Master and Apprentice (37 page)

“Tell me again why I have to pretend to be Vaelyn,” he said after I’d explained what I was thinking. “And try to make sense this time.”

I shook my head and glanced around the room. Most of the scions appeared to agree with Tory—at least, the ones who weren’t glazed with shock and exhaustion. Ian and Calvin were with me, mostly because the other options would get us killed faster. Mercy had so far kept her thoughts to herself. “Look,” I said, “you won’t have to keep it up for long. We just need to get inside the gates.”

“Yeah, we get in. And what’re we s’posed to do then?” Lynus stirred from a semitrance by the banked fire. “Go back to playin’ tin soldiers and takin’ orders? If y’all go up against Father and lose, he’ll know we was helpin’ you. He’ll kill us. Hell, he won’t even have to lift a finger. The elders’ll do it for him.”

Kit, who’d been listening to his brother with a deepening frown, stood suddenly. “Then we make sure they win,” he said. “Damn it, we fight back. This has to end one way or another, Lynus, and you know it.”

Lynus clenched his jaw. “We already out. So let’s just stay out. We don’t go back, they can’t kill us.”

“What the fuck happened to you?” Kit crossed the room to the fireplace. “Last night you was ready to take ’em out yourself, and now you wanna run?”

“Yeah. I wasn’t thinkin’ clear last night. Now I am.”

“Father’ll find us. You know he c’n track us down.”

“I don’t give a flyin’ fuck. We ain’t goin’ back, Kit.”

“We have to go—”

“Goddamn it, I can’t lose you!”

Silence ebbed in after the hoarse shout. Lynus turned his back on the room, and his shoulders heaved once. “I already got Davie killed,” he said, his voice breaking against the wall. “Don’t ask me to let you die too.”

Ian sent me a pained look, but he held his tongue. Interrupting would only make things worse. I nodded and hung back.

“Lynus.” Kit put a hand on his shoulder. “I don’t know about you, but I’d rather die fightin’ than live like a damn slave, or keep lookin’ over my shoulder forever wonderin’ whether he’s gonna come after us. I think we can win. And I’m goin’ back.”

“Me too.” Billy moved toward them and hesitated. “They gotta be stopped, Lynus. And Penny’s still in there. I’m with Kit.”

The other scions murmured reluctant agreement. Lynus turned slowly and fixed Kit with a red-eyed stare. “You really think we got a chance?”

“Yeah, I do,” he said. “I mean, with the thief’s plan, we’re gonna surprise ’em, right? Maybe we can take out the elders before they know what’s goin’ on.”

“And what if we don’t?”

“I think Calvin can help you there,” I said.

Everyone stared at me. Especially Calvin. “How am I going to do that?” he said.

“Teach them your gun-jamming spell.”

“Ah.” He nodded, smiled. “Yes, I believe that will help.” One of the scions on the couch—Mack, the one who’d barely spoken to anyone—raised his hand like he was in school and had to use the bathroom. I tried not to laugh. “What’s up?” I said.

“I … um, I ain’t got a gun.” He flushed crimson and looked at his feet. “I had one, but when we was chasin’ you guys, I got spooked and shot at Jackson. So he took it away.”

“Val never give me one,” Jimmy piped in. “She said I ain’t got the guts to kill nobody.”

Lynus bowed his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. “This is gonna be fuckin’ suicide,” he said. “There’s twenty more elders in there, plus Father, and enough firepower to take out the U.S. goddamned Army. We’re just flat outgunned.”

“I can fix that,” Mercy said.

I blinked at her. “Your shotgun’s a pile of scraps. Remember?”

“Yeah.” She gave me a cool stare. “Come on back here a minute. Got somethin’ to show you,” she said, and headed for the addition at the back of the house.

I shrugged and followed her. Calvin came right behind me, as if he didn’t trust me with her alone. I didn’t blame him much. He’d almost lost her last night—and I knew exactly
what it felt like to watch someone threaten the woman you love.

There were two doors leading from the short hallway, one straight ahead and another on the right. The door at the end stood open a crack and afforded a view of the corner of a log-frame bed built into the wall. The other door, made of rough wooden planks, was held shut with a padlocked hasp and staple.

Mercy produced a small ring of keys, opened the lock, and rolled the door aside. “Don’t get your robes in a twist now, Calvin,” she said. “I never had plans to use most of this stuff, ’cept for target practice. I just like bein’ prepared.” She reached in and pulled a chain switch, and a single lightbulb flickered on to illuminate the room.

Which was full of guns.

Mercy motioned for me to go in, and I stepped through, dragging my jaw along. Three walls held racks and shelves and mounted display cases stocked with more pieces than a state fair gun show. Boxes of neatly stacked ammo lined the fourth wall on either side of the door. She had shotguns and rifles, revolvers, pistols and semiautomatics, everything from the latest Glocks and Magnums to a couple of tarnished six-shooters that looked like they’d last been fired by Wyatt Earp.

The biggest piece in her collection caught my eye. “Is that … a machine gun?”

“Yep. It’s an M249 SAW, military issue. Light infantry,” Mercy said. “Got a pretty hard kick to it, but if you shoulder-mount the bitch, it won’t knock you down too fast.”

“Holy …” I fingered a gleaming Remington sharpshooter with a bayonette blade. “How’d you get all this?”

“From ebay.” She winked, brushed past me, and picked up
a Ruger .357 with a scope and laser sight. “I’m bringin’ this one. Y’all help yourselves to the rest.”

“Bringing?” Calvin shook himself and moved into the doorway. “Mercy, you can’t go—”

“Stop right there.” Mercy leveled him with a blazing look. “You ain’t about to tell me I’m not goin’ with you.”

He stiffened. “Actually, I am.” “The fuck I ain’t.

Bastards almost burned my place down.” She checked the clip on the gun, rammed it in her waistband. “And another thing. Those boys out there, they’re just kids. Seems to me they’re pretty unwanted kids too. Christ, their own father wants to kill ’em.” Her good eye brimmed, and a tear spilled over. “I know how that feels,” she said. “And I’m not gonna stand here wringin’ my hands by the window while they … while
you
go get yourself shot up, and maybe killed. Am I?”

Calvin managed a smile. “No,” he whispered. “I suppose you’re not.”

“Damn straight.” Mercy nodded curtly and turned to me. “You pick out whatever y’all think you need and start gettin’ those boys geared up. I’m gonna go make us some tea.” She walked out, catching Calvin’s hand to squeeze it on the way past.

I shook my head. “You officially have my sympathy, Brother Calvin.”

“Really.” He frowned. “And why is that?”

“Because I’ve got one of those at home.”

“One of what?”

“A gorgeous crazy woman who doesn’t need me to protect her and will kick my ass into next week if I try.”

His eyes widened—and then he laughed. “She would, indeed. Man of the cloth not withstanding.” He stared at his hands. “I love her,” he said. “I’ve never told her that.”

“No time like the present,” I said. “You’ll regret it if you don’t. Trust me on that one.”

He let out a long breath. “Perhaps I’ll go and help her with the tea.”

“Good idea.”

I waited until he left, and allowed myself a minute for some regrets of my own. Then I got back to work.

A
t least we didn’t have to fly.

I’d gotten everyone to agree not to waste power before the attack. It had taken only about an hour to walk. We’d come within sight of the compound, and things were as prepared as they were going to get. Ian and I appeared beaten and bound with the same blue-black pulsating rope stuff they’d used on Akila—illusions, courtesy of Billy and Mack. We were flanked by Calvin and “Vaelyn.” It hadn’t been easy for Tory to make himself look and sound like her, but he’d had Calvin for a model. He was convincing enough to make my blood run cold every time I caught a glimpse of him.

We knew what waited for us inside. Twenty elder scions, two younger ones—both female—and four human girls that Nurien referred to as breeders, the very pregnant Penny among them. And somewhere, Akila. Nurien hadn’t told Calvin or any of the scions where he was keeping the princess. And I wasn’t about to dig Vaelyn back up and ask her.

From our position, we could see the outer edge of the compound, but not the gate. Which meant any guards they’d posted couldn’t see us yet. Nothing in the range of sight
moved. That probably wasn’t a good sign. The more of them hiding, the harder it’d be to spring anything on them.

Ian drew himself straight. “Are we ready?”

“Hell no,” I said. “Let’s do this.”

Tory grabbed Ian’s arm, and Calvin gripped mine. We started for the path leading to the gate with the scions moving behind us. There were guards—two of them, both elders, stone faced and visibly armed. Beyond them, the compound looked deserted. One of them shifted his attention to us and nudged the other. Both drew weapons, but neither aimed them.

The guard on the left flashed a nasty grin as we neared the gate. “We got comp’ny,” he drawled. “Welcome back, Mister High-and-Mighty Prince.”

“Maybe we should bow or somethin’,” the other one said. His free hand moved to the gate. “You takin’ them down below, Val?”

“Of course, child.”

Vaelyn’s voice coming out of Tory made my skin crawl. But it didn’t seem to bother the guard. He unlatched something, rolled the gate back, and stood aside. When we passed through, the left-hand guard leered and snapped off a mock salute. “Enjoy the hospitality, Yer Highness.”

Ian growled. Tory gave him a rough shake and shoved him so hard he almost went sprawling. Whether it was for show or to remind him that he was supposed to be helpless, it worked.

“Father’s busy,” the other one said. “And he don’t want to be interrupted. He said to tell you if you come back, wait for him ’fore you off the prince. Guess he’s got a surprise for him.”

“Oh, we’ll certainly respect his wishes.” At least Calvin didn’t have to hide his disgust. It dripped from his words like venom. “Where is he?”

The leering guard motioned toward the cabin with the big mirror. “Think he’s in the tem—”

“Shut
up,
Johnny,” the second one snapped. His gaze had fallen on Mercy, who wore a bulky hooded sweatshirt that hid most of her face. “Who the fuck’s that? Jackson? Can’t be Luke … hey, where is the big moose, anyway?”

“Luke popped off, back at the fight.” Lynus managed to sound steady enough.

I risked a glance back. The other scions were shifting around Mercy, moving her away from the guards, farther into the compound. Everyone had cleared the gate. Almost time.

“What’s the matter with Jackson? He don’t look right.” A wary edge slipped into Johnny’s voice. “Hold up. Why’d Luke pop off if y’all won?”

The second guard raised his gun. “Val, what the hell’s goin’ on?”

We couldn’t wait any longer. I turned to face the guards and flashed a grim smile. “Looks like rain,” I said.

At the signal we’d worked out, magic and bullets went flying.

Kit and Jimmy launched jamming spells at the two guards. Lynus and Billy drew on them and fired. The second one went down immediately. Johnny took a slug in the side, staggered back, and vanished—only to reappear when Calvin cast a huge snare spell on the entire compound. Two more shots slammed Johnny against the gate and dropped him.

The snare revealed an elder crouched beside the nearest building, preparing to fire. I moved to dissolve the rope illusion and went for my Sig. Before I got it out of my jacket, Mercy had taken him out with a head shot. And she hadn’t even put her hood down.

I gaped at her. She offered a one-shouldered shrug. “Ain’t
you better go find whoever you’re lookin’ for? We got this.”

“I guess you do.”

Ian shook himself loose and headed for the building with the mirror. I started after him, and stopped when someone touched my arm.

Kit had a gun in each hand. “The temple,” he said. “I think that’s what Johnny was gonna say. Where Father is. Take the right-hand tunnel all the way down.”

“Okay. Thanks, kid.”

He shook his head. “No. Thank
you.
”

“Tell me that after we live through this.” I grinned at him. “Give ’em hell.”

“They got it comin’,” he said grimly.

The sounds of doors opening echoed across the compound. They must’ve heard the gunshots. I ran for it, and slipped into the big cabin after Ian. “Know where we’re going,” I said. “Sort of. Come on.”

I pulled the door open on the stairs leading down, and descended gun first.

Ian stopped me at the first landing, where the tunnels ran to the left and right. “What do you mean, you ‘sort of’ know where we are going?” he said.

“Kit said he thinks Nurien’s in the temple. Whatever the hell that is,” I told him. “And it’s that way.” I pointed right.

“A temple.” Ian sneered. “No doubt to honor the glory that is himself.”

“That sounds about right.” I stared down the tunnel, a rounded corridor of hard-packed earth that sloped slightly down, with just enough room for Ian to walk upright. Torches lit with cold blue flame had been mounted about every fifty feet. The glow from them didn’t reach quite far enough to
cover the entire stretch, and gaps of dark shadows bridged the lit spaces. The other direction looked exactly the same. “Is it me, or does it seem way too quiet down here?” I said.

“It does.”

“Yeah. Well, I guess that’s not going to stop us. But … hang on a second.” I knelt under the bulb that illuminated the landing, laid the Sig aside, and got one of my blades out, then sliced a palm and let it bleed on the ground. When the flow stopped, I healed the cut almost without thinking. “Okay. Let’s take a walk.”

Ian’s brow furrowed. “Why did you do that?”

“In case we need to make a quick exit. Remember how I got to you down there?”

“Ah, yes. Very well.”

I didn’t mention that I hadn’t tried to take passengers with me on a through-the-ground trip yet. Hopefully, we wouldn’t need to test it.