The Fabled (8 page)

I held out my hand to hers. Even though she
had hugged me her clothes and mine had kept me from forming a
connection to take some of her magic. Judging by the size of the
men in this room I would need it for my upcoming fight.

She looked at my hand for a moment before
looking me in the eyes and putting her hand in mine. I smiled and
she returned it. Trust was what it came down to and by allowing me
to take some of her magic she was trusting me to only take what I
needed and not enough to harm her.

After a moment I gave her hand a squeeze
before releasing it. I didn’t take very much. Elves really only had
one ability other than being able to make potions and the such. But
those things took preparation while this ability came second nature
to them. It was the ability to pull their magic around them making
them invisible to the naked eye. Of course there were
counter-spells that would allow the spellcaster to see the Elf
through their magic but I’m guessing these wolves didn’t have those
spells and, even if they did, wolves aren’t good magic users. Their
ability lies in brute force and since I now had some magic of the
strongest wolf in this room I was hoping to end this beta before he
managed to get a hold on me. I was only five-six and a buck twenty
while the smallest wolf here looked to be six-four and a good two
hundred and fifty pounds. All one would have to do is fall on me
and he could suffocate me to death.

The alpha stepped to the center of the ring
and all the wolves quieted.

“The contest will be to the death. My
champion will be Christoph Nomak, beta of the Yukon Territory
pack.”

Victor pointed to a Were almost as big as he
was and he stepped forward. As he walked his features slowly
changed from that of a huge man to what can only be described as a
wolfman. His nose and mouth elongated until it was the shape of a
muzzle and long sharp teeth replaces normal Human ones while long
hair grew around his face and head and his ears moved up and became
pointed. His hands grew long, two inch claws that were curved on
the ends to help dig into flesh. All in all he was one scary
looking mofo but I wasn’t worried. The only thing that might really
help him is the wolf nose. Like most dogs’ it’s super sensitive so
even with the Elf magic he might be able to sense where I am. My
hope is using the reserve of Vamp magic I have stored up will help
me move fast enough to gain the upperhand.

“The challenger will be the Thief, Sunny
Dubois. The prize will be Karen Delaney, Elf of the light forest.
Do you agree to this challenge, Thief?”

I narrowed my eyes. He thought to demean me
by using that nickname. What he didn’t know is that I really didn’t
care what he called me.

“I do. I would also call for a counter.”

“A counter?” He laughed. “You mean you hope
to win?”

“Indeed I do. My counter is this, if I beat
your wolf in under a minute, you will owe me a favor.”

“What favor?”

“Whatever favor I choose. Whenever I choose
it.”

It was his turn to narrow his eyes. No one in
power liked to owe someone but it was within my right as K’s
champion to request the counter.

“I will agree as long as the request does not
cause direct harm to my pack.”

“I will not request the harm of your pack
only, perhaps, the use of your warriors and yourself one day.”

“Very well. The counter has been accepted.
You must win within a minute and this is the strongest warrior I
have.”

He glanced at his beta and the look they
shared spoke volumes. The alpha would win either way this contest
turns out. It was obvious there was no love lost between the alpha
and his beta so if I killed him, it was likely that I would be
doing the alpha a favor. Suddenly I wondered if this contest was as
much about him winning K as his getting rid of a rival for his
position. Ooh, this was a clever alpha. I wouldn’t mind helping him
out with his beta problem since I will be getting something in
return. Having a wolfpack in your back pocket wouldn’t be a bad
thing at all.

The alpha turned back to me and pointed to
the half-wolf half-man standing opposite me. “My champion has
chosen his weapon. What is yours, Thief?” He pointed to the walls
where various weapons hung. “You can chose only one so choose
wisely.”

I smiled at him. This wasn’t my first rodeo,
as the saying goes. “I choose magic.”

Had I chosen one of the weapons on the wall I
would have been prohibited from using any magic at all. Like he
said, you can only choose one weapon and magic definitely
qualified.

The alpha smiled but it didn’t reach his
eyes. “The Thief chooses magic.” He walked out of the ring to stand
just outside of it. “Let the contest begin.”

A gong rang out from somewhere and the beta
lunged forward. At the same time I used K’s magic and became
invisible while moving at Vamp speed. When I passed him I quickly
turned and kicked the back side of his knee. As he started to fall
I placed my knee in between his shoulder blades and grabbed his
head with both hands. Calling on the alpha’s magic I pulled as hard
as I could while pushing with my knee. His head came free as his
body hit the floor. I dropped the concealment and with my knee
still on his back I held out the head of my opponent and faced the
alpha. Slowly I rose, walked to him and place the head at his feet
before backing away again.

“That was but six seconds by my counting,
alpha,” I told him.

K came to stand beside me. “Really? I had ten
on my watch but then again I did have to pick my jaw up off the
floor before I could check it so six was probably right.”

You could hear a pin drop. I’m sure they were
all expecting some long, drawn out, bloody fight but I wasn’t here
to give them a show. I was here to kill a wolf and take my friend
home.

I waited for the alpha to acknowledge my
victory but he just stood there motionless.

“I will take my prize now if it suits the
alpha.”

He seemed to snap out of his daze. “Yes, you
are the clear victor here. I grant you safe passage from my
territory.”

His eyes met mine for a second before turning
away and I realized what had stunned him. It was fear. Don’t get me
wrong. He was a wolf and therefore he would show no fear in front
of his pack. To do so would be his death. But he couldn’t hide that
look in his eyes before he turned to them. He saw how quickly I had
decimated his closest rival and realized I could have done the same
to him and perhaps his entire pack. It wasn’t often that a being as
strong as an alpha of one of the largest wolf packs in the world
meets someone strong enough to wipe him off the planet in a matter
of seconds. Of course I had used my reserves of magic and didn’t
have any more tricks up my sleeves. But he didn’t know that. Best
to get out while I still can.

I nodded to the alpha but wanted him to also
acknowledge my counter. “I will leave but will call on you when
needed.”

He nodded and that was good enough for me. We
were in K’s car heading for the border (or portal in this case)
faster than you can say dead dog.

“
Love at the Star Wars convention”

“Oh my Gods, Sunny. That was the most awesome
thing I have ever seen. And I grew up watching the dark Elves cut
each other to shreds to earn the right to screw a light Elf.”

“Um, TMI. I really don’t care about Elf
mating ceremonies.”

“Are you kidding? That was just a Friday
night.”

I rolled my eyes. My cell started ringing and
I didn’t have to even look at it to know who it was.

“Hey Tristan, I’m running late this morning.
I’ll be there in about an hour.”

“This morning? You do realize it’s three in
the afternoon.”

I looked at my watch. Damn, it had taken me
longer than I thought it would to get to the cabin and take care of
that wolf. And I still have another hour back to the portal.
Actually, judging by the way K was driving we’ll probably make it
in thirty.

“I’ll be there within an hour and you can
give me a rundown of what you learned.”

“Well, it wasn’t much. Alright, I’ll see you
in an hour. Is everything alright?”

“Yep. I just had to meet with K and I lost
track of time.”

“Hi Tristan,” K screamed into the phone.

“Uh, tell her hey back. And you just had to
meet with her this morning in the middle of an investigation?”

“I’ll tell you about it later. See you in
about an hour.”

He sighed. “Fine. Bye.”

I hung up. Well, he certainly sounded
crabby.

“Our little boy’s all grown up isn’t he? Back
talking, snarky and all. Got to love kids.”

“You never liked kids and you know it.”

“I liked him. He was always telling me how
beautiful I was. That does something for a woman’s
self-esteem.”

“He was five and you were the only other
woman he knew other than his ancient looking kindergarten
teacher.”

“Thanks Sunny. You really know how to pop
someone’s bubble don’t you.”

“It’s called reality, K. I hope you enjoyed
the tour.”

She stuck her tongue out at me and I rolled
my eyes. She would never grow up. Maybe that’s why she’s never
really liked kids. Because she is one and doesn’t like to
share.

We rode at break-neck speed while I enjoyed
the scenery passing by. Finally I broke the silence.

“So you never did tell me who this guy is
you’re marrying.”

She smiled at me. “It just so happens he’s
going to meet us at the portal.”

“Really. What’s his name?”

“Marcus.”

“And where did you meet Marcus?”

She bit her lip. “Don’t laugh.”

I held up my fingers in the “scout’s honor”
pledge.

“I’m pretty sure you were never a boy scout.
But, anyway, I met him at a convention.”

“A convention. What kind of convention?”

“Um, a uh, Star Wars convention.”

I had to work hard for several minutes to
school my face into a composed oh-that’s-nice smile. “So, um,
you’re both big Star Wars fans?”

I was so proud of myself. I actually said
that without laughing. Don’t get me wrong. I’m a total Star Wars
geek myself but I’ve never picked a guy up at one of the
conventions. Actually I’ve never went to one of the conventions but
that’s just because I have no life and don’t like crowds or people
really.

“You just had to laugh at me. Well excuse me
for meeting someone with shared interests.”

“I’m not laughing. I never laughed. I have
you know I worked very hard at not laughing.”

She shot me a deadpanned look.

“That’s great K. I’m glad you met someone.
Are you sure you want to marry him though? I mean, you have never
wanted to settle down before.”

“This is different. He’s different.”

I nodded. She didn’t need my negativity.
Either it would work out or it wouldn’t.

“I want you to be my maid of honor.”

“Me?”

“You are my best friend.”

“I am?”

She rolled her eyes. “Yes Sunny.”

“But I thought you had tons of friends.”

“No. I have tons of acquaintances. I only
have a few friends and you are the one I value most.”

“Is this because you feel guilty?”

She looked at me for a moment shocked. “No
this isn’t about guilt! You think the only reason I could value our
friendship is because of guilt? Do you not want to be my maid of
honor?”

“No, yes, I…No, I don’t think you only like
me because you feel guilty and yes, I’ll be your stinking maid of
honor.”

Her smile practically split her face. “Great.
I knew you would. And look we’re here.”

There was a slick, black Lexus parked next to
my car. As we stopped the door opened and a man stepped out. He was
of average height with ginger hair and the freckles to match. We
got out of the car and K ran to him. They embraced for several
seconds while I tried to make myself invisible. Too bad I didn’t
have any more Elf magic. She finally released him and he turned to
me and smiled. That was when I realized I knew him. Or, at least, I
used to. He was the only friend of Roman’s I ever met during our
time together. Now this is just plain weird.

I looked at him then at K then back to him.
How did she not know him before now? I’m not sure how long she had
known Roman before I met him but it was apparent it had been some
time. And she had never met Marcus?

“Hello Marcus.” I held out my hand for him.
He looked at it with a smile before taking it and shaking my hand.
I only took a little of the Vamps magic. Enough to replenish what I
used fighting the wolf.

“Sunny. You look well. I see the years have
been good to you.”

“Oh, you two know each other?” K asked.

“I met him when I was with Roman.”

“Oh.”

“You didn’t know he was friends with
Roman?”

“Yeah, but I didn’t know the two of you had
met.”

“I guess it’s a small world.”

Marcus laughed. “Indeed it is.” He turned to
K. “Did you tell her about the wedding?”

She mock slapped his arm. “Yes silly. Sunny’s
going to be my maid of honor.”

He looked vaguely surprised. “Really?” He
looked at me and tried for a smile. “That’s great.”

“Yeah, but I don’t actually know when this
shindig is supposed to take place.”

“Oh, it’s two weeks from tomorrow. We’re
mailing out invitations this week. Do you think Tristan will be
able to make it?”

“I’m sure he’ll make the time. Talking about
him and time, I’ve got to go. It was good to see you again, Marcus.
K, take care of yourself and try not to get kidnapped again.” I
gave her a brief hug making sure to have skin to skin contact for a
second. You never know when invisibility will come in handy.

“Kidnapped?!” Marcus obviously didn’t know
about the predicament she had been in.