Page 79 of Twisted Magic

“If any of us survive,” Cillian inserted, “this will be one for the history books.”

“Will House Harahel stand with us?” Jadren asked with interest.

Cillian cocked his head, thinking. “Depends on what we find out about House Hanneil, is my guess, but Alise can tell you some interesting things about House Uriel’s interest.”

“Is that right?” This was sounding more promising all the time.

“I’ll explain later,” Alise said. “After we liberate House Phel.”

Jadren swept a hand gallantly, inviting her to the battlefield. “Let us kick some ass.”

“Did someone call for ass-kicking?” another voice called out.

Jadren turned to the new voice, wondering who was jumping out of the bushes now, bemused to find a phalanx of farmers brandishing everything from kitchen knives to scythes to wicked-looking sharp hooks at the ends of long poles. The couple standing at the forefront looked vaguely familiar, very like Gabriel and Seliah. Indeed, Seliah started bounding toward them, then stopped, lashing her tail in consternation as if just remembering the form she currently wore.

“Gabriel Senior,” the man said. “But, since that gets confusing, you can call me GF. My wife, Daisy. If you’re all looking at cutting down those monsters and liberating our kids, well we want a piece of that harvest.”

The crowd behind them shouted in agreement. Jadren took in the piecemeal army of common folk with their makeshift weapons, catching Seliah’s eye. “You realize there’s magic involved here,” he told them. “Powerful magic.”

“Of course we do,” Daisy replied with a snort of disgust. “We’re farmers, not idiots. We might not be wizards like our son and daughter, but we’re not helpless either, nor are we cowards. We’ve been watching you all assemble here and we’re ready to offer whatever support we can. I don’t know where Seliah is—I can only hope that she’s still all right as her letters say—but our son is in there, along with our daughter-in-law and unborn grandchild. We’re not losing them without a fight.”

“Get us through that guard perimeter,” GF added, “and we’ll get you into the house. We’ve learned a thing or two about killing those hunter critters.”

“Chop’em up into fine enough pieces, they can’t keep coming,” someone else called out.

“Also,” Daisy added, “we might not be powerful wizards or familiars, but we’ve been living with water all our lives, and we know ways of encouraging it to move from where it shouldn’t be to where we want it.”

Jadren considered that with interest and rising optimism. “Could you, say, encourage water back into the lake?”

Daisy glanced at several women in the crowd, who nodded in solemn agreement. “That water belongs in the lake,” she answered with a smile. “It will be happy to go back home if enough of us encourage it.”

Returning the smile, Jadren brandished his map. “All right then, here’s the revised plan.”

~25~

Gabriel looked around the gathering of faces, sober in the advent of what they planned to do. “This is not the ending to House Phel that any of us wanted or hoped for,” he told them, searching for the right words.

“We didn’t want an ending at all,” Han, front and center, snarled. “We can’t just give up!”

“Right,” Iliana agreed from beside him. “For most of us, this is the only place we’ve found to call home, and now you want us to just scamper off? Lord Phel,” she added to the end, with a faint flush.”

“We’re not asking anyone to die for House Phel,” Nic inserted firmly. “All we’re doing here is creating an opportunity for our non-combatants to escape. Children, babies, the invalid.” Her voice broke a little on the last, and Gabriel set a hand on her back to steady her. Not only had Nic’s mother failed to improve, but with Asa so taxed with the flood of wounded, he’d been unable to sustain her previous level of care. The unresponsive woman had begun to deteriorate rapidly. Nic, naturally, blamed herself and couldn’t be talked out of it.

“This ‘opportunity’ of yours will ensure your deaths,” Wolfgang pointed out, his arm around Costa, who leaned against him unhappily. One of the more malicious spirits had scored Costa’s cheek, leaving a furrow from temple to chin, likely forever scarring the handsome man.

Gabriel regarded the wizard soberly, then looked over all the faces listening intently, taking in their varying expressions of fear, stubborn determination, hope, and despair. “That army outside wants one thing: my death and the destruction of House Phel.”

“So you’ll just hand it to them, Lord Phel?” Sage demanded, holding a wicked looking staff in her capable hands. The glass wizard had commandeered one of the pruning hooks from the garden shed, proving handy with the improvised weapon.

“This is not your fight,” he answered simply. “I refuse to take all of you with me.”

“With us,” Nic corrected, sliding him an emerald glare of warning.

Gabriel had turned over and over in his mind how to get Nic out of the house with the others, but every plan he came up with was immediately complicated by the fact that she was on guard for such a maneuver. Nic categorically refused to consider leaving him. It didn’t help that she rightfully pointed out that he’d never get off the final blast at the intended power without her assistance.

He held up his hands to silence the murmurs of discontent. “I won’t force anyone to leave. But I will give you the option. Here is the plan. I’m going to drop the wards between the manse and the lake. I’ll create the appearance of weakening to lure our attackers there, then allow them in. Meanwhile, I’ll create an opening at the back, as well. Anyone who chooses to leave can escape that direction and to the river. There are boats moored there or, if you can swim, cross to the other side. With any luck, the hunters will have come around to the front and you won’t have many to contend with.”

“And if we do?” someone from the back asked, nerves in their voice.

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