Bomanz squealed in agony as all the pains of an old body hit his consciousness. Damn! His ulcer was tearing his gut apart!

He seized his son's throat as he turned, silencing him before he finished the cantrip.

Stancil was younger, stronger. He rose. And Glory threw herself at Bomanz. Bomanz darted backward. "Don't anybody move," he snapped.

Stancil rubbed his throat and croaked something.

"You don't think I would? Try me. I don't care who you are. You're not going to free that thing out there."

"How did you know?" Stancil croaked.

"You've been acting strange. You have strange friends. I hoped I was wrong, but I don't take chances. You should have remembered that."

Stancil drew a knife. His eyes hardened. "I'm sorry, Pop. Some things are more important than people."

Bomanz's temples throbbed. "Behave yourself. I don't have time for this. I have to stop Tokar."

Glory drew a knife of her own. She sidled a step closer.

"You're trying my patience, son."

The girl jumped. Bomanz uttered a word of power. She plunged headlong into the table slid to the floor, almost inhumanly limp. In seconds she was limper still. She mewled like an injured kitten.

Stancil dropped to one knee. "I'm sorry, Glory. I'm sorry."

Bomanz ignored his own emotional agony. He salvaged the quicksilver spilled from the bowl that had been atop the table, mouthed words which transformed its surface into a mirror of events afar.

Tokar was two thirds of the way to the Barrowland.

"You killed her," Stancil said. "You killed her."

"I warned you, this is a cruel business." And: "You made a bet and lost. Sit your butt in the corner and behave."

"You killed her."

Remorse smashed in even before his son forced him to act. He tried to soften the impact, but the melting of bones was all or nothing.

Stancil fell across his lover.

His father fell to his knees beside him. "Why did you make me do it? You fools. You bloody damned fools! You were using me. You didn't have sense enough to make sure of me, and you want to deal with something like the Lady? I don't know. I don't know. What am I going to tell Jasmine? How can I explain?" He looked around wildly, an animal tormented. "Kill myself. That's all I can do. Save her the pain of learning what her son was… Can't. Got to stop Tokar."

There was fighting in the street outside. Bomanz ignored it. He scrabbled after quicksilver.

Tokar was at the edge of the moat, staring into the Barrowland. Bomanz saw the fear and uncertainty in him.

Tokar found his courage. He gripped the amulet and crossed the line.

Bomanz began building a killing sending.

His glance crossed the doorway, spied a frightened Snoopy watching from the dark landing. "Oh, child. Child, get out of here."

"I'm scared. They're killing each other outside."

We're killing each other in here, too, he thought. Please go away. "Go find Jasmine."