by Deanna Chase
“Yeah?”
“We need to talk.” She motioned for me to follow her into Kat’s living room.
I sat beside her on the couch and waited.
“I’m worried about him,” she said, keeping her gaze on the kitchen.
“His soul?” I guessed. “The black magic?”
She piled her honey-blond hair onto the top of her head and nodded. “That shouldn’t have happened. Not when Bea had already neutralized his magic. It means the curse is spreading. If we don’t find a cure soon, he’s going to be in real danger.”
My emotions were so raw I had no choice but to slam the doors on the turmoil raging through me. I closed my eyes and shut down until everything was numb. I couldn’t help anyone if I couldn’t focus. “What can we do?”
“We have to find out who put the curse on him. It’s the only way to reverse it.”
My mind whirled. Kat was missing. Lucien was getting worse. Matisse was still stuck in the void. Kane was off with demon hunters doing God knew what, and the weight of the world was on my shoulders. I wanted more than anything to lean on him, to hear him tell me we’d get through this. Instead, I had an angel laying more responsibility at my feet. “How are we supposed to do that?”
She stared at her hands. “I don’t know. Maybe do a reading on Lucien. A memory spell. You did one with me before.”
“I don’t know how that would help. He remembers walking into the spell. He just doesn’t know who cast it. Your situation was a lot different. You had blacked out.”
She sat back and crossed her arms over her chest. “I don’t know. I’m just trying to help. What happened to him today…it was scary. He could have died. He could have joined ranks with that demon and suffered a fate worse than death.”
“Demon?” I gasped, and a ball of fear burst through my protective walls. “That being was a demon?”
Her brow furrowed. “What did you think he was?”
“I don’t know. A black magic user?” I’d seen demons in Hell before, but they’d been a lot more animated. And their energy was different. This guy had been more like a shadow.
She must have clued in to what I was thinking because she said, “It’s because the veil to Hell is closed. He needs black magic to sustain him. No doubt that’s why he showed up when Lucien tapped his curse.”
I slumped back. “Holy jeez. Could this day get any worse?”
“Don’t say that,” she said sharply. “Things can always get worse.”
Chapter 19
Famous last words. It can always get worse.
Lucien and Bea emerged from the kitchen, both of them with grim expressions. Lucien bypassed the table and sat in a chenille chair across from me. He hunched forward and closed his eyes. A muscle in his right arm pulsed as he squeezed the armrest.
Bea took a seat at the table and motioned for us to join her. “Jade, you conduct the spell, since you know her best.”
Tears prickled my eyes again, but I forced them back. There was no time to grieve. And I refused to believe there was reason to. We would find her. That bastard Mitch would pay. I sat at the end of the table, and Lailah took the chair across from Bea. The three of us clasped hands as I focused on the herb-filled bowl. “Ignite,” I whispered.
The herbs went up in flames, and I cleared my mind of everything except Kat. The fire turned green as the smoke twisted and turned, morphing into a woman’s shape. Kat. Her face came into focus. We’d found her.
A gut-deep ache filled my core and my breath caught in my throat. Her eyes were squeezed shut, pain lining her face. The image started to fade. I couldn’t see her through my turmoil.
Focus, Jade!
Her image instantly came into sharp view.
Bea squeezed my hand. “Follow her trail.”
I wasn’t exactly sure what she meant by that, but spells were mostly about intention. So I concentrated and said, “Show me where you are.”
Lailah and Bea repeated my mantra.
The green fire brightened and the image vanished. Lailah let out a frustrated gasp. But I ignored her and let the spell wind through my mind. Kat’s essence was there. I could feel her with me. The flames twisted one more time and when the scene came back into view, Kat was lying on a floor. A hardwood floor. There was nothing else in the room. Just Kat, the wood floor, and an old brick fireplace.
“Show me more.” My voice was trance-like, and I barely heard Bea and Lailah repeat my words.
The scene shifted, zoomed out, and a house came into view, a New Orleans-style camelback. No lights lit the old house. No cars were parked in the driveway. No one was around. “More,” I said with force.
“There,” Lailah said.
The house number came into view and then the New Orleans fairgrounds. I let the magic go, and the fire died, leaving the bowl full of ash. I turned in my chair and caught Lucien’s eye. “We’ve got her.”
Without hesitation, he stood and moved toward the door.
Bea rose and placed her hands on the table. “Lucien. You can’t go with us.”
Green fire blazed from his gaze. “I’m well aware. Since I’m useless to help the one person I’d give my life for, I’m going to track down Paxton. I’ll call Lailah if I find anything.”
I got up and met him at the door. He gazed down at me, pain consuming him. I sighed and hugged him tight. The connection settled me a tiny bit. Hell, I probably needed this just as much as or more than he did. After a few beats, he returned my embrace and let out a strangled breath.
He pulled back abruptly. “I have to go.”
“Thanks for checking on Vaughn. We’ll call you as soon as we know anything.”
With one last nod, he disappeared out the front door.
“Ready?” Bea asked.
“Let’s go kick some black magic ass,” Lailah said.
My resolve hardened, and I knew without a doubt that given half a chance, Mitch was going to wish he’d never met me. No one threatened my friends and got away with it.
***
The camelback house appeared just as deserted in person as it had in the vision. The three of us stood on the sidewalk, assessing our best plan of action.
“I vote we kick the door in and go in magic blazing,” I said.
“Jade.” Lailah shook her head. “Someone could be armed. And not just with magic.”
“I don’t sense anyone besides Kat,” I said stubbornly. Never mind that I hadn’t been able to feel Mitch’s emotions earlier.
“We’ll try something a little less risky,” Bea said. “Lailah, you knock on the door while Jade and I head to the back. Try to get yourself inside. And don’t be afraid to compel anyone. Remember, a life is at stake.”
Lailah’s mouth dropped open in surprise.
Bea sent her a cold, determined stare.
The angel closed her mouth and gave Bea one solemn nod.
“Compel?” I whispered.
Bea shrugged. “It’s not something I condone. Compulsion is a gateway to dark magic. But we have no idea what we’re getting ourselves into. I would’ve called the rest of the coven in, but given we’re in the middle of Mardi Gras, rounding everyone up to form a stronger magical circle would have taken too long. We’re just going to have to work with what we have.”
That was fine with me. I wasn’t excited about crossing a line, but I’d do it. For Kat.
The back entrance was protected with a security door. But for two witches, that wasn’t an issue. I wrapped my hand around the doorknob and just like it had at Kat’s house, the lock shifted and the door opened. With that handy tool, I could be a cat burglar.
The house was dark, almost pitch black. The windows were covered in heavy blackout-shade material. If I hadn’t known better, I’d think this was some sort of vampire lair. Only everyone knew vampires didn’t exist. Right? But t
hen two days ago, I hadn’t realized incubi existed.
My throat tightened with the effort to not call out Kat’s name. Instead, I sent out my emotional energy. She was here, but unconscious. I still didn’t feel anyone else. That didn’t mean Mitch wasn’t here, though.
“This way,” I whispered to Bea and led her through the kitchen to a short hallway. Then I pointed at a closed door. “In here.”
Bea put her hand on the door, and a tingle of her magic spread over the wood in small ripples. I wasn’t sure what she was doing. A protection spell? A silencing one? Or maybe she was just assessing who might be on the other side. Whatever it was, I trusted her.
The loud click of the door unlocking made me bristle as the sound echoed through the room, but no one came running. Thank the Goddess.
Then Bea opened the door. Kat lay in the center of the room, her wrists and ankles bound. Her eyes were closed and blood coated her forehead.
“Kat,” I gasped and ran to her side, my insides churning with trepidation. Pressing my fingers to her neck, I felt for the steady beat of her pulse. There. I let out a small sigh of relief. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I’d known Kat was alive. That was the only way I could’ve sensed her emotional signature. But that hadn’t stopped me from seeking reassurance. She just looked so broken.
I started to pull at the restraints around her feet, but when I realized they were bound with spelled zip ties, I swore. Nothing was going to get those off except magic. And not just any magic—careful, nuanced magic that wouldn’t hurt her further.
Bea smoothed her hair back and checked her head wound.
“How is it?” I asked.
“Not great. She’ll have a nasty lump and bruise, but she’ll live. It’s okay to move her.”
Good. ’Cause she couldn’t stay there. “Just one second.” I placed my hand over Kat’s ankle restraints and tugged at my magic. It sprang forth, but I barely let any go. A second later the zip tie disintegrated.
“Jade!” Lailah cried. “No!”
I jerked my head up in total confusion and then frantically scanned Kat’s ankles for damage. Nothing. Then I felt it. Hot, searing pain shot into my back and my world turned black.
***
I woke to bickering. “Why her?” a whiny voice asked.
“Because she’s the one who neutralized the curse,” said another man. “And we’re going to see if she can do it again.”
I blinked, trying to clear my blurred vision. My hands were bound together in front of me, but my feet weren’t. Where was I? I shifted and nearly cried out from the spasm that shot through my back. Flashes of light went off like lightning bolts in my brain. When the pain eased to a dull ache, I panted and blinked again. I was almost certain I was still in the house across from the fairgrounds. But not the same room Kat had been in. This one didn’t have a fireplace.
“When’s he going to get here?” Whiny asked.
“Shut up.”
The door opened and light spilled in, making my eyes water. I wiped the tears away and focused on the asshole standing in the doorway. Mitch. That bastard.
“Good. You’re awake.”
My magic tingled in my chest, ready to blast his ass to smithereens, but as soon as I reached for it, that bolt of pain seized my back, making my eyes roll into the back of my head.
“Every time you try to use magic in this house, the pain will only get worse. I suggest you submit to my will, or it’s going to be a very long night for you.”
I let out a low hiss and glared at him. “Where’s Kat?”
“She’s still here. We need to conduct a few experiments, and she’s volunteered.” His lips turned up into an evil smile, making it quite clear she hadn’t volunteered for anything…unless it was to kick him in the balls.
“And Bea and Lailah?”
His face turned to stone. “The angel has been neutralized. And that witch, that goddamned bitch. She’s finding out what it means to pay for your consequences. I suggest you cooperate or you’ll be joining her.”
Until that point, I’d only really been fearful for Kat. The rest of us had powers we could rely on. But hearing him speak of Bea, my mentor, as if she was suffering at his hand, and the fact that he’d said Lailah had been neutralized, sent a bolt of pure panic through my body. He was only one witch. “How?” I asked.
He grinned a cat-that-ate-the-canary smile and raised his arms. Black magic danced over his skin, stronger and more powerful than anything I’d experienced before. It filled the room, flattening me to the floor as I struggled to even breathe.
Fear silenced me.
“Good,” he said, studying my face. His magic subsided, granting me temporary relief. “I can see you’ve acknowledged the predicament you find yourself in. Think carefully about your next move, Jade.”
My next move? It involved ripping his heart out and feeding it to the gators. “What do you want from us?”
He leaned against the doorjamb and crossed his feet casually. “The angel? Nothing. She’s just in the way. The rest of you, though? You’re going to help me figure out where the spell went wrong.”
I shielded my eyes against the artificial light from the next room glowing around him. “What spell?”
“You haven’t put two and two together yet. That’s…interesting. Disappointing, actually. I was hoping you’d be a little brighter than the average witch. But I see you rely more on your power than your brain, like most.”
Well, that was damned rude. But I chose to ignore his taunt for what it was. A way to rattle me. “Put what together? Why did you take Kat?”
“You really have to ask?” His eyebrow rose. “He’s in love with her.”
Lucien. He’d said he had history with Mitch. Neither liked the other one. Was this revenge for something? Then his words from earlier hit me. Because she’s the one who neutralized the curse. They’d been talking about me. And the curse was the black heart curse. The one that had almost killed Kat.
“You cursed Lucien.” It wasn’t a question but a statement.
“Now you’re catching on.” His grin turned maniacal.
“Why?” This guy had clearly turned to black magic at some point in his life, but he wasn’t so far gone that he was lost to it. It was hard to believe it hadn’t consumed him after he’d cast a black heart curse.
“Why?” Mitch roared. “You’re asking me why? Because that bastard stole the only person who ever cared about me.” His face turned a dark shade of red. “As far as I’m concerned, he deserves much worse.”
Horror seized my heart. “The girl Lucien was dating, the one who died. That’s her, right?”
He regarded me for a long moment, clearly contemplating how much to tell me. Then he looked me dead in the eye and said, “The bitch deserved it. She promised to marry me and three months later she was sleeping with him. They both deserve what they got.”
The light went out behind him, and a second later the door slammed, leaving me alone in the darkness.
Chapter 20
I lay on the floor in the dark, going over and over what Mitch had said, trying to make sense of it all. How had he known Kat had almost died? Or that I’d saved her? Had he been keeping tabs on Lucien for the past ten years? And if so, why? Just to feed his sick, twisted need for revenge?
The house remained dark and quiet, but I could sense that Kat, Bea, and Lailah were still there. Whiny Boy, too. But not Mitch. I had no reason to believe he’d left, though. He’d told Whiny Boy they were waiting for someone.
How the hell was I going to get out of this one? My body was almost numb as if I were on a drug. Could I call up any magic at all? Tentatively, I reached for that spark. My back arched and I gasped as a spasm claimed me. Shit, that hurt! No, magic wasn’t an option. I took a shallow breath as I let the magic go. The numbness took over again.
I was vi
rtually useless. But two things gave me hope. Bea and Lailah were still there, and if anyone could get us out of this mess, it was them. And second, Mitch had said he wanted me to replicate a spell. In order for that to happen, he was going to have to lift the spasm curse. I’d just have to be ready.
Time seemed to slip by and my heart began to hurt for not only my friends in the other rooms but for Matisse as well. What if I couldn’t get back to her? What if she faded away into the mist? And Kane? How would he ever even know what happened to me? Or my mom, Gwen, and my stepdad Marc? Or all the rest of the people I had in my life now after years of just Gwen and Kat?
All because this witch had once been hurt by his fiancée? The selfish son of a bitch. I wouldn’t let this happen. Not on my watch.
After what seemed like hours, the door finally opened again. No light this time. “Get up,” Mitch ordered.
I rolled to my side and stifled a groan. “I don’t think I can,” I said, hoping to get him to lift the curse.
“You can and you will if you want your friends to live. Or at least a few of them,” he added with a sick laugh.
The anger that shot through my veins gave me the strength to push myself up into a sitting position, and then I was able to get my feet under me. I held onto the wall with my bound hands. “If you lift the curse, I’d be a lot more cooperative,” I lied.
“Why would I do that? Look at you. I don’t even have to lift a finger to get you to obey.”
Obey? Oh, he was going to pay for that one.
“Move it.” He kicked the back of my knee, and I fell against the door, barely holding myself up.
My magic pulsed with the desire to knock him out, but it only resulted in making me clutch the door harder to keep from collapsing. There was too much pain shooting through my torso. The spasm curse was beyond cruel.
“That way.” He pointed down the hall, toward the front of the house. I shuffled along, using the walls for support. But when we stepped into the living room, the desperation streaming off Kat made my legs go weak and I slid to the floor, landing lightly on my knees.
“Kat?” I said softly, my gaze landing on her curled form in the corner.
