Page 51 of Ruled By Magic

The world dropped away and we appeared in the bunker. Leo checked his link-up again. “Stay here.” He vanished.

I sank into a hard chair, head spinning. People filed in. Most gave me a wide berth, as usual. They’d assume I was in disgrace. Helen entered, scanned the crowd, and smiled. “Move up. I’m going to keep you company.”

A tight knot in my chest dissolved. Leo must have told her of my innocence where the riot was concerned. I shuffled over a seat to let her sit.

She pulled out her link-up and glowered at the screen. “Any idea what this is all about? There’s nothing on the palace info channel.”

Unsure how much Leo wanted to make public, I shrugged. “I’m not sure, the Lord Commander brought me here and vanished.”

Helen nodded. “I suppose we mere mortals shall just have to wait and see, then.” Her face grew more serious. “How are you doing?” She lowered her voice. “From the mood he was in when he arrived at work this morning, I don’t imagine last night was fun for you. And he raced off pretty fast once he realized you hadn’t planned that riot. Are you okay?”

I blinked. How much did Helen know? But that was foolish. Her words might mean anything. I’d spent hours alone with a man who thought I’d betrayed him. That was bad, under any circumstances.

Helen waited for an answer. I managed a smile. “He was furious last night, but better today.” I paused, then asked, “Will the riot cause him problems? Politically?”

Helen’s face darkened. “The old Lord Commander’s cronies will get a lot of mileage out of it. But it’ll blow over, everything always does.”

A few stragglers still drifted in, filling the few remaining seats. The siren wailed, though the metal walls of the bunker dulled the sound to a background irritation. About a quarter of the crowd wore something red. A small contingent of children huddled around a young, pretty woman who must be their teacher.

Besides the kids, no one looked worried. In my short time in the palace, the alarm had gone off three times. They treated it like a fire drill, an annoyance. Helen didn’t chatter as usual. My tension had infected her. We sat in pensive silence. A few minutes later, Leo appeared at the front of the room. He caught my eye, and the crowd quieted.

I recalled the first time I saw him here, right before he spirited me away to his office and began to train me. I didn’t know what he was doing then, but now I understood. Teaching me to give him pleasure and beg for my own release. Molding me into his perfect plaything. He’d captivated me even then.

He addressed the crowd.

“Hello, everyone. You’ll be down here longer than usual today. We’ve received word of a serious threat and we’re investigating.” Nervous whispers broke out. “So far, only a small amount of power has hit the barrier, and—”

A second siren—louder than the first—ripped through the air, and the lights dimmed to red. Children screamed. The swell of whispers rose to a panicked crescendo.

“Everyone, stay calm!” Authority rang through every word. “The barrier is down, we need to—”

Boom!

A gigantic explosion sounded above, followed by the crunch of falling rubble. The room erupted into screams. The group of children clutched their teacher.

Two more explosions chased the first, echoing through the metal bunker. My ears rang.

Voices rose from the crowd, terrified shrieks. “I can’t teleport!”

“Me neither!”

“What’s going on?”

Leo’s voice cut through the chaos. “Silence!”

The throng obeyed. All focus shifted to him, and I felt the weight of it. The pressure. They were all relying on him to tell them what to do.

A young sentry in a black palace guard uniform ran into the bunker, disheveled.

“Lord Commander!” he shouted, voice cracking.

Leo strode over to him. “What’s happening out there?”

“They’re coming toward the palace! Firing off crazy magic, there’s explosions. I think some of the others are dead!”

The man’s eyes were wide in a pale face. This must be the only action he’d ever seen. The palace hadn’t been attacked in my lifetime. I remembered Leo’s derogatory comments about Dexia’s defense capacity. He’d been right to be worried.

“Give me your radio.” The guard handed it to Leo. He pressed the call button. “This is the Lord Commander. All guards report to the bunker. Once you’re inside, lock it down.”

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