Matlock hurried swiftly down the stairs, past the servants’ quarters, and to the entrance to the wine cellar. He produced a large key and opened the trapdoor, then locked it behind him as they descended the stairs ahead of him.
He spoke a spell and a bright blue light filled the space around them. The cellar was full of different types of magic, overlapping each other like cross stitches.
Darcy blinked in the sudden brightness. Next to him, Elizabeth shaded her eyes with her hands.
Darcy scowled at his uncle. “I hope you have a good reason for locking us in the basement.”
“A very good one.” He paused, then, to Darcy’s astonishment, he gave a wide grin. “Your captive has arrived. I have surrounded him with all kinds of Elemental magic, but you and Elizabeth need to Bond and set up Wards around him quickly. The Elemental magic will not last for long.”
Elizabeth shivered in the damp cold of the cellar, and Matlock cast a Warming spell. The worst of the cold receded.
“I had a room especially constructed for him. It has magic in the walls that will Muffle his own magic.”
He pointed to a table. “I have food for you there, in case you deplete your energy, and two armchairs.”
Darcy thought of Elizabeth’s question.
“Why did you not warn us? I thought he was not coming for another ten days.”
“You could hardly expect me to announce the time of his arrival to everyone, could you? Now, if you do not need anything else, I will leave you to do your work. I will return in two hours to make certain nothing untoward has happened. If for some reason you need to call me – and I hope that will not happen—your man Evans is standing outside. Knock on the door seven times in very quick succession, three times.”
“I shall take my leave now. Good luck.”
He climbed back up to the trapdoor, stepped out, then closed and locked it.
Darcy looked at Elizabeth.
“Well, that was unexpected.”
“It was. It is a good thing we practiced Bonding earlier, and that it worked. So shall we get started? I would like to go back to bed if at all possible.”
Going back to bed was a much more appealing prospect than working in a dark cellar, but Darcy doubted very much that they could accomplish their task that quickly.
It was going to be a long night.
Chapter 11
