Chapter 21
Chapter Twenty-One
Six Years Ago
Dom unwrapped his arm to view the laceration from a poisoned blade the demon had wielded a few hours ago.
It burned and drained his energy. He wrapped his hand around the pendant Evie had given to him as a replacement for the one he gave her over a century ago, since he refused to take his back.
He focused on his feelings for her. The energy within him roared to power.
It allowed him to evict the fetid poison that had leached throughout his body.
He rolled the poison into a ball of energy and tossed it away from him. The wound closed within seconds.
With a slump, he fell back on his bed and threw an arm over his face. He’d have to clean the mess of poison on the floor later. Right now, sleep.
He’d taken on this demon to give the Lanzo boys time to work out how to break the curse. They were within a week of being free from the Crown. He could sense it. He could also sense something dark in his future.
“Wake up. Be ready,” a disembodied voice roared. Atropos rarely spoke to him like this. “Choose the path that involves the least death. You must believe it’s but a part of the journey.”
The world condensed around him as if he’d touched a summons. Someone or something was drawing him out of place to somewhere else. He grabbed his blade off the side table to tuck into his tactical pants and concentrated on keeping his mouth closed.
Moments later, he crashed onto a cold marble floor.
Before he could regain his bearings, a binding locked his wrists behind his back. Simultaneously, an ankle band clicked into place.
He didn’t struggle. Time to face the inescapable and believe there could be something on the other side.
The energies of at least ten magi buzzed around him along with the smell of sweaty fear.
He hadn’t been to the meeting place of the Conclave, the Devi Temple in the Annapurna region of Nepal, since they’d imprisoned him centuries ago.
They’d upgraded from a small temple to a cold, ostentatious hall with marble floors and a round table reminiscent of that from Arthurian legend.
Not that there was more than a smidgeon of the mythic chivalry in these younger mage males that had been given a place at the Conclave’s table.
He wondered why still no mage females existed within these halls.
The one he met centuries ago had been a gracious and peaceful being.
Unlike any of these nutjobs, she’d been a balanced master of the elements.
He modeled his study after her approach to magic.
“We warned you, Dom. Stay out of entanglements.” Marik looked far too pleased. “Now, we’re done.”
What did he mean by “done”? Did he think to end him?
Instead of wearing traditional tunics like the others around them, Marik wore an expensive-looking blue suit and red-striped tie.
How could one move to do the necessary daily exercises in that?
His skin had a ruddy hue, and his hairline had started to recede.
Mages were beings who should be able to maintain life without aging if they connected to the elements on a daily basis.
Obviously, Marik had spent too many years focused on the accumulation of power rather than the understanding and appreciation of it.
The power was to be respected. Daily affirmations consisted primarily of giving thanks and seeking connection to the natural world.
“You fell in love, didn’t you?” Marik clucked under his breath.
Inevitable.
On a huge screen behind him flashed images of he and Evie together—them in a restaurant in Florence, the two of them boarding her yacht, Evie with Roman and Ky.
Damn, she looked beautiful in that white dress that outlined her breasts.
He remembered the red high heels. And her in only the heels.
A smile threatened to break on his lips.
“What’s funny?” Marik tented his hands. “We made the consequences of such an emotional connection crystal clear. You cannot be trusted, given the prophecy.”
Dom wanted to slam his half-brother’s head against the marble tabletop until he told him why the hell Marik had targeted him with such cruelty since the prophecy had been read.
Marik had never offered a hint of concern or an offer of help after the witch uttered the words.
Any of the Lanzo boys would’ve done at least that for each other.
He couldn’t imagine one of them imprisoning the other and leaving him alone to be tortured by the thought that a single interaction with a woman might trigger the end of the world.
He took strength in knowing Evie would walk through fire to help him figure out the prophecy if he asked it of her.
Dom said, “The Fates ordered me to protect her. Therefore, I have.”
Marik slapped his hands on the table. Three of the ten mages at the table jumped. “What the fuck is it with you and those Fates? What sort of devil deal did you make to deceive them into believing you have a shred of moral decency?”
Marik pointed to Dojin, who stood with other “monitors” positioned around the perimeter of the room. “Explain to us his relationship with the Fates.”
Dojin swallowed and stepped forward. “I have observed Domini for over two hundred years. I’ve never witnessed him do anything that wasn’t by our code.
The old code. He protects those in need.
He has lived alone. He spends most of his time studying and doing exercises that a lot of us find boring.
I’ve only seen the Fates talk to him once, and it was a respectful conversation.
Dom rids the world of the type of terrifying evil creatures that would make most of us shit our pants.
He has even attained level three. Has anyone else here—”
“Enough!” Marik yelled. “How did you get out of confinement the last time we put you there?”
That was a long time ago. Why wait until now to ask?
Dom glanced around to meet the gazes of the other mages at the table. “Clotho, the life giver of the Fates, released me.”
“Why?”
“I don’t fully comprehend the Fates’ reasons for anything they do. They view the web of time and adjust as they deem necessary. Apparently, it was necessary I not be there at that moment.”
Marik covered his face and muttered, “Why won’t you die?”
That suggested Marik had done things to try to kill him. Maybe that time at the Seine hadn’t been as random as it felt? Dom never could figure out how those mid-level witches knew enough about him to pull off capturing him and conjuring a type of demon that could almost kill him.
Dom said, “The Fates informed me they weren’t ready for Death to have me when they released me.”
“Why not?”
“They like me to contend with nonhumans who threaten the ones they oversee.”
“You kill our kind?”
“I have never eliminated a mage. Most of the targets have been witches or the demons they conjure. I had a few necromancers. There was one vampire who bit the shit out of my arm. There was a six-headed dev that a witch put a spell on to make it lose its mind. I had to eliminate the poor creature before it decimated Rome. Have any of you tried to fight a multi-headed monster that shoots spikes and fire? The worst, though, are the exorcisms. I would be relieved to never do another of those. The vomit, the blood…you have to do it fast, or the demon will turn the human inside out. Explodes, you know. Disgusting business.”
Dom got wide-eyed you’re nuts stares from those around the table—except for Marik, who rolled his eyes. Maybe everyone other than Marik was impressed. Dom didn’t care. It didn’t look like he had any takers to step in for him as the Fates’ errand boy if Marik ended him.
“I don’t recommend any of it,” he continued.
“It’s been one nightmare after another ever since she freed me.
Do you think I wanted to do their bidding?
Sometimes I wish I was still at the bottom of that windowless well you threw me into for twenty years.
At least nothing there hurt as much as any of these creatures I’ve had to deal with.
” He stood straight. “If you’ve decided it’s time to eliminate me to circumvent something a nutty old witch said, then someone else is going to need to take on this work for the Fates. ”
“What do you get in return for this work you do for them?” Marik asked.
He chuckled and shook his head. “Not a damn thing. I live by the Code, Marik. It means I volunteer. This is how I chose to direct my abilities in a way to positively influence the world. Isn’t that what all of us spent our youths learning? Or have the teachings changed? How have you forgotten?”
“You are a threat now that you have entangled yourself with her.”
Brik, a mage a few years older than Marik, stood from the table.
Dom and Brik had studied as novices long ago under the same master.
An eccentric who preferred to live deep in the jungles of the world immersed in nature, Brik led a principled life Dom respected.
“I’m not in favor of any sort of destruction or death over this unclear prophecy spewed forth by a witch who conveniently died.
The fact the Fates chose him to do these things suggests Dom has a purpose in our world.
Perhaps we are yet to understand the words of the prophetic witch.
I’ve said this before. Our way has never been to disrupt the order of things or lay a path of devastation.
We monitor. We protect. We shield. If we seek to avert or delay the future, then we do so gently.
What is intended to happen will come to pass no matter what we do. ”
“Enough.” Marik’s voice rang out across the room. The four younger mages beside Marik cowered.
Dom met Brik’s gaze across the table. In silence, they agreed such pussies didn’t deserve a seat at the Conclave table.
“In order to preserve the Code and the safety of the world, we have concluded there are only two choices.” Marik waved around the table and signaled for Brik to sit. “Either you destroy her or…”
Anger surged. Do your breathing. Don’t let anger best you.
A mage to the right of Marik opened a felt pouch and removed a large opal that he laid on the table.
Marik said, “You use the power of the Sol Opal to erase the memory of you from her and from everyone around her who might know anything about you.”
Erase? Forever?
He’d do no such thing. Make her forget his existence?
He stared at the golfball sized gem on the the table. “What kind of magic is that?”
“Relic witch magic,” Marik said.
Dom exchanged glances with Brik. Since when did mages employ witch magic? It was dangerous for their kind to mess with the type of magic that wasn’t theirs. They had little hope of controlling it.
Marik grabbed the stone and returned it to it’s pouch. “Since some of us think destruction is not a part of our Code, we will not jump to that at first. Rest assured it is the second step if the first doesn’t dissolve your attachment.” He looked pointedly at Brik. “He must use the opal.”
Dom quirked an eyebrow in silent question of what the consequences were if he refused.
“Should you not do this, we will return you to your prison. For her…it has come to my attention she has the Sutana Vase in her possession. A small accident will put her at the mercy of the Sutana.”
His blood ran cold. What the hell was she doing with that vase?
Maybe she didn’t have it, but Marik would give it to her or make sure it came into her possession.
It didn’t matter. The vase housed the spirit of a malicious mage.
The few times something had let him escape his confinement, he took pleasure in viciously torturing all beings in his path.
“If the opal fails, we will be forced to put her entire family in the path of the Sutana.” I’ll scorch her blood from the Earth.
He’d picked up Marik’s thoughts as if they’d been directed at him. This felt personal. This wasn’t about altruistic protection of the world. Marik wanted to hurt her and him.
“If I use the Sol Opal, then what? Do you demand I stop helping the Fates or suggest an alternative mage to them since you deem me unworthy? Are you going to lock me up again?”
Marik stood. “Once you cast the Sol Opal spell, you will stay away from her for the rest of your natural existence. To ensure you stay away from her, we’ll cast an alert binding on you.
If you touch her, we will know. If you touch her, you will be giving us permission to eliminate her.
” He glanced around. “Dojin will visit you daily for the next two years. You will also wear the ankle band to further bind your ability to feel anything for a female.”
“I don’t want to visit him that often,” Dojin said. “He doesn’t like to cook, and his house smells like mushrooms. I also refuse to have anything to do with the things he fights. No thank you.”
“My house does not smell like mushrooms. When have you been inside it?”
“Enough. We will vote,” Marik said. “All those in favor of this plan, put their right hand on the table.”
Everyone but Brik voted “yes”. Dojin wasn’t allowed to vote, nor were any of the other novices around the edge of the room.
“Then, let it be done.” Marik’s voice was tinged with triumph. Now you will be too weak to avoid death.
Did his brother know Evie made him stronger? As the Fate had said, she fortified his soul.
As interwoven as he was into the lycan family’s lives, Dom tried to imagine what it’d be like for the Lanzo family if he simply erased his memory from them. Evie might think she had a brain tumor to lose so much cohesion in her history. Their history. To rip himself out of her life?
He would lose the family he’d found even if in doing so he’d keep them safe. Or would Marik unload the vase on them anyway?
“I will agree only if Marik and every mage at the table puts their hand into the Source water and swears on their eternal souls they will never target Evie Lanzo or any member of her family so long as I keep my part of the bargain. If you do that, I will use the Sol Opal. If anyone here targets her, anyone who makes the oath, our agreement is void. I will know and I will kill the offenders.”
“What if she’s pregnant?” Marik asked. “The child must be eliminated.”
“She’s not. It’s impossible.”
“Then so be it.”