Dark Lord, we can destroy it before the rogue Arcanes use it. The skull mask I saw at the bar indicates a partial transformation...”
Shay turned and cocked his head. “How do you know so much?”
Color flushed her pretty cheeks. “When I was ten, I broke into the forbidden section of your father’s library and read the history books.”
He laughed. “I knew you weren’t into dolls. So, Miss Lawbreaker, how does an Arcane turn into a Dark Lord?”
“It’s a dangerous, lengthy process.” Kelly shook her head. “Your father’s books didn’t exactly give a recipe. But I got the sense the final step includes gathering together several innocents and sacrificing them in a ritual.”
She scanned the pages of the book and then came upon a separate sheet of paper, not yellowed with age like the book. “Sam, look! It’s the names of the nine Elemental Phantom children, and a record of who their parents are....”
He joined her, reading aloud from the book.
“‘Through a ritual killing, an Arcane is able to absorb the Phantom’s powers. He can imitate the form of anyone he touches, absorbing their DNA through his skin.’”
She blew out a breath. “I told you, that’s why they took the kids. With the children’s powers, the rogue Arcanes can move freely among your people and kill them.”
It still made no sense. His SEAL instincts tingled. “All warfare is based on deception,” he mused. “If your enemy is secure at all points, be prepared for him. If he is in superior strength, evade him.”
Kelly gave him a questioning look.
“Sun Tzu.
“By creating a Dark Lord, they’d have superior strength,” Kelly pointed out. “The last one, who was executed three hundred years ago, wiped out entire towns before several Elemental Mages managed to combine their powers and destroy him.”
Sudden insight struck him. He stared at the yellowed parchment, scanning the spidery writing. Gorge rose in his stomach as he read the brutal, graphic details. “Oh, shit. This is not good.”
“Sam? What did you find?”
He met her worried gaze. “The final spell for creating a Dark Lord. Using the dead, ah, body of a Mage possessing tremendous courage...and the blood of ten innocent Mage children.”
Horror stole over Kelly’s face.
“Once a Dark Lord is created, other Arcanes can absorb his strength and powers by declaring allegiance to the Dark Lord and drinking his blood.”
It all made sense now. Shay’s heart raced as he imagined the possibilities. “These rogue Arcanes want to kill a group of Phantom children and a brave Mage to create a Dark Lord and in turn, he will create an army of Dark Lords.”
Her voice dropped to a shocked whisper. “Unstoppable. Their powers so great, even the strongest magick couldn’t destroy them.”
She covered her face with her hands. “The children may be already dead.”
“Steady,” he soothed, squeezing her shoulder. “They must still be alive or we’d never access this shop. The barriers would be too strong. And you said these Arcanes had stolen only nine children.”
At her nod, he felt a surge of relief. “That’s why they haven’t killed them yet. They have to wait to capture the tenth. Someone is leading them. They’re not working alone on this, but through someone’s instructions. And they need a Mage to complete the ritual. Courageous. Not exactly something you can buy at the local grocery store.”
Kelly stared at him. “Sam, you’re a courageous Mage. You’re a navy SEAL.”
Oh...shit.
Realization struck with a sharp punch. “My twin didn’t want me dead. He wanted to capture me.”
And the SOB was still out there, waiting.
“Sam, he must be the Mage I saw at the bar. He took your DNA when you were there and followed you here!” Kelly’s mouth quivered. “Take this. Protect yourself. You matter more. If they destroy you—” she slipped off the triskele and put it around his neck “—I’d want to die,” she whispered.
The selflessness of the gesture deeply moved him. Shay took her hand, emotions churning inside him, and kissed it.
“No one’s dying today. Let’s get out of here.” Shay glanced at the window.
Trembling, Kelly lowered her hands. The letters on the ancient parchment began to twist and turn. They blackened, forming an indecipherable smear, and then puddled into a sticky mass of ink.
A droplet rose from the book.
“Don’t touch that,” he yelled.
As Kelly’s hand brushed the page, the black slime leaped onto her fingers. Screaming, Kelly clawed at it, the goo sinking into her skin like acid.
Summoning all his powers, Shay directed a streak of white energy at the form.
White energy severed the black mass in half, but the glob on her hand remained. Shay balled energy in his palm and touched her. White sparks crackled and surged into the black mass, shooting fiery current. Kelly began to convulse.
The electrical shock was killing her.
Shay pulled back his powers. Now the mass began to crawl up her forearm, eating into her skin.
Sobbing, she scratched at it. Shay fumbled to remove the triskele and dropped it. The silver pendant rolled on the floor, beneath the table. He dropped to his knees, fingers combing the dusty floor.
“Use your magick,” he yelled. “Fight, Kel!”
Got it. Shay scrambled to his feet.
A glow of golden light suffused Kelly, crimson sparks attacking the sticky black goo. Face twisted in agony, she chanted ancient words as her blood dripped onto the floorboards.
Shay laid the triskele on the black blob on her arm. The gelatinous substance parted, forming a mouth. An unholy squeal filled the air, hurting his eardrums. Glowing with white light, the triskele sank into the mass, turning it smaller and smaller...
Until it vanished with a soft pop.
With a small cry, Kelly fell back against the wall. Shay draped the pendant around her neck. Gently, he grasped her injured arm. Ugly, bloodied wounds scored the flesh. She offered a brave smile. “It’s not too bad.”
Shay touched her cheek with a finger, marveling at this woman’s courage. “Let’s get outside, so you can heal.”
Her gaze shot to the store’s front. “Someone’s coming.”
He tugged Kelly toward a stack of boxes to hide. Cupping his pistol, he peered around the cover.
The front door opened and closed. A middle-aged man stood in the doorway. He had brown hair and skin tanned by the sun, and he wore chinos and a plain white shirt. He looked ordinary, a man sent to the store by his wife to fetch a jar of peppers.
Only what were in the jars weren’t peppers.
Kelly stole a look. “Arcane,” she whispered. “One of the men guarding the stolen children. I saw him in the photographs Fernando took.”
They needed to get the hell out of here. He motioned to the window and then helped her climb out.
Racing down the alleyway, he herded her toward the end. It opened onto another narrow, cobblestoned street leading to a small village square and a whitewashed church. Voices drifted from the square.
He tucked away the weapon, found a stone bench in the sun and sat her down. Kelly leaned back, her face pale as she absorbed the sunlight. Standing guard, he scanned their surroundings.
This section of the village seemed untouched by darkness. People went about their business. Women sold
