I couldn’t understand Danzig’s hate regarding necromancers and said as much, “They are your children. Necromancers are?—”
“Not warlocks,” Danzig all but hissed. “They are a mistake, a sign of weak genetics and failure. They should be culled upon birth.” As if he hadn’t just been discussing genocide, Danzig sighed heavily. “As I said, my conversations with Huxley were interesting and rather informative. I’m not stupid. I know Huxley was using me and that what he shared suited his needs, not mine. Take the manacles you find yourself trapped within. They were a gift, of sorts.” Resting his hip on the rusted metal desk, Danzig crossed his arms. “Huxley knew you’d be difficult.” Glancing around the room, Danzig raised his arms. “This was created especially for you. It seemed a waste not to make use of it simply because Huxley is no longer around.”
Bile crept up my throat, leaving a burning trail in its wake. My earlier panic was little more than a dull roar, replaced by painful betrayal. Huxley had come for me, too. I knew this. What I hadn’t known was what he planned on doing with me. Foolishly, I’d assumed he meant to kill me just like the others.
What an utter waste that would have been, when Huxley could harvest the magical pig he’d cultivated all these years. My tails. Huxley had been after my tails. He knew I’d never willingly give him another, not after what he’d done. Even if I’d been willing to sacrifice a tail or two, I wouldn’t have given up more than that. He’d need a different plan if he wanted more and if there was one surety where Tenzen Huxley was concerned, it was that healwayswanted more.
“I assume you’ve already attempted to translocate out of your restraints,” Danzig said.
My lack of response was answer enough.
“Hmm, I thought so.” Head bent, Danzig quietly chuckled. “Those cuffs are an interesting piece of magic. Huxley used the magic from one of your own tails to create them. He said it wasthe only way to bind a kitsune—use their own magic against them.”
I nearly lost my battle with nausea. My mind raced, tracing back through the decades to when I’d willingly given Tenzen one of my tails. He’d been planning this even then. It would have been so easy to wallow in the fresh wave of grief assaulting my soul. Its heady, depressive lull dug its talons in deep, threatening to drown me. But it wasn’t just me in this sinking ship. Niki was here too.
Somewhere.
Tenzen had already taken enough from me. I wouldn’t allow his shadowed ghost to take Niki too.
“Tell me where Niki is.” It wasn’t a request.
Danzig had the audacity to laugh. “Oh, that’s precious. You really think you’re in a position to make demands?”
“Yes.” I allowed all my contemptuous coldness to run through that singular word. Fake it till you make it wasn’t a saying for nothing, and I planned onmakingStefan Danzig suffer.
Brief as it was, a hint of doubt momentarily slid across Danzig’s soulless eyes. Its appearance was far too brief. I’d bring it back, and that doubt, along with an unhealthy dose of fear, would be the last bit of emotion Danzig would ever feel.
“That’s foolishly presumptuous of you.”
“It’s not,” I countered. I’d never been more positive of anything in my life. It didn’t matter that I had no viable plan. I’d always been a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-tails kind of kitsune. Opportunities arose all the time. I just needed to recognize when mine came around and act on it.
Danzig’s mouth thinned before twisting. Eyes narrowed to little more than slits and shoulders squared and tense, Danzig’s trapped magic flared around his fingers. The magics’ colors appeared just as sick as the last time I’d seen them. Those colorsbounced against a barrier only I could see, desperate for release. If Danzig got his way, that’s exactly what he’d do with the magic stored in my tails. He’d imprison and corrupt it. No magic should be contained like that, especially not the spirited magic of a kitsune.
“You want to see Holland so bad?” Danzig’s lips spread into a grotesque grin. “Fine, I’ll grant thisrequest. Maybe then you’ll truly understand your place.”
Instead of leaving the room, Danzig’s fingers danced through the air, weaving a sigil before slamming his hand into it. The magic flared, shooting toward a corner of the room, lighting the area as it went.
My heart thudded to a stop when that light illuminated my warlock. Niki laid on the ground in a crumbled heap. Danzig’s magical spell hefted Niki into the air, dragging him forward and depositing him at Danzig’s feet. The groan slipping through Niki’s lips was the only indication he was still alive.
Danzig triumphantly placed his fisted hands on his hips before pointing at Niki’s prone body. “There is themightyNikodemus Holland.”
My breath caught as I struggled to maintain my calm. Niki was alive. That was what was important. I would make certain my warlock was the last one standing when this clusterfuck was over.
“He is an interesting specimen.” My ears flicked in the direction of the new voice. I wasn’t sure when Warlock Alistair Raiden entered the room. My attention had been required elsewhere.
Obviously not waiting for anyone to inquire why Raiden considered Niki interesting, the warlock continued. “He exhausted himself trying to save a human. It is inconceivable, and yet that is exactly what happened.”
“Just as I predicted,” Danzig answered cockily.
“Yes. I suppose so.” Raiden didn’t sound overjoyed by that thought. Hand outstretched, magic danced around Raiden’s fingers. Just like Danzig, Raiden’s trapped magic balked at its restraint but did its wielder’s bidding. Magic flowed over and through Niki’s body, momentarily stilling when it reached the core of his chest. “He’s already fading.”
Blood rushed from my face, leaving me cold and clammy.
“It’s faster when a warlock has already drained his magic,” Danzig said. “It’s a pity, really. I’d hoped Holland would be conscious enough to witness stripping the kitsune of its tails. I would have enjoyed his pleas for mercy.”
“We could lend him just enough magic to revive him, at least for a short period of time. Removing the kitsune’s tails is not something Nikodemus should miss.” Raiden’s emotionless tone made is statement all the more chilling.
Danzig slapped Raiden on the shoulder. “A worthy consideration. Come, we still have a few specifics to discuss. Now that we have Holland and the kitsune taken care of, it’s time to turn our attention to Warlock Kines. He is better protected and insulated than Holland. I do not wish to incur the wrath of the Southeastern Vampire King or the Voss werewolf pack. Not to mention his brownie ward.”
