Spectrum of Magic Complete Series - Spell Breaker - Fate Shifter - Cursed Stone - Magic Unborn - Libra

by D. N. Leo

  “Aunt Siobhan,” Orla gasped.

  The old woman glowed. She smiled at Orla. “You owe me the white curse again.” She cast a glance at Lorcan, and then she vanished.

  “No, no aunty. That’s not what I want!” Orla cried but her aunt could no longer hear her.

  Michelle continued to beg Noah to go away. The two gatekeepers approached him. Riley yelled out for Noah. He and Lorcan were attacked and held back by other creatures.

  “I command you to release my mother,” Noah said.

  The gatekeepers snarled, teeth bared, and swung their axes. Noah hung on to the cat with one arm, swinging his free arm at the gatekeepers. Their two axes bounced back, sending the gatekeepers reeling. They roared in anger.

  “I command you to release my mother,” Noah repeated and swung his arm again. The barred doors at the side of the corridor collapsed. He swung again, and the barred door of this mother’s cell flew away and her shackles broke loose. The wall behind her exploded, revealing a lighted pathway—the way to Heaven.

  Michelle turned around, looked at Riley, and smiled.

  “Thank you, Noah,” she said and vanished into the light. Behind Michelle, if Orla was not mistaken, she saw the small shadow of the mother cat following her into the light.

  From the dark corners, the gatekeepers and other creatures had recovered. Orla and Noah swung their arms at the same time and chorused their spells. Then the entire world exploded into white light.

  Chapter 32

  Orla opened her eyes in the hospital to see Lorcan’s striking blue eyes looking down at her. Then Riley came in, sitting down next to him. She wished Noah and the cat would come in as well, so she’d know she was the only one lying in a hospital bed.

  “How’s Noah?” she asked groggily.

  “He’s fine now, in the children’s wing,” Riley said. “He doesn’t remember what he did, though.”

  “I’ll look into it when I’m up,” Orla said, pushing herself to a sitting position. Lorcan helped her. He tucked a large pillow behind her back for support.

  “I just want to say thank you,” Riley said.

  “For what? I didn’t exactly help Noah or anything. The boy saved himself—and his mother. That’s unbelievable.”

  “You took us there.” Riley said.

  “How did we end up in the hospital, and how did we explain to people what happened?” Orla asked.

  Lorcan spoke now, “We were having a picnic, and our gas canister exploded. You and Noah had concussion. Riley and I only have cuts and bruises. The doctor bought it.”

  “Did we destroy the park?” Orla chuckled.

  Lorcan nodded and smiled. “Freak accidents happen,” he said.

  Orla’s phone buzzed on the table. Lorcan picked it up and showed the caller ID to Orla. It was William Turk. He hit the ignore button. Five seconds passed, and William called again. Lorcan picked it up. “We’re busy,” he snarled.

  “Where’s Orla?” William’s voice came out from the speaker.

  “I’m part of the team. You can talk to me.”

  “Oh I forgot, you bullied your way into the team. How did it go with the merchandise? Did you get the job done?”

  “Yes. We got the job done. And for your information, Jo is not merchandise.”

  “Whatever. When will you deliver her?”

  “Soon.”

  “How about tomorrow?”

  “That’s too soon.”

  “It’s not your call. Put Orla on the phone.”

  “She’s busy.”

  “Busy blowing up public property? I watch TV, Lorcan. Look, I know you guys are working for other clients, too, but I paid you half the money already, and I want my merchandise.”

  “It’s your boss who paid us, not you.”

  “I have the rest of the cash. Can you deliver tomorrow?”

  Lorcan looked at Orla. She nodded.

  “All right. Tomorrow. Text me the when and where.” Lorcan put the phone aside. He came back to Orla’s bed and caught the look on her face, gesturing toward Riley. Riley stood leaning against the wall, his face was pallid, and he was taking deep breaths as if trying to take control of himself. Sweat trickled down from his forehead into his face.

  “Riley, you don’t look well,” said Lorcan. “Why don’t you sit down? It was very hard to yank you back here, so don’t you dare have another episode on me.” Lorcan pulled a chair over and pushed Riley down onto it.

  Orla got up from bed. She crouched in front of Riley. “Riley, look at me. Open your . . .” She reached up to hold his hands, but as soon as she touched them, they both jerked back and fell onto the floor. Orla’s eyes rolled back. She couldn’t see and hear anything. She was sucked into a dark tunnel, moving backward, and then she was on the floor. Orla concentrated, focused. No, it wasn’t her on the floor, but she was looking up from the floor in Riley’s house.

  She was seeing the vision via Riley’s eyes.

  The man standing over Riley was one of the goons working for William Turk. She had seen him getting out of the car to take care of the gardener’s body after William had executed him. He was speaking on a cell phone, and William’s voice was responding to the questions.

  “Boss, I don’t think this guy knows anything. And I don’t see a kid in the house. Are you sure he gave you the right address?”

  “We’ve got the right address, and you’ve got the right guy. He was at Fossey Way. How can you be so sure he doesn’t know anything?” said William.

  “I don’t know. If he’d gotten your paper, he would have reacted when I showed up at the door. It’s just a hunch. But better safe than sorry. I’ll put a bullet in him, and I’ll do the same with the kid. That way we don’t have to worry about whether they know anything. Okay?”

  “No, don’t make a mess. People will notice. Just stick the needle in him. He won’t remember a thing after this.”

  “Are you sure? A bullet would be a lot easier. I can make it look like a robbery gone wrong.”

  “People rob banks, not medical doctors with kids, you idiot. Just do what I say.”

  “Okay . . .”

  Chapter 33

  Lorcan’s voice sounded in the distance, “Orla, wake up, honey.” He shook her shoulders. Orla opened her eyes and saw Riley sitting on the chair, looking a bit dazed but awake. Lorcan pulled her into his arms. “Don’t keep doing this to me.” He rocked her in his arms. Orla whispered into Lorcan’s ear, “Riley’s remembering what happened to him. He doesn’t know about our job for William. William lost something at Fossey Way and thought Riley had gotten it.” Lorcan turned and looked at Riley.

  “What just happened to Orla?” Riley asked.

  “Ah, she still has the concussion. What about you?” Lorcan asked.

  “I’m okay. Just a bit dizzy. I remember that voice.”

  “What voice?”

  “You just talked to him on the phone. I remember his voice.”

  “All right. I’ll take you back to Noah. And then you stay there. Okay?”

  Riley nodded. When Lorcan and Riley left the room, Orla got up and changed out of her hospital gown.

  Later, Orla told Lorcan what she had seen in her vision. They went back to her apartment where Lorcan spent a few hours on his computer searching for information. Orla went to the kitchen to make coffee for Lorcan, and she heard his voice from the living room, “The coffee machine has a very sharp lever at the side. Don’t cut yourself on it. I’ll fix it later.” She checked the machine and found the sharp edge. Orla smiled to herself. Lorcan would make a very caring lover, husband, and even father. Her smile faded, knowing it was wishful thinking at the moment. She made the coffee and took it back to the living room.

  “The guy is Sam Windsor. He doesn’t have a residential address, but I knew where he is now,” Lorcan said.

  “Why do we need to do anything about Sam Windsor? We have a plan. We’ll go back to William, trick him to a location, and call the cops on him.”

  “Well, th
at was the plan. But the money William wired to us using his boss’s account? He closed the account. Disappeared without a trace. We can’t tie him to the murder of the gardener.”

  “But we did receive the money. It’s in our bank account.”

  “Yes, but the name on the sender’s account now is Stephen Marshall. He’s an American cop and has nothing whatsoever to do with what we’re doing here. He’s never been to England. Let alone a cop of his rank having a million to throw into a job that obviously has nothing to do with him.”

  “Is he a real cop or just a profile?”

  Lorcan turned the monitor around to show Orla the picture. “New York cop, shiny record. Look at him. I bet he doesn’t even have a speeding ticket.”

  “How can William change the record just like that? And why?”

  Lorcan shrugged. “I think he’s jerking his boss around. They’re all gold diggers at the end of the day. Looking for John Dee, computing, data mining. It all leads to that. Everyone wants a piece of the cake. Whatever his boss is looking for in Jo, William wants that too. We let Jo go. Gotta make up something by tomorrow for William. Sam Windsor seems to be the guy who does dirty jobs for William. Find him, we might find whatever it is William was afraid that Riley knew.”

  Orla nodded. “Fair enough.”

  Lorcan frowned. “If it’s fair, why are you still scowling?”

  “I’m just copying the look on your face right now.”

  Lorcan exhaled. He put his head in his hands. “We triggered the white curse again. Which is fine. The white curse is just against me. But we have the black curse against you that we have to take care of, and now . . .”

  “Now we don’t know how to break the curses.” Orla smiled. “The white curse against you is not fine. It triggered everything. The black curse is unbreakable now, so adding another curse doesn’t matter anymore. People are going to die eventually.”

  “That’s not the point. You saw Michelle. That’s no way to die.”

  Orla sat down next to Lorcan. “I have you. We have each other. As far as I’m concerned, we’re luckier than a lot of people. If we were to die soon, would you rather spend the rest of our days sad and angry?”

  Lorcan turned Orla around and looked into her eyes. She had changed a lot, matured a great deal in a short period of time. This sort of statement would most of the time come from him. He knew he was a sentimental fool. Many would consider him weak when it came to her. He didn’t mind. Couldn’t care less. Lorcan Brody had never cared what people thought about him. Never cared about the way people were supposed to live. Love and freedom was what he lived for. Now the love that came from Orla shook him to his core.

  He lifted her up and carried her and walked over to the sofa. Her legs wrapped around his waist. She unbuttoned his shirt, her mouth busy on his. He put her down on the sofa, but she flipped him over. They both dropped on the floor with her on top, straddling him. Before he knew it, his jeans were tangled at his ankles. He kicked them off. He tore off her blouse. His hands roamed over her body. She took his arms by the wrists.

  “No, let me.” She pinned his arms to the floor and used her hips to drive him. She kissed him slowly, so slowly it was torture. She savored the moment. He responded. They ravished each other. His body bucked underneath her. He closed his striking blue eyes.

  “Open your eyes,” she whispered. “I want you to watch me, I want you to watch us.” Then she kept driving, pushing, loving until they were both sated.

  Chapter 34

  In China Town, Lorcan and Orla weaved their way through the crowded streets, heading toward an Asian grocery store. The small shop sat on a corner street. A small rusty door sagged open on one side, and the flickering neon sign was not inviting. Inside the shop, stacks of goods were piled everywhere.

  Lorcan walked inside, pulling Orla behind him. An Asian man standing at the back of the shop glanced at him. “We’re not open,” he said. Lorcan approached the man. At six foot one, Lorcan towered over him. But the man certainly didn’t act as if he had any physical disadvantage. “I said we’re not open,” he repeated.

  “We’re looking for Sam Windsor.”

  “Don’t know him.”

  Lorcan lowered his voice. “You might want to rethink your answer. I’m in a good mood, and I don’t want to have to hurt anyone.”

  “What did he do?”

  “He owes me money. Serious money. Unless you want to pay me, you call him here right now so we can have a chat. I’ll be waiting upstairs.” Lorcan walked toward the back of the shop where there was a small set of stairs tucked in a corner.

  “I told you . . .”

  “And I heard you. But as I said, I’ll be waiting for him upstairs. Tell him that the money he lost at Fossey Way is mine. I want it back.”

  The man grabbed a steel bar used to lock the door and swung at Lorcan. Lorcan grabbed the bar in mid-air, yanked it away from the man, and leveled it at the man’s kneecap. He screamed. Lorcan followed with a kick and dragged the screaming man up the set of stairs. Orla locked the shop door.

  As soon as they got to the top of the stairs, a bullet hit the man’s head, exploding onto the wall behind them. Lorcan fired in the general direction of the shooter. He dropped the dead man and charged at the silhouette of his adversary as it fell to the ground.

  On the floor was Sam Windsor. Lorcan gave him another kick and tied his hands behind his back. Lorcan’s bullet had hit Sam in his shoulder. “What do you want?” Sam grunted. Orla charged up the stairs and stood behind Lorcan.

  “You know who I work for?” Sam asked.

  “What did William lose at Fossey Way?” Lorcan asked.

  “Do you know who I work for?”

  “I have the gun. I get to ask the questions.”

  Sam smirked. “He’s an idiot. He bluffed you about the money. And he wanted to cheat his boss.”

  “Who’s his boss?”

  “I can’t tell you.”

  Lorcan pointed the gun at Sam’s head. “Even if I threaten to blow your brains out?”

  Sam stared. “Go ahead. There’s no easy death for betrayal. I’d rather eat your bullet right now than betray my master.”

  “Your master?” Orla frowned.

  “I work for God,” Sam said.

  Lorcan whacked Sam in the head with the gun barrel, pounding on him with the rage he’d withheld all afternoon. “No God is going to ask you to kill a defenseless man and a kid,” Lorcan screamed, railing the man with kicks and punches. Orla had to pull him off.

  “You’ll kill him, Lorcan.”

  Lorcan exclaimed, “He would have put that bullet in Riley’s head and killed Noah without a second thought. If William hadn’t say no, he would have executed them without blinking. What kind of monster is he? Why does he get to live, and people like Michelle have to die and be sent to Hell. And now he claims he’s working for God!” Lorcan waved his arms in frustration. “What kind of justice is that? What kind of world are we living in?”

  Sam chuckled, “That’s why we’re working our way out of here.”

  “Let me help you.” Lorcan pointed the gun at Sam’s head, but Orla pulled him back.

  “That’s too easy, Lorcan. Listen to me. We have a problem to handle here. He and William are the same kind, cold-blooded killers. But if you kill him now when he can’t defend himself, you’re no different than he is. We talked about this, Lorcan.”

  Lorcan nodded, and he lowered the gun. “All right. You work for William, but I guess you’re just a mole in his company. I don’t care who you really work for. But if you’re not on William’s side, then tell us what he lost at Fossey Way.”

  “A formula.”

  “What kind of formula? Drugs?”

  Sam stared at Lorcan. “Do I look like the kind of guy who can make sense of gibberish on paper?”

  “Guess not,” Lorcan muttered.

  “It’s got to have something to do with medicine. That’s why he freaked out when he thought the doctor had it,�
� Lorcan asked.

  “Does this have anything to do with the drug you injected into the doctor?” Orla asked.

  “How the hell should I know? Look, William’s a nasty son of a bitch. He’s ambitious too. He stole the formula from my boss. He only wanted to copy it. But then some guy snatched the paper. He got his right hand man to get it back. But you killed that guy at Fossey Way. When William asked me to go there, the bodies were gone, as well as the paper.”

  “Does William want Jo as well? He’s not giving her to his boss?”

  Sam nodded. “Look, if you want to nail him for whatever reason, I don’t care. I’m not his buddy. I have no ties. I can show you where he stocks his smuggled drugs right here in this warehouse. You can use that against him. One call to the cops, and he’ll be done.”

  “He hides the drugs here?” Orla asked.

  “Is there anything we can use to tie him to the drugs? Finding the drugs doesn’t do anything if we can’t link him to them.”

  “I can show you, and then you can decide what to do.”

  Lorcan nodded. “All right.” He untied Sam. Sam stood and moaned then pointed at a side door. He led, and Lorcan and Orla followed him. The door opened to another wing of the building. Stacks of sealed boxes were piled high against the wall. Sam shuffled through piles of paper for a few minutes and then opened a drawer.

  Lorcan saw a flash of metal in Sam’s hands. He pushed Orla backward and pointed his gun at Sam. They both fired at the same time. Sam’s head was shattered as the bullet pierced it. Lorcan staggered back with a bullet in his shoulder. His gun fell to the floor.

  Orla grabbed him before he fell. “Oh God, so much blood.”

  “It’s okay. Just a flesh wound.”

  “Let’s get out of here,” Orla said. They exited the building by the back door.

  The next morning, Lorcan snuggled in bed next to Orla. She had tended to his injury, and he was trying to recuperate as much as possible. He stirred.

  “Hey.” She kissed his cheek. “Take another hour, then we have to go to William’s office.”