Enchantment (58 page)

Str
y
k
e
r
and
the
garg
o
y
l
es
were
still
doing
the
s
weep,
but
absolute
l
y
nothing
had
shown
up. It
j
u
st
didn’t
m
ake
sense.
H
ow
could
an
Enchanter
have
m
ag
i
c
of
that
powe
r
?
Magic
of
that
m
agn
i
tude
didn’t
exist
in
a
natural
state.
Cloaking
was
a
skill
requiring
ma
n
y
y
e
ars
of
training,
s
omething
no
Enchanter
would
have.

No
one
but
a
Counselor.

The
str
a
y
thought
sent
a
s
hard
of
fear
through
hi
m
. He
ruthlessly
crushed
his
unease.

No,
it
wouldn’t
be.
Couldn’t
be.

Kerrigan
wondered
what
the
visit
to
the
Counselors
w
ould
bring.

Could
they
send
Meeka
back?

H
i
s
heart
lurched
at
the
thought.
One
thing
w
as
certain.
H
e
needed
to
find
out
m
ore
about her powers
and teach
her how
to use th
e
m proper
l
y
.
He couldn’t
i
m
agine
she would ever need
to defend
herself
w
hen
he
was
around,
but
until
he
could
be
sure,
she
needed
to
learn
skills
and learn
fast.

To
m
orrow,
s
he
would
acco
m
pa
n
y
h
i
m
to
the
Counselors’
Realm.
S
he
would
train
with
him and
the
gargo
y
l
e
s.

Chapter
Nineteen

Jager
sat
feet
on
his
rat
t
y
old
desk
in
To
m
bs.
He
didn’t
know
why
he’d
returned
there. Probably
because
it
had
been
the
only
place
he’d
ever
known.
He
hadn’t
been
out
wandering around
in
Enchan
t
m
e
nt
long
enough
to
call
it
ho
m
e.
Kerrigan
alw
a
y
s
busted
his
a
s
s
and
threw him
back
into
To
m
bs.

Selling
m
agic
was
not
allowed,
but
he’d
m
a
d
e
a
good
living
at
it.
Who
the
hell
cared
if
he killed
a
few
s
kan
k
y
fe
m
a
les
along
the
wa
y
?
J
ager
didn’t
think
an
y
o
n
e
w
ould
m
iss
the
m
,
but apparent
l
y
,
Kerrigan
had.

He
clenched
his
fist
and
pounded
the
desk
in
anger.
At
least
in
T
o
m
bs,
he
was
appreciated. Even
the
creatures
with
no
brains kn
e
w
to
respect
his
leadership.

There
w
a
s no
doubt Thalius would
be pi
s
sed at
his failed att
e
m
p
t at capturing the little bitch, but
To
m
bs
was
the
one
place
m
ag
i
c
didn’t
exist,
so
he
was
safe
from
Thalius’s
attack.
A
sick s
m
ile
grew
over
Jager’s
disfigured
face.
To
m
bs
w
a
s
his
home,
not
Thalius’s.
Jager
had
m
ore p
o
wer—not
m
ag
i
c.
No,
never
m
a
g
ic—but
true
power
here.
For
n
o
w,
he
w
as
safe,
but
to
m
orrow, it
could
be
a
different
stor
y
.

To
m
orrow,
he
would
have
to
withstand
Thalius’s
wrath.
What
kind
of
defense
would
throw Thalius’s
atten
t
ion
off
hi
m
?
He
didn’t
want
the
twisted
old
bastard
to
suspect
his
own
plan. Indeed,
he
relished
the
chance
to
spend
a
lit
t
le
t
i
m
e with
the
girl.

He
scratched
at his balding
head until he felt the warm ooze
of his blood. The fucking pixies had
al
m
ost
ruined
ever
y
t
h
ing.
He’d
forgotten
about
their
special
abili
t
ies.

But
the
fish
thing
almost
worked.
Almost.
I’ll
need
that
as
part
of
his
defense
when
dealing with
Thalius.
And
he
neglected
to
mention
what
kind
of
powers
the
girl
po
s
sesses.
How
could
I complete
the
job
without
all
the
information?

H
unger
gnawed
at
hi
m
.
He
y
a
n
k
ed
open
the
desk
drawer
and
grabbed
a
handful
of
dried
w
or
m
s,
shoving
th
e
m
into
his
m
outh.
With
all
the
dec
a
y
i
ng
bodies
in
To
m
bs,
insects
were plentiful.
Stuffing
the
still
-
m
o
v
ing
insects
into
his
m
outh,
he
reached
for
another
handful.

He
paced
back
and
forth
in
the
ti
n
y
roo
m
.
If
Thalius
wanted
him
to
successfully
kidnap
the girl,
the
old
crone
would
need
to
help.
A
distraction
would
be
needed
to
get
Kerrigan
out
of
the wa
y
. He
w
ould
co
m
pl
e
te this job
and
get
the
fuck
off
this
world.

Jager recal
l
ed
the
feeling
of
the
beau
t
y
’
s
sati
n
y skin.
H
er
long
legs
had wrapped
around
him as
s
he
fought.
He’d
never
felt
a
n
y
t
h
i
ng
so
silky
and
soft.
He
reached
down
to
his
crotch
and began
rubbing
hi
m
self,
pretending
he could
feel
hi
m
self
thrusting
into
her. It
would
be worth
the ris
k
s
he took.

Perhaps
tom
o
rrow’s
meeting with
Thalius
won’t
be
so
bad. H
i
s
breathing
increased,
and
he
r
ubbed
faster.

* * * *

Meeka
awoke
to
Threeo’s
large
owl
e
y
e
s
staring
excited
l
y
into
her
own.
Awaking
from sleep
certai
nl
y
wasn’t
dull
there.
A
sidew
a
y
s glance
revealed
Catz
see
m
ed
uni
m
pressed.

“Did
y
ou sleep
w
ell,
Meeka,”
Catz
asked.

Meeka
looked
to
the
side
where
she
kn
e
w
Kerrigan
had
been.
He’d
held
her
like
a
precious doll.
Her
old
insecurities
returned
as
she
w
ondered
why
he’d
left.
Her
sto
m
ach
knotted
and churned.
Couldn’t
things
go
her
w
a
y
j
u
st
once?
S
he
w
anted,
m
ore
than
she
dared
ad
m
it,
for
him to stay
with her. “I did sleep
w
ell,
and
I feel
m
uch
better.
Thanks for
asking. Do
y
ou
kn
o
w
w
here Kerrigan
is
?
”