by K. C. RILEY
Another face peered from out of the darkness. Jake. Thank God he was safe.
“You boys left something on the side of the road.” Kai maneuvered his hands in the air.
Before Mason and Boyd could answer, they were snapped and held together by ropes of water. The more they struggled, the more the watery bands tightened.
Kai continued. “And I certainly couldn’t leave my favorite niece’s best friend at the Ball all by herself. Why that would just be rude.”
Niece? What was Kai talking about? Cassie tried to speak. And with another wave of Kai’s hand, the water band at her neck tightened.
“What are you?” I asked.
Kai placed one hand on his hip and the other with a loose wrist at his chest. “What am I? Now that’s no way to talk to your Auntie Norah.” He then circled me while touching at my hair like I was some kind of play doll. “Look at you, all grown up. And pretty like your momma. I was pretty once, that is before your grandfather destroyed me.” Kai stopped for a second and sniffed in the air. “You’ve been in the book. I can smell it. Your grandfather erased me from that too, you know. Now, let’s see. There was me, your mother, Jonas, and of course the eldest, Vye. Is she still bossy? She always did love telling us what to do, like she was our momma. She never could mind her own business, either.”
I couldn’t speak. There was no way I was related to whatever was inside of Kai. And Vye, my aunt?
“Oh, she didn’t tell you?” Kai continued circling me.
“You’re lying.” My thoughts flashed to the first day I met Vye in the café. The day she dropped the tray of dishes when she looked at me like she had seen a ghost rising from the dead. And I never could explain why Vye felt like...family.
My mind then jumped to the photo in Mrs. Ellington’s cellar, the photo of Serene, Jonas, and a girl named Norah. I was going to be sick. Norah was the witch Mrs. Ellington brought back from the dead. There was one big but to all of it. If Norah was Mom’s sister, why didn’t the Blood Book show me? Then again, it did. I was so stupid. The day Jonas came to find Serene and Hannah playing in the fields, he said, Father says it’s time to come home now. And Norah’s been looking for you. The truth had been staring me in the face the entire time.
“I did cordially try to introduce myself.” Kai leaned and whispered into my ear. “Don’t you remember?” He sighed as his voice grew impatient. “The shadow across the road the night your mother saved you? The shadow in the bathroom at Zander’s party? The one that nearly drowned you in an empty tub? Why, that was all me, sweet girl.”
Bile slivered up into the back of my throat burning it. “It was you that jumped me in the alley at Vye’s. And how could you kill my mother? Your own sister?”
“I am sorry. That truck was never meant for you. Clearly, killing your mom was the only way to have you all to myself. Now granted, jumping you in the alley might have been a bit overboard. But the darkness inside of you smelled so delicious. I just couldn’t help but take one, good, deep, whiff.” Kai’s face started to morph. He shook his head back and forth like he was fighting himself. His voice changed. “Liz, I’m sorry. I tried, but she’s too strong.”
“Kai? What have you done to him?”
Kai’s stressed face distorted again. He was gone and Norah was back. “That’ll be enough of that.” He placed his hand at his chin. “Now, where was I? Yes, I was only trying to get your attention. That is until your boyfriend refused to mind his own business despite our agreement.”
“Agreement?” I looked over at Jake, who never said a word. He just stood there with his eyes cut into the ground.
“Jake? What is she talking about? What agreement?”
He never answered me.
“Yes, Jake. Tell her,” Kai said. “Tell her what this is all about.”
Jake finally lifted his eyes. “I tried to warn you. I told you that first day to leave, that you didn’t belong here. I told you to stay away from that map and to stay away from the amulet. Why couldn’t you just listen?”
My heart snapped in two at what I was hearing. This wasn’t right. He wouldn’t do this. Everything Jake had showed me, shared with me. It was all a lie? “Jake. Tell me you’re not in on this.”
He said nothing.
I was an idiot, one dumb idiot. All I could think was he played me the entire time.
I wanted him to feel how much he had hurt me. How much he had betrayed me. I tried to call up my so-called witch powers. But nothing came.
“Will someone please tell me what the hell is going on?” Mason interrupted.
“Agreed,” Kai said. “Enough chit chat.” Kai waved his hands in the air. “Let’s get down to business.”
A force took over my limbs and made me walk toward Kai against my will. I tried to stop but couldn’t. I tried to speak and couldn’t do that either. I felt violated and wanted to scream as my eyes watered at how pathetic and weak I was.
“It’s called Blood Conjuring,” Kai said. “Blood is, after all, 92% water.”
Jake growled and was instantly between Kai and myself. “If you hurt her.”
“Down, boy.” With another wave of Kai’s hand, a large watery sphere floated in the air and settled in his palm. Inside it was a glass dome with a human heart still pumping, still beating.
Jake’s face went from pissed, to pale, to defeated. Things were finally beginning to make sense, Josie’s story about Jake’s sister.
“You killed Riley,” I said to Kai.
“I wouldn’t say killed, she’s not exactly dead, not yet, and not as long as your boyfriend here behaves and does exactly what I say.”
“What do you want?”
“What I’ve always wanted,” Kai said. “Everything. But for now, we’ll start with the amulet. It’s the only way I can get my real body back. Now we can all do this the hard way or the easy way. What’s it going to be?”
Everyone around me was either trapped or held hostage against their will. In some ways, even Jake. I and that stupid amulet were at the root of all of it. “Fine, but you have to swear to let everyone go. Unharmed.”
“Of course, darling. You bring me the amulet, and I swear everyone goes free. Now, all you have to do is go and place your hand in the water.” Kai motioned for me to scoot. “Go on.”
I did as Kai asked. There was something eerie about the feel of the water against my skin. As I stood back up, a small boat sailed to the shore. It came from the direction of the blue fire.
“Here’s how this is going to work. The boat will take you and your bestie to the tower of fire. Jake will go along for the ride. The only thing you have to do is retrieve the amulet and hand it over to your boyfriend. And let’s be clear. I know and see everything through water. You betray me, and your bestie here dies.” Kai then turned toward Jake. “And if you betray me, you can kiss your sister bye-bye forever. In the meantime, I’ll keep an eye on Frick and Frack here in case none of you make it back alive.”
“Cassie’s dress,” I said. “She can’t go like that.”
Kai eyed Cassie up and down. “You’re right.”
With another flick of the wrist, a blade of water sliced through the shimmering baby blue fabric of Cassie’s dress and shortened it to the knee without dicing her flesh. She grunted and was either pissed, or scared, or both. She loved that dress. I wanted to say it would be all right, but that would have been a lie. The truth was that I had no idea how any of us would ever be okay.
20
Jake, Cassie, and I sailed toward the swirling tower of fire. An awkward silence settled over the boat. Cassie’s feet were full of scrapes and cuts from walking through the forest. I despised myself for getting her involved and couldn’t look her in the eye. Mostly due to the matter of her father. She was holding on to the best part of her dad. How could I take that away from her by telling her the truth? Her father had shot me, and Jake might have killed him in return. It was strange how they ended up sitting next to each other.
I couldn’t look i
n Jake’s direction, either. I got the sense the feeling was mutual. Falling for an angel vampire was the biggest mistake of my life. I took off my sneakers and slipped them on Cassie’s feet. She groaned in an attempt to speak.
As the boat rocked, my nerves wrecked at the thought of tipping over and drowning. I was about to break out into a cold sweat when something buzzed at my hand, a dragonfly. Mom. I could sense her energy. A neon blue and violet light coursed through its delicate wings and then seeped from its body into my skin. Every happy moment we ever shared burst to life inside my mind. And there were a lot of them. I realized what she had been trying to say all along. I wasn’t alone. I never would be. As long as I had those memories, she would always be with me. My eyes welled up before she flew away from my hand. With deep breaths, I slowed my breathing.
“I’m sorry,” Jake said, his voice broken. “I never wanted to hurt you. You have to believe that. I...” Jake rolled his eyes and sighed. “Damnit, it’s complicated.”
“Which part? Betraying me or lying about being some kind of fallen angel vampire?”
Cassie’s eyes widened. So did Jake’s.
What else was there to say? Sure, he was trying to save his sister. But he also had fangs and a special blood diet he conveniently forgot to mention. Jake and I were one big lie.
“The vampire thing. I...I...didn’t want to scare you...away.”
I tried to hide the hurt in my voice. “What matters now is getting the amulet.”
The wind picked up against the rocking boat, and I grabbed the sides. We were almost there. I thought about poor Kai, how Norah was using his body, and how he had tried to warn me. More thoughts and questions pricked at my mind.
If Norah knew about the flaming tower, why didn’t she get the amulet herself? She had to have a weakness.
The boat came to a full stop close to the blue flames.
My grandfather spoke. “Put your hand in the fire.”
Easy for him to say. Hesitating, I stretched my hand into the fire. I could feel Jake and Cassie looking at me cross-eyed. For them, all they were probably seeing was me reaching out into nothing.
The blue flames were cool to the touch. Not sure what would happen next, I pulled my hand out. The whirlwind of fire that climbed up to the sky vanished. And in its place, a ruby amulet trimmed in silver glistened and hovered over the dark water. My chest tightened as it floated to me. A wave of energy pulsed from the amulet when it landed in my hands. I never felt anything like it. Pure power.
Woozy, I placed the stone around my neck and held on to the sides of the boat as we rocked back and forth. We were already heading back to shore, back to Norah.
The water collar at Cassie’s neck crashed down to her shoulders. She leaned over and coughed as the current settled. “Was that you?” she said, massaging the lower part of her neck. “And before you answer, let’s be clear. I am done with magic. Nothing personal.” She then plunged into Jake. “And you...” She tried to find the words but only ended up grunting and rolling her eyes.
“I know I messed up, but neither of you understand,” Jake said.
Cassie folded her arms and eyeballed him hard. “Try me.”
“A long time ago, I abandoned Riley when she really needed me. It cost her. It cost us both. I promised her I would never do that again. If I don’t return Lizzy with the amulet, Riley is dead.”
I had no idea what to do. I was mad at Jake. Pissed. But I got it. I would do anything to have my mom back, to have a family again.
Cassie’s voice softened a bit. “Don’t get me wrong. I liked Riley. But lying to everyone? The manipulation? All this? It’s a shitty thing to do.”
Jake looked me smack dead in the eye. “I didn’t lie about everything.”
How could I believe him? There was no time to think about anything when Norah called out from the shore.
“Liizzzyyyyyy. I seeeeee youuuu. Clever girl. That trick with the amulet won’t save you or your friends. Jake, take the stone, or Riley is dead. For good this time.”
I didn’t know what the hell to do. No one did. Jake could have taken the stone when I got it. Why didn’t he? I thought back to the night of my mom’s accident. If there was a chance to have saved her from Norah, I would have taken it. What was he waiting for?
I removed the stone from around my neck and handed it to Jake, and not because I was in love with him. Enough people died. “Here. I won’t be responsible for another death.”
“Lizzy, no,” Cassie said. “You can’t trust him.”
Jake looked at me with guilt in his eyes, and then at the amulet that dangled from my hand. He took it and my heart broke again. But then he said something weird. “I won’t do it.” And placed the amulet back around my neck.
Norah hollered like a banshee, a shriek that would have severed my spine had I not been distracted by the sweet sound of a lullaby coming from the lake.
Come with, come with, me to a land,
Where we are safe from wicked men.
Come with, come with, where fairies roam,
Give me your hand
Give me your hand
The words caressed my mind and body into another place and time. Under its spell, I peered out into the lake. Illuminated across the dark waters was Casper, the little ghost boy that had been haunting me. He wore suspenders with black pants and a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His feet were bare upon the water, and his entire body was adorned in a beautiful white light.
I found myself falling under his spell. Or maybe it was some kind of hypnosis. I couldn’t say. But as I sang the words, I lost touch with all sense of reality. He stretched his small chubby fingers out toward me.
Give me your hand
Give me your hand
“Lizzy, no,” voices cried out.
I turned to Jake and Cassie. Their mouths were moving, but I had no idea what they were saying. I stood with one foot in the boat and the other ready to climb overboard. They got up to stop me. At the wave of Casper’s arm, Jake and Cassie were pushed back down into their seats.
I stepped out onto the water. I should have been afraid of drowning. I should have been terrified, but I wasn’t. For the first time in my life, the water felt like the most natural thing in the world. I was a part of it, and it was a part of me. We were one. I walked on water toward the little boy and stretched my hand out until I could finally reach his fingers.
Blinded by a bright light, I was thrown back into my mom’s village, the one from the Blood Book.
Ezra was teaching us words. Special words. “If bad people ever try to hurt you, the two of you must sing this song. But you have to do it together for the spell to work. Do you understand?”
The boy held tightly to a stuffed rabbit identical to the one he had been haunting me with. We both looked at each other and shook our little heads, we couldn’t have been more than five.
“You must promise to never leave one another’s side. Jedidiah, you mind your sister. Elizabeth, you mind your brother. The two of you are more important than you’ll ever know.”
The ghost kid was my brother.
In another flash of light, Jedidiah and I were picking daisies close by the shore. A woman with dark hair and fair features came and knelt down beside us. She was pretty.
“These are beautiful, darling,” she said to me. She then turned to Jedidiah. “Why don’t you show Auntie Norah what you’ve picked?”
So it was true. Norah was my aunt.
“Lizzy,” Norah whispered in my ear. “I’ve got a sweet surprise for you over there behind that tree. And don’t worry, I’ve got one for Jedidiah too. The only thing is that I hid his surprise somewhere here by the water. I bet if you can find yours first, it’ll be an even bigger surprise. Maybe even better than ice cream.”
My little eyes widened with delight. It had to be candy. Peppermint sticks. That was our favorite. And we were close to Norah. We trusted her.
“I don’t know if you’ll beat him, Jedi
diah’s pretty good. But we’ll see.” Norah then pulled Jedidiah close to her and whispered something into his ear. When she was done, she said, “All right. One, two, and three.”
Jedidiah and I ran off in different directions. I ran toward the woods, he ran closer to the water, both of us searching for Norah’s surprise and promise. I ran around that stupid tree at least five times as I pulled up the rocks and leaves that were settled around it. I stuck my little hands into any hole in the trunk I could find. My determination to not give up was broken by the feeling of something wrong. Something missing.
I couldn’t feel Jedidiah. At five years old, I hadn’t realized we had a connection until it was gone. Norah had done something awful.
“Lizzy?” Norah called out. “Where are you?” Her voice was different. “Come here right now.” It no longer dripped with honey.
I stood frozen in terror. Confused by all the voices that swarmed in my head, I couldn’t breathe. There were voices that told me to hide. Some told me to go to her. While others told me to run and find my mom. Find anybody.
Jedidiah called out from the lake. It was a relief to know that I had made all that nonsense up about Aunt Norah in my head. I ran after him. But it wasn’t Jedidiah calling me.
Norah stood on the shore, impersonating Jedidiah’s voice through a dark ball of water that swirled in her hand. It was too late for me to do anything. With the snap of her wrist, water stretched up from the lake and wrapped itself around my feet, dragging me down to its depths. I screamed as loud as I could and dug my little fingers into the wet gravel to save myself. It was no use. At the bottom of the lake, the water released its grip from around my feet. I struggled to swim back to the surface. Norah clenched her hands around my throat and held me under until I could no longer breathe.
All my life, I had been afraid of water. Afraid of drowning. Now, I knew why.
Norah put her lips to mine. It felt like razor blades slicing up the inside of my throat as she inhaled the life force from my stomach.
