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“A dead wizard is a dead wizard. Got it.”
A feminine scream sounded from upstairs. Tansy! I charged up the stairs, the plan to be stealthy forgotten. I found Nastafar holding Tansy out by the throat. I charged at him, ready to pummel his face in.
He threw Tansy down to duck, and she landed hard on the floor. She didn’t move, but before I could run to her, Seth barged into the room. He made a throwing motion with his hands and his spell landed on Nastafar.
“Now, Eamon!”
I reached for the sword. It was a magical sword meant for Amrita, but it was indiscriminately sharp. It would do double-duty today. I pulled it from its sheath, and as I did, the pickle jar went flying.
“The jar! Catch it. It can’t break!” Seth cried.
Smash Nastafar’s head in or save the pickle jar? The wizard had tormented me for almost a century. I’d promised myself that if I ever had the chance to kill him, I’d move mountains to take it. But the jar. The jar represented Tansy’s mission. It was her freedom.
I dropped the sword and lunged for the jar, catching it right before it smashed onto the floor.
Nastafar’s wicked laugh filled the room. “Eamon, Eamon. You always did care too much. That’s why you were so fun to fuck with.” He pushed with his hands as if shoving away Seth’s spell. “And you Seth. You’re supposed to fuck with the demons, not fuck them.”
He approached the bundled ogre and put a hand on him. The ogre screamed, then shrank and shriveled as the wizard siphoned its life force. Seth grabbed a lamp from the desk and lunged at him, but Nastafar whipped around and froze him midair.
“This is the rescue party?” Nastafar tutted. “I’m disappointed. And here I thought I’d actually face a challenge. Looks like I’m about to grow my collection.”
He started chanting as he approached me, and I realized he planned on trapping me in the very jar in my hands. I tried to move but I couldn’t as the spell wove around my limbs and dragged me toward the opening of the container.
There was a flash of movement behind the wizard. Too distracted with the fight, he’d forgotten about Tansy. She held the massive sword in her hands. Her magic wrapped around it, making it light enough for her to handle. My fierce little witch yelled as she brought the blade down on Nastafar’s head.
His dying shriek was cut off almost before it started, and there was a flash as all of Nastafar’s spells released at once. Prax, Liam, and Seth fell to the floor.
Tansy stood dazed for a moment before dropping the sword. She ran to me, and threw herself into my arms. “Eamon, you came!”
I carefully held the pickle jar out of harm’s way. “Always. You are always mine to protect. Mine.”
She buried her head in my chest. “I’ll never get sick of those words. I’ll be yours forever.”
Forever. That sounded about right. “I’m holding you to that, little witch. Forever it is.”
Seth rushed to Liam’s side. The other demon looked like he’d had better days.
Prax stepped forward and bowed low to Tansy. “I am still in your debt, warrior-witch.”
I angled my body to put myself between them. The incubus better be ready to fight if he wanted my Tansy for himself.
“Look!” Liam pointed to Nastafar as his spirit floated up from his body.
“Oh, it’s the sword!” Tansy exclaimed. “We should trap him before it’s too late.” She took the pickle jar from my hands. “Shove him in the jar. I’ll spell him in.”
“Wait! We need the jar for Amrita. We have her trussed up downstairs for you,” I said.
She smiled. “For me? Thank you! But we can enchant another container. Let’s catch this asshole first.”
I had tied Amrita up well; she wasn’t going anywhere. Grabbing hold of Nastafar’s incorporeal form, I folded him up real small, shoved him through the opening, and screwed on the lid. Tansy started chanting. It was wizard magic, similar to the spell that had forced me to do Nastafar’s bidding, but different.
When she was done, she grinned and presented me the jar. “Let’s trade gifts.”
“Aww, how sweet,” Liam crooned. “When are you going to bash in my nemesis’ skull, wrap him up, and gift him to me?” he asked Seth.
I grinned as I held the wizard who’d tormented me for years in my hands. I walked over to the curtains and ripped off a panel, then carefully wrapped the jar in it. Best. Gift. Ever!
“Hey look! Another enchanted container,” Seth said, picking an empty urn up from the shelf. “C’mon, love birds. Let’s go finish the job.”
