Suzanne Johnson - Elysian Fields

“Not yet. He’s been taken to the site and restrained but I have to get closer to control him. I’m still sending orders to the Axeman but he isn’t responding. I think he’s been caught.”

I had to think smart if I was going to live through this. There were too many factions involved. My biggest advantage was the staff, pressing into my leg from inside its sheath. Lily and her buddies thought it was broken. I had no idea where my bag, premade charms, or cell phone were.

I had another weapon too. I closed my eyes and focused my mind on Rand, visualizing his face, his voice. In trouble. L’Amour Sauvage office. Need help. I didn’t know if it would work with me in New Orleans and Rand in Elf heim, but it couldn’t hurt.

Adrian’s loafered toe tapped on the hardwood near Lily’s pumps. “Why don’t you just fry her brains with your elven magic? It almost killed her before.”

“It doesn’t work on her since the bonding.” Plus, Lily needed her hands to stay clean if she were going to overthrow Mace as head of the Synod and then take on the wizards for control of the Interspecies Council.

Lily’s shoes disappeared from view. “You know, I rather like the idea of using Lafitte against her, and forcing him to do something he objects to.” Her voice came from behind me now. “We can’t kill him, but he’ll suffer because of what we make him do. Jonas, you’ll be living in Elf heim and he won’t dare come after you there. You’re the only one implicated except Terri. Etienne’s kept his hands clean. Adrian, the pirate doesn’t know you’re involved and if you want to continue drawing breath, I’d suggest you keep your mouth shut.”

Every freaking one of them was a part of this except, ironically, the two I’d been most angry with—Rand and Mace.

Something fell to the floor with a bang, and I prayed they hadn’t seen me flinch. Thank God I had on Alex’s huge sweatshirt or they’d see my heart pounding. How could I slip the staff out without them see—

“Ow!” What felt like the sharp toe of a high heel whacked my upper back. Damn, that hurt, and I couldn’t stop the instinctive arch as the muscles around my spine drew in on themselves. I rolled to my back and Lily leaned over me, her pale hair and face made even more washed out by her basic black dress.

I smiled at her. “You really should wear pastels. Black looks like shit on you.” My words were tough, my shaky voice far from it.

She assumed the same smug smirk I’d seen on Mace Banyan and Rand. The elves must practice it. “You’ve rested enough, my meddling wizard. Time to go and see your friend the pirate.”

I tried to sit up, but as soon as I raised my head, the room spun. Whatever she had hit me with had probably given me a concussion. From behind, Jonas jerked me to my feet, then had to hold on to my arm to keep me from toppling over again. I couldn’t decide which hurt worse—my head or my back or my bruised ribs.

“Let’s get this over with.” Jonas shook me like Sebastian with his rubber rat, making the room tilt. I might have to throw up. “I have dinner plans.”

God forbid my death should interrupt his dinner. I snaked my right hand toward my thigh—these people needed to meet Mahout in a bad way. Before I could get my hands on it, Jonas shoved me roughly toward Lily. She stepped out of the way so I hit the floor inside the transport. Jonas chanted behind me, and his words, plus the compression of air around me, told me we were going on a trip to Six Flags.

A cold front had pushed in from the north, and an icy rain was falling when we landed in the transport at Six Flags. After Katrina, the park’s electricity had been cut to everything except the streetlights in the outer lots. Along with the rain, the sporadic lighting added shadow- buildings and giant mutant roller-coaster ghosts to the general ambience.

I heard Jean before I saw him. I couldn’t understand the words, but I recognized the sentiment. He was giving someone a verbal beat-down in French. Shivering, Alex’s sweatshirt growing heavier as it soaked up the rain, I finally saw him near the big laughing clown head, arguing with Terri while handcuffed to one of the dead light poles. He stopped speaking when he saw me, something like sorrow and resignation crossing his face.

Jonas shoved me toward them. I tripped over a concrete barrier and stumbled into Jean.

“ Jolie, I was hoping you would elude them.” He glanced over my shoulder at Terri. “I fear my trust in Etienne was misplaced. When I arrived, he was not there but his assistant trapped me.” He rattled the handcuffs, but that light pole—and, thus, Jean—wasn’t going anywhere.

I took stock of my companions as they huddled in the nearest storefront, wondering who to take out first as they argued about the best way to use Jean against me. I didn’t see Etienne, but Terri could probably do that fast- moving vampire thing. Adrian had his Blue Congress skills. Lily’s mental magic wouldn’t work on me now, thanks to Rand, but God only knew what else she could do. And Jonas could control Jean, at least in theory.

If they were going to leave me out here in the rain and ignore me, they’d pay. Easing the staff from beneath my soggy sweatshirt, I aimed it at the roof of the wooden building they were huddled in and shot a nice stream of elven-bond-enhanced fire directly over Jonas’s head.

They screamed and scattered as the roof sparked and sizzled, caving in on top of them in a hiss of smoke. Thanks to the rain, I didn’t get the eruption I wanted, but I got a diversion.

I studied the handcuffs, and wished I had a handy charm or potion. “I’m going to try to use the staff on these cuffs but it might burn you,” I told Jean.

“Do it, Jolie .”

While I used short bursts of energy against the link chain of the cuffs, I talked. There were much bigger things than me at play here and my odds of surviving weren’t great. Terri had already escaped the collapsed building, and the others wouldn’t be far behind. Then they’d turn their attention back to me.

“They’re afraid of you—afraid you’ll go to the Elders.” I kept my voice low and spoke quickly. “If I don’t make it out of this, go to Zrakovi. Tell him that Lily, Adrian, Jonas the necromancer, and the vampires are all involved. I think the vampires and Lily are conspiring to overthrow Mace Banyan for power in the Synod, and then present a united vampire-elf force against the Elders. I think Mace and Quince Randolph are not involved. Together, the elves and vampires outnumber the wizards, and they want to take control of the Interspecies Council. Remember. Zrakovi needs to know.”

“You will not die here, Drusilla.” Jean whispered so softly I strained to hear him. “Kill the necromancer first and I will be able to . . .” Jean’s eyes glazed and he looked past me. He didn’t blink, even with the rain pelting his face and dripping from his lashes.

I turned to see Jonas crouched outside the collapsed storefront, chanting and moving his fingers in intricate patterns, twisting a spell. “Courir, Jolie!” Jean said, his voice choked, straining, urgent. “My will fails me. Run!”

I took off, pulling out the staff as I ran at a ninety-degree angle from Jean. I aimed over my shoulder and let out a blast of my elven-bond- induced fire, aiming at Jonas. Broad red ropes flew straight at him, but Lily had been watching me. She shoved him aside, leaving the fire to blow a hole in the concrete wall behind him. The building didn’t collapse, but at least I’d bought some more time while Jonas regrouped.

I ran onto the midway of storefronts but stopped when I got out of their view and peered back at them around a partially collapsed wall. Terri had released Jean, and he ran toward Jonas and Lily. The elf had a freaking pistol, standing guard while Jonas crafted his spell again. Jean stopped halfway to him, and his shoulders stiffened.