Page 40 of A Bloodline Redeemed

I held onto my tentative grip on the spell that fused the nullifier and amplifier together as we slowly made our way to where Jacki and her group were protecting the sleeping citizens of the heart.A quick, hurried exchange sent the children we had managed to free scurrying to Jacki, and behind the sturdy magical barrier her people held and defended.

Then, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and let the fusion spell collapse.

Chapter 22

Andy

Niamhtookthenullifier,and Elijah took the amplifier.Then we all repositioned, split into two groups, staying within shouting distance, but far enough apart to reap the benefits of the individual artefacts.

My magic washed through me with renewed strength the moment the spell ended and the nullifier was out of range.I groaned in relief and shook out my hands, sucking in deep breaths as my equilibrium returned, along with some of my senses.

But I didn’t get long to reacquaint myself with normal—if a bit amped up—functioning.We were still in the middle of a fight.Killing spells.Spells to maim.Shots fired by mundane weapons.Attacks from both SA agents in uniform and cultists dressed like ordinary people.The assault came from everywhere, and even though we still had shields up, I felt far more exposed without the double layer of protection offered by the artifacts.

The rebels were here now, coming at the cultists and SA from two sides, while we focused on picking off adults wherever we could.It wasn’t the big, epic display that I knew Bella had been hoping for, but still, we were making a difference.

Slowly but surely, we were winning.

I looked up from casting a stun spell on a group of cultists and realized that nearly all of the SA people had disappeared—either downed or run off to save themselves.There were probably a bunch of them holed up in the SA building behind their wards and magic.

Most of the remaining cult forces were children and the magically enslaved.We did our best to hold them off without harming them.But we were kind of at a stalemate.

“Stun them!”Bella commanded, gesturing for her people to start downing the children and slaves.

“No!”I shouted back to her from across the square.“You’ll hurt them!”There was never any guarantee with magic that strong, and it was especially hard to predict the effect it would have on young children.Some of them were bound to react poorly.

But Bella ignored me and started knocking people out.

“Bitch,” I muttered.

Dyre patted my back.“It’s better than killing them.We can’t just stand here letting them try to kill us all day.We need to find the people in control.”

I huffed.I knew he was right.But that didn’t mean I had to like it.

I was contemplating what spells I might know that would be the gentlest on the slaves—while daydreaming about strangling my crazy sister—when I felt the weirdest sensation… like magical déjà vu.

I stopped what I was doing, frozen in place.I couldn’t breathe.My lungs suddenly refused to expand.That magic.That feeling of calmness and safety that settled over me… I spun in place, my eyes darting around the area, looking for a miracle.

“Andy?”Elijah said in concern, placing a hand on my arm.“Are you okay?What is it?A spell?”

I shook my head.“No, I… do you feel that?”I glanced around at the others, who were all scattered in a loose circle nearby, carefully fending off tiny attackers.“Doesn’t anyone elsefeelthat?”

Aahil was a few feet away, drawing circles of fire, trapping groups of slaves inside, where they couldn’t get close enough to hit us with their spells.I watched as his head suddenly whipped to the side.He looked around, much as I just had.Then his glowing gold eyes met mine.“Lovell…”

I nodded, my hand going to my chest to press against the growing ball of painful yearning there.“I feel it too.”

Dyre frowned at us both, then shook his head.“No.It’s a trick.Another artefact.Some cult prank to catch us with our guard down.”But he didn’t sound so sure.

Then I saw them.

They emerged from an alley, like an ethereal figure stepping out of a dream.Willowy grace.Silvery platinum hair that rippled in the breeze as they walked rapidly toward us, framing the most beautiful, unearthly turquoise eyes.I couldn’t see anything else, my gaze riveted on them, afraid to look away for even a second and have them disappear again.

A song reached my ears over the remaining noise of the fight, sweet and powerful, lulling me into calm.Spreading safety and peace, like a lullaby, a siren song urging everyone to be at ease.It cancelled out whatever weak magic the cult had been using to spread fear and despair.

I let out a choked sound, pushed one of Dyre’s corpse guards aside, and tripped over a few bodies as my feet moved without my telling them to.

“Hasumi?”Tears made my vision watery, and I still couldn’t breathe right, the air sawing into my lungs in short, harsh bursts while my heartbeat pounded in my ears.“Hasumi!”

Graceful arms wrapped around my waist as I hit the water weaver with enough force to knock us both over.Hasumi steadied us, their musical voice a whisper against my hair.“My sweet witch.How I’ve missed you.”

---