Children of Poseidon: Rann (23 page)

“Would your coven have any idea what they’re up to?” Annis asked.

“I doubt it.” Maya dismissed the suggestion but pulled her phone out. “I’ll check if Charlie knows anything.”

Rann waited impatiently while Maya talked to the mage. She listened to his response with an eye roll.

“You and Maria are the most senior members after Kara,” she said eventually. “If you don’t think it’s your responsibility, then whose could it possibly be?” Her face tensed, and she bit hard on her lip in an obvious attempt to control her temper. “Charlie . . .” There was a silence while she listened. “If you’d dealt with this earlier, then we might not have a situation.” She pressed the disconnect button with a stabbing index finger and looked round at her audience. “Useless tosser.”

“He’s Kara’s second?” Fergal stepped forward.

“Kara doesn’t have a second.” Maya glowered at her phone. “Charlie and Maria are the closest in power to her. I don’t know what they’re thinking. They can’t always have been this feeble.”

Fergal shook his head. “It looks like your coven needs a thorough shake up.”

Rann stirred restlessly. “Where would they have taken Jewel? And Seawitch?” His temper rose, and again he fought it back. He wanted to smite Jewel’s mother and any supporters she might have. He understood Lykos’s urge to kill Alberic completely.

“The mansion.” Maya looked at him. “You’re right. We need to go now.”

“You’re sure it was Kara and Alberic?” Rann stared at Connor.

“They’ve been here. Jewel’s gone. Seawitch is gone. We haven’t any other leads.”

Rann continued staring at him.

Connor took a step backwards, holding up his hands. “There were no other scents in the flat. Either they left voluntarily, or they were taken by Kara and the dark mage.”

“Right.” Rann surveyed his companions. “I’m going after them.”

“And me.” Maya pulled her jacket back on.

“We’ll all go.” Lila took Lykos’s arm.

He stared at her. “You’re not going. It’s dangerous.”

Lila tugged on his arm. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

Rann turned away. He couldn’t afford to wait while they argued. “Annis? I think you and Connor should leave. This isn’t your fight, and if I can’t deal with a couple of renegade magic users, then I’d be surprised.”

He headed for the door, followed closely by Fergal, Maya, Lila, and finally Lykos, who had obviously lost the argument. They clattered down the stairs and piled into the street.

A man waited at the front door—a tall, dark man dressed in an expensive suit and a gleaming white shirt. Power rolled off him.

Chapter 23

“Damnam.” Rann recognised his half-brother immediately, although he hadn’t seen him in almost a thousand years. The glimpse he’d caught of him a few years ago in Glasgow didn’t really count. “About time.”

“Seawitch?” Damnam wasn’t wasting time on small talk. “You have a seawitch.” His sapphire eyes moved over his brother and focussed on Maya. A small smile lifted the corner of his lips. “Maya. All grown up.”

Maya opened her mouth.

Rann didn’t give her time to speak. “Come on.” He didn’t have time to update his brother, but he suspected he might be useful. “She’s been kidnapped.”

“Kidnapped?”

“We think.” Rann strode up the hill, while Maya and Damnam flanked him. Lila and Lykos trailed a few yards behind them, deep in an intense conversation. The sky darkened, and a persistent drizzle began to fall.

“What are those two doing here?” Damnam nodded at Lykos and Lila. “Besides ruining the weather? And who’s he?” Fergal had passed Lykos and caught up with Rann.

“My father.”

Damnam glanced at Maya and raised one dark, perfectly groomed eyebrow. Fergal was slight and fair; he looked like Lila and a little like Jewel, but it was hard to picture him as the father of Amazonian Maya. Rann didn’t have time to think about that now, so he ignored the implied question and kept walking.

“Fergal’s daughter, Jewel, was abducted as well,” he said. “We need to get them both back.”

“Who’s kidnapped them?” Damnam kept up with no trouble. “I finally find evidence my seawitches still exist, and you let someone walk off with it. Careless.”

“Our coven leader.” Maya also had no problem keeping up with Rann’s pace. “We’ll deal with her.”

“I’m not understanding this,” Damnam said.

“Doesn’t matter.” Rann kept walking. “Either help us get them back or go back where you came from.”

“Japan.” Damnam sounded amused. It was obvious to Rann that he didn’t realize how delicate the situation was or what danger his seawitch was in.

Sensation limped back into Jewel’s body, bringing needles of pain with it. She could move again. Or at least she would have been able to if her wrists and ankles weren’t tied. She wriggled and pulled on the restraints but fell off the seat and collapsed onto the floor for no gain at all. This time the impact slammed through her, and she couldn’t repress a gasp of pain. She shuffled along until she sensed the wall behind her back and adjusted her position until her legs bent in front of her. It was difficult with her hands tied together, but she picked at the ties round her ankles. The knots were fairly simple to undo, and eventually the ropes fell from her legs. She stretched them out and struggled to her feet, staggering as she shook the cramps out of them. Now she could work on her hands. Pursing her lips, she studied the binding, trying and failing to move her wrists apart. Eventually she gave in and started to work on the knots with her teeth. When the ropes fell away, she gave a sigh of relief and shook her hands out. Now the only problem was the nullsilver, and there was no way she was going to get that off.

Her head spun, and she felt as though she had lost one of her senses. It might have been a residue from the drugs, but she knew deep down that the nullsilver separated her from the world’s magic. She sat on the bench Alberic had placed her on and tried not to think about what they wanted with her and Seawitch and why now. A shudder of apprehension rippled through her body and sent her mind straight back to her teenage years. Her mother had made her feel just like this on the rare occasions she noticed her—fearful and expectant. A tiny seed of anger took root in her.

What right do they have to treat me like this?

A high-pitched scream from somewhere in the basement jerked her out of her introspection. She shifted forward, her head tilted to catch any sound, but the air remained still, and the cry was not repeated. She collapsed back against the wall and waited, focussing on her breathing.

Footsteps approached the door. A key rattled in the lock, and Kara stepped into the cell. “Hello Jewel.”

Jewel scrambled to her feet. “What do you want with me?”

“Alberic will be down in a moment. He’ll explain.”

“Mother, you can’t just—”

“Be quiet.” Kara’s voice was sharp. “You are going to do something useful for us. You should be grateful to have the opportunity.”

“What are you talking about?”

“We’re going to perform a power ritual.” Kara took another step towards her. “You will play a vital part in it. Alberic says you are a huge bonus, and fate must have brought you back at just the right time. I can’t say that I’m glad to see you, though.”

“Fate.” Jewel sat down again. She wanted more information than that. “If you think I’m going to play any part in your black magic ritual, you’re sadly mistaken.”

A smile spread across Kara’s face. “You won’t have any choice.”

Jewel’s eyes narrowed. “What are you planning?”

“You know you’ve always been a disappointment to me?” Kara folded her arms. “Now you have a chance to serve your family. That’s what I’ll remember you for.”

Jewel studied Kara’s face.

Remember me?

She didn’t like the sound of that. “Tell me.”

“You wouldn’t understand.” Kara’s expression conveyed contempt. “It’s an esoteric form of magic. Beyond your scope, I’m afraid.”

This sounded worse by the minute. She glanced around. There was no sign of Alberic yet, so she took a chance and launched herself at her mother. She thought maybe she could get past her and escape from the mansion. Kara staggered and fell back. Regaining her balance, she hissed some words under her breath, and a shooting pain shot through Jewel’s head, blinding her. She hesitated for a moment.

“Sit down.” Her mother used the power of her voice.

Jewel found herself sitting before she had time to think about it.

“If you try that again, I’ll really hurt you.” Kara glanced at the bracelets round Jewel’s wrists. “And you couldn’t be a threat to me even without those.”

Jewel took a couple of deep breaths while the pain in her head faded. She knew her mother was right. If it came to a straight fight between them, Jewel was toast. She wasn’t giving up, though. She figured Kara would drop her guard at some point, and Jewel could wield a blunt instrument as well as anyone else. She looked down at her hands, then up again as her mother’s attention wavered.

“Alberic?”

The dark mage walked into the room. He wore formal robes; a long, dark, hooded cloak hung open over them.

“Jewel.” He smiled with satisfaction, as he inserted a note of concern into his voice. “You’ve recovered from the sedative then?”

She didn’t answer.

“Have you told Jewel what her role is, tonight?” He glanced at Kara.

“Not yet. I thought you could do that.” Kara gave him a besotted smile.

“Your unborn sister must be given every opportunity we can find for her,” Alberic said. “I’m sure you’ll agree with that?”

Jewel stared at him.

“There is a ritual which will practically guarantee that she will be born with superior magic powers,” he continued. “It takes a life force, though.”

Jewel’s stomach cramped, and she fought not to hunch over and hug herself.

“We thought we’d use Gwen.” Alberic frowned. “But your appearance in London gives us much better material to work with. You are a blood relative. Your blood will call to the child’s. Do you understand?”

Jewel shook her head, although she was afraid that she did understand, and she didn’t like it at all.

“Gwen—” She started to ask what had happened to the other witch.

“Gwen’s pregnancy was very fortuitous,” Alberic said. “She was very glad to help Kara with the ritual.”

“Did she realise it would kill her own baby?” Jewel meant to keep him talking as long as possible, hoping she could find a way out of the situation. She couldn’t think otherwise or she’d turn into a screaming wreck.

“She never knew.”

For a moment Jewel felt sorry for Gwen but realised that her own situation was as bad, if not worse.

“The problem,” Alberic pursed his lips, “is that Gwen’s baby’s death fuelled the life of our child, but any magic she has will be purely chance.”

“We need better odds than that,” Kara interjected.

“So we can use your magic to gift the child,” Alberic explained.

“You’ll take my magic?”

“And your life will amplify the gift.” Kara told her.

Jewel felt the warmth drain away from her face. Her mother planned to kill her. “You can’t do this.” Her voice trembled. “You do realise that, don’t you?”

Kara looked puzzled. “Why not?”

“It’s forbidden. Every coven member would rise against you.”

Kara gave a snort of contempt.

“And the other covens would move against you as well.”

“They won’t,” Alberic said with certainty. “Your coven members are a bunch of sheep. And I have Meryll locked up down here.” He smiled. “My secret weapon.”

“What?”

“Her store of death magic. It’s enough to deal with anyone who tries to mess with us.”

“You can’t—”

“We can. I’ve tested it, and I can release and direct it without harming myself.”

Jewel felt herself hyperventilating. She inhaled slowly and counted to ten. It didn’t help much.

“Once the Dark Master had filled her, I saw what an asset she might be,” Alberic continued. “That’s why I risked freezing her and taking her with me when I left the Dark Coven.”

“Dark Coven?”

“All the Dark Master’s acolytes died or went insane,” Alberic explained. “I escaped when I had the chance.”

Jewel thought he was probably much too late, if he’d hoped to escape madness. At least she knew roughly where the Dark Master might be hiding now. Although whether she would live to pass the information on was a question she didn’t want to explore.

“Mother, you don’t want to do this.” She hated the note of pleading in her voice, but surely her mother didn’t hate her enough to kill her.

Kara’s eyes shone like polished marble. “Shouldn’t we be starting?” She spoke to Alberic.

“You’re right. There’s no reason to wait.” He took Jewel by the arm and led her out of the cell. She pulled back. No way was she going quietly to her death. Alberic jerked on her arm, and she staggered forward.

“Let me go.” Her voice sounded weak and squeaky. She cleared her throat.

“Don’t make this hard on yourself,” Alberic said. “You have a central and honourable role in this. Don’t spoil it with tantrums.”

Jewel was so surprised she let him pull her forward a few steps.

Tantrums?
Honourable? He really is mad.

She slapped at his head and kicked out.

His expression darkened. “You are making me angry.”

He pulled her to him and wrapped one arm round her throat, gripping a handful of hair with the other. He pushed her ahead of him, kneeing her in the spine whenever she struggled. It hurt, but it didn’t stop her. She wriggled wildly, and he tightened the arm round her throat. There was no air, she couldn’t breathe, and her vision went dark. A few red spots flashed past her eyes before he loosened his grip. While she drew in a huge lungful of air, he pushed her forward. By the time they reached the large meeting room, Jewel was almost unconscious, and her back and throat hurt so badly that the deep breaths she took when she had the chance almost had her blacking out from the pain. As they passed the end of the hallway that led to the cells, she thought she caught sight of someone sprawled on the floor.

Gwen?

She had far too many other problems to think about it much.

“Prepare the circle.” Alberic held on to her as he told Kara what to do. His grip on her throat tightened enough to keep her short of breath and unable to fight back or even to think. Jewel had a blurred image of her mother moving about, making marks on the floor, and adding things to the marks. A foul smell forced its way into Jewel’s limited air supply. She gave a strangled sob. Alberic guided her forward and spun her round so that he stared into her eyes. Red strands in black swirled as he breathed orders into her mouth.

“Move not.” Her body went still. He lowered her until she lay flat on the floor. Bending over her, he snapped off the nullsilver bracelets. Jewel felt the magic slam back into her, but in her paralysed state she could do nothing with it.

This must be how he immobilised the seawitch.

Alberic stepped away, turning to face Kara. She handed him a knife with an ornate handle and a long narrow blade. He knelt beside Jewel’s prone body and carefully cut her clothing away, removing it bit by bit and tossing it aside. Jewel strained to move, but her body wouldn’t even twitch.

I’m going to die.

She didn’t want to die. Her island home formed a picture in her mind.

I’ll never see it again.

An image of Rann’s face, relaxed and seductive, drifted across her consciousness.

I’ll never see him again.

She concentrated on her muscles, her body screaming with effort, but she still couldn’t move. She couldn’t even weep.

Once she was naked, Alberic took her arms and stretched them out at right angles to her body, then pulled her ankles apart. He surveyed her with a satisfied expression. Her pulse rate leapt from rapid to manic, and again she tensed every muscle in her body in her urge to escape. She wanted to scream, to be sick, to turn the knife on the mage, but the only parts of her body she could move were her eyes. Alberic rose to his feet and raised the knife. Kara began to chant.