“If I did, would I tell you?” Mason spat back.
“No, probably not. You’re a most unpleasant man, Mason. You should take life less seriously, especially given how close yours is to ending.” Rendal looked at the girl, grinning. “You didn’t feel like talking to Harold, huh?”
“The sonofabitch sucker-punched me when I walked in. Then says he wants to hurt me some more. Come do it now when I’m ready.” The girl’s eyes held hatred.
“A lively one, yes?” Rendal asked without looking away.
Harold didn’t respond, and Rendal liked that. The man understood his place.
“I don’t think you know her, Mason.” Rendal took a step closer, holding his drink in his right hand. “You can hide nothing from me, dear. Not your name nor where you’re from, or why you came here. To me, you are an open book.”
“To me, you’re an overgrown pubic hair.” The girl didn’t so much as flinch.
Rendal laughed. “Oh, I like her, Harold.” He went into her mind. He had to admit he was growing tired, and he would need to recharge soon. The green bracelet was completely drained.
Still, he had enough energy to get inside the girl’s head.
He saw everything within seconds.
“Kris. That’s a pretty name.”
“I wish I could say the same about you, but you look like a wrinkled nutsack.” She glared at him, apparently not impressed with his brief bit of magic.
“They’re here, Harold.” Rendal didn’t turn from looking at the girl.
“Who, sir? Riley?” Harold asked.
“Everyone but her and that mage, it seems,” Rendal answered. “The rest of the crew came, but Riley didn’t. Kris here doesn’t know why she didn’t come.”
“Can you see where they are?”
Rendal nodded. “The poor part of the town. I believe Kris here thinks of it as Shantyville. Or, as she calls it, fuckin’ Shantyville.”
“Would you like me to go get them?” Harold asked.
“I’m considering that.” He looked at Mason. “Where is she? Where’s Riley?”
“You’re dumber than you look, Rendal. How am I to know where she is? The only time I leave your presence is when you throw me into a cage.” Mason glared at the mage.
“And if you’re not careful with that mouth, you’ll end up right back there. I know you haven’t been around her, Mason. I’m asking you to use that poor excuse for a brain you’ve been given and think. Where else might she be?”
Rendal took a step closer.
Mason shrugged. “I have no idea. As far as I know, she would have come with them.”
Rendal’s hand flashed up and squeezed the air. Mason grabbed his neck and his mouth sprang open as he started gasping for air.
“Think, Mason. Think as if your very life depends on it,” Rendal growled.
“I…don’t…know,” Mason choked out.
Rendal dropped his hand, and Mason started coughing. He fell onto his side, taking deep, ragged breaths.
Rendal turned back around and looked at Harold. “This is most disconcerting.”
Harold said nothing, but he was obviously frightened.
Because Rendal was angry. Riley was supposed to be here with the rest of them; that had been the plan.
He closed his eyes and listened to Mason coughing on the couch.
Rendal was exhausted, and he didn’t have the energy to deal with all this right now. He needed to rest and recharge.
He shook his head. “No, I don’t want you to go get them. They can’t stop me, regardless of what they try. We’re going to focus on this city. Riley will come, and when she does, I want everything ready.”
He opened his eyes and faced Kris.
“I have a better idea.”
“What’s that, sir?” Harold asked.
“We’ll set up bait for a few of them. Maybe they’ll come looking for her and save us the trouble of going after them.” Rendal felt his tiredness fade momentarily. “Tomorrow. Call the kingdom. We’ll make it a public display.”
“What the hell are you talkin’ about?” Kris spat.
“You, my dear, are either going to bring us who we want or you’re going to be in a lot of pain. Either way, Sidnie is going to start moving down the route I have planned for it.”
Rendal spoke to Harold next. “Go ahead and take her away. Drain her tonight, and tomorrow have her outside the castle. We’ll do it at dusk.”
“Don’t you put your fuckin’ hands anywhere near me.” The girl’s face was granite as she’d jumped to her feet.
Rendal laughed. “I do like this one. She has spunk. Would you like me to handle her, Harold, or do you think you can?”
“Oh, big men, the both of ya,” Kris snapped. “Going to ‘handle’ a little girl. You don’t know how bad you’re fuckin’ up right now.”
“The mouth on her, Harold,” Rendal joked. “Have you ever heard such a thing?”
“Poor parenting,” Harold remarked with a slight smirk.
“William’s gonna be both your daddies when he finds out what’s happened to me. Go ahead and do what you want now, because once he gets here, it’s lights out for the two of you.” Kris put her hands up as if she were ready to fight.
“Oh, the hell with it,” Rendal declared.
He flicked his fingers dismissively, and the girl flew against the wall. She hit it hard, knocking off picture frames.
The girl slid to the ground, her eyes blinking lazily. She sat like that for a minute and then fell to her left, unconscious.
Rendal turned to one of the other couches in the Prefect’s office. “Drain her and get the setup ready for tomorrow.”
“Yes, sir.”
Harold didn’t leave as Rendal sat down. “What else is there?”
“The Prefect’s advisors. They’re making noise. They’re not buying what he’s telling them,” Harold answered.
Rendal looked at the Prefect. “Aw, hell, Harold. Did you see this?”
Slidell had pissed himself. He was standing in the corner, and a dark stain spread across his crotch.
“No, sir. I’ve been dealing with the brat.”
“Well, get him fucking cleaned up too.” Rendal was pissed. Problems everywhere he looked. “What about these damn advisors?”
“We’re going to have to deal with them,” Harold told the mage. “The Prefect… It’s up to you, sir, whether he’s going to be able to handle such a conversation.”
The man stared blankly out at the room, not hearing them.
Rendal sighed. “He’s deep in the hypnosis. It may be time to simply replace them.”
“You?”
“No, Harold,” Rendal sneered. “With Belarus. Just get these two out of here and leave me in peace.”
“Yes, sir,” Harold responded quickly.
He commanded the Prefect to follow him and threw the girl over his shoulder.
Mason slowly sat up on the couch. His throat was swollen and red.
“Mason, it’s just you and me now,” Rendal jested, lying down and stretching his legs out.
“Sounds like things are getting too big for you to handle, master mage.”
“Sounds like you just need to listen a little closer,” Rendal rebuked the Assistant Prefect. “Tomorrow the kingdom changes, and maybe your friends die, too.”
William and Brighten stood in the crowd. William was massive, but he wore a hooded cloak that hung all the way to his feet. The boy practically disappeared in his wake.
No one was looking at the two of them. The world was focused on the stage up front.
It was empty as of yet, but the announcement had gone far and wide.
A traitor.
A spy.
Discovered within Sidnie’s own people.
“That’s her,” William had remarked the moment he heard.
“She’s no damn traitor!” Brighten had shouted.
“Calm yourself, boy,” William responded. “I know she ain’t a traitor, but that’s wha
t Rendal is gonna call her. That’s what he’s setting up with all this.”
“What’s gonna happen to her?” Brighten had asked.
“May kill her. May be setting us up,” the big man concluded. “Can’t say just yet.”
The two had come to the front of the castle. A massive stage had been constructed, standing five feet above everyone.
Stocks had been set up in the middle of it.
“What’s that mean?” Brighten whispered as the two slowly made their way through the crowd.
“Son, do I look like a damned mind reader?” William asked without looking down. The cloak mostly hid the broadsword on his back, but not completely.
“No, but have you seen anything like this before? What happens?”
William kept walking, not slowing. He needed to get closer to the stage if he were going to be able to stop anything.
“Usually, with a block like this in such a public place, it means beheading,” he answered.
“Be-whatting?” The boy reached for William’s arm, trying to pull him to a stop.
William growled but halted, then looked down.
“We can’t let them hurt her,” Brighten whispered sharply.
William wanted to keep moving forward. He wasn’t good with this kind of stuff; he didn’t have kids and didn’t want them, but the boy was freaking out.
He squatted down, his massive frame coming even with Brighten.
“Why do you think we’re here, kid? For our health? Did you need to walk to keep your heart in shape?”
Brighten shook his head and William grinned at him.
“Hell, no. Your heart is in tip-top shape, and my heart’s the strongest thing in this damned kingdom. We’re here because we’re not gonna let anything happen to your smart-mouthed friend, all right?”
Brighten nodded, although he still looked scared.
“It’s your job to keep your eyes peeled and your senses alert,” William continued. “You leave the fightin’ to me. Ain’t nobody in this kingdom going to hurt me, you, or her. Now get some steel in your spine and let’s be heroes.”
“Heroes?”
“Hell, yes. Heroes, kid. Whatcha think we’re in this for?” William grinned. “Glory.”
He stood up and started moving forward again.
A few minutes later, Sidnie’s Prefect walked out onto the stage.
“Thank you…all for coming.”
William chuckled. “Something’s definitely wrong with that man.”
No one in the crowd could think anything different. The man wasn’t quite drooling on himself, but he looked close to it. His voice was almost disembodied, completely separate from the person speaking.
“That’s not the Prefect,” Brighten said.
“Whatcha mean?” William didn’t look away from the stage. He hadn’t taken his sword out but was ready the moment it needed to happen.
“I mean, it looks like him, but that’s not the man everyone here knows. It’s some kind of weird replacement.” Brighten sounded like he was almost in awe of what he was seeing.
“That’s the mage’s work, boy. Be ready.”
“I want…to introduce you…to my newest…advisor. He is head of…of…of…”
“The magic school!” another voice boomed from behind the stage.
William knew who it was. Fuckin’ Rendal.
Sure enough, the mage walked onto the stage. “Thank you very much for that introduction, Prefect Slidell.”
“You’re…welcome,” the Prefect forced out before shuffling off stage.
“I’d like to introduce myself and tell you all a bit more about the magic school you’ve all heard of. It’s founding certainly wasn’t decided on a whim. The Prefect definitely didn’t want to shut down all the independent teachers, but there’s been a serious development.”
The mage’s face grew grave.
“Your Prefect contacted me after discovering the development, and he was wise to do so. My name is Rendal Hemmons, and I’m a master mage in a way that even Prefect Slidell has not achieved. That’s not a slight on your great leader, only the truth. That’s why he brought me here.”
The crowd grew quieter around William, and he thought he understood why. The mage was using his skills to transfer fear. The crowd believed him, even after only a few words.
“We’ve found a spy. A traitor to Sidnie.”
Complete and total silence. If William took a single step forward, it would be noticed.
The mage continued, “Across the Badlands is a kingdom called New Perth. You’ve heard of it, no?”
“We know ‘em!” someone shouted, real anger in his voice.
“They’re the ones who flipped this person. This youthful person. I wanted to try to save her, to flip her back to Sidnie, but…it isn’t possible.”
The mage looked down at his feet.
“She’s too far gone, and we imagine she’s given an unfathomable amount of information to New Perth. She was caught inside the castle, and do you know what she was looking for?”
Rendal looked up.
“Blueprints. The plans to the very building that houses our Prefect and our nobles.”
“WHO?” someone screamed. “WHO DID IT?”
“Would you like to see her?” the mage whispered, but the noise rolled across everyone as if he’d screamed it.
“SHOW HER!”
“GIVE US THE TRAITOR!”
“Bring her out,” Rendal commanded.
William saw movement behind the stage, and someone tossed Kris out onto the wooden platform.
She looked at the crowd, ferocity in her eyes.
“This is her,” the mage called out. “The traitor. The one who came to steal the blueprints and give them to the enemy!”
Rendal stepped forward, not looking at Kris.
“What should we do to her?”
“She’s a traitor!” someone shouted.
“Put her in prison!”
“Kill her!”
William felt the boy pulling on his cloak. He looked down at him. “This isn’t normal. People shouldn’t be shouting like this. It’s not how Sidnie works.”
“I know.” William nodded and looked back up. The mage was doing something to these citizens.
“There are more traitors, though,” the mage declared. “Some are here with us now, right in this crowd.”
“He knows,” Brighten whispered.
William only shook his head, but he saw people looking around. At their friends, their family, their neighbors.
“Come forth, traitors, and we will save this girl’s life. Otherwise, she’ll be sentenced to death.”
William kept his head high, staring right at Rendal. He didn’t think the mage had spotted him yet.
He looked down at Brighten. “Ready to be heroes?”
The kid swallowed but nodded.
“Go around to the back of the stage. When it’s time, I want you to run onto it, okay?” William asked.
“How will I know when it’s time?”
William grinned. “Trust me, you’ll know. Now go!”
The kid dashed off. William looked at the mage, still standing at the edge of the platform.
“Riley,” William whispered to himself. “I’m gonna need you to learn this damned magic so I have some help over here.”
He stepped forward, dropping his cloak and revealing the massive broadsword hanging on his back.
“Hey, Rendal!” he shouted. “I’m no traitor, but I’ll save that girl all the same!”
Kris grinned as she turned to the mage. “I told you. You’re fucked now.”
Chapter Fourteen
Riley watched the queen walk farther out into the sand.
Worth sat to her left, his diminishing bag of wine between his legs.
Rachel and Thomas were to her right, both silent. Riley knew they didn’t trust her or Worth, but she didn’t care. They didn’t matter. Only the queen—Alexandra—mattered.
Another day had pass
ed, and Riley was dying to learn something, anything, but the queen had insisted they all rest yesterday. Now, they’d ventured out of the tunnels into the Badlands.
“The problem isn’t you, Riley,” Alexandra stated as she turned around. “It’s what you’ve been taught.”
“What do you mean?” Riley asked.
“What do you know about magic?” the queen responded.
Riley didn’t hesitate. “It’s dangerous. It can hurt people if it’s not controlled, and most people can’t control it.”
“See?” Alexandra smiled.
Riley’s brow furrowed. “I...”
“You didn’t even realize you believed that so completely, did you?”
Riley shook her head.
“So, no wonder you can’t activate your magic. You have a mental block against it, Riley. You’ve been taught it’s dangerous. You’re a good person, so why would you use it?”
Riley was dumbfounded.
“She stubborn,” Worth interjected. “Very stubborn. Need better student!”
Riley looked over and saw Worth grinning. “Maybe I just needed a better teacher.”
“Aye, Worth best teacher, betcha. Best in all the world. Brought you to underground people, didn’t he?”
Riley glanced at the queen, knowing that he’d used a derogatory term.
She only rolled her eyes, then said, “Focus, Riley.”
Riley nodded.
“To gain access to your magic, you’ll have to break down the wall your mind’s created. It’s not your teachers. It’s not your enemies. It’s you.”
“But how do I outwit my own mind?” Riley asked.
“You don’t want to outwit your mind. You want to show it that it’s been taught false things,” Alexandra answered.
“I mean, I know that logically. I’ve seen Worth. I’ve seen William. Hell, I’ve seen myself use magic in good ways, but my mind isn’t listening.” Riley looked at Worth for agreement.
The tent man only stared out into the desert as if he hadn’t heard anything she’d said.
“We’re not talking about logic here.” The queen took a step closer. “We’re talking about understanding. We’re really talking about faith.”
Riley looked at her.
“I live beneath the ground in tunnels built by people long dead in the middle of a desert. I do it because I have faith that someone is coming to move the world forward.” Alexandra smiled. “I fully understand how crazy that looks to the outside world. Thomas and Rachel know it looks crazy too. We don’t care. We have faith.”
Chasing Magic (Hand Of Justice Book 2) Page 18