Storm Of Magick Part 15

"I'll get it," Jarod offered.

"Thank you. We'll be in the living room," I told him then started walking again. I was relieved that I didn't have to go back right now. Why would Ronan keep an entire wardrobe for me in his closet? I literally waved the thought away. It was something that would be answered another time.

All of a sudden, I smelled blood and my vision went black. Blaze was trying to contact me. The knives I carried crashed to the floor and I fell to my knees. Falling against the hard stone floor hurt. Paris touched me and I jerked him into my vision.

As before, Blaze sat tied in a chair. "Logan," he said faintly.

The vision was gone. I got to my feet, desperate to get my brother. I stumbled but stayed upright. Paris helped me get to the living room. He put his arm around my waist and I put mine around his. He sat me in one of the soft wing backed chairs.

"We need to find out if there's another way into the warehouse," I said.

"Caleb can't help. He won't shift back for hours and it will take him that long to heal. I'll see what I can find out, but I'm not leaving you alone," Paris stated.

"Most of the vashon are in their magickal sleep until dusk," I said.

Vashon didn't truly die like vampires. They went into a coma-like slumber, and it all depends on their power level as to when they went into their sleep. Their power level determined also when they rose for the day. The sweet scent of jasmine drifted into the room. With that, I knew Ronan was coming. A couple of seconds later he entered.

"Can you stay with Logan? Alex pulled another stunt," Paris told him.

"What has happened to your face?" Ronan asked me.

"Logan will tell you," Paris said, and he was off to find a way into the warehouse without being noticed.

I stood. Jarod returned with my gun and holster in his hand. I thanked him and threaded the belt through my belt loops. I took the Ruger out and checked the clip. It was full. The first couple of bullets had a high silver content, just warning shots. The rest were liquid mercury-filled bullets. I slapped the clip home and checked the safety before putting it back in its holster.

"Are you going to tell me how you got the bruise on your face?" Ronan asked.

"I made a smart-a.s.s comment and Alex hit me. It won't happen again," I said. My voice was cold and distant. I was no one's willing punching bag, but I seemed to be repeating myself with Alex. Last time.

I walked out. Paris had headed towards the library, where the computer lived. He needed the Internet, I was betting on it. Ronan and Jarod followed. I walked into the library. I was mistaken - he wasn't near the computer. I found Paris and Rafe standing at the long table talking. The scrolls and books were still sprawled out right where Caleb had left them.

"Find out anything?" I asked, looking at them both.

"I think we've figured out something," Paris answered. "I'll let Rafe tell you."

We gathered around the table. "There's a group of 'Tweens that live under the city. The leader Benny will be arriving any moment. I have to warn you - the group has been cursed and they have lived between worlds for a long time," Rafe explained.

"Okay, what's that mean exactly?" I asked. I had never heard of a 'Tween.

"They are stuck between human and animal. They can't totally change into either forms," Rafe said.

Just then, Leo entered the room with two strange beings in tow. They stood five-foot with round bodies, and wore tattered rags for clothes.

"Benny, good to see you, my friend," Rafe said to the first with a bow.

Benny waved his paw like hand. "Yes, yes. Let's get on with it," he said in a nasally voice. He was covered with a thick brown fuzzy fur. Well, at least what I could see of him was. A white star adorned the middle of his forehead.

I explained where I wanted to go. "Is there any way to get to the old Miller Warehouse without being seen?" I asked, looking into his squinted pink eyes.

He turned to get a rolled up paper from his companion. To my astonishment, he had a rat-like tail. He crawled up onto one of the chair, and then rolled out the piece of paper. There was absolutely no fur on his pink little hands.

"This is the tunnel you need," Benny said, pointing at the paper. "We will help you get in but that is all."

I watched him talk, fascinated. He had a snout and I thought it was incredible he could talk at all. "Thank you," I said. We had an hour to get ready.

Chapter 18.

Paris, Jarod and I went outside. The sky was still perpetually dusk due to the heavy clouds. The smell of coffee fluttered in the air from the Dark Hour, making my mouth water. I had a small stash of weapons in my van or what was left of it and I wanted to take them all with me.

The snow had stopped for now, but the weather was too unpredictable. Especially with Jack Frost bending to Palmira's will. The wind was so cold and it bit at my exposed skin. Paris unlocked the back hatch door, but it was frozen shut. I pulled on the icy door but my hands were freezing from the ice.

With one hand, Paris pulled on the back door. It opened with a loud pop. There was a trap door under the cheap gray carpet in the floor. I lifted that feature. Several boxes of mercury-filled and silver bullets sat there. There's nothing like the smell of a freshly cleaned gun to get the adrenaline going.

I grabbed a black thigh holster. It was one of my other favorite holsters. I picked up a small gray gym bag and put the ammo in. Jarod picked up an Uzi. He checked the clip, and then smacked it back home expertly. It made me wonder what he did for a living. As I watched him, he checked the sight and balance. I've never seen a lycanthrope admire a weapon that way. Well, other than Paris.

"You like?" I asked, watching Jarod.

"It's a nice weapon. I'd like to get one for myself," Jarod answered, still taking in the Uzi as if it was a beautiful piece of art.

I handed him the gym bag. "Here, put it in the bag. We don't want people seeing us carrying guns around," I told him.

He and Paris cleaned out my stash, putting everything in the bag, and then zipping it shut. I wished I had more. I locked the door and closed it. I don't know why in the h.e.l.l I locked a smashed up car. More out of habit than anything, I guess. I took a deep breath and we went back inside. We hadn't been out long, but it was long enough to chill me to the bone.

My mind turned to the job we were about to do. I wanted to see the layout of the underground before we set off. We went to back the library. Ronan was the only vashon I'd seen since we had come back in, the only one awake. All the others were comatose by two p.m., which is why Ronan was Master of the City. He could stay awake for a few days without his magickal slumber. It amazed me.

Rafe and Benny stood with Ronan. Two guards stood as silent sentinels, acting as if they weren't seeing or hearing anything, but in fact, it was the opposite. One glance and I knew they saw everything.

I stopped on the other side of the table. "Benny, is it possible to look at the layout of the tunnels again?" I asked in the most polite way I knew how. I could be nice when I wanted to, it just didn't happen that often.

His long flat feet slapped across the stone floor. The rolled up paper sat on one of the many shelves behind them. He padded back and handed the tunnel maps to me with a grin. I took them and thanked him. I went to the other end of the table, handing Paris the other map. Paris and I laid them out next to each other, putting books on the ends to keep the paper from rolling up again.

"This is where we're entering the tunnels. Benny said that we'll be using this main tunnel until this junction," I said, pointing everything out on the map.

"I suggest we also find an alternate route. Just as a backup plan," Jarod proposed, also looking at the map.

"Brains and looks. I'm impressed," I said with a grin and wink. Jarod flashed me a big smile. It was good to lighten the mood, if only for a second.

Paris stood there staring at the map as if he was memorizing everything. "What about this route? Benny, where does this tunnel come out?" Paris asked. He pointed at a specific end tunnel.

Rafe and Ronan joined us from the other end of the table. "That opens into the cellar of the Dark Hour. Yes, yes," Benny answered. He was absently wringing his hands; it seemed to be something of a habit.

"I think it would be a good back up," I said. "Rafe, could Doc be here to check Blaze when we get back?"

"Yes, he's sleeping in one of the rooms at the moment," Rafe explained.

"Thank you. Does anyone have any more weapons and ammo?" I asked.

"I have two Berettas and a box of ammo," Paris replied.

No one else had weapons. But, Paris and Jarod are weapons in their own right. The gym bag sat on the floor. I retrieved it and sat it on the table with a thud. I unzipped it and took out my Ruger's other home.

I took the holster from the small of my back, laid it and the Ruger on the table. I put on the black thigh holster and belted it around my waist. It sat low on my hips and hugged my body. I fixed the strap around my thigh nice and tight. I placed my usual holster in the bag. I checked the safety, and then placed the Ruger in its new home.

I adjusted my leather trench and breathed in the sweet leather scent. Finally, I took a couple of clips and put them in my pocket. "Benny, will we need a flashlight?" I asked.

"Yes, yes. We weremoles don't need a lot of light," he replied. Now I remembered why his voice sounded so familiar. He reminded me of the Disney character, Piglet.

"I'll get the flashlight from the crime scene bag. I need to get my Berettas anyways," Paris said. He left the room to get his weapons. I didn't know where he kept his Berettas but I a.s.sumed in his SUV.

Jarod slipped the long strap of the gym bag over his head. He had adjusted the strap on the gun so it would hit him at the hip. He put the Uzi strap on his shoulder so the straps sufficiently crossed over his chest. We were ready to go as soon as Paris returned.

I stood looking at the table where Caleb had been working. I closed my eyes and I could sense him. He was content lying on the floor of his room: he had a full stomach and had fallen asleep. I thought about Sam and wished she would wake up. With just that one thought, my anger warmed me.

White noise filled my head and I was ready. Paris entered the library. He already wore his shoulder holster, complete with a Beretta under each arm. I didn't have to ask; I knew he had the flashlight.

"Okay Benny, we're ready," I said in a cold voice. He didn't say anything about my tone. I would have to guess he'd heard it many times.

"Yes, yes it's time to go," he said in his nasally voice.

We followed Benny through the corridors and ended up in a wine cellar, which seemed out of place. Ronan and Rafe would wait at the entrance for us to return. Rafe had a couple of his men waiting for us at the entrance to the tunnel at the Dark Hour.

The opening was the size of a manhole. Benny lifted the steel plate with no problem - don't let the size of a lycanthrope be misleading. Benny could probably bench press a small truck. The scent of musty dirt seeped from the entrance. I don't know what else I'd expected. I mean, we were underground.

A steel ladder disappeared into the darkness. Benny went first, and then Paris and I went next. The ladder was cold and smooth to the touch. Paris had the flashlight on and ready. The yellow beam of light cut the darkness, showing a dirt floor. I jumped to the floor, finding it as hard as the stone in the Realm's living quarters. Jarod joined us.

Paris moved the flashlight around. We stood in what looked like the center of a wheel. Five tunnel openings branched out from where we stood. Benny started down one of the tunnels. From left to right, it was the fourth tunnel.

The sides of the tunnel were cool but very rough. I don't know how they packed the dirt so completely; it was as if a large machine carved it out, and maybe it had. Benny was the only one of us who could stand straight - maybe his people made the underground tunnels the perfect height for themselves. The rest of us had to crouch over. Paris and Jarod had to almost bend in half just so they wouldn't skin their heads or backs against the jagged top. Maybe it was the weremoles' way of keeping out the bad guys.

We walked down the tunnel about five hundred feet before coming out into a larger opening. "This tunnel will take you to where you want to go. But I can't go any further," Benny said in a low voice. "I can only help as long as no harm comes to my people."

"Thank you, Benny. I'm truly grateful for your help," I said, and I meant it.

We went down the tunnel. To help myself remember our route, I numbered the tunnels mentally as we went. Paris led the way, putting me in the middle since Jarod insisted on guarding my back. We walked for a half an hour before Paris stopped.

"I hear voices," he whispered.

"I hear it too, but the sound could be bouncing off the rock. It's too hard to tell where it's coming from," Jarod added in an equally low voice.

I didn't hear s.h.i.t. But, I didn't have lycanthrope hearing either. We stayed still and silent for a few moments. All I heard was the blood rushing around my head and my heart pounding.

"Let's get to the end of this tunnel so at least we can stand up straight," I suggested.

Paris started us off again, and I could feel sweat rolling down my back as we moved. I hated the feeling. It was like bugs crawling on my skin. The leather trench was too hot even in the cool underground, but it was better than being clawed up by a p.i.s.sed-off werefox at the other end. After what seemed to take forever, we reached the end.

"Finally," Jarod whispered.

I agreed. I stood up, my back aching a little. But, I would live. If this was the worst situation I had to deal with all day, I could handle it. We stood next to another steel ladder. I wondered just how complex Benny's colony really was. The other problem that popped into my head was going from almost total darkness into light. I knew it would take a few seconds for my eyes to adjust.

I could feel Blaze's magick above me. I had to get to my brother. Paris climbed the ladder first and lifted the hinged metal plate. He looked around and got out.

"How's it look?" I asked in a voice just above a whisper.

"It's clear. You can come up," he whispered back.

I glanced at Jarod. He gave me a slight nod and moved up behind me. I quickly scrambled up and stood aside. Jarod did the same. Hurry in and hurry out was my plan. I breathed in blood and sweat, scents that had become way too familiar. It took me a minute to figure out that this was the room Rafe and I was held in. There were definitely no happy thoughts in this room. I remembered from when I'd astral projected here where to go now.

"Go out and turn left. Blaze is two doors down and across the hall," I told the men.

Paris slowly slid the door open. The hinges made a squealing sound. The noise wasn't too loud, but it was loud enough to give us away. It couldn't be helped, but the problem was Palmira's people had excellent hearing.

"Sorry," Paris whispered.

"We're going to have to make this as quickly as possible," Jarod suggested. Nothing like stating the obvious. We didn't actually run but we walked at a fast clip. Paris reached the door but I remembered what had happened when I grabbed the front door at the Bloodshed meeting. It would be like ringing the doorbell and yelling 'here we are!' I grabbed Paris's arm just in time.

"There could be an alarm spell," I told him in a low voice.

I put my hand up close to the door and felt a low magickal current. I thought about the surge that lay quiet, deep inside me. I hoped I didn't regret what I was about to do. The surge started to stir. I took a little piece of that magick and sent it into the door. Maybe it would override Palmira's spell.

White static danced over the door, reminding me of sparklers and the hum of frying circuits came with the spark. I touched the door; there wasn't any magick present now. "It's clear," I whispered. My mouth was dry. A Diet c.o.ke would've tasted good now.

"We have to speed this along or you're not going to have the outcome you desire. We'll be joining your brother," Jarod stated. I looked at him and tried to decipher if he was bitter about the situation. I didn't hear any signs of sarcasm. He was right - our time was running out.

Paris opened the door, and there was Blaze, tied to a chair just as I'd seen in my vision. My heart leapt at the sight of him. I whispered a spell to rid Blaze of the ropes that bound him, and the gag fell out of his mouth. Blaze fell forward and Paris caught him. Blaze was badly beaten and Paris was going to have to carry him. It wouldn't be easy - Blaze was in and out of consciousness.

"Paris, carry him. Get him out of here," I said. I knew I couldn't carry Blaze out so I would only trust Paris to do it. He hesitated though, eyes full of concern for me.

"We have no time to argue. Go, I'll make sure Logan gets out," Jarod a.s.sured Paris. We made it to the door and headed for our escape route, but our way was blocked. White Hair and his friends were coming. I reached for my gun.

"Logan, you can't kill them. It could start a war," Jarod warned.

"Ugh, you've got to be kidding?" I asked. Talk about being between a rock and a hard place. Oh, I was so going to kill Palmira if I made it out alive.

The look on his face said he wasn't joking. Something told me Jarod didn't have a sense of humor. But, there was no way in h.e.l.l I was going to physically fight. I had taken enough a.s.s kickings for a while. I pulled my Ruger from my side holster and started putting mercury bullets into legs. Three werefoxes went down cussing. Jarod pulled the Uzi around and did the same.

"When I get a hold of you b.i.t.c.h, I'm going to kill you," White Hair shouted.

"You better stay down, a.s.shole! I'm not in the mood to screw around with you!" I yelled back.

"We have to get out of here or we're going to be overrun," Jarod advised.