Murder of Crows (The Twenty-Sided Sorceress Book 2) by Annie Bellet Page A

I caught the gun with my magic and yanked, ripping it free from his hands to clatter uselessly onto the boards. Then I pushed my magic into a circle using the knowledge I’d gained from the late Bernie the warlock. The power formed a ward, locking Sky Heart inside. I layered on a second spell courtesy of Bernie, a spell to keep him from reaching out to that other plane, from calling on his crow half and shifting.
    What would have taken Bernie multiple items carefully researched and gathered and the power of a full moon and hours of ritual took me a couple of seconds.
    Now for the coup de grace. Or as Harper would call it, the cup-dee-gracie.
    I layered one more spell, forming my magic into a glowing white circle, envisioning the purity of truth, a light that pushed away all lies, all shadows, a light that would let nothing hide within it.
    My head started to pound and I knew I wouldn’t be able to hold the spells for long. Time for a chat with grandfather.
    “Did you throw Not Afraid’s sister off a cliff?” I asked, keeping the question as unambiguous as I could.
    Sky Heart’s mouth worked as he stood frozen inside my circles and his eyes blazed with rage.
    “Yes,” he said, the words hissing out of his throat.
    Was that enough? No. I wanted to know more. I wanted to hear him admit to all of it.
    “How many children have you thrown off that cliff?” I said, my voice rising. Behind me I heard people moving, coming closer. Good, I thought. Let them come. Let them hear.
    “Jade?” Pearl called out to me, but I ignored her.
    “Tell me,” I said. “Tell them, Sky Heart. Tell them all how you killed their children.”
    “You don’t understand. You are exile. You are not one of us. You should be dead. I should have killed you when you were a baby. I let your mother keep you. I was weak and now we are all punished for it.” The hatred in his face shocked me and I almost lost the spells.
    “How many?” I demanded. “Tell them.”
    “I do not know,” he screamed. “All of them. All the ones who are not my people. They were abominations, insults to the pure blood of Shishishiel. Like you. Just like you.”
    I reached out with a thread of power and found my exploding stone. A slight nudge of more power and it went off. A crack reverberated through the camp.
    “No! What have you done,” Sky Heart shrieked.
    I sprang forward, clearing the steps in a leap and broke my own circles by diving into them. I ripped the beaded bag from his neck, pulling him forward. I kicked his legs out from under him and jumped aside as he tumbled down the steps.
    He sprang to his feet quicker than I expected and turned on me, snarling.
    A huge crow dropped out of the clear sky like a comet of death, slamming into Sky Heart and carrying him back to the ground in a swirling cloud of feathers. He screamed as the crow’s unnaturally curved and sharp talons dug into his chest. Blue-white fire ripped into Sky Heart, flowing from the crow’s open beak.
    He died screaming, his chest bursting open, as the crow ripped out his heart and turned it to ashes before my eyes.
    I stood on the porch, the beaded bag in my hand, shaking as the adrenaline dump hit me in the aftermath of using so much power.
    The crow, which I guessed was Not Afraid, looked up at me and cawed, his huge black wings spread.
    “It is done,” I said. “Justice is done.”
    “No.” Jasper was the first to reach Sky Heart’s body. He waved his arms at the giant crow as though he could shoo it away. “NO!” he cried again.
    The crow looked at me and something in its gaze warned me, but not soon enough.
    Not Afraid beat his wings and flew up into Jasper’s face, his talons hooking into my father’s chest. Blue fire spilled around them and Jasper screamed in pain.
    I gathered my magic but couldn’t blast the crow without hitting Jasper. I jumped off the porch and attacked the crow with my hands, tearing at his feathers. Cold burned me, icy fire rippling up my arms. More