Page 5 of The Salted Sceptre
Hugo nodded grimly. ‘Not to mention that the only ace up our sleeve as far as that fiendish wanker is concerned is that he isn’t aware that we know he uses Culcreuch Castle as a hideout. If a bunch of witches show up there, try to magic him out of existence and don’t succeed…’
Sir Nigel held up his hands, pre-empting our concerns. ‘I share your worry. However, the Royal Elvish Institute is nothing if not predictable. They were always going to try something like this at some point. In fact, despite my protests, I suspect they’ve been preparing the witches to go after Athair for a while. There is a lot to admire about the Institute but, like you, I believe that any attempt to confront your father will end in a bloodbath. I have not mentioned Culcreuch to them for that very reason. Very few people are aware that Athair is living there.’
My brow furrowed. ‘If they don’t know where Athair is, how will they find him?’
Sir Nigel’s expression darkened further. ‘There have been reports in the last hour of sightings of him near the Meadows.’ He was referring to a large expanse of grassy parkland less than a mile from here. ‘The witches are already on their way there.’
I sucked in a sharp breath. Cumbubbling bollocks. Athair would only allow himself to be seen if he wanted to be, so those witches were walking into a very obvious trap. ‘I have to go to them. I can’t let them face Athair alone.’
Otis piped up from my shoulder. ‘You’re not strong enough to beat him either, Daisy.’
Gladys, who was sheathed by my side, buzzed in disagreement but Otis was right. ‘I know,’ I said quietly. ‘But he won’t hurt me.’ Much. ‘He wants me to join him. He doesn’t want me dead.’ Not yet, anyway.
‘We’re with you,’ Becky said bravely. Behind her, Rizwan nodded agreement.
‘No,’ I said. ‘I’ll go alone.’
Hugo growled, ‘The fuck you will.’
‘We don’t have time to argue.’ The words had barely left my mouth when a faint rumble came through the air, immediately followed by a tremor that shook the ground. Several people shrieked and flocks of nesting birds nearby squawked in alarm then took to the skies to flee. Otis and Hester joined them, rising up and flying at high speed to the edge of the square. Good; I needed them to be safe.
Hugo’s blue eyes narrowed. ‘It appears we don’t have time for anything.’
The rumbling intensified and the earthquake grew stronger. I stumbled forward and fell to the ground; the others were also pulled down with heavy thumps. Above the noise of the groaning sky, I heard glass shattering in the windows around us. And then, amid all those sounds, there was an odd whine that seemed to be coming from higher up.
The earth tremors continued to ripple across the square so trying to get to my feet was pointless – I’d only end up flat on my arse again. Instead, I twisted my head and squinted into the night sky to search for the source of the strange sound. I could see a few twinkling stars, some dusky clouds with a glimmer from the moon behind them – and five dark shapes suspended several hundred feet over my head.
As soon as I saw them they started to drop, as if they’d only been waiting for me to notice them. Each shape plummeted downwards as whatever eerie magic that had held them in place was released and gravity took over. Within a heartbeat, I realised that I was looking at five people, all of whom were heading for a messy landing that would doubtless result in their deaths.
A muted squeak escaped my lips and my right hand flailed towards Hugo, grabbing his arm in warning. I felt his body twist to follow my gaze, but before he’d even spotted what was happening I was already at work.
I conjured up a blast of powerful air magic that I directed towards the falling figures. The magic slid out of me easily these days, unhampered by the effects of spider’s silk or any concerns I might have about losing control. But supporting five people would take considerable effort.
My air magic slowed their descent, and it helped that Hugo had joined in and flung up some magic of his own. I felt others nearby also respond, sending up their own power, snagging the bodies to lower them safely to the ground.
Sweat dribbled down my forehead as the figure on the right slipped free of the net of magic and fell faster. As I struggled to pull out more magic to capture him, I heard Miriam grunt and sensed her air magic plume upwards and ensnare his body. I released a breath.
That was when a bright, flickering light caught my eye. It was fire: flames had appeared abruptly on the roof of the blood-soaked Royal Institute of Elves.
‘Fiend!’ somebody screamed. ‘That’s a fiend!’
Athair’s voice boomed out across the square. ‘You thought you could try and banish me?Me?’
I didn’t dare look directly at him, not until the five people overhead were safely on the ground. I clenched my jaw and tried to remain calm so I could focus on the task in hand.One problem at a time, Daisy, I told myself.Don’t let him throw you off balance.
‘You will pay for your pathetic attack!’ Athair yelled.
I’d say this about my birth father – he was certainly a fan of melodrama.
I rolled onto my back to get a better view of the descending figures. None of them appeared to be conscious, which was probably a blessing. I didn’t recognise them but everything suggested these were the witches employed by the Royal Institute to banish Athair from earthly existence. I certainly didn’t feel vindicated that their attempt had failed so easily, I just prayed for their sakes that they were still alive and we weren’t focusing our efforts on saving five corpses.
Something reached for me, gripping my ankle with a sudden, steely grip. I yelped, briefly and lost concentration – and lost my hold on my air magic. I half-expected the poor witches above me to drop like stones despite Hugo and the others’ magical efforts, but instead each body continued in a slow, controlled descent.
As I glanced down, I realised that it was Gordon Mackenzie who had grabbed me. ‘Boonder has them,’ he gasped. ‘He’s drawn a rune that will bring them safely to the ground.’
Thank fuck. As an elf I could call upon magic faster than any sorcerer or witch, but the runic magic that sorcerers employed, although slower, was often more extensive and powerful. I flashed a grateful smile in Gordon’s direction and stopped my energy-sapping flow of air, then scrambled to my feet to gaze at Athair.
He hadn’t wasted a moment while I’d been busy; he had taken that precious time to create a scene for himself that wouldn’t have looked out of place in Dante’s Inferno.
