The creature got the tiny fireball mid-air. It didn't have a real head, only four little black eyes on its torso. The fireball went in through one of those and came out on the back. The stone body jerked backwards on impact and ceased to nothing before it hit the ground. Elementals didn't die like flesh and blood beings, but when their body took too much damage, the bond that forced them to stay in them and this world broke, and they were free to go home, wherever or whatever that was.

Maxwell was an old-fashioned sorcerer. He preferred conjuring magic and simple but effective attacking spells. For example, now he raised a big amount of drinks, beer, whiskey, coke, vodka, whatever he could find out of their glasses, turned them into deadly icicles and tried to impale Robert with them. They all broke into pieces on Robert’s shield. He made a pushing move and the shield based on Movement rolled over the pub, throwing tables and chairs and glasses. Maxwell stood his ground, using the Rune of Denial to defend himself.

Then he made a spell using the Runes of Mind, Order and Power. Normally Robert would have just deflected it with Mirror, but he couldn't use that Rune anymore. He felt his body changing its position without his consent. He went down on his knees, then he couldn't move anymore, however he tried. Fighting off a mind-spell without using magic to counter it wasn't impossible, but it required ironclad focus and will. Robert did not have those at the moment: anger and fear fogged his brain. Maxwell bested him, and was controlling him, not only his body, but his mind too, so Robert couldn't cast any spells either.

‘Pathetic,’ the butler shook his head. ‘You know, when you were a kid, you were annoying. Whiney. A little hot-headed. But you were never weak. You were the son of your father. But look at you know… Nothing but empty threats and a dandy coat. I am ashamed for you.’

Maxwell closed his hand into a fist and Robert felt like something grabbed his heart and squeezed it. He knew that there were ways to kill someone with magic, spells that were incredibly hard to cast but were undetectable afterwards.

The squeezing pain hardened. Robert would have pant for breath if he could but Maxwell’s mind spell controlled his whole body. He never knew that the old butler was this strong, holding up two complicated spells on someone's living body with ease. In a way, it was remarkable.

A line of fire, moving like a whip cut the air and hit Maxwell’s hand. The butler cried out and stepped back unwillingly. The pressure in Robert’s chest was gone all the sudden, and he fell onto the dirty floor. The flame whip struck again, this time only finding magical shields.

‘I said, leave my brother alone!’ shouted Benjamin. Robert looked up at him. He could barely stand but the flames that were slowly wimpling around him seemed strong and perfectly controlled.

‘How dare you!’ Maxwell pressed his burnt hand to his chest. ‘You ungrateful little prick!’

The butler’s right glove and the Runes on it were ruined. He couldn't cast mind control spells anymore. Robert used a chair to climb onto his feet. He was sweating and panting and there was this dim memento of the pain pulsing in his chest with every heartbeat, but he was alive and that was very, very bad for Maxwell.

‘You have half of your Runes now. Still more than what I have. You want me to be strong?’ Robert’s whole right hand lit up with dancing blue and white flames that somehow didn't burn his hand or the bandages on it. The left ordered a couple of knives from the open kitchen to fly to his side, pointing at Maxwell. ‘We can finish this, here and now, old man. We can see if you were right about me.’

The butler looked at him, then Benjamin, who was still holding his fire-whip, then back to Robert again.

‘I raised you, you thankless disgraceful failures!’ he said, backing towards the door. ‘I was a father for you two, instead of your real one, who already knew back then that you two aren't worth his time! I wish I was as wise as he was about you… None of you deserves the Montgomery name!’

‘That's okay, none of us wants it anyway,’ shrugged Robert. The flames around his hand danced for the rhythm of his words. ‘Now get the hell out of here while we let you.’

Maxwell gave them one last, long and disappointed look, then out he went. Robert waited a few seconds, then collapsed onto the chair beside him. The blue fire died out and the knives fell on the floor with loud metallic clanking. Benjamin leaned to the wall and slowly slid down until he was sitting on the floor.

‘You good?’ he asked.

Robert nodded.

‘You?’

‘Fucking not’ That motherfucker tried to kill you! Just give me a minute and I will kick his ass…’

‘We will get him next time, Benjamin,’ said Robert. ‘Now let's get you home. I will call someone to look at you.’

‘No, there is no need for that, I'm all right,’ said Benjamin, but he was already drifting away. Robert couldn't even imagine how much strength he must have needed to scare Maxwell away with that whip in this condition.

He got up and raised Benjamin from the floor. His brother didn't seem to understand what was happening, but walked mostly by himself and in the direction Robert wanted. They stopped at the bar so Robert could leave a couple of banknotes for the bartender, who was still hiding behind the counter. Everyone else left long ago, around the time when Maxwell conjured his elemental.

The moment they were out, Benjamin doubled up and vomited. He was retching for like a minute, then straightened up, walked three steps and threw up again. It took them ten minutes to reach Robert’s car. By the time, Benjamin was shaking and all sweaty, talking with his eyes closed.

'See I just told her what I told her because I really like her but I don't think she likes me that way you know? He likes older guys like you and that agent, Blaise or whatever his name was… Why is there so bloody cold here? he said, as if he continued a conversation they started earlier.

'Because it's the middle of the night and also the end of November,' Robert answered. Looked like whatever Benjamin took kicked in now. He was high as a kite, with no filter whatsoever.

Robert opened the door and helped Benjamin get in. He even fastened the seat belt for him.

'Yeah, okay. I forgot it was November. Let me just do some fire…'

'No!' said Robert, grabbing Benjamin's wrist. 'No fire. Hang on a little bit, you will be in your warm bed soon,' he got out his phone and typed three texts: one for Jenna so she won't be worried where he was, one for Marcus, asking for his help and one for Rose, just to let her know that Benjamin was okay, more or less.

'That's good,' nodded Benjamin, and he leaned his head to the headrest. 'So she was all like "I can't have a real boyfriend, I'm broken goods, who would ever want to be with me anyway?" and I told her that I wanted but she said that I don't know what I was talking about...'

Robert went around, opened the other door and got in. Wasn't hard to figure out who Benjamin talked about. Seemed like there was more to that story than an innocent crush. Ever since they caught The Priest, Rose resembled more and more her old, optimistic self, and Robert never questioned that. Benjamin was right about him: he was a bad friend and a bad brother. He was happy, he got Jenna and something new and interesting to learn, and it never even occurred to him that other people could have problems. He started the engine, shaking his head. The great Robert Montgomery, right… Nothing but an egomaniac selfish jerk.

'See I don't care if she can't have kids,' continued Benjamin. 'Honestly, I hope you two will have kids one day, I mean, you and Jenna, but me? I'm not gonna be a good father. And the world really doesn't need another spoiled Montgomery, right?' he laughed weakly. 'Not like we are Montgomerys, bro, the butler disin… dis… what's the word?'

'Disinherit,' Robert said while backing out of the parking space.

'That. The bloody butler disinherited us, bro. Hey, does that mean we don't have to go home for Christmas?'

'I certainly hope so,' answered Robert. 'Would have been very awkward to introduce Jenna to our father…'

Benjamin laughed again.

'She would have kicked his arse,' he said. 'She is a badass. Funny to think about it, how I hated her before, but now it's like, I think you are really lucky to have her, you know? Not just because she is hot, but you know… You were a stuck-up prick…'

'Thank you for that,' nodded Robert.

'No, wait… You were one, you know? But since you two got together, you started to be like, I dunno, less stuck up and only a little bit of a prick… So what I'm saying is that she made you like, a better person, or whatever, you know? And that's what I want to myself, too, but you see, Rose just doesn't want to be that girl…'

Robert didn't know what to say. He mastered almost everything there was to master about magic, he knew a lot about art, he spoke languages, he had a good grab on politics and other sciences, but people and feelings? Those just weren't his thing. Fortunately, Benjamin didn't want any answer. He just fell asleep, and he didn't do much besides snoring until Robert parked his car in front of Benjamin's building.

Two people were waiting for them: Marcus and Rose. Robert got out and looked at Rose with his eyebrow raised.

'Couldn't sleep,' the girl shrugged.

'You do realise that if he wasn't physically injured, there is not much I can do for him, right?' asked Marcus, helping him to get Benjamin out of the car. 'You should have called Teodore.'

'He is working,' answered Robert. Before Teodore had left that evening, he got a call from the hospital. They needed him because they were short on staff.

The two of them carried-dragged Benjamin to the building and Rose opened the door. Benjamin's loft was always a little untidy, but now it looked as if it was robbed by a particularly messy burglar. Clothes were on the floor, not only in front of the dressers but everywhere. Used plates and glasses were on every surface, books, wands, empty bottles and a hundred other things were on the floor. The kitchen looked like if a small bomb exploded in it and the air was heavy with the smell of unwashed plates and spilt alcohol. Rose took out her wand, pointed it to the windows and cold, fresh air filled the flat.

They put Benjamin into his bed, then Rose and Robert stepped away, leaving enough space for Marcus to work.

Robert, because he felt restless, started to wash the things towered in the kitchen sink.

'He lives alone, why does he have so many plates?

'Knowing him it's possible that when he ran out of clean ones, he bought some new instead of washing them,' answered Rose. She stood beside Robert, wiped and put away everything the man cleaned.

'Sounds about right,' Robert nodded. 'Listen, I know it's not my place to say anything, but…'

'Then don't,' cut in Rose with a sharp look.

'I just… I think he really likes you. And he doesn't mind that you… That your…'

'I know he doesn't,' answered Rose. 'I do. Look… If he only wanted what you and I had, sex and nothing else, that would be different. A girl needs her fun, you know. But he has feelings and maybe I have feelings too, and look at us. He is a wreck and I am… Well, honestly, I'm not much better. You cannot build a relationship on this.'

Robert nodded because once again, there was nothing he could have said.

'Marcus talked to The Priest,' the girl continued all of the sudden. 'He convinced MAGE to offer better circumstances to the fucker if he heals me… But he said there is no way.'

'Just because he doesn't know how to do it, it doesn't mean…'

'I know,' nodded Rose with a sad smile. 'But it was a long shot anyway, right?'

Marcus joined them, saving Robert from having to answer.

'As far as I can tell he hadn't OD'd,' he said. 'But it's just a matter of time if he continues like this. This was the third time I was dragged out of bed to look at him this week, you know that? You have to put him into rehab, as soon as possible.'

Robert shook his head.

'It wouldn't work,' he said. 'Last time he simply walked away. He needs something he wants to stay clean for, I think. Some kind of motivation. His own life isn't enough, apparently.'

Rose sighed. Robert saw that she pressed her palm against her stomach.

'I will talk to him,' she said. 'In fact, you guys can go home, I will stay.'

'Are you sure?' asked Robert.

'Maybe I need the motivation to get better, too,' she said with a sad little smile.

Robert nodded.

'Well, I clearly missed something meaningful there,' said Marcus. 'But I'm hungry so what do you say, mate, shall we go and grab a bite before something overly dramatic happens again?'