Amethyst Flame (Flame 2)

Emma flew with Brannick above the wall separating the alley from the storage facility, weapons aimed at the two security guards she’d seen in the stream of images. They’d started moving in the direction of the truck, AR-15s at hip level.

Brannick’s deep voice hit the air. “Drop your weapons. Now.”

The two guards glanced, up then immediately set their rifles on the asphalt.

Emma called out. “On the ground. Face down. Both of you.”

Brannick turned to her. “Keep your weapons on these two. I’ll open the truck.”

“I’ve got a better idea.”

A smile spread over his face, and he nodded. “You gonna kill em?”

“Not quite, but I’m tempted. What I w

ant to do, once we’re finished here, is haul them to the Trib jail.”

Brannick looked skeptical, but she wasn’t about to start explaining her position. She knew that even if she booked them at the Tribunal, their bosses would get them released in a short period of time. But building a decent society in Five Bridges had to start somewhere.

Emma levitated down to the asphalt. She touched the first guard on the back of the skull. He started to move, but Emma released a small portion of her energy, knocking the warlock out. She moved to the other guard.

“Don’t kill me.” He laced his hands at the base of his neck.

But Emma didn’t need to reach the more vulnerable location to render him unconscious. The man panicked, however, and started to roll when she drew close. She jumped on his back, pinning him to the ground. Though he tried to protect his head with both hands, the moment she made contact with his skull and her energy flowed, his body went limp. He’d be asleep for a long time.

Fergus and the wolves arrived just as she was dusting off her jeans. They changed swiftly back to their much more human, forms.

“Nice work, Emma.” Fergus’s rough voice flowed over her. He glanced at his men. “Let’s help Brannick with the girls.”

Seeing that there was plenty of support for getting the teens out of the truck, Emma moved around the front where Vaughn covered the warlocks.

She wiggled her fingers in the air. “Let me take care of them so we can help Brannick and the others get the girls out of here.”

Vaughn’s lips curved. “Sounds good to me.” He jerked the door open.

The driver glanced at her hand. “You’d do that to one of your own kind?”

Was he really playing the warlock card?

Emma made a disgusted sound at the back of her throat. “You may be a spellcaster, but you’re not one of my kind. You’re a piece of garbage.”

Emma hopped on the running board. “I should kill you right now for trafficking these girls, but that’s not my job. Instead, we’ll be taking you to the Trib for trial.”

When the warlock smiled because everyone knew any kind of Tribunal justice was a sham, she added, “But I’m giving you a warning. Get out of this business or if I ever find you running humans again, I’ll kill you on sight and that’s a promise. Right now, if you resist what I’m about to do, or try to hurt me, Officer Vaughn will shoot. Now lean forward on the steering wheel.”

He all but collapsed.

“Vaughn, cover his friend who’s eyeing me with real hatred right now.”

“Bitch-witch,” the warlock muttered.

“Oh, I’ve never heard that one before. Now, lift your hands and keep your eye on Officer Vaughn.”

The moment he turned to face Vaughn, she reached in and zapped the driver. He stayed where he was, though now he was slumped over the wheel in a deep sleep.

She rounded the truck and was ready to perform her magic a fourth time, but to her surprise, Vaughn opened the door and jerked the warlock out of the cab. From the high perch of the truck bench, he fell a tidy distance and landed hard on the asphalt.

He lay on his stomach, blood oozing from his nose and mouth. Vaughn planted a boot on the warlock’s back. “Don’t you ever call a Tribunal Public Safety officer a ‘bitch’, do you understand?”