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Ana stepped forward to speak on their behalf. The elders were powerful, but that kind of mental connection made it difficult to retain their individual thoughts.
“We will not be deceived by void tricks,” Ana said. “Leave this place.” All three raised their arms, and magic brought wind gusting around them and shook the ground around their feet.
“It’s just a warning,” Cara told Nick, as she saw him tense up.
Nick nodded, but she could see the black lines burning over his skin. The lines extended over his jaw and reached up to his cheeks, and his blue eyes blazed with anger.
“Samuel is the real threat,” Nick said, raising his voice to be heard by every single person. “He kidnapped innocents, and he’s started to take the other players out of the game.”
“Why should we believe you?”
“I wouldn’t lie about this. My father is dead, killed by Samuel’s vampires.”
A pause. “The hunter is of no interest to us.”
Nick’s hands clenched into fists, and Cara knew his control was slipping.
“He should be of interest,” Cara said. “The hunter could have been a threat, and they made sure he wouldn’t get in their way. They’re making their move now.”
The elders were quiet, and Cara saw her mother’s slight frown. Just for a moment, and then it was gone. Beside her, the dog sat with his sharp eyes watching the scene unfold. Finn had seen a lot, being a witch’s familiar, but this scene was beyond strange.
“They took Nick’s brother, too,” Cara said. “They didn’t kill him. They took him. They’re building their numbers, and they’re trying to keep Nick out of the fight by using his brother as a hostage. We need to stop them before it’s too late.”
“Leave this place,” Ana repeated.
“I’m not leaving,” Nick said. “We need to talk.”
“Leave before we force your hand.”
”Don’t hurt him,” Cara said. “He’s not a threat.”
Nick made a quiet, amused sound, but she ignored him, and nobody else heard it.
“Stay out of our way, Cara. You know not what stands beside you.”
Nick took a sharp breath. “You think you know me?”
“Nick, be careful,” Cara said. “We talked about this. We’re not here to fight.”
Nick’s jaw was set in stone, and she knew he wasn’t about to back down. Whatever the void was doing, it was changing him, making him angrier, confrontational, even hostile.
“Nick,” she said, but he was already starting to speak, and she could see the elders’ patience vanishing. This was moving too fast, she needed a chance to prove to them that they were wrong, but she wasn’t going to get it.
Movement from the house caught their attention. Just behind her parents, the dog walked forward, crossing the ruined garden with a slow, relaxed pace. It was so unexpected that nobody stopped him. He took his time, sniffing the ground, curious at the broken earth and torn up grass.
Finn walked straight to Nick and pushed his head against Nick’s leg.
Nick hesitated, then reached down to pet the dog’s head. The dog closed his eyes and basked in the attention for a moment, and then he turned and walked back towards the house.
The elders seemed surprised, but Cara could practically see their feelings in their eyes - their opinion of Nick overpowered their respect for the intuition of a witch’s familiar.
“You leave us no choice, child.”
They summoned their power again, and the stone walls that bordered the garden were ripped to pieces and lifted into the air. Huge chunks of brick and stone floated there, and Cara grabbed Nick’s arm. It was a terrifying display of power, and Nick’s void immunity would be useless against solid pieces of stone.
Cara saw her mother touch Finn’s head, just the slightest brush, and then the dog brushed against her legs, just like he did to Nick. He lifted his eyes to meet hers, and her expression tightened.
“That’s enough,” Rose said. Her voice was quiet, but it carried through the garden.
