Shadow's Messenger: An Aileen Travers Novel

by T. A. White

  I narrowed my eyes. I didn’t know whether to believe him or call shenanigans. If what he said was true, he’d taken an awfully big risk with my life. He could have just knocked her unconscious, freed me and then let me retrieve the items.

  He gave her a distasteful glance. “I didn’t expect you to try to antagonize her to death or for it to take that long.”

  He was one to talk. He was absolutely no help. Maybe next time he could do something besides just lie there while everyone else takes care of things. Not just pick apart how I did things.

  We turned towards the wolves and draugr.

  The tide had turned against Brax. He was out numbered and no matter how much damage he did to the draugr, it refused to go down.

  He grabbed one of its arms and jerked, whipping his head violently. The flesh ripped. Before he could finish tearing the arm off, Victor barreled into him, knocking him away.

  Brax lowered his head and bared his teeth, his eyes shining with Victor’s death.

  “Shouldn’t you help him?” I asked.

  “It’s wolf business.”

  “Didn’t the draugr kill a few vampires?” I asked. “What’s the rest of the city going to say when they find out it was the wolves who avenged the dead? That the vampires stood idly by while the alpha fought?”

  He gave me a glare and snarled, “Fine. I’ll help the damn alpha.”

  I chuckled. Heh, so easy.

  While Liam joined the fight in a blur of speed, dealing brutal bunches and kicks to both the draugr and Victor, I limped over to the remains of Victor’s clothes.

  Where, oh where, is the watch fob?

  I picked through the pile, feeling in the pockets, tossing aside the keys and rifling through a wallet.

  There was a pained yelp. The brown and white wolf that was Victor dodged unsuccessfully as Brax’s dark gray one drove him to the ground, latching onto the throat and holding on. The light in Victor’s eyes faded as the white and gray wolf whipped its head back and forth. Blood sprayed and a piece of the brown wolf’s throat came away in the other wolf’s mouth.

  Victor was dead.

  The draugr threw its head back and roared. Liam faltered, turning towards the wolf. Brax shook his head and hopped and jumped as if something had bitten him. Tremors shook his body as he turned towards Liam, the fur on his back standing up. He dropped his head into a hunting position and crouched.

  My hands felt something hard in the pocket of the shirt I was holding. I fumbled inside. My hands clutched something hard that was attached to a chain.

  “Stop,” I screamed as Liam and Brax came together in a crash, each landing several blows in seconds. I shouted at the draugr. “Is this what you wanted?”

  I held the locket and watch fob up.

  His black gaze was suddenly riveted on my hand. “Mines.”

  He advance on me, his gaze held spell bound by the two trinkets.

  I backed away, almost tripping on a root before recovering. I needed to get some distance between him and the other two creatures.

  “You’ve got them. That’s good,” the sorcerer said.

  He stood a few headstone down from me and several rows over.

  The draugr’s attention shot between the two of us. “No. Mine.”

  He bared black teeth.

  “Just toss it here so I can end all this,” the sorcerer ordered.

  I was tempted. Oh so tempted. It’d be so easy to let someone else handle this. Bonus, it would take care of several birds with one stone. Get the draugr away from Liam and Brax. Cancel out my debt. It would also hand the sorcerer an extremely powerful weapon. What damage could the draugr cause in the hands of someone with a little more power and brains than Victor and Angela?

  “Please. It’s mine. It’s all I have left. She gave them to me.” The draugr made a weird waffling sound, black leaked out of his eyes, adding further stains to his pale skin.

  He was crying, I realized. Not real tears, but tears nonetheless.

  “How?” I asked.

  The sorcerer canted his head. “How what?”

  “How are you planning to end this?”

  “Does it matter?”

  It mattered.

  The draugr suddenly didn’t seem that menacing, just sad and confused, like he’d had his whole world ripped away and didn’t know how to handle it.

  “Give the sorcerer the trinkets,” Liam ordered. “You still have his mark.”

  Sure enough I could still feel the lion with thorns lurking on my arm, the power stretching in a thin line between me and Peter.

  “He’ll own you for a hundred years if you don’t.”

  “And you’ll own me for a hundred years if I do.”

  Liam paused in his forward motion. “The vampires will be much kinder than a sorcerer.”

  “I only have your word for that.”

  “I do not know why you persist in thinking of vampires as the bad guys. We are not the monsters you have painted us as.”

  I never thought they were. I just wanted to live my life the way I wanted to live it.

  “If I go with you, will you let me live here? Stay in contact with my parents?”

  I saw from the expression on his face that the answer to both those questions would be no. They might not be monsters. I might even be able to find a place in their world, but I was done with orders. The sorcerer I could manage. I wouldn’t be able to manipulate Liam and his ilk.

  “If she dies from that mark, sorcerer, we will kill you,” Liam said.

  Peter looked alarmed, his gaze shifting between the two of us.

  “Wait. No. I don’t want this.”

  I gave him a grin. “Looks like we’re going to be best buds for a hundred years.”

  “No. Please not that. I’m telling you I don’t want a servant.”

  I tightened my grip on the two pieces of jewelry. “If I give this to you, do you promise to get into your grave and not kill or eat any other people?”

  The draugr nodded.

  Would he keep his word? He had kept our bargain earlier by luring Victor and Angela to the cemetery. He was mad, though. Crazy people weren’t exactly known for their integrity.

  “You were tied to his headstone,” Liam said in an undertone.

  I moved sideways, stepping carefully as the draugr shadowed me. I really hoped I was doing the right thing.

  “It’s mine. It’s mine.”

  Hysteria was rising in the draugr’s voice. It wouldn’t be long before he snapped.

  “You want it?” I asked, raising the items in the air. His head followed them. “Go fetch.”

  “Son of a bitch,” the sorcerer swore.

  I flung them on his grave. He darted after them. Maniacal laughter followed me as I backed away. The draugr stood, clutching his treasures to his chest.

  “Alright, back into your grave you go,” I said.

  He threw his head back and roared at the sky. His chest heaved and suddenly his head twisted towards me.

  “I don’t think so. I’m never going back into that dark space again.”

  Damn. I had hoped he wouldn’t do this.

  “Now, witch,” Liam roared. He flew at me, grabbing my arm and flinging us both out of the path of the draugr.

  A lyrical voice hummed a few words.

  Branches burst out of the ground, twining up the draugr’s legs. They grew around him.

  “No. What’s this?” The draugr struggled against the plants, ripping away the branches only to have them grow back. Soon they covered him. He howled, again and again, as he was dragged back to his grave and then under. “No. No. No.”

  The night was eerily silent once the ground finished consuming him.

  I sat up. What had just happened?

  A figure moved through the cemetery, her blond hair shining in the moonlight. She arched a brow at the undisturbed grave and then wrinkled her nose at the dead wolf.

  Miriam gave her apprentice an inscrutable look before focusing her attention on me. />
  I watched her carefully.

  This woman’s apprentice had been in league with Victor and the draugr. Had Miriam been totally unaware of Angela’s actions?

  Miriam had been in charge of that ritual that had gone so terribly wrong. As had already been proven many times tonight, magic was a very tricky and powerful force. It was possible we’d all been duped by this person.

  Miriam arched one eyebrow at me sprawled in the dirt. “You’re still alive. How surprising.”

  “I’m like a cockroach that way. I just keep coming back.”

  She gave me a crooked smile, then glanced behind me. “Vampire.”

  “Witch,” Liam said.

  “I see the spell to find your wayward charge worked.”

  He inclined his head.

  Did she mean me? I thought the sorcerer had been the one to lead them to me.

  “The items. How could you give them back to that, that, creature?” the sorcerer moaned, coming to stand beside me.

  He stared mournfully at the grave.

  “You’re welcome to dig the grave back up and get them back,” I told him.

  “No,” both Miriam and Liam said.

  Miriam gave a strained smile. “That will just wake the draugr back up. Right now he’s sleeping. He’ll remain there unless someone takes those treasures from him again or disturbs his grave.”

  I slapped the sorcerer on the back. “Guess that means you’re not getting them back unless you dig them up yourself. Sucks to be you.”

  He turned to me and held up his hand. “Remove this. I’d like to torture you now.”

  I scoffed. “Yeah, I’ll get right on that.”

  “You have to. Our deal was that I release you from your chains and you remove this.”

  “Is that a genie’s handcuff?” Liam asked.

  I nodded.

  He gave me an interested stare. “Where’d you get an item like that?”

  I gave him a noncommittal shrug. A girl never reveals her sources.

  “Our deal, vampire.”

  “I don’t think so.” I gave Peter a nasty smile. “You failed to hold up your end.”

  “That’s a lie. I released you.”

  “I don’t count sprinkling that liquid on the chains and then fleeing as fast as you can in the opposite direction as freeing me.”

  “You wouldn’t be free if not for that liquid, so in essence I freed you,” he said, leaning forward and pointing at the headstone in emphasis.

  I stared at him through narrow eyes. He had a valid point. The chains would never have loosened enough for me to pull free if he hadn’t used whatever that stuff was on them. I also never would have escaped if I hadn’t used a considerable amount of brute strength.

  “You left the job half done,” I said. “No deal.”

  Good thing too, now that the sorcerer had a claim on me for the next hundred years. Things would be a lot easier on me if he didn’t have access to his magic.

  “That’s not how this works,” he said through gritted teeth. “You will release me or I’ll declare you an oath breaker. This should be obvious to anyone with any experience in our world, but since you continue to display a considerable lack of intelligence, I’ll explain it to you.”

  I folded my arms. This should be good.

  “Being an oath breaker would be what we call a bad thing. You would face a lot of hostility and probably be run out of the city.” He thrust his arm out. “Now, if we’re done discussing this ridiculous point. Remove these.”

  Hm.

  What to do?

  I wondered if there was a certain amount of proof he would need to provide about my oath breaker status or if this like so many other things were somehow established magically, like the sorcerer’s mark.

  “You might have a point if you had brewed that potion,” Miriam’s amused voice inserted. “Since you didn’t, sorcerer, you have no case. I’m sure the vampire and the alpha will support her in this.”

  “I will,” Liam’s strong voice said.

  Brax barked once.

  He had yet to take his human form again. Considering his change left him nude, it was probably a good thing he still wore his fur.

  “Stay out of this witch,” the sorcerer snapped.

  She gave him a chilly smile. “I refuse. You’ll have to find some other way to force her to remove that. I’ll enjoy watching you try.”

  He glared at her.

  I released a breath, glad that he had switched his annoyance to her. I didn’t know if that had been her intent, but it made things easier for me.

  She ignored Peter and turned to me. “I’d like to take my apprentice home now.”

  I blinked at her, not sure I had heard her right.

  She wanted to do what?

  Brax growled, the sound a low rumble of menace.

  “I’m afraid that I have to agree with the wolf on this one,” Liam said. “That is impossible. She was instrumental in a plot to overthrow the werewolf alpha and intended mortal danger to many in Columbus. She must answer for her crimes.”

  “And she will,” Miriam said, turning to stare Liam down. “But not at your hands. She will face a witch’s justice. I can promise you it won’t be easy or merciful.”

  Liam frowned at her. “No, her crimes were against all of us. The vampires and werewolves have a greater claim. We lost more people.”

  “It’s not up to you,” Miriam challenged. She tilted her head toward me. “It’s her decision. She’s the one who subdued Angela.”

  I suddenly found myself the focus of several pairs of eyes.

  I really didn’t want to get involved in whatever power grab was going on here. My troubles with the sorcerer were enough. I didn’t need any more.

  “I don’t think I should get involved.”

  “You owe me a favor,” Miriam interrupted, her eyes flaring.

  I paused. “And this would fulfill the favor?”

  I wanted to be very sure before I acted.

  She nodded, once. “It would. The witches would also be grateful for your service.”

  Gratitude sounded nice. I could use some of that right about now.

  But I didn’t want to act hastily and without thought. That was how I got into this situation in the first place.

  On one hand, Liam was right. Angela and Victor had done a lot of damage to the wolves. If I handed her over to Brax, he would kill her, whether it was now or later. I didn’t know if I wanted that on my conscience. It was one thing to take someone out during combat or while fighting for your life. It was quite another handing them over to certain death. It was a small thing, but sometimes those small things were the only thing standing between you and the darkness such choices can bring.

  “You’ll make sure she can’t do this again?”

  Miriam nodded.

  “Fine, take her.”

  Brax huffed. Even as a wolf, he managed to convey his disgust. I shrugged at him. A favor and a semi clear conscious was a good trade to me. He’d just have to be satisfied with Victor’s payment.

  He threw his head back and howled, the sound hauntingly powerful.

  I jumped.

  Standing so close to a wolf howling was entirely different to hearing them from several miles off. It was wondrous and terrible, beautiful and deadly.

  When his howl trailed off, Brax dropped his head, staring at me for one timeless moment before he loped away.

  “We’ll be off then,” Miriam said, turning and using her magic to lift her apprentice. Her feet glided over the grass soundlessly as she moved through the cemetery, Angela floating behind her like some oversized balloon.

  Sometime during the wolf’s howl and Miriam’s departure, the sorcerer had stalked off, leaving Liam and me in the cemetery alone.

  “Now, time to discuss our unfinished business,” Liam said, his voice grim.

  Chapter Sixteen

  I stuck my hands in my pocket and braced. I’d had a feeling this was coming.

  “I don’t
remember any unfinished business.”

  Giving the draugr his trinkets back had been both calculated and impulsive. He deserved to keep the mementos from his human life, but I was lying if I said I didn’t see the opportunity such a chance offered me. I hadn’t examined all angles before deciding. There was a chance I’d missed something and the vampires still had a claim on me.

  Liam arched one eyebrow, saying without words he knew what was going through my head.

  I gave him my inscrutable face. I’ve been told people had found it intimidating in the past. Liam didn’t seem too impressed.

  “You’ve only delayed the inevitable.”

  I breathed an internal sigh of relief. Delayed sounded an awful lot like my plan had worked. I’d take it over being forced from my home. There was also the fact that Aiden hadn’t been able to cement the bond when he’d tried earlier. I did not want to go through that pain anytime soon.

  “We’ll eventually find a way around the mark. You’ve made an enemy of the sorcerer so I’m sure he’ll be most helpful in that pursuit.”

  “Not if he ever wants that cuff off,” I returned.

  He inclined his head, conceding I had a point. “You haven’t won this, just gotten a reprieve.”

  “Yeah, yeah. I hear the warning. What you’re not understanding is that when that time comes, I’ll figure something else out.” I gave a wry grin. “It’s what I do.”

  “Why? From what I can see, you’ve never had any real encounters with us. What makes you so sure you can’t thrive under our care?”

  I tilted my head back and stared at the stars. How to put this into words he would understand? I didn’t even know if I understood all of my motivations.

  “I’m guessing you’re old. At least a couple hundred years.”

  His mouth quirked in a small grin.

  “Something like that.”

  I mentally added a few hundred years to the two I’d guessed.

  “You grew up in a different age than me. Totally different mentality and social values. I’m not sure my reasons will make sense to you.”

  “Try.”

  “My first encounter with a vampire was at a club two days after I got home from Afghanistan. He didn’t ask if I wanted this. Didn’t even try to help me understand why this happened. Just threw me in a dumpster with the garbage.” I held up a hand forestalling his argument. “I don’t blame all vampires for his actions. I’ve seen enough of what that type of thinking can cause.”