Risky Goods: Arcane Transporter 2

by Jami Gray

He slowly straightened, and it was like watching a snake uncoil. I braced myself.

  “Would this knowledge bring danger or harm to the Cordovas at any point in time?”

  Could it? Thinking of the journal Sabella had given me and how the Arcane Families relentlessly pursued the Prism who’d written it, the possibility was there. Honesty forced me to say, “I don’t know.”

  At my answer, his gaze dropped, and despite the heavy shadow along his jaw, I saw it tighten. A moment passed, then two. Finally, he looked at me. “If this information was not an imminent threat to the Family, then I would have no problem keeping it to myself.” Before relief could get a foothold in me, he added, “But if that changed…”

  He didn’t need to finish. Once again, his priority was clear—Family first. As much as I hated his honesty, I appreciated it. Hell, I even understood it to some extent. If he could be honest with me, even if it might end us before we even started, I could do no less. I gathered my courage close, lifted my chin and in a low but clear voice gave him a piece of me. “Yes, I can see magic, but it doesn’t matter because I have no idea what I’m looking at or what it means.”

  His eyes widened, a clear indication he hadn’t expected me to step up. “I don’t understand. Didn’t the Guild test you when you joined?”

  I nodded slowly. Taking the Guild assessment exam was one of the first things a person did when applying for acceptance. “But at the time, my dominant ability was clearly in transporting, so that’s what we focused on.” When he continued to stare at me silently, I snapped, “What?”

  He blinked and gave his head a short shake. “I just… sorry. It seems strange that the Guild wouldn’t take advantage of a dual ability and train you for both. A Transporter Key would be the ultimate in security transport.”

  The term was vaguely familiar, but I wasn’t connecting what it had to do with me, probably because my head was still a pounding mess. “What do you mean?”

  “What do you mean, what do I mean?” His confusion was obvious. “Any Family would pay dearly to have access to a top-notch Transporter who was a Key. Not only would their items be safe during delivery, but they also wouldn’t have to worry about cursed packages. It also means a Family would only have to worry about trusting and paying one mage for two jobs. The demand for a dual-level mage who can handle that type of security means the Guild’s commission alone would be nuts. Not to mention, once you went independent, you could’ve written your ticket.”

  As he spoke, his elation came through loud and clear. Unfortunately, seeing how keen he was with his assumption left my mouth dry and my legs weak. “I’m not a Key, Zev. I just see magical echoes.”

  His rising enthusiasm stalled, and he frowned. “You have to be.”

  It was my turn to blink. “I’m not.”

  “You are,” he argued. “You reversed the occlusion spell that hid where they had Lena stashed, not to mention the house security wards you shut down when we first got to where they were holding her.”

  Shit shit shit. I had done that, just not the way he thought. When we went looking for the man who kidnapped Lena, we ended up at a rental with hefty security wards. I basically bullied my way through them by using my Prism ability to short out the magical repercussions. As for the invisibility spell that kept Lena hidden while the Drainer’s Circle did its deadly work and siphoned her magic and life away, I didn’t reverse it—I shattered it. At the time, things had been intense enough that I hoped Zev hadn’t noticed the particulars of what I was doing. Obviously, I’d been wrong.

  “That’s not what happened,” I said.

  Impatience seeped into his voice. “I was there, Rory.”

  “I know you were, Zev, but I didn’t reverse anything.”

  His excitement disappeared, and a new tension settled in, dragging along a hint of wariness. “Are you telling me you can manipulate magic?”

  It struck me that maybe I should have paid closer attention in my basic magical theory classes, because the way he asked that made it sound like nothing good came with manipulating magic. “No, I can’t manipulate magic.”

  “So you’re telling me you’ve never trained as a Key, you don’t manipulate magic, but you see magical echoes, yet you still managed to break a complex occlusion spell without serious physical or mental damage?” As he laid out the pieces, I knew that quick brain of his was making the connections faster than I wanted.

  Swallowing hard, I managed to say, “Yes.” Then, because I was a chickenshit, I waited for him to figure it out. Part of me wanted him to put the pieces together. Part of me really, really didn’t. Neither part wanted to lie outright, because he wouldn’t forgive that.

  He stood in front of me, the foot or so of space between us widening with each breath, as he took what I’d given him and began to fill in the blanks. Uncertain of his reaction, I watched him, braced for anything. My decision was a good one, because when his reaction hit, my instincts were the only things that saved me.

  Magic ripped out of him, whipping around my arms and chest to coil into a painful strike. Just as quickly, my magic snapped into place, taking the brunt of his unexpected attack on its invisible diamond-hard shell. A hiss and a wince still escaped me because whatever he’d thrown at me was meant to leave a mark, and the fraction of time between his attack and me erecting my shield was long enough for it to hit with raw intensity. The sudden pain, emotional and physical, sparked by his attack merged into instinctual self-protection, and then it was Zev who jerked back with a pain-filled hiss as my ability didn’t just deflect his attack but turned it back on him. As I watched, red welts rose along his forearms.

  That fast, I lost Zev and found myself facing the intimidating Arbiter who carried out justice and vengeance for the powerful Cordova Family. Facing that man scared me shitless, but a bigger part of me was pissed off and deeply hurt.

  We stared at each other, the air around us vibrating with magic and volatile emotions. His dark eyes burned. So did mine, but definitely not for the same reason. He pulled his magic back, but mine stayed put. It wouldn’t do shit against any emotional damage he meted out, but if he threw anything else at me, I’d make sure to give as good as I got. Well, so long as I could figure out how.

  “No, you’re not a Key.” His voice was as flat and as empty as his expression.

  “No, I’m not.” My response was equally hard.

  He took a slow, careful step back, his hands at his sides, palms forward as if trying to reassure a striking cobra that he wasn’t a threat. There wasn’t much room to retreat, and he stopped when he hit the island. Using the same careful movements, he folded his arms and let his weight rest against the island. The welts on his arms faded.

  Those cautious movements worked like a subconscious signal, deescalating my magic. It was as if with him stepping back and assuming a relaxed pose, my instincts no longer viewed him as a threat. Too bad I didn’t feel the same. Though I could feel my protective armor lighten, it didn’t disappear completely.

  Zev continued to watch me, and this time, I didn’t miss the slight glow to his eyes, a sign that he was actively using his abilities. What those were, I had yet to figure out, something that I probably needed to remedy pretty damn quickly. I knew he could connect psychically with animals, as I’d made the unfortunate acquaintance with a raptor on our initial meet. I also knew he was an excellent tracker and hunter, not to mention that he wielded his magic with a terrifying confidence, so much so that he was the one who’d managed to reverse the lethal Drainer’s Circle so we could rescue Lena. Something told me that whatever ability or abilities Zev claimed as his, they were a force to be reckoned with.

  The way he watched me told me he’d put the pieces together and my secret was out. Sure enough, when he spoke, his quiet accusation fell between us like a bomb. “Prism.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Still dealing with the combined emotional repercussions of his attack and his declaration, I held his gaze and my tongue.

  It wa
s no surprise when he treated my lack of response as an answer. “Does Sabella know?” Before I could respond, he grimaced and muttered, “Of course she does. It’s why she tied you to her so damn fast. I wondered when it happened. I just didn’t think something like this would be why.” The last of his magic flickered out, but his frustration lingered. “Dammit, Rory. Do you have any idea what you’ve set yourself up for, aligning with her like this?”

  Wait, what? “You were the one who told me I needed alliances, Zev. You made it crystal clear that if I decided to work with the Arcane elite, I needed to cover my ass.” Reading his disappointment and frustration in the harsh lines of his face, I was left choking on the feeling I was missing something important. Not about to let this go, I said, “Sabella’s the head of the oldest Arcane Family. Working for her is about as covered as I can get.”

  He swiped out a hand, his voice rising with his temper. “Contracts aren’t alliances. Contracts won’t haul your ass out of trouble if some half-cocked Family member decides they need their own personal shield and won’t take no for an answer. Contracts will turn on your ass once the check is cashed and the job is done. Hell, some won’t even wait that long.”

  I really, really didn’t appreciate the thread of dread his rant caused or the way it hollowed out my stomach. “Sabella is not going to sell me out.”

  His hands went to his hips, and his eyes narrowed. “You sure about that?”

  If I went with my gut, yes, I was sure, but I didn’t think Zev was in the right frame of mind to appreciate that insight. What I did know was that if Sabella turned on me, I might as well dig my own grave. With the power and influence she had at her command, it would only take one whisper from her to destroy my life. Just as one word of praise from her would set me up for life. Two sides of the same tricky coin. It was a risk I’d recognized and accepted when I signed the contract. But faced with Zev’s gloom and doom, paranoid doubts poked their annoying heads up.

  I ignored the chill breaking over my skin and folded my arms, adding a defiant chin lift for giggles. “I thought you liked Sabella.”

  He grimaced and looked away and said reluctantly, “I do, but do you have any idea what will happen when it becomes known that you’re a Prism?” He pushed off the counter and began pacing through the kitchen. On one of his passes, I caught a glimpse of something more than frustration in his face. Is that… worry?

  On the off chance I wasn’t hallucinating, I dialed back on my belligerent tone. “Yeah, actually, I do.”

  At that, he spun around so quickly I wondered if he’d given himself whiplash. “Right.” Disbelief dripped from that one word. “I find that hard to believe.”

  Insulted pride and age-old resentment came together in a snap, and my hands curled into fists, the action hidden behind my folded arms. Through gritted teeth, I managed to say, in barely civil tones, “And why’s that?”

  He stalked through the small space between us to loom over me. “Because if you knew what the potential fallout would be with that information being out there, you would never have given it to Sabella. Instead, you’d have taken that information to the damn grave.” He glared for a moment, and whatever he read in my face had him spinning away, tension riding his spine, as he muttered, “At this rate, you just might.”

  I reached for my thinning patience and barely kept hold. I stared hard at his back and said in a voice that was lethally sharp with resentment, “You do realize it’s not practical to expect any mage to hide what they are forever, right?”

  “It is if exposing it will cost them their life,” the arrogant ass shot back. “For God’s sake, Rory! You put this out there, and you’ll always be watching your back.”

  The certainty in his voice turned my vision red. “What do think I’m going to do, Zev? Run out and plaster it on a billboard? For fuck’s sake, I know how to watch my own back. I’ve been doing it for years without you or anyone else.” It was my turn to throw my arms out in disgust. I stalked away, needing distance so I wouldn’t give in to my urge to slap him. “I know who I can and can’t trust.”

  The charged air stilled then shifted to something cold and lethal. It hit me when I was halfway to the living room and brought me to a halt. I turned to find that Zev had stopped his pacing and now faced me. His shoulders were a ridge, his hands were fisted at his sides, and a scary intensity burned in his dark eyes. “You sure about that?”

  Refusing to quail under that intimidating glare, I snapped, “Yeah, I am, since I’m standing in front of you, alive and well.”

  His head reared back, an expression I couldn’t read rushing across his face before he wiped it blank. He took a deep breath, then another. “Who else knows?” Something in the way he asked that set off all my internal alarms and left me uncertain of how to proceed. I stayed quiet too long because he took a slow step forward and demanded, “Who else, Rory?”

  Worried that my answers might lead to him to do something I wouldn’t be able to forgive—say, hunt down whoever’s name I gave him—I asked, “Why do you want to know?”

  “Just answer the damn question.”

  “I’m not sure I want to, not with you looking like”—I waved a hand at all Zev in his wrathful glory—“you’re going to go out and kill them.”

  He sucked in air, pivoted, and dragged his hands through his hair. He muttered something I couldn’t catch, which was probably for the best. When he turned back to me, he’d leashed his temper. “I swear to you, I’m not going to go out and kill anyone, okay?” He waited for my nod then said, “Tell me who else knows.”

  “Lena.” I shared the most obvious first then grimaced. “If I had to guess, Evan and probably the Guild director.”

  “How long?”

  “How long have they known?” I waited for his nod. “Lena guessed when she was in the hospital, but she knew something was up long before that—she just didn’t want to pry.” Because she is my best friend and understands the nature of dangerous secrets. “If Evan’s taken the time to reflect on how I helped him out of that spelled trap, he might have an inkling.” Especially if his curiosity is driving him nuts.

  Evan was a master at uncovering information, which was not an unusual trait for a top-notch electro mage who regularly mined the dark realms of electronic data with scary ease. Something I should have considered years ago when I went looking for information on Prisms, but too late now…

  I yanked my wayward thoughts back in line. “As for the director, I don’t know if she knows or not, but considering I all but grew up in the Guild and Sylvia is scary sharp and knows how to hold things close…”

  He put a hand on the counter and used his other to rub the back of his neck. “And Sabella?” Zev dropped his hand until both were pressed flat on the counter. “How’d she find out? Did you blurt it out over coffee?”

  His patronizing attitude was getting old. I pointed at him. “Fuck you, Zev.” His brow lowered and his chin jerked back as I stomped over and got in his face, drilling my finger into his chest to empathize my point. “I don’t owe you an answer. Especially when you’re treating me like I’m a witless airhead.”

  “You’re right. I was out of line.” He caught my hand and held it tight, but for the first time, his touch did nothing for me. “I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important. How did Sabella find out?”

  I didn’t bother pulling my hand away. “I don’t know. What I do know is she is the first person who cared to share something with me about something no one admits even exists.” I got on tiptoe until we were basically nose to nose and hissed, “So for that, yeah, she’s got my loyalty, which she’ll keep until she proves she shouldn’t, because she gave me something that was fucking priceless.”

  “What exactly did she give you?”

  I dropped back down and went to step away, but he wouldn’t let me go. Instead of degenerating into a physical tug-of-war, I pulled back as far as I could go. “A journal written by Prism.”

  Something changed in his expression, but I
was too pissed too care. I gave another tug on my hand and he finally released it. Free to move, I stalked away from him and into the living room.

  His voice, no longer harsh but curious, followed me. “A journal?”

  “Yeah,” I admitted as the roller-coaster ride of emotions started to slow and exhaustion crept back with a vengeance. Why the hell was I so angry with him about this? I spent plenty of sleepless nights asking myself the same things—how Sabella knew, what her angle was, who else knew, and what it all meant. It was enough to drive me crazy, and sometimes I thought it had.

  I dropped onto the couch and curled up on one side. I wasn’t surprised when Zev followed and sat at the other end. I propped my elbow on the couch and dropped my head into my hand, staring at the floor without really seeing it.

  “Reading through it was the first time I realized I wasn’t some weird magical genetic one-off and that there was so much more I could do with my ability.” I rubbed the ache in my temple and scrunched deeper into the cushion so I could rest my head against the plush back. “Unfortunately, it also reestablished why I needed to watch my ass around the Families.”

  “Everyone needs to watch their ass around Families,” Zev pointed out in a bland tone.

  My snort of laughter came out a tad bitter. “That may be true, but after reading what that Prism went through, I have to wonder if it’s worth it.”

  “If what’s worth it?”

  “Using my ability as a Prism or even admitting what I am. What they did to her…” The barbaric scenes from the past, stark horrors etched in faded ink, had made their way into my nightmares and left me shaking in the dead hours of morning. “Why do people have to be so damn ugly?” I shook my head, my heart aching with anger, fear, and resentment for a woman I’d never met but understood all too well. Turning, I looked at Zev. “What purpose did it serve to wipe out an entire class of mages? What exactly did the Families gain from what basically amounted to a systematic genocide?” I didn’t really expect him to answer.