One of the reasons the English Magician had survived in the lethal court of Queen Elizabeth and for centuries afterward was that he never made a promise he could not keep, or a threat he didn’t intend to carry out. He took a moment to consider his response, careful to keep his face neutral. Although it was dark in the back of the car, he knew that it made no difference to the cat-headed Elder. She could easily see in the dark. “The Witch transferred all her knowledge and lore into the girl, Sophie, who we now know to be one of the twins of legend. The girl even admitted that she knew how to reverse the spell, but when Mars asked her-begged her-to do so, she refused. All I have to do is give her a good reason not to refuse the next time we ask.” Dee’s cruel lips twisted in a smile. “I can be very persuasive.”

The Dark Elder grunted.

“You don’t sound very happy about that. I would have thought you would be thrilled to have someone like Mars back in your ranks.”

The Elder laughed, an ugly sound. “You know nothing about Mars Ultor, the Avenger, do you?”

The Magician took a moment before replying. “I know some of the myths,” he admitted.

“Once he was a hero; then he became a monster,” Bastet said slowly. “A force of nature, untamable, unpredictable and deadly beyond belief.”

“You don’t seem to like him very much.”

“Like him?” Bastet echoed. “I love him. And it is precisely because I love him that I do not want him abroad in the world again.”

Confused, Dee shook his head. “I would have thought we needed Mars in the coming battle.”

“His rage is liable to devastate this world and every adjoining Shadowrealm… and then either some humani hero or warrior Elder will be forced to destroy him utterly. At least in the catacombs, I know where he is and I know he is safe.”

Dee tried to make sense of what he was hearing. “How can you claim that you love him and yet want him condemned to that living death?”

Dee felt, rather than heard, the swish of nails as they arced through the air before his face. The leather seat popped and hissed as it was punctured. When she spoke, the Elder’s voice was trembling with emotion. “The humani nations called Mars by many names through the ages. I called him Horus… and he is my baby brother.”

Stunned, Dee sat back in the seat. “But why then did the Witch curse him?” he asked. “You’re suggesting that this curse actually protects him.”

“Because she loved him even more than I did. The Witch of Endor is his wife.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Vetala.