Chapter 26

Azlan

Something's changedsince I was last here. Something about this suburb is different. I can smell it in the air. I can see it in the empty streets and the twitching curtains. I can feel it in my bones. Fear. People are afraid.

Perhaps that isn't surprising. The republic just came under a deadly attack. One that nearly saw our country fall into enemy hands.

But I don't think it's the threat from the West these people are afraid of.

"How safe do we think it is here?" I ask Winnie as she pulls the car up into the driveway of her grandma's little bungalow.

"Here?" Winnie giggles. "My mom used to send me and my sisters here in the summer holidays. Trust me, nothing ever happens here. It's the dullest, most boring place in the world. In fact, Nonny is the most interesting thing about this place."

I peer at those twitching curtains and I'm not so sure. We are fugitives of the republic now, wanted by the Lord Protector. I wonder if anywhere is really safe.

Winnie's grandma appears to share my reservations because she's hurrying out the front door and down the pathway and when she spots Stone and me lurking in the car, instructs Winnie to park up in the garage. Winnie does as she's told and once we're safely inside, we climb out of the car and follow Winnie's grandma through an internal door into the house. Birds tweet from a room off a hallway and an old cat curls itself around my ankles as we're led to the kitchen at the back of the house.

Once inside, Winnie's grandma inspects us with suspicion. She's an older woman with short, spiky hair and big oversized glasses that magnify her shrewd eyes.

"I've already had agents from the authorities knocking on my door asking questions about you, Winnifred. They've been to your mom's house too. You know she's out of her mind with worry. We all have been."

"I'm sorry, Nonny," Winnie murmurs, fiddling with the hem of her shirt and looking mighty guilty. "Sorry I haven't been in touch. It's been difficult."

Her grandma reaches up and pats her cheek. "But you're okay? Not hurt?"

"I'm fine."

"Then don't stand there like a wombat, give me a damn hug."

Winnie wraps her arms around her grandma immediately and the old woman squeezes her back, whispering words in her granddaughter's ear that I don't hear. Winnie kisses her cheek and then they separate.

"Now," Winnie's grandma says, "I know who you are." She glares at me. "But who are you?" She points to Stone.

"This is Professor Stone, Nonny, from the academy. This is Rosa," she tells him, "my grandma."

"He doesn't look like a professor," she says with suspicion and I can't help a guffaw.

"Yeah, I get that a lot," Phoenix mumbles.

"He's another of Rhi's mates."

"Another," the old woman says, her eyebrows rising. "And where is Rhianna exactly? You do know she's wanted by the authorities?" she eyes me and Stone, "you all are."

"We don't know where she is," Winnie explains. "She went missing the night of the attack on the academy. The enforcer–"

"Azlan," I say.

"And Professor Stone haven't heard from her – neither have I – and they haven't been able to reach her through the bond. She's too far away."

"Are you sure …" the old woman gives her granddaughter a sympathetic look, "that Rhianna is alive?"

"Yes," I say firmly. "We can feel her."

"Just not strongly enough to track her down or communicate with her."

"Which is why we're here, Nonny. We need your help."

"Mine?" The old woman looks taken back. "The authorities' number one enforcer and a professor from the academy need my help."

"Yes, Nonny."

"Well," she says, resting her hand against her chest. "Well …" then her eyes narrow, "what with exactly?"

"Rhi may be in danger–"

"I imagine with half the country after her she probably is. What exactly do the authorities want with her?"

"The girl has unusual powers," I tell her, deciding honesty is the best way to win the old woman onto our side and get her to help us. Hopefully, it will be the quickest way too, because every ticking second is agony. "And the Lord Protector knows that I am her fated mate. He may know she has other fated mates too."

"Others?"

"Four, Nonny. Like in the fairytale of Queen ?eelfl?d and her five knights."

The old woman sits down hard on a chair resting in the corner of the kitchen, swiping her glasses off her nose with one hand, the other still lingering against her chest. "This girl, you don't think …"

I frown. "Think what?"

"Four mates!" The old woman shakes her head. "I've never heard of such a thing. Not in real life. Only in fairy tales as Winnie says. What powers does she possess?"

I glance at Phoenix who keeps his mouth shut.

"No, no, don't tell me," she says, raising her hand, "perhaps it's best I don't know. If those agents come knocking again, it's probably better I know as little as possible."

"You wouldn't tell, Nonny."

"No, Winnie, darling, but they were a tad," she smiles flatly, "forceful."

Winnie gasps and I ball my hands into fists. The chancellor had his flaws, but that would never have been allowed under his rule. My uncle really is a piece of shit.

"Will you help us?" Phoenix asks her. "I understand if you'd rather not. I understand we're putting you in a difficult position."

"Nonsense." She waves her hand through the air. "Of course, I'll help you. Rhianna is Winnie's friend and besides, I like that girl. She has spunk."

"She's certainly had a lot of spunk," Winnie mumbles.

I glare at the girl and she looks away from me, her cheeks heating.

"What exactly do you need me to do? It's very flattering for an old woman like me to be asked for help but I'm not exactly sure how I can help you." A yappy dog trots into the room and jumps up onto her lap, and she strokes her hands through his fur.

"We need you to brew us a potion, Nonny."

"Winnie, of all my grandchildren, you are the best potion brewer. I don't see why you need my help."

"I do. It's complex, really complex."

"Ahhh," the old woman says with some suspicion, "what exactly does this potion do?"

"Strengthen the fated mate bond – making it possible to communicate over vast distances."

The old woman stares into my face. "We're talking about manipulating ancient magic here."

"Yes."

"That's dangerous."

"Which is why we need your help, Nonny."

"Are you sure you want to do it? I'm flattered you think I'm capable but I'm no academy professor."

"I'm sure," I say. "We've been separated from Rhi for long enough. We need to find her."

The old woman tickles her dog under its chin and considers our request. "Okay," she says at last, "do you have the recipe?"

Winnie tugs the piece of paper from her pocket and her grandma hooks the glasses hanging around her neck onto her nose and reads the words.

"You have the Tambric spice?" Winnie nods. "Hmmm. This is tricky, very tricky."

"You think you can brew it?" Phoenix asks with a note of desperation.

"With Winnie's help, I think so." She pushes the dog gently from her lap and stands up. "We'd best get started. Most of the folk around here are blind as bats but someone may have spotted you arriving and if they did, there's a chance they've already shopped you in to the authorities. We may have limited time to make the potion." She turns to her granddaughter. "Fetch my cauldron – the silver-plated one." She turns to us as Winnie scuttles from the room. "And you two," she says, "will be our assistants."

"Assistants?" Phoenix says with obvious disgust.

"Yes," she says with a twinkle in her eyes. "Don't expect to stand around while us women do all the hard work. Those days have long passed. You can start by brewing us a pot of tea. Kettle's over there."

Winnie's grandmais true to her word. For over an hour, she has Stone and me fetching and carrying for her, using our magic to chop up ingredients, and providing her and Winnie with ample tea and snacks. There's little time to stand and watch but in the moments I do, I can see her murmuring with her granddaughter as they hover over the silver cauldron, adding ingredients slowly, stirring occasionally and consulting not only the notes I'd made but an array of ancient-looking recipe books too.

The small kitchen soon fills with clouds of billowing steam – steam that morphs in color from white to pink to purple as they add their ingredients and the pungent smell of Tambric spice leaves is inescapable. My eyes water and the fumes tickle the back of my throat, making me cough.

"We're nearly done," Rosa says, not looking up from the bubbling liquid. She beckons me closer and I peer down at the concoction. It's a rich plum color and thick like treacle. "Just one last step left and this is the trickiest part." She dabs the back of her hand against her clammy forehead. "I'm going to need your help."

"What do you need us to do?"

"We need to add a little of your magic – both you fated mates. Winnie and I could do it, but I think it will be most effective if the magic comes from you two."

"Okay," I say. "How?"

Rosa smiles. "Be patient. I'm getting to that bit." She stirs the potion and a puff of steam billows into the air. "I need to add the last ingredient and as I do, I need you both to add a drop of your magic." I step forward and she lifts up her hand. "But not just any old magic. Magic soaked with love."

"Love?" I say flatly.

"You do love the girl, don't you?" I shuffle from one foot to the other, then nod. "Then you take a little of that love, you mix it with your magic, and you add it to the potion. The potion needs to know your intentions are pure. It needs to know you are using it with your loved one's best interests at heart."

"A potion can't think," I mutter. This sounds like the kind of woo woo bullshit Ellie dabbles in.

"That shows how much you know, young man," Rosa says sternly. She tuts. "You men are always so quick to dismiss potions in favor of fancy-pants magic. And frankly, it's stupid. A well-brewed potion can be just as powerful as magic wielded by the most accomplished magical."

I hope she's right. I hope this is going to work because I'm fucking desperate here.

"I don't know how to add love to my magic," I say gruffly.

The old woman hooks off her glasses and steps towards me, resting her palm right above my heart. "Love resides in your heart. When we're in love, our heart is over-brimming with it. It's damn hard to miss. You say you love Rhianna, then you must feel that love right here."

I glare at her. All I feel is my heart pounding with irritation against her hand.

She tuts. "Close your eyes." I hesitate, then do it. If it means finding Rhi, I can swallow my skepticism and my pride and embrace the woo woo. "What do you feel?"

"My bond," I say, that shimmering, powerful sensation residing in my gut. Not my heart.

"Yes, I imagine that's pretty overwhelming. But let down your guard, Mister Tough Guy. Let down your guard and let your feelings out. Let yourself truly experience your feelings for your fated mate."

I let out a breath and try. I try my damn hardest. At first I think I'm going to fail. I'm so used to locking away my feelings. It's something I've done all my life. Feelings weren't allowed in a family like ours – especially after my mom passed. Those barriers I've erected to stop myself from feeling all the pain and heartache, all the fear and guilt, are strong and well fortified. But they're not going to stand in the way of me finding my fated mate. And so I crash through them, letting all those hidden feelings come flooding out. I brace myself, waiting for the pain, the heartache, the fear, the guilt, and it's there, of course it is, but those feelings are drowned by the vast volume of love that comes pouring out too.

Love. I knew I loved her. But did I truly know how much? Did I allow myself to acknowledge it? Because to love is to risk losing, is to risk that pain and heartache. It's what Phoenix feared so much when Rhianna first entered our lives.

But I've come to learn those fears were foolish. I'd risk it all for this. I'd risk everything for her.

"You feel it?" the old woman asks me, her hand pressing against my ribcage.

"Y-y-yes," I say my voice caught in my throat.

"Then coat your magic in it and get ready." I feel her step away. "Are you ready too, Professor?"

"I am."

"Winnie," she says, "get ready with that spoon. On the count of three … one … two … three!"

I send a drop of my magic spiraling through the air and splashing into the potion. There's an almighty bang, the force of it making me stumble backwards, the kitchen full of smoke.

I cough, waving it away from my face and peer towards Rosa and the potion.

Winnie is picking the old woman off the floor. Her face is black with soot and her short hair standing on end.

"Are you all right, Nonny?" Winnie asks anxiously.

"Perfectly fine, Winnie, don't fuss," she says, batting her granddaughter's hands away. She peers down into her cauldron and a wide smile spreads across her face. "Looks like it worked."

I sigh with relief, glancing at Phoenix who's smiling too.

"Can we use it straight away?" I ask her.

From down the hallway, the birds start to tweet again and the dog races from the kitchen yapping away. Rosa peers after it, the smile slipping from her face.

"I think you'd better take it to go," she says, "there's someone coming."