by Abra Ebner
I swallowed. “But how do we do it?”
He scrolled down the page. “There are few animals that can withstand the poison, such as this one…” He pointed to the screen which displayed a new image. “The Amazon ground snake. Wes will have to use the poison from the frog, but also the immunities from the snake, which he’ll pass to Emily. Wes will have added immunities to the poison because he also technically supplied it, though it will have some residual side effects on him in a human state afterward,” his voice trailed.
“Like what?” Wes snapped.
Max laughed. “Nothing you’ll hate. The secretions of the dart frog have some benefits to man in variable degrees. Their poison can actually be used as a very powerful pain reliever, two hundred times stronger than morphine. You’ll feel the effects of that.”
“You mean, I’ll be high?” Wes looked shocked, but there was a hint of delight there as well.
“Pretty much.” Max nodded. “I know the whole thing sounds complicated, but getting the demon out of her will help her body to naturally build immunity against it.”
I snorted. “You mean the devil in her is like the flu?”
Wes laughed.
Max rolled his eyes. “If that makes it easier to understand, then yes.”
I sighed. “Well, how soon can we do this? My mother is finally realizing that Emily hasn’t been around much, or rather at all, so it’d be great to get her back rather soon. I keep lying, but I don’t know how much longer that’s going to work.”
Max stood from the chair and walked over to me. He sat beside me and took my hand. I heard Wes groan and look away.
“We’ll do this today, Beautiful. Can you handle missing school?”
I heard Wes grumble again. “Of course she can. It’s her sister, not some stupid doctor appointment. Besides, it’s Friday. Who in their right mind would pass up an extended weekend?” He said it under his voice, but we heard it anyway.
I nodded, ignoring him.
Max traced my hand with his fingers. They were soft despite how long he’d been living. I eyed Wes, now angry that he was here. I wanted to be alone with Max. I saw Max smile; he had heard me. I smiled back, meaning for him to hear me. Wes was pacing. I gave Max a look, asking with my thoughts if Wes could also hear what I was thinking. He shook his head. I smiled, thinking of our kiss in the woods. My chest warmed.
Wes:
I felt her heart—I felt that it had no feelings of warmth toward me, just him. Max calls her beautiful? Why hadn’t I thought of that? This was torture. I could handle knowing it was happening from a distance, but being in the same room was impossible. Did he not respect the fact that I’d loved her—still loved her maybe? It was sick. He was a bazillion years old!
I thought about what he’d told me—the fact that he’d saved her. I pursed my lips together, further angry because that meant I owed it to him in some way. The truth was that if it weren’t for him, Jane wouldn’t even be here. I hated having to team up with him, I hated being friendly. But who said I had to?
I turned, seeing they were now grinning at each other, their hands performing acts I know they’d rather do with their bodies.
“Can we get this over with?” I couldn’t stand it anymore, but my words didn’t seem to affect them. I grumbled, thinking there was only one thing I could do. I thought hard, and just as I’d hoped, Max’s attention was pulled from Jane and he frowned at me. My lip lifted in a half smile.
Take that, lover boy, I teased mentally.
My thoughts were filled with the memories from this summer—filled with images of that night when Jane and I had shared something special. I hung the image on the walls of my mind like a favorite picture, knowing it would keep Max focused on more important things.
Max continued to glare, dropping Jane’s hand and taking the hint. He didn’t seem smug, but I felt it inside him—somewhere deep. I clenched and released my fists, over and over, trying to hold the animal in me at bay. Max stood, pointing back to the frog on the computer screen.
“Can you manage that?”
I snorted, rolling my eyes. “Can I manage that?” I let one laugh pass my lips. “Piece of cake.”
Before the words could even make it to their ears, I’d shrunk to the floor, now a tiny frog. Max’s clothes sat in a pile around me like a nest. I sat in the neck hole of the shirt. I looked down at my bright blue hands, figuring I’d liked blue better than yellow and black.
Jane gasped. I felt smug. I bet her little angel couldn’t do that.
Max knelt beside me, taking something from his pocket. “This might hurt a little,” he warned.
I could take it. Who did he think I was? He lowered a large stick toward me, which had I been bigger, was no more than a toothpick. He scraped it across my skin and I winced. It did hurt, but I hid it, glancing at Jane for affirmation. Her face was all shock and awe.
“Okay, thanks.” Max stood. He placed the toothpick in a small clear container, fastening the lid.
“So, where does the snake come in? I still don’t understand its purpose.” Jane asked.
Max walked back over to the computer, his fingers grazing over the keys in a blur, pulling up a new image. “Now, Wes, change into this. It’s just for practice so you’ll know how to do it in the future.”
I hated being compliant to his wishes, but it was for Emily’s sake. I had a hard time seeing the screen from my position on the floor, but I was able to see the snake’s head, and from there the rest was rather self explanatory.
I changed quickly, finding the absence of arms was less annoying than I’d expected. My torso felt powerful, and I sat up as tall as I could. Max backed away from me, a wary look in his eye. Jane hadn’t noticed it, but to me it was unmistakable. He hadn’t made a look like that the whole time I’d known him.
Max cleared his throat. “Uh… perfect, Wes. You got it now.”
I narrowed my eyes, wondering what his apprehension meant. Was he afraid of snakes? I laughed mentally.
Max lifted his chin in the air, his frame puffing. He glared at me, enough to show that he was acting tough.
I laughed again, this time hissing slightly. I saw Max’s features tighten. I relaxed, lowering back to the ground. As amusing as it was to see him squirm, it was time for me to get back to being human. Mostly because I could see that Jane was beginning to notice the clash between Max and I, and I didn’t want her to get annoyed and blame me.
I looked at them both, and Max understood what I was thinking.
“Turn your back, Jane,” he stated as he too turned away from me.
Like it mattered if Jane saw me naked, I thought. She has before.
I saw Max shift his weight uncomfortably, still bothered by the images I’d tortured him with. I quickly changed back, grabbing the jeans and shirt off the floor. I pulled on the jeans, fighting with the button.
“Okay, you can all look now,” I announced.
I hadn’t put my shirt back on, but that was how I’d meant it to play out. I wanted one more chance to irritate Max, and then I swore to stop. Jane turned back, looking at me with a noticeable hint of awe. I held the shirt in my hands, twisting it as though I was struggling to put it on, though that was hardly the point. Max’s face was less than impressed.
Beat that, Max.
There was a scratch across my arm where Max had taken the poison. The mark was about twelve inches long and bleeding lightly. I used Max’s shirt to blot the bleeding. Jane was still staring. I winked at her, causing her to crinkle her nose and look away from me. I laughed to myself, feeling her heart beat just a little bit faster.
“Thanks,” Max added with sarcasm, referring to the spots of blood on his shirt. “You can keep that.”
I finally pulled the shirt on, displaying the blood stains as though it were a trophy.
“So, now what?” Jane continued to press forward.
Max shook the toothpick in the bottle. “We need to stab her with this.”
“Stab her?” J
ane gasped. “With a toothpick?” Her eyes narrowed in disbelief.
I tilted my head. “Yeah, sure. I’ve been stabbed by a toothpick before, why not?”
Max gave me a strange look, probably wondering how in the world I’d been stabbed by a toothpick. The memory came back to me, an embarrassing one. Max laughed under his breath. I was dumb for bringing it up.
“Actually, Wes. That was a joke.” There was a flash of challenge and delight in Max’s eyes. He’d gotten me back.
I pressed my lips together, embarrassed.
Max let his amusement fade. “Now that you know how to be the snake, when it comes time, you’ll need to turn into the snake, ingest the poison, and bite Emily. This will do two things: give her immunity to the frog poison from the snake, and also help her to retain the antidote from the frog. It’ll knock her out pretty good, but in a few days she should wake up.”
“A few days?” Jane huffed. “I don’t have a few days to lie to my mother! You don’t understand what she’s like!”
Max looked a little stumped, but that quickly washed away. “I guess I can help you with that. I’ll just charm her.”
Jane’s expression was wary. “Like Greg did to Emily?” she challenged.
Max smiled. “Sort of. She’ll be fine, though. Nothing invasive, just a little imagery block. It won’t harm her.” He walked up to Jane, his hands trailing down her arms, her face melting.
I shook my head, aggravated.
“I promise, Beautiful. She’ll be fine.” His voice was smooth, even seductive. I hated the fact that I’d noticed. I shivered with disgust.
“So, how do we find her?” Jane’s eyes never broke from Max’s.
“She’s going to be with Greg.” Max shoved his hands in his pockets.
“Well, gee. Thanks, Captain Obvious,” I mumbled, a little bitter about the mental war Max and I had having turned against me.
Jane finally stood from her bed. “Where will that be? At your house?”
Max looked perplexed. “Yes, but not the house you know, Jane—a different house.”
Max:
Jane looked further confused. “A different house?”
Just thinking about the house caused chills to run down my spine, if that was even possible. “Yes, the house where Greg killed my whole family, or tried to. It’s not far.”
Wes was looking at me with interest now, and I felt a little less guilty. I knew I’d taken his whole life away from him, or at least that was what he thought of when he looked at Jane and me. He hadn’t heard my whole story yet, but I could tell he’d suddenly found something we could have in common. His parents had left him, and mine were murdered. We were both orphaned.
“Sorry, Max. I didn’t mean to bring that up.” Jane had her head bowed. “I just figured the house no longer existed, considering the fire and all.”
I exhaled, thinking that we didn’t need to dwell on the facts of my sad past. We needed to get to Emily, before she became a sad past.
“Let’s just go,” Wes said it for me, changing the subject.
I looked at him, but he was already on his way out the window. His surprising show of pity was a new development. Perhaps our similar past had been the ticket all along. Perhaps I should have confided in him sooner.
Jane:
We all piled into Max’s Defender. Wes took the back without hesitation, scanning the tan interior with lust. I was a little surprised by his interest at first, figuring his type was more muscular, definitely not the safari feel of the Land Rover Defender. The sun was just coming up over the hill, and the frost was still clinging to the once dewy grass. He started the car, and I was thankful for the fact that it was quiet.
“Buckle up, Wes.” Max looked in the rearview mirror. I heard Wes groan, but then I also heard the click of the belt.
I liked driving this early in the morning because everything seemed new and fresh—just maybe not today. We drove out of town in the opposite direction of Denver, and the opposite direction of the house I thought was his only home. The mountains closed in on us, and the trees were edging the road. We drove for about two miles before I heard Max turn on the blinker and we exited the main road. We continued down this new road for quite a ways, and I wondered what his idea of close really was—this felt like the longest ride of my life.
Max leaned close to me. “You should try riding it in a carriage. It takes almost two hours to get into town,” he whispered, acknowledging my thoughts.
I smirked, actually finding the fact that he could read my mind refreshing, though it would be nice to learn a way to control what he could and couldn’t hear with the ring. A girl’s got to have a few secrets.
Max chuckled lightly. “I promise to give you a better understanding of that ring when we’re finished here.
I smiled, reaching for his hand. He grasped it. The chill of his fingers was soothing, the feeling entering my body and filling my mouth with the taste of sugar.
I looked back at the road ahead of us. I’d wanted to talk about the plan in a little more detail, but it felt awkward talking with both Wes and Max in the car. Though I knew Max understood what I was thinking at times, this thought didn’t matter. I just hoped he didn’t know too much about Wes and me, but I also knew that if he were indeed my angel, it was likely he had been there for every scandalous moment. I cringed.
The car slowed, and I turned my attention back to the front. I didn’t see what he was slowing for, so I looked to him for some sort of sign.
“Wait, I think I’ve been here,” Wes announced rather suddenly, sitting up straight.
The car came to a sudden stop, pressing me against the seatbelt.
“What?” Max looked at him in the mirror with a hint of horror in his voice.
I was confused. “Been where? I don’t see anything.” It was true, there was nothing but woods.
Wes leaned forward in his seat. “Emily took me here, not long ago. I know where this is. I remember this road and I’ve seen the house you’re taking us to.” His hands gripped the edge of the two front seats.
I looked at Max, watching him as he watched Wes.
“You have,” he reassured, likely scanning Wes’s thoughts. “That’s strange, how did Emily…” Max sat back in his seat, looking forward. “Greg must have gotten to her sooner than I’d thought, possibly even years ago.”
“Years ago?” I gaped.
Max nodded. “No one is ever supposed to find this place. It’s been protected by magick. The only way she knew it was here is if someone had told her, or at the very least, gotten in her head enough to draw her to it.” Max looked perplexed. “Why?” he spat, trying to find reason.
Wes and I both stared at him, waiting for answers.
Max exhaled. “This could be harder than we think. If he’s had his claws in her that long, we may have to do this a few times, but at least we’ll be able to get her away from here.” Max’s eyes were blank.
“A few times?” I felt my heart begin to pound.
Max looked me in the eyes. “Maybe, maybe not. Let’s hope for the best, though. Okay?”
I relied on Max to be strong, but even he’d faltered. He took his foot off the brake. We rolled forward another hundred yards, and it was then that I finally saw the outline of an old gravel road.
Max turned down it, the forest grown up around us on all sides. We drove on for another hundred yards before something began to peek through the trees, and this time it was me that remembered.
“Wait, Max. You’re not going to believe this, but… I’ve been here too!” I squeaked. “But—it was in my dream, just last night. Just as you thought, Emily came to me. I found her in there.” I pointed toward the upper portion of the house. “She was crying, and no matter what I did, I couldn’t get her to stop. But then, just before I woke, she turned to me and asked me for help.”
I recognized the yard I’d seen through the window. This was the exact house. It had to be. I stared at the fallen in roof, the whole place built fro
m stone and singed with fire on one half. It was huge, nothing like any house I’d seen before.
“How old is this house?” I asked.
Max looked at it as though he hadn’t seen it in a very long time. “It’s been in the family since they moved here. My parents were wealthy aristocrats and the founders of the town in 1886. Within their social circle, they were very powerful.”
“Is Greg in there?” Wes was fixated on one thing, uninterested in history when there was saving to be done.
Max drew in a slow breath. “No, he’s not. At least not right now. He must be out training her.”
“Training her?” I couldn’t understand. I didn’t want to understand.
Max shook his head. “There’s a process to this. He wants to make her like him and that takes a lot of… training.”
“What kind of training are you referring to?” I snapped.
“She needs to kill and grow a lust for blood. More than likely, they are hunting beings like Wes or you—beings that are resisting the Black Angels. The final step is her death by the hand of an enemy so that she can be an angel. You’re sister is technically still alive, but I know Greg well enough to assume that he wants to make her as strong as possible. If someone kills her, and she becomes an angel, then her psychic abilities will only grow stronger. She will be an unstoppable force. We have to hope we can get to her before she decides to die.”
“So, to be an angel, do you have to be murdered? I mean, you were, and Greg, well, he sort of murdered himself, I suppose.” I tried to find clarity and reason.
“I guess in a way. What really makes you an angel, though, is the fact that you’re not ready to die and move on. Being murdered typically supports that. When you choose not to cross over, you are then left behind.”
“Like a ghost,” Wes added from the back seat.
I gave Wes a strange look.
