Burned by Magic (The Baine Chronicles #1)(25)

My jaw dropped as the fragments of memory from last night finally fell into place. “You brought me to the Chief Mage and had him heal me?”

“It seemed the least he could do, since you’d been starved and beaten while under his protection,” Fenris said mildly. “Or at least that’s what I told him when he asked me why I hadn’t brought you to the infirmary instead. Would you rather I had left you lying on the floor?”

He scowled at me, and I flinched, the truth of his words ringing in my ears. “No. But it doesn’t mean that I’m going to grovel at your feet for the supposed ‘favor’ you’ve done me. After all, you’re the pet of the mage who’s keeping me here.”

Fenris’s jaw tightened. “I’m no one’s pet.”

“Well then why are you here with him?” I narrowed my eyes. “You seem like a decent guy, so he must have some kind of hold over you. Do you owe him a debt? Because there are other alternatives to indentured servitude –”

“I am not a slave, Sunaya,” Fenris cut me off, his voice clipped. “I know this might be hard for you to believe, but Iannis and I are good friends. I stand by his side, as he would stand by mine.”

“Is that why you sit at his feet?” I snapped. “Like a dog? Because you two are equal?”

Fenris’s expression turned downright thunderous. “I know that you’re frustrated with your own situation, but believe me when I say from experience that Iannis is not what you think. If I sit by his feet as a wolf, it’s because it’s advantageous to the situation, nothing more. We respect each other, and he has more than earned my loyalty.”

I raised my eyebrows at the conviction that burned in his voice and eyes. He certainly seemed sincere, and yet…“If he’s so great, then why am I still trapped up here in this tower like a prisoner instead of back on the streets? He should have already determined that I’m not a threat to the public.”

“Because you appealed to Iannis directly, and he does nothing by half-measures. He’ll keep you as long as he has to, in order to ensure you’re not a threat and can be released safely back into society.”

Disgust filled me at Fenris’s choice of words. “Yeah, well this isn’t just about me, buddy.” I poked him in the chest. “I was in the middle of investigating a series of shifter murders that no one is taking seriously when I was carted off to jail. If I don’t go free, the murderer is going to keep killing and he’ll never be brought to justice.”

“Murderer?” Fenris’s dark brows winged up. “What murderer?”

I gave him the abbreviated rundown of the situation, and by the time I finished he was frowning again. “I haven’t heard anything about this,” he said, stroking his beard.

“Yeah, well that’s because whoever’s behind all this likely has someone from the media in their pocket.” I scowled. “Surely you don’t think that’s out of the realm of possibility, do you?”

“Well, no,” Fenris admitted, “I suppose I could try looking into it myself, but I’ll need to find more evidence than just your word before bringing it to Iannis.”

“Well take your time then,” I drawled, leaning back against the wall as Fenris turned for the door. “It’s not like lives are at stake or anything.”

Fenris shot a reproving glare at me over his shoulder. “The Chief Mage expects you in his study in the West Wing at one o’clock, so please make sure you are well-fed and ready by then.” His expression softened. “I’ve instructed the kitchen staff that they are to feed you properly. Feel free to mind-message me if you run into any trouble.”

He closed the door on his way out, and I stared at the brass doorknob for a long time. Had I just gained an ally? Or was there an ulterior motive here that I was too blind to pick up on?



After a long, hot bath, a huge breakfast, and a nice nap, I leisurely made my way over to the Chief Mage’s study in the West Wing. Sure, the kitchen staff might have handed me my stack of pancakes begrudgingly, and the mages who passed me in the halls still looked down at me from their snooty noses as they went about their business, but I was so happy to have a full belly and a clear head that I couldn’t find it in me to be resentful.

Unfortunately my good mood didn’t last – anxiety began to creep in on my sense of contentment as I approached the carved mahogany door that led to the Chief Mage’s study. Though I was mostly disabused of the notion that I was going to be strapped to a table and magically mutated, I was hyper-aware that whatever happened beyond those doors once I stepped through them could very well determine my fate.

I curled my fingers around the cold brass doorknob, then hesitated. I could loiter out here for a few minutes, couldn’t I? I mean, the longer I stayed out here, the longer I could postpone my inevitable death.

Don’t be a scaredy cat, Naya. Put your chin up, shoulders back, and walk in there like you own the place.

Right. I couldn’t let the Chief Mage see that I was intimidated. Taking a deep breath through my nostrils, I followed my own advice, turned the knob and stepped into the Chief Mage’s study.

It was a large room, with plenty of light filtering in through a broad, multi-paned window to the left, the rays of the afternoon sun spilling across the swirling blue-and-gold patterned carpet that covered the length of the floor. To the right, in front of a blue marble hearth with a crackling fire, lay Fenris in wolf form. He rolled to his back and regarded me lazily with one yellow eye, apparently reluctant to move from the hearth, and a smile tugged at the corner of my lips despite myself.