Inferno (12 page)

“Yes.” The answer felt like it was being ripped from her as the counter-magic rose once more, preventing her from speaking about her keeper. Duncan must have seen her discomfort, for he changed his line of questioning again.

“What circumstance created the obligation and how long ago did it start?”

“The fire. The great fire. It was my ancestors’ fault. They trusted the wrong people. Made the wrong decisions. And people died. Innocent people. Chicago died.” Dante gasped, but Duncan persisted with his questions.

“Which ancestors caused the obligation of your family to the
Altor Custodis
?”

“The last set of twins. The
were
lords.”

“And what was the year?”

“1871.”

“The Great Chicago Fire?” Heathclif asked from the side. She saw Dante nod, his face grim.

“What happened to your ancestors after the fire?” Duncan reclaimed her attention.

“They were disgraced. When their mistakes came to light, their people threw them out. My line was banished, sentenced to run alone until they could atone for their sins.”

“So how did the
Altor Custodis
become involved?”

“They approached the twins after. The
Altor Custodis
offered a way out—a way of atoning by working for them. Somehow, the debt never seemed to be repaid. They were my grandfathers, and they passed the mark of obligation to my mother. She passed it to me. I was told this mission would be my last for the
Altor Custodis
. After this, the obligation would be fulfilled and my family’s honor would finally be restored.”

Duncan sat back whistling under his breath. He seemed to regroup, collecting his thoughts before he continued the questioning.

“So what about the poison in your blood? Did you know about it before last night?”

“No!” The very idea of it made her shiver. “I didn’t know. It’s nothing I’ve done on purpose.

You have to believe me. I don’t want to kill anyone. Not that way. Not ever. Poison is for the weak. It’s not the
were
way.” The tears in her eyes began to fall. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s all right, Megan, but we have to know what you know. We have to uncover the truth. Such magic workings aren’t easily performed on a
were
—even a half-
were
like you. Someone went to great pains to make you a carrier of something that would kill Dante.” She began to cry in earnest and Duncan took pity on her, handing her a box of tissues that had been on the table beside him. He waited a few moments while she mopped her eyes and blew her nose before resuming his questions.

“Did your keeper work a spell over you at any time during the past year?”

“Not that I know of. He’s human—” She tried to say more, but the pain of warring magics inside her stopped her words.

“Well, it’s obvious he at least managed to put a compulsion on you not to speak of him.” Duncan shot the other men another significant look even as his expression hardened with determination. He tried another tack. “When in the presence of your keeper, did you ever eat or drink anything?”

She thought back. “I don’t see him often. We’ve never shared a meal. The last time I saw him, he offered me a drink. I thought it strange at the time. It was a sweet honey wine and it made me sneeze. I thought it was the flower smell of the honey that tickled my nose, but now that you ask, I remember the liquid tingled in my throat and sparkled faintly in the glass.”

“Silver dust?” Heath asked from the side. Duncan nodded at him and resumed his questioning.

“Were there any other times you ate or drank with him?”

“No. Just that once.”

“What is your opinion of him? Do you think he’s a good man?” She hesitated. “He’s…
Altor Custodis
is supposed to be on the side of light. I…I was never sure if he was or not. He didn’t feel right to me, but it wasn’t my place to question. My mother introduced him to me. She told me to trust him. She told me it was the only way to redeem our family honor.”

“Your instincts said differently, did they not?”

Slowly, she nodded. “I don’t know why, but I never liked him. I never trusted him fully, and I didn’t like most of the missions he sent me on over the years.”

“What kind of missions?”

“Spying mostly. Or he’d send me as a messenger to places I didn’t like the feel of.”

“What did they feel like?”

“Slimy. Unclean… Evil.” Agony stabbed through her brain as memories of those places surfaced in her mind. She’d repressed those memories and now they were back in full force. She threw her head back against the couch, writhing in pain.

Duncan’s big hands cupped her cheeks, stilling her movement as he captured her gaze. “Be at ease, my lovely. Someone has done this to you. Listen to me, and I will free you. I’ll free your mind and unleash the memories he has hidden from you. Prepare yourself. This may be difficult at first.”

Duncan bore down on her with his power, his hands holding her as he loomed over her on the couch. His magic was awesome in its strength, overwhelming her senses and freeing her mind.

The pain of the returning memories was almost too much to bear. Duncan held her through it.

He was her strength for those moments, and she knew he would not let her fall.

Suddenly, things that had been hidden from her clicked into place. She recalled with clarity the horrible places her keeper had sent her, and the horrible people he’d made her deal with, delivering messages and carrying them back. The memories made her feel physically ill. Megan clutched at her stomach as nausea threatened to overcome her.

Duncan’s hand soothed her brow, a tingle of his energy easing the pain in her gut.

“Whoever did this to you, he is a master mage.” Duncan sat on the couch, looking as drained as she felt. “And it was lucky in a way, that Heath felt the need to bite you first. The poison was keyed to Dante specifically, so it had a less violent effect on Heath. It probably would’ve killed Dante too rapidly for us to counter it.”

The compulsion to answer his questions was gone, replaced by a feeling of freedom and a return of memories she hadn’t realized were missing.

“Goddess!” She shuddered to think what had been done to her without her knowledge.

“You’re mostly free now, Megan. I’m sorry to say the compulsion against revealing your keeper’s identity may last until he is dead. I’m sorry. Some magics work that way and have very few counters in this realm.”

She looked over at Duncan, taking in his pale face and faintly trembling hand. He’d given a lot of his strength to free her even this much. She reached out to him, touching his hand.

“Thank you, Duncan.”

“The poison in your blood will wear off slowly…unless we make further efforts to nullify it.” One eyebrow rose as he grinned, and she had a good idea of how they’d go about
nullifying
the magic. After what she’d been through the night before, she wasn’t sure she’d survive another round of sex magic. “It wouldn’t be a good idea for any of our fanged friends to partake of your blood again until we’re sure the poison is completely gone.”

“Agreed,” Heath was the first to say, though he smiled to soften his hasty words. He even reached out to pat her head, petting her like a favored puppy. “You’re a sweet temptation, my dear. All in all, though, I think we’re safer keeping you at arm’s length for now.” She laughed, smiling up at him. “Believe me, I’m glad to be off the menu. I couldn’t go through another night like the one just past.”

Heath’s eyes went dark. “I’m sorry, sweetheart.”

“Oh!” She realized he’d taken her words as a complaint. “No, I meant I hated the idea that I’d hurt you. Despite being half-
were
, I’m averse to causing pain. Even when I’m furry, I don’t torment my prey. I’m more of a catch-and-release kind of girl.” Heath seemed to take her words well, easing back in his chair and smiling kindly. There was knowledge in his eyes—intimate knowledge of her that made her heart thump in an unsteady rhythm.

“My daughter was to have met with you tonight, but I think it better to limit your knowledge of her until you are free of the mage’s taint. Under the circumstances, I think it’s safe to let you continue to roam our fair city. I’d like Dante to keep an eye on you and, of course, I don’t want you reporting to your
Altor Custodis
contact under any circumstances. Not yet.” His gaze turned sharp. “We may have a use for that connection later, but we will need time to prepare a battle plan.”

She didn’t like the sound of that last bit. Of course, it was a relief to hear he wasn’t going to put her to death for what she’d done. She knew she’d gotten off easy after what she’d almost done to Heath.

With her memories restored, she had no desire to return to the keeper who had run her life from behind the scenes for so long. She was torn about the need to salvage her family’s honor, but vowed to find some other way. She would never willingly obey that evil man from the
Altor
Custodis
again.

“I can live with that,” she said in a subdued voice. Dante must have sensed some of her dismay.

“You’re worrying about your family’s debt, are you not? I think perhaps, I can help with that.” He stood and began to pace the floor, clearly agitated at what he was about to say. “The debt owed by your family is not owed to the
Altor Custodis
. It never was. Likely, some opportunist within their ranks preyed on your ancestors, making them his pawns. I recognize the events of which you spoke. The Great Chicago Fire was a turning point in my life as well. I had befriended a young man. He was a mortal mage, whom I believed to be the reincarnation of my murdered brother.”

Megan gasped. She knew all the particulars of the fire story. Her grandfathers had told her of their terrible mistakes when she was just a cub.
Were
life expectancies were much longer than humans’. They lived harsh lives and most often died well before their time. Her grandfathers had lived to the age of one hundred sixty-seven. They would have lived longer had they not died in a fiery crash. The same crash that had claimed the life of their mate and their only child, Megan’s mother.

“The firemage was your friend?” She saw the truth in his eyes even before he spoke.

“He was a kind and gentle soul who would not have hurt a fly. He was in control of his power, but when your grandfathers had their wolves corner him in that barn, he lost it utterly.”

“The Great Chicago Fire was caused by a human firemage gone rogue?” Heath asked.

“Erik was not a rogue!” Dante snapped. “He was attacked by a gang of wolves. He was trying to defend himself. The conflagration that followed was a result of his death.”

“My God, I had no idea.” Heath looked both shocked and sympathetic to Dante’s obvious pain.

“I was the one who demanded blood price when it became clear the wolves had killed an innocent man.” Dante turned back to pin her with his gaze. “So you see, your family’s debt is owed to me. No other. Me.”

Megan’s mouth went dry as her entire existence to this point came into question. She’d been working for the
Altor Custodis
, determined to erase her family’s debt, but if what Dante said was true—and she had no reason to doubt him—then it had all been for naught.

“Well?” Duncan prompted her. “Did your grandfathers say anything about a vengeful bloodletter who demanded their banishment?”

Slowly she nodded. “They never spoke his name, but they knew who was responsible for their fate. They accepted it. Guilt over what they had allowed to happen to an innocent man followed them all their days.”

“I’m glad,” Dante said harshly. “Erik was…” Emotion clogged his throat as he turned away, and Megan got a heartbreaking glimpse of the pain the human mage’s death had caused. “He was my brother all over again.” Dante gathered his composure like a cloak around him.

“Dante’s younger brother was murdered by agents of the
Venifucus
centuries ago, in an effort to turn him to their side,” Duncan picked up the story. “It is my belief that they never stopped trying to get him to turn. For whatever reason, the
Venifucus
have targeted him over and over to this very day. The business in Montana recently was only the latest in a long series of tragedies they have manufactured especially for him.”

“The
were
lords?” Heath asked, clearly curious as Dante continued to pace near the fire, his face averted.

“Yes,” Duncan confirmed. “The mage who set Dante up was a
Venifucus
agent. We heard him speak of their plans before he was dispersed.”

“Then they’re definitely back?” Heath looked pale.

“I begin to think they never left. But yes, they are definitely back and a threat to every living being in this realm.”

“Good lord,” Heath whispered, his eyes filled with a mixture of dread and determination.

Dante, recovered from his emotional storm, turned to face her. “Any debt you owe, is owed to me. Do you agree?”

Megan didn’t know what else to do. She knew the stories of her family’s past as well as anyone who hadn’t lived through it. She recognized Dante’s claim and had heard enough of his story to know he wasn’t making it up. He’d been the bloodletter her grandfathers had wronged so grievously. She really had no other choice.

“I agree.” She stood to face him, then went down on one knee in the formal way. “I swear to do what you say to repay the debt my family owes you.”

Dante dragged her to her feet before they could seal her oath.

“I consider the debt ended with your grandfathers. I never intended for it to carry over for generations.”

She shook her head. “It must be this way, Dante. It is the
were
way. I’ll serve you until the debt is paid.”

“We’ll discuss this later, Megan.” Dante’s lips firmed, and his words were clipped. She’d annoyed him it seemed, but she wouldn’t let the matter drop. She’d talk more about it with him once they were free of this place and had a moment alone.

“This is all very interesting,” Heath spoke into the tense silence. “But we have bigger fish to fry if the
Venifucus
is going to pose a threat.”

“Agreed,” Duncan said quickly. “With Megan free of the
Altor Custodis
obligation, perhaps she can be convinced to help us fight the good fight, eh?” He grinned at her, trying to lighten her spirits.