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The woman smiled and moved the bride to rest on the pavers. Blood still flowed from her neck.
Margetta leaped toward Hannah in a swift upward flight, faster than Hannah thought she could move. In a split second, she caught Hannah beneath her arms and lifted her into the night sky. She was moving incredibly fast, ever higher. The sickly sweet smell came off the ancient fae’s skin so that it was all Hannah could do not to throw up.
She watched the world grow smaller and knew the time had come. She reached deep within herself and found the vibrating source of her fire and began in slow stages to build it until Margetta was pressing her hands tight to Hannah’s ribs.
“You really wouldn’t be that stupid to risk your life when we’re almost at five thousand feet. Because if you burn me again, I’ll have to drop you. Silly girl.” She increased the pressure.
Hannah had already made up her mind and didn’t hesitate. She let the fire-gift within her explode outward.
Margetta screamed as she released her, a scream that turned into a witch’s cackle. “It’s a long way down, my dear. I don’t suppose you can fly, can you?”
The force of the separation, as well as Hannah’s growing power, held her in a brief spurt of levitation. “Go to hell and by the way, you’re not all that!” She then drew on her power once more and sent fire from her palms and arms that blasted the ancient fae, thrusting her backward at least forty feet.
Margetta flew shrieking toward the northeast, a ball of fire. Hannah knew Margetta would survive. She had no illusions about that. Only something more profound than blistered skin would take the ancient fae out.
But the bitch would need time to recover.
However, now she was a mile above Kellcasse, and her levitation began to slip. She tried to recapture it, but failed, and she began to fall, gathering speed way too fast.
Hannah tilted backward so that she had on odd view of a very pretty night sky above her. Jude, I’m earthbound. Catch me if you can.
She hoped to hell that Jude was somewhere close, but if not, then she was satisfied that she’d done what was right and her conscience was clear. She’d gotten Margetta away from a lovely bride and groom and all the guests and had hurt her enough to eliminate her as a threat for the rest of the night.
She held herself in a cradled position, hoping against hope that Jude would see her and catch her.
~ ~ ~
When Margetta had plucked Hannah from the square and lifted her straight into the air, Jude had reacted instinctively, racing toward the spot where she’d been.
Though most of the mist had retreated with Margetta’s flight, some remained and he’d had a hard time remaining conscious.
But Hannah’s voice in his head forced him to look up. When he saw her plummeting toward the earth, he got his ass in gear, forged his way out of the remaining mist, then shot forward barely three feet above the terrain hoping like hell he could intercept her.
He was barely going to make it and tried to gain as much altitude as possible. Unfortunately, he was only twenty feet above the ground when he caught Hannah in his arms, her own force-of-fall driving him hard into several tough cabbages.
It hurt.
He lay very still, afraid to discover his back had been broken or that just catching Hannah had somehow injured her. He took a breath then another.
“Am I alive?” Hearing Hannah’s voice caused him to heave a deep sigh of relief.
“Yes, you are, thank the Goddess. Are you injured?”
“I don’t think so, but are you? I mean I was traveling fast and you had no room to give.”
“I’m pretty strong, if bruised.”
Hannah struggled to right herself, then gained her feet.
Jude stared up at the stars for a moment. He watched as several of his Guardsmen began to gather in the air, looking down at him.
He ached in a few places, especially where the row of cabbages had broken his fall. He lifted his head. Not bad. Then his shoulders. Ouch.
Hannah extended her hand to him. It was so odd that she would offer to help him up, he and his two-eighty frame. He took her hand, but instead of standing up, he pulled her onto his lap and did a limb-by-limb search to make sure she really was all right.
“I’m okay. I am. You caught me.”
She rested her arms on his shoulders until he was satisfied that she was uninjured. He slid his arms around her waist and kissed her once. “Thank the Goddess. I saw a streak of flames so I take it you let loose with your fire-power.”
