Lupi 06 - Blood Magic

the blow of a carter who had at least given up beating his beast to aim a fist her way. Her middle hurt, tight with grief. Her mind slowed.
    After a time, the acrid scent of smoke tickled her nose. Smoke was a common scent, with so many cook fires in the city, but along with the smell came another sensation. One she knew well, but had no name for.
    Several streets to the east, the darkness glowed red. Another fire had bloomed, this one in a good quarter of town. It was still small, but it would grow, for neighbors would not act together to extinguish the blaze. They didn't dare. What if the sorcerer himself had caused it? Instead they would bundle up what they could of their belongings and flee, hoping the fire was dealt with before their own houses burned.
    They were right in one way - the fire would be dealt with. The sorcerer did not want his city to burn down. He did not object to a chance to strut his power, either, Li Lei thought. She'd been among the crowd who gathered to watch him attend the other fire, which was huge and roaring by then, having engulfed several houses.
    He'd made a show of it, arriving in a litter carried by six slaves, his silk robe so heavily embroidered with gold thread one might have mistaken him for the emperor. Li Lei had asked herself: why did he not ride on a showy stallion or fly through the air, as sorcerers were said to do?
    She had answered the second question by adding her own extrapolation to what Sun Mzao had told her. The sorcerer could fly, but not through his own arts. That skill belonged to his demon lover, and while she could carry him, she would be unlikely to make the effort in such a cause.
    The answer to the first question was even easier. The sorcerer did not know how to ride. He was known to be a commoner. She believed he was actually a peasant.
    Now, Li Lei believed commoners were no more stupid than the nobility, and were perhaps a shade smarter, on the whole. But much of the peasantry existed in such profound ignorance and need that they were forever warped in their thinking. Whatever the sorcerer's innate intelligence might be, his thoughts, plans, and goals were distorted. He behaved as a child - shrewd in his way, but always grabbing for whatever shiny object caught his attention, lashing out when it broke, then moving on to the next bit of glitter.
    At the fire he'd made himself impressive, raising his arms and commanding the flames in a loud voice - and fire answered him, yes, but sluggishly. He had triumphed over the blaze, but he had used a great deal of power to do so.
    Fire was not his by nature. So Sam had said, and so her own observation confirmed. Li Lei smiled at the dark house where she had once lived, where so many she loved had died so horribly.
    No, fire was not his. But it was hers.

 
    THIRTEEN

    Nettie put Cullen back in sleep, left Jason some instructions, and went to get some regular sleep. Rule had a word with Jason, too, then called Max. Lily called her boss, Ruben Brooks, though at this hour she used his office line, not his mobile. He'd get her message in the morning. Cynna patted her tummy and went to use the bathroom. Jason left.
    When Cynna came out, Lily had a question for her. "Blood magic, Cullen said. Could it be Vodun? Nettie said the spell reminded her of a Vodun curse."
    "Vodun uses a lot of blood magic, but they aren't the only ones with blood spells. Some traditions consider blood magic just plain bad, like Wicca - though some Wiccans argue that it's okay if you use your own blood. Wicca isn't uniform like Catholicism. The Catholic Church ties itself up in knots on the subject, but that's par for their course." She lowered herself into the chair by the bed and heaved a sigh. "You think a single cup of coffee would hurt the little rider?"
    "I think you don't like coffee, so you must be getting desperate."
    "I'm not going to sleep," Cynna said.
    Rule put away his phone. "You'll lie down, though, while we wait for Max to get here. Jason's gone to arrange for a bed. That chair isn't comfortable."
    "Well." After a moment she grinned tiredly. "Guess I won't argue. Max is coming?"
    "He'll be here in half an hour or less." Rule glanced at Lily. "I asked him to sneak in. He's rather distinctive. I don't want him associated with this room."
    "Good thinking." And it hadn't occurred to her, which meant she probably needed either coffee or sleep, too. "Cynna, what can you tell me about blood magic? Anything might help."
    "It's pretty