She looked up to respond to him, but before she could speak he put a hand on her cheek and tapped it gently. When her head went limp on her shoulders, Gabriel stood up again. "And that takes care of that."

"Is she okay?" I asked.

"She's fine. Just a careful touch. It's like holding a shark upside down - it calms them. A handy little technique for putting out errant sorceresses. Gives us a good four or five hours before she wakes up again. And when she does wake up, we can have a nice chat."

I gave him a flat look. "You couldn't have done that three days ago?"

Gabe shrugged. "No one asked me to."

And that was a succinct lesson in using al available assets during a crisis.

"How wil you get her back to Chicago?" Ethan asked.

"Sidecar," Jeff said, thumbing his hand back toward the driveway.

"You have a sidecar?" I held up a hand. "Wait. Let me restate that. You rode to Nebraska in a sidecar?"

Adorable as Jeff was, I couldn't get the image of him riding excitedly in an old-fashioned sidecar - brown locks waving in the wind, as happy as a puppy - out of my mind.

"I drove my own rig," he said. "The sidecar was for the book. And now it's for the girl who destroyed the book."

We al looked at her again, limp on the ground, plans for her future being decided around her and without her permission, because she'd given up her right to object.

The low roar of a fire truck sounded in the distance. It must have taken the neighbors a while to realize that anything was amiss. That meant it was time for us to make our exit. The Order could clean up the rest of this mess.

"How wil you get back?" Gabriel asked.

"I have a truck," Paige said. "Fortunately, the keys are inside it."

"Then, if you can give us a ride to the airport, we can take the jet," Ethan said.

I stared at him. "I'm sorry - the jet?"

"The House has a jet," Ethan said. "Wel, the House leases a jet on occasion. And I'd say this is an appropriate occasion."

"Were you going to mention we had a jet before we spent eight hours driving to Nebraska and destroyed your Mercedes in the process?"

He looked up and arched an eyebrow at me. "If I'd done that, we wouldn't have had al those hours together, Sentinel."

That might have been an unintended benefit, but he wouldn't have delayed us with a car ride if a faster alternative had been so easily available. "Couldn't find a pilot on such short notice?" I asked.

"Perhaps. But don't ruin the ilusion."

I roled my eyes.

"We'l get her settled and introduce her to the rules," Gabriel said, "and then you can say helo. It'l give you a chance to check out her situation. Although I'm fairly certain you'l approve; you've already met the caretaker I have in mind."

I didn't have a good reason to object to that offer, so I nodded. "By the way, there's a strip along I-29 that's probably going to require a detour."

Gabriel frowned. "It was clear on the way down."

"That was pre-Tate."

Gabriel sighed, and I looked at Ethan. "By al means," I said, "let's take the jet."

Chapter Eight

HOME IS WHERE THE SHOWER IS

I took the passenger seat, and Paige drove us in a beat-up extended-cab pickup truck with FARM TRUCK license plates to a private hangar at Omaha's airport. Ethan was in the backseat with our swords and Paige's pile of cherished books.

To cal the mood somber was an understatement. Malory had proven again that she was wiling to hurt others to rid herself of pain. It wasn't exactly a cause for celebration. But at least the Maleficium was gone.

We were mostly silent, probably al ruminating on what we'd seen - and what was to come. I was especialy worried about Ethan. He was connected to Malory in a way that was causing him physical pain. If a new sorceress could bring a four-centuries-old vampire to his knees because she was feeling agitated, what else could she do? It wasn't a question I was comfortable considering, and Ethan couldn't have felt any better about it.

Paige broke the ominous silence. "And I suggested she was a novice. The gnomes came because I asked them to, because I promised them she was al smoke and mirrors and very little skil.

They were hurt because of me in a fight they didn't want to wage in the first place."

The regret on her face was clear. I didn't relish the fact that she'd been wrong, or that the gnomes had suffered because of it, but at least she was wiling to reconsider her choices. Malory stil hadn't come around to that point yet.

"Because of Malory," I clarified.

"Does it matter?" Paige asked. I'm not sure she meant me to answer it, so I changed the subject.

"Todd said they'd go back to ground," I said.

She nodded. "They live in underground networks. They're incredibly industrious, and the tunnels keep the soil aerated. You ever wondered why the midwestern states are so big on agriculture? It's not the dirt," she said. "It's who's under the dirt."

Ethan rubbed his temples. That smal action was enough to make the panic flare in my chest.

"What is it?" I asked. "Is she free again?"

"Just a headache," he said, smiling apologeticaly. "I think she's stil unconscious. She's certainly stil drained, and I can feel it. But it's lessening since we're headed in opposite directions, at least until we get to the airport."

"You can sense her?" Paige asked, brow furrowed with concern.

"They have some kind of connection," I explained. "It started after she brought him back, but destroying the Maleficium apparently didn't stop it."

I met his gaze in the rearview mirror. "We'l figure it out."

"We'd better," he said.

His link to Malory was a liability, not just for his safety, but for Cadogan. Until that link was severed, he'd never regain control of the House. I'd hoped finishing Malory's work with the Maleficium might do the trick. Since it hadn't, I might have to rely on her for answers. That idea didn't thril me.

"It's not surprising she's tired given the amount of magic she threw out tonight," Paige said. "Controling the universe is generaly a subtle thing. Powerful, but subtle. Her magic is definitely not subtle. It's very disco magic. Flashy, but expensive to the aura."

It was expensive in every possible way: her livelihood, her friends, her family, her karma. No one trusted her, and for pretty good reason.

"You know what I need?" I asked.

"A chocolate fountain?" Ethan suggested. "A complete paper set of the Encyclopedia Britannica? A lifetime supply of griled meat?"

Tags: Chloe Neill Chicagoland Vampires Vampires
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