The only sound came from the bunkhouse, that being the faint voice of a TV broadcaster. The barn was totally silent.
I remained where I was. No rush anymore. If he moved inside, I’d likely hear something. Sometimes a hunter had to be patient.
With that in mind, I caught my breath and open my mind to every possibility. He had to be getting nervous. While I waited for him to make his next move, I meditated and strengthened my ward.
After what seemed like forever, something crunched inside. It could’ve been a barn cat prowling, or rat, but it sounded more like a heavy foot stepping on hay or straw. I stayed put, breathing as slowly as possible and focusing on my magical barrier. Patience was the key.
A moment later, the same sound came again, and this time, I got a much better sense that it was the sorcerer, and I knew where he had to be.
And at the rate he was going, he wasn’t going anywhere soon. I stayed silent and waited.
He took several slow steps away, and I was confident I could pinpoint his location. He probably had his back turned.
Slowly, I slipped the head of my staff around the corner to point it in the right general direction. Then I opened my vault and let some of the anger seething inside fill me. I shot a tiny pulse of fire into the barn to provide light.
It missed him, but I saw his outline clearly and fired for effect. Holarthon, elbo choque! My blue lightning bolt flowed through the red fireball he blasted back my way. It passed on the right of my ward and careened off into the darkness.
My aim was true. His ward blasted to smithereens, and he stood frozen. I lit the tip of my staff to see him clearly. Although he was at my mercy, I decided to cut him some slack. It didn’t look like he was all that successful as a slave master.
“Listen!” I yelled. “If you give up now, I’ll let you keep one guy, Alan Boyle. Otherwise, you’re toast. You’ve got my mom Nora in the bunkhouse. I’m not leaving without her and the others. Don’t be an idiot.”
Seemed like a more than fair deal. The son of a bitch was standing in the middle of an open area inside the barn, and I’d be able to see the instant he tried to point at me. Sure, I’d been planning for months all kinds of nasty things I could do to dear old dad, but this sorcerer would probably make Alan suffer worse than I would.
But instead of thanking me for my generosity, he pointed a finger at me. “I ain’t afraid of no cunt witch—!”
“HOLARTHON, ELBO FRAPPE!” I cut him off with a ball of lightning. If there was anything worse than a nasty older sorcerer, it was a nasty old sexist sorcerer.
My spell hit him in the stomach with enough force to knock him backwards onto his ass. Then he rolled on the dirt floor, trying to put out the flames. But a magical fire doesn’t go away so easily. His clothes continued to burn until he lost consciousness. Then I reversed the spell, and the fire went out.
As I stood over him, a huge wave of relief flooded through me. Mom was free after more than twenty years of slavery. I screamed with joy, and my whole body trembled. After so long, the last barrier between me and Mom was lying at my feet. I had to lean on my staff to stay upright, had to stay strong. “Yes! Yes! Yes!!!”
The noise seemed to wake up the bastard. After my wave of weakness passed, I tapped him a few times on the side of the head with my staff to help him along. When he sat up, now as bald is a pickle with a red face and scorched shirt, I said, “I claim the spoils of victory. You should’ve taken my deal, you stupid son of a bitch.”
“Yes, Master.” He said it submissively, with no hint of the anger from just a moment ago.
“Can you stand up?”
“Yes, I think so.” And he did. He was unsteady on his feet, but I wasn’t going to touch him. Together, we walked to the bunkhouse.
They’d turned the TV off. Because all of his slaves were magical, they’d heard the sounds of battle, particularly the thunderclaps.
When I entered the bunkhouse, my mother looked at me and gasped. She put her hand over her mouth as though she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. My fighting form was close enough to what I used to look like as an eighteen-year-old for her to recognize me.
“Please, stand up, Mom, and give me a hug. I know it’s taken Dana and me forever to find you, but we’re here to take you away from this nightmare.”
She rushed toward me as I ran toward her. When we met in the middle, I threw my arms around her tall, thin body and hugged her for the first time in six years. Thank the gods!
She shrieked over and over and held me. Despite how frail she was, she hugged me tightly. I lifted her off her feet and spun her in a circle. This was even better than freeing Dana, and I didn’t think I’d ever experience better than that.
Several times, she tried to speak, but words wouldn’t come. All the other slaves, except Alan, gathered around us hugging and laughing. To be heard over the noise, I yelled, “I hereby free all of my slaves except for Alan Boyle and the sorcerer.”
They cheered their freedom, and as they did, I held on to Mom. She’d lost at least thirty pounds from when I last saw her six years ago. Joy filled me and set me to giggling uncontrollably.
Finally, she said in a hoarse voice, “I knew you’d come as soon as you could. They tried to keep me from finding out, but I heard how Bloody Mary had freed her sister from slavery. That gave me the hope I needed to hang on.”
Chapter 21
WHEN THE HUBBUB died down a little, I said, “Listen up, everybody. I need to run out for a minute and tell my friends I’m okay. Everybody I freed is welcome to leave, but if you stay, I’ll help you get back to your friends and families. And you all look starved. I suggest everybody go to the farmhouse. Everyone but my slaves can eat whatever you find there.”
I held Mom’s hand, and we were both unsteady on our feet as we hurried out of the bunkhouse into the darkness.
“Dana and a detective friend who helped find you, his name is Thao, are waiting in a car across the road.”
Mom had always been a tall, stout woman as sturdy as a redwood, but she stumbled a couple times as we walked. I put an arm around her waist to keep her on her feet.
When we reached the car, Dana jumped out. “I was so worried. It seemed to take too long. Mom, are you okay?”
“Never better than right now,” she said.
The three of us hugged and danced in a circle while talking, constantly interrupting each other. It didn’t matter. What a perfect time.
After a few minutes, Thao stepped out of the car, and I introduced him. Then the four of us returned across the street. He’d already begun making arrangements to help all the former slaves get back to their friends and families. That included coordinating with Gracie on the phone, and she congratulated me.
Then she said, “Thao and I’ll figure out the logistics. You can focus all your attention on your mom.”
I thanked her and gave the phone to Thao. I reached for Mom again, couldn’t stop stroking her hands, arms, and face. Her worry lines that I’d seen earlier vanished.
When we entered the farmhouse, I glanced around the living room. My two slaves sat off by themselves, silent. I walked over to them. “Both of you will cooperate with Thao and Gracie as you would me. Alan, because you were so eager to enslave your children and wife, you will get the privilege of taking care of us for a change. And you can bet I will find the dirtiest, nastiest, most painful jobs available to give to you.”
One of the former slaves was preparing a huge pan full of home fries, and another cooked hamburgers. They told me that they’d all been hungry for months.
After a late dinner, Thao arranged for motel rooms for everyone near where we were staying. Most of the folks piled into the back of the sorcerer’s pickup and drove to the motel for the night. When we arrived, Mom, Dana, and I stayed up until the early morning hours trying to catch up with each other and tell Mom about Cara.
Eventually, I asked, “Who is Padrick Kennedy?”
Mo
m burst into tears, then, between sobs, said, “Your father. Poor Padrick. I loved him so.”
My heart filled to almost bursting from the emotion in her voice. I wasn’t surprised at the news. It was the only answer that had made sense. “Did Alan hurt him?”
She shook her head. “A hit and run driver killed him a few months after you were born. Then, about a year later, I ran into Alan Boyle. He attacked me and beat me. He forced me to lie about who your daddy was. I’m so sorry I couldn’t tell you the truth.”
I knew how magic worked, so I didn’t hold it against her at all. “Do we have relatives on Padrick’s side of the family?”
She nodded. “In County Galway, Ireland. I’ll be so relieved to be able to tell them about you and your sisters.”
That gave us even more to talk about and to look forward to.
-o-o-o-
Tuesday, March 23rd
IN THE MORNING, we all headed to the airport. Most of the former slaves, everyone but Mom and Alan, went their separate ways then.
The six of us remaining flew to Monterey. Mom, Dana, and I still talked nonstop, except for when our feelings overwhelmed us. It was going to take me a long time to get used to this blissful change.
Then Ian called. I was about to tell my happy news when he said, “Congratulations, and sorry to bother you, but we’ve got big trouble. I’m still in LA, but Gracie just called me. Breaux apparently snuck into Monterey looking for you. He found Frank and Ginger instead. Long story short, he beat both of them and has taken them away. I’m on my way home. When you get there, we can strategize.”
“I can’t believe it,” I said. “Is everybody else okay?”
“Yeah,” Ian said. “Breaux didn’t try to enter the Seabreeze compound. Apparently, he waited outside for the better part of the day hoping to spot you leaving. Eventually, he forgot about you and followed Frank and Ginger to a local restaurant. I suspect they were paying more attention to each other than potential threats. Whatever happened, he beat them both. One of the clan members who happened to be walking by on the street noticed Breaux leading Frank and Ginger toward a car. In an instant, they were gone.”
Ian and I talked about the latest catastrophe until our flight began boarding. Dana and Mom had heard my half of the conversation, so they basically knew what’d happened. We whispered back and forth to each other during the flight, but there was little we could do until we arrived back at the inn.
-o-o-o-
Wednesday, March 24th
BY BREAKFAST, I knew two things. First, Mom was the greatest mother ever. She understood me like no one else. I hardly had to complete my sentences. She knew what I was going to say, and even better, she liked it. I felt terrible for all the people in this world who’d missed out on having her as a mom.
Dana didn’t have to tell me she felt the same way. I could see it on her face. The two of us kept Mom sandwiched between us every chance we got, just to make sure we’d never lose her again.
The second thing I realized was I couldn’t stand to look at the bastard who’d pretended for most of my life to be my father. I’d thought I could pay him back by treating him like a galley slave, but every time I saw him that morning, he sickened me. So, I gave him to Gracie with instructions to punish him as much as she could. “I never want to see his face again.”
Gracie nodded. “Perfectly understandable. We’ll give him the worst jobs we can find.”
-o-o-o-
RIGHT AFTER BREAKFAST, the Garda met with the clan’s council. Mom and Dana also joined us because we’d be talking about Cara. Collectively, we had to decide what to do about Frank and Ginger.
Ian did most of the talking on our side, and he explained who Breaux was and why he’d come around looking for me.
When he finished, Council President Sadie asked, “Do we have any idea where he is now?”
Ian looked at me back where I was sitting with Mom and Dana.
“I spoke to Suong again this morning,” I said. “She knows where he stayed in this area two nights ago, and she’s identified a cell phone he used to connect to wi-fi while at a local motel. That phone is now in New Orleans. If he keeps using it, she should be able to narrow his location soon.”
“Then what?” one of the other council members asked. “Ian will go and attack him?”
That wasn’t my plan. I waved my hand to get their attention, but before anyone recognized me, Ian said, “Moira and I will go together. I doubt it’s a coincidence that Breaux is there. The New World Warlock Council is holding a meeting in New Orleans in two days. Lots of rich, powerful sorcerers will attend, including all the major cartel bosses. They’re monsters with unlimited amounts of cash, and they’re the most willing to pay an outrageous price for Cara Boyle. With luck, we’ll get her, Frank, and Ginger at the same time.”
After the meeting broke up, I approached our Fearless Leader with Mom and Dana in tow. “You know damned well,” I said, “I’m planning on taking care of Breaux myself.”
“Yeah, I know, and I was fine with that—until the son of a bitch took two of my people. Now I have a duty to get them back, and if I can free your sister in the process, well, sorry.”
I knew I was being stupid. Cara’s best chance for freedom was for Ian to kick Breaux’s ass instead of me. The boss was a much better fighting witch, but he could’ve warned me that he was going to pull rank. “Glad you’re letting me come along and carry your luggage.”
He grinned. “There’ll be lots of assholes there. I’m sure we can both get pounded on as much as anyone would want.”
When he said it that way, I realized how childish I was acting, but I didn’t let him off easy. “I’ll do what I can to keep you out of trouble.”
He laughed and wandered away.
My mother asked me, “Are you ready to face those monsters? I think it’s a blessing that Ian is going. His aura is spectacular.”
No doubt about that. “Yeah, we’re lucky to have him, but I don’t want his head to swell too much.”
We were still talking about what I needed to do to polish up my magic when Suong called. By then, the council room was empty, so I put her on speaker.
“I’ve definitely located Breaux’s cell. He just sent a text to a gladiator reporter that mentions you. It says, ‘Bloody Mary has been crazier than ever lately. First, she refused to fight me for her sister. Then, when I chased her to Monterey, she hid from me. I finally had to settle for fighting two of O’Rourke’s other underlings. Bloody Mary is a coward and cost her friends their freedom. If she doesn’t meet me in New Orleans, at the Beaumont Hotel at noon on Friday, I’m going to double the bounty on her head and sell her sister to a drug lord.’”
“Those reporters loved a good story,” I said, “so I’m sure the news will be talked about all over the sorcerer world soon. A second public challenge. Maybe I could be the bait that lures Breaux out into the open for Ian to wipe him out.”
Mom blanched, and a deep furrow formed on Dana’s forehead. Then Suong said, “I’d be really careful, if I were you. The gossip on the dark side says Breaux is one of the strongest fighters in North America now. Please, stay safe.”
“Sure, I will. I’m not suicidal, but Cara’s life expectancy has to be short if she gets hauled off to South America or Mexico. And how could we recover her from some walled compound filled with hundreds of armed men? We have to do everything possible to save her while she’s still in the US.”
For some reason, neither my sister nor my mom would look me in the eye. Maybe they didn’t trust me to take care of myself, but I knew my limitations. I just didn’t know Breaux’s full strength.
-o-o-o-
TO CLEAR MY head, I walked over to Del Monte Beach alone and sat in the sand, letting the endless lapping of water on the shore sooth me. Time was short, but I always thought best after meditating. With my eyes open, I went through the various stages of jhana Chen had showed me.
The white fog graduall
y enveloped me, and all I could sense was an eternal harmony in which sentient beings passed close to me now and then. We were all part of the spiritual universe.
That joyous state continued after I returned to sensing the normal world. And I could think clearly. It was time to look at myself objectively. What was holding me back from being as strong as Ian, or even Gill?
When I asked the question that way, the answer was obvious. They had their heads screwed on straight, and I didn’t. I’d received extraordinary help from so many people, but I hadn’t been able to blend it in my mind.
And now, Cara was about to be shipped off to some hellhole in South or Central America. I’d soon lose any chance to save her. That triggered nausea, and my euphoria vanished.
What did a girl do when she felt pitiful? If she could, she cried on her mom’s shoulder. I headed back to the inn. At least, I had that wonderful option now.
Seabreeze was a big place, and I didn’t know where she was. I texted, and she immediately replied, At the gazebo, having coffee.
I found her there with a half-dozen women her age, just getting to know them. She could do that anytime, so I, in my in my less than tactful way, dragged her off to an empty corner and told her my problem.
After a comforting hug, she said, “You and Ian make a great team. Let him do the heavy lifting.”
She made it sound so easy. I walked over to get myself a cup of coffee while I thought about why I couldn’t. Cara was my sister and my responsibility, not his.
When I sat down with her again, I said, “I just can’t seem to calm down enough to fit all the different ideas in my head into a coherent fighting style.”
“Is that all?”
I felt like an idiot. She seemed to think my warring thoughts would suddenly play nicely together. But they worked at cross purposes. “Remember when I told you about the third jhana? It’s amazing, but the only way I get there is to be completely relaxed. And while I’m fighting, I can’t relax enough to enter the higher meditative states.”
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