25. Chapter 25
Chapter twenty-five
SAGE
“Are you… okay?” Maddox finally spit out as he took in my appearance with concern.
“Where are your glasses?” Colt asked, seemingly just as disturbed by the change.
Was it really that big of a deal? But even as I frowned back at them, I knew the issue wasn’t necessarily that I was in different clothes so much as it was that I looked like hell. But things like eating and sleeping just weren’t at the top of my priorities at the moment.
I rubbed at my dry eyes. “Couldn’t tell you. I have some things I’d like you to take a look at, if you don’t mind?”
“Don’t you have backup glasses?”
Were we still on that? “I have backup contacts. Do you have a minute?” I asked again, waving the folder in my hand.
The two of them hadn’t been home when I arrived, so I’d waited on the front steps of Colt’s house until they got back. I’d been there enough times that the pack wards allowed me in without issue, but you’d never know it from the way they looked at me like an alien body snatcher who’d come to replace the real Sage.
I shot Colt a look. Even if I didn’t look like myself at the moment, there was no fooling a wolf’s nose.
He shot me an apologetic smile and moved his bags to one hand to open the door. “Of course, come in.”
“Sorry for intruding, I tried to catch Maddox at the tavern, but you haven’t been there in a couple of days.”
“There’s been a lot of pack stuff going on this week,” Colt explained. “We were on a fishing trip the past couple of days and we’ve got a bonfire tonight.”
“I’ll make this quick then,” I said following them into the kitchen where they dropped the bags on the counter.
I opened the folder and spread out the pictures and information inside. Maddox’s usual scowl deepened severely and even Colt’s lips twitched downward at the image. They were clearly disturbed by what I’d brought them and their reaction made my heart race.
“I knew it!”
“You found the mage working with the hunters?” Colt asked, pulling one of the papers toward him. “Wait, this can’t be right.”
Mad huffed as he read over Colt’s shoulder. “No way that guy was a witch. He was way stronger than any witch would ever be.” The half-mage grunted when Colt elbowed him and his gray eyes shot to mine with a wince. “No offense. I just meant that he was definitely drawing power from himself. I really don’t think he could have been a witch.”
“You’re right and wrong,” I answered, rubbing at my eyes again. Thanks to the lack of sleep, they were too irritated to be wearing contacts right now, but it wasn’t like I had much choice at this point. “Technically anyone can be a witch. Join a coven, practice the rituals, honor the goddess and the earth, and you’re a practicing witch. That said, if the coven knows you to be something other than a witch, for example if a sorcerer tried to join a coven, the witches would obviously be suspicious of their motives and turn them away. I’ve heard of smaller shifters like cats or ravens being allowed in covens at times, or in especially rare cases fae, though those are usually through some kind of contract and not necessarily beneficial to the witches in the end. The point is, as long as the witches don’t find someone especially suspicious or harmful to their group, they could manage to blend in with the newer bloodlines who don’t have much ability.”
The two of them were reading through my research and their faces grew grimmer with each page.
“This is what he calls himself?” Maddox muttered. “I’ve never even heard of an archmage.”
“Because it’s not really a thing,” I said. “We know that he’s half witch and from a weaker bloodline. That means he’s only half mage at most. His natural ability would probably be comparable to yours, which wouldn’t be a huge concern on its own. No offense.”
Mad shot me an annoyed look. “I do just fine, thanks.”
He did. There was no denying that he kept non-humans of all kinds, even those with far more power, in check.
“You’re also built unlike any magic user I’ve seen and look at people like you’ll crush then to dust if they sneeze wrong in your presence. Plus, you use your magic efficiently and you have the backing of the entire wolf pack these days. No one would mess with you. But a half-mage growing up in a low level witch coven, one who was told he wasn’t good enough to even be in the presence of the girl he liked? Would he just accept it and settle for what his natural ability allowed?”
“Hence the use of dark magic,” Colt concluded.
“So why pretend to be a witch?” Mad asked. “Why bother with the covens at all? Even being a half mage, his power would have been stronger than most witches. Wouldn’t it have been just as much of a risk to show up using dark magic as it would admitting he was a mage?”
My grandmother came to mind and I shook my head. “No. Any magic that uses blood or animal parts technically borders dark magic and witches have always used those methods. Mages might use blood on occasion, but rarely more than that because they can just draw from their own power. But there are plenty of covens that have spells of a darker nature passed down through generations and are willing to use them if they feel it’s being used for the right reasons.
“Magic has natural laws that requires an equal exchange. Mages and Sorcerers are less affected by it in everyday magic because they simply pull magic from themselves and as long as they replenish their energy before using magic again, that equal exchange mostly goes unnoticed. Weaker mages and witches, however, don’t have enough magic to pull from regularly so we have to offer something to power the spell. There are plenty of covens who are content to stick to crystals and herbs and locations with residual spiritual energy, but there are also plenty who already walk that line in order to use spells they feel will protect or benefit their coven.”
“So you’re saying plenty of witches already dabbled in dark magic and as long as the pay off was worth it, they would have been easy to convince?”
“More or less,” I agreed. “If he sold them on a plan with a tempting enough benefit, there would’ve been plenty of witches willing to dip their toes in for a touch more power.”
“It’s hard to believe all this happened without us knowing about it,” Colt added. “The wolf pack was already established in Eastbend at the time, but I didn’t know anything about this fight between the covens.”
“It was before Royce took over the tavern,” I pointed out. “Which means the communities in Eastbend didn’t have the central place to gather and overhear gossip and rumors. If the communities mostly kept to their own, it’s not like the witches would want to advertise that their group had taken such a blow. The others probably knew that something happened to reduce the number of covens in Eastbend, but not necessarily what it was.”
“That’s true. I’ll check with Levana, maybe she knows something.”
“Let me know what you find out,” I agreed, shuffling papers back into the folder. “I’ll let you get back to your pack.”
“You’re welcome to stay for the bonfire,” Colt offered.
“Thanks, but I have too much to do right now. I only stopped by to confirm my suspicion. The idea that more than one dark magic user was hiding in Eastbend seemed too coincidental. Despite the fact that it’s not uncommon to walk the line between magic and dark magic, those willing to actually dive into the deep end are few. Those able to reanimate the dead, even fewer. It’s public knowledge that the council exterminated anyone that managed to gain significant power through the use of dark magic and that’s enough to keep most people away from it.”
“But not this guy apparently,” Mad said.
“He seems to think the council would rather use his power than condemn him and I’d really rather not find out if he’s right. On that note, I’ll let you know what I find out.”
Mad narrowed his eyes at me. “Where are you going? You shouldn’t be wandering around alone right now.”
“Now that we’ve chased him out of his house, I’ve gotta track him down again. Don’t worry, I’ll report back before doing anything reckless.”
“Tracking him down on your own is reckless!” Mad growled. “At least wait until Luca can go with you.”
I waved over my shoulder as I slipped out the door. “Sure thing.”
They easily caught the lie and were at the door as I pulled out of the driveway, but what were they going to do? Even if they chased me down, it wasn’t like they could keep me there forever. I had work to do and something told me we were running out of time.
“Are you really this stupid?”
The words were hissed through my own lips and in my shock, I lost my grip on the building I’d been climbing and fell, taking several layers of skin off my arm on the way down. The dumpster I’d used to climb up was just below me and all I could do was protect my head from the inevitable crash.
When the expected impact never came, I opened my eyes just in time to find myself safely tucked in the shadows on the ground.
We’d been tracking the movements of the hunters for quite a while and this building had been one of the suspicious locations, but it was clearly not a gathering place. None of the lower level hunters seemed to know anything about it. Only the ones in charge in Eastbend ever showed up and even then it wasn’t often.
The focus on our last mission had been to reduce their power by scooping up as many of the low-level and non-public hunters as we could. The mission was technically successful, but I couldn’t help but think we’d done little to put a dent in their plans. Everything they’d done was to gather all the power in their hands. The authorities, the government, even going so far as stealing non-human powers for themselves. As unsuccessful as that plan was, it was still an attempt to gather power.
And while we hadn’t gotten an accurate head count of those they’d captured at that facility, the numbers didn’t seem right. The rumors of missing non-humans hadn’t stopped, and the spell Holt and Mars released told us why. They weren’t just trying to steal power, the hunters were supplying Mars with shifters and mystics to power his spells.
Dark magic users in the past were quickly hunted down and dealt with because their tendency to escalate to sacrificing humans for their spells was a huge exposure threat. Mars seemed confident that the council wouldn’t see him the same way. Was it because he didn’t harm humans?
There was no doubt that powering a spell using shifters or other non-humans would yield more powerful results, but it was something few dared to do. Mars, it seemed, truly didn’t fear any of us. He wasn’t the least bit concerned about retaliation, the only thing he was concerned with were his plans and his quest for more and more power. A mission that reminded me a little too much of another group causing us trouble.
Which begged the question, why would Mars help another organization just as intent on gaining power as he was? Even if they were supplying him with non-humans, even if they succeeded in eliminating every other non-human in Eastbend, wouldn’t that only leave a power struggle between the hunters and Mars? Unless the hunters weren’t just paying Mars for their spells.
The whole thing made a lot more sense when I considered the possibility that the hunters were working for Mars. Without his help, without his magic, what chance did they truly stand against an entire community of non-humans? How successful could their plans have been without those concealment spells he’d no doubt provided. Not to mention the magic dampening spell at the facility and the considerably powerful wards. And in exchange for his help, surely they couldn’t touch him.
The hunters could have control over the police and the government, what would he care when they couldn’t lay a finger on him? Hell, what would keep him from using them to his advantage? Surely the hunters would be happy to lock up any non-human he tossed their way. And Mars would be left to take over everything else in Eastbend. Anyone he allowed to stay would be forced to kneel at his feet.
He would be left to rule the non-human community just like he’d said. Only the council would be able to do something about it if things went that far, and Mars’s confidence gave me doubts. It was like he knew something I didn’t. I hated that feeling. But it wasn’t like I could interrogate the council.
August seemed eager to deal with the hunters in Eastbend, but he’d barely addressed the dark mage. He had threatened me about the use of dark magic, but if the council aligned with power, it was pretty obvious why I wouldn’t be of interest to them.
There wasn’t enough to go on. In the end, we couldn’t trust the council to handle Mars, even if he was the one pulling the strings with the hunters. And that was still a big if. I needed to know for sure. Which was what brought me to this building in the first place.
I looked up at the third-floor window in frustration and pressed the hem of my shirt to my now bleeding arm. “Was that really the time for you to let me know you can communicate with me?”
“Do you realize who is in there?”
“That’s why I’m trying to get in!”
Weeks of stalking had finally paid off and Graves had made his way back to this building. Only this time, the thick, tainted feeling of magic lingered outside, telling me someone had recently cast a spell and there was a good chance Mars was in there too. I’d never gotten the chance to find out exactly what was here, and it was time to fix that, but it seemed not all parties were in agreement.
“It’s been more than twenty years and now you decide to talk to me? You couldn’t have said something all those times I thought I was losing my mind?”
“You’ve barely slept in two days and are now hiding behind a dumpster and talking to yourself. Does this conversation really make you feel better?”
I had no argument for that, it certainly wasn’t my finest moment.
“I’m going in there. Either help or stay quiet.”
“There will be wards, you can’t just walk right in.”
“I wasn’t going to invite myself in for drinks, I have a spell for listening past wards. I just need to get inside the building, it won’t work from down here.”
“It won’t work regardless. Mars isn’t stupid and underestimating him is dangerous.”
“It will if you help me. If we were able to walk right up to his house, we can definitely do it here.”
“You’re asking me to help with such a stupid and reckless plan? I refuse. Walk away before it’s too late.”
It wasn’t that I expected his help, but his response pissed me off and I snapped back without thinking. “No fucking way. This is my body. You might be hitching a ride, but you don’t get a say in what I do. If you won’t help then just shut up.”
The demon had nothing to say to that, but I didn’t feel good about the win.
With no time to waste, I pulled myself up onto the dumpster once more and returned to my new career of breaking and entering. Good thing Luca wasn’t there to see me.
Of course no one on the first floor left their windows open, so I had to climb back up to the third floor window I’d fallen from. The only good thing was that while I was sure there were wards on whatever room they’d gone into, they weren’t on the building itself. Which meant I popped out the screen and heaved myself inside without having to blow anything up.
The hair stood on the back of my neck when I was halfway to the door and before I could react, a man was standing in front of me, blinking in confusion.
“Who are you?” he asked.
“You must be Mr. Nelson,” I said with a smile, tucking my bloody arm behind me. “I’ve been waiting for you.”
The man in the suit frowned. “I’m afraid you have the wrong office. I’m not familiar with a Mr. Nelson, are you sure you have the right name?”
“Oh, I’m so sorry! Maybe I was supposed to be on the second floor. Sorry for bothering you, I’m sure I’ll find the right place!” I slipped out into the hall and darted for the stairs.
The fake smile fell from my face as I hurried through the halls. “You could’ve helped with that.”
“Why should I? If you’re in such a hurry to get yourself killed, I won’t stand in your way.”
“We need this information. I finally found who’s in charge of the hunters and it never occurred to me that the entire group is nothing but a bunch of pawns. If someone else is moving all the pieces on the board, then I need proof.”
“And what do you hope to accomplish by confronting the witch? He nearly killed you once, why do you insist on giving him more chances to finish the job?”
I was silent as I shuffled up the stairs. There was no way to know where in the building they were, but something told me to go up, not stopping until I reached the top floor. I didn’t answer until I slipped out of the stairwell on the fifth floor.
“I don’t need to confront him, I just need to see which one of them is giving the orders.”
“This won’t tell you if he’s the one pulling the strings. It’ll only tell you whether he’s higher in the hierarchy than Graves. So again, why are you here?”
“Because whatever they’re talking about could be important. And if Graves is the one giving the orders, then I’ll know I’m wrong about this.”
“You mean you’re hoping you’re wrong about this. And you don’t seem to realize that you’re dangling the one thing he’s been after for decades in front of him every time you pull something like this.”
I stopped in my tracks. “What are you talking about?”
“Are you really going to pretend you don’t know why he was so interested in your family? Why he tried so hard to pull Rosemary under his control? I thought you were supposed to be smart.”
“He’s after you ?”
“How many witches can say they’ve bound a demon? I’ve been around them a lot longer than you, and as far as I know, the answer is one.”
“Two.”
“You don’t count, but Mars doesn’t seem to understand that.”
I came to a stop in front of a door. The hair raised along my arm as the static feeling of magic brushed over me.
“Don’t just stand here, the room to the right has no one inside,” the demon, Keir according to Luca, whispered so softly I wouldn’t have understood if I didn’t feel my own lips moving around the words.
I picked the lock on the door to the right and let myself in. The room was empty, just as Keir had said and I crouched down against the wall to run my spell.
“Why don’t I count?” I finally asked. “You’re bound to me, aren’t you? Or can you leave at any time?”
There was a long silence. “I can’t. But you weren’t the one who bound me. You were a small child on the brink of death. You couldn’t even open your eyes, let alone find the strength to bring me under your control.”
“The answer is still two,” I said. “It was my mother who bound you to me.”
“Technically.”
Maybe it was because we shared a body, but something about his response rang false.
Blood pooled in my hands as the image of Graves, Mars, and another man I didn’t recognize appeared. For the moment they were discussing the campaigns, and the recent issues with the police. Mars looked entirely uninterested, but Graves continued to update the other two men.
“Tell me what really happened.”
“Hazel already told you.”
“Tell me the truth. How have you remained bound to me all this time if I’m not strong enough to control you?”
The silence stretched and I realized he had no intention of answering my questions.
“Keir, please. I didn’t have a choice in what happened to us that day, I at least deserve to know what was done to me.”
“What happened to you was something that should never have been attempted. You were in death’s grip, there was no doctor or healer who could have saved you in time. Your fate was sealed. But Rosemary always was one to challenge the gods themselves.”
“My grandmother wasn’t the one who bound you to me, so what does she have to do with it?”
“Don’t you want to know how a witch managed to bind a demon in the first place? Do you know how many cautionary tales there are of sorcerers who lost control of their demons only to be killed by their own pets? If there are even sorcerers out there who aren’t strong enough, how did one witch manage it? Do you see why Mars was so interested now? One misstep in trying to recreate her success and he would be dead.”
“Okay, so what was the secret?”
“There isn’t one. Witches can’t bind demons, their magic isn’t strong enough.”
I sighed heavily. “And yet here you are. If you’re only going to talk in circles, I have more important work to do.”
“You don’t remember that night for good reason. You were unconscious for most of it, but had you been awake it would have been a nightmare you’d never forget. Hazel left it all behind and kept you as far from witchcraft as she could because that nightmare still haunts her to this day.”
“What are you talking about?”
“The spell that binds me to you is very different from the one that tied me to Rosemary. The spell she found was forbidden magic, it is not a natural binding in any way. Tell me, witch, what is the first step to binding a demon?”
“Getting a demon name?”
“Assuming you had a name and the required spell components.”
“I guess… summoning the demon into a circle so you can bind it to a contract.”
“Do you know how many demons die in those summoning circles, refusing to kneel to a sorcerer? But even if they refuse the binding contract, there isn’t truly a choice. No sorcerer would ever banish them back to the demon world out of the goodness of their heart, and unless the sorcerer is weak or incompetent, there's no breaking the circle from the inside. The spell has to be unbreakable because if a demon’s only options are to live the rest of its days in a stand off in an inescapable circle or hope the sorcerer will slip up and give them a chance for revenge, they’re more likely to choose the latter.”
“So you’re saying you chose the chance to kill my grandmother over death?”
“That’s not what I’m saying at all!” Keir snarled.
I wished I had a free hand to rub my temples to relieve the headache I could feel coming on, but they were filled with blood at the moment.
“Then get to the point!”
“The spell that saved your life was not normal. It was a risky move binding my life to yours while we were both on the brink of death, but that was never going to be enough. The moment you started drawing from my life force to keep yourself alive, it would have finished me off long before it saved your life. In order for both of us to survive, you couldn’t just take from me, my life needed to become yours, and yours mine. That spell may have saved us both, but we were also the sacrifices that powered it. You lost your body to a demon, and I lost my freedom. Only by sustaining each other did we have any chance. So their first step was to carve the summoning circle into your body and lock me inside.”