Chapter Forty-One Wilde
Present Day, For Real This Time
The Lord of Grimnight’s Evil Lair in the Primary Dimension
In Love
I clung to Treasure, allowing him to control our kiss and for a moment just enjoyed the facts of him. He was alive, he loved me, and that was everything.
“Ahem.”
The rude, phlegmy cough repeated itself two more times before Treasure finally released me to snap, “What?”
We both turned to look at the man standing behind us, and I paled as I saw his face.
The Good Wizard had returned to his former appearance—mostly.
The beard was still growing back, and I took some satisfaction in that.
He wore a bright blue, wide-sleeved robe covered in gold stars, and a matching pointy hat.
Now that he had our attention, he beamed at Treasure and said, “Congratulations on defeating a Great and Terrible Evil!”
Trey stared at him in disbelief.
Even though the Good Wizard didn’t receive the response he expected, he forged bravely ahead.
“Your quest is officially complete. The Kingdom Defense Spell protecting the Desolated Lands is renewed for another generation.” He waited a beat, then leaned forward and said, “You should all be proud of this accomplishment. Now, onto more important matters.”
He turned narrow eyes on me. “Wilde, Supposed Lord of Grimnight, Great and Terrible Evil, you are under arrest for violating regulations agreed upon by the Good Wizard’s Council and the Council of Evil—”
“No, the fuck he’s not.” Trey stepped between me and the Good Wizard. “I defeated him, you said so yourself. It’s done.”
“Yes,” the Good Wizard said, contorting his face into a benevolent expression tainted with condescension. “He’s defeated for now. I need to take him into custody to prevent him from causing any other chaos.”
“You’re not taking him anywhere.”
I couldn’t escape the Good Wizard. Even if I took the ring off, I didn’t have the strength to teleport again, and he’d just follow me anyway. “Trey,” I murmured. “It’s alright.”
“Shut up, Wilde.”
Perhaps I should have been insulted, but I only laughed and leaned against him for support.
The Good Wizard’s patience thinned as he tried to reason with Trey. “Evil thrives like weeds in the soil. It will return if you don’t uproot it properly. I’m the gardener, allow me to do my job.”
“What is he being charged with?” a new voice asked. Fitz stepped out of the crowd, a book already open in his hands.
The Good Wizard sighed. “Creating an unregulated pocket dimension. Kidnapping citizens to populate it. Time manipulation—”
“Time manipulation is allowed in extenuating circumstances,” Fitz interrupted, “including an un-fated death or to save one’s true love.
” He glanced down at me, and I knew he remembered everything—falling in love with me, and that I hadn’t loved him back.
He smiled softly and adjusted his glasses, using the motion to hide his own sorrow.
“That is a one-time exception!” the Good Wizard shouted, holding up a single finger for emphasis. “You may manipulate the timeline once, not ten times! And it is only allowed with the proper permits! We can’t have people altering timelines on a whim!”
“Those are the rules of the Good Wizard’s Council,” another voice said.
“Cyril!” Kit cried happily, and then more excitedly, “Franny!”
The argument temporarily halted as Kit ran to their wife, picking her up and swinging her around in their arms.
Cyril cleared his throat and continued, “The Council of Evil allows time manipulation in the use of evil plots. Since you’ve declared that the royal champions have thwarted the Lord of Grimnight’s evil plot, you are acknowledging that he was operating under evil mage rules, not good wizard rules.
” His lips spread in a slow, evil smile as he purred, “Unless you’re breaking the treaty between the two councils? ”
“I—no, of course I wouldn’t—” the Good Wizard sputtered. Finally, he landed on another argument, “But your own council agreed that his actions generated too much chaos, enough that even you couldn’t control it—”
“Oh please,” Cyril scoffed. “We both know he used every last scrap of chaos to support his dimension. Otherwise, the man would have killed himself from exhaustion long before now.”
I stared at Cyril in confusion. Was that what I’d done? Maintaining the dimension had been pushed to the back of my mind, something I rarely thought about while I pursued Treasure.
The Good Wizard searched frantically through the crowd, then pointed at someone. “You there, lad! Step forward!”
Looking confused and uncertain, Maximus stepped out of the crowd.
“You are a symbol of good!” the Good Wizard exclaimed. “Someone with a strong sense of justice! As one of the royal champions, you must understand the importance of remanding the evil mage to Good Wizard custody.”
I squeezed my eyes shut. Of course Maximus would agree. He’d wanted me dead, but imprisoned would be a good consolation prize.
“Am I?” The question was soft and so confused I felt it too.
I slowly opened my eyes and peered curiously at Maximus.
“I don’t … feel good anymore,” Maximus said quietly, looking down at his hands. “I ignored my friends, even when they were hurt, too obsessed with trying to—” his eyes skated to me and his voice cracked on the next word “—kill someone.”
“No!” the Good Wizard exclaimed. “You were fighting evil! Everything you did was in the name of good!”
“Fuck your definition of good,” Treasure snarled.
“Trey,” Brendon scolded, but his own husband argued with him.
“No, he’s right,” Rick said, glaring at the Good Wizard. “You once told me I was perilously close to walking a path of evil, but you are the one who put me on that path! You and your stupid fucking spell!”
“You were always supposed to marry him!” the Good Wizard shouted.
“But I didn’t know that! And you blamed me for my choices anyway! So fuck you—”
Brendon grabbed Rick around the waist, physically holding his husband back as he tried to lunge at the Good Wizard. “My love, calm down. Everything turned out fine then, and it’ll turn out fine now.”
“Thank you, Prince Brendon,” the Good Wizard sighed.
“Because the Good Wizard won’t take Wilde away,” Brendon finished, his tone matter of fact.
The Good Wizard sputtered indignantly. “You—” The protest died on his lips.
During the argument, the minions had circled around us, closing the Good Wizard in on all sides. Fyodor stepped between Trey and I, smacking his club against one hand. Angelica stood with him, golden curls wild around her shoulders and a rapier gleaming at her side.
“You’ve overstayed your welcome, wizard,” Fyodor growled.
The Good Wizard’s eyes shifted frantically from face to threatening face. “You—I—be reasonable!”
“Oh, I think everyone is being quite reasonable,” Lucinda said sweetly. She leaned her head against her husband’s shoulder and offered the Good Wizard a toothy smile. “If it were up to me, your bones would already be soup.”
The Good Wizard paled. “Perhaps I will turn this matter over to the Council of Evil. He is one of yours, after all. You should be the ones to deal with him.”
Cyril’s smile matched the menace in his wife’s. “I think that’s for the best.”
The Good Wizard disappeared in a puff of purple smoke.
Trey crouched in front of me and cupped my face again. “Hey,” he whispered, “we won.”
I wished I could feel as confident as him, but I didn’t trust the Good Wizard to leave us alone. “What if the council decides none of this should have happened? What if he resets time?”
“Then I guess it’s a good thing I’ve got this,” Trey said, holding up his left hand. On his ring finger was a black, crystal ring, an exact copy of mine. “No more time manipulation for us.”
I curled my fingers in his shirt, pulling him closer so I could whisper against his lips, “Then we’ll make the time we have together count.”