Page 15 of A Fury Of Shadows

Isabelle West appeared behind Erik. She put a hand on his shoulder. “The Phoenix coven will always have a place for you, Erik. Just say the word.”

“Hey!” Regina protested. “Why does everyone keep trying to snatch my son?”

“Because his talents are wasted in your coven.” Isabelle stroked the gerbil sitting on her shoulder, her tone faintly accusing. “His only role appears to be that of your guard dog. His magic will shrivel up at this rate.”

Since she could see Erik’s core, Mae was pretty confident that wouldn’t be happening anytime soon. She introduced the newcomers to Cortes and Anya.

Regina crossed her arms and jutted her jaw. “So, you’re the woman behind the mess that got our Mae into trouble and lost us Nikolai, huh?”

Anya’s face tightened with guilt. Cortes narrowed his eyes slightly.

“It wasn’t Anya’s fault,” Mae said. “She was as much a victim of the Dark Council as we were.”

Regina sniffed. “You’re too nice for your own good, Witch Queen.”

Isabelle broke the taut hush.

“I hear your Illusion Sorcery is quite something to behold,” she told Anya kindly.

Anya’s expression loosened a little. “Thank you.”

“Her Illusion Sorcery is the best in the world,” Cortes stated bluntly.

Anya flushed at his words.

Regina stared. A saccharine smile slowly stretched her mouth. “Oh-ho! No wonder you’re acting like her guard dog. You two are playing hide the sala—oof!”

Isabelle had elbowed her viciously in the ribs.

“Jesus,” Erik mumbled.

Mae sighed. “How about we get started?”

Regina and Isabelle looked as dubious as the others when she explained what she intended to do.

“So, you’re going to combine his powers with your spell?” Erik asked uneasily.

“No. I’m going to study the structure of his Arcane Magic and create something similar. I think it might stabilizeSeverandIce Fortressenough to shatter Anya’s Illusion Sorcery.”

Cortes furrowed his brow. “I’m still not sure you’re going to be able to pull this off. There’s a reason Arcane Magic is rare.”

“There’s only one way to find out,” Mae replied, undeterred.

“You’re absolutely confident this won’t pose a risk to Enrique?” Anya said in strained voice.

Sable crooned nervously on her shoulder.

“Yes.” Mae hesitated. “I accessed Nikolai and Roman Volkov’s cores in Prague to suppress the Hellfire Magic storm that almost destroyed the city.”

An awkward silence befell them at the mention of the sorcerer who had betrayed them.

Cortes studied her for a moment longer before dipping his head curtly. “Okay. If this allows you to counter Illusion Sorcery, it’s worth a try.” His lips curved slightly. “Besides, even if something happens to my core, you and Nikolai should be able to fix it.”

Mae’s chest tightened at the faith in his eyes.

Popo bobbed enthusiastically on the sorcerer’s shoulder. “I agree. I trust Mae.”

Anya still looked worried.

---