Page 66 of Soulbound Shadows: Part 2

Evangeline gave me that small scowl I’d come to recognize as her realizing I was right about something. “Maybe when we’ve got some down time,” she allowed finally. “This stuff does smell pretty nice.”

Most of the others were already gathered downstairs in Marcus’s overwhelming mess of a workshop. Someone had pulled up a mismatched collection of seating around the table with the ley line map. Theo and Isabella had chosen a violently purple silk love seat, and I was amused to note that Isabella’s legs were thrown over Theo’s lap. They had their hands splayed across her thigh protectively. Damien looked wildly uncomfortable perched in a rickety director’s chair, and Lissa somehow made the narrow bench look as luxurious and comfortable as the finest chaise lounge. Vic held a tray with mugs of synth blood, tea, and a small plate of shortbread.

I leaned against an armchair, and Evangeline perched on the arm on its other side. I felt too restless to sit, and I suspected she felt the same.

Marcus and Xarek were the last to join us. Marcus flitted down the stairs, chattering animatedly, and Xarek took it in his stride, nodding when the occasion called for it. It was like watching an excitable moon orbiting a planet.

“Potentially incredibly useful,” Marcus was saying as Xarek steered him over to the table. “I mean, imagine the possible applications.”

I cleared my throat, and Marcus seemed to realize that there were, in fact, other people in the room.

“Ah!” he said brightly, pushing up his glasses. “You’re all here. Excellent.”

“You guys know what we’re all here for,” Evangeline said. “So, let’s just cut to the chase, huh? Morgana wants to do some horrible shit, and we have a weapon that can stop her.”

As if on cue, Xarek set down the wand, now in one of the magic-proofed bags Evangeline used to collect evidence and contain artifacts.

“The wand will draw out her power,” I said. “But it won’t be an immediate thing. It will take time to drain her properly, and she doesn’t strike me as the type to stay still and let that happen if she can help it.”

“So, we need to either restrain her first, or keep her too busy to go after the person using the wand,” Evangeline said.

“We need to find her first,” Theo pointed out.

“That’s not gonna be as hard as you might think,” Isabella said. She leaned forward and fiddled with something on the side of the table. Before our eyes, one of the spots on the map brightened—an area a little ways into the forest, not far from the garden district. Lines of light shifted and twisted over each other until they converged in that spot.

“This is what the map looked like when we first finished it,” Isabella told us. “And…” She fiddled again, and the lines of light parted again, splitting away from each other until the spot went dark once more. “This is what it looks like now.”

“Ye gods,” Marcus breathed.

“What does that mean?” Lissa asked.

“Someone moved the ley lines,” Evangeline said distantly. “Someone who’s been keeping an eye out for me, and who’s very familiar with ancient magic. Someone who doesn’t want me to ley-hop into her territory.”

“I thought the ley lines were part of the land,” I said.

“They are,” Marcus told me. His expression had gone deadly serious. “Moving a ley line would be somewhat more difficult than moving a river.”

“Which means Morgana is even more powerful than we thought,” Isabella said grimly.

Evangeline’s hands were braced on the table, and she leaned over to look at that dim spot on the map. “It’ll be protected,” she said, mostly to herself. “Not just with wards. There’ll be guards. Probably a lot of them.”

“They’ll be strong, but not exceptional,” Damien said. “Anyone with a power too exciting would’ve been drained already. So, grunts, but strong grunts nonetheless.”

“We can deal with grunts,” Theo said with a nasty smile.

“Which leaves us with the wards to think about,” Evangeline said.

Xarek cleared his throat, and she looked up at him. “If I may,” he said. “It seems to me that if she’s draining anyone who’s powerful enough to interest her, then she’s more greedy than she is paranoid.”

“What are you suggesting?” Marcus asked. From his tone, it sounded like he already had a pretty good guess, but he was hoping he was wrong.

“I’m suggesting we try to draw her out,” Xarek said. “If we get her away from her home turf, we can take that advantage away from her.”

“Not just anything would get her out into the open. It would have to be good,” Damien said, then his eyes widened. “No. You can’t be serious.”

Xarek smiled wanly. It sat oddly on his broad, cheerful face. This man was not built for melancholy. “If Morgana is collecting rare specimens, then the chance to get her hands on a real, live copper dragon would be fucking hard for her to resist.”

Marcus was completely still, which I’d never seen before. The man had always given the impression of constant motion, even if it was only the cloud of vape smoke curling around him while he twinkled infuriatingly at you. Now, his eyes were fixed on the table.

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