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“Yes. I would not ask this task of anyone without providing full disclosure of who and what might be involved.”
Fair enough. “I’ll head down there now. We seem to be at something of a standstill at the moment.”
“That,” Kiandra said, her expression grim, “will not last.”
A chill ran through me. I knew well enough that sooner or later we’d be up to our necks in deadlines and trouble, but hearing Kiandra say it—or rather, hearing the heaviness and perhaps even the touch of fear in her voice—was as scary as all hell breaking loose.
“The next nineteen hours will make or break your cause, and our world,” she continued softly. “Be wary, both of you, or all will be lost.”
I nodded. I couldn’t do anything else right at that moment—fear and panic and an almost overwhelming sense of doom had my throat locked so tight, words just couldn’t get through.
“And while I think about it,” she added, “Rozelle mentioned that you’d found a second barrier in the basement of that warehouse that she didn’t have the skill to counter.”
Rozelle was one the Brindle’s trainee witches, and the woman who’d helped weave an exception into the magic protecting that warehouse so that Azriel could enter it without harm. “We did, but it’s undoubtedly dangerous—”
“Which only means,” she cut in, “that it is also undoubtedly vital. No sorceress would waste energy creating such a strong barrier if there was nothing worthy of protection within. I have assigned a team to it.”
“Did Rozelle also tell you that our sorceress is a multishifter who can take on any form she desires? She could approach them as me, or even you, and they’d never know until it was too late.”
Kiandra smiled, and it was a dangerous thing to behold. “Trust me, she would not want to try. She is not the only one with a trick or two up her sleeve.”
And that, I thought with a shiver, was the reason why Kiandra was the head of the Brindle.
“I just don’t want anyone else in the line of fire because of me—”
“It is not b
ecause of you, but rather this quest. You fail, and it will not go well for the rest of us.”
I swallowed heavily. Nothing like having your fears so boldly out in the open. “Then I guess I’d better not fail.”
“That sounds like a rather good plan.” She smiled a good-bye—though it did little to break the concern in her eyes—and hung up. I stared at the black screen for several seconds before slowly shoving it back in my pocket.
“Well,” I said eventually. “That sucks.”
“Yes,” Azriel commented. “But it might well be worth uncovering what lies behind that wall.”
“I know.” I waved a hand. “I was referring to her confirmation of our time-frame limitations.”
He shrugged. “Think of the shorter time frame as a benefit rather than a curse. At least it means we can move on with a life together once we survive it.”
“Yeah, but it’s the whole ‘surviving it’ bit that has me worried.” I eyed him for a moment. “It’s not like you’ve been overly effusive about the possibility, now, is it?”
“That’s because, as you say in this world, I refuse to count my chickens before they hatch.”
“Or because you’re more intimate with fate’s plans than what you’re saying, and even you’re not sure we’ll both survive.”
“There is also that possibility,” he agreed. “But you can be certain that I will not only do all in my power to ensure you survive, but that I am here to enjoy the oncoming years beside you.”
Yeah, but would the fates come to the party as well? That was the question that worried the hell out of me. Especially given that Azriel wasn’t giving any ironclad guarantees.
“Because no life, either here or on the fields, ever comes with an ironclad guarantee,” he said softly, “simply because life is a series of intersections and alternate pathways. What path you take not only depends on your actions and decisions, but also on every action and decision of all those who come into your life—however peripherally.”
“Meaning our future lies in the hands of a mad sorceress set on unleashing hell on earth, and the bloodsucking disciple of a god getting orgasmic at the thought of ultimate power?” I muttered. “Fabulous not, as Amaya would say.”
Just kill, Amaya commented. Fix problem.
I couldn’t help laughing, even as I wished the answer was that simple. I Googled Found Treasures to get the address and realized it was on Therry Street, just near the organics section of the Victoria Market. I raised my gaze to Azriel. “Can you take us there?”
