Chynne made a gagging sound. “Enough of the mushy sentiments. Hellhounds are trailing him, so someone powerful knows of his existence, or at least, suspects. He’s no longer safe in the human realm. He has magic but is more menace than mage. Since his abilities have awakened, no hiding him now.”
“What of his magic?” Saris asked Wycke. “You told me he was strong.”
Wycke took over the telling. Apparently, thoughts didn’t even slow down on the way from Chynne’s brain to his mouth. Maybe time spent hanging out wherever he’d been meant he no longer knew how to deal with humans. “Mostly dormant, until—”
Chynne cast a silencing spell of his own, shutting Wycke up. “Until your brother’s compatible magic awakened Pieravor’s. Now, the combination of the two is totally out of control. Until a few days ago, he’d never seen fairies, ogres, or elves in their true form.”
Piers lay back in the chair, mouth hanging open, emitting a grating noise likely to attract dragons searching for a mate. Maybe Wycke had been better off for Piers not spending the whole night in his hotel room.
Saris stared a moment at Piers, shook her head, and returned her focus to Wycke. “Did you find his mother’s spellbook?”
“Mmm…”
“Oh, pardon me.” Chynne flicked a paw in Wycke’s direction, enabling speech again.
“Umm… no,” Wycke replied, glaring at Chynne. “We barely had time to save Piers.”
“By all the gods, goddesses, ancestors, and anyone else you pray to! Do you have any idea of the evil she kept in her grimoire?” Saris yanked at her hair. “Do you have any idea what our brother could do with that book?”
“But he doesn’t have…” Wycke shut up, recalling the magic he’d felt from Radre earlier, then imagined Nyanda’s worst ideas falling into Radre’s hands.
Wycke once took a peek into Aberfrer’s grimoire. The stuff of nightmares. How much worse was Lady Nyanda’s? “If Piers had her grimoire, we’d better get it back soon.”
“The fate of both realms could depend on who holds Nyanda’s spells,” Saris said quietly.
“And who can manage the newly discovered sorcerer with more power than sense?” Chynne added. He nodded toward Piers.
Saris shrank in on herself. “Oh, dear. We need to plan.”
They all turned their gazes to Piers, now snuffling quietly in his sleep. He swatted at his nose, mumbling, “Just five more minutes, Jess.”
Chynne let out a sigh. “Gods help us all.”
After a night of tossing, turning, and listening to Piers’ drunken snores, Wycke managed to drag his recovering houseguest into his sister’s domain. All night, Chynne had lain between Wycke and Piers, supposedly to protect his sorcerer.
Cockblock. Yeah, Wycke now knew the meaning, not that he’d have taken advantage of an inebriated man.
They gathered on Saris’s balcony, Chynne erecting a magical barrier to enable them to talk freely. The familiar, in cat form, sat on the ledge while Piers sat with Saris at her little table.
Piers’ hair stood in every direction, regardless of Wycke’s attempts to tame the mass. The moment he set the brush down, Piers ran his fingers through his short strands again, moaning, “No, no, no. This can’t be happening.”
Now he sat somewhat stiff-backed, flicking his eyes in the direction of movement every time a fairy or pixie flitted past, silently mouthing,“No, no, no.”
Poor guy. Much as Wycke’s first foray into the human realm, encountering cars, packed cities, and reality TV, the first taste of a new realm did tend to leave one off-kilter.
Wycke sprawled in a chair to the side, watching lest Piers suddenly run. Wycke hadn’t foreseen this mess when he’d gone to see his brother-by-bonding a handful of days ago. He should have refused the royal summons and stayed in bed.
“I’ve contacted the other tribes,” Chynne said. “Most cannot interfere directly without breaking treaties but wish you well in your endeavors.”
Possibly the nicest “fuck you” of Wycke’s experience.
Piers harrumphed. “A lot of good that does.” He slumped, elbow on the table, head propped on the one hand, looking like the hungover man he was. Chynne could fix the problem with a swish of his tail but probably enjoyed watching humans suffer.
“Don’t undervalue their support,” Chynne said. “They cannot appear to openly take sides, but I believe you’ll need their alliance one day.”
Yes, after they’d figured out what they were up against and set things to rights.
“So, what do we do?” Saris sat with her hands folded neatly on the table, ignoring her breakfast.