Silk & Steel (Spellbound #3)

Chapter 26: Lightning in a Bottle

Cas awoke with a start after having nodded off once Isobel left the tower. Something was wrong. He didn't know what, but the feeling that something bad was about to happen wouldn't leave him. With hurried movements, he got out of bed and dressed. The snowstorm had abated, but the icy chill of winter still stung his cheeks as he walked across the battlements to his chambers. As expected, they were empty, but he found his breastplate, sword, and shield and put them on.

The uneasy tickle at the back of his neck wouldn't ease up. Had the enemy army moved during the storm after all? He left the room and found a lookout on the wall outside, who confirmed there was no sign of the army yet. It did nothing to stop the insistent niggle that something was wrong.

He needed to see Isobel. She might still be with Kairn if she'd gone to see him. Ignoring anyone trying to catch his attention as he made his way through the stronghold, he got to Kairn's living quarters a short while later. The door was closed, so he knocked. There was no answer, but he could have sworn he heard voices inside. He knocked again.

Silence.

Something is wrong.

Trusting his instincts, he opened the door. Kairn stood a few steps from Isobel on the other side of the room, and something about their postures gave him pause. He couldn't put his finger on it, but Kairn was different. The other man smirked when he saw Cas.

"And here is your knight in shining armour," he said. "Such fortuitous timing."

The hair on Cas's arms rose as gooseflesh travelled across his skin. He felt the magic in the air a moment before Kairn turned towards him and green lightning forked from his fingers. That small moment saved him, as it allowed him just enough time to pull his shield from its seat on his back and focus his mental strength on it. The green lightning struck the shield with a loud crack but fizzled when it couldn't penetrate it.

Kairn let out a humourless laugh. "I forgot how skilled a Sentinel you used to be. My magic users had a really hard time getting into your mind."

The words struck Cas like a punch in the gut. His eyes sought Isobel's, and the look in hers confirmed what he already knew. A wave of nausea threatened to overwhelm him as memories of his captivity in Highglaive forced their way to the surface.

"Your magic users?" he choked out. "So you're not just another of Son of Deva's men."

"Correct." Kairn let out a dramatic sigh. "I suppose there is no point in hiding any more now. My name is Devin." He sketched a mocking bow.

Cas tightened the grip on the hilt of his sword. This man and his father were responsible for so much suffering. So many deaths.

"Don't." Isobel's voice came to him as through a fog, and he had to fight to regain his focus.

"Listen to her," Kairn—no, Devin—suggested helpfully, still with that condescending smirk on his face.

"I believe he is in possession of a Godstone," Isobel said. "The amount of power I sense from him cannot come from a single magic user."

Devin's smirk widened. "Well done. You are correct, of course. I always knew you were one of the better sorcerers." He widened the opening of his dark blue doublet to show a pendant with a green jewel seated in a silver filigree. "I found Detz's Godstone some time ago. If Rhiannon hadn't stolen my other one, I'd be in possession of two now."

That explained why Isobel wasn't attacking him. With a Godstone he would be far more powerful than her, even if she hadn't still been recovering from the Orc's Blood poison.

"Since you visited Breoch around the time Rhiannon got rid of the other Godstone, I assume she gave it to you," Devin continued. "You obviously do not have it in your possession. Unfortunate, but nothing to be done about that now. I don't expect you'd like to tell me where you've hidden it?"