Chapter 18
Sabina
Nell's hand trembles slightly next to mine, but she keeps her chin high, defiant, like she always does.
Voronov's men push us with more roughness than necessary toward what appears to be an empty study, with walls lined with old books and a heavy wooden table in the center. It's a shame that in a little while everything's going to be destroyed.
“Be careful, damn it!” I growl when I see one of them push Nell too hard and throw her to the floor.
He doesn't even respond, just makes a dismissive gesture and locks the door.
Nell keeps her eyes closed, and I can feel tiny air currents form around her. She's trying to access her magic, concentrating like Sylara taught her.
“We're fine, relax,” I whisper, moving closer to her ear so possible microphones won't pick up my words. “I think the easiest thing would be to launch a joint attack on the lock, air and water, it doesn't seem too sturdy. A shame we don't have a window; breaking glass would be much easier.”
“Do you really think it'll be that simple to get out of here?”
“I'm sure of it,” I respond, taking her hand in mine to caress it. “You'll see.”
Nell smiles while I brush my thumb across her knuckles, but she seems to be waiting for something.
“Aren't you going to boost my magic like Sylara did?” she asks suddenly, lowering her voice.
Shit. It's not that I was enjoying it, she was expecting a power transfer. I feel like an idiot.
“Uh, yes, yeah, of course, that was exactly what I was going to do,” I lie, trying to maintain my composure. “I just got a little distracted.”
I concentrate and channel a small fraction of my elemental energy toward her.
It's an intimate process, more than I'd like to admit.
I feel the energy flow from inside me, through our hands, into her body.
I don't know what Sylara felt when she did it, but for me it's aroused me much more than it should.
Though the sensation lasts too briefly because the door bursts open and Grigore Voronov enters with a strange smile, followed by eight of his thugs. In his right hand he holds a small object that hangs from a chain and produces a sensation like dizziness in me.
“Well, well, well. So in addition to thieves, we have magical creatures among us,” he murmurs.
I exchange a quick look with Nell, who's as confused as I am.
As if reading my thoughts, Voronov points to a medallion hanging from his neck. It shines with a faint bluish glow.
“A magic detector,” he explains with pride. “I acquired it years ago from a strange antique dealer. Cost me a fortune. It had never glowed like this until you entered my house, siren.”
I feel stupid, I feel the rage inside me, but my magic doesn't seem to respond.
“And this,” he continues, swinging in front of us the object he has in his hand, “this is much more valuable. I never thought it would work, but it does. It's incredible, I thought that crazy old man had scammed me, but it really absorbs magic.”
It's like an invisible hand is strangling me from within. I don't feel the connection with my element. A terrifying void forms where before was the comforting murmur of water. I extend my senses toward any particle of moisture in the air, but I only find silence.
It's such a violent sensation I have to grab Nell's arm to keep from falling to my knees.
Panic invades me, drowns me, I feel completely vulnerable. It's the first time in my life I don't feel magic. It's like they've ripped out a part of my soul. Like the entire ocean has disappeared, and I'm just a fish stranded on sand, drowning in air.
“They call it null stone,” he explains, arching his eyebrows with drama.
“I acquire all kinds of objects with supposed mystical origins. Most are scams, of course, but some,” he pauses to shrug while opening his hands with pride, “some really work. Who would have thought!” he adds, letting out a laugh.
Nell is clearly as confused as I am, I watch as she struggles unsuccessfully to access her magic.
Voronov gestures with his chin, and one of his thugs grabs her roughly by the arm to lift her up.
“Let go of me, asshole,” she growls, trying to break free.
“That's no way for a lady to talk,” Voronov says with irony. “Especially one who has a lot to explain. What were you looking for in my safe?”
“I have no idea what you're talking about, idiot,” Nell responds, practically spitting the words.
The guard raises his hand to slap her, but I rise and place myself in between.
“Touch her and I'll rip your head off!” I scream.
“Tie them up,” he orders one of his minions. “And search them thoroughly, even if you have to take off all their clothes, but I want to know what they've stolen.”
Two of his thugs approach us. The first tries to hold my arms, but I meet him with a direct punch to the throat. Years in the ocean depths and training with Sylara and Althea have strengthened my muscles more than my size suggests. The man falls to the floor, gasping.
Nell opts for another type of method, no less efficient, and kicks the guard walking toward her in the crotch, who falls to the floor, writhing in pain. Unfortunately, two others immediately grab her.
“Let her go right now! I swear I'll kill you!” I yell, throwing myself toward them.
But without my magic, two against one are bad odds, and they manage to subdue me too.
Just when the guard is about to tie me up with plastic zip ties while another one makes jokes about taking off our clothes, the study door explodes. Sylara and Althea appear in the doorway and don't need magic to be lethal.
With her enormous strength, the Kobold hurls one of the guards through the air with a punch, while Sylara moves so fast she seems not to have lost her magic. Using some kind of elven martial art I'd never seen before, she has no problem taking down our captors.
Seeing his men falling, Voronov backs up, holding the null stone in front of him like a shield.
“I don't need magic to break your face,” Althea growls, advancing toward him.
I take advantage of the distraction to throw myself on Voronov and rip the stone from his hands and then kick one of his guards for having pushed Nell.
“We have to get out of here, now!” Sylara yells, helping Nell to her feet. “Althea stole a catering van. The arrow is safe.”
“Go ahead,” I say. “The stone blocks our magic, but we can't leave it in his power.”
Sylara nods, and she and Althea clear the path to the exit while Nell stays by my side, refusing to leave me behind.
“Are you okay?” she asks, worried.
I simply nod, wiping the blood dripping from my right eyebrow.
As we run, I examine the stone. It looks like a simple pebble tied to a gold chain.
There are no runes, no symbols, nothing to indicate its magical nature.
It only emits a faint, constant light. I soon understand. Our magic is what feeds that light.
“Quick!” Althea yells, signaling from a white van.
We throw ourselves inside while the mansion's alarms blare at full volume, but it's too late for them.
For several minutes, no one speaks. Althea drives at full speed through back streets, making sure no one is following us.
When we're at a safe distance, I dare to shift my gaze toward Nell. Despite the torn dress, the busted lower lip and the smeared makeup, she's never seemed more beautiful to me.
“You were incredible in there,” I admit, lowering my voice and taking her hand in mine.
I stroke her knuckles with my thumb, and she smiles shyly. The contact sends an electric shock through my entire body. Normally, touching someone for this long makes me feel too solid, too trapped in this human form. I don't feel comfortable.
But with Nell... with Nell it's different. With her, I want to keep touching her.
There's so much I want to tell her. So much to confess. So many emotions I've been suppressing. I want to explain the truth to her, that I'm not like this, that I've stayed cold and distant because I thought it was best for both of us.
Because I'm a siren.
Because I manipulate people's will without meaning to.
And I couldn't bear to discover that what Nell feels for me is just an echo of my own magic and not something real.
But when she looks at me like that, with those eyes that seem to want to tear down all my defenses... I want to believe it's real.
I need to believe it's real.
“Nell, I...” I begin, but the words get stuck in my throat.
She leans slightly toward me, wrapping her right arm around my waist and resting her head on my neck. Time seems to stop when she covers it with small kisses. I tangle my fingers in her hair, and she lifts her gaze, opens her lips and leans toward me, her mouth millimeters from mine.
“What the hell...?” she protests when she sees Althea hit the brakes, making the vehicle skid and throwing us forward, though she soon stops when she realizes the reason.