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Henry moved forward, his spear upright. “Mastyr, Margetta will be here in three minutes. Our scouts have sighted her force. They’re on our back trail.”
She felt Quinlan grow very still, the kind of stillness that only a vampire could do and if he hadn’t been holding her upright, she would have thought he’d disappeared. She just didn’t know what to do about the vibrations battering her or how long she could endure them.
* * * * * * * * *
Quinlan had faced a lot of enemies in his day, but nothing like the one headed in their direction.
He held a shivering woman in his arms that he sensed had some kind of connection to the Dead Forest, but who also held the only viable form of protection against Margetta. He needed her to deploy her enthrallment shield and to do it now, or they’d all be dead and Lorelei captured by her brutal parent.
His ancestors had long-ago developed a stillness technique, a very un-dead quality. If he’d been alone, he would have appeared as a statue to those powerful enough to see him, but invisible to most. He couldn’t imagine what Batya felt. He wasn’t even sure she could feel him right now.
But stillness gave the mind opportunity to process faster, think clearer and with greater flexibility than an active vampire body.
So despite his impulse to do something, anything, he drew his breathing to just short of a halt, and let his brain work. Batya, Margetta, Lorelei. The three women’s names flowed through his head over and over.
Batya.
Margetta.
Lorelei.
Lorelei the wraith-shifter, one of the most powerful realm-beings he’d ever encountered. Batya with a layer of power even Henry hinted resided within her realm-soul. Margetta, evil, manipulative, intent on her prize at all costs.
Batya.
Margetta.
Lorelei.
The idea sprang into his head, fully-formed, and he called out to Lorelei. “I need you here. Come here. Now.”
Instead of jumping down from her perch slung between two troll warriors, she shifted suddenly into her wraith form, as though understanding. She floated in front of him, her eyes glowing.
She frowned at Batya. “The forest has enthralled her.”
“I know. Put your hand on her back. I know you can do this, Lorelei, but you must block the vibrations so that she can settle her shield around us. Do you understand?”
The worried look in the woman’s eye, told him she didn’t believe herself capable, but she reached forward with the long, oddly shaped fingers of the wraith and touched Batya.
The fae body, holding tightly to him, arched once. Then a heavy sigh poured from her lungs and throat. “Oh, thank God.”
“You mean I did it?” Lorelei’s cheeks darkened with surprising color.
“Yes, you broke the forest’s hold on her.”
Batya drew back, blinking several times in a row. She stared at Quinlan. “I don’t know what that was.”
Henry intruded. “Margetta is half-a-minute out.”
Quinlan took Batya’s shoulders and searched her eyes. Cha, we’re in trouble here and I need you to do the impossible right now.
She nodded. The shield.
As quick as you can. You can do this. I know you can.
I see her. Batya suddenly squared her shoulders. He felt the enthrallment shield emerge like a wave of warm water flowing thickly all around him, then past him.
Still keeping contact with her, he turned slightly to watch as the shield moved like a living thing past troll after troll.
Margetta, this time in her wraith form, flew swiftly, darting in the direction of the edge of Batya’s wave. If she caught the edge, she’d be inside the shield. Quinlan was no fool and he’d waged war in the Nine Realms against a host of enemies. He knew Margetta’s power. She’d destroy them all.
He shifted to look at Batya who tracked Margetta as well.
Batya’s eye sparked with something he recognized and Quinlan smiled. She gave a sudden cry, her face twisted with a warrior’s grimace, and with a sharp outpouring of her power she closed the shield and locked Margetta out.
The result was a wraith-shriek like nothing Quinlan had heard before as Margetta, having lost the advantage, screamed her frustration. She paced above them, flying in quick jerks over the shallow space of dry land, and he felt her battle frequency light up.
“Holy shit, let’s get the f**k out of here. Henry, keep your men tight. Batya, hold that shield.”
Lorelei shifted back into her fae form and her trolls rushed forward to catch her up in the sling. In turn, Quinlan slid his arm around Batya’s waist and held her against him. He turned, heading up the path that led through the Dead Forest to their next destination, praying to the Goddess that Batya’s shield, untried in a moving setting, would hold.
Quin, hold me tight even as I twist around in your arms. I have to see the brigade to sustain the shield. Tell Henry to keep the men close together.
Done.
He ignored the impulse to rush up the path but instead flew at a pace to track with Henry and the brigade. Batya pivoted hard in order to face backward so she could see the last of the trolls.
They’re moving close. That’s perfect. If your scouts fall back, I can’t protect them.
Henry understands. Just hold it steady. Can I go faster?
As long as Henry’s brigade stays close, speed is fine.
She sounded so damn confident, despite the fact that she trembled, and he loved that about her. But battle energy showed up in many forms and the shakes had come to him more than once as well.
There was something, however, he needed to know. How important is Lorelei to this equation right now? Could you hold the shield without her?
Yes, because she broke the forest’s hold on me. Do you see Margetta?
She’s ahead of us about thirty yards, but much higher in the air.
I don’t see her force.
I believe your shield has created enough confusion that they don’t know where to go.
Why isn’t she back with them?
I think she’s waiting for a chance for the shield to weaken enough that she can grab Lorelei, or she may have some other plan.
What do you mean?
He ground his teeth. Remember the map? We’ve got a series of switchbacks coming in about two minutes as we start climbing through the Pleach Mountains.
I won’t be able to see the brigade.
Quinlan frowned. What if we flew over the mountains, in a straight line? You’d be above the forest.
My instincts tell me the vibrations would probably return, but we could try anyway.
Let’s at least give it a shot.
He pathed to Henry and a few seconds later, the entire brigade started rising.
