“Opening for what?”
“Forwhom,” Mercier corrected. “And you already know. I’m his driver, and you’re the one who sent him a telegram.”
So Mercierwasdoing this at the behest of the Earl of Blanshard. Jade had warned Wesley the earl might be more dangerous than he seemed—that Blanshard was, at the very least, a thief. Wesley should have listened.
“I don’t recall telegramming the earl to send his pet reprobate to threaten me,” Wesley said, like he wasn’t cursing himself. “If he wanted an apology for my behavior at a three-years-past soiree, he could have simply fucking asked.”
“You brought this on yourself, my lord,” Mercier said, with heavy sarcasm on the title. “You shouldn’t have whined to the earl about your run-in with Sebastian de Leon.”
For fuck’s sake. De Leon was involved in this too? “Friend of yours?” Wesley said bitingly.
“Hell no,” Mercier said, with feeling. “Sebastian’s always got to be special, doesn’t he? Special family, special legacy, special magic.”
“Specialwhat?” Wesley could not have heard right. “Are you also a bootlegger? Is this more of your code?”
Mercier rolled his eyes, like he was very tired of Wesley. The flames rose another inch higher, and Wesley understood with sudden, bone-deep certainty that Mercier intended to kill him.
“The earl will have questions for you, but that’s not my job,” Mercier went on. “My job is to get as much magic as I can in your aura.”
He was talking complete gibberish, every single word out of his mouth was nonsense, but the cage still shimmered around them, and the flames ringing Wesley burned infernally hot.
“Of course, that means using my pyrokinesis on you.” Mercier smiled one of the most horrible smiles Wesley had ever seen. “And you’re not fireproof like I am. Don’t worry; no one comes when you scream.”
Wesley tried to process what that could possibly mean, his brain refusing to acceptauraorpyrokinesisbut very much understandingscream.
And then Wesley was on fire too.
His leather gloves were suddenly enveloped in flames, shooting up his forearms like he’d reached into a stove. It burned straight through his coat, too fast and too hot, fabric blistering his skin in a shock of pain so sudden a cry tore itself from his throat—
“Let him go!”
Wesley knew that voice.
Relief swept through him just as something swept down the alley like a tidal wave. The glimmering cage burst into shimmering dust, the flames went out like they’d been doused with water, and Wesley’s legs collapsed under him like jelly.
He fell to the alley floor. His body wouldn’t move, his muscles heavy as lead. The dust of the cage fell like glittery rain around him, vanishing before it hit the cobblestones, as Wesley tried to force his leaden eyelids to stay open. Mercier was staggering like a drunk, just flesh and blood again with his flames gone like Wesley’s prison.
I’m not on fire anymore either,some distant part of Wesley realized.
“And of course it’s the spanner in the works.” Mercier straightened up, and the alley was suddenly lit as he burst back into flame. “I didn’t realize you were still in London until Lord Jackass here told us. You’re going to regret showing yourself, Sebastian.”
Wesley tried to lift his head, but he could only make out a man’s silhouette in the archway at the mouth of the alley, leaning hard on the wall.
Sebastian’s voice came again. “Get away from the viscount.”
And the inexplicable sensation of a toppling flood came harder. Wesley’s head hit the pavement, but Mercier’s aura of flames disappeared again like a match shaken out. “Fuck,” he bit out, sounding genuinely unsettled. He raised his voice. “I know your limit! I can wait you out. This is all your magic and you can’t keep this up.”
Except Mercier didn’t sound at all certain anymore.
“Iwillkeep this up,” came Sebastian’s voice, strained like he was carrying a huge weight, “until Lord Fine is safe. And I cannot promiseyourmagic will survive our battle.”
Magic,Wesley mouthed to himself. He was so very tired, his limbs utterly useless, his body glued to the ground.
“Bluffing, you’re bluffing, you don’t have that power!” But Mercier had gone paler, and was backing away from Sebastian.
Sebastian’s silhouette lifted one shaky hand. Mercier squawked and bolted in the opposite direction, disappearing beyond the bend where the headlight beams couldn’t reach.
As Sebastian stumbled down the alley, the lethargy vanished from Wesley so suddenly he reeled. His eyes popped open, his limbs strong and body hale again. He pushed himself up to sitting just as Sebastian fell to his hands and knees on the pavement next to him.
