He squared off against the small doll-like Breah, who pursed her lips in thought and looked directly at Pax and said, “Why yes. If it comes to that, she’s dangerous.”
“Stop it! Both of you!” Lorna spoke, her voice echoing with power throughout the room. “We must consider all options.”
I made it to the heavy, wooden doors and pulled on them but they wouldn’t budge. I was locked in. Feeling a moment of alarm, I started to pound and kick the doors, but they were held fast. Turning, I looked for the key hole; there was no lock on the door. The Adepts were keeping the doors closed by their power.
“I’m sorry, child,” Cirrus said, rising from his seat and walking toward me placing himself squarely in front of me. “You are an enigma, a puzzle, an unknown, and to the human population that is a terrifying factor. To calm the stories that are going to be spread about you, and believe me there will be stories, it would be best if we understood you better and that might require careful documentation.” He gently rested his hand on my shoulder and turned me to face the others. “Can you imagine if others found out that you somehow acquired or stole powers that you weren’t born with and that you could possibly steal more? It wouldn’t be safe for you in Calandry. People may try to hurt you.”
“But I didn’t steal anything,” I shrugged defensively. “Don’t forget that I was the victim here.”
“No, but they won’t understand that. For your safety, it would be best if you stayed here, under our protection. Maybe we can find a cure or a way to reverse what was done.” Adept Cirrus spoke to me like a father calming a frightened child.
“There’s one thing I don’t understand?” Kambel said nervously, taking off his spectacles and cleaning them before donning them again. “How come the mercury stone didn’t recognize her? It is able to distinguish the Denai blood the same way Cassiel does. So does that mean she doesn’t carry any of the normal Denai gifts? If that’s so, we don’t know the range of her abilities or if she is a threat to us.”
I felt my heart quicken in dread at the implication. Here it comes, I panicked, the guards, torture, death. My palms were sweaty with perspiration, so I gripped the door handle harder turning it desperately, while shrugging off Cirrus’ hand from my shoulder.
“There’s an easy way to find out!” Breah stated. She stood up, pulled energy toward her into a ball of blue fire and walked determinedly over to my chair, her lips pressed into a thin, straight line. The slight tick of her jaw betrayed the amount of control she was using to keep her emotions in check, but I could read the animosity that was in her eyes.
I turned to face her, my hands never releasing their hold on the cold door handle. I wanted to cry out in frustration as escape was within my grasp, literally, if I could only open the stupid door. It wasn’t even locked and I still couldn’t open it. I looked over my shoulder at her ice cold stare and felt that this truly was the end.
Closing my eyes, I prayed for a quick and merciful death, but opened them at the last second. Movement caught my eye.
“STOP!” a clear voice commanded.
I watched the blue fireball stop a hand span away from my face. I sat mesmerized as it danced and fluttered in her open palm. Breah’s eyes blazed angrily, she swallowed and slowly closed her fingers and the ball shrank until it was the size of a fly and then disappeared.
The ugly tapestry of the hunter and the horse on the wall began to move. A small, feminine hand pushed it aside, and a beautiful woman with red hair and blue eyes stepped from behind it. Her dress was of the finest blue silk and a cloak covered her shoulders. It wasn’t until I saw the circlet upon her brow that I realized I was being addressed by the Queen.