Hunted by Magic (The Baine Chronicles #3)(80)

Eventually the box sailed up from the fourth row and straight to Iannis, hovering in front of him while it awaited his vote. I glanced over just as Iannis was folding his piece of paper in half, and nearly laughed out loud when I saw what he’d written on it.

“Do you really think I’d be a good choice as the next Federation Minister?” I asked, allowing laughter to creep into my mental voice.

“Considering that this vote hardly matters, I thought I’d have a little fun.” The humor in Iannis’s words made my lips twitch. “I’m sure you would revolutionize the Northia Federation if you were in office.”

“Oh, you have no idea.”

The box went to the Finance Secretary next, and then to me. I poised my pen over my piece of paper, and I could feel the Minister’s eyes on me, practically burning a hole through my cheek. With a straight face, I quickly wrote Minister Zavian Graning on the slip of paper, then tucked it into the box.

The Minister smiled faintly, and I’ll be damned if he didn’t incline his head ever so slightly at me in approval.

When the box came to the Minister next, he picked up his folded piece of paper, then held it over the box for a moment as if he were about to drop it in. But after a few seconds, he put the piece of paper back down, then plucked the box out of thin air.

“Secretary Bosal, what is the meaning of this?” Secretary Brung demanded as the Minister stood up.

“I’m sorry, but I cannot vote for a new Federation Minister,” he said in Secretary Bosal’s voice, and just like that the illusion dropped away, revealing his true form. “Because you see, Secretary Brung, I am the Minister.”

There was a beat of silence as everyone stared slack-jawed at the Minister, and then the entire room erupted. As the delegates shouted and argued amongst themselves, I watched the blood drain from Lord Cedris’s face. His dark eyes glittered with rage, and I could practically taste his bloodlust from across the room.

“Minister!” I warned as I noticed Coman discreetly coax Lord Cedris from his seat and lead him through the sea of delegates. “Lord Cedris is getting away!”

The Minister’s eyes flashed as he followed my gaze, and I pressed my hands against my ears as I watched him tap his fingers against his throat in preparation. “SILENCE!” he roared, his voice reverberating through the walls and floor, and all chatter ceased. “In light of recent events, I am ordering the arrest of Lord Cedris ar’Tarea, Chief Mage of Rhodea, as well as the other members of his delegation.”

“On what charges!” Lord Cedris demanded, his face turning beet-red as all eyes swiveled in his direction.

“Attempted murder, conspiring against the Federation, and aiding the Resistance, which is an act of treason,” the Minister snapped, and a collective gasp rose from the rest of the delegates.

“This is preposterous!” Lord Cedris shouted, sounding on the edge of hysteria now. He tried to make a break for it, but several other mages hit him with spells, and he froze into place. I sat back in my chair and watched with supreme satisfaction as the Minister had Cedris and his delegates clapped in rune-covered irons. But as they were dragged out of the room, I knew in my heart that this was only the beginning, and our work was far from done.





28





Outrageously enough, the Minister and his Secretaries refused to allow me to attend the interrogation. I wasn’t even allowed to listen outside. Iannis attempted to argue on my behalf, but the Minister was adamant – I wasn’t supposed to be here anyway, and he’d already extended enough “liberties” by allowing me into the Convention to attend the vote. Now that he had his position back, Lord Zavian was rapidly reverting to type – the very kind of self-satisfied, rigid high mage that the Resistance wanted to overthrow.

Liberties, my ass, I seethed as the carriage took me back to the hotel. I wanted to take the liberty to punch the Minister right in his supercilious face. But that would probably get Iannis in trouble, so I’d tamped down on my rage and left the building as instructed.

When I got back to the hotel room, there was nobody there – the other delegates must have gone back to their own suite. Tears sprang to my eyes now that nobody was around to see them, and I blinked rapidly before they started trickling down my cheeks. It wasn’t fair. I’d rescued Iannis, we’d saved the Minister, and we’d captured Lord Cedris. I should have been on top of the world, dancing and celebrating and feeling triumphant. How was I supposed to exist in a world like this? A world where all sides consistently shunned and belittled me? How could I stand up for my ideals and fight for what was right, if the powers that be continued to stomp me into the ground every chance they got?

Fuck this, I thought angrily, shoving one of the couches against the wall. I wasn’t going to languish in this stupid hotel suite feeling sorry for myself. If I had to stay here and wait for Iannis, the least I could do was make good use of the space. So I pushed all the living room furniture up against the walls, changed into a tank top and pants, and I did something I hadn’t had a chance to do in a long time.

I trained.

Training wasn’t so much about keeping in shape – my job as an Enforcer, not to mention the grueling trip over the past week, did a good enough job at that – but about honing my skills and sharpening my focus. Nevertheless, I worked through the usual strength and flexibility exercises before moving on to basic punches, kicks, rolls, and stances.