UNDER HIS SPELL (33 page)

Rane didn’t back down.
 
“I
went to Sabrina because I knew I could use her.
 
If that does not sit well with you, then,” he tipped two fingers to his
forehead, “my apologies.”

Falcon didn’t speak for a long moment and when he did, his voice was
low and deep.
 
“I will not allow you to
use my sister.”

“You do not have a say in this anymore.
 
I believe Sabrina has been ousted from the
Assembly.”

Skye stepped in between the two wizards before sparks could
fly.
 
“I think our focus should be on
something more important.”

The front door flew open and banged against the wall.
 
“I couldn’t agree with you more, Skye,
darling,” Sabrina purred from the doorway.

***

Falcon and Rane turned simultaneously and it was only then Skye
realized the men wore matching smiles.
 

“How nice of you to join us, Sabrina.”
 
Falcon came forward, stopping mere inches
away from his sister’s lithe form.
 
“Rane
failed to tell me how well you look.”

Sabrina eyed them both with a combination of confusion and
hostility.
 
“Are you telling me you knew
Rane came to me?”

Falcon cupped her chin in his hand for a brief moment before
releasing her.
 
“Darling, who do you
think sent him?”

Skye walked forward slowly.
 
“Let me get this straight.”
 
She
poked a finger in the center of Rane’s chest.
 
“Falcon knew all along?”

Rane held her finger to still the poke.
 
“We knew about Sabrina’s telepathic
abilities.
 
We couldn’t risk telling you
because she’d know our plan.”
 
He winked
to soften his words, but Skye wasn’t buying the token apology.
 

“I’ll deal with you later on this.
 
In the meantime, would someone care to fill me in?”

Sabrina gave her brother a cold look.
 
“Oh, do allow me.
 
I so enjoy a good drama.”
 
She sailed into the house, kicking the door
shut behind herself.
 
“Once Falcon and
Rane realized I was still alive, they decided they might just be able to use me
to their own benefit, i.e. finding Unger.
 
Knowing the little troll had once possessed my body somehow led them to
believe I would be of assistance in tracking the monster.”
 
She trailed her hand along the back of the
sofa, stopping to inspect her nails.
 
“Little did they know that once Unger left me for dead in that prison, I
lost all contact with the creature.
 
And
good riddance I say.”

“You are partially correct,” Rane inserted.
 
“We knew you would not be able to locate
Unger and you were wrong in assuming Unger had left you for dead.
 
He would have returned for you.”

Sabrina clamped her hands on her hips.
 
“So you say I say that after he took my
magic, he had no further use for me.”

“If he took your magic, how did you get here?”
 
Skye asked the next question.

For a moment, Sabrina looked baffled.
 
Then, she quickly recovered.
 
“Oh, I would imagine it’s just some residual
magic I had stored somewhere.
 
Nothing
too big.
 
Besides, every witch knows
where you live, Skye.
 
It wasn’t a huge
strain on my resources to find you.”
 
She
whipped around so fast her hair slapped Falcon across the face.
 
She didn’t apologize.
 
“So if you think Unger would have come back
for me, would you care to tell me why?”

Falcon toyed with the edge of her sleeve.
 
“Because Unger never leaves witnesses.”

“What are you saying?”
 
Skye
demanded, her nails digging into Rane’s arm.
 
“If he never leaves witnesses and he took Emily’s magic, that means
he’ll come back for her.”

For once, all humor had disappeared from Rane’s face.
 
The knowledge didn’t reassure her.
 

“Tell me I misunderstood, Rane.”

He turned her in his arms.
 
“Sweetheart, Unger is not just coming back for
Emily.
 
He wants you dead as well.”
 
He pulled in a deep breath.
 
“He wants all of us dead.
 
But we have never particularly cared what
Unger wants.”
 
He gave her a smile
,
which
was supposed to reassure her.
 
“We have
had this conversation many times.
 
I do
not think I should have to tell you yet again that I can protect you and
Emily.
 
Have I not kept you safe all this
time?”
 
He kissed the tip of her
nose.
 
“Trust me when I tell you that
neither of you will be harmed.”

“How heartwarming,” Sabrina drawled.

“Be quiet,” Falcon instructed in a cold tone of voice, which
captured Sabrina’s attention.
 
As Skye
shot a glance toward the wizard’s sister, she thought she saw a fleeting look
of regret in Sabrina’s eyes, but just as quickly as it had appeared, if indeed
it was there, it disappeared.
 
Skye shook
her head, knowing she had to be wrong.
 
Sabrina had no compassion.
 

Rane shifted and tucked Skye safely next to his side.
 
“Unger should be close now.”

Skye tipped her head back to see his face.
 
“I’m not going to wait for him to come to us,
to come after Emily.”
 
She knew she’d
irritated Rane the second the muscle jumped in his cheek.

“Skye, I will handle this.
 
Unger will not touch Emily.”

“You’re absolutely right because I intend to see to it that he never
gets within ten feet of Emily again.”
 
Skye declared before she raised her arms high in the air, turned and
disappeared.

“Dramatic little thing, isn’t she?”
 
Sabrina’s voice carried to Skye’s ears even as she tore through the air.

***

Rane cursed out loud the second Skye disappeared.
 
“She has no concept of Unger’s powers.”

“She is only trying to protect her tainted bloodline,” Sabrina
drawled.

Falcon took hold of his sister’s arm.
 
“Remain silent.
 
I shall deal with you later.
 
For now,” he placed his free hand on top of
her head and sparks rained down.

Sabrina gasped and squirmed beneath his touch and then she sagged
against him.

Rane barely spared her a glance on his way toward the stairs.
 
“Will she stay put?”

Falcon called after him.
 
“She
will once she’s in Mystique.”

Rane stopped, one hand on the banister.
 
“You are taking her back to Mystique?”

“For now.”

“You might be faced with opposition.”

“I will deal with that when it happens.
 
She will only be with me in Mystique until we
have destroyed Unger.
 
Then I will take
her to my home.”

Rane lifted one eyebrow.
 
“You
will attempt to recondition her?”

Falcon simply blinked at him.
 
“If you will bring Emily down, I shall take them both with me.
 
You will need all of your concentration to go
after Skye.”

“It would be much simpler if she would listen.”

“That is something you will have to get used to, I am afraid.
 
Women, especially those outside of our world,
do not have the same sense of male dominance we do.”

Rane snorted and took the stairs two at a time.
 
Falcon’s comment didn’t require a response
for they both knew how ludicrous it sounded, especially considering Falcon’s
own wife had him wrapped snugly around her finger.

Emily’s bedroom door was open and rather than spend precious moments
looking for her, Rane focused his thoughts on the teen and found her easily
enough in the garden.
 
“Emily, we have to
go.”

She didn’t look up, merely continued to stroke the back of a gray
and white striped tabby cat.
 
“I don’t
want to leave Buster alone again.”

“Then Buster can come, too.”

“Skye’s gone, isn’t she?”

“She just left the house, but she is safe,” Rane assured her.

“She’s going to fight Unger.”

“Not if I can help it.”

Emily’s head popped up.
 
“She
wouldn’t want you to get hurt saving her.”

“Why does everyone think I am going to get hurt?”
 
Rane muttered almost to himself.
 
“Look, I’ll take care of your sister, I
promise.
 
Now, Falcon is waiting to take
you and Sabrina back to Mystique.”

Emily launched herself to her feet.
 
“Sabrina!
 
I’m not going anywhere
with that witch!
 
She tried to kill me
and now you want me to spend quality time with her?
 
What kind of a wizard are you?”

“One who is rapidly losing his patience,” Rane gritted.
 
“Sabrina is unconscious and she will remain
that way until Falcon decides otherwise.
 
You will be safe in Mystique and it is important that Skye and I know
you are safe.”

Emily stuck her hands in the pockets of her jeans and began to
trudge slowly toward the back door.
 
“Promise me you’re going to take care of Skye.”

“Always.”

Emily bobbed her head, turned to look at him for one long moment and
then dashed inside the house.

Rane followed her, finding Falcon in the kitchen.
 
Sabrina lay sleeping on the sofa.
 
“Emily is ready to go with you.”

Falcon gave him a knowing look.
 
“I doubt she will say the same.”

Rane dismissed the former leader’s words.
 
“Nevertheless, she will go.
 
I will be back as soon as I find Skye and
take care of Unger.”

“You always were a cocky wizard,” Falcon noted with a small measure
of admiration in his voice.

Rane didn’t deny his words.
 
“If you want to keep Sabrina alive, make sure you keep her with you.”

 
          
Falcon held up one hand.
 
“I do not require your instructions, Rane.”

Rane chalked the wizard’s testiness up to the stresses of the day
and didn’t rise to the bait as he ordinarily would.
 
“Watch after Emily.”

Falcon waved a hand in dismissal and in the next instant, Rane was
alone.

***

Skye sensed the creature’s presence but she knew he wouldn’t show
himself.
 
Unger wasn’t ready to play his
hand.
 
He needed more than just Skye and
somehow she’d managed to figure that out on her way to the monster’s
hideout.
 

It was important to Unger that Skye die before Ostara, but just as
important that he eliminate Emily to lessen any chance of the same problem
occurring in thirty years.
 
And then
there were the wizards.

Skye dropped to the wet leaves and straightened.
 
She searched the darkness with eyes narrowed
to pinpoints of light.
 
Discovering her
abilities over the past few days had been both rewarding and challenging.
 
She knew she owed a debt to her people
because of her birth and though it wasn’t by choice, she’d fulfill her duties
as their champion.
 

An owl hooted overhead and the wind rustled the trees as Skye walked
through the forest.
 
She caught the
creature’s scent again and paused to listen for his tread.
 
Silence.
 
Her own steps made squishing noises on the damp ground and the deeper
she traveled into the woods, the colder was the air.
 

She wished she had Rane’s ability to procure a coat out of thin
air.
 
The instant she wished it, a warm,
downy parka settled around her shoulders.
 
She stopped walking and looked up at the sky.

“Rane?”

No answer.

He was as close to her as the creature was.
 
The knowledge gave her a measure of
comfort.
 
He’d let her do this her way .
. .for now.
 
She had no doubt he’d
intervene if things didn’t go so well.
 
Of course, she refused to dwell on the possibility that she would lose
this battle against Unger.
 
She had no
choice.
 
She had to win for her people.

For Emily.

***

Rane was half a mile away from Skye when he received the
summons.
 
He ignored it for the space of
a minute, but it came back stronger, more insistent.
 
Damn Jaxon.
 
In a second, he was standing in the middle of the Assembly Room, a scowl
on his face.
 
He directed his angry gaze
at his brother.
       

 
          
“What in the hell is so important that you would take me
away from Skye?”

Jensen placed a hand on his son’s shoulder.
 
“We needed to see you.”

Rane softened slightly at the look of concern on his father’s
face.
 
“It will be fine, Father.”

 
          
Jensen nodded abruptly.
 
“So it shall.”

“We will make sure of that,” Jaxon said as he rose to his feet and
he, Jensen, Nexon and Falcon surrounded him.
 
“We have something to give you.
 
Something
you shall need when next you meet with this Unger.”

A large explosion of light enveloped Rane united with an
all-consuming heat.
 
And then he was back
in the forest, wondering what in the hell had just happened.
 
He stopped, blinked and turned around, but he
was alone and Skye was still just up ahead.

Rane’s body tingled, but otherwise, he felt no different than before
the summons had arrived.
 
“Okay, Jaxon, I
don’t know what you did to me, but if I start squawking like a chicken in the
next few minutes, I’ll have to kill you.”
 
He heard the laughter inside his head and knew his brother was with him.

Always
.
 
Jaxon’s reply was loud and clear.

Arguing and dissension was as much a part of their lives as it was
for any other siblings, but their love for one another was undisputed.
 
Rane would sacrifice his life to save Jaxon’s
and Jaxon would do the same to save Rane’s.

You hope
, Jaxon replied almost snidely
in Rane’s ear.

Rane grinned and continued his steady pace.
 
“Say what you will, brother.
 
We have always had love.”

“
Love is what got Braeden in trouble,”
came Jaxon’s testy
response.

“Braeden got in trouble because he’s a dumb-ass.
 
Uh-oh.
 
I need to go.
 
It would appear
Skye has company.”
 
Rane broke the
communication inside his head and quickened his stride just as a sweeping flash
of fire subdued the area ahead, temporarily blinding him.

And when he’d regained his sight, Skye was gone.

***

Unger’s trump card, Skye muttered to herself as she shimmied up the
tree with her hands behind her back.
 
He’d
caught her off-guard with the amateur magic trick.
 
A miniature display of a fireball had allowed
the witches to take her without a fight and now, she stood waiting, tied to a
tree, for Unger to make his appearance.