Page 57 of Tragic Ink
“Who are you?” Irepeated.
“I am Cael, warrior for the UnseelieCourt.”
“You’re a thief,” Rhys spat as he wiped the blood from the cut on hischeek.
“You were sent by the Unseelie Court to steal my magic?” Iasked.
Cael nodded, then winced, clutching at the wound on his stomach, which was bleeding a lot more heavily now than before I’d removed his healingrune.
“Why do you have tattoos?” Idemanded.
“You are not the only fae who can bring their art to life,” he said. “The Unseelie see the value in this gift, even if your own people donot.”
“You mean you see how it can be used to hurt people,” Isaid.
“Yes, I am aware of the Seelie’s distaste for doing what must be done. It is why I am not here to recruityou.”
“You act like you’re doing me a favor by trying to steal my magic and then kill me,” Isaid.
Cael sighed, but he didn’t bother to argue. “We’ve been looking for you for a long time, but you were undetectable for years. Then Walter...” He broke off and startedcoughing.
“Walter hired you to take revenge on me because he thought I’d helped kill his sister,” Ifinished.
Cael nodded. “His need for vengeance brought you to me on a silver platter. It also made him weak and easy to kill when it servedme.”
I resisted the urge to kick him for that. “But then you got a little carried away, didn’tyou?”
He coughed again. “Your magic is unlike anything we’ve ever seen. Even your mother—” He broke off, and I knelt, grabbing him by the collar. Suddenly, any hesitation I’d had over actually causing another creature harmvanished.
“What do you know about my mother?” Idemanded.
“I know you’re already more powerful than her if you’ve just destroyed my healing rune.” Hecoughed.
Rhys looked up at me sharply, questions in his eyes, and I realized he had no idea what I’d done, because he’d been too busy fighting Cael. I ignored his confusion, my questions burning a hole right throughme.
“What did you do to her?” Idemanded.
“Moonlaith is well hidden. Well protected,” Cael muttered, as if he hated thatfact.
He blinked, and when he opened his eyes, I saw that they were no longer glowing. Probably a product of his life force draining. My shoulders sagged in quiet relief. My mother was alive. Wherever she was, she wasalive.
“Her warrior was fierce,” he added. “Like yours. He gave himself up to protect her and she escaped our grasp. We have not been able to get close to her sincethen.”
In an instant, my relief vanished and was replaced byfury.
Rhys had said my mother’s warrior had died protecting her, and thatmeant—
“You killed my father,” I said through clenchedteeth.
“I was following orders,” Cael said, and his dismissive tone only made meangrier.
“Gwen, someone’s coming,” Rhys warned, and I looked up to see a couple of men approaching from across the property. They were still pretty far off, but I couldn’t afford anyone to notice the amount of magic I was wielding just now. “Whatever you’re going to do, do it now,” Rhysadded.
I didn’thesitate.
Sparks flew in more ways than one. All around me, magic snapped and crackled and left tiny sparks in its wake. Like sharpened flint grating against stone, heat surged in the air between the three of us, filling the space with electricity. My fingertips tingled even before I reached for Rhys. When my hand slid into his, my bodythrummed.
One by one, Cael’s tattoos shattered, and the magic was stripped from his skin. Tiny specks of light blinked on and off over our heads while I worked, and I knew it was the last of the magic snuffing out of each one of his inked spells. I could only hope those approaching were too far off tonotice.
