Despite the pressure on her throat, Jenna tried a protest. “No, you’re wrong. That wasn’t me! I was furious about the guy, but I didn’t do anything!”
“And then there’s Blennie,” Hine added. “The poor fool thought he could take on either of you! He got what he deserved. But don’t try to tell me Jessica overpowered him and killed him. She was an even weaker soul than he.”
Jenna tried to shake her head, but Hine’s fingers were hooked into her throat too tightly and she ceased the movement.
“I have no idea what this field thing is, but you’ve got the wrong person,” she told him.
“I’m not that one you’re looking for. Ask Rhys.”
“Why did he come to you, if he wasn’t drawn to you?”
“For heaven’s sake, Rhys and I have worked together on and off for years. He was friends with my partner. We ran into each other and caught up with old times.”
Rhys gave a grimace. “I was warning her to leave town while she could.”
“No. She’s the one.”
“She’s a temporal,” Rhys insisted. “I’ve known her for years, d’you not think I’d have sensed her potentials by now?” His accent seemed to be growing heavier with every sentence, as if he was growing lax with his speech.
He was concentrating on something else.
Hine pushed Jenna abruptly to one side, sending her staggering down the slope towards the rough wall of the cavern. She threw out her hand to stop her fall and it rammed painfully against the rock. When she turned, Hine had both hands held out to his sides. It looked so much like something melodramatic they’d do in the movies that, contrariwise, it convinced Jenna this was real. Hine uttered words again, foreign words, as he looked at Rhys.
Hine was about to assault Rhys somehow, while Rhys stood helplessly locked in the grip of three men.
Was
he helpless, though? She had spent days in his company—why hadn’t she asked for specifics? She had no real idea how this worked. She just knew that Hine was about to blast Rhys with something and he made no attempt to defend himself at all. She recognized the look on his face. He was bracing himself for the assault.
“No, Rhys, fight back!” She urged him, even though she knew he would not hear her.
Run, Jenny
.
Get out, now.
He was going to take the brunt of the attack, to let her get clear.
Hine launched his assault. Jenna felt the hot, hard surge of thick air that roiled between Hine and Rhys.
“No!” She threw out her hands as if she could reach out and stop the force flying at him.
Rhys took a deep breath, preparing himself.
And the force, the whatever-it-was, halted. Then, in the next breath, it was gone like a puff of air.
Hine lifted his head to the ceiling again and howled in frustration.
Rhys snapped his gaze around to her, his eyes boring into hers, wide and shocked. But only for a second. He glanced at his captors and they went reeling away, staggering, almost punch drunk.
Jenna, come to me
!
Jenna obeyed without thought, skirting the edges of the big center slope, running towards him. Rhys straightened up, staring at Hine. As Jenna reached him, he wrapped one arm about her shoulders and at the same moment Hine threw his hand, heel first, out towards the both of them.
Rhys merely looked at him, apparently impervious. “Not with the two of us, Hine.”
This time Hine snarled, a truly animal sound, more like the wolves sitting watching them than human. Jenna trembled at the noise.
“Walk out of the cave now,” Rhys whispered to her. “Slowly. Don’t lose contact with me.”
“But the circle! The solstice!”
“We have time. I want to coax them outside where I can deal with them.”
She nodded and headed for the tunnel, feeling him keep pace with her, his arm around her. The three henchmen, even though they now stood, made no effort to come closer to them.
Rhys watched them all the way out of the cave, not losing eye contact with them for a moment. When they stepped into the passage, he finally faced toward the tunnel entrance.
“You lead. I’m keeping them at bay.”
She led him down the concrete path.
The dim light outside seemed brilliant compared to the passage. She slipped around the ice curtain, sensing now that she led the both of them, that Rhys was pre-occupied and not focused on where they were going.
As they stepped out onto the ground beyond the stream, a wave of fury wash over her, emanating from the cave.
Rhys hurried her away from the cave, toward the trees that ringed the little clearing around the frozen stream. He stayed away from the path that led back to the car park, pushing through fresh snow instead, bringing her with him.
He whirled, just as Jenna felt a ripple down her spine. Something was coming out of the cave behind them.
From the bowls of the earth came the wolf’s cry—a mournful, drawn out sound.
The three men spilled out into the snow, pushing through it toward where they stood at the end of the clearing. Behind the men came Clement Hine. He watched his men’s slow progress across the knee-high field of snow for a moment, then lifted his head and called in the ululating tongue he had used earlier.
Crunching, running footsteps came from the path to the parking area and five more men ran into the clearing, spreading out to circle around them.
“Oh shit…,” Jenna breathed.
“Stay behind me.”
She shook her head. “No, Rhys. I can stop Hine. I did before. That was me, wasn’t it?”
He glanced at her. “Yes.”
“Then you take care of the rest of them. Can you?”
He lifted a single brow. “Do I have a choice?” He turned away before she could answer, to face the approaching men.
Jenna faced Hine as he walked directly towards her. His eyes glittered strangely in the half-light. They glowed almost golden like those of the wolves in the cave.
Remember he can command elements
.
Hine lifted his hand toward her and pushed. It came at her, a hot ball of air. She pushed back, throwing up a mental wall. This time she did it to protect Rhys rather than herself.
The force dissipated and Hine nodded as if he had confirmed something. “You’re coming into your full power.” His voice fell flat, out here in the open. “How nice. But no shield you could throw up can stop a physical attack.”
“I’d welcome a physical attack.” It was simple truth. A physical fight would put this into her territory—well-worn ground where she remained master.
The first of the men reached Rhys, who tackled him with a grunt of effort, knocking the man onto his back. The man didn’t get up again. Two more were coming in. Too fast. Instinctively, she shot out her hand, palm first. She
felt
the surge leap from her and the two men flew backwards, one of them taking out a third coming up behind. They rolled across the snow, but they were not out of the equation completely. She hadn’t put that sort of force into it.
“I hope you know how to multi-task,” Hine called out and she felt him launch another attack. She deflected it quickly, unable to diffuse it completely.
“Tree!” Rhys cannoned into her, sending her staggering across the snow. Behind her she heard the sharp crack and squealing sound of a falling tree. But Rhys’ shove had pushed her out of the way.
Before she could recover, Hine threw another volley at her and shadowy men leapt over the fallen trunk, rushing at Rhys. She deflected the volley, throwing it straight at the men and they flew aside like bowling pins.
They were at a stand-off. Hine could keep throwing men or more at them all night, until fatigue set in and they were overcome. But they didn’t have all night. Her internal clock told her they had only a few short minutes left.
Unsure of whether it could work or not, Jenna lifted her hands up high into the air, together, pointing. Through them she pushed a surge, then spread her arms, describing an arc that enveloped the two of them. She turned 360 degrees so it became a hemisphere. A shield. She poured all of her will and determination into it.
Then she watched with detached interest as the man closest to them walked straight into the perimeter of it and fell backwards like he had hit a wall.
Rhys, behind her, spoke quietly. “Watch Hine, Jenna. He will test you. No one has ever been able to do this and his ego won’t allow him defeat.”
“Just try me.” Jenna scowled at Hine. He strode forward, fury radiating from him. Even though the shield she had thrown up was invisible, she knew exactly where it reached. The moment Hine connected with it, she felt the impact, the surge of rage and fury. But he could not take another step forward, because she pushed back, her own anger rising. He was just a bully. The way to deal with bullies was to give them their own medicine back twofold.
She shoved. Hard.
Hine flew backwards, to sprawl in the snow. He sat up and snarled again. “So be it. I cannot tame you, but I can stop the binding!” He turned and looked towards the frozen waterfall and shot out his hand towards it.
“The cave! No!” Rhys staggered forward through the thigh-high snow.
A dreadful cracking sounded. Crunching, rumbling noise came from higher up the side of the mountain. From the riverbed over the top of the frozen river came an avalanche of ice and snow, broken trees and rocks. It thundered down in front of the cave entrance, bringing down the curtain of ice with it. The vibrations of the fall traveled up through her feet and the displaced air lifted her hair from her neck, ruffling it.
When silence fell again, the cave entrance was completely blocked.
Hine, propped up on one elbow, laughed loudly. “Even you cannot stop that!”
For a moment all was still in the clearing.
Even Hines’ men paused to stare in awe at the destruction.
The muffled, eerie silence dropped over them once more.
Then it was broken by a slow, long cracking sound.
“Ice. The ice,” Rhys looked around. “Where is it?”
“We’re okay.” She watched Hine. Had he seen it? Did he realize his danger?
Hine lay shouting at his men, encouraging them to move in now that Jenna had dropped her shield.
He was totally unaware of the danger.
“Hine!” Jenna called. “Move. You’re on the ice, Hine.”
The cracking, groaning, grinding sound came louder now.
“Hine!” Jenna rushed forward.
He stopped shouting, looking down at the snow beneath him as it moved. Horror spread across his features, but it was already too late. The ice sheet, separated from all anchors, bobbed about, unbalanced with his weight on it. It tilted just like a tip truck, sliding Clement Hine into the cold waters flowing beneath the ice. He flailed, screaming, but the ice sheet, now back in balance, fell back into place over the top of him like the final piece of a jigsaw puzzle.
Jenna turned away, sickened. A couple of his men ran to where Hine had disappeared, but there would be nothing they could do.
The solstice, Jenny
.
She whirled back to Rhys and saw he was struggling with a solitary figure, the last to offer any resistance. She reached out and brushed the man aside casually and he was flung away. Already she noticed the difference in the surges she pushed out. They were stronger—they pulled through her with an almost pleasurable rush. Rhys had been right.
Much of this was intuitive. She just
knew
what to do.
Then Rhys fell to his knees in a tired heap and all her confidence evaporated in an instant. She hurried forward, the snow dogging her every step, until she dropped beside him. He leaned on one hand, the other hand clasped to his stomach.
Fear sat like a heavy imp on her chest, and grabbed her throat. She couldn’t speak.
Rhys!!
He lifted his head to look at her. “A bloody knife.” He coughed. “I didn’t see it in the dark, until it was too late.”
He collapsed into the snow.
Her fear leapt high within her. “No, no, no….” She scrambled to roll him over. She sat in the snow and picked him up in her arms.
She caught her breath as the black shadow across the snow was revealed. His blood. She shook him a little.
“Rhys! Stay with me.”
Solstice. You must go.
“I can’t go anywhere now. The cave is blocked.”
Jump.
“I’m not leaving you.”
Have to. I’ve done my job.
Even his mental voice was fading. Sobs tore at her chest. Hot tears burned her cheek. But she ignored it all, as she delved deep with her mind, searching for him.
Stay, Rhys! I need you!
Silence.
She looked around at the three men still standing. They watched her, wary. “Go away!” she screamed at them.
She looked at the cave entrance, wearing its own impenetrable shield of ice.
Jump
, he’d said. He’d assumed she could do it.
She closed her eyes and thought of the cave while she held Rhys tightly to her. He’d shown her his own jump, the day they’d met. How he’d
leaned
towards the place,
yearned
to be there. So she thought of the cave, with longing and despair. She must get Rhys out of this snow, into warmth and light.
Love
.
Suddenly she was there, the twinkling light from the ice all around her and Rhys lay in her arms. They were in the center of the circle with the wolves ranged around them.
Jenna held Rhys to her, feeling with her hand for a heartbeat and finding none.
The solstice was nearly on her. The energy of the field built, swirling like an orgasm rushing at her. She reached out with her mind, searching for Rhys, calling for him.
She felt him echo back. It was enough. She grasped and held on, just as the inhuman surge of the field ripped through her.
It was like a blast of light, or hot air, a call of trumpets.
All of it. From far away, she heard the wolves give voice. She lifted up, up high to float for an endless moment of time, before the surge moved beyond her.
* * * * *
Jenna blinked and found she still sat on the hard rock of the cave floor and Rhys still lay in her arms. She wiped at her wet cheeks and sniffed mightily. “Rhys?” she whispered.
I’m here…I’m really here.
Amazement flooded him as he grappled with the facts.
“You told me yourself the circle can heal.”
He reached for his side and probed, then held up his fingers to examine them. Traces of blood from his shirt coloured them, but that was all. “Sure, fevers, sickness…I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a six-inch knife wound being healed.”
“I guess there’s a first for everything.”
He sat up, moving gingerly. “But I have a hell of a headache.” He looked at her. “You did it, Jenny. You brought both of us over.”
She nodded. “I appear to have chosen.”
He cupped her cheek. “You surrendered to your fate.”
“Screw fate. I chose you. And anyway—” She moved her cramped legs.
“Now that I got through the solstice and you got me here, aren’t we done with the fate thing? Neither of us have any more destinies lined up, do we?”
He laughed.
It was a carefree, happy sound.
He sat up properly himself. “Just a long lifetime of trying to keep humans from destroying themselves several times over every time they dream up a new and exotic blend of something or other.”
“Hell, that’s what I’ve been doing for the last ten years.”
He kissed her. “Let’s go home.”
She picked up his hand, not sure if she needed the physical contact or not to make this work and looked at him. “Where
is
home?” she asked. “For you, I mean?”
“Wherever you are, Jenny.”