Ink Magic (Ink Sorceress Chronicles) (9 page)

I sharp pain in my thigh pulled me back to consciousness. I felt another tight squeeze and nearly passed out again.

“
What are you doing?” I asked weakly.

“
I’m applying a tourniquet to stop the blood flow.”

Oh. Good idea, I agreed mentally. My thoughts swirled and then I was out again.

Voices shouting reached out and pulled me back from unconsciousness.

I was alone in the back seat. Beyond I heard loud male voices arguing.

I tried to sit up and nearly passed out again. Gathering my strength, I forced myself to lay still. Then slowly, I lifted first my head, then my upper body, resting on my elbows as the voices outside got louder.

It seemed to take an age to get my clothing back in the right order, and at the end of it I was ready to sleep for about a year. But I somehow managed to get myself upright before swinging my legs around and getting out of the car. I swayed, toppling to the side before righting myself.

“
Go on then, kill me! If you have the guts,” I heard Nick say.

I staggered toward the sound of his voice. They were in the clearing by the roadside where the Ink Sorcerer attacked me. Daniel held his sword to Nick’s throat. Nick leaned into the blade, daring him to go through with it.

“
I told you to stay away from Lucy.”

“
Why should I? She’s a free agent as far as I know. Or are the two of you an item?”

I couldn’t help holding my breath. This was it. Daniel’s chance to say he actually had feelings for me.

But the words didn’t come.

“
I didn’t think so.”

“
You don’t want her either. You’re only interested in the chase. Once you’ve got what you wanted, you’ll leave her. You enjoy leading girls along.”

The words stung. I hated hearing Daniel basically admit he didn’t want me.

“
I’ve never had any complaints before.”

Daniel grinned, poking Nick in the neck with his sword. “I know someone who would disagree. A friend of mine.”

“
That little brunette you’ve been hanging around with. I thought she was familiar.”

“
She’s another girl you tricked into sleeping with you because you claimed to love her.”

“
Taking my leftovers doesn’t make you a better man. If I broke her heart what does catching her on the rebound make you? I’d say you’re taking advantage.”

Daniel laughed. I’d never heard laughter sound so devoid of humor. “I know this is a concept that’s beyond your comprehension, but Michelle is a friend. I’m consoling her for that reason alone, not because I have so ulterior romantic motive. She’s so broken-hearted she’s been talking about suicide. I won’t let you do that to Lucy.”

I wasn’t about to let that happen to me either. Nick sounded like a rat and, considering I didn’t plan on sleeping with him any time this century, I doubted he’d continue to want me anyway.

“
Daniel,” I said, weakly, hobbling toward them. I thought I spotted movement in the bushes behind him.

The movement came from the place where the Ink Sorcerer had been.

Suddenly Daniel’s sword disappeared. He stared at his empty hand.

“
Daniel! Look out!” I shouted.

I screamed. Daniel looked down at his stomach. In the dim street light I saw blood blossom from a wound in his stomach. A red line sliced down and across. The Ink Sorcerer had taken Daniel’s sword and stabbed him with it.

“
Daniel!” I hopped toward him, reaching his side as he fell.

Nick looked around for the source of Daniel’s wounds. “Screw this,” he said and took off toward his car. Moments later he peeled off down the road.

“
Daniel,” I said, holding his head in my hands.

Finally my tattoo sparked to life, shooting down my arm, reaching out for his skin.

His eyes widened in fear. “No, don’t”

“
I can heal you, Daniel. I won’t hurt you.”

He shook his head vigorously. “No, please. I don’t want you too.” He stared at my tattoo snaking up his arm.

He pushed me away from him.

“
I can’t let you die!” If only he weren’t so stubborn.

“
It’s too late.” He fell back on the ground and didn’t move again.

I couldn’t believe he would rather die than let me heal him. I wouldn’t let him die. Whether he wanted me to or not, I’d heal him. I knew what it would mean. He’d never talk to me again. But at least he’d be alive.

My tattoo snaked down my leg. I willed it toward my wound and instantly felt the skin begin to close.

My cell phone rang and I ignored it.

“
Why don’t you answer your phone?” Markus Bint’s voice sounded behind me.

I spun to face him. Smiling as power surged through me. Fangs erupted from my gums, the sharp pain felt wonderful.

My vampire powers gave me an edge. I couldn’t see him, but I could smell him. The urge to drain his blood nearly overwhelmed me. But first I had to heal Daniel. I turned back to face him and discovered he was gone. The Ink Sorcerer must have dragged him away somewhere.

My phone started to ring again.

“
You probably want to take this call. Mother dearest has a message for you,” the Ink Sorcerer’s words send a sliver of fear through me.

“
What have you done to her?”

“
I haven’t done anything. I promise
I
won’t touch her.” Implying someone else would.

“
Mom?”

“
Lucy?” She sounded confused.

“
Are you alright, mom?”

“
I...I don’t know…I…did you call me, Lucy?” She sounded scared.

“
No, mom. You called me.”

“
Did I?” Now she started to cry. “I don’t…I don’t remember.” She must be thinking she was losing her mind.

The Ink Sorcerer whispered in my ear. “I can make her do whatever I want.”

My fist tightened around the phone. “Mom, I love you. I’ll be home as soon as I can.”

“
Okay, Lucy. Please hurry.” She sounded like a frightened child. “He was here. I thought he died. But he came back to me.”

I knew who he was then. I heard the familiarity in her voice, a touch of nostalgia that confirmed my suspicions. “Who came back, Mom? What’s his name.”

“
Your father” she said vaguely.

“
Who is my father, Mom?”

She paused so long I began to wonder if she was still even there.

“
Who, Mom?”

“
Your father. Markus Bint is your father.”

I’d known as soon as I saw him. I recognized his eyes, so dark they were nearly black and the rounded face with dimpled cheeks. Like staring at an older, male version of myself, I knew family when I saw it.

“
I’m sorry I never told you about him, Lucy. He was a bad man. He killed people. I thought it better if you didn’t know. The police they shot him. He died. I went to his funeral. To make sure it was done.”

“
But he lived,” I finished for her.

“
I did, thanks to a few weak-minded Ink Mages with necromancy powers, I came back to life,” Markus said. He grabbed the phone out of my hand and closed it, cutting my mother off.

I didn’t have time to think about the fact that not only did I have Ink Sorcerer powers but I was also the daughter of a murderer. I had to think about mom. He had gotten to her. Using his tattoo, he had magically hypnotized her. He could make her walk out in front of a car. He could make do anything.

“
Dad?”

He stiffened and for a moment I thought I saw a hint of emotion in his eyes but he didn’t answer.

“
Are you my father?” My mother thought so, and I had no reason to disbelieve her. But I really wanted to know if Markus knew.

“
Yes.”

“
Why didn’t you tell me?” I said. Why didn’t you let me know you were alive years ago, I wanted to say.

“
It’s not important.”

My heart sank. I don’t know what I expected. He was a heartless killer, so I didn’t exactly envisage a heartening family reunion. But to be told to my face that I didn’t matter to my own father hurt more than I cared to admit.

“
Is that all you have to say to me after all these years?” Against my wishes tears filled my eyes. I bit my lip to keep them from flowing.

Again he didn’t respond. I realized then I’d never get what I wanted. I’d never get an apology from my absent father. Still I couldn’t stop myself from asking one more thing.

“
Did you love her?”

His expression had been blank until then, but my question appeared to faze him. “Pardon?”

“
Did you love her?”

“
Did I love who?”

“
My mother.”

He winced as if I’d sucker punched him. Screwed up in deep contemplation, his face looked weary and sad.

“
Some things are more important things than love.”

So he cared for my mother. He was actually capable of feeling something for another human being. That made his rejection of me worse somehow.

“
I’ll say,” I blurted. “Like trying to kill your own daughter.”

“
That was for your own good.”

“
Sending me to my room for stealing candy is for my own good,” I said. “Forcing someone to drive me into a wall? Not so much.”

“
You survived,” he said, as if attempted murder was perfectly reasonable parental behavior.

“
Only because my friend saved me.” Then it occurred to me. It wasn’t the first time he tried to kill me. “You sent the werewolves to attack me too.”

“
They were supposed to capture you.”

“
Werewolves don’t always do as they are told,” I said, and I knew from experience. “They wanted to eat me.”

“
Werewolves are easy to control, it was easy for me to hypnotize them and it would have been easy for you to defend yourself. You would have made it,” he said, his lips set as if he truly believed I was never in any danger.

“
Well thanks, dad. Your really know how to make a girl feel loved. But I would’ve settled for a birthday card every now and then.” Most girls get computer games or clothes from their fathers. Me? I get head on collisions.

“
I gifted you something far more valuable than presents or cards.”

“
Yeah, you gave me the gift of life. I know, thanks. Without you I would never have been born. It didn’t require much effort on your part though. Did it?”

“
I gave the power,” he said. “I made you an Ink Sorcerer.”

“
You?”

“
Yes, I gave you your first tattoo. When you were just a baby.”

A tiny mark, no bigger than the size of a mole, the tattoo on my arm that I thought I was born with…came from him.

“
That’s right,” he said seeming to see understanding dawn on my face. “I made you what you are. Only an Ink Mage can create another. But I’m not just an Ink Mage. I’m much more than that.”

“
Yes you’re a psycho.”

“
I’m an Ink Sorcerer. Possibly the only one in existence and I choose to give you the same gift.”

“
Gee thanks, you shouldn’t have.” Literally.

“
That wasn’t my only gift,” he carried on, seemingly unaware of my sarcasm. “I gave you the gift of freedom. I made sure you grew up free from Guardian control.”

Understanding struck me like a blow to the head. That was why I had no guardian. “You killed my guardian!”

He smiled. “In a manner of speaking. I am your guardian. It was my job to train you, to take you through the rituals that would unleash your power.”

I shouldn’t be surprised. It was just another way in which he’d shirked his duties to me.

“
So I have you to thank for not being able to control my powers?”

“
I tried to help you, to bring your powers to the surface.”

“
Oh, yeah. The car crash thing.”

“
Ink Mages think our powers must be restrained. That they are dangerous. That is why they created Guardians. But instead of allowing powers to flourish, the Ink Mage Council try to quash each new generation.”

“
I can’t control my powers, they don’t even work when I want them to. How is that helpful?”

“
I will help you. If you join me. I will teach you, but without the guardian ritual that would stunt your powers. The guarding ritual is a magical warding, it would stunt your tattoo and stop you casting magic.”

“
Without the ritual, what will happen to my power?”

“
No one knows. That’s the thing. But I think your powers will be unlimited.” He smiled at me. Actually smiled as if what he told me made up for being a neglectful parent.

“
Well, I won’t join you.” I’d go to Daniel’s Guardian and ask her to do the guardian ritual.

“
Then your mother will die,” he said plainly.

Now it was my turn to smile. “But you love her.”

“
Yes.” He stared at me, the blank expression back in place and I knew he’d called my bluff.
Some things are more important than love.