A Witch's Rite (Witch's Path Series: Book 5)

by N. E. Conneely

  I washed down the bread with the last of the water and set both the cup and plate on the ground. Watching Burly move around, I wished I knew more about him and his intentions. My original plan had been to escape at any cost, but I was starting to question that idea. Yes, I needed to find the rest of my group and help them, but I was less and less sure that I was willing to hurt Burly in order to escape. There was a chance he didn’t intend to harm me. Maybe I’d get lucky and he’d be willing to help. We could use some help right now.

  He slowly crossed the cave and carefully picked up the human-sized plate and cup. “More water?”

  “Please.”

  Nodding, he retreated to the rough kitchen and refilled my cup. Some water splashed on the outside of the cup. He opened a box, pulled out a roughly woven piece of cloth, and wiped off the cup before bringing it over to me.

  “Thank you.” I took the cup from him, not sure if I should try to engage him in conversation or leave him be. “How did you end up in this maze?”

  He just shook his head and walked away.

  I sat there, wishing I knew why he hadn’t answered my question. There had to be a reason. If I could figure it out, I might be able to coax him into a conversation. Which was lovely theory, but I had absolutely no idea why he would be nice to me but not want to talk.

  I thought back to everything that had happened since arriving in this maze. It all felt a little too convenient. And there was no way the tractor chasing us had been an accident. That thing had come out of a previously solid hedge and aimed in our direction.

  If everything, not just ending up in this maze, but all the accidents and trouble, had been organized by Ned, there was a good chance he was watching us. Scrying wasn’t that difficult, especially when the person scrying was also controlling everything. Ned probably wanted to check on the poor victims of his plans, which meant he could be watching right now.

  Biting back a curse, I tried to think of a way to detect Ned’s scrying, but since it was a rather passive magic, it was usually undetectable from the receiving end of the spell. All the magic and action was on the other side, and that was likely to be too far away for me to feel it.

  Since I didn’t have anything to lose by trying, I closed my eyes and carefully searched as far as I could for magic. I was still getting a strange feeling from the rhododendrons, but aside from that, I didn’t find anything. That was hardly a surprise.

  Well, if I couldn’t find the spell, maybe there was a way I could block it. I toyed with the idea. There were a couple of options, but I wasn’t sure they would work on Burly and it would be rather suspicious if Ned could see Burly but not me. Reluctantly I had to admit to myself that for the time being there wasn’t anything I could do about Ned’s Peeping Tom ways.

  Burly set a large bowl on the table, picked up a fork, and started eating what looked to be a salad. He didn’t look in my direction, but minotaurs had excellent peripheral vision, and I suspected he was watching me even if it didn’t look like it from here.

  Considering that Ned was likely keeping an eye on us, I thought the minotaur’s actions were downright dangerous. I didn’t think Ned had sent him after me because he was immune to magic but rather because minotaurs had a certain reputation. From Ned’s position, using the minotaur to remove me from the maze made perfect sense. The problem was Burly was less than motivated to live up to his species’ reputation.

  There had to be a way to make my spells affect Burly. If I could do that, it was a fairly safe bet that he would talk to me and we might be able to work together to escape. Though there was a good chance Ned had some other hold on Burly, or the minotaur wouldn’t be here and wouldn’t have abducted me. That was something I needed to work on before I did any spells to block us from Ned’s view.

  Burly finished his salad and started cleaning up. As he moved around, I watched him, trying to find anything that could be a link to Ned. In the past, minotaurs had worn nose rings, but I didn’t see one on Burly. In fact, the only things on him were his clothes. If he was wearing some token of Ned’s, it was attached to the other side of his clothing.

  Sighing, I leaned against the cave wall and tried to figure out my next plan. I had some ideas about how to break the spells that were holding me in the maze, but I had to be out there while I worked on my plan so I could see if I was making any progress. Since I wasn’t going to be able to leave the cave without hurting Burly or getting his assistance, there was only one thing left for me to do, and if Ned was watching so be it.

  I took a deep breath. “Burly, I know Ned is watching us.”

  Burly whirled around and focused on me.

  I kept talking. “Or could be watching us. That doesn’t matter. Typically people only scry for the picture, not the sounds, so there’s a good chance he doesn’t know what’s being said.”

  “He…” Burly’s voice wavered. “…knows things.”

  “I don’t doubt that. Why are you here?”

  Burly looked down and scuffed a hoof along the floor. “No choice. I was sold to him, and he has me tied to this area. I can’t escape.”

  “How did he bind you to this place? Magic doesn’t usually work on minotaurs.”

  Grimacing, Burly unbuttoned his vest. High on the right side of his chest, he’d been branded. Not recently—the wound was well healed—but there were two interlocking letters, a V and an R. I didn’t know the significance of the symbol, but I had a guess as to how that was keeping Burly here. If Ned had the object that branded Burly, that would create a link between them and give Ned’s magic a way to affect the minotaur.

  “I was captured when I was younger.” There was a distinct lack of emotion in Burly’s voice. “They branded me. It did something. Now whoever has that brand can make me do things. Things I don’t want to do. I’ve been forced to do a lot of things I didn’t want to do. For the most part Ned leaves me alone or just has me intimidate people for him. It’s not so bad.”

  There was an unspoken but hanging from those words. I was almost afraid to know what it was, but if I was going to help either one of us, I needed to know exactly what I was up against.

  My voice was soft. “This time he asked you to do something else, didn’t he?”

  Burly gave a jerky nod. “I don’t want to hurt you, but I’m not sure I’ll have a choice. Ned will look in on us at some point and decide that I’ve let things linger for too long. Then he’ll make me hurt you. I don’t know how to stop it.”

  Getting the brand back from Ned would do it, but that wasn’t an immediate solution. If I had my pack, I could try a healing charm. I doubted it would do much to a wound that old, but if the scar was healed, that could sever the connection between Burly and the brand. There was just one problem with that plan. I didn’t have any healing charms, and I was lousy at healing spells.

  I mean I was so bad at them that my dad had given up on teaching me. Under most circumstances, I was a great witch to have around, but this was one of the few times someone else would’ve been better suited to the job. Like Mom. She was a great healer. If she were here, Burly would be free in a matter of seconds.

  Since it was just the two of us, I had to find a different answer. “I know how to free you, but I can’t do it. It requires spells that I’ve never been good at.”

  Burly sighed and seemed to shrink a few inches. “Just know that I’m sorry. I wish you no harm.”

  “Don’t give up just yet. I may have a way to dampen the connection, give you a chance to fight back against anything Ned asks you to do.”

  He perked up. “Really?”

  “Maybe. I need some time to work on it.” I could see him sink back into himself, already afraid of what he would do. “If you were free, not just of Ned, but of anyone controlling you, what would you do?”

  He gave a wistful smile. “I’ve always wanted to be a farmer.”

  “What would you farm?” I examined him magically, which was trickier than it sounded because if I tried to investigate too closely,
his natural abilities nullified the probe.

  “I’ve always wanted a little dairy farm. It wouldn’t have to be much, just enough to live off. I’m a simple man.” He motioned around him. “I’d like to make my own line of cheeses. I’ve had some ideas over the years. I like to think I could make a go of it. And if I did well enough, I would find a nice girl, minotaur or humanish, to settle down with.”

  It was hard to do magic when I was blinking back tears. “Burly, I will do my best to give you a chance at that dairy farm. No promises, but I’ll try my best.”

  He shook his head. “I know about the man Ned is holding and that more of your friends are in this maze. You have other priorities.”

  “I can still help you.”

  “I’ve been this way for thirty years. Do you think you’re the first to promise help? I know it never happens.” He turned away.

  “I’m not like the others.” My voice was hard. “I keep my word. I will do my very best to help you be free.”

  “You will?”

  “I will.” There was hope in his eyes, something I thought he hadn’t felt in a very long time. No matter what it took to rescue Gudger and defeat Ned, I would do it, and I would come back for this man because he deserved better than this life.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  “Are you sure this will work?” Burly asked for at least the eighth time.

  “No, but I’m good witch, and this is our best shot.” I tried to sound reassuring, but the truth was I didn’t feel confident. He’d been controlled by the spell for so long that it was difficult to guess how it would go when I tried to unravel it, and there was a chance I couldn’t do it without having the branding iron at hand.

  He shifted his weight and sighed. “I know it’s a little cut, but be quick about it. I’m not all that fond of the sight of blood.”

  I had to be helping the only squeamish minotaur I’d ever heard of. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath and tried to squish my flash of irritation. “I will be very gentle.”

  Picking up the knife, I held his arm against the table and made a tiny cut just below his elbow. Blood oozed out. I quickly set the knife down, closed my eyes, and pushed my magic into his body.

  Something fought against me, trying to keep me from investigating what the other spell had done to him. At first I couldn’t tell if it was his own natural resistance or if it was some attribute of the spell. Then I got enough of my magic in him to get a feel for things.

  Whoever had constructed the spell that was holding him prisoner was an evil genius. The spell had started out small. I could feel the cold knot of magic laced through the brand. However, over time it had fed off his own energy and spread. Now it laced every single part of his body, and there was no easy fix. I started working on walling off the original part of the spell from the metastasized portions.

  I was about to drop the magical wall into place when Burly started shaking me. My eyes popped open. “What the hell are you doing? I was making progress.”

  “You have to run.” He forced the words through clenched teeth.

  Then I saw it. His eyes had changed. Oh, they were still the same chocolate, but all the kindness was gone and they seemed to have a lusty glint in them.

  He set the knife in my hand. “You may have to use it.”

  “I was making progress. What happened?” I quickly probed the area. It only took a second to find the answer. I’d been so distracted by the spell I was creating I hadn’t felt the new one spring into existence. There was magic filling the room, and it was focused on him.

  Well, most of it was focused on him. Part of the spell had its eyes on me. I sent out a wave of energy, trying to cancel it out. While that killed the portion of the spell that was focused on me, it did nothing to change the bulk of the magic.

  “Run,” he grunted. “Run now. Use the knife if you have to. Don’t let me hurt you.”

  I pushed back from the table and took one step toward the mouth of the cave. The smart thing would be to run, but there was still a chance I could save him. Save both of us. I turned back, grabbed his arm, and thrust my magic into him. There wasn’t much I could do quickly, and anything that was directly opposed to the spell controlling him didn’t stand a chance. I set a compulsion on him, commanding him to follow his truest desires.

  “Run!” he screamed. There was nothing kind left in him. The magic had changed Burly into the monster of legend.

  I turned and sprinted, praying that my magic had given both of us a chance to live.

  An infuriated bellow echoed from the cave.

  I started running faster, figuring that tripping and falling on the knife was the least of my concerns. I could hear his hoofbeats as he charged out of the cave. I prayed that I found help.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  I ran through the maze, taking turns and darting down paths without any regard for what was ahead of me. Behind me I could hear the minotaur snorting and grunting. I didn’t know what Ned had done to Burly, and I didn’t want to find out.

  As I slid through another turn, I lost my grip on the knife, and it went spinning into the bushes. I didn’t even pause. There wasn’t time to find it, and I didn’t think it would do me much good anyhow.

  Slipping around another turn, I sprinted down the straight. I risked a glance over my shoulder. I might have the advantage in the narrow turns, but as soon as we hit a straightaway, Burly started to catch up. I needed to do something to slow him down, but I was faced with the same problem I’d had when he captured me. Most magic wouldn’t work on a minotaur.

  The ground started to shake under my feet, and I knew this was the time that I had to come up with something or find out just what would happen if he caught me. My hand clenched, forming a fist as I wound my way through a series of turns.

  There was something sticky on my fingers. It was the wrong hand to have been cut by the knife when I slipped. But I had grabbed Burly’s wounded arm with this hand, so it had to be his blood. That would give me a way to cast a spell on him. There was no way to know how any magic I placed on him would react with the spells already in his system. The blood would give me an in, but I might only get one chance. Burly bellowed, and I was sure I could feel his breath reaching me. I was running out of options and time.

  The spell I’d cast back in the cave didn’t seem to be helping much. Whatever I did this time had to be different, target him more directly, and give me time to get away.

  Focusing on the blood as the connection between my magic and Burly, I started to cast. I started with a simple stun spell, added a sleep component, and tied it together with a healthy dose of willpower. Sending it through the blood on my hand, I hoped it worked.

  I felt the spell sink into his body. That much had worked, but it wasn’t enough. The spell had to slow him down. Glancing over my shoulder, I found him only feet behind me. He was just one long step from being able to grab me.

  Ignoring the burning in my legs, I forced them to move faster. It could take the spell a moment to take effect. While my legs still had some speed left in them, my lungs were a different story. My chest burned and ached every time I took a breath.

  I felt the magic in him start to twist and morph, though I couldn’t be sure what it was turning into. Faltering hoofbeats reached my ears, and I risked another look back. Burly was slowing down, first to a walk and then stopping and shaking his head. I slowed to a jog but kept moving, knowing I would need all the distance I could gain if this went wrong.

  I looked back one last time before I rounded the corner. He had his hands over his ears and seemed to be muttering to himself. Hopefully that was a sign the spells were helping him overcome Ned’s influence. It cost me a little time, but I attached a tendril of magic to him so I would know roughly where he was and if anything changed.

  As I jogged along the paths, which I could just barely see, I kept thinking I would hear something from Burly. Not only was there silence behind me, but all the magical link between us would tell me w
as that he hadn’t moved much yet. The spells were still in flux, and until they settled down, there wasn’t much for me to learn.

  With a shrug, I kept putting distance between the two of us. Now that I was traveling at a more reasonable pace, I started checking for traps, Elron and the officers, and really anything that might be a friend or foe. Considering how things had gone so far, I considered it something of a miracle that I hadn’t run afoul of a trick of the maze while I was running away from Burly.

  That was another good point. The flying squirrel had given me enough hints as to how this whole thing was put together that I might be able to break some of the spells. Knowing that the main part of the spell was on my mind was a huge breakthrough even if I didn’t have a good plan on how to attack it. Though I couldn’t even attempt that until I was sure Burly wasn’t going to resume hunting me. Some rest would be good too. The fitful sleep I’d gotten before my abduction hadn’t done much to refresh me, and I was running low on all types of energy—physical, mental, and magical.

  As much as I wanted to drop to a walk, I couldn’t. The link was giving me the same information I’d gotten before about a swirl of spells, and I didn’t trust the lull to last. It would be so much harder to pick up the pace from a walk than a jog if Burly resumed the chase.

  I wanted to be safe. I wanted this to be the turning point where I could go from being the useless witch to the witch who saved everyone, but I didn’t see that happening—not yet anyway. Acknowledging that hurt. Elron was out there somewhere, and he needed me. An elf wasn’t going to be able to break this spell. Gudger was hurt and needed medical attention, something he wasn’t going to get until I could free him from Ned. Then there were Patrick and Wells. They were lost in here too, and I doubted they were having any fun in this wretched place.

  With the pain in my legs and lungs back down to a more acceptable level, I couldn’t help but notice how dry my mouth had gotten. Before too long, I was going to need water. Considering that I was lost in rows of rhododendrons, without canteens or a way to purify water, it wasn’t looking promising.