Page 41 of Twist of Fate

One of Connal’s other brothers moved ahead and opened the door. The brother carrying Connal took him inside and lowered him onto the bed.

Luke pulled off his backpack and dropped it beside one of the chairs before returning immediately to Connal’s side. His pulse still caught beneath Luke’s fingers, but he was breathing.

“Help is coming,” one of his brothers said.

Luke nodded without looking away from Connal. “Stay with me.”

The door opened without a sound.

Cosmo entered with Garzaxie at his side. Two fae Luke didn’t recognize followed them into the chamber, carrying leather cases between them. Cosmo’s gaze swept over Connal, Luke’s hand around his wrist, and the brothers gathered near the bed.

“Garzaxie, make certain they have everything they require.”

The hobgoblin clapped his hands. A narrow table appeared beside the bed, giving the healers space to open their cases without disturbing Luke or Connal.

“Move,” Garzaxie ordered Connal’s brothers. “Unless one of you has learned to heal since I last checked.”

The brothers stepped back. Luke didn’t. They didn’t go far, though. Outside the warehouse, Luke had seen them as a trained unit responding to a threat. Here, with their attention fixed on Connal and concern breaking through their controlled expressions, they were simply brothers watching one of their own suffer.

One of the healers opened her case while the other placed his hands over Connal’s chest. Pale light gathered beneath his palms.

“What happened?” the healer asked.

“The trap struck him twice,” Luke said. “He said the magic remained after we escaped and that he was holding it back.”

The brother with long, dark hair stepped closer. “The building was sealed against portals. We could sense binding magic surrounding it, but we could not reach them until we broke through the outer wall.”

The healer’s expression tightened. “You encountered a containment structure.”

“Can you remove whatever it left behind?” Luke asked.

“Yes, but I need room to work.”

Luke started to release Connal’s wrist.

“Not you,” she said. “Your presence is helping anchor his magic. Remain where you are.”

Luke looked down at their joined hands. The pull he’d felt since meeting Connal stirred again, too faint to understand but impossible to dismiss.

“How am I doing that?”

“Questions later. Keep hold of him.”

Luke had plenty of questions, but this wasn’t the time to demand answers. He closed his hand around Connal again. The healers worked together, one guiding thin strands of light across Connal’s chest while the other followed their movement with two fingers, pausing whenever Connal’s body tensed.

Luke leaned closer. “Easy. Let them help.”

Connal’s eyes opened briefly and found his. Some of the tension left Connal’s body before his eyes closed again.

“What did that structure do to him?” Luke asked.

“It was built to immobilize magical beings and prevent them from using their power to escape,” the healer explained. “Each time it struck Connal, another binding attached itself to him. Breaking through the wall freed him from the structure, but it did not remove the magic he carried away.”

Luke looked down at Connal. “He opened a portal anyway.”

“Yes. The bindings continued trying to lock his body in place and block his portal magic. He spent what remained of his strength bringing you here.”

Luke watched Connal’s face. “And you’re certain you can remove it?”