CHAPTER#132

"Silly mice," she muttered, stepping out onto the porch. Placing a hand on the snow, she could sense them now, tunneling toward her. She tilted her head, frowning. There were at least four of them now. Two had set up a chamber toward the front of the yard, and two others were tunneling toward the dial.

With a sly grin on her face, she drew the Two of Pentacles and held it upside down, pushing it into the snow. It burst into ash and a tremor rocked the front yard, caving in the tunnels and the chamber they had created. Clearly the intruders had been warded against such dangers, because they were able to dig themselves free, but they weren't able to escape the icy spears that she summoned from the ground. Blood was splashed across the snow by the time they left, and she went back into the house to lie down on the couch with some tea.

It was nearly four in the morning when the snow in the yard caught on fire.

Throwing herself off the couch, Yuki ran outside to see a pair of large fire elementals standing atop the lions and sending balls of flame in every direction. The air reeked of sulfur and swamp gas, and five figures now stood just outside the yard, peering in. Each one wore the same blindfold, and Amir smiled at her through the flames.

The flames along the top of the snow were being fed by some type of gas that seeped from beneath. The heat from where she stood was nearly unbearable, and it wouldn't be long until the snow in the yard had been reduced to water vapor.

The flames moved closer to the house, and she pulled out her cards. She had already used so many, and the deck was noticeably thinner in her hands. The Minor Arcana each took roughly half a day to make, and the Major Arcana even longer. She needed a way to chase the Society off for more than a couple days at a time, to replenish her deck, but what would that require?

She flicked the Queen and King of Cups out of the deck and tossed them toward the snow. Two humanoids made of water formed before her, their hands outstretched. The ensuing rain was heavy, but without any wind, and the elementals hissed in fury as they were slowly smothered out. The magical flames on top of the ice were slowly extinguished, and a hard crust of ice began to form. Sinking her magic into the ground, she focused the freezing of the water and sent a shower of man-sized icicles at the front gate.

Amir and his team moved away from the opening, and Yuki snapped her fingers, spiraling the icicles apart at the last second. The King and Queen of Cups moved their hands, focusing the rain near the gate, and the icy conglomerate expanded, turning into a thick wall of ice.

Yuki let out a sigh of relief, focusing her energy on the falling rain. It began to snow once more, and she leaned against a porch column for support. Not only was she running out of tarot cards, but she was also exhausting her own magic faster than it could be replaced.

The snowman in the yard had partially melted, its misshapen face sliding apart to reveal the top of the gargoyle's head. With a violent shake, Abella's face burst through the slush, showering the ground with icy chunks. Still pinned in place, her dark gaze fixed on Yuki.

"You've seriously fucked everything up. I hope you're happy with yourself."

Yuki just glared at her, fighting back the anger welling up inside. "I didn't expect this. Nobody could have."

"You said that you were the new Caretaker. Why don't you just go out and twist that dial? Prove to us all who's boss."

"Shut up, Abella. I need to think."

"Yeah well..." Abella tilted her head, her ear toward the sky. "You'd better think fast. I can hear them whispering to each other."

"And?"

"Sounds like they're coming. All of them, from wherever they're at. While you're barely holding them back, their team is getting bigger."

No!

The sinking feeling in her gut was officially replaced with a pit of pure despair. These people had the advantage in numbers and resources, and it was a tough pill to swallow, but she needed more than just a deck of cards and some snow. "What would you have me do?"

"Go get the real Caretaker. It's a simple solution, really. Bring back Mike and he can make this all go away."

"Absolutely not! I've got this..."

Yuki looked across the yard at the ominous glow behind the ice. No, she didn't have this under control. Not at all. If Abella was right, she was going to be fighting an uphill battle from here on out, and she was already growing tired.

It wasn't fair. She stepped out into the yard, her nose wrinkling at the scent of gas still lingering in the air. Carefully picking her way across the ice, she stepped onto the soggy ground past its boundaries, and approached the gargoyle. Abella's features tightened when Yuki grew near.

She needed time to think, and if the glow at the gate was any indication, she didn't have much of it.

"I can't bring him back. I don't know where he is." Yuki pulled the wardrobe key from her pocket and held it out. "And I can't leave either, it would take too long. But maybe... maybe..." She couldn't bring herself to say it, a hot tear burning its way down her cheek.

Abella's features hardened, and she nodded.

"Let me out."

Yuki placed a hand on the ice and then tapped it with her finger. Cracks spread across it, and she took several steps back. The ice shuddered and then fell apart, collecting in a pile around Abella's feet. The gargoyle stretched her wings and then shook her whole body, spraying water everywhere.

"If you can buy me some time, I'll—" Abella's features went wide and she flew toward Yuki, arms outstretched.