She had no more rebuttals for Latimer. Her anger was sapped, and all that remained was a hollow sadness that her time was over without having done anything worthwhile.
“The lightning will stop your heart,” Latimer said, taking a step closer. “I am told it is a very painful way to die.”
“Did you ever love me?” They were not the greatest last words, but they were the ones that came to her nonetheless.
Latimer paused, tapping the tip of the wand against his chin several times before aiming at her again. “I would have loved to be your husband,” he replied. “Is there a difference?”
What happened next would haunt Selena’s dreams for many years to come. She tensed, waiting for the blue-white light to zigzag from the wand and into her body. Selena wondered what death would feel like.
Then the shadows came alive.
The wand jumped from Latimer’s hand and skidded across the ground into the corner. She saw traces of motion near the curtain that separated the bedroom from the lounge and classroom, but she could not decide whether the movements originated on this side or the other side of the cloth divider.
Bereft of his weapon, Latimer spun around to confront the intruder—intruders. Four black shapes separated from the darkness. The creatures seemed to repulse the meager light of the candles. They stood upright, like men, but that was all Selena could discern.
“You really did send the letter,” Latimer whispered. His next words were louder and tinged with contagious fear. “I wasn’t going to kill her! I swear on my mother’s soul I wasn’t! I only wanted to frighten her into—ugh!”
None of the silhouettes had moved, yet Latimer fell backwards onto the bed. The wizard was now lying beside her, his legs dangling over the foot of the bed. One of Latimer’s arms had landed on Selena’s thigh, but the wizard did not remove it. In fact, he did not move at all.
For a moment, she thought, worried, and wished Latimer was dead. When he lifted his head—and only his head—to say more, Selena knew that he too was paralyzed.
“There is a perfectly reasonable explanation for all of this,” he called to the shadows.
“Silence, heretic,” hissed a voice from the void. It sounded like a woman’s, though Selena could not guess which of the four beings it belonged to. “Nullify the enchantment you have cast on your student, or we will do so by ending your wretched life.”
Latimer moaned piteously. He managed to swallow his misery long enough to speak a phrase in the Divine Tongue. The leaden blanket was lifted from off of her. Selena was out of bed and on her feet before she knew what she was doing.
“Please,” Latimer begged. “Don’t let them take me, Selena. I would never have hurt you. What would I have gained from it? Think about—aaah!”
“That will be enough.” One of the figures took a few steps into the light. The woman was dressed completely in black. A tight, one-piece costume revealed her gender, though little else about her. Face and hair alike were covered by a mask as dark as the rest of her outfit.
Realizing she was facing living people—and not the demons of Abaddon—Selena gathered enough courage to speak. “Are you from the Seminary of Wizardry?”
The woman did not answer, did not even look in her direction. The only sound in the room was Latimer’s whimpering. The black-clad wizardess grabbed Latimer’s wrist with one gloved hand and plucked the charm ring from his finger with the other.
“Save me, Selena,” Latimer sputtered between sobs. “I love you…I love…”
The wizardess made a sharp gesture with her hand and Latimer drew in a sharp breath. His face contorted in pain, and for the briefest moment, Selena considered intervening. He had saved her from the ruffians at The Rusty Rake. She owed him.
No! screamed the voice of reason. He must pay for his crimes. He never loved me!
The wizardess beckoned, and two men—coated in the same black material—withdrew from the shadows and lifted Latimer up from the bed. Latimer’s eyes were closed, but he was still breathing.
“What will you do with him?” she asked.
The wizardess faced her for the first time. “He will return to the Seminary to face judgment and sentencing.”
The woman’s tone had lost its dangerous, angry edge but retained a sense of authority. Selena could not hope to stop them, even if she wanted to.
“Will you…will he be killed?”
“It is up to the Senators and High Masters,” the faceless wizardess replied.
The fourth member of the party, who had stood closest to the door, joined the other three, giving Selena the impression they were preparing to leave.
“May I come along?” she asked.
The wizardess motioned for one of the men to retrieve Latimer’s wand, which had rolled far from the bed. Several seconds of silence followed, leaving Selena to wonder if the foursome were communicating without speaking.
“We were sent for the emissary,” the wizardess said at last. “If you are needed at the Seminary, someone will come for you.”
Before Selena could ask another question, the four silhouettes and Latimer faded away. There was no revealing flash of light as when Latimer had transported himself from the Seminary back to Castle Nelesti. No, Selena thought, the Assembly’s enforcers clearly valued stealth and surprise.
Completely alone, Selena took a seat at the foot of Latimer’s bed. The rest of the castle’s inhabitants must remain oblivious to what had just transpired—what would Old Alger and his Knights say if they knew four spell-casters had infiltrated the castle under their noses?—so there was no one for Selena to confide in, no one to exorcise the conflicting feelings that played tug-of-war with her heart.
Selena curled up in a ball at the base of the bed and cried.