Taken In (The Red Enchanter Book 2) Read online

  “Get who you need and I’ll tell the rest of them.”

  “Thank you.” he said. Rowan had been such an unexpected blessing in their lives. The thought of him in the hands of a group of rough Firesea rangers was unbearable.

  Killian left Granny Jenkins and ran back home. In his head he was already assembling a team, Lucy, Finnegan, Logan, and his only surviving son Kip. Killian burst through the door. Nora was in the kitchen balancing on her crutches. “They took him didn’t they?”

  “Yes. I’m rounding up the family. We’re going after him.”

  “I’m going with you.”

  “Nora, you can’t.” He hesitated. It was no time for delicacy. “You’ll slow us down.”

  “I want you to fix my leg.”

  “Nora-”

  “There’s no point in hiding now. They have him, they know we’re here. This place will be overrun with Firesea rangers by morning. They have my baby, how dare you tell me that I can’t go.”

  “All right. Sit down.” He helped her into a chair. She stuck out her mangled leg. When Killian’s hands had grown back after Dante cut them off they took on the ability to heal. He put his fingers on Nora’s leg. It had been crushed underneath a boulder days after giving birth to Rowan. Afterwards there was no time or way for her to rest. It had healed crooked. He knew it often caused her pain.

  He shut his eyes, his fingers tingled. He hear Nora make a surprised noise. He opened his eyes. Her leg was fixed. The whole process took less than a minute.

  Killian helped Nora to her feet. She wobbled and fell forward. He caught her. “Never mind me, I just have to get used to it.” she said. “Go and gather the rest of them. I’ll meet you at Finnegan’s. You’re going to have to fix him too.” She swayed on her feet.

  “Are you sure you’re going to be all right?”

  “Yes, Killian.” Nora snapped. “Just go. The more time we stand here talking the farther away Rowan could be.”

  “What about the pen?”

  “I’ll bring it. Just go!” she yelled.

  Killian ran out of the house leaving her struggling to stay upright. Finnegan’s shack was at the edge of town. He hoped healing his older brother would be as easy as Nora’s leg had been.

  Chapter 4

  Finnegan Murphy opened his one good eye. There was a knocking sound on his door. He sat up and scratched himself. Outside someone was calling his name, at least he thought it was his name, he wasn’t entirely sure.

  “Finn! Open the damn door!”

  Finnegan rubbed his temples and tried to think. Why would someone be looking for him?

  “Finn! Open the door now! It’s your brother.” the voice said angrily. “The redhead.”

  Finnegan stared at the door. A redhead. There was someone like that who came around. He couldn’t recall what his name was. He slowly got to his feet and hitched up his long underwear. The door was only a few feet away but it took him a while to get there. It took another few minutes for him to figure out how to open it. When he did the redhead burst inside. “What took you so long?”

  Finnegan struggled to find the right words. During the war an arrow had gone through his eye and penetrated his brain. He didn’t remember much of anything from before that time and even less afterwards. “What’s that?” he mumbled.

  The redhead shook his shoulders. “They’ve taken Rowan, we’ve got to go after him.”

  Finnegan squinted. “They who?” He was sure he didn’t know anyone else except this man.

  The man shook him again, causing Finnegan’s long underwear to fall to the floor. A young woman stood in the doorway. “Stop it Daddy, he can’t help it and you know it. Just fix him.”

  The redhead put his hands on Finnegan’s head. Finnegan reached up to try and swat him away.

  “It’s all right.” the woman said. “We can fix you now. Firesea knows where we are, we don’t have to hide.”

  Finnegan liked her voice, it was soothing. She looked familiar but he didn’t know why. The redhead pressed his hands against Finnegan’s skull. Finnegan had no idea what he was doing. He began to feel warm all over. The redhead closed his eyes and grimaced. Finnegan wondered if he was constipated.

  The woman looked at Finnegan. “Are you feeling any different?”

  He didn’t understand her question so he didn’t answer it.

  “Maybe his injuries are too much.” she said.

  The redhead took his hands away. “It’s going to take a while.” He bent down and pulled up Finnegan’s long underwear. The redhead had green eyes. Someone else had green eyes but Finnegan couldn’t remember who. “We are taking you on a trip, all right?”

  Finnegan turned around to see if someone else was in the shack with him.

  The man turned to the woman. “Help me find something for him to wear.”

  The two of them rummaged around in the shack and then proceeded to stuff Finnegan into a greasy pair of pants and an old flannel shirt. He didn’t remember seeing either item of clothing before. Finally they shoved his feet into a pair of boots.

  “That will have to do.” the man said. He straightened Finnegan’s collar. “I hope you’re better soon. I really need your help Finn.”

  The redhead and the woman each took an arm and walked him outside. There were people and horses standing nearby. Another man with dark hair helped the redhead put Finnegan on one of the horses.

  The redhead spoke to the man with the dark hair and then mounted the horse Finnegan was on. The man looked over his shoulder at him. “I miss you Finn.” He took the reins and the horse began to move. The other riders followed them.

  Finnegan stared at the red hair in front of him. As he did two things happened. He began to notice a wedge of light in his blind eye and a name came into his head. He tapped the man on the shoulder. The redhead slowed the horse and looked back.

  “Is your name Killian?” Finnegan asked.

  He smiled. “Yes it is. I’m your little brother.”

  Finnegan wasn’t sure about that second part. “Killian Cramer, that’s your name.”

  “Yes.” He reached back and patted Finnegan’s leg. “You just hang on and keep remembering.”

  Chapter 5

  It was several hours before the riders stopped. They took Rowan off the horse and unbound his hands. They were in an open scrubby field. He knew there was no point in trying to run away, they could easily catch him.

  The men gave him water to drink and food from their bags. They sat in a circle talking about things Rowan didn’t understand. As his belly became full he ventured to ask them a question. “Are you enchanters?”

  The men looked at each other and laughed. “What do you think lad?”

  Rowan hesitated. “I think that you are.”

  Their leader smirked. “Takes one to know one, eh?”

  Rowan thought about this. “Are you saying that I am an enchanter?”

  The man’s face changed. “Of course. Don’t you know that?”

  “I wasn’t sure.”

  The men grumbled among themselves.

  “What kind of parents would raise a Firesea enchanter to not know who he was?” the leader scoffed.

  “What’s Firesea?”

  “What’s Firesea!” one of them shouted. “You’ll soon find out.”

  They remounted the horses and rode for several more hours. Rowan was surprised that besides the town on the other side of the mountain there were no other settlements around. The sun was beginning to set when they came upon a large encampment. Round red tents dotted the landscape. In the background the hills rose up to meet the setting sun.

  Rowan couldn’t even begin to imagine what his parents were doing. They must be frantically searching for him. He felt ashamed of himself. If he had just faced the boys at school none of this would have happened. Now he didn’t know what was going to become of him, he might never see them again.

  The men took him from the horse and with his hands still bound led him to a large circular tent.
It was bigger than Rowan’s entire house. Red cloth trimmed in gold flapped in the evening breeze. The soldiers took him inside. The tent must have been divided up into several rooms, for the space inside was small. Another set of men were lined up there. “He’s a little one, isn’t he?” one of them remarked.

  The leader of the men who had taken him bent down and looked him in the eye. “Be brave lad. If they don’t want you then we’ll take you home.”

  Rowan tried to keep from crying. The soldier left and the other men pushed Rowan through a fabric curtain and into the next room. A tall chair was in the middle of the space. In it was a young man with dark wavy hair and dark hooded eyes. He was wearing a red tunic with black pants and black boots. He watched Rowan with an unsure expression.

  As Rowan was shoved closer to the chair another person came into view. Slithering like a snake from the shadows of the fabric walls he wrapped himself around the back of the chair. His gray hair hung in long waves, his eyes were black. He poked the younger man in the shoulder. “Question him.”

  “What’s your name?”

  Rowan could feel his knees shaking. The boys at school suddenly seemed like nothing at all. He had never been so frightened in all his life. He tried to imagine what his father would say, he was a brave man. “Why did you take me? I didn’t do anything.”

  The older man leaned in close to the younger one. “Are you going to let him talk to you like that Constantine?”

  Constantine swallowed. “Tell me your name boy.”

  Rowan thought again of his father, he would not have cooperated. “Who are you?” he asked, with a hint of anger in his voice. He had never spoken to a grown up like that before.

  The man behind the chair stomped forward in fury. “How dare you talk to him like that!” He grabbed a fistful of Rowan’s hair in his fingers. “Look at him Constantine. Is there any doubt in your mind?” He pushed Rowan to the ground. “Use the stick.”

  Rowan had been hit with a stick before, by some of the kids at school.

  The older man nudged him with his foot. “He’s as weak as his father. Use the stick and you’ll find out for yourself.”

  Constantine got to his feet and picked up a long gold stick. Rowan braced himself. To his surprise Constantine put it on Rowan’s forehead. There was a suctioning noise as it attached to him. Suddenly he felt as though his thoughts were not his own. The sensation lasted for only a few seconds. The stick released itself and rolled away on the floor.

  Constantine went back to his chair. The other man knelt at his feet. “What did you see?”

  “His name is Rowan Cramer.”

  The older man smiled. “Of course it is.”

  “He ran away from school, the other boys were picking on him.” Constantine said. “He’s thirteen, I thought he was younger.”

  The older man curled his lip. “That’s because he’s a runt.”

  “Is he the one you’ve been looking for Father?”

  “You tell me. Who are his parents?”

  “A man named Killian and a woman called Nora.” Constantine answered.

  The man nodded. “Nora. How I have longed to see her.” He looked at Rowan. “Your mother and I have been married for almost thirty years.”

  “You’re not married to my mother.”

  He tossed back his hair. “I’ve always been married to her. I’m afraid you’re a bastard.”

  Rowan didn’t understand. “But-”

  The man offered his hand. “We may as well be introduced. Dante Gavrashelli.” Rowan shook it without thinking. “I can see my news has come as a shock but rest assured I don’t hold your low birth against you. I know it’s not your fault, in other circumstances we might have become friends. But I’m afraid young man that you are caught up in something that began years before.

  “Now you’re probably wondering where you come in to all of this. Quite simply, I’ve been searching for you for some time. I’ve wanted you for my son. I want you to be his slave. As I said, it’s nothing personal. I’m sure you’re a nice boy, but I want to humiliate your parents.”

  Rowan was trying to keep back the tears. He sniffled and managed to put a few words together. “They’ll come looking for me.”

  Dante nodded happily. “I know. I want them to.” He put his hand on Rowan’s shoulder. “You see young man, I want to get rid of all the enchanters. I keep that army out there because I have to, but eventually I’ll dispose of them. It’s my life’s work.”

  “But aren’t you an enchanter?”

  Dante laughed. “You’re smarter than you look. I’m surprised given your breeding.”

  “But you want to get rid of the enchanters, then how-”

  “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”

  Rowan looked at Constantine. “What about your son?”

  Dante shrugged. “What about him?” He snapped his fingers and two men appeared. “Take him to the slave tent.”

  The men dragged Rowan outside. The sun had set and the air had turned cold. If only he had gone to school that morning. If only, if only. He would repeat those words over and over again for a long time to come.

  Chapter 6

  Killian knew of a shortcut through the hills. They led the horses along the little used trail. It was slow going. Every second he felt Rowan moving farther away. Behind him Finnegan was mumbling, he poked Killian in the shoulder. “Are you a lawyer?”

  “No, you are, in the mortal world.”

  “Mortal? Are some people immortal?”

  Killian sighed. “Just let it come on its own.”

  They rode on. The path narrowed and they were forced to go single file. Lucy was at the front of the line. She was their best defense. Her hands could tear through any spell that Firesea put down. The trees began to thicken and hang over them, darkening their way. Suddenly Lucy stopped. “Daddy, can you feel it?”

  Killian felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. They were close to Firesea enchanters, a lot of them. Lucy jumped down from her horse and walked to the end of the line. She looked up at him. “What should we do? If we can sense them, they can sense us.”

  “I’m sensing something myself.” Finn mumbled.

  “Be quiet.” Killian told him. Firesea was going to overrun New Wildbush. He knew that he should be there to protect the mortals and enchanters, they stood no chance. He took the pen and a pad of paper from his pocket. He thought for a moment and then wrote: Everyone living in New Wildbush is invisible to Firesea enchanters. Every building and manmade structure in New Wildbush is invisible to Firesea enchanters.

  It would mean that if he ever returned he would not be able see anyone without reworking the spell. He would worry about that later. As soon as he put the period on the last sentence he could feel the conscious energy of Firesea shifting towards him.

  Lucy tugged on the hem of his coat. “What about us?”

  “Hang on.” The thought of another confrontation terrified him. The war was still fresh in everyone’s mind. He started to write when an arrow whizzed by his head. Lucy screamed.

  Killian wrote faster. Lucy Cramer, Kip Hartsell, Logan- As he wrote another arrow began making its way through the woods. This one didn’t go by his head. It went into his back.

  Chapter 7

  Nora turned around as she heard someone fall off their horse and onto the ground. It was Killian. Finnegan leaned over and scratched his beard. Lucy started screaming. Logan and Kip stared in stunned silence. No one was doing anything.

  Nora jumped down from her horse. In the woods she could hear the sound of men running. They had a few seconds if they were lucky. There was no time to see if Killian was all right. She stood and faced the sound coming towards her. There was nothing to fear for herself, she was immune to Firesea. She looked at the others. “Follow my lead.”

  As the men approached she could sense their numbers. Fifty, not too bad. When she began to see their red armor through the trees she held up her hands. The men stopped and raised their loa
ded bows. Nora noticed several of them looking at Killian, his red hair had aroused their interest. “Thanks for getting the redhead for me. It saves me having to get rid of him later. You came just in time.”

  She could see the confusion on their faces. One man, presumably the leader, stepped forward. “Who are you?”

  Nora raised her eyebrow as though the question was unimaginable. “Isn’t it obvious?”

  He frowned. It clearly wasn’t obvious. “We’re searching the countryside for enchanters.”

  “So am I. I’ve rounded up this motley assortment so far.” She could feel the Firesea energy coming from the men, she was absorbing it like a sponge. It was dangerous for her to be around so many of them. She had nearly taken over Firesea once. The feeling of power had been intoxicating, it had filled her up until she forgot who she was and who she loved.

  “We’ll take them off your hands.” the man said.

  “Firesea!” Finnegan suddenly shouted. “That’s where I was born.”

  “Ignore him, he’s a simpleton.” Nora told them. “I really scraped the bottom of the barrel with this lot.” She thought she heard Logan mutter something under his breath.

  “Are you an enchanter or a mortal?” The rangers lowered their bows and gathered behind their leader.

  Nora could sense they were beginning to fear her. She felt herself shaking with the rush of power. “What do you think?”

  The leader shook his head. “I’m not sure.”

  Behind her Killian was moaning. She needed to get rid of the rangers as quickly as possible. “I’m trying to figure out how to possess an enchanter’s soul; I want to experiment on them.” She motioned towards New Wildbush. “These were the last ones left, everyone else is gone.”

  “There’s no one left?” the man asked.

  “No.”

  He looked at his men. “We better check anyway.”

  Nora shrugged. “Suit yourself. I have to be going.”

  “All right.” he said obediently. “But we want the redhead.”

  Nora was afraid of that. Red hair, red anything was important to Firesea. It was a sign of power. She looked down at Killian and nudged him with her foot. “Don’t bother, he’s dead.”