Bright Blaze of Magic
Page 7
But it wasn’t over. Not for me. I still had more stealing to do tonight. But I smiled at him, glad that the shadows hid how fake the expression really was.
“Yep. Now, come on. The others will be waiting for us.”
Instead of striding straight across the lawn to the front entrance, we hunkered down in the bushes until the Sinclair guards’ backs were turned. Our guards were dressed the same way that the Draconis had been—black boots, pants, and shirts—the only difference was that the Sinclairs wore black cavalier hats topped with white feathers, along with the same black cloaks that Devon and Felix still sported. The white feathers made it easy for us to spot and duck around the guards. Then we crossed the lawn, crept up some stone steps to a balcony, and stopped in front of a series of glass doors.
I tried one of the knobs, but it, too, was unlocked, just like the ones at the Draconi mansion. I sighed with disappointment, but I opened the door and the three of us stepped inside an enormous library that soared three stories high in this part of the mansion.
A white stone fireplace took up most of one wall, while ebony shelves covered another. White stone balconies wrapped around the two upper levels of the library, revealing more ebony bookcases, before giving way to the pointed ceiling, which featured black and white panes of stained glass. Through the glass, I could see the full moon and a sky studded with stars, all of which cast a dim, silvery light that frosted the tops of the books on the upper levels.
“You’re late,” a voice called out.
Devon, Felix, and I looked over at a woman sitting behind an antique ebony desk in front of the doors. She had the same green eyes as Devon, but her hair was a rich auburn. She wore a sleek white pantsuit, and a wide silver cuff flashed on her right wrist.
“Sorry,” I drawled. “We ran into a little problem at the Draconi mansion.”
Claudia Sinclair laid her silver reading glasses down on top of the desk, worry flashing in her eyes. “What sort of problem?”
I shrugged. “Blake almost caught us in Victor’s office.”
She hissed out a breath between her teeth, but I grinned.
“Notice that I said almost. Don’t worry. Blake didn’t even realize that we were there, and none of the guards spotted us either. We got in and out, and no one was the wiser, especially not Victor.”
“And Deah and Seleste?” she asked, her voice still full of worry.
“They’re okay too. So relax. Everything’s fine, and my plan went off without a hitch, just like I told you it would.”
Claudia gave me a sharp, suspicious look, but the tension in her beautiful face slowly eased as she studied Devon, Felix, and me in turn and realized that we really were okay.
“See? I told you everything would be okay. You worry way too much, Claud,” a deep, masculine voice chimed in.
Claudia swiveled around in her chair so that she was facing a tall, muscular man who was sprawled across a white velvet settee by the fireplace. Unlike Claudia, who looked as professional as could be in her pantsuit, the man wore a gray Hawaiian shirt patterned with large, neon-blue parrots, along with white linen pants and white flip-flops. A white straw hat was perched on the settee beside him.
The man leaned forward and grabbed a small sandwich off a sterling silver tray on the table in front of him. The overhead light from the crystal chandelier made his ebony skin gleam, along with the silver threads in his black hair.
My gaze locked on to the food. My nose twitched and my stomach rumbled in anticipation. “Are those mini bacon cheeseburgers?”
Mo Kaminsky, my friend, my fence, and the Family broker, grinned at me. “Don’t you know it. Fresh from the kitchen.” He waved his hand over the tray of food, making a diamond signet ring flash on his hand. “Come and get ’em, kid. I saved some just for you.”
Typical Mo, looking out for me. Mo had been good friends with my mom, and he’d watched out for me in so many ways after she died, from giving me jobs to letting me hang out in his pawnshop to even setting me up with the Sinclair Family. For a long time, he’d been the only friend I had, and he meant so much to me.
Mo didn’t have to tell me twice about the food. I went over, grabbed one of the cheeseburgers, and popped it into my mouth. Like everything else the kitchen pixies made, it was utterly divine. A buttery roll, grilled meat, fresh veggies, cheddar cheese, a dollop of mayonnaise, and best of all, crunchy pieces of salty, smoky bacon. Mmm. Bacon. Best food ever.
I polished off that cheeseburger, grabbed another one, and downed it as well. I thought about swiping a couple more and sticking them in my pockets for later, but Oscar would complain about having to clean food stains out my clothes again. So I contented myself with just eating them here. Mo toasted me with his own mini cheeseburger, then chowed down on it.
Devon and Felix carefully set the two black duffel bags down on the floor. The distinctive clank-clanks of metal sliding together rang out through the library, and Claudia tilted her head to the side, interest and appreciation sparking in her gaze.
“You got the last of the black blades?” she asked.
“Of course we did,” I said, swallowing the last of my cheeseburger. “You are talking to Lila Merriweather, thief extraordinaire, you know.”
I gave an elaborate flourish with my hand and bowed low, sweeping my long blue coat out to one side, as though I were curtsying before a queen. In a way, I was, since Claudia was the head of the entire Sinclair Family and just as powerful as any queen.
She sighed at my showing off, but Mo grinned again and held out his fist. I bumped him back, then grabbed another mini cheeseburger. Stealing stuff always made me extra hungry.
Claudia sighed again, louder and deeper this time, but she also nodded, silently telling me good job. I nodded back at her and polished off the rest of my cheeseburger.
Devon unzipped his duffel bag and pulled out a few of the black blades to show his mom, then zipped up the bag again and slung it over his shoulder. “You want us to put the weapons down in the training room and lock them away with all the others?”
Claudia nodded. “Of course.”
Once we’d started stealing the weapons from Victor, we had to do something with them, since black blades were far too valuable to just leave lying around the mansion. Just by themselves, the weapons would fetch a pretty penny on the black market. But the real problem was all the magic that filled the weapons—power that we couldn’t get rid of, not without stabbing ourselves with the swords and daggers and injecting all that stolen monster magic into our own bodies.
“Yep. Now, come on. The others will be waiting for us.”
Instead of striding straight across the lawn to the front entrance, we hunkered down in the bushes until the Sinclair guards’ backs were turned. Our guards were dressed the same way that the Draconis had been—black boots, pants, and shirts—the only difference was that the Sinclairs wore black cavalier hats topped with white feathers, along with the same black cloaks that Devon and Felix still sported. The white feathers made it easy for us to spot and duck around the guards. Then we crossed the lawn, crept up some stone steps to a balcony, and stopped in front of a series of glass doors.
I tried one of the knobs, but it, too, was unlocked, just like the ones at the Draconi mansion. I sighed with disappointment, but I opened the door and the three of us stepped inside an enormous library that soared three stories high in this part of the mansion.
A white stone fireplace took up most of one wall, while ebony shelves covered another. White stone balconies wrapped around the two upper levels of the library, revealing more ebony bookcases, before giving way to the pointed ceiling, which featured black and white panes of stained glass. Through the glass, I could see the full moon and a sky studded with stars, all of which cast a dim, silvery light that frosted the tops of the books on the upper levels.
“You’re late,” a voice called out.
Devon, Felix, and I looked over at a woman sitting behind an antique ebony desk in front of the doors. She had the same green eyes as Devon, but her hair was a rich auburn. She wore a sleek white pantsuit, and a wide silver cuff flashed on her right wrist.
“Sorry,” I drawled. “We ran into a little problem at the Draconi mansion.”
Claudia Sinclair laid her silver reading glasses down on top of the desk, worry flashing in her eyes. “What sort of problem?”
I shrugged. “Blake almost caught us in Victor’s office.”
She hissed out a breath between her teeth, but I grinned.
“Notice that I said almost. Don’t worry. Blake didn’t even realize that we were there, and none of the guards spotted us either. We got in and out, and no one was the wiser, especially not Victor.”
“And Deah and Seleste?” she asked, her voice still full of worry.
“They’re okay too. So relax. Everything’s fine, and my plan went off without a hitch, just like I told you it would.”
Claudia gave me a sharp, suspicious look, but the tension in her beautiful face slowly eased as she studied Devon, Felix, and me in turn and realized that we really were okay.
“See? I told you everything would be okay. You worry way too much, Claud,” a deep, masculine voice chimed in.
Claudia swiveled around in her chair so that she was facing a tall, muscular man who was sprawled across a white velvet settee by the fireplace. Unlike Claudia, who looked as professional as could be in her pantsuit, the man wore a gray Hawaiian shirt patterned with large, neon-blue parrots, along with white linen pants and white flip-flops. A white straw hat was perched on the settee beside him.
The man leaned forward and grabbed a small sandwich off a sterling silver tray on the table in front of him. The overhead light from the crystal chandelier made his ebony skin gleam, along with the silver threads in his black hair.
My gaze locked on to the food. My nose twitched and my stomach rumbled in anticipation. “Are those mini bacon cheeseburgers?”
Mo Kaminsky, my friend, my fence, and the Family broker, grinned at me. “Don’t you know it. Fresh from the kitchen.” He waved his hand over the tray of food, making a diamond signet ring flash on his hand. “Come and get ’em, kid. I saved some just for you.”
Typical Mo, looking out for me. Mo had been good friends with my mom, and he’d watched out for me in so many ways after she died, from giving me jobs to letting me hang out in his pawnshop to even setting me up with the Sinclair Family. For a long time, he’d been the only friend I had, and he meant so much to me.
Mo didn’t have to tell me twice about the food. I went over, grabbed one of the cheeseburgers, and popped it into my mouth. Like everything else the kitchen pixies made, it was utterly divine. A buttery roll, grilled meat, fresh veggies, cheddar cheese, a dollop of mayonnaise, and best of all, crunchy pieces of salty, smoky bacon. Mmm. Bacon. Best food ever.
I polished off that cheeseburger, grabbed another one, and downed it as well. I thought about swiping a couple more and sticking them in my pockets for later, but Oscar would complain about having to clean food stains out my clothes again. So I contented myself with just eating them here. Mo toasted me with his own mini cheeseburger, then chowed down on it.
Devon and Felix carefully set the two black duffel bags down on the floor. The distinctive clank-clanks of metal sliding together rang out through the library, and Claudia tilted her head to the side, interest and appreciation sparking in her gaze.
“You got the last of the black blades?” she asked.
“Of course we did,” I said, swallowing the last of my cheeseburger. “You are talking to Lila Merriweather, thief extraordinaire, you know.”
I gave an elaborate flourish with my hand and bowed low, sweeping my long blue coat out to one side, as though I were curtsying before a queen. In a way, I was, since Claudia was the head of the entire Sinclair Family and just as powerful as any queen.
She sighed at my showing off, but Mo grinned again and held out his fist. I bumped him back, then grabbed another mini cheeseburger. Stealing stuff always made me extra hungry.
Claudia sighed again, louder and deeper this time, but she also nodded, silently telling me good job. I nodded back at her and polished off the rest of my cheeseburger.
Devon unzipped his duffel bag and pulled out a few of the black blades to show his mom, then zipped up the bag again and slung it over his shoulder. “You want us to put the weapons down in the training room and lock them away with all the others?”
Claudia nodded. “Of course.”
Once we’d started stealing the weapons from Victor, we had to do something with them, since black blades were far too valuable to just leave lying around the mansion. Just by themselves, the weapons would fetch a pretty penny on the black market. But the real problem was all the magic that filled the weapons—power that we couldn’t get rid of, not without stabbing ourselves with the swords and daggers and injecting all that stolen monster magic into our own bodies.
