Blackbird Crowned (The Witch King's Crown #3) - Keri Arthur Page 0,107

of the driveway that swept around to the right. There was nothing parked in the graveled parking area and no indication the house was occupied. Nor was there any smoke coming from either of the two chimneys on the main section of the house. Although the day had warmed a fraction, it certainly wasn’t the sort of weather in which you could forgo a fire.

I studied the open gateway for several seconds but couldn’t see any evidence of a trap, be it magical or physical. I should be immune to the former, of course, but I didn’t dare take any chances. I moved on cautiously, keeping to the grassed area between the driveway and the well-trimmed hedge to protect my feet. The farmyard was still—the only sign of movement was the line of cows slowly walking toward a stone barn in the field beyond the parking area. But they, like the area in general, were silent.

But it was a silence that held an edge of expectation.

I tightened my grip on Nex’s hilt, and she pulsed in response. Ready for action, even if I wasn’t.

The conifer hedge came to an end. I stopped, pressed back into the foliage, and studied the old farmhouse warily. It was T-shaped, with the middle section double-story and the rest single. There were no windows on the end closest to me, but the tail of the T was obviously an older barn that had been annexed onto the farmhouse and then restored. A long line of full-height windows ran the length of the building on the side facing me, which meant the minute I went anywhere near that section, I’d be seen. Presuming, of course, I hadn’t already.

The map had said there were two rings, but the whispers of the air suggested the inner ring was really three distinct clusters of men.

My phone vibrated against my thigh and made me jump. I quickly dug it out of my pocket and saw a message from Luc. It simply said, ready when you are.

My gut churned, and I swallowed heavily, though it did little to ease the sudden dryness in my throat. I sent back, Meet you at the front door, then shoved the phone away and squatted on my haunches. The earth pulsed under my splayed fingertips, whispering of the weights that pressed so heavily against her. There was one group behind the barn, a second out of sight at the back of the house, and the third … Shock froze my breath in the back of my throat.

The third was barely ten feet away, on the other side of the hedge.

I silently swore and plunged Nex into the ground. Lightning rolled through me, through her, and then into the ground, shooting out with deadly force to the five men who silently approached. They stood no chance. The lightning arced from the ground, becoming a deadly web of energy that spun around their bodies, incinerating them in an instant. But their ashes never touched the ground. The wind grabbed them, examined them.

That wind wasn’t natural, and it certainly wasn’t mine.

Max knew I was here.

The air picked up strength and volume, whipping around me, tearing at my clothes and hair.

There was little point in being subtle now.

I raised a hand, gripped the turbulent air, and flipped it around, creating a wide whirlpool of wind, dirt and debris that roared around me, not only battering away Max’s attack, but also tearing apart the gorgeous old hedge.

I didn’t wait to see my brother’s response—though I could feel it in the air, in the sudden drop of temperature and the thick gathering of clouds overhead. I ripped Nex from the ground and ran, as hard as I could, toward the house.

Men came at me from behind the old barn. I raised Nex, called to the lightning, and flung it at them.

It was bounced away before it got anywhere near them.

Horror surged. Max had found a way to counter my lightning.

I swore, drew Elysian, and ran straight at the five men. I had no idea whether or not they could see me, but they could certainly see the whirlpool of debris that surrounded me. Two slid to a stop while the other three jumped left and right, as if to attack me from either the side or from behind. I flung wind their way, smashing one into the barn wall and tossing the other two high into the air and deep into the field. As my gaze returned to the remaining two