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‘I didn’t think that you were.’
His raised an eyebrow in question then pulled it back down. I’d surprised him. ‘You didn’t?’
‘No.’
He faltered and looked almost frustrated. He put his hands in his pockets. ‘Well then.’
He looked behind me, following the movements of Bird as he continued to do some aerial acrobatics. A fat lot of good the caladrius had been against Jingo’s men – not that I’d needed him. But it reinforced my belief that he wasn’t a violent creature.
Krieg held out a hand and gave a light trill. To my surprise, Bird flew to him and rested on his outstretched finger. Saying nothing out loud, the ogre looked at the bird – but I’d seen enough non-verbal conversations to know that one was going on without me.
I waited whilst they spoke silently; it was only out of respect for Krieg’s title – and a desire to live – that I held my tongue impatiently.
As a barely audible huff slipped from my lips, Krieg’s eyes snapped to mine. They were a striking shade of grey, almost mercury-silver, and different to any human eyes I’d ever seen. He was a creature of the Other realm but, unlike me and the other human elements, he didn’t have to re-charge in the Common realm. He could exist wholly within the Other and never run out of magic.
My skin had started to itch viciously, which told me that my little spat with Lenny had used up the last vestiges of my magic and I needed a recharge urgently. Damn it, I’d have to text Channing and tell him to meet me at the hall instead. I couldn’t go in there without backup. I scratched absently at my neck. The itch was agonising and I wanted to tear off my skin to make it stop.
Krieg reached out and pulled my hand away from my neck. I realised with sudden panic that I was still staring into his eyes. Shit – I was challenging the king of ogres! I tore my gaze away and lowered my eyes to his chest. ‘No disrespect was intended!’ I blurted out.
‘None taken,’ he said mildly. ‘You used up your magic on the wizard?’
I said nothing: I wasn’t going to admit that I was running on empty. I had no reserves and if Krieg started a fight with me… I tightened my grip on my truncheon. It would be as much use a water pistol against a forest fire, but it was all I had.
Krieg reached into his pocket and I tensed, but all he pulled out was a vial. I frowned. Ogres don’t believe in taking healing potions because they consider it to be a sign of weakness. Injured ogres heal or die: that was it.
‘You know Amber DeLea?’ he asked. It was clear from his tone that he knew I did, at least a little. Amber and I had met on a few occasions but we were no more than acquaintances.
‘I do.’
‘This is her Other Realm Additional Length potion. It allows the imbiber to rejuvenate their powers without attending the portal.’
‘I’ve heard of it,’ I said cautiously. I wondered what the ogre was planning to ask me for in exchange for the rare and expensive vial. As far as I knew, the witches had pretty much mainlined all of the poorly named ORAL potion that had been produced so far. Getting one was harder than obtaining an original Banksy.
‘Here.’ He held it out to me.
I took it reflexively even though I had no intention of taking a potion from a stranger. Not even a royal one.
Bird squawked, ‘ORAL potion.’ Nothing in the file about the caladrius suggested he’d be an expert in potions, but he’d just had a five-minute chat with Krieg. If anything, that made me even more suspicious of the contents of the vial.
Krieg sighed and ran his hand through his black hair – no doubt that was how he achieved his tousled look. ‘I swear on my oath as an ogre that this is a vial of Amber DeLea’s ORAL potion. If you imbibe it, no harm will come to you. Should I lie, let the realm strike me down as an oath breaker. So mote it be.’ He glowed yellow as the oath took hold.
My mouth dropped open.
‘You have my oath. Now stop being stubborn and take the potion before you scratch yourself raw,’ he growled.
With effort, I pulled my hand away from my arm where it was now frantically scratching. I dislike being ordered around – it’s the reason I’ve accepted that I’ll never attain a rank higher than DI. Still, the itching was killing me…
I wanted to slide into Krieg’s head, to see his motivation in helping me, but he’d just proved he had some skill in the mental arts because he’d spoken silently to Bird. Besides, my mum had taught me not to peek into others’ minds. Lenny was different – I’d gone inside him out of necessity. I’d be looking inside Krieg’s head out of curiosity.
Krieg was still glowing from the oath he’d sworn. I waited a beat then pulled out the cork stopper and downed the potion in one. Instantly the vile sensation of itching left me, and when I gathered my intention I felt the answering swell of my magic. Relief and amazement washed through me. I was back to being fully powered.
But the question remained: why on earth would Krieg want to help me? And what did he want in return?
Chapter Eight
I didn’t thank him for the vial. In some subsets of the Other realm, that would acknowledge and create a debt between us. ‘Why did you give me that?’ I asked instead.
Krieg smiled a little. ‘Have a good day, Stacy Wise.’ To my surprise, he held a hand to his heart and gave me a bow, lower than the bow I’d given him. Before I could recover, he turned on his heel and walked away.
