getting redder when Justus ignored him, yelling something about the way his car blocked an alleyway. He stepped to one side, and the man’s splayed hand reached for Justus’s arm.

Before he could react, Justus felt Macy reach for Air and a sturdy gust hit the man, tumbling him backwards. Earth joined Air, and Justus stepped around the surprised man.

Justus walked forward, searching for Sable’s familiar figure. He heard a masculine squawk and yell. Macy trotted up and grinned. She fell into step beside him.

“What did you do?” Justus asked.

“Convinced him there were other things more important than being a jerk. You know, priorities? Like when a spider crawls up your pant leg and roams around? Things like that.”

Justus’s laugh broke off abruptly when he felt Sable’s very faint signature, and he turned to follow it like a hound on a scent trail. The magic was nearly unrecognizable, almost as if viewing scenery through fog.

In long strides, he parted the crowd to follow the tiny magical hints, Macy nearly jogging at his side. The humans moved out of his path after glancing at his face. Absently, he wondered what he looked like. Fierce and pissed off? Or frightened and worried? Whatever made the people dodge out of his path, it was good enough for him.

The signature grew stronger, but was still very faint. He started down a long avenue with vendors hawking their frozen lemonades and win-a-teddy-bear-for-your-lady stands on either side. Justus turned sideways to avoid crashing into a group of teens. The smells of popcorn and warm bodies were in the air, a whirl of voices, excited, laughing.

Like a flashbulb flaring into life, he felt Sable’s full magical signature. Her elements erupted.

All of them.

At once.

He ran toward the display of elements that suddenly swirled above the crowd and shoved a teenager out of his way. Then the magic puffed out like a candle and was gone.

Justus felt his insides churn when her magic disappeared. Now he ignored the crowd of humans, pushing them aside in his haste. Then they melted away from him with a sudden surge of Air. Macy plowed through them with her magic.

Five elements erupted again, pulsating into life. For a moment, the crowds parted and he could see ahead of him.

A disturbance boiled in the middle of the fairway, people pointing and milling, then a body flew up from the middle of the group. A man somersaulted out, his arms and legs splayed as he tumbled through the air before making a satisfying crunch into the asphalt of the street.

Sable stood in the cleared space, hands on her hips looking down at the sprawled man. Justus laughed, reassured and entertained at the same time. Her eyes came up, and he laughed again when he saw the fierce set of her face, followed by the expanding bloom of joy. She took a step toward him, forgetting the man on the pavement. Justus hurried to her.

But she was so far away.

A flare of magic broke his eye contact with her. In line with Sable, behind her back at the edge of the crowd, elements suddenly boiled. And a face, smug with triumph, broke from the crowd of nondescript features. The eyes…he remembered her eyes so well. And the words she screamed when he had escaped her that day so long ago. He saw her reach for Spirit, gathering the glittering white-silver element into her hands.

Her eyes were intent on Sable’s back.

Sable’s happy smile widened as she started forward, swaying out of the scrambled path of the people. She took three steps, and he heard Sable’s delighted laugh as she dodged yet another human.

Then the long-nailed hand reached for her and fell on her shoulder.

Before the radiant light went out of her eyes, Sable focused on Justus and time seemed to stand still. Then the hand tightened, and the eyes of Sable’s captor did not waver as the supple fingers caressed her neck like a lover. The woman’s lips moved and whispered silent words into Sable’s ear.

The young mage dreamily nodded, her eyes unfocused. They started to turn away.

Justus screamed a horrible, guttural sound. Without pausing, he reached for his elements. They answered his will with a thunderous roar, soaring into the heavens and curling into waves of glitter. A gasp came from behind him, but he ignored the sound. He extended his arms away from his body and prepared to hurl the full power of his magic at the woman guiding Sable’s uncertain steps through the crowded fairway.

Tiarra jerked and whipped around to face him. The emotions that chased each other across her face were almost too fast to interpret. Surprise, shock. And fear. Terrible panic ruled her face for a brief moment, then her expression smoothed. She drew Sable’s unresisting body against her and backed away. Tiarra’s eyes never left his. The crowd molded around them. Tiarra gestured, throwing out her arm, and he saw her lips move. Then she and Sable disappeared behind the people milling on the street.

Justus prepared to follow her, but a hand on his arm stopped him, and he looked down at Macy’s terrified face.

“The adepts. She called the adepts. They are…” She choked and gripped his arm savagely. “We…they are to kill you. She says she has what she wants. There are three of them.”

And Dayne. She didn’t have to say it, but the name was in her voice.

“Release me,” Justus said quietly. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

Vaguely, he noticed his voice thrummed with power.

“Dayne.” She croaked the name and then released his arm.

As she stepped back and away from him, Justus felt the approach of the adepts. For the first time, he used his senses to locate the positions of other wizards with the clear desire to find them, not avoid them. He wanted to know exactly where they were.

With savage will, he controlled his frantic need to find Sable, the desperation to look for her, and the rage the delay caused in him.

He prepared to meet the wizards.

He called to Air and Water, and a shield formed around his body. It swirled, nearly invisible, and he waited for the adepts to show themselves. He didn’t have long to wait.

A mage stepped from the crowd; his ropey-muscled arms flexed as he eyed Justus and grinned. The adept reached for his only element, Earth, and a deep rumble sounded from under Justus’s feet.

Justus shrugged and threw out one hand. Air whipped around the adept, picked him up along with bits of dirty popcorn and gravel. It threw him, arms and legs flailing, into the canvas tent of a sideshow. It collapsed with a big
whumpf
of air. The Earth-sound vanished with the adept.