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I don't think I'd ever been so glad to see that skyline looming ahead of me. We went into the depths of the Holland Tunnel, then emerged on Canal Street in the refreshing combination of weirdness and normality that was Manhattan. It was good to be home. Then I realized that was the first time I'd truly thought of New York as home.
Ethan took us straight to the office and said he'd be back in a little while, after he got the car parked. By this time it took both Merlin and me to get Owen up to Merlin's office. The initial shock had worn off enough that he was really feeling the pain now, and that, combined with the morning's exertions, had left him weak and shaky. We got him onto Merlin's couch, then I had Trix call for the company healer while Merlin got a painkilling potion into him.
While the healer tended to Owen, Merlin pulled me aside. "You did very good work today, Katie."
"Thank my brother Frank, who really wanted me to go out for softball."
"Not just that, but you kept a clear head in a frightening situation that would have scared many people."
"It scared me," I admitted. "But I thought if anyone could handle it, you two could. I mean, come on, you're Merlin. How can they beat that? And Owen's not so bad, either."
"He is a truly remarkable young man." Merlin's face grew thoughtful and his eyes were solemn as he watched the healer working on Owen's shoulder. "Quite remarkable." A shiver went down my spine at his tone of voice.
Ethan came in then. "Is he going to be okay?" He gestured with his head toward Owen.
"It appears so," Merlin said. "And now, I would like a word with you. I have a proposition to make." The three of us moved over to Merlin's conference table and sat down. "I'm not sure if we can fight the rest of our battles in the legal arena, but I'm coming to see where the law is a great power in this place and time, and it's a power we need to harness. We also have great need for people with immunity to magic. We can only hope that we find both in the same person.
Would you be interested in a more permanent position here, Mr. Wainwright?"
Ethan blinked. "You mean, you're offering me a job?"
"How would you like to be our corporate attorney?"
"I'd be honored. I'd have to rearrange some things at my practice, but I've got a partner who'd be up to moving into a more substantial role. I'm not sure I could come over on a full-time basis, but perhaps we could work out a retainer?"
"Whatever you think is best, but I would like to be able to call upon your expertise whenever it's needed."
"I'd like that, too. After this, the usual software cases are going to be boring."
The healer finished with Owen, who came over to join us. He carried his left arm in a sling and he still looked pale. The blood on his shirt didn't make him look any better.
"Apparently, I'll live," he said dryly. "I suppose I need to worry about what we should do next."
"I've asked Mr. Wainwright to serve as our corporate counsel on a more permanent basis," Merlin said.
Owen nodded. "Good idea."
"And I'd like to form a task force to address this issue." It sounded like a certain ancient wizard had been reading contemporary business books. If he brought up quality teams, I was going to run screaming. "I can begin working with the greater magical community to build a coalition. Meanwhile, we need to find other avenues of fighting this battle. Mr. Wainwright will provide the legal angle, Miss Chandler will lend her marketing and communications expertise, and Mr. Palmer will focus on the magical aspects."
His voice grew firm. "We will not—we can not—let the likes of these destroy the foundations of a way of life I built more than a millennium ago. I would rather there be no magic left in the world than to let people like that subvert it. I hope it doesn't come to that. We won't let it come to that."
I felt properly inspired, and a little scared at the same time. There was something to be said for blissful ignorance. But would I have been happier with no idea about what threatened my world? At least this way I stood a chance of doing something about it. There weren't too many problems in the world where I could make a meaningful impact.
"But we'll start work on that Monday morning," Merlin said. "For now, all of us need to rest. Thank you all for your efforts this mom-ing."
Ethan headed out first, then Merlin told me to make sure Owen got home safely. I decided this was no time for frugality and had Sam hail us a cab. Neither of us spoke as we sat together in the backseat. Owen looked beyond exhausted, but the healer had said he would mend quickly. He just needed rest.
The cab pulled to a stop on Owen's street, in front of a row of elegant town homes.
Owen tried to insist that I stay in the cab and have it take me straight home, but I shook my head. "No, I'll walk from here. Besides, with the one-way streets, it's quicker to walk than drive."
We watched the taxi drive away, then stood there for a moment. "It's been quite a day, hasn't it?" he said after a while.
"That's an understatement. You were incredible there. I had no idea what you could do. I'm still not sure I have that good a handle on what magic really is."
He turned pink, which I took as a good sign, as it meant his color was coming back.
"You weren't so bad yourself."
