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 So she s pulled things like this before?
 Yes, though Tom normally reins her in, particularly with guests. She s prone to stupid
streaks, but it s almost like there s more going on here than we re aware of.
 So you think that someone else may be pulling strings here? That could explain a lot
about an unstable matriarch. But right now, I didn t have time to deal with something like that. I
didn t want to have to use magic on all of the wolves to get Cindy s help. My best hope was to
go through with the truth-by-combat trial and make sure that Alex won. I could get Cindy to do
what I needed with magic. But if she d act on her own free will, it d make things easier,
especially in the form of expended energy for me. Something was telling me that I d need all the
energy I could get my hands on before this was all done.
 To be truthful, I ve never been around her when Tom wasn t here to keep her in line, so
I can t make a good call on that one. But I know that something in these woods smells shitty and
it ain t this bear. There was no chuckle in her mental voice.
 Okay, let s not think along those lines then. What do you know about this ring of theirs
that has the magical blocks on it?
 Well, I don t know about magical blocks, but I do know that the wards in the area affect
a wer s ability to change. One of my clan got called up for supposedly attacking one of their
guys at a bar in town. We were sure that Charley didn t do it. If Charley attacked their guy, he
would ve broken him in half. My mind flashed to the heads that occasionally rolled out of JP s
office. You really don t piss off a werebear and expect to get out of it intact.  Anyway, they held
one of these truth-by-combat things then. We came down to back Charley. That time he got to
fight the guy who had brought up the accusations. Well to make a long fight short, after about
three hours Charley finally pinned the bastard and made him surrender. The whole time, they
both remained in human form. I thought for a moment that Cindy was going to demand death,
but Tom let him live and they haven t given us much in the way of trouble since.
 We asked Charley about it afterwards and he said that he had tried to change several
times just out of reflex, but something blocked him. So apparently, Cindy is telling the truth
about the spells.
 But did they affect any of his natural ability? Had any of his wereabilities become
natural at that time? I knew there were ways to outwit spells if you had time and information to
think them through.
 Even in human form Charley s strength was beyond that of a normal human and he was
able to toss the wolf about a fair amount, She looked thoughtful.  His stamina was also not
affected. That s how they were able to go three hours. I bet psychic powers would still work.
 That s what I m hoping. Now if we could just boost Alex s natural psi talents enough
to be effective against the werewolf in partial wereform.
 You mean if I can shut her down telepathically I could win? Hope colored Alex s
mental voice.
 Yes, but the problem is that the mind of a lycanthrope that is partially wer is a very
hard thing to grasp and hold on to, I explained.  It tends to be a very fluid thing, running
between human thought and animal instinct. How is your telekinesis?
His shoulders sagged against me. I knew he was strong telepathically, but I had fought a
werewolf in partial form before and knew it was almost impossible for even the most skilled
telepath to hold onto the mind long enough to shut it down.
 Very minor, I can affect objects that are already moving, but that s about all. I know I
slammed that werewolf at Geri s but I was afraid for your life, and that gave me an extra
adrenaline boost.
 Not much help there. I said.  You might be able to use the dust to your advantage if
there is any. With all this snow, I doubt it. Unless they throw chairs at you, I doubt there ll be
many flying objects coming your way.
Suzzy chuckled lightly.  They threw things at Charlie, not chairs, but rotted food.
Knowing these bitches they might throw other things, but don t count on it.
 So, my magic won t work, Alex moaned,  my telepathy will be minimally effective on
her, she s stronger and faster than I am and I m supposed to beat her in physical combat. We
need something helpful here. Alex s mental voice was thick with despair.
I hugged him tighter and kissed his forehead.  I have an idea I need to discuss with you.
Suzzy, do you mind if we have a couple minutes of privacy?
 Sure, if you need any more input let me know. She wrapped her big arms around us and
squeezed before kissing the back of Alex s head.  We ll figure a way through this kiddo. And
she dropped out of our link.
Taking Alex by the hand, I led him over to the single bed that sat to one side of the room.
We settled in next to one another. I figured we weren t going to be there long enough to worry
about bed bugs. I looked deeply into those green eyes that I saw in my dreams now. With his
face unusually pale, his freckles stood out. I ran my hand through his thick deep red hair. I knew
what would even the odds, but it must be his decision. Part of me rejoiced at the idea and part of
me recoiled. I took his hands in mine, brought them to my lips, and kissed them. The fine hairs
on them tickled my lips. I smiled a sad smile and stared into the green depths of his soul. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]