I brushed the hair from her face and whispered, "Are you hurt?"
She tapped her side, at the ribs, and I placed my hand there to give her healing. She ran her fingers over mine. "I'm so sorry, Nic."
"You did what you had to do."
"This isn't what I want. Do you understand that?"
I did. Nothing else would've saved her life, so it obviously had been the right decision. I understood, but I didn't want to.
"Wait for me," I said. "When this is over, I will come back for you."
She arched her back as my magic continued to heal her. "It's too late. The deal's been made." Her words echoed what I'd said to her only four days ago, and they pierced me with sadness.
"Come along." Brutus touched my shoulder before I'd even realized he was speaking. All magic instantly dissolved from within me. I shrugged him off and reached for Aurelia one last time, but he pulled me to my feet. Crispus stepped forward to defend me, but Atroxia let out a growl and he stopped.
Aurelia wasn't fully healed, but she was better than before and Crispus helped her stand. They would protect each other, strengthen each other in ways I could not. As Brutus pulled me away, Crispus took her in the opposite direction. Their hands were clasped together in a familiar way I never had dared with her. They were already together.
"You are ours now, Nicolas," Brutus said. "Every other part of your life is over."
"She cannot force me to make a Jupiter Stone," I said. "I'll let her kill me first."
"Death is not the worst thing she can do to you," Brutus said. "The Mistress always gets what she wants."
The dragon's massive tail swiped Brutus away, then I was snatched up into her claw, the same as she had done to Crispus and Aurelia. More than the pain of it, I became aware of how odd I felt here. She was no Praetor, so some magic had returned to me already, but though I could feel it, I understood the uselessness of my abilities compared to her power.
"The scent of the Malice is nearby," she said. "Tell me where it's hidden."
"I've destroyed it already," I said. "You only detect its memory."
She gave me a squeeze, forcing all breath from me and crushing me in her grip. I cried out, then tried to focus again on creating a storm. If I could direct a bolt of lightning straight at her, it might pierce her thick hide. Would it kill me too, if she was still holding me? I was pretty sure it would.
Above all other ways in which I never wanted to die, lightning was the worst. But Livia was still here, somewhere. If this was my only chance to save her, I would accept my fate as bravely as possible. Or if I died like a coward, I hoped no one was watching.
Brutus saw what I was doing, but rather than take cover from the coming storm, he shouted up to Atroxia, "This is the boy's power, Mistress! See the storm? He can create the Jupiter Stone for you!"
She dropped me to the ground. I landed hard on my side, and I was pretty sure the fall broke my wrist. Yet again. I wouldn't even bother healing it this time. By now, it felt like a waste of magic since my bones were clearly determined to remain in pieces. While gritting my teeth, I moved my arm to my chest and rolled so that with my other hand I could pull the darkest clouds directly over our heads. The growl of thunder echoed throughout Valerius's fields and the first drops of rain began falling. This would be a mighty storm.
Atroxia's tail encircled me and slithered in tighter and tighter. I stood to avoid being crushed, and when I did, for the first time, I saw Livia.
She hadn't gone far from the bushes where she had hidden before. Instead, she was deeper within them and in a cavity of earth where little but her eyes were visible. I suspected that the only reason I saw her was because she had wanted that. And when she held up her arm and I saw the Malice in her grip, I understood her message. She intended to give up the Malice to save my life.
I couldn't allow that. Livia had to understand why.
I shouted up to Atroxia. "If you get the Malice, what will you do to me?"
The serpent laughed, and its echoes rumbled like waves through the air. "When I get it, you will make me a Jupiter Stone. I will give that stone to Diana, and with it, she will make war against the gods."
I glanced back to where Livia was hiding, but she was no longer visible. I hoped she had her answer. And hoped even more that she would forgive me for putting her in this terrible situation.
Rain was falling harder now. My storm was ready. Atroxia's tail widened again, and I took my chance to run. When I did, her tail rose up and careened against the hard earth. It missed me, but I fell back to the ground. Her tail slithered around again, catching me back within its fold. I struggled until I got my good hand free, and then raised it high, ready to call in the lightning. The charge tingled in my fingers, ran down my arm, and sparked inside my chest. This would be a powerful bolt, hopefully enough to kill the evil creature.
Certainly it was too powerful for me as well.
Atroxia reached for me with her claw. When she lifted me up, the sharp talons dug into my flesh, and I cried out. I had to focus on the lightning, which would've been easier without claws cutting into me.
"Stop!" a voice commanded.
We turned to see Radulf walking through the lingering fire in the vineyards, completely untouched by the flames. It was him, not a trick of the light. Despite the terror I knew he felt for the Mistress, he had come back.
Atroxia dropped me yet again, and Brutus rushed forward to grab my arm. His efforts wouldn't make any difference now. Too much of my magic was already spent, and the injuries had made me weak. Still, I shook my head at Radulf, hoping to make him leave, but he didn't seem worried. His hands were clasped behind his back as if he'd been on a casual afternoon stroll. He merely smiled back at me and nodded, perfectly calm.
"General Radulf, you are late to our party," Brutus said.
"Hardly," Radulf said. "No, actually I was hoping not to attend this particular gathering. But you have forced me to it."
"What do you want?" Atroxia asked.
His voice never wavered as he looked up at her. "I want the return of my grandson, obviously."
She laughed at his boldness. "The boy is mine now. He will give me the Malice and then he has a job to do."
"Even if he wanted to, he cannot obey," Radulf said. "Nic was telling the truth. He does not have the Malice, and he will not be able to get it."
"Why not?" Brutus asked.
Radulf smiled and raised an arm that had been clasped behind his back. The Malice was wrapped on his forearm. Not the real one, but the fake one Valerius had created when he hoped to trick the Praetors in exchange for my mother. It would never work.
But it was our only chance.
"No, not the Malice!" I yelled, trying to sound as desperate as possible. Atroxia had to believe my performance.
The dragon sniffed, trying to get a scent for its magic. I wondered how keen her senses were, because Livia had the real Malice here. Could she tell the difference?
Radulf raised his arm, and the Malice lit as with flame. I knew it had no magic, so it was his Divine Star at work here. But it certainly looked convincing enough. He gestured forward and from the Malice, a wave of magic punched through the air and traveled all the way to the forest beyond the field, toppling every tree there.
Radulf gasped, then stumbled from the release of so much magic. As strong as he was, even he had his limits, I supposed. Brutus ran from me, taking cover from the branches that were falling into the field now. One should have landed on me, but it merely rolled sideways through the air and fell on the ground. Radulf was shielding me. The Mistress still stood above me, though. She hadn't even flinched in the explosion, because none of its fallout could harm her.
"The Malice's magic is too powerful," I yelled to Radulf, though it wasn't him who needed to hear me. "We cannot give her that amulet."
"Release my grandson now," Radulf said. "Because if I count to three, I will disappear with this Malice and you will never find me again. One."
No,
he was supposed to make her target the Malice, not himself. He was supposed to offer it to her and escape.
But he hadn't come just to trick her. He had come to make a trade. His life for mine.
"No, I caused this!" I said. "I have to fix it."
"I must fix this, Nic," Radulf said. "This war began long before you received your magic, and it's my fault for failing to stop it. Two!"
"Get out of here!" I yelled. My magic was returning, but there wasn't enough to fight Atroxia. I couldn't save him.
"Radulf has the Malice," Brutus said to the Mistress. "Take it!"
"No!" I yelled. "You want me!" Even if he fooled them for a moment, it wouldn't take the Mistress long to know she had been tricked. In her anger, she would destroy him.
"You must leave." Radulf was more firm than before. "I am your pater familias, so this is my decision. Besides, your magic is stronger than mine, so I need you to get out of here." Then he looked at Brutus. "Three!"
"We accept," the Mistress said. And with that, she snatched Radulf into her grip.
Instantly, I shot a bit of magic into his arm to make it feel as if the Malice had power of its own. It was all I could do. If I called the lightning back, the strike would kill Radulf. And for everything he had done to me once, I was surprised to find that all I cared about was saving his life, just as he was saving mine.
"Leave now!" Radulf said.
I rushed into the bushes, diving for the place Livia was hiding. She pressed the Malice into my arms, and the moment she did, the Mistress let out a fierce and angry growl. It hurt my ears, and Livia pressed her hands to either side of her head, obviously in pain too. Atroxia knew she was being tricked.
"I have to get away from you," I whispered to Livia. "Wherever I go, the Mistress will follow."
Unless. Unless I went to the one place she would never return to. I needed to go there and recover my strength. Then I could figure out what to do about Radulf.
I brushed one hand against Livia's arm. "Once I go, the Mistress will leave too. She'll try to find the Malice. Stay in hiding until she's gone."
Livia's eyes widened and she shook her head. "Please don't leave, Nic."
"I'll see you again soon. Take care of Mother for me."
I closed my eyes and pictured the room beneath the collapsed temple, where Atroxia had slept for three hundred years. Getting there took the last of my magic. It took nearly everything I had left, but at least I was safe here.
I landed beneath thousands of pounds of stone and brick, in a small pocket of space that could hold me, and perhaps a fly or two, if we all squeezed together. But nothing more than that.
Above me, I was sure I could hear the Mistress's screams and the vibrations of the earth with every stomp of anger. Even if she sensed where the Malice had gone, she would not follow me here, and it would take the Praetors a year to pull all of this stone away. Whether that was good news or not, I knew that my leaving would have consequences for Radulf. I couldn't imagine what was happening to him now.
I was bruised, badly injured, and could barely move. But ... I had the Malice.
I rolled to the side that hurt the least and gripped the Malice with my good hand. Once I had strength enough to heal the other arm, I would wrap the Malice around my wrist and claim its magic for my own.
Even now, holding it, I understood the greater power in this amulet. Though I only held it in my hand, it was already flooding my senses and sharpening my instincts in a way that made the bulla seem like a toy. With the Malice, I heard every shift in the stones above me and perceived each grain of dust that fell between their cracks. I was holding magic that was not only capable of creating a Jupiter Stone, but magic that wanted to create it.
I returned to my back, but the movement caused an unfortunate shift in the stones. One dropped directly on my legs, pinning me to the ground. In sudden pain, I thrust the Malice toward the stones, which instantly crumbled them into dust. It saved my legs, but the burst of such intense magic took my last measure of strength.
No! I needed to save Radulf.
To destroy the Mistress.
I needed air. And soon.
The Malice fell somewhere away from me. I knew it was lost, but I'd search for it once I woke up. If I woke up.
The rocks shifted again. There were loud cracking sounds above me, and dust crumbled over my head. As the first rock began to fall, only one thought remained with me:
This was never the way I wanted to die.
Warmest thanks go to the amazing Scholastic family for all you do for me and for my books. There are few endeavors as rewarding as bringing books into young readers' lives, and it is a privilege to associate with each of you and to share in the excellence of your work. Special kudos to my editor, Lisa Sandell. You are priceless to me, both professionally and personally, and I am eternally grateful for the privilege of associating with you.
Thanks also to my wunderkind agent, Ammi-Joan Paquette. I don't know what I'd do without your exceptional guidance, support, and wisdom. Oh, wait, I do know. I'd panic.
Final thanks to my family, who are my foundation and the greatest blessings of my life. To my three children, you are better than I deserve and more than I ever could have hoped for. To my husband, Jeff, you are stuck with me forever, and I enjoy every single day of deserving someone like you.
JENNIFER A. NIELSEN is the acclaimed author of the New York Times and USA Today bestselling Ascendance Trilogy: The False Prince, The Runaway King, and The Shadow Throne. She also wrote the historical thriller A Night Divided; the sixth book in the Infinity Ring series, Behind Enemy Lines; and the Underworld Chronicles, a humorous middle-grade fantasy series. Jennifer collects old books, loves good theater, and thinks that a quiet afternoon in the mountains makes for a nearly perfect moment.
She lives in northern Utah with her husband, their children, and a perpetually muddy dog. You can visit her at www.jennielsen.com.
ALSO BY
JENNIFER A. NIELSEN
Mark of the Thief
THE ASCENDANCE TRILOGY
The False Prince
The Runaway King
The Shadow Throne
A Night Divided
Behind Enemy Lines, Book Six in the Infinity Ring series
Copyright (c) 2016 by Jennifer A. Nielsen All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., Publishers since 1920. SCHOLASTIC, SCHOLASTIC PRESS, and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc.
The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Nielsen, Jennifer A., author.
Rise of the wolf / Jennifer Nielsen. -- First edition.
pages cm. -- (Mark of the thief ; Book Two) Summary: Now a driver in the chariot races, Nic is still a target of the Praetors because of the magical amulet he found, and they will do anything to get their hands on it -- and meanwhile Atroxia is beginning to wake up.
ISBN 978-0-545-56204-1 (jacketed hardcover) 1. Magic -- Juvenile fiction. 2. Amulets -- Juvenile fiction. 3. Conspiracies -- Juvenile fiction. 4. Dragons -- Juvenile fiction. 5. Chariot racing -- Juvenile fiction. 6. Rome -- Antiquities -- Juvenile fiction. 7. Rome -- History -- Empire, 30 B.C.-476 A.D. -- Juvenile fiction. [1. Magic -- Fiction. 2. Amulets -- Fiction. 3. Conspiracies -- Fiction. 4. Dragons -- Fiction. 5. Chariot racing -- Fiction. 6. Rome -- History -- Empire, 30 B.C.-476 A.D. -- Fiction.] I. Title.
PZ7.N5672Ri 2016
813.6 -- dc23
[Fic]
2015015920
First edition, February 2016
Cover art (c) 2016 by Larry Rostant Cover
design by Christopher Stengel e-ISBN 978-0-54556206-5
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher. For information regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc., Attention: Permissions Department, 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.
Jennifer A. Nielsen, Rise of the Wolf
(Series: Mark of the Thief # 2)
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