Page 79 of Burdened Bonds

And I’m dropping the pig and the bag and ready to strike.

It’s dark. The sky hidden beneath clouds. I can’t see a fucking thing. I send a flare of light up into the sky as the voice shouts again.

“Rhi!”

Before I can stop her, my little rabbit steps forward, waving her hands above her head.

“I’m here!” she shouts. “Right here!”

The mountainside flashes with white light and below us I see who she’s waving to.

Her friend, the professor and the man in black himself.

Just fucking perfect.

31

Rhi

Time distortsand the next events occur as if I’m watching them in slow motion.

One moment we’re cloaked in darkness, hidden from all around us, the next light streaks across the mountain and everything is cast in a startling brightness.

I see Azlan, Stone and Winnie on the slope beneath me. I see the exact moment they spot me on the hill above them. I see them wave. I see Winnie start to run. I see Azlan’s face flood with relief.

And then I see the moment all three spy the man beside me.

Renzo Barone.

Winnie halts. Stone lifts his arms. Azlan growls.

And then the flare puffs out and we’re all plunged intoblackness again.

“You could have warned me,” Renzo mumbles in the dark beside me and then a bolt of magic comes hurtling his way. He ducks and the thing skims right above his head, lighting him up in a hue of blue.

“Stop!” I scream, “Azlan stop!”

Another stream of magic crashes in Renzo’s direction, and I use my own to block it and send it fizzling to the ground.

“For fuck’s sake, I said stop!” I shout louder still, struggling to hear myself above the noise of more magic.

“Am I allowed to fight back?” Renzo asks, sounding bored.

“No!” I tell him. “Just … just behave.”

“Fuck me,” he mutters, swerving to the left as a ball of fire almost melts his cheek.

I growl. I knew this first meeting was going to be difficult. I knew Stone and Azlan would take some talking to, some persuading. I didn’t think they’d try and kill him quite so quickly.

“Azlan! Stone! Stop, please! We need to talk!”

I deflect more of their magic, Renzo crouching and forming a shield as a barrage of coordinated magic hurtles his way.

“Are they always so difficult?” he says, looking like he may actually be enjoying this.

“Yes,” I say through gritted teeth, “and in case you forgot, you did nearly kill me.”

“Shit, yeah, I did!” he says grinning. “You should be honored, little rabbit. That’s practically a declaration of love from me.”