Instead, he murmured, “Squeeze my hand if you need me.”

With a shaky nod, she turned and followed the procession up the stairs to the bedroom in which Aquarius rested. Inside the cool, shadowed room, everyone fanned out around the bed where the little woman lay, still bloated and red, lips cracked. Sabelle had removed her clothes and dressed her in a feather-light cotton gown. Aquarius’s eyes remained closed, her breathing slightly labored.

Bram drew his wand and held it at Zain. “Go on.”

Zain growled at them both, then caught Sydney’s gaze. Tears streamed down her face, and she clutched Caden’s hand. His heart lifted. She’d come to him for support, trusted him to care for her. Caressing the soft crown of her fiery hair, he squeezed her hand in return.

Behind her, Sabelle patted her shoulder. Standing beside Marrok on the opposite side of the bed, Olivia gave her a reassuring smile.

Tynan shoved Zain closer to Aquarius.

“How does this work?” she whispered to Caden.

“I’ve never heard of it. But Bram made it sound common enough, so . . .”

Sydney exhaled, clearly trying to calm herself. Caden wanted to reassure her that if Zain did anything more to hurt Aquarius, Bram would let Tynan at him. But he didn’t want to say it out loud and give the Denzell bastard any ideas.

Zain finally stepped forward, leaning over the bed, and reached for Aquarius.

With a ruthless grip on his arm, Bram stayed the other wizard.

“I have to hold her against me,” Zain explained.

Bram released Zain slowly. “One wrong move, and I swear, I’ll have no compunction about making certain your family needs tweezers to pick up your remains.”

Sneering, Zain turned back to Aquarius. He sat on the bed beside her and pulled her awkwardly into his lap, bringing her small breasts against his chest. Her hair drifted down to his thighs. Her arms hung limply from her shoulders. Zain took in a deep breath and closed his eyes.

His arms tightened around her, then began to shake. He drew in a sharp breath, his eyes popping wide open as if stunned. Caden could see whites all around the dark irises.

Tighter and tighter, Sydney squeezed his hand. The air thickened with tension and fear. He could smell the worry pouring off Sydney and wished he could do more.

Seconds dragged by, one after the other, and still Aquarius sagged against Zain, unmoving, seemingly not breathing. His whole body began to shake. Sweat rolled in fat drops down his forehead and temples. His face turned ghostly white.

Suddenly, he released Aquarius, collapsing back to the bed. Bram rushed forward. She fell face first in a heap across him. Sabelle elbowed her way between Tynan and Sydney, who let go of Caden’s hand and tried to dart to the bed. He held her back.

“Let them,” Caden whispered.“ Just in case it’s a trick.”

“She’s my friend,” she cried. “If anything happens . . .”

Tears took over then, and Caden’s heart broke for her. Since meeting her, he’d been dazzled by her beauty and smarts. Her moxie and dedication had impressed the hell out of him as well, even if, at times, they scared him. For days, she’d been tending Aquarius’s injuries. Sydney’s incredible loyalty and love made him want her all the more. Magic aside, it was no wonder he was falling in love with her.

Caden closed his eyes. This wasn’t the time or place— Sydney was hurting. But what a fucking cosmic joke that he should finally meet a woman he adored, only for her to become entangled in the very world he despised.

Gently, Bram rolled Aquarius over, easing her away from Zain. Neither stirred. “Aquarius?” Bram called. “Can you hear me?”

Still nothing.

Sydney looked about her with a desperate glance. “Can anyone else help her? A bit of magic and—”

“Sorry.” Bram’s face was soft with regret. “Only the one who inflicted the hurt can heal her. Check him,” Bram barked at Duke.

Hurstgrove leaned around Sabelle, who was gently brushing Aquarius’s hair from her face to reveal healed skin, but an unmoving form. He waved a hand across Zain’s face.

“He’s out,” Duke declared, pulling him to the far edge of the bed.

“Oh God.” Sydney’s voice trembled.

All of Zain’s energy hadn’t been enough to bring Aquarius around. Caden squeezed Sydney tighter. He hated to see her pain, but a part of him hoped that she’d finally accept the danger she was courting. And this was just a sliver of the possibilities. The things he’d heard about Anarki attacks in Bram’s meetings these past few weeks were bone chilling. He hated using Aquarius as an illustration for Sydney, but if it got her to forget the transcasting idea, then something good would come of this tragedy.

Suddenly, a woman groaned, then coughed. It wasn’t Sydney or Sabelle. Caden glanced up and saw Olivia staring wide-eyed at Aquarius. Glancing past Sabelle’s bent form, he studied the delicate woman.

Slowly, she opened her green eyes. Groggy, unfocused— but awake.

“What is it?” Sydney demanded, trying to peek around the blond witch. “Tell me!”

Sabelle pulled back from Aquarius, and a last glance at the other woman’s face showed her to be perfectly healthy, if still a bit red.

“See for yourself.” Caden thrust Sydney toward her friend, as relief poured through him.

Sydney squealed and darted from his grasp, charging headlong toward her friend, arms open wide.

Bram thrust an arm between them, then admonished, “Gently.”

With a vigorous nod, Sydney leaned carefully toward her friend, brushing her cheek. “How do you feel?”

“If I said terrible, you’d only cry more. I don’t need the bad karma.”

Sydney gave a watery laugh. “You scared ten years off me!”

“Can’t have that. Who else will put up with me at the office?” Aquarius groaned as she leaned toward Sydney. “Where am I?”

“My home. Where do you hurt?” Sabelle asked.

Aquarius sent Sydney a quizzical glance.

“That’s Sabelle. You remember Bram from my flat? This is his sister.”

“The cocky one with the angry aura?”

Bram chuckled. “I bet if you look at me now, you’ll find my aura much changed.”

With a slow turn of her head, Aquarius stared at Bram. “You’ve traded anger for stress. You should learn to meditate.”

“She’s better already,” Sydney joked, wiping tears from her cheeks.

“Get some rest,” Sabelle suggested to Aquarius.

Sydney patted Aquarius’s shoulder, then urged her to sit back in the bed, against the pillows.

She touched her cracked lips. “I’m dry everywhere. Water?”

Sabelle waved a hand, and instantly a cool glass of water appeared in a delicate crystal cup. “Drink.”

Aquarius didn’t look very surprised. “Nice trick. Thank you.” She tossed back the entire glass at once. Once finished, she handed it back to Sabelle. “So what happened to me? To say I feel run over by a train is an understatement.”

“What’s the last thing you recall?”

Aquarius paused. “Coming by your flat to talk to you about—” She gasped. “Has anyone found Anka yet?”

Sydney looked back. Over her shoulder, she sent Caden a silent apology, then turned back to her friend. “No. We’re still looking.”

“She was weak the morning she left. Talked about needing energy. I offered her green tea, but she wouldn’t have it.”

Caden froze. Of course, Anka had been weeks without contact from Lucan. As often as they’d tried to force feed Lucan energy, had Anka been without any contact that would build up her power? So who had she found to recharge her? Or had Mathias seized her again before she could take a lover?

Either possibility would kill his brother—if he ever emerged from this mourning.

After Sydney and Aquarius had hugged, cried, and reassured each other, Sydney listened to her friend’s horrific description of Zain’s torture. Seeing what Mathias and his henchmen had done to both Anka and Aquarius made Sydney more determined to help protect others. When she’d spoken to Bram earlier about transcasting, he hadn’t said no. Now she was going to get assertive, Caden be damned. Why should anyone suffer because they were uninformed about the danger about to descend on their doorsteps?

Fire brewing in her belly, Sydney jogged down the stairs to find Bram. The Council was against spreading word of Mathias’s return, but she knew that Bram wanted others to know. Was itching to tell them, in fact. She was going to help him do what he wanted to.

As soon as she entered the hallway, she heard raised voices to the left, behind closed doors. Damn and blast! They were all in Bram’s office, except Caden, who’d departed with Sabelle to begin cleaning up Lucan’s house.

Sydney approached the door and raised her hand to knock. Before she could, a voice boomed through the heavy wood separating her from the men, “Are you out of your bloody mind?”

Ice. The warrior everyone else believed mad. The irony of his question wasn’t lost on her.

“For the first time in nearly two hundred years, we agree on something,” Bram quipped.

“Are any of you sods listening to me?” Shock growled. “What are your better ideas? I can’t lead you to Mathias in his lair with your hands tied and your wands confiscated. Mathias fell for that trap once, and it led to his exile.”

“Aye,” Marrok agreed. “We may call the man many unpleasant things, but he has never shown himself to be stupid. We cannot underestimate him. We will get but one chance to undertake a surprise attack.”

“Indeed,” Duke added. “Besides, if you pretend to lead us to Mathias, then we unleash our fight, he’ll be suspicious of you in the future, Shock. I’m not certain that serves our long-term interests.”

“But a pair of us claiming to be traitors and offering to bring him the book?” Ice again, his tone saying all on its own that he thought the idea absurd. “Why can’t we simply lure him out and whip his arse?”

“That plan leaves him a base to run back to and regroup, should he escape the ambush,” Bram said. “I want to destroy his home turf, disrupt his operations. And if Shock lured him out, again, Mathias would suspect him in the future.”

“Here’s another snag: if we want to be certain we can use the diary as bait, a woman must carry the book. After Caden tried to steal it from Sydney, we can’t discount its rules.”

Sydney thought that line was as good a cue as any. With an assertive push on the double doors leading to Bram’s office, she swept into the room, trying to quell her quaking.

“I’ll take it to him.”

Six pairs of male eyes all swiveled her way, expressions ranging from stunned to considering. Bram was the first to speak.

“You’re not a witch.”

A hot protest leapt to the tip of her tongue, but she had to play this smart. “I am female, but if you insist on someone magical, I suppose you’ll use Sabelle.”

Bram reared back. “Absolutely not!”

Ice glared at her from beneath heavy black brows.

Sydney laughed, as if she’d been incredibly daft. “Of course, you’re taking Olivia. Married to the ultimate warrior, descendant of Morganna, she’s likely a gifted witch.”

Marrok stepped forward, hand on the hilt of the ever-present sword at his side. “I know not what game you play, but my tender, untrained wife will be nowhere near this battle.”

Sydney feigned confusion. “But if you need a woman to pretend to deliver the book to Mathias in order to breach his defenses and you’re against using Sabelle and Olivia, who did you have in mind?”

Bram looked straight ahead, meeting no one’s gaze. The others looked at him, then at one another. Clearly, they hadn’t gotten this far in their planning.

Sydney cleared her throat. “Might I suggest that I’m the perfect candidate. I loathe Mathias for what he’s done to Anka and Aquarius, and I relish the opportunity to be a part of an attack that could destroy him.”

With a furious scowl, Bram turned to her. “How do you know what we’re about?”

“Your voices are louder than your doors are thick. I’m merely volunteering because I know you need the assistance and I’m not personally valuable to anyone here. Unless you prefer to try the trick that felled Mathias once before . . .” She tried to suppress a smile of triumph, but she had them by the balls and they knew it.

“Caden would not think you expendable,” Duke said from the far side of the room. “Quite the opposite.”

“Since he hasn’t seen fit to kiss me—ever—to ascertain pertinent facts or speak certain words . . .” Their jaws gaped. “Yes, I’m informed about your mating rituals. Given all that, if I have your blessing to assist, this decision is mine alone.”

A long beat of silence passed, and she waited it out.

“She makes excellent points,” Ice conceded.

“She’s got more gumption than half the men I know,” Tynan admitted.

“Aye, a warrior spirit in a small body. You know if you attempt this, you risk grave danger?” Marrok asked.

Did he think she was a fool? “Of course. But just as you’re willing to risk your very lives to stop terrible evil, so am I. I may not have the brawn or magical ability you possess, but my wit has saved me from a scrape more than once. I may be more helpful than you imagine.”

“This isn’t fodder for one of your stories,” Bram growled.

“At the moment, my only thought is to help. We can negotiate the rest later.”

“This isn’t your fight,” Bram pointed out.

“When that bastard hurts my friends, it is.”

Bram tapped his toe against the expensive Persian rug and glanced at Duke. Hurstgrove shrugged.

“We need a woman to carry the book. Unless you know of a female warrior . . .”

The jerky shake of Bram’s head told Sydney she’d won. She pasted on a smile and couldn’t resist fluttering her lashes. “Well?”