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The yellow gave me a weak wink. “There’s my desert queen,” hecroaked.
“Oh, my love.” I stroked his face, and the same darkness touched me. “Are you all right? Where isAli?”
“Never been better.” Kaza feigned a smile, but behind his expression I sensed his torture. “That old sack of bones has our littlebrother.”
I smiled. Knowing Kaza considered Ali a part of his family made me feel good. Using our bond, I searched inside Kaza, sensing his declining heartbeat. By the looks of it, he didn’t have long before his life force gave out completely. The ache in my chest threatened to split me in two. We had to get him out of here, but how? Messing with the dark flame would mean certain suicide, and I didn’t know any magic to freehim.
“Which one of you devils farted in the lamp?” askedKaza.
Gods. Always a joker.But this wasn’t the time or place to goofaround.
“Whoever it was,” warned Kaza, “there’s a prank coming yourway.”
I imagined Kaza setting up some elaborate practical joke—but only if wesurvived.
Dahvi laughed. “Wouldn’t have it any other way,Brother.”
“Hurry up and kill that sack of bones, would you?” saidKaza.
My fingers itched for it. For my freedom. For the genies’ freedom. For my brother’s life. For my newfamily.
“Welcome.” The eerie, familiar voice came from a darkened hallway. “I wasn’t expecting you soearly.”
Thevizier!
All over my body pinched as if ants nipped at me. My suspicions that he’d been expecting us were horriblyconfirmed.
The creep slid out of the shadows, clutching my brother’s shoulder with his bony fingers. Chains on Ali’s wrists and ankles clinked as he shuffled forward. Bruises marked his cheeks and arms and even his chest above the line of his cotton shirt. Lines streaked his dirty face, no doubt caused by the tears he’dcried.
I didn’t need genie magic to stir my inner fire. God’s fire blazed all throughout mybody.
“Hand over my brother,” I said, refusing to let this creep say too much when his voice grated on my everynerve.
A long laugh bellowed from the vizier, and he steepled his fingers. “My dear, street rat. You are not in a position tonegotiate.”
I still have two genies, buddy. Well…one at themoment.
“Ali,” I said, struggling to remain calm for his sake. “I’ll get you out of here,okay?”
My brother whimpered as the vizier rolled his wrist andhand.
Dahvi stormed forward. Dark characters representing some foreign language glowed on the marble he stepped on. Black flames sprung out of the floor. A grey cone of energy rose from the floor surrounding him. He smacked into it and stumbled backward, holding hisnose.
The vizier wore a smile like a vulture about to dine on a camel. “I’m afraid, dear street rat, that all your bargaining chips are now in mypossession.”
Dahvi smashed his fist against the barrier trapping him. Blue ripples radiated outward from the gloom. The panic claiming his face cut at myinsides.
“No.” I put my hands where Dahvi’s were, and electricity zapped me, and I steppedback.
Two genies out of action didn’t leave me much to work with. I could only pray to the gods that Zand came out of his battle alive and with some juice left to take on thevizier.
Another laugh erupted from the evil man. He enjoyed playing with people. The cat hunting the mice. This bastard wassick.
My heart screamed at me to crack him on the nose. My mind said otherwise. The creep had untold dark magic. That left me with nothing to fight with. What was I going to do? When Zand showed up, was he going to walk into another trap, too? Then what? We’d really bestuffed.
The vizier glanced over my shoulder and clapped his hands as if he was delighted withsomething.
Then I heard it. Someone groaning. Something being dragged along thefloor.
