Page 27 of Heir of Ashes

“Which is?”

“The truth,” he said simply, and Jack Nicholson came to mind. “Look, no ordinary humans want to believe there are stronger, more powerful beings than themselves out there.”

“What were they?”

Logan glanced at me again, this time a bit thoughtfully, then turned back to the road. His fingers flexed on the steering wheel before relaxing again. “Guardians.”

“Of what?”

“The Leeway. For the paths to the other worlds.”

I had read mention of the worlds in Dr. Maxwell’s journal—the summoning of other beings and the travels to them, but there hadn’t been anything about guardians anywhere.

“Have you ever given blood willingly?”

The question was so out of context that it took me a moment to process. I was about to say no when he added, “Think about it before you answer.”

I considered it, sifting through my memories. “The PSS took plenty over the years.”

Logan hesitated a moment. “Other than them?”

“No. But I’ve bled plenty around.” My brows furrowed at the stirring of a thought. “Why?”

“Anyone with a faint magic ability could summon guardians to attack a specific target if they’re gifted with blood samples to provide, let’s say, a beacon for the guardians to follow.”

I mulled over his words, not liking the conclusion I was drawing. “To be clear, you’re saying if I ever consent to someone taking a drop of my blood, they could use it to summon guardians of the other worlds to hunt me down?”

“Among other things.”

“The PSS—”

“Not them, no.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever willingly given anyone my blood.” I paused, then asked, “What does that leave us?”

Logan’s face was very grim when he announced, “Mr. Drammen.”

Remo Drammen, the most feared black sorcerer, the person I managed to escape from with a building full of his men. I could imagine him angry enough to do so. He probably considered my escape a personal insult to his power and authority.

My thoughts drifted to the guardians’ attack. At first, they had moved no faster than an ordinary human, gaining speed every time we landed a strike. When we’d managed to dodge and run, they’d just materialized in front of us, resuming their relentless attack. Efficient, strong, capable, hard to kill. Remo Drammen had been very angry to send two of those after me. I shuddered at the thought of what he’d do next.

“What was that you threw on the guardian?”

“Salt.”

“To bind it.” I nodded. I’d read that before in Dr. Maxwell’s journal.

“Yes. They weren’t physically there. They were only projecting the killing blow.”

“The glowing limb.” That’s why they’d looked dull and made no sound in the beginning, I thought.

“Exactly. Salt binds. I used it to bind them physically. Once they were bound, they were nothing but moving piles of bones.”

“So they killed each other when they connected,” I concluded.

“No. I don’t think they can die. Not in this world anyway. They were freed from the summoning and went back to guard whatever path they came from.”

“But if salt can bind them like that, wouldn’t that make them vulnerable? I mean, a pile of bones is very easy to disrupt …”

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