Page 86 of Joined By Magic

Leo grabbed my hand. “I’m sorry. It was part of the deal I made. This will be over soon. I love you.”

He dropped my hand, and both men vanished.

Shit.

The atmosphere in the room charged, hitting tense and shooting past it to dangerous. Damien’s hand hovered next to his weapon, and Talia stood in front of Helen. I battled to bring my breathing under control, to stem the adrenaline flooding my system.

It’d be over soon.

Helen stepped forward, moving Talia aside with a hand on her shoulder. Talia let her through reluctantly, eyes narrowed and locked on Damien. Tears tracked Helen’s cheeks. “I know what you must think of me. I was protecting my daughters. The king threatened them. I’m so sorry.”

“You could have gotten us killed!”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

I held up a hand and sank down into a chair. “Forget it.”

The device on the table crackled as Adante’s voice rang through. “Leaving the palace now.”

Damien snapped into military mode. “Received.”

We all exchanged glances. Atalie rifled through the food supplies and spoke with careful nonchalance. “This brings back bad memories, Peter. I never thought I’d choke down another bowl of tinned beef stew.”

Peter snorted. “You’d rather starve?”

“I actually might. Now, who wants a drink?”

Silence gave way to stilted small talk, and my blood cooled. Helen stood with her head down, clutching the cup of tea Talia pressed into her hands with white knuckles. I studied her as I sipped my coffee and tried to imagine myself in her place. Had the king really threatened her children? It seemed like something he would do.

I pictured myself, on my knees in a packed courtroom, giving myself over to Leo to escape prison. It had felt like the only possible choice, but many had thought otherwise. Who was I to judge? The communication device sparked to life again. “Approaching the portal.”

“Received.”

Fear for Leo edged out my remaining anger. How many soldiers would they be facing? What weapons would they have? I blew out a shuddering breath and ran my finger through a spilled drop of coffee on the plastic table.

I raised my head and found Helen watching me. Our eyes met, and my old friend looked away as if scalded, tea slopping over the side of her mug. I set my cup down on the table and stood.

Talia tensed as I approached. What did she think I was about to do? Start a fist fight? Helen touched her arm in a calming way. I took a breath. “I do get it. I understand.”

Helen blinked teary eyes at me. “I’m so sorry. I wanted to tell you, but my children . . .”

“I know.”

The device sparked. This time, the voice that emerged was crackly. “Through the portal. Intercepting—”

Silence.

Don’t panic. Adante had said they might lose signal, hadn’t he? It meant nothing. Helen’s face mirrored my concern.

“It’ll be fine. There’s no way he’ll withstand those two working together.” Helen’s words were tentative, as if she still expected me to snap.

Talia’s lips twisted into a smile with a predatory tinge to it. Her blue eyes held steel. Suddenly, she seemed a perfect match for Adante. “I wish I could be there to see them kill the fucker.”

One enemy. There was only one true enemy left, and fighting amongst ourselves would do nothing but serve him. I nodded. “He’s caused so much pain.”

Helen reached out and touched my arm, her hand shaking. “I hope—”

A flicker of movement. I spun as chaos erupted. Five men appeared, weapons leveled. Damien pulled his gun, and a shot rang out, so loud it tore through my ears. One man jerked but straightened. Shielded. He fired a blast of power at Damien that ripped through his chest like tissue paper. Blood sprayed. Hex dove on top of him, screaming.

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