The guards stood fast.
Alex clenched his jaw. He was in no mood for an argument. “Open the gate,” he said through gritted teeth, “or I’ll blast you.”
The guards drew their rusty metal weapons.
Alex’s brain had nearly heated to a boil. With a split-second movement, he reached inside his robe, pulled out two abstract spells, and flung them at the guards. Immediately their appendages spun around their bodies to different sockets, and their eyes and ears rearranged with their noses and mouths. The guards lost their balance and stumbled about, crying out.
Alex focused on the chain and lock and muttered, “Release.”
The chain fell in pieces to the dirt. Alex kicked the lock aside, opened the gate, and went up the driveway toward the palace door. Without comment, he stunned the door guard with a soliloquy. Inside the palace, Alex stood and looked around for a moment, unsure where to go. It had been a while since he’d been here, and he’d never gone upstairs before, but he had an inkling that would be where the palace chambers and offices would be.
He took the stairs two at a time. At the top, he rounded the corner and nearly ran smack into someone.
It was Eva Fathom, Carina’s mother. She gasped at the sight of him, then clapped her hand to her mouth, too late to stop it.
Alex stopped short and fought the urge to turn around and go the other way. Eva’s betrayal, choosing Quill over Artimé and helping Aaron take down the magical world and its leader, still stung quite a bit. He cringed but held her gaze, and waited for her to shout a warning to Aaron that he was coming.
The two stood frozen, staring at one another in a most intense way, each wondering what the other would do next. After what seemed to Alex like the longest second in the history of time, Eva Fathom wordlessly stepped aside and pointed out the door to Aaron’s office.
Confrontation at the Palace
Alex remained still a moment longer, confused and surprised, and then brusquely nodded his thanks. He turned on his heel toward the office door while Eva slipped downstairs at a frightening speed for an old woman.
Alex shoved the door open. It slammed against the wall, and a giant hinge broke off, which made a dissonant clang when it bounced on the stone floor.
The High Priest Aaron Stowe jumped out of his seat, yelling out in fright. His pencil went flying, and the paper he was doodling on slipped to the floor. “What do you want?” Aaron demanded, once he realized it was his brother standing before him. “Secretary!”
But Eva Fathom had been just swift enough to make it outside and, arguably, out of earshot. Alex caught a glimpse of her from Aaron’s window, walking along as if she hadn’t heard.
Alex picked up the paper, looking at Aaron’s ship drawings in disgust. He faced his brother, and the anger welled up again. He slammed the paper down on Aaron’s desk and gave him a cool stare. “You’re a disgusting coward.”
Aaron looked on in disdain. “Please,” he said with a sneer. “I’m the high priest of Quill. You’ll treat me with respect.” He snatched the paper and turned it facedown, out of Alex’s reach.
Alex laughed bitterly. “Right. Like how you treat me?”
“I don’t have to treat you with respect,” Aaron said. “You’re nobody.”
“I see.” Alex toyed with the spell components in his robe pocket. “Well, it may surprise you to realize that I am not under your command, so I don’t have to respect you. Nor do I. But I’m not here to quibble about that. I’m here to call you a coward, and to inform you that if you don’t do a better job of protecting our island, you might not remain high priest for long.”
Aaron glanced out the window at the forty-foot wall around Quill. “I’m taking care of my island just fine. In fact, further reinforcements go into place today.”
“We protected you.”
“From?”
“From Warbler Island’s attack. You saw the ships.”
Aaron barely shifted. “They weren’t attacking Quill.”
“We all live on this island, Aaron. And they didn’t get into Quill because we kept them at bay on our shore! We protected your people. And what did you do? You ran away and hid.” Alex could feel the bile rising to his throat. “You’re such a stinking coward! Next time we’ll let them in and point them in the direction of your cruddy palace.”
“No, actually, you won’t,” Aaron said coolly. “After today, there will no longer be an entrance into Quill.”
“What?” Alex looked confused for a moment, and then his eyes flew to the window once more. “You filled in the hole in the wall?” he said. “Why would you want to do that?”
“And we’re blocking over the space where the gate was as well. You’ll have to continue fighting battles on your own. I’m not interested. Justine had it right. And I have it even more right. There will no longer be any vulnerable parts to our fortress.”
Alex gripped his head in frustration. “Aaron, not that I care to help you, but that’s a huge mistake. Just because you can’t see things happening doesn’t mean they aren’t happening! Besides, some of your Quillens visit—”
Aaron cut him off. “Actually, the fact that all of you exist is the huge mistake, and I do blame Justine for not being aware of what her nasty brother was doing. And I’m not stopping there. Once we’ve walled over the gate, I’ll be blockading your magical entrance to Haluki’s house. Since you haven’t destroyed your evil tube in Artimé, I’m going to have to do it here. We’ll never have to see each other again.”