Page 2 of Elf

“The boat trouble wasn’t our fault!” one of the humans yelled. “Not to mention our boss was taken out.”

Bespoke went very still. “You think I’m not your boss?”

The guy paled and started to shake his head rapidly. “No, no, that’s not what I meant. It’s just that with him gone, there’s been a lot of shifting among the ranks, so the boat trouble wasn’t reported immediately. Honestly, it wasn’t our fault.”

“But that’s where you’re wrong. It was your job to make sure everything ran smoothly.” Bespoke smoothed his hands down his suit jacket, then nodded at the wizard to his left.

The wizard flung up his hands.

Alaric took his shot, sending a deadly plague into the wizard.

The wizard let out a loud gurgle and fell to his knees. Festering sores sprouted all over his exposed skin.

Alaric gathered more magical energy to flatten the other wizard, but that one suddenly disappeared and reappeared in front of him.

Fuck, a warper.

And one skilled at binding because in the next second, Alaric couldn’t move. The wizard grinned at him, a twisted evil thing, just as screams sounded. Alaric glanced over to see Finn solidifying just enough to pass through two of the humans, leaving gaping holes where their chests had been. Finn had told him once that he hated using his vapor form as a direct weapon. He must have sensed Alaric was hobbled.

But not for long.

Alaric drew on his magic and broke the binding spell, flinging another plague spell in the wizard’s direction. But the warper had already flashed back to Bespoke, who was firinginto the corners of the room, obviously shooting at something he couldn’t see. The holes appearing in the humans must have rattled him.

The gunshots were deafening in the warehouse. Alaric darted forward to take the gunman out, but the wizard wrapped an arm around his boss, and they both disappeared. Alaric turned to let loose on the last of the criminals, only to see he’d been taken out by the bullets Bespoke had been firing.

A groan sounded in the corner. Alaric ran there to find Finn on the floor, hand clutching his thigh. Blood pooled beneath it.

“Shit. You actually got shot.” Alaric knelt and placed his hand over the wound, letting his healing magic flow. It gathered in his center, to flow out along his limbs, warmth tingling in his fingers to seep into Finn and repair the damage. He’d already used so much of his energy, the healing pulled everything he had left. Once done, he closed his eyes and slumped back on his heels.

Finn quickly sat up and put his hands on Alaric’s shoulders. “You okay? Damn, you should have waited. It wasn’t too bad.”

“It was bad, Finn,” Alaric said, voice rusty from the exhaustion pulling at his body. “Nicked an artery.”

“Oh, well shit, that is bad. Thanks, then. Come on, let’s get you to some trees.”

“A lot of them. I’ll never forgive myself if I take too much from one and?—”

“I know. I’ll find you a nice, big park. Trees, grass, maybe some squirrels. Take a teaspoon from each, they’ll be all right.”

“Thanks.” Honestly, he felt like he could drain a whole forest. But he trusted Finn to find a suitable spot. And they had to get back to their vehicles first.

Finn stood and helped Alaric to his feet, draping Alaric’s arm over his shoulder. “The one in charge got away with one of the wizards, but you did a number on the other. Festering sores, Alaric? Classic.”

“Needed something fast and deadly,” Alaric panted out as he tried to make his legs work. “But I shouldn’t have used something that powerful. I didn’t know the other was a warper. That’s going to make finding them even harder. Xavier won’t be happy.”

“He’ll just have to deal. At least that will narrow down the search. There aren’t a lot of wizards with that power.” Finn tightened his arm around him. “You can normally do a lot more before your energy is depleted like this. Is there something going on?”

“The warper bound me, and it took a lot to break free. He’s powerful. Very. Which means the man in the suit is, as well. Rich as hell, too, to afford a warper.”

“Which narrows down the search even more.” Finn helped Alaric outside.

Alaric was glad his friend was so strong. He was really struggling to walk. Felt like his feet slogged through thick, wet sand as they traversed through the big parking lot to where Finn had parked his truck out of sight.

Finn opened the truck door for him. “I’ll drive. We’ll come back for your car.”

Alaric just nodded as he settled into the passenger seat. Truth was, he shouldn’t be this wiped, and he couldn’t help but worry some. Maybe that wizard had been using another spell—one he couldn’t sense.

Finn drove fast, passing more warehouses, then taking them down several side streets. He let out a whoop when they finally reached a thick stand of trees in a small neighborhood park. He parked and hurried around to help Alaric, but Alaric didn’t wait. The magic of nature was already seeping into his body, giving him strength to move on his own. He knelt and placed his hands on the ground, feeding from the countless roots under the surface. His strength returned full force, and he stopped,sending out his senses to make sure he hadn’t taken too much. He hadn’t.

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