Heart of the Thief

by Katerina Martinez

  My heart wasn’t in my throat anymore, it was wedged between my temples and pulsing so frantically I was having trouble seeing straight. Still, climbing a rope—like climbing a pole—was all muscle memory, not something I even needed eyes for.

  I reached for the top with one hand and grabbed the edge of the building. As soon as I felt like I could, I pulled myself up and over the top and rolled onto my back. Panting, thanking all the Gods for listening to me, I spent a couple of seconds to recover before I remembered the crows were still on the rooftop, not to mention Axel.

  I rolled onto my front and fought to get to my feet, moving away from the edge of the building. A flash of light caught my eye, and I turned around in time to watch Axel deflect one of Karkov’s spells. Karkov was a mess—a gory, bleeding mess—but he was still standing. As was Delia. Both were attacking Axel with everything they had, but he was parrying and countering every streak of magic that came his way like they were being thrown at him by children.

  He almost looked bored.

  Delia stopped firing spells at him and, instead, pointed at him from where she stood. She yelled something at him, but I couldn’t hear her over the whoosh of the wind. Axel replied, but I didn’t catch what he’d told her, either. I moved closer, but before I could get close enough to hear anything, Delia and Karkov took to the skies, donning their crow forms and disappearing into the night.

  Axel spotted me standing across from him, and our eyes locked. I wondered when he’d make his move, when he’d decide to go on the offensive. He was still holding the clutch in one hand, but the dagger was nowhere to be seen. When he stretched the hand holding the clutch over to me, I didn’t know how to react.

  “Take it,” he said, his voice manifesting as a whisper against my ear, despite the distance between us.

  My entire body shook. I hated what he’d just done, but I hated myself more for the way I’d just reacted to the sound of his voice. I wasn’t sure if he was trying to set up a trap, but I also didn’t want to leave empty handed. By now the entire Magistrate knew something was up. It was only a matter of time before someone realized mages were dueling up on the roof and the whole place swarmed with Legionnaires.

  The worst part? With the basket out of commission, neither of us had a way down except through those Legionnaires.

  I took a tentative step toward him. When he didn’t move, or become hostile toward me, I took another, and another. In a few seconds flat, I’d all but closed the distance between us. A bruise was starting to form on his cheek where I’d hit him. Good. I hoped it stung.

  “Crows looked a little pissed at you,” I said.

  “They’ll get over it,” he said. “Or they’ll try to kill me again. Or both.”

  “Does this mean you’re out of the family?”

  He turned his eyes to the floor and let the clutch fall to his side. “I don’t know anymore.”

  “Were you seriously going to carve out my heart so your father could… eat it?”

  “He asked me to.”

  “That doesn’t answer the question.”

  Axel turned his clear eyes up at me again, then he shook his head. “Do you really think I have that kind of brutality in me?”

  “I think you have a lot of things in you that you don’t know about. I think you’ve lived a repressed life just as much as I have. It’s ironic, really. You taught me a lesson about figuring out who I am when you don’t even know yourself.”

  “Who I am doesn’t matter. My father will hunt me down and kill me for disobeying him.”

  “Sounds to me like you probably deserve it for being a lying piece of shit?”

  That stung him, I could see it on his face. It also didn’t exactly make me feel better. But he’d tried to kill me and carve my heart out. Was I supposed to be cool with him just because he’d gone against his father’s wishes and probably had a hit out on him?

  “Hey!” Karim’s voice burst through my earpiece like static. I winced at the sound. I kept forgetting that was in there. “I don’t mean to interrupt your cathartic moment up there, but could we please hurry this along? I’d like to leave. Now.”

  Danvers butted in. “RJ just arrived,” she said, “What do we do? We’re waiting on you.”

  Shit. “I don’t know. Give me a minute to figure it out.”

  Axel walked the rest of the way over to me and looked around. I stared at the bruise on his cheek. “Does it hurt?” I asked.

  He looked down at me, the grin on his lips widening. “Enough,” he said.

  “Good. Now, how are we gonna get off this roof?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t know. Maybe there’s another window basket. I mean, there has to be.”

  “It’ll take too long. Any second now there’s gonna be a whole bunch of Legionnaires coming up those stairs. The only way down is through them…”

  “Not necessarily,” came a cool, calm voice from the rooftop access leading back to the penthouse.

  My body froze, my blood turned cold. For a mad moment, I thought Asmodius was standing there. I thought he’d found us. I thought we were done. But it wasn’t Asmodius. It was someone else, someone I didn’t recognize. Whoever it was fit perfectly into his tailored black suit. He must’ve been in his late forties, but he looked like he could bench press me without breaking a sweat.

  It was his eyes, though, that really drew me in. They had a certain redness about them. It wasn’t that they were bloodshot—it was more like they were shining from the inside out. That… well, I knew what that was. It was something I’d heard about, but I’d never seen before. It was something rare. A blaringly obvious sign that painted the person as someone not to be trusted.

  It was the mark of the Infernal. The symbol of a mage who had made a pact with a demon in exchange for something. Power. Knowledge. Earthly rewards. Who really knew except the mage himself? I stiffened up as soon as I saw him. Axel put himself between us, preparing himself for a fight, but the mage raised both his hands.

  “I’m not here to harm either of you,” he said. “In fact, I’m a friend.”

  “A friend?” I asked. “I don’t have any friends.”

  “Have we met before?” Axel asked.

  “No,” the infernal mage said, “But my house recently had to undergo some extensive repair work after she paid it an unscheduled visit.”

  Holy shit. “You’re Becket Redwood…?” I asked.

  “I believe you have something of mine,” he said.

  Axel turned his head to the side, searching my face. “The key,” I said, “I took it from his house.”

  “Stole it from me, in fact,” Becket said.

  “I only took it because my employer told me you’d stolen it first. That key doesn’t belong to you.”

  Becket smiled, looked down at his feet, and then looked up at me again. It was eerie, the way his eyes shone. But also, strangely hypnotic. “Tell me,” he said, “Where did you find the key?”

  “In your sanctum…” I said.

  “Which was filled with old, mostly damaged items?”

  “Yes…”

  “And the key itself—also an old, scuffed item—did you find it in a cabinet sitting next to others like it?”

  I paused. “Yes.”

  “Thinking back on that, do you think, maybe, the key belonged in that room? In that cabinet?”

  Axel cocked an eyebrow. “Well, look at that…” he said, “Turns out you really are a thief, after all.”

  “So, I was lied to about the key,” I said, “Big deal. People get lied to all the time.”

  “Maybe next time you’ll do a little more research before you take a job,” Becket said.

  I placed my hands on my hips. “Did that make you feel good to say that?” I asked, “Because we’re kind of on a time limit here, and we still don’t have a way off this roof.”

  With a smug little grin on his face, Becket turned to the open door leading back into the penthouse and waved with his hand. Tendrils of darkness env
eloped the doorframe, filling the space black. Even though I was standing at least ten feet away from it, I could’ve sworn I could hear it whispering. Then again, I was probably imagining things. It had been one hell of a long day.

  “What’s that?” I asked.

  “Your way off this roof,” Becket said, “Unless you haven’t worked it out for yourselves, I’m the only reason why there aren’t any Legionnaires up here. Of course, the spell keeping them away from the roof fades the moment I step through the portal. If you wish to stay, and most certainly die, feel free. However, if you wish to live past tonight, you’re free to follow me.”

  “No way,” Karim said, “Under no circumstances are you to follow a strange mage through an unmarked portal. Didn’t your parents ever tell you not to talk to strangers?”

  I breathed deeply and glanced at Axel. “Do we have a choice?” I asked.

  “There’s always a choice,” he said, and he started walking toward the portal.

  I followed him. “Karim, I’m going dark for a minute. I’ll let you know where we end up. If you don’t hear from us in an hour, I’m texting you the directions of the house you should burn down and fill with ghosts.”

  “In that order?” Karim asked, “Seems a bit counterproductive, don’t you think?”

  I muted my comms. Ahead of me, Becket disappeared through the portal he’d just created out of thin air. That was some top notch, high-grade magic. The kind of thing I’d only ever heard of was possible. Axel stood at the edge of the darkness and peered at me. Glaring at him I walked ahead, and with a breath held in my lungs, I stepped into the black.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  Becket’s portal spat us out directly into the front room of the house I’d broken into and almost trashed only a week ago. It was a lot tidier than I remembered. The wooden floors were undamaged, the walls had no cracks or splits in them, and the chandelier was in its place, its crystal shards glittering softly in the dark. Hadn’t that thing come crashing down? Or had I imagined that?

  I couldn’t help but feel a little guilty about what had happened to his house. In my defense, I hadn’t done anything personally to destroy his beautiful front room—that had all been the demon doll.

  Still, the feelings came, a humble reminder that my actions had consequences. This entire experience had also served to remind me that one day you could find yourself stealing from someone, and the next day you could be relying on them to save your ass. Life’s just full of those wonderful little ironies, isn’t it?

  Becket walked ahead of me, and Axel followed. As soon as I laid eyes on Axel, the image of him holding a dagger over my chest came rushing into my thoughts. I had to tell myself to ignore them. I had to tell myself to keep my poker face on and not lose my cool. We’d made it off the roof, but now we were in a Demonologist’s house. Not just any Demonologist, either—but an Infernal.

  “Karim, can you hear me?” I asked, but the microphone must’ve been out of range because there was no reply. I still had my phone in my hand, so I texted him to come over to Becket’s place as fast as possible. It was Danvers who replied to let me know they were on their way.

  “You have an impressive home,” Axel said.

  “Thank you,” Becket said, “If you’d like to follow me, we can conduct our business in my study.”

  “And what exactly is that business?” I asked, knowing full well what Becket probably wanted was to get paid for his services—with interest, considering I’d stolen from him.

  “You have something that belongs to me. I would like to talk about it.”

  “The key?” I shook my head. “I don’t have it. Asmodius does. If you want it, you’re going to have to take it from him.”

  Becket stopped as he reached the stairs going up to the next level and turned his red eyes on me. “The key doesn’t interest me nearly as much as the contents of that bag you’re holding.”

  “This?” I asked, holding the clutch bag up, “The stuff in here doesn’t belong to you.”

  “Trust me. It belongs to me more than it does to you. But, as I said, we can go up to my study and talk there. I’ll make us some tea, and we can wait for the rest of your friends.”

  Becket continued on his way up the stairs. Axel cocked an eyebrow at me. He was about to speak, but I put my hand up. “Don’t,” I warned, “I’m not ready to talk to you yet.”

  Taking in a deep breath, Axel followed Becket up the stairs. It was a little weird that the Demonologist was being so cool about this whole thing. He knew I had a veritable fortune in my possession, not to mention a box that probably belonged to the drowned queen of Ashelor. But he’d just offered to make us tea, and he was happy to wait for my friends—something others might consider as backup.

  He had something up his sleeve. He must have. Otherwise, why was he being so cool about this? So hospitable? If he was powerful enough to create portals between two places, then he was probably powerful enough to vaporize Axel and me. Why not just do that and take Eliphas’ treasures for himself?

  Something was missing.

  Still, I wasn’t stupid enough to try and make a break for it with the stolen artifacts, so I followed Becket and Axel upstairs. True to his word, he fixed us both with a cup of English tea before joining us both in his impressive study.

  Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves lined two of the walls, each one of them stacked to capacity. Along the furthest wall, a bay window overlooked a small backyard inside of which a large tree stood. Becket’s desk wasn’t as extravagant as Asmodius’, but both men clearly enjoyed a strong wooden scent in the room they likely spent most of their time in.

  I took my cup of tea, stared at Becket from across its rim, and sipped it. No poison. No funny tastes or smells. It was a perfectly normal cup of English tea. I reached for the bowl of sugar cubes he’d brought in with the teas and dropped two lumps into my cup. Then I picked up a third and let it slide into the tea.

  Becket cocked an eyebrow, but maintained his smug little grin. “Three sugars,” he said, “Expecting a fight?”

  “No,” I said, swirling the tea with a little spoon, “But it’s been a long day and I could do with the pick-me-up.”

  “I agree, it’s been a long day. Probably a long week, for the two of you?”

  “Week?” Axel asked.

  “I’m only inferring. Your heist was clearly well planned, even if it wasn’t perfectly executed. I thought you were supposed to be a master thief?”

  “I never said those words to anyone,” I said, “I never even called myself a thief. That was a title other people thrust on me.”

  “Be that as it may, I must give you credit for what you were able to accomplish. Breaking past the Magister’s wards and stealing his most prized possessions… well, let’s just say you aren’t the first person to have tried it.” He stared at me, his red eyes mesmerizing. “How did you do it?”

  “I could tell you,” I sipped my tea, raising my pinky as I drank, “But I’d have to kill you.”

  “Ah, yes, a true magician never reveals her secrets. That is something I can respect. Though I suspect I know how you were able to accomplish such a feat.”

  “Then how about you tell me?”

  Becket’s red eyes narrowed. “You are a Wardbreaker.”

  Axel looked across at me.

  “A what?” I asked.

  “You’ve never heard the term?” Becket asked, “I find that hard to believe.”

  I threw a sarcastic smile at him. “I was never much of an academic.”

  “You have an exceptional talent, Isabella. Not one that has never been seen before, but exceptional nonetheless. I don’t know if I’ve ever met another Wardbreaker in my life. The Magistrate may have better records than I, but if I had to hazard a guess, someone with your particular skillset hasn’t been seen for at least a hundred years, possibly longer.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Why is that?”

  Becket cocked an eyebrow. “How about I give you one guess?”

&nb
sp; My stomach went cold as the ice-block of realization sank into it. Because people like me don’t live very long. It made sense. If the Magistrate, or any mage with something valuable in their possession, found out there was someone out there who could break their most powerful defenses, what chance did the… Wardbreaker… have?

  How many of them have come before me, and been killed for what they could do? I shuddered at the thought.

  “Alright,” I said, “Let’s assume that’s how I did it. I’m a Wardbreaker, and now I have Eliphas’ treasures in my possession. What I wanna know is why you think you have a better claim to them than I do, considering I’m the one who stole them.”

  Becket paused, drank from his cup, and set it on the table. “Because I’m the one who found them in the first place.”

  “You’ll have to explain that point a little better,” Axel said. “What do you mean, you found them?”

  “There once were two brothers who came across a hidden hoard,” Becket explained, “Within it, were a number of coins and a little brown box. One of the brothers wanted to examine the coins and the box, to peer inside them and learn their secrets. The other saw a potential for personal gain, and so he squandered the hoard in his vault. He kept the box shut, never daring to open it, and he used the coins to help consolidate his power by offering them to some, and selling them to others.”

  I shook my head. “Wait a second, are you telling me… Magister Eliphas is your brother?”

  “Indeed, although I like to think I’m the better looking and more intelligent of the two, wouldn’t you agree?”

  I smiled sweetly at him. “No comment on that.”

  “Oh, well,” he sighed, “Now you know the truth. I’d always wanted to examine the very things you have acquired tonight, and now, thanks to you, I have the opportunity to do so.”

  “Are you planning on taking them by force?” Axel asked.

  Becket smiled a soft smile. He was handsome, I had to give him that, but his eyes… they threw me off every time. It wasn’t like they were tiny red flames; it was more like they were glowing from the inside. It was unnerving.