Guardians of the Boundary (Book 3 of The Conjurors Series)

Chapter 24

The few hours of sleep Valerie managed after she and Cyrus parted were troubled ones. When she awoke, Oberon told her that Henry was already projecting to Earth. The night had been uneventful, but Chrome was slowly winding his way through the city on Zunya's trail.

"You look tired, Dad," Valerie said, noticing the dark circles under Oberon's eyes.

"I must be getting old," he said with a slight grin. "I remember going without sleep for two nights in a row and then fighting a battle the next day. Apparently those days are not entirely forgotten by those on Earth, either."

"Were all of the Guardians on Earth suitably impressed to meet you last night?" she teased.

Oberon grimaced. "It seems that my reputation there has not entirely faded. By dawn, I wished I had lied about my identity. These humans nowadays have no compunction about asking very personal questions."

Valerie grinned, glad to have a reason to smile. "Someday you'll have to tell me all those dirty secrets."

A brisk knock on the door ended their conversation. Valerie answered and Gideon immediately stepped over the threshold.

"The time to talk to the Knights is now," he said, more disheveled than Valerie had ever seen him. "It may already be too late. I was wrong not to bring you to the Guild yesterday."

"I'm coming with you," Oberon said.

Gideon's voice held no animosity when he replied. "It will not help our cause to have you at our side. You are trusted by neither the Fractus nor rest of the Conjurors."

"I'll come as the groundskeeper and stay out of sight. If things get rough I'll be on hand to protect you both. It isn't up for discussion," Oberon said, holding his head at an imperious angle that Valerie had come to recognize.

"Let's not waste time arguing," Valerie said.

She was already dressed and Pathos was strapped to her side, so she, her father, and Gideon began jogging to the Guild of the Knights of Light. When they arrived, the first thing Valerie noticed was Tan standing beneath the arches of the Guild.

Oberon saw him at the same moment, and his expression darkened. "He will not go unpunished for putting my children in danger," he said, loud enough for Tan to hear. Then he melted into the fringes of the crowd.

Valerie brushed past Tan, deliberately knocking him off balance with her shoulder. It might have been petty, but it eased some of the simmering rage that gripped her at the sight of him. Tan rubbed his shoulder and glowered at her.

The mood of the Knights was jittery, bordering on panic. Many Knights were frantically packing bags and call boxes with weapons, while others huddled in little groups, shooting suspicious glances around the courtyard.

"What's going on? Has the vote happened already?" Valerie asked.

"No," Gideon said. "But many fear that Kellen and the Fractus will attack any dissenters. They may not be wrong."

"This is madness," Valerie whispered. Could she really be the only thing stopping the Knights from turning to a path of war? It seemed too slender a thread upon which to hang the fate of two worlds.

The sight of Kellen walking over the top of the arch at the entrance to the Guild silenced the rumblings of the crowd. He seemed small and vulnerable without his wings, and while that clearly unsettled Kellen, Valerie thought it might work to his advantage as he tried to convince the Knights of the righteousness of his cause. His eyes scanned over the crowd, and even though she wasn't close to the fairy, Valerie could swear that his eyes burned into hers.