But then he caught Woody’s eye, and the winikin’s voice whispered in his head. You’re not a fucking island. Suddenly, though, the words resonated far more than they ever had before.
He’d been trying so hard to get everything right with Patience— for her—that he’d forgotten to be part of their team. “I do trust you,” he said, pulling away to look into her eyes. “What’s more, I need you.”
Wariness flared, but she squared herself into a businesslike fighting stance. “For an uplink.”
Something tore inside him, but the pain was followed by a strange sort of peace. “Not just for an uplink. For everything.”
Faintly, below the level of hearing, deep inside his soul, he sensed the faintest hum of the magic that was special to them, to this place.
He tightened his grip on her hand. “I lost my parents and brothers, my two best friends. I don’t want to lose you too. But if the gods take one of us, I don’t want it to happen without me having said that I need you, and my life isn’t right without you . . . because I love you.”
Love. Her lips shaped the word, but her expression stayed wary.
“I’m not just saying that because we’re cut off, because we’re in El Rey, or even because it feels like we’re a family again. This is real.” He lifted their joined hands to his lips, then let go of her hand to pull his knife and freshly blood his palm. Magic flared through him and the hum in the air intensified. He held out his hand. “Link with me. Fight with me. And whatever happens next, believe that I love you. I loved you before as my wife and the mother of our sons. Now I love you as my mate and partner too.” And to a mage, that was so much more.
Eyes misting, she took his knife, and bloodied her palm. As she returned the knife, she lifted up on her tiptoes to touch her lips to his in a soft kiss that brought equal parts heat and magic. “I love you too.”
Then she took his hand, matching blood to blood . . . and the jun tan link opened wide.
Magic poured through Patience, coming from lust and love, from the feeling of being fully joined once more, after so long, with her husband. Her lover. Her mate. Her heart filled with the soaring power of it, the mad joy of it.
The shield spell protecting them from Iago solidified, shimmering red-gold and opaque.
The part of her that kept track of their failures tried to warn her that at worst he was using her feelings to strengthen his magic, or that at best it was just another fresh start. But deep down inside she knew this time was different. He was different. She could feel it in their magic, in the sync of their blood and power, in the echo of his thoughts within her.
For the first time in their relationship, he didn’t just want and love her; he needed her as much as she needed him. And he was willing to risk loving and losing her. He was ready to take it on faith.
Faith. It had never really been about the Akbal oath, she realized. Or at least not the way she had thought. She hadn’t needed him to retake the oath to prove that he trusted her to take care of herself.
She had needed him to love her despite the curse, needed him to want her enough— need her enough—
that he was willing to risk loving and losing her.
After that, it was up to fate and the gods.
“I think we’ve finally found our balance,” she whispered, staring up into eyes that had gone molten gold with love and magic.
He leaned in to touch his forehead to hers. “Stay safe. I love you.”
“You too.”
Then they separated and turned to face Iago, who had dragged himself to his knees on the other side of the shield magic. But although they weren’t touching anymore, they were deeply linked, intimately aware of each other.
She glanced over to where Woody and Hannah stood shoulder to shoulder at the farthest corner of the rockfall, each holding an autopistol and wearing an expression of fierce determination. Behind them, the twins were partly protected behind the hastily piled wall of debris.
Hannah met her eyes square on. You can do this, the look said. This is who you are. She felt Brandt’s unspoken wash of agreement. And the thing was, she appreciated their support . . . but she didn’t need it. She knew who she was now.
Suddenly, Iago’s voice carried from the other side of the shields, “Give it up. Drop the shield and I’ll spare the winikin.”
“That wasn’t the deal,” Brandt called back. “You’ve got me and Patience. Let the others go.”
Inwardly, he sent, He’s got us cornered. He wouldn’t make an offer like that unless he’s weaker than he wants us to think.
He used himself up regenerating, Patience agreed. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t still dangerous.
“You want to save your winikin or not?” Iago demanded.
Brandt hesitated just long enough for it to be believable. “Okay. Shield’s coming down.” Ready?
Ready.
Together, they spun up the jun tan magic and used it to shield the twins and winikin, then themselves. Beyond those shields, their battle magic painted the air a sparkling red-gold.
Now! Brandt sent.
They dropped the shield and Iago appeared, his molten-wax features distorted with rage and hatred, and haloed within a cloud of dark magic. Roaring his brother’s name, he unleashed a bolt of power at them.
The magic wrapped around them, coating their shields, which groaned but held as they lashed back, sending a massive fireball hurtling at the Xibalban.
Iago raised a strong shield and the fireball spent itself harmlessly. But he let the shield wink out again as he built his next bolt.
Understanding slashed through Patience. He can only handle one spell at a time!
Hold the shields, Brandt said. Reverse ours when I give the word, and then break right. We need to split his attention. He sent a mental image of his plan. Which she thought might work.
Gods willing.
She nodded, sweat prickling at the drain of holding two shields, one around her and Brandt, the other protecting the winikin and the twins. Stay alive, she ordered him. I love you.
You too. Ready? . . . Go!
She dropped both of the shields and used all her power to create a new one that surrounded Iago in a sphere of reflective magic, just as the enemy mage unleashed a deadly energy bolt straight at them.
The dark magic caromed off the shield and flew back toward Iago, who screamed as he disappeared within a coalescing cloud of brown hellmagic.
Patience held the shield, but it drained her, sapping even the jun tan power. The sphere lasted for only a few seconds before it dissolved beneath the dark-magic onslaught and Iago roared free once again.
She dove and rolled to the right. Brandt spun, lunged the other way, and let rip with a fireball.
Iago spun and, seemingly instinctively, slashed at the incoming fireball with Moctezuma’s knife.
The red-gold magic flared and disappeared, leaving the knife glowing.
Oh, shit. The thought echoed through Patience and Brandt at the realization that the first-fire knife wasn’t just a symbol. It had powers of its own.
Iago’s eyes lit. Lifting the knife, he lunged for Patience.
She reeled back, scrambling to cast a new shield. The spell failed. The jun tan magic was depleted.