“Maybe.” Neron stepped forward and nodded at the Wiseman, although his next words were only for his companions. “But I feel very strongly that there is someone who wishes us to not see at all.” With that parting remark, he made his way toward the temple.
They exchanged a glance. “That’s good to know,” the werewolf said.
She sighed as they set off after the necromancer. “Only if we can find out who that someone is and what we’re not supposed to see.”
The healing temple of Ichacál revealed no surprises that night, though. The Wisemen brought baskets of food—thick, doughy rolls and crocks of butter, baked fish, vegetables cooked and spiced, rice, and a thick brown sauce that smelled like chocolate. The villagers politely declined the fish but Romeo attacked it like he hadn’t eaten since they set out for Guatemala. There was no music, little conversation, and fewer words that could capture how grateful these people were to be there.
“We have more than enough space for all of you.” The Wiseman who spoke gestured toward the travelers seated on the floor and in one of the large anterooms beyond the entrance. “When you are ready to lay your heads down, we will show you.”
No one stood immediately and everyone apparently still needed a little more time to let the reality of their circumstances fully settle. Soon, however, couples and families stood slowly from the white stone floors, thanked the Wisemen for the food and for shelter within the stone walls that offered so much more protection than even the wooden huts of their abandoned homes.
One of the men in blue robes stopped beside Romeo and Lily when they stood from their empty plates as well. “Would you also like a room for yourselves?” His thick, draping sleeves came together in front of his waist, completely hiding his hands within them.
“Oh. No, thank you.” She smiled and shook her head. “We brought our own place to stay.” The man frowned in confusion, and she added, “We drove here in our RV.”
“Through the jungle?”
How does he know that? “I’m sorry?”
“You arrived with these people, did you not?” The Wiseman gestured toward the villagers who wandered out of the anteroom to be shown their beds for at least tonight.
“Yeah. We thought we’d take the scenic route, you know.” Romeo shrugged. “It turns out that was through the jungle with our new friends. It makes the trip more authentic-feeling, you know?”
The man blinked and bowed his head. “I understand. We do not see many tourists, though. The temple does not provide the type of excitement most tourists seek. This is a peaceful place of healing.”
“We know.” She glanced at him and smiled. Way to take the lead on spinning the lie, Romeo. “The trip is a little more personal for us. My aunt came here years ago. She had cancer.” Her friend tried to keep the range of reactions to that one from seeping out into any expression whatsoever. “The cancer went into remission three weeks after she came home, and she’s been cancer-free for at least five years now. The woman swears it was Ichacál and the healing in this place that cured her.”
A thin smile graced the Wiseman’s lips. “Yes. We hear these stories from time to time, although we cannot take credit for every miracle within these walls. Have you come to us seeking healing?”
She swallowed. “Kind of. It’s a…difficult story.”
“Of course. Perhaps tomorrow, once you have rested, you may feel comfortable enough to speak of these things aloud. We always try to make ourselves available for those in need of advice.” The man glanced at the werewolf. “Or even merely a willing ear. I hope you will choose to find us when you are ready.”
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“We’re glad to be here,” Romeo added.
“Good. I trust you can find your way to your RV.”
“Yeah. Thanks.”
“Then I’ll take my leave for the night.” The Wiseman bowed a little from the waist and closed his eyes briefly. He straightened and turned away from them, his smooth, graceful steps taking him toward some of the villagers who straggled down the hallways of white stone.
“Nice work with the cover story,” Romeo muttered. “Why’d you go with cancer?”
“It was the first thing that popped into my head.” She offered him an empathetic smile. “Sorry.”
The corners of his mouth turned down as he shrugged. “Don’t be.”
As they turned in the main hall to make their way out to the courtyard, Neron emerged from the anteroom with the last of his people. A Wiseman brought up the rear to usher their guests out for the night. The death witch met Lily’s gaze and raised his eyebrows briefly. His slight nod of acknowledgment, reminding them to be careful, was barely visible. They both nodded in response. While she wanted to turn and see which hallway the Wiseman would lead him down, she didn’t want to risk the chance of it looking like she didn’t want him to be separated from them. Because that, at least, was the truth.
The sun had set completely when they stepped out of the temple and into the courtyard. The brilliant splash of stars they’d grown used to over the last week had faded now with all the white-glowing stones. Most of the jungle canopy around Ichacál blocked them out anyway. The night was silent, much cooler but still insulated within so many trees.
Romeo took a deep breath and stared at the canopy. “I can totally see why people come here to find peace.”
“It’s definitely beautiful.” Lily opened the Winnie’s side door and he held it for her as she climbed up the steps. “And the Wisemen seem to genuinely care about what happens to people when they get here.”
The side door closed with a soft snap as he let it fall against his hand. “And you still don’t completely trust it, do you?”
“No.” She shrugged. “It’s only… I have what Neron told us in my head, plus my mom’s last note. She said the places that seem the safest are sometimes the most dangerous, and a necromancer can’t even see that danger beyond a gut feeling. I can’t simply let it go. And my mom left that creepy head for me, so now we made it and I have to find out what’s going on.”
“They kinda keep getting harder, huh?” He stepped toward her and pulled her into a warm embrace.
She pressed her cheek against his chest and hugged him in return. “Yep. Maybe we should actually talk to one of these Wisemen tomorrow. Bring them the stone head and ask what they’re for. That might give us something.”
“Yeah, sure. You should probably come up with that difficult story first to explain why we’re here for healing.”
She snorted into his shirt. “I’ll think of something.”
Twenty-Seven
Light, repetitive tapping on the Winnie’s side door dragged Lily from sleep and she rolled in bed. When it stopped, she thought maybe she’d been dreaming it but it started again with even more urgency, and she sat quickly, tossed the covers aside, and stood in almost the same motion.
She summoned a ball of fierce orange flames in her hand, just in case, and stepped slowly down the first stair to unlock and open the side door. “Neron?”
The man’s eyes flickered wildly in the light of her spell, but even when she extinguished the flames, the earnestness in his face remained. “I am glad to see you lock your doors, Lily, but it makes it difficult to get your attention.”
“What time is it?” She squinted at him and pushed the door fully open.
“The darkest hours of the night. Please, may I come inside?”
“Oh. Sure.”
He nodded briskly, held the door open for himself, and brushed hastily past her in the narrow space of the two steps.
“What’s going on?” She licked her lips, her brain still trying to fully surface from sleep.
“One very important thing first.” He spun in the living area and searched the darkness in which she could barely see. “Where is it?”
“Where’s what?”
“The totem. The symbol of good fortune.” He wiped his hand along the back of the couch and peered over the driver’s seat.
“Sorry. I’m still…” Lily shook her head. “What totem?”
The death witch stopped and stared at her. “The stone head. You said it came from Ichacál. Where did you put it?”
“Oh, it’s in the bedroom—” She didn’t even get to fully extend her arm and point before Neron hurried across the Winnie and down the short hall to the back. “Hey, I can get it. Romeo’s still sleeping.”
That clearly didn’t matter, so she tried to give the werewolf at least a little warning by flipping on the hallway light. In the sudden illumination, she noticed the black bag clutched in the man’s hand. Weird. Wake up, Lily. Romeo groaned and rolled toward her side of the bed, where the necromancer now kneeled on the mattress and stretched toward the wooden box on the shelf.
“Uh, Romeo?” she called.
“Why’d you turn the—shit!” He jerked in the bed, snatched a pillow with both hands, and held it out in front of him like a shield. “What are you—Neron?”
“I apologize for waking you both. One moment, please.” The death witch stepped off the bed and held the box out to her. “Please take this and open it.”
“Okay…” She took the heavy box, undid the golden latch, and pulled the lid open. He shoved his hand in the black bag, grasped the stone head, and turned the cloth inside-out to envelop the artifact with the thick material. With a deft gesture, he twisted the bag shut at the top and nodded as he raced past Lily and out the Winnie’s side door again. She barely managed to keep up with him and poked her head through the door in time to see the black bag and the stone inside it hurtled into the darkness. It disappeared down the steep mountainside, and she never heard it land.
Well, now I’m awake. “So…uh, I was kinda planning on using that—”
“And now you will not.” Neron stepped into the RV without being invited this time and began to pace in the area that was really too small for his level of intensity. “That thing has been watching you. Both of you. All of us.” He shook his head and didn’t look up when Romeo appeared in the hallway. “It does not represent good fortune but bad tidings.”
“Okay, can you slow down a minute?” She sat in the spinning armchair and he finally stopped pacing.
“I did not see the answers when I asked for them last night.” His eyes were wide when he looked at her. “Sometimes, they do this. They come to me days or weeks later instead, when I am sleeping or awake. Earlier, the answers woke me.” He spun and looked at Romeo too. “This place is not what it seems at all. Something dark is buried here. I want—I hope—you will both come with me to find it before it spreads.”
The werewolf stepped quickly out of the hallway, and Lily stood again. “Are you sure?” The forceful determination in the man’s eyes when he returned his gaze to her almost made her stagger backward.
“As certain as I am that my magic requires death first.”
“That’s good enough for me.” Romeo slipped quickly into the bedroom to pull a shirt over his head and jam his feet into his sneakers. He returned and clapped a hand on Neron’s shoulder. “Let’s go check it out.” He looked at Lily and she nodded.
“Yeah. Of course we’ll come with you.” She snatched a zip-up hoodie off the back of the kitchen booth table and slipped her flats on. Quietly, they exited the RV and headed swiftly across the courtyard toward the temple.
“So what exactly did you see?” Romeo whispered.
Ahead of them, Neron shook his head. “The clearest was only dark wings and something hidden in the walls. I cannot…I cannot find the words. But I will know it when I see it.”
“Okay…” Lily took a deep breath. “And we’re trying not to wake anyone up while we’re looking through the place, right?”
The necromancer stopped, turned, and fixed her with a warning stare. “I believe this is best, yes.” He swung away again and approached the temple’s entrance. The couple exchanged another glance, but neither of them spoke before they stepped cautiously across the threshold and moved as quietly as they could across the white stone floors.
Neron reached the end of the main hallway, which branched both to the left and the right. He beckoned them with an urgently wave of his hand and turned left. They picked up the pace, which posed something of a challenge. It was difficult not to make a sound within stone walls where even a loud breath echoed.
The hallway they were in was also lined with the glowing white stones, although these were smaller and rested in sconces along the white walls. Their guide led them down a series of passageways, one of which was a long hallway without a northern wall. It didn’t echo quite so much in there, but the twisting, grasping tree branches of the jungle canopy stretching out as far as she could see made her feel like something was about to snatch her by the ankle.
At the end of this open-air hall, the death witch stopped again and pointed to two white clay pots on either side of the entryway into another passage. It was almost impossible to see the flowers’ coloring in the darkness, but even if she hadn’t caught a dull tone of purple in the low light, she recognized the shape of the wolfsbane blossoms. She pointed at them and looked at her friend. “So they either keep poisonous flowers on hand merely for fun,” she whispered, “or they’re harboring werewolves here too.” He raised his eyebrows and shrugged.
“I think harboring is perhaps not the right word,” Neron whispered and ducked his head low as if that would keep his words from traveling farther. “I do not know if anyone is truly harbored here. Come.”
“Well, that’s very reassuring,” Romeo muttered, but he plucked a few of the purple flowers. He popped two into his mouth and shoved the others in his back pocket as they followed the other man down another left turn and a new hallway.
After the next turn within what was clearly Ichacál the labyrinth, there were no more glowing stones within sconces on the walls. Lily gave her eyesight a few seconds to adjust but when her vision didn’t improve, she summoned a smaller sphere of light and raised it toward the stone ceiling. Neron spun quickly toward her, realized what she’d done, and nodded his thanks. She nodded in silence.
They moved far more slowly now because the death witch paused to examine the wall on their right every few feet. “Did you come through here before you came to get us?” she whispered.
He shook his head and pointed at his temple while he bent his knees and brushed his fingers down the wall to search and probe the stone. “The dreams stay until I no longer need them.”
“You dreamed about how to get here through the temple?” Romeo asked.
“Yes. So far, it is all exactly the same. Come.” He waved them forward again, and they followed at a much quicker pace down the incredibly long hallway. Abruptly, he stopped and forced himself not to shout. “Lily. The light.”
She moved the floating orb of white light from the ceiling to the wall beside the necromancer and grimaced as the shadows stretched and changed shapes around them.
Neron’s eyes flickered from one stone to the next and his palm hovered over each one until he froze. “This is it. I do not know what it means, but I was told to find it.” He stepped aside and gestured for his companions to look.
Lily stepped cautiously toward the wall and lowered the light slowly toward where he still pointed. “What are we looking at? I’m not sure I—” She drew in a sharp breath. “Oh, my God.”
“What is it?” Romeo leaned forward to peer at the wall but he couldn’t see a thing.
“Do you see this?” She brought her finger toward the single stone but didn’t dare to touch it yet because she still tried to process what she saw.
“Uh…yeah. Looks like symbols.”
“My mom’s symbols.”
The death witch leaned forward between them. “You can read their meaning?”
She gave him a hasty sideways glance before she returned her attention to an extremely well-hidden message without any use of magic whatsoever. “Oh, yeah. I was taught by the same woman who created their meaning in the first place.”
Neron drew in a hissing breath through his teeth. “What does it say?”
Lily squinted. “‘Press farther only if you’re ready for the truth.’”
They all paused for a moment before the necromancer straightened. “So we continue and find the truth. Come.” He gestured down the hallway and strode forward.
“Wait.” The man paused at her command and glanced at her over his shoulder. Romeo gestured for him to return to where they stood and his nod was convincing enough that he did as he was told. Lily fixed them both with a calm, determined expression. “If my mom was here, she might’ve left these. Even if she didn’t, anyone who knows her symbols—anyone who would actually use them here—has to think the same way she does. She wouldn’t share this with simply anybody.”
“How is this helpful?” Neron sniffed in irritation but that was his only tell.
“Because I think this was meant literally.” Finally, she let her fingertip touch the white stone carved with her mom’s secret language. After a moment, she added the weight of her entire hand and with a muffled crunch, the stone slid into the wall like a giant button. A series of metallic clicks sounded behind the wall, and the trio stood upright and stepped away a scant second before the fierce roar of stone sliding over stone filled the hallway. A narrow panel of stone wall dropped a few inches and slowly sank lower and lower into the ground. When it stopped level with the floor, a loud boom echoed down both sides of the hallway.
“Press farther,” Romeo muttered.
Neron nodded and stared at the gaping black hole in the wall. “Quite literally.”
With a flick of her wrist, Lily lifted the small orb of glowing light away from the wall and sent it through the darkness ahead. A narrow, winding staircase descended before them, and when the orb’s light disappeared and left everything in darkness again, she drew it back up so it would light their way.
“You said something dark was buried here,” she whispered.
The death witch looked at her. “Very, very deep, I think.”
Any Witch Way (The Witch Next Door Book 3) Page 19
