«Sweetheart, calm yourself.»
«Calm myself? Matt! Sebastian's hurt!»
«I know. Mario's done something to the whole area. I can't move. Cam needs to know about Mario's mark. What can you see of it?»
«His mark?» Confusion sounded through her words, but she was slowly getting it together. Matt only hoped it would be in time. For now, the mage was stalking her, moving closer as she cowered on the ground, seeming to enjoy her fear.
Matt saw her head move. She wasn't immobilized, thank heaven. He could have cheered when she got to her feet and faced Mario, but he also feared for her.
«The mark on his face is glowing, Matt. It's pulsing.»
Matt relayed the information to Cam, who was still weaving patterns with his fingers. He seemed lost in concentration and barked back a single question.
«Which part of the pattern is glowing brightest, honey? Cam needs to know. And anything else you see.»
«The sixth line, Matt. There are nine lines in all. They're all interwoven like Celtic knot work on the edges, but the center part lines up. The largest is at the base of his eyebrow, the smallest at the top. The sixth from the bottom is pulsing really strong. The bottom one is also brighter than the others, but not as bright as the sixth.»
Matt passed on her words, cringing when he saw the mage close in on Christy. She looked so vulnerable, so defenseless as she waited for the attack that would surely come. He only hoped the training they'd been doing with her over the past days would help her stand strong.
It felt eerily familiar to be cowering before a man, hoping he wouldn't kill her. And the warm, loving presence that was Sebastian was gone from her mind. Christy didn't know if he was even alive, though she knew it would be hard to kill an immortal with nothing more than a flying shipping container. Still, that impressive little magic trick had scared the crap out of her!
She had to believe in her heart that Sebastian was just unconscious. The alternative was unthinkable.
«Be strong, sweetheart. Cam is working on something, but he's affected by the paralysis too. He can move, but only his hands, and not fast. You need to buy him some time to bring that spell down.»
Matt's voice in her mind was a lifeline. It reminded her she wasn't alone anymore. Even with Sebastian's fate uncertain, she had friends all around. She just needed to keep this bastard busy while they worked. Only with their help could she get to Sebastian and find out if he would be all right. That was all that mattered now.
She segregated the fear and put it away. She'd had ample practice of late, hiding from things she didn't want to face. Pain, fear, longing for a more normal life. All those things she'd separated out while she'd put up with increasing problems in her home life and marriage.
That experience stood her in good stead now. She stood opposite the man, watching him watch her. He seemed to be sizing her up and the sneer on his swarthy face said he found her lacking.
Never again, she vowed. She'd never cower before a violent man again. She wouldn't play dead and she would defend herself to her last breath. She knew how now. Thanks to Sebastian. And Matt and Hiro, of course. She'd only known the men a short time, but they'd each touched her life in significant ways. Sebastian had given her new life and a reason to want to live it to the fullest…with him.
«How dare you?» Christy went on the verbal offensive, wanting to give Cameron the time he needed. «This is the second time you've attacked me and I don't even know you! What is your problem?»
His black eyebrows rose at her tone. She'd surprised him. That was good. Maybe.
«My problem, senorita, is you and all your little supernatural friends that would oppose our plans for this realm.»
«Good girl,» Matt crooned in her mind. «Keep him talking. Cam says he's close. Just a few more minutes.»
«I have no idea what you're even talking about. Make some sense, will you? In case you didn't know, all I want is to get a divorce from the abusive slimeball I married and get on with my life.»
«Don't you mean your death?» Mario moved closer, smiling in an evil way as he began to move his hands in a mesmerizing pattern.
«I'm not dead.»
Mario sniffed disdainfully. «So you believe, but I will remedy that shortly.»
«Don't let him wave his fingers around like that. Cam's doing something similar over here and I think it's the way they weave their spells. I bet if you can disrupt his hand motions, you might disrupt whatever it is he's planning to throw at you.» Matt's advice was given in an urgent tone. Christy bided her time, waiting for Mario to move within range of her best roundhouse kick. «Stop him, Christy. Stop him, now!»
Christy let loose with a kick that took the mage by surprise. She heard a crunch and knew she'd broken at least one of his fingers and probably some of the bones in his palm, all thanks to her sturdy, pointy-toed flats and Sensei Hiro's tutelage.
«Christina?» Sebastian's voice sounded in her mind and the relief she felt knew no bounds.
«Sebastian! Are you all right?»
«My head hurts like the dickens and I can't move, but otherwise I'm okay. What happened?»
«Matt said this Mario guy did something that immobilized him and Cam too, to some extent. Cam's still working a countermeasure and I'm supposed to keep Mario busy until he gets it done. I kicked him and broke his finger, Sebastian. And probably some other bones in his hand.»
«Good for you, sweetheart.»
«You might think so, but it was really gross.»
The warm chuckle in her mind and loving caress of his thoughts went a long way towards shoring up her flagging courage.
«Where is he now?»
She eyed the man, standing a few feet away, breathing harshly.
«He's giving me the stink eye from about five yards away. He's hurt, but he's still standing.»
«If he hasn't fled, he'll come after you again, love. Be wary.»
«Oh, I'm watching him like a hawk, don't worry.»
«Dammit! I wish I could move!»
«Me too. I love you, Sebastian. No matter what, I'll always love you.»
«And I you, my sweet. Forever.»
Mario chose that moment to launch his next attack, but she was ready. Barely.
«Die, bitch!» Mario screamed, clutching his injured hand to his chest, while in his other hand, a sparkling fireball formed out of thin air. He lobbed it at her, but she was able to spring out of the way like a cat, diving, rolling, and landing, crouched on all fours. Mario launched another fireball, but she sprang out of the way again, rolling toward him, coming up in a fighting stance right in front of his startled face.
She took the opportunity to punch him in the stomach and when he crumpled inward, she grabbed his uninjured hand and twisted it up behind him, trapping him in an arm bar position. She couldn't allow him to lob more fireballs, so as gross as it was, she used the move Hiro had taught her to break his arm at the elbow. The crunch was sickening, but she had no alternative. It was either that or be burned alive by one of his magical fireballs.
Christy thought she was going to puke. She'd never forget the sound of that arm breaking as long as she lived. She let Mario go and stumbled away, revolted by what she'd been forced to do. A wave of nausea made her clutch her stomach and for a split second, the mage was forgotten.
«Hold fast, love,» Sebastian counseled in her mind. «I'm coming.»
«Sebastian?»
She saw him then, out of the corner of her eye, struggling as if his limbs weighed hundreds of pounds each, but still, somehow, making his way out of the remains of the shipping container behind Mario. But he was moving too slowly. He was fighting the immobilizing magic, but would be a sitting duck if Mario discovered his presence.