Arcane Entanglement (The Mage and His Brute #1)

Chapter 52

Rufus finally regained his senses. “My apologies.” He bowed his head stiffly at Ophelia. “I didn’t know Lady Hartley had company.”

Ginny introduced them to one another.

“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miss Miller,” the inspector said, his Adam Apple bobbing nervously.

Ophelia curtsied shyly. “The pleasure is mine.”

The butler had the maids serve them afternoon tea before closing the drawing door.

“Ginny told me you wanted to see us?” Evander asked Ophelia lightly after they’d helped themselves to tea and cake.

Ophelia exchanged a tense glance with Ginny. Ginny nodded wordlessly.

Evander was pleased to see the exchange despite the evident gravity of the situation. It seemed the two women had become firm friends, just as he’d hoped.

Ophelia took a deep breath and met Evander’s gaze unflinchingly.

“I gather you know what I am, your Grace?”

“Please, call me, Evander,” he murmured. “I have a feeling the five of us will become more than just friends today.”

Rufus and Viggo gave Evander a puzzled look. Ginny frowned faintly.

“As to your question, yes, I know what you are,” Evander told Ophelia quietly. “You’re a light mage. And an incredibly powerful one at that.”

Viggo stiffened. Rufus’s eyes bulged.

Ginny cursed. “So I was right! That night at the ball, when you warned Evander. It was because you had a vision?!”

Ophelia bobbed her head. She sagged on the sofa, as if a great weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

“Vision?” Viggo said, puzzled.

Rufus frowned. “What vision?”

Evander gave them a cursory account of what had transpired at the Ashbrookes’ ball. So much had happened since that night he’d utterly forgotten to tell them about the incident.

He studied a pale-faced Ophelia with a mix of wonder and concern in the hush that followed.

Wonder because light mages were incredibly rare and possessed powers that easily humbled most other forms of magic, chief among their talents being the ability to foretell the future. Concern because of the immense responsibility and danger that came with that status.

Light mages were considered on a par with Archmages and could easily become targets for those who sought to exploit or destroy them.

Evander recalled the uproar that had accompanied the revelation of his Archmage status.

I understand why she chose to remain silent about her powers. Her family must have helped her.

“I appreciate your discretion in this matter.” Ophelia’s gaze searched Evander’s face before flicking nervously to the others. “I hope you can all keep my secret for longer. It’s not something I’m ready to reveal yet.”

“Of course, we’ll keep your secret.” Ginny squeezed Ophelia’s hand, her voice gentle. “We are friends, are we not?”

Ophelia sniffed and nodded, her chin wobbling. Ginny passed her a handkerchief.

“Thank you.” She dabbed at her eyes before steeling herself and meeting Evander and Viggo’s gazes. “The reason I wished to see you is because I had another vision last week.”

Evander’s pulse quickened. He leaned forward. “What was it about?”

Ophelia swallowed hard. “Before I tell you, I must say something. I cannot control my foresight, nor can I force it. The fleeting glimpses I receive of the future are often so vague I cannot fathom their meaning until the events are unfolding before my very eyes.” Her gaze swung between Evander and Viggo. “I’m glad you heeded my advice about Nightshade . The two of you will need each other’s strength to fight what’s coming.”

Tension radiated off Viggo in waves. Evander held his breath.

“Tell us what you saw, Ophelia,” Ginny urged gently.

Ophelia closed her eyes, as if trying to block out the memory even as she recalled it. “I saw London.” She swallowed, her voice barely above a whisper. “But not as it is now. It was frozen. Decimated by an ice storm.”

Ginny sucked in air. Rufus cursed.

Evander’s hand found Viggo’s fingers, his heart thundering in his chest.

“The Thames was a solid white,” Ophelia continued. She opened her eyes and fixed Evander with a look of desperation. “Buildings were encased in ice and frost, windows shattered by the cold, pipes buckled. And the people—” She stopped and shuddered. “Those who hadn’t fled were frozen where they stood. It was like a city of statues, preserved in a moment of terror.”

A chill that had nothing to do with Ophelia’s vision shook Evander to the core at these words. His mind raced, possibilities and fears tumbling over each other in a dizzying whirl.

“I don’t know when this will happen,” Ophelia mumbled, oblivious to the sick feeling twisting Evander’s stomach. “But it will, that I’m certain of.”

“Evander? What’s wrong?”

Viggo’s concerned voice jolted Evander from his horrified daze.

Perspiration beaded Evander’s brow as he stared at Ophelia. He could see the truth she had yet to reveal in her troubled gaze.

“It was me, wasn’t it?” Evander said numbly. “It was my power that froze London in your vision.”

Ginny gasped, hand rising to cover her mouth.

“What?” Rufus mumbled.

Ophelia fisted her hands on her lap. But she did not deny his statement.

Viggo unfroze and shifted closer to Evander, as if to protect him from what she would say next.

“That was part of it,” Ophelia confessed reluctantly. She met Evander’s stare unflinchingly. “But I am certain it was not the whole picture.”

A heavy silence fell over the room.

“But—how?!” Rufus looked at Evander beseechingly, silently pleading him to deny the very possibility of such a future.

Evander could barely breathe, his chest was so tight.

“It’s happened before,” he said in a brittle voice. “Not to me, but to other Archmages. Losing control of our powers. It’s rare, but when it happens, the results are invariably catastrophic.” His tone turned bitter. “The only reason this is not widely known is because the authorities invariably mask the incident as a natural disaster.”

Viggo’s voice was unusually quiet when he spoke.

“Evander, you’re the most controlled mage I’ve ever met.”

Evander’s heart thumped painfully as he met the Brute’s steadfast gaze.

“I say this as someone who has seen what an Archmage can do, not just when I was a child but barely two weeks ago, in Charing Cross. The idea that you’d ever lose control like that is—” He trailed off and took Evander’s hands. “I refuse to believe you could do that.”

Evander shuddered, grateful for Viggo’s words and his unshakable trust.

Ophelia drew a sharp breath, her stunned gaze shifting from their interlocked fingers to their faces.

“I’ll tell you about it later,” Ginny whispered conspiratorially in her ear.

Ophelia flushed and nodded jerkily.

“I can.” Evander touched the Brute’s face lightly. “If someone were to threaten you,” he paused and glanced at Rufus and the two women in the room, “—threaten those I cherish, I would burn the world to save you.”

Tears glittered in Ginny’s eyes. Rufus gulped convulsively.

Ophelia wiped her wet cheeks. Her eyes bulged and a muffled squeak left her when Viggo took Evander in his arms and pressed a kiss to his hot brow.

“Then, we will stop you. We will stay by your side and make sure that doesn’t happen,” the Brute said in a voice that would brook no argument.

It was late by the time they left Ginny’s home.

As their carriage rolled through the darkening streets of London, Evander’s mind began to churn again. The anonymous letter, the lingering threat of what was still to come, and now Ophelia’s vision. All of it threatened to drag him down into a dark mire from which he feared he would never escape.

He flinched when Viggo reached out and took his hand, engulfing it in his much larger one.

“Stop fretting.”

Evander’s shoulders loosened a little. He squeezed Viggo’s hand. “You should know by now how much of a worry wart I am.”

“I do,” the Brute grunted. “I also know a way to distract you.”

Evander gasped when the Brute picked him up and sat him on his lap so he straddled his muscular thighs.

“Viggo!” Evander yelped. “People can see.” He glanced nervously out of the windows.

“No, they can’t,” the Brute said.

Evander’s mouth flattened to a thin line.

Viggo sighed and pressed the button that rendered the glass opaque.

“How did you know about that button?” Evander asked.

He shivered as Viggo ran his hands down his back and cupped his buttocks.

“I had an informative chat with young Samuel about the special fittings of this carriage,” the Brute muttered, nudging Evander’s chin up with his nose so he could nibble on his throat.

Heat danced through Evander and pooled in his belly. His cock came to life.

“Viggo,” he moaned.

The Brute tugged him closer and ground their erections as he continued kissing his neck. “What is it, your Grace?”

Evander twitched.

Viggo paused and straightened, a knowing smile lighting his face.

“I knew it. You like it when I call you your Grace when we’re making love, don’t you? I noticed the other night, when I was inside you.” He leaned closer and whispered in Evander’s ear. “You squeezed me so tightly, I thought you were going to castrate me.”

Evander shuddered, Viggo’s breath on the shell of his ear driving him wild.

“No, I didn’t,” he denied weakly.

Viggo’s voice turned gravelly. “Yes, you did— my Lord .”

Evander’s cock jerked. Viggo’s low chuckle echoed around the carriage.

Evander cursed, tugged the Brute closer, and silenced him with a blistering kiss.