Authors: Amanda Ashley
Nardik released Alexxa from his spell when the Airship neared Callidori. Quinn had no doubt they had arrived at the right place this time. Under his renewed threat to turn her into a vampire, she grudgingly spoke the words necessary to get past the protective enchantment that veiled the planet.
As agreed, Nardik paid the pilot half his fee when they landed, the other half to be paid when they returned to Brynn Tor.
“Well, we’re here,” Quinn said as they made their way toward the city. “All we have to do now if find Wyrick, rescue the Steffon and Corrie, and head for home. Sounds easy enough.”
Callidori was a small planet, as was everything he saw growing. Trees, plants, flowers, all looked stunted, their colors pale and, in some cases, like nothing he had ever seen before. The land was mostly flat, though a few small brown hills could be seen in the distance.
They passed several residences on the outskirts of town. The houses were made of wood and green brick. Some were rectangular, others were round, a few appeared to be mostly underground, with only roofs and chimneys showing. Quinn noticed an old man watching them through a second-story window, a woman peering at them from behind lace curtains.
He paused at as they reached the town proper. Head lifted, eyes closed, he opened his preternatural senses, searching for his son. There were a number of people in the house, but the scent of Steffon’s blood stood out from the others. He breathed it in for a moment before saying, “He’s in there.”
Hope fluttered in Seleena’s heart. “Are you sure?” If Quinn was wrong, if their son wasn’t really here, they might never find him.
Quinn nodded. “I’m sure.”
“Is he all right?”
“As far as I can tell. What do we do now? We can’t just storm the place and hope for the best.”
“True,” Nardik said. “But there is little point in trying to hide our presence. I am sure Wyrick knows we are here.”
“Let’s go scout around a little,” Quinn suggested.
Nodding in assent, Seleena and Nardik followed him down the main street, with Alexxa between them.
The whole town exuded an aura of black magic. It hung over the place like a malevolent dark cloud. It raised the hairs along Quinn’s arms, made his stomach muscles clench. The dragon felt it, too. He stirred restlessly, his tail lashing back and forth. “Not yet,” Quinn murmured, stroking the dragon’s back through his shirt. “Not yet.”
They passed a number of men and women as they strolled down the street. Most of them were witches who cast sideways glances in their directions, their expressions ranging from mildly curious to openly hostile. A few of the inhabitants were humans going about their daily lives, wandering in and out of shops, stopping to chat with friends, idling on street corners. Witch or mortal, male or female, they regarded the strangers with thinly-veiled suspicion.
“Odd,” Seleena whispered.”
“What’s odd?” Quinn asked.
She made a vague gesture with her hand. “There are no children.”
“Maybe they’re in school,” he said, though there was no school in sight.
“Maybe.”
“You don’t think Wyrick kidnapped them all, do you?”
“He has no need for mortal children,” Nardik said. “Unless...”
“Unless what?” Quinn asked.
“Some dark witches sacrifice young children to gain power.”
Quinn swore under his breath. And he’d thought Jagg was evil. Shit, the trader couldn’t hold a candle to Wyrick.
The houses grew fewer as they traveled onward.
“Steffon’s in there,” Quinn said, pointing to a two-story house located on a hill at the end of the street. This dwelling was larger than any of the others they had seen thus far. Black smoke rose from the chimney. There were no windows visible on the main floor.
Seleena shivered. “I can feel Wyrick’s magic, even from here.”
Nardik took a deep breath. “I believe the whole coven is inside.”
“And Annis’ daughter?” Seleena asked. “Is she in there, too?”
“I think so,” Quinn said. “I can hear the heartbeats of more than one child. They’re faster than those of the adults.”
“You’re all dead,” Alexxa predicted gleefully. “The three of you together aren’t as powerful as Wyrick.”
“Maybe, maybe not,” Quinn retorted. “But if we go down, I’m taking you with us.”
* * *
They spent a long while watching the house while they considered their options. Trying to sneak up on a coven of witches seemed doomed to fail. Threats would get them nowhere. They had nothing to use for leverage, nothing to trade.
In the end, Nardik suggested they just knock on the door.
“What if they conjure a spell to convey themselves elsewhere?” Seleena asked anxiously. “If that happens, we’ll never be able to find them again.”
Brow furrowed, Quinn raked his fingers through his hair. “We need to pique their interest, offer them something they’ve never seen before.”
“The dragon,” Nardik said.
“Right. Wyrick knows I’m hiding something. What if I offer to show him the tattoo in exchange for seeing my son?”
“What if he hits you with a death spell instead?” Seleena asked. “What if he …?”
“Red, we can stand here and think of ‘what if’s’ all day long, or we can take a chance and do something unexpected.”
“You’re putting a lot of faith in the dragon,” she argued. “What if he hides from Wyrick the way he did the last time?”
“He won’t.”
“You don’t know that!”
“He hasn’t failed me yet,” he said with a wink. “No reason to doubt him now. Besides, the last time he disappeared turned out to be a good thing. I’m betting the dragon and the three of us can defeat anything Wyrick throws our way. Are you with me?”
She smiled at him, her expression softening as she laid her hand on his arm. “Since the day we met.”
“That’s my girl. Once we get inside, I’ll go after Steffon. Nardik, your job is to find Corrie.” He jerked his chin in Alexxa’s direction. “And keep a sharp eye on the witch. We don’t need her interfering.”
“What do you want me to do?” Seleena asked.
“You’re our backup. Stay out here and be ready for anything. I’m not sure how this will go down.”
“Quinn…”
He covered her mouth with his in a long hungry kiss. “For luck,” he said with a wink. “Don’t worry.”
Seleena murmured a protection spell as he strode down the street, hoping against hope that it was strong enough to repel Wyrick’s dark magic, that Quinn’s confidence in the dragon wasn’t misplaced, that her son and Corrie were safe and out of danger.
Quinn murmured, “Don’t let me down, Dragon,” as he approached the front door of Wyrick’s lair. He felt unseen eyes watching him from the second story, felt the whisper of dark magic slide over his skin like invisible fingers. He smiled inwardly. Seleena had his back, he thought, as the spell that had been directed at him from the upstairs window was rendered harmless by her interference.
Shaking off his anxiety, Quinn pounded his fist on the door. “Wyrick! I know you’re there. Open the damn door. I’ve got something to show you.”
There was a ripple in the air. The heavy door swung open. And Wyrick stood there, looking much the same as the last time Quinn had seen him -- a diminutive, white-haired man clad in a long black robe.
The wizard looked him up and down, his dark eyes filled with contempt. “Either you have more nerve than I gave you credit for, vampire, or you are quite insane.”
“I want to see my son.” Quinn held up a hand when the wizard started to speak. “Don’t bother lying to me. I know he’s in there. His blood is my blood. You can’t hide him from me.”
Wyrick snorted. “As I said, I do not know if you are truly brave, or just stupid.”
Quinn tensed as he felt Wyrick summoning his magic. “Wait! Don’t you want to see what I brought you?”
Wyrick glanced pointedly at Quinn’s empty hands. “What could you possibly offer that would be of interest to me?”
“The same thing you were so curious about the last time we were face-to-face.”
Wyrick’s gaze flicked to Quinn’s left shoulder.
Quinn nodded. “Your instincts were right. Bring me my son and I’ll show you something you’ve never seen before.”
Wyrick regarded him for several moments. Quinn could almost see the wheels turning as the wizard weighed the chance to satisfy his curiosity against killing Quinn out of hand.
Curiosity won.
“Lanna,” Wyrick called over his shoulder. “Bring me the boy.”
Quinn went suddenly still, nostrils flaring as he caught Steffon’s warm, baby scent. He looked beyond Wyrick, his gaze focusing on the witch walking toward the front door, a child wrapped in a white blanket cradled in her arms. “Steffon.”
“I have fulfilled my half of the bargain,” Wyrick said, eyes narrowing. “The child is unharmed, as you can see. Now, fulfill your part.”
“As you wish.” Quinn slowly removed his shirt, his gaze never leaving the wizard’s face.
Wyrick took a step forward. He frowned when he saw the tattoo. “That is your big reveal?” He snorted disdainfully. “I have seen tattoos before.”
“But none quite like this one. Now, dragon.”
Wyrick recoiled as the dragon slithered down Quinn’s arm, growing larger and larger still as its feet touched the floor. “What the Hel?” Delving into his robe, the wizard produced his wand with a flourish. Murmuring an incantation, he pointed it at Quinn.
“Oh, bad decision,” Quinn chided, taking several steps back. “Very bad indeed. Now, Dragon!”
As he had before, the dragon darted between Quinn and the wizard’s spell.
Crimson fire erupted from the dragon’s mouth, dancing over Wyrick’s body from head to heel until he was engulfed by the flames. He screamed as his hands beat at the flames in a desperate effort to save himself but to no avail.
The witch, Lanna, let out a startled cry as an unseen entity snatched the baby from her arms.
The wizard let out a last, terrible scream as the flames grew hotter, more intense. There was a
whoosh
of dragon’s breath and Wyrick’s body disintegrated into a pile of ashes.
With a wave of her hand, Lanna vanished from sight.
Quinn glanced around. “Seleena?”
“I’m here.” She materialized beside him, their son in her arms.
“Didn’t I tell you to stay outside?”
“You needed me here.”
Quinn’s gaze rested on the child sleeping in her arms. “Is he all right?”
She nodded, tears of joy sparkling in her eyes. “They didn’t hurt him.”
Relief washed through Quinn. “Where’s Nardik and Alexxa?”
“I don’t know.”
“Take Steffon back to the ship. I’m going inside.” When he was certain Seleena was safely away, Quinn glanced at Wyrick’s ashes, wondering if he would be able to cross the threshold. Sometimes, when death had been committed in a house or the owner had been killed, the threshold lost its power. Was that also true for the homes of witches and wizards?
Quinn took a tentative step forward, felt the faint shimmer of magical energy as he crossed the threshold. Detouring around Wyrick’s cooling ashes, he hurried down the dimly-lit hallway, the dragon at his heels.
A glance into the rooms they passed showed all were empty of life. Some had obviously been deserted quickly -- candles left burning, a half-eaten meal on a table, a chair over-turned in haste.
Muttering, “Where the Hel did the rest of the coven go?” Quinn continued on down the corridor until he came to a stairway leading down to the next level. “What do you think, dragon?”
The beast made a soft, snuffling sound.
“Yeah, I was afraid of that.”
With the dragon following close behind him, Quinn descended the stairs cautiously, all his senses alert. He paused in front of the door at the end of the short hallway. There were people behind it -- Nardik was one of them.
With a whispered, “Stay close, dragon,” Quinn put his hand on the latch.
From inside the room, a deep voice called, “If you open that door, the child dies.”
Shit!
Quinn thought for a moment, then grinned.
Dragon, wait thirty seconds then break down the door. Got it?
The dragon hissed in reply.
“I hope that’s a yes,” Quinn said dryly. Dissolving into mist, he slid under the crack between the door and the floor.
A tall, blond man held a baby against his chest, a wand in his free hand.
Nardik stood three feet away, his gaze fixed on his opponent, his own wand at the ready.
Stalemate.
Neither man seemed aware of the gray mist hovering near the ceiling.
Quinn counted the seconds in his head. When he reached twenty-nine, he materialized beside the blond.
At thirty, the dragon broke down the door.
Quinn grabbed the baby and tossed it to Nardik, then grasped the blond by the shoulders and sank his fangs into the man’s throat.