“You could’ve told me I had to shut this portal.”
“That was no priority then,” he simply answers.
“But it is now?”
He tilts his head. “Well, it takes a lot of time to open this portal. It must lead to an important place.”
An impatient sigh escapes me. “So, we don’t have to close it now?”
Taylar lifts his hand to touch the hole. “Nothing can come through yet, right? But how long until it can?” His hand moves closer to the blackness. “This doesn’t feel good to me. If we wait too―”
He lets out a startled cry as he’s pulled closer to the hole. His arm slides inside up to his elbow.
Without hesitation, he swings the weapon in his other hand forward, ready to cut whatever is holding him on the other side of the hole.
“Don’t!” Quinn hollers, and Taylar’s arm freezes midair.
For a moment, Qaddisin just stands there, watching the young ghost struggle.
Without thinking, I dive forward, my Morningstar already halfway out of my pocket. “Hold on!”
Quinn stops me before I can reach Taylar. “Don’t, you’ll just get sucked in too.”
“Well, what are we supposed to do then? We can’t just abandon him!”
Taylar’s translucent face has turned red. His mouth is a thin line, and he grunts with the effort to resist the pull from the other side.
“I can’t hold on for much longer,” he pants. “It’s so strong and… hot.”
His face contorts with pain, and I turn to Quinn. “Tell us what to do!”
After another look at the black hole, he nods. “Use your powers. Aim it all at the blackness and try to picture it hitting whatever is on the other side.”
“Okay, you watch the porthole.” I put down the candle and beckon Maël.
She, Charlie, Vicky, D’Maeo and me form a line, and I count back from three.
On one, we all release our powers. Taylar’s struggles slow down as Maël influences time. Lightning and balls of gel hit the dark wall and create waves. For a moment, we all concentrate silently on our target.
“The pull is weakening,” D’Maeo says after about a minute. “Keep going.”
But there’s no more time. I can see Taylar’s energy draining, even in slow motion. Almost his entire arm is stuck now, and his legs wobble. Whatever is on the other side is winning this battle, and I can’t let them.
There’s only one thing I can think of that might work. It’s dangerous, and it could go horribly wrong, but I have to try it.
Without warning, I jump over to Taylar. I gather all my courage, conjure a lightning bolt in each hand and slam them through the blackness.
There’s a loud shriek, and Taylar tumbles backwards onto the ground.
I pull my arms out of the hole and shake the heat and creepy feeling off. Then I kneel next to the white-haired ghost. “Are you okay?”
He just nods, speechless.
I look at his arm, which is almost invisible and has a red glow. “Are you sure?”
The others are just as worried as I am. Our concern is almost tangible.
Quinn joins me and Taylar on the cold ground.
“Sit still,” he orders.
He moves his hands over Taylar’s arm without touching it. The color slowly drains back into it, and Taylar’s shocked expression softens. Quinn’s hands move over the rest of Taylar’s body while the moaning emanating from the black hole fades.
Finally, Quinn straightens up and holds out his hand to pull Taylar to his feet. “You’re fine. Nothing came with you.”
While I release the breath I’ve been holding, he turns to me. “I’ll have to check you too. That was a bold move. A bit stupid, but it worked out okay, I guess.”
I shrug. “Well, I noticed the other tactic wasn’t working. Or at least not fast enough. So I took a chance.”
Taylar rubs his arm, which is a normal shade of see-through again, and glances nervously at the blackness behind me. “Thank you, Dante, I think you just saved me from a horrible fate.”
Quinn gives me a quick angel scan and after his approval, we all climb back through the porthole.
The locks close with a satisfying click, and we all relax again.
Charlie joins me as I stare through the glass at the pulsing black and the lighter part in the middle. “We should find a way to keep it closed, you know,” he says, opening a bag of peanuts and shaking half of its content into his mouth. He chews and swallows it in only a couple of seconds. “If this happens when it’s closed, imagine what might happen when it’s open.”
I tear my gaze from his peculiar eating habits and sigh. “I agree, but we don’t know how to close it. We tried a spell. We tried our powers. I have no idea what else we could do.”
Maël paces the hidden room. “Your father might have had a way. This porthole is here for a reason, after all. Maybe he wrote about it in his notebook.”
“Good thinking, Maël.” I smile at her. “Let’s go downstairs for a break, and I’ll see what I can find.”
CHAPTER 7
It doesn’t take me long to find the passage about the hidden room. When I open the notebook, the pages flip themselves. All I have to do is read aloud what Dad wrote down.
“I have tried everything to close this portal. So far, nothing worked. I’m not sure where it leads, but it can’t be good. I’ve never seen a portal as strong as this one. Thankfully, the demons don’t seem to be in a hurry to open it. They only come once a month, and the difference in blackness is barely noticeable. So far, the Bell of Izme seems to do its job. It was made by the iele, a fairy kind with the skills to create powerful objects to ward off evil. The bell was made of salt, silver, iron and love. It is said that evil kneels before it when rung. I’m not sure about that, but it closes the black hole. It doesn’t break up the portal, but at least I have a way to keep it closed now. As long as I’m here to guard it, nothing will come through.”
Charlie interrupts his chewing when I stop reading. “So, where is this bell?”
“I don’t know. That’s all he wrote about it.”
Vicky points at the notebook. “No, it isn’t.”
The pages are flipping themselves again, and I wait patiently until they stop.
“You’re right,” I say with a smile. “Here’s more about it.
“I should’ve known people would find out I have the Bell of Izme. Now they’ve come looking for it. It’s a good thing I didn’t tell the Shield about it. They tortured Jeep, but he couldn’t tell them anything. I took away his memory; he’s got enough to deal with already, but they might come back to search the mansion. I have to find a better place to hide it.”
There are two drawings of the bell below the text. It looks like some sort of dinner bell with entwined branches around the lip and the phases of the moon carved into the body. Tiny stars fill the empty spaces between them.
I show the pictures to the others and ask them if they remember anything about this.
All heads turn to Jeep, but he just shrugs. “Sorry.”
Mom lifts her hand. “The book is moving again.”
I turn it back to me and read along.
“My plan worked. The house was overrun while we were out for an exorcism. Everything is a mess. They found the porthole, but not the Bell. My double protection spell worked. Just to be sure, I wiped the memory of my Shield again. I hate to do it, but I cannot take any more risks.”
Vicky taps the side of her head. “So that’s why we couldn’t remember the hidden room.”
Taylar turns his blue eyes on me. “Are you going to do the same to us?”
“Maybe he already did,” Jeep grumbles.
I slam the notebook shut and look them in the eye, one by one. “You must be kidding, right? I know my father meant well, but he was wrong to do this. The bell will be better protected if you all know where it is. Together we are stronger than alone.”
&
nbsp; When I meet Mom’s eyes, she throws me a kiss and mouths, ‘I’m so proud of you’.
The tension that has been building up while I was reading disperses.
D’Maeo is plucking his beard again. “Does anyone know what John meant by a double protection spell?”
There’s a short silence.
Charlie stands up and rummages in the cupboards. “Anyone else need some thinking fuel?”
When everyone declines, he takes the whole stack of cookies and crisps back to his chair.
Maël brushes some non-existent dust from her cape. “I sensed there was something in the hidden room when we first stepped in. That feeling didn’t subside when you revealed the porthole with that spell. Maybe that means you have to repeat the spell.”
Vicky sits up straight. “That could work.”
“We should try it right away before that hole opens further.” I push my chair back and walk to the stairs.
But when I reach the first step, there’s a loud moan from the kitchen.
Within a second I’m standing next to Vicky’s chair. “Are you okay? Is it the curse?”
Her hands are pressed against the sides of her head, which moves frantically from left to right. She tries to answer, but all that comes out is a choked grumble.
“Breathe, Vick, you’ve got this,” I say gently, squatting down next to her and stroking the back of her neck. “Push it back. You’re strong.”
“We should lock her up,” Charlie says. “Use some kind of spell to keep her from tearing the place down or attacking us, like she did before.”
I’m about to agree when Vicky drops her arms and squints at us. “No.” Her breathing is loud and wheezy. “No, I’ve got it.”
Jeep rests his hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay if you don’t. We understand.”
She clenches her teeth and curls her fingers into claws. “One minute.”
I keep stroking her and talking to her while she fights it, my whole body cold with fear and heartbreak. “I love you, Vick. I’m so proud of you.”
Finally her fingers relax and she breathes out slowly.
I pull her to me and shower her with kisses. “You did it, babe. You fought it.”
She doesn’t share my elation. “For now. But sometimes it’s a lot stronger. Next time might be different.”
I wipe the sweat from her forehead. “We’ll manage.”
With a small nod she pushes herself up. “Okay, I’m ready to go upstairs.”
More chairs scrape the floor, and I hear Mom ask in a concerned tone, “Are those monsters gone?”
“Yes, they left,” Charlie answers.
“Then I’m coming with you.”
I smile at Mom’s determination to suppress her fears. Of course she wants answers as much as I did, and still do, but that doesn’t mean all this magical stuff isn’t scary. It would freak out most moms I know.
When I arrive upstairs, supporting Vicky, who keeps telling me she’s fine, the Shield is already waiting for me in the hidden room.
Vicky points at the circle of herbs. “It’s still intact, so all you have to do is repeat the words.”
“Wait for us, we want to see!” Mona pants, coming up the stairs behind Charlie and Mom.
“Oh dear.” She puts her hands on her upper legs to catch her breath. “I’ve been using my sparkles too much to move around lately. I’m totally out of shape.”
Mom sticks out her arm. “You can lean on me.”
Mona is upright in a split second. “Don’t be silly, I’m here to protect you, not the other way around.”
“You’re the silly one,” Mom retorts, “I’m your friend, and friends help each other.”
Jeep nudges me. “I see where you get your wisdom from.”
I frown. “My father was wise, too. It’s not his fault he got cursed and turned evil.”
“Well…” He pushes his hat up a bit and looks me in the eye. “We still don’t know for sure if he turned evil because of the curse.”
My hand shoots to my waistband and pulls out Dad’s notebook. “Considering what he left me, I’m pretty sure he was good.”
Jeep gives me a sad smile. “I really hope you’re right, Dante.”
“I am.”
Before my emotions get the better of me, I turn away from him and put the notebook back.
I straighten out the piece of paper with the spell on it and look at my friends. “Is everyone ready?”
CHAPTER 8
Charlie has taken position in front of the porthole. He scans the tunnel behind it and sticks up his thumb. “All clear here.”
After I light the candles in the corners of the hidden room again, I read the spell.
“Shadows high and shadows low,
show me what I do not know.
Bring in sight what’s hidden here.
Let the unseen reappear.”
Please be here, please be here, I repeat over and over in my head as the shadows whirl around the room. The walls get lighter, and my head shoots up when a beam of sunlight pours through the window.
“The ivy is moving,” Mom whispers behind me.
More and more light flows into the room. The shadows it creates stretch and dissolve, and all the light focuses on something in the middle of the floor.
“That’s not a bell,” Taylar comments from the doorway.
I walk up to the wooden object. It’s as big as a three-year-old child, has the shape of a fat bowling pin, and it’s beautifully painted. On the top part, there’s a woman’s face with a headscarf around it. Below that, two rows of eyes are painted. There’s a red cross through every iris. It’s as if the doll is wearing creepy dotted pants.
“It’s a Russian doll,” Mom says. “A matryoshka. Look inside it.”
When I step closer, a fine line becomes visible between the rows of eyes. Carefully, I lift the top half and look inside. Sure enough, there’s another smaller doll there.
I want to put the top half on the floor, but suddenly a yellow line, like a laser beam, rises from inside the doll.
In a reflex, I want to drop the top half, but I can’t move.
“What’s happening?” Mom asks. She moves forward. “Help him!”
Maël blocks her way with her staff. “Wait.”
“What if it hurts him?” Mom is on the verge of freaking out.
I must admit, I don’t feel too comfortable myself as the yellow beam moves up and around me.
It hovers around my head for a moment before exploding into a hundred bright sparkles.
Then I can move again.
I smile at Mom. “I’m fine. I think it was just some sort of protection.”
I reach into the doll and pull out the smaller one. My fingers slide over the eyes with the crossed-out irises. “These eyes can’t see.”
Vicky steps closer and bends over the doll. “It must be another way to make the bell invisible.”
With a soft crack, I take the top half off. “If the bell is indeed inside this doll.”
Another yellow beam appears, immobilizing me. This one makes a wider arc around the doll. It sweeps half the room and the look on Vicky’s face tells me that she can’t move anymore either.
She lets out a relieved sigh when it goes up in sparkles. “I guess I passed the test.”
There’s another doll inside this one and when I open it, the beam scans the whole room. When I reach inside, I find something different. My heart pounds as I pull it out and hold it up into the sunlight creeping past the ivy. “The Bell of Izme.”
Dad’s drawing of it was pretty accurate, but he couldn’t catch the magic that emanates from it.
The bell looks like the vintage brass one we had at our elementary school. The handle, as well as the bell itself, looks like it’s made of sparkling white marble. I have to squint when I look at it so it doesn’t blind me.
The decorations on it are amazingly detailed. They look like real life
branches and moons, only very small. When I turn it, I notice the inside of the bell is silver, just like the clapper.
I don’t want to ring it by accident, so I clasp my free hand around the clapper before I turn to Charlie. “Can we go test it?”
He’s already opening the locks of the porthole. “Yes, there’s no sign of demons.”
We gather in front of the black hole again. Only a soft scratching can be heard from behind it. The blackness is still, as if it can feel something dangerous approaching.
I raise the bell to eye level. “So how does this work? Is there a spell to activate it, or do I just ring it?”
Everyone shrugs.
“Just try it,” Vicky says.
“Okay.” I feel a bit stupid when I lift my arm and shake the bell. “I don’t hear anything.” I shake it harder and tilt it left and right. Still no sound. With the bell held above me, I inspect the inside. “The clapper hits the sides, but it makes no sound. We should take another look in Dad’s notebook to see if he left instructions.”
I’m already turning back to the porthole when Jeep stops me. “Wait, I think it worked.” He points at the gray spot that the wolf demons created. “It got darker. Try it again.”
I turn back and shake the bell with my eyes glued to the gray spot. “You’re right. It’s changing.”
We’re all focused on the black hole until Vicky gasps. “Look at your hand!”
I follow her gaze, and my mouth falls open.
My hand is moving so fast that it’s no more than a blur. I try to stop it, but it’s as if my arm and hand are no longer mine. The Bell of Izme has taken control. It moves my arm from left to right, then down and in a straight line to somewhere above my head.
“It’s gone mad,” I say, trying to grab it with my other arm.
“No,” Vicky says, “leave it alone. It’s forming a shape.”
We watch the bell pull my arm back to the left, then right, down in a diagonal line and back above my head. Then it zooms back down to my right knee and diagonally to the left.
The Fourth Soul: (Cards of Death book 4) Page 4
