Magic Undying (Dragon's Gift: The Seeker #1)(11)

“Now that we know he’s not a super baddie, should we unfreeze him and see what he has to say?” Cass asked.

I eyed my sword, but decided I didn’t want to risk being frozen along with him. Cass and Nix would unfreeze me, but if it happened at the same time as the Warden, I’d lose the upper hand. I had a few seconds head start on him. I wouldn’t use it to run. He’d found me here; he would find me again. Better to face this head on.

“Yeah, unfreeze him.” I spotted a thick iron chain piled on a shelf nearby. “Wait! Let’s immobilize him first.”

“Good thinking,” Nix said.

I ran to grab the enchanted chain. When I reached the shelf, I hefted it, then called, “Give me a hand here.”

Nix joined me, and together, we carried the thing toward the Warden, stopping about six feet away.

“On three,” I said.

Nix nodded.

“One, two, three.”

Nix and I heaved the chain toward the Warden.

The artifact’s enchantment took over, directing the chain toward the Warden like a heat-seeking missile, albeit a slow one. The ends stood up like snakes and wrapped around his broad chest and muscled arms, pinning them to his sides. Finally, the ends met, turning bright orange as they welded together.

“Whew, that thing is cool,” Cass said.

“Can’t believe no one has wanted it yet,” I said. When we’d set our eye on that enchantment, I’d been sure it would sell quickly. It could contain anything.

“I can.” Nix glanced around at the wares that she protected and sold. “People are mostly interested in ancient beauty potions and the occasional enchanted weapon. That thing is a bit too weird for the common Magica or Shifter. And it’s heavy.”

“To our benefit.” Cass met my gaze. “Do you have another freeze bomb so you can run for it if you don’t like what he has to say?”

I nodded as I dug into my pocket for the blue unfreezing potion. “Yeah. Good thinking.”

I pulled the vial out and confirmed that it wasn’t the acid bomb—it’d be totally unfair to kill him while he was frozen. We didn’t normally deal in potions, but we’d recently started to see the benefit of their subtlety. Normally we just beat up whoever threatened us.

I made sure that I had another freeze bomb in hand—just in case—then chucked the blue vial. It didn’t explode like the gold one had. Instead, the Warden suddenly snapped to attention, his trance broken.

He glanced down at the heavy chain that wrapped around his chest and upper arms, his gaze confused. Then he reached up and tugged the chain away as if it were made of butter. Briefly, the muscles in his forearms bulged, but that was the only evidence that he’d just torn away a hundred pounds of iron chain.

Whoa.

Nix coughed, clearly attempting to cover some kind of noise, while I tried desperately to recover from the surprise.

“Looking for me?” I finally choked out.

Smooth. Real smooth.

His gaze met mine. A slow smile curved the corners of his mouth. I tried desperately to ignore the fluttering of my heart.

“I am.” His voice was deep and warm, and I hated the shiver that raced across my skin. “You’re good with the surprise attacks. Freeze bomb and enchanted chain?”

I nodded. Too bad the chain hadn’t really worked on him. “I wasn’t expecting you. How’d you find me?”

He pointed to his forehead. “You’ve left a trail of blood.”

I reached up and touched the wound at my head. From falling on the rocks in the Underworld. Right. It was mostly dried by now, though. The blood may have been from my chest wound. But even that hadn’t bled much.

“Not a lot of blood,” I said.

“I’m a good tracker.”

Something in his eyes looked a little off. A lie?

“I’m here to take you back,” he said.

“Too bad. I’m not interested.”

“I hardly think that matters. You’re dead. I don’t know how you escaped the Underworld, but you’re subject to my laws now. And you’ll be returning with me.”

“Um, no.” I shook my head and spread out my arms. “I’m not dead. I’ve got a heartbeat and everything. So you might as well forget any crazy ideas about dragging me back to the Underworld.”

No way I was letting him take me back. Then I wouldn’t find the Ubilaz demon, and I’d be stuck as one forever. They probably lived in the worst parts of the Underworld. That was not going to be my fate.

“And we’re kind of a package deal.” Cass gestured between the three of us with her finger. “You come for her, you’re coming for us.”

His gaze darkened, and he reached out a hand, beckoning. I sensed the tug of his magic. Was he compelling me? That was an uber-rare magical gift that would force the listener to comply. So much more subtle than using the crazy muscles I’d just witnessed.

When he spoke, his voice had deepened even further, turning into a massage that made my muscles feel like pudding. “Come, Delphine Bellator.”

Shock lanced through me at the name. I sucked in a ragged breath. “I’m Delphine Hally. That’s not my name.”

I tried to ignore the feeling of rightness in my chest. It was too weird.

“Delphine Bellator is your name.” Certainty filled his voice. “I know the true names of all my subjects. You are Delphine Bellator.”