“Angel,” Evariste started as he stood and turned in her direction. Abruptly, his facepaled.
“What—” Before Angelique could finish, Evariste extended his hand and shouted in the twisty language ofmagic.
Angelique’s hair stirred when a bolt of Evariste’s magic flashed pasther.
Behind her, someone screamed and then cut off in agurgle.
Angelique twisted around and took a staggering stepbackwards.
The orange-robed black mage she had left unconscious was collapsed behind her, his limbstwitching.
He stilled, and not even his chestmoved.
Evariste had killedhim.
“I think he’s dead.” Her eyes bugged, Angelique turned to stare atEvariste.
“He was going to hurt you.” The steel in Evariste’s voice was gone as he crossed the rooftop to stand withher.
“I’m a war mage. I can take pain,” Angeliquemuttered.
“I may have let my emotions get the best of me,” Evariste admitted. He stopped when he reached her, his eyes tracing over her. He gently reached out and brushed a strand of her hair from her face. “Are youhurt?”
Angelique shook her head. “No, but now we won’t be able to collect any information from them,” she saidglumly.
“We’ll search them and write up a report for both King Solon and the Veneno Conclave,” Evariste said. “Black mages don’t usually work together in large groups, so it is unlikely this was more than a small operation set up by thispair.”
Angelique nodded, but her eyes strayed to the body of the female black mage she hadkilled.
“Angelique,” Evaristesaid.
“Yes, Master Evariste?” Angelique reluctantly shifted her gaze back tohim.
Evariste kept his hands on her shoulders. “As a Lord Enchanter, I champion mercy and believe bloodshed should only be a last resort. But when someone attacks you with the intent of killing you, I want you to fight with everything you have, even if it means ending the life of another. Self-defense isneverto be condemned, nor is action on behalf of those who cannot protectthemselves.”
Evariste slid his hands down her arms and pulled her into a warm hug. “You saved everyone in the area by disarming that spell. The black mage was the one who chose to commit such a cruel act. You acted in heroism. Do youunderstand?”
Angelique pressed her head into his shoulder and saidnothing.
On a base level, she understood. It was better that the black mage was dead than if she had survived and managed to cast the spell. But what spooked her most was howeffortlessit had been on herpart.
The hardest bit was holding back her magic. It had so seamlessly slipped through the magic and clippedit…
Angelique released the haggard breath she had been holding in. “So, we search the mages next?” she said when she could talk in a voice that wasn’t wooden ordreary.
“Yes,” Evariste said. “And then we send word to KingSolon.”
* * *
“Theyattackedyou?”King Solon repeated, seemingly unsure of what he hadheard.
“The mage with twisted healing magic cut off Angel’s air supply, yes,” Evariste confirmed. “I’m not sure if they were trying to reel us in or legitimately killher.”
“But what on earth would possess them to attack an enchanter and his apprentice?” King Solon shook his head as he leaned against a stall door. (Today, Angelique and Evariste had been led to the royal stables, where apparently King Solon had just finished a ride with his son.) “They had to have known it was a losing battle the moment they waged it,” the Kingcontinued.
Angelique kept a pleasant smile on her face and her hands clasped in front of her. The familiar scent of horses and straw was soothing, but her gut still churned from the knowledge that she hadkilledawoman.
“It also begs the question of their location here,” Evaristesaid.
