Page 86 of Dark Victory

Sam was okay, Tabby thought, relieved. She reached out for the calm and it came swiftly to her. “What do you want? Why did you follow me into the past?” And then she wondered at the coincidence—two evil things had followed her into the past from New York City. “Wait a minute. Was it you at the Met? Did you try to get into my loft? Did you attack me the other night in Macleod’s chamber?”

“I wish I had that kind of power. Unfortunately, I have to be present to use my magic on you.”

Tabby began to shake. She believed her. Not because of what she had said, but because this woman did not have the same imprint of evil as the woman from An Tùir-Tara. Kristin was a diluted version, somehow. “How are you related to An Tùir-Tara?” she demanded.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Kristin’s pleasant smile and demeanor vanished. “I was there.”

Tabby stared, surprised. “And I’m going to be there, too, aren’t I?” She didn’t know how she knew. Or maybe she did—all those emotions were just too intense not to belong to her.

Kristin grinned. “Hmm, how shall I answer? No, you will be there…Wait! Yes, you were there.”

Tabby felt ill. And she knew suddenly that if she looked at the fire, she was going to feel all of the evil and hatred, the rage and outrage, despair, loss and love associated with An Tùir-Tara all over again. She kept her eyes on Kristin. “What happened?”

Kristin gave her a disparaging look. “It doesn’t matter. What matters is I am going to destroy you, Tabitha. And I just can’t wait to feel your pain.” She licked her lips.

Tabby inhaled. Kristin was demonic. Not completely—but somewhere in her genes, she was tainted with Satan’s blood.

Tabby prayed for courage and strength. Then she dismissed Kristin and dared to look at the fire. She stared into the flames, feeling sick, beginning to feel the hatred, the evil, the rage—the love. The sight blinded her. Sweat trickled from her brow. She could not let the emotions paralyze her now. “Fire obey me, fire go out.”

The fire hesitated, and then it began decreasing in size.

“Fire obey me, fire go out!” Tabby cried.

As the fire shifted, becoming even smaller, Kristin hissed, “Fire arise.” And the flames blazed.

Tabby realized Kristin had great power—more than she did. She breathed hard and fought the dizziness brought on by those terrible feelings, and said, “Fire obey me, fire go out.”

The fire subsided into a few small flames, and then into embers. Tabby was surprised and relieved, but Kristin seized her by the hair, crying, “Fire, arise.”

The fire blazed and she shoved her face toward the flames. “Who is stronger, bitch? And don’t you want to know where your protector is?”

Tabby tensed in alarm. She reminded herself that Macleod could take care of himself.

“He went out with his men this morning. Not only is he far to the east, he is under my spell.”

“I don’t believe you,” Tabby gasped. “He’s too powerful for a petty magician like you.”

Kristin hissed, “Fire arise!”

The flames roared, becoming a bonfire the size of an entire room. Tabby began to struggle, because if she was pushed into that inferno, she was dead. Kristin laughed and the five boys grabbed her and started dragging her closer to the bonfire. Tabby clawed at them. Heat engulfed her, and she was so close to the flames Tabby thought her dress and hair would catch on fire.

“Fire obey me,” she panted. “Fire go out!”

The fire wavered, its hesitation clear.

The boys pushed her closer.

Thunder sounded.

In confusion, she looked upward as the thunder rolled more loudly, but the small patch of sky she glimpsed through the boughs overhead was brightly blue. And then the ground beneath her feet moved.

The thunder stopped.

She was abruptly released and she fell, hard, flames not far from her hands. Tabby rose. On the other side of the bonfire, she saw a woman on a horse.

She went still. Behind her, she heard the boys running away into the forest. She glanced back. Kristin stood as still as a statue, her expression livid.

Tabby looked back at the woman. She was dressed like a male medieval Highlander, in a belted thigh-length tunic and a royal-blue and black brat, and she held a full-size sword effortlessly in one hand. She rode her gray charger slowly forward. Hundreds of riders filled the forest behind her.