Mine to Fear (Mine #3)(21)

I'm just about to return to the others when a flash of bright green catches my eye. I dart behind the nearest tree, wait a moment, then peek around it. A warlock all right. A guard from the way he's scanning the scene. Yet clearly not doing a good enough job since he hasn't noticed me yet. Over-confidence in others is a blessing in times like these.

I follow him silently for several minutes. He tracks first north then south, passing by the original spot I saw him. When he heads back, I figure this must be the area he's in charge of and since I haven't seen anyone else, silencing him would be best.

Instinct says to spell him, only with my skill level, I can't guarantee it will work for long. Best knock him out the old fashioned way, I guess.

After finding the biggest rock I can, I hide behind a tree and wait for him to go past. Only he doesn't move past. Where is he? There's a crunch of leaves. Here he comes. I grip the rock tight in my hand and whirl around the tree, arm raised high. I bring the rock down only to realize there is no guard, only Jack.

Oh well. I continue to bring my arm down anyway.

He sidesteps, grabs my arm, and shoves it toward the ground, making me drop the rock. “You took too long getting back. I already took out the guard.”

I huff at him. Almost had the guard and him taken care of. Annabelle better know what she's doing trusting him. Though I hate to do so, Mother did instill manners in me. I let out a gruff, “Thank you.”

I twirl away from him and hurry back to Annabelle and Tawny. My breathing is uneven as I return to the hidden spot. I lift the hatch. They're patiently waiting in the hidden room. “It's safe now. Are they going to be able to track you through any of the things you left behind?”

Jack and Tawny should know what I'm talking about, but I expect to need to explain it to Annabelle, but she says, “Daniel spelled all of my things long ago not to be attached to me. They won't be able to spell any of my items to find us.”

“He's not at all like other Chardonian warlocks.”

“No, he isn't. One of the biggest reasons he worked so hard to get on the council and to gain supporters was to fight against the Grand Chancellor.” Her voice cracks. “And now it's the reason he's gained a death sentence.”

Tawny and I both give her a quick hug. It's all there's time for. It sounds like Daniel prepared for something like this to happen, but not being separated from the wife he so clearly cherishes.

“I forgot our packs, Tawny.”

“All my important things were back home.”

“And I have nothing of importance, so my things won't be a problem,” Jack adds.

If I wasn't so worried about him turning on us, I'd feel sad for him. Everyone should have at least one thing of importance. And why wouldn't a Chardonian warlock have something like that?

“I'm like Tawny and left my important things back in Envado,” I say. “Thank you for having these packs ready for us, Annabelle. They'll be vital. Let's go.”

We're walking for maybe five minutes when I hear a noise. I stop and put my hand up in the air. The others go instantly silent. There's a crunch close by to the right. That had better be some sort of animal. Another crunch follows and another, sounding all too much like the footsteps of a person. Drat.

I glance toward where the sound is coming from. There's a flash of black. A law officer. Just what we don't need. With a little luck, he'll walk right by us without noticing our presence. I hold my breath as he continues by. And he keeps going. We've made it.

Suddenly, the man looks back, staring straight into my eyes. I don't think, just react, slamming a punching spell into him, the bright black and green smashing into him twice more. He falls back.

“Run.”

The others take off after me, Jack bringing up the rear. There's no time to think whether or not this is going to work against us. There's more crashing through the brush coming our way. The disturbance must have attracted more attention.

A burgundy spell comes flying at us. Before I can react, Jack stops it with a canary yellow spell of his own. The spells clash in a burst of color while we put on more speed to get away from them. I'm not sure if Annabelle can keep up with us, but she surprises me by running faster than me, pulling to the front of the group.

“Is there any way to tell if there's someone ahead of us?” she calls out.

“Yes.” I send a spell out, a soft yellow, searching for any hints of the heat of people ahead of us. Nothing. “I think the way is clear. Keep going.”

We run, my legs burning with the effort. Four more spells zip at us from behind, but each one is fainter than the last. We're going to make it.

Out of nowhere, a midnight-blue spell crashes into me, knocking me to the ground and sending chills through me. Tawny stands over me like an avenging warrior, a purple spell streaked with pink screaming from her.

There's a cry followed by silences.

Annabelle checks me over for injuries. I tell her I'm fine, and she helps me stand.

“There's no time to linger,” Jack says.

Even though he's right, I glare at him. We hurry to get moving again, running for a good half-an-hour before Annabelle declares she can't keep going any longer. We slow to a walk but keep moving.

Lost them. Possibly. Hopefully. I motion for everyone to keep quiet as we continue. Our trail is all too easy to follow with a tracking spell, despite everyone stepping cautiously. Even a simple warlock could cast a spell to find the trail of footprints we're leaving.