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A COUPLE OF WEEKS AFTER the fairy had been murdered during his delivery, Kade was no closer to finding a suitable partner. Sebastian had told him Padavion had turned to alcohol to drown her sorrows. She was apparently too broken on the inside and the outside to become bonded to anyone. He was going to have to find someone else who could suit his needs.
As he delivered yet another parcel to a house in the Fae District, the warlock’s thoughts went to the beautiful blonde woman yet again. He couldn’t seem to get her out of his mind. Why had she been trying to camouflage herself against the hedge and why had she been wearing a false face? The only conclusion he could come to was that she’d been trying to hide from someone. He didn’t even know her name, but the thought that she might be in trouble bothered him.
Kade spent as little time as possible at the Magic Guildhall. He didn’t get to hear much of the gossip that went on. The rumors he did hear were usually related to Guild Master Onvier. The elf was meeting with the most powerful members of the guild one by one. He was forging allies who firmly had his back.
Speaking of high-ranking members of the guild, Kade saw an elf with considerable power entering the building as he was leaving with yet another parcel to deliver. He stepped aside for the elf, who didn’t even deign to look at him. His expression was haughty and he carried his nose in the air as if he felt he was better than everyone else.
A hunch gripped hold of Kade and he flicked a listening spell at the elf. It was so small that the guildmember didn’t even notice it clinging to his cloak. Instead of heading out to deliver the package, Kade crossed to one of the columns that supported the roof of the guildhall and ducked behind it. He heard the elf approach the reception desk and speak to the witch manning the desk as if he was standing right next to them. “I have an appointment with Guild Master Onvier,” he said self-importantly.
“Of course, sir,” the witch said in a subservient tone. “The Guild Master is waiting for you in his office.”
Kade wasn’t surprised to hear why the elf had come to the guildhall. Only the fulltime staff and worker drones like him had to turn up on a nightly basis. The rich and powerful only had to show up every now and then. Some of them attended the weekly meetings with the Immortal Triumvirate and Guild Masters. The elf had been summoned to meet with Onvier and he didn’t seem all that happy about it.
The warlock borrowed the camouflage spell he’d learned from the mysterious blonde woman to make himself blend in with the column while he waited. He sensed spells of all kinds being used inside the guildhall. The guildmembers had to use their own reserves, rather than call on the magic of Nox that was stored in the ugly brick building nearby. The supply was required to run all of the buildings in the City Square.
A warding spell caught his attention a few minutes later. It was coming from the top floor of the building. He figured it originated in Onvier’s office. The listening spell he’d placed on the elf was dispelled when the ward kicked in. The spell was more than just a soundproofing one, it had other components to it. There was too much interference coming from the other enchantments for him to decipher exactly what the ward’s purpose was. It only lasted for a few minutes before it vanished.
He stayed where he was and waited expectantly for the haughty elf to exit the building. He didn’t have to wait long before the now shaken and pale guildmember appeared. The elf hurried away from the guildhall, but Kade sensed something had changed. He frowned when he realized the elf’s power had diminished slightly. His hunch that Onvier was up to no good had just been confirmed. “He’s stealing their power,” he whispered.
Ever since Onvier had won his first duel that would determine who the next Magic Guild Master would be, Kade had had a bad feeling about him. The elf had done his best to ruin all three of his opponents without actually killing them. His behavior during his duels had been a warning. He’d shown everyone that he was ruthless and he wouldn’t stand for any dissent. Now it seemed he wasn’t satisfied with just being the Guild Master. He was seeking more power and he was using nefarious means to obtain it.
A woman with a flickering face caught Kade’s attention. He turned to follow her as she crossed the City Square. He saw through the illusion of a dark-skinned, dark-haired woman to the blonde beauty beneath. “It’s her,” he murmured. He strode after her with the intention of finding out why she was hiding her face.
She cast a look over her shoulder, almost as if she could sense him. Alarm flared in her eyes when she spied him. She hurried her pace and blended in with a group of witches who were heading towards a carriage. His concern that she was hiding from someone who meant her harm grew stronger. She was wearing a different face this time, which meant she was desperate not to be found.
Kade lost the woman he figured had to be a witch. She’d somehow eluded him again. He ignored the carriage that was waiting for him and strode away from the square. It wouldn’t do for any of his colleagues to see him catching a carriage. He was far too low down on the hierarchy to be given that sort of privilege very often.
Another carriage approached him when he’d walked a few blocks away. He wasn’t surprised when it stopped beside him. The skeleton clicked its teeth at him, then swept its bony hand towards the door. Clearly, the animated corpses were going to insist on ferrying him to his location. He looked around to make sure no one he knew was watching him, then he opened the door and climbed inside. He called out the address where he wanted to go and it took off.
It would be a bad idea for Kade to turn up at the house with the parcel so early. He had the skeleton drop him off at a different location. It pulled up next to the cemetery where his mother had been interred and he climbed out. The warlock wended his way to the grave where Inilvian had been laid to rest. He looked down at the unmarked tombstone of the mother that he’d never known. On impulse, he touched the grave marker and sent a small amount of magic into it. Words appeared on the headstone a moment later. ‘Here lies Inilvian, a loving mother who was taken too soon’.
Kade stood in the snow for a couple of hours and forced himself to keep his emotions tightly in check. Winter was drawing to an end and spring would arrive soon. Normally, that would have been something to look forward to. This year, he felt as if time was flying by too fast. He needed to complete his mission to become bonded to someone before Halloween arrived.
“At least Raum is having just as much trouble finding a match as I am,” he murmured. The demon was far from trustworthy. The warlock had a better chance of convincing someone to become bound to him for life than his ally would. Not that it was a competition. Still, he hoped he would be successful before the Demon Guild Master managed to snare himself a partner.
