“You look fantastic!” he yells over the music.
“Thank you,” I yell back. “You clean up pretty well yourself!”
His suit fits him like it was made for him. Maybe it was. He flashes his mega watt smile at me and a fluttery sensation lets loose inside of me. I know it’s wrong. Dylan is my friend. If this other thing, whatever it is, doesn’t go away, I’ll have to end our friendship over it. The music switches to a slow song and I’m about to turn and look for Marcus when Dylan pulls me close.
“Not a chance, Tennessee.” His lips press against my ear and I shiver. He holds me tight and my breath catches. “I can’t get over how amazing you look. Why the hell do you have to have a boyfriend?”
“I’ve known Marcus longer than I’ve known you,” I say defensively. “Besides, you and Rachel sure got back together in a hurry. Seeing her tonight, I guess I understand why.”
“Because she dresses slutty?” He laughs bitterly. “I’m so over that.”
“Then why…?” Peering over his shoulder, I see Marcus dancing with Rachel. She’s bumping and grinding against him. “Classy girl,” I mutter sarcastically.
Dylan glances over his shoulder and snorts. “Years of good Catholic upbringing.”
“Why did you get back together with her?” I push.
“We’re not. She came crying to me that I ruined her Homecoming by dumping her right before the dance and demanded I take her anyway.”
I feel sorry for Dylan that he’s stuck with Rachel for the night and am about to make another sarcastic remark about her when I notice Jack and his two thugs dancing nearby. A crowd circles around them, cheering them on as they perform a series of synchronized dance moves. Craning my neck, I try to see if Rachel is still gyrating all over my boyfriend, but Jack and his friends block my view.
Suddenly Rachel appears, hollering at Dylan. I can’t hear what she’s hollering about over the cheering crowd, but all of a sudden she hauls off and slaps him across the face. Hard.
“What the hell?” Dylan yells.
Rachel turns and marches off in the opposite direction. Dylan stares after her, bewildered and angry, as he rubs his cheek.
My Chemical Romance starts up and I turn back to the crowd and look for Marcus, but the crowd has dispersed, along with Jack, Matt and Troy. Marcus is gone too.
My skin turns cold as I recall my dark, nagging feeling from earlier.
Dylan’s rubbing his jaw and shooting daggers in the direction of Rachel. I tug his hand to get his attention. “I can’t find Marcus. Can you help me look for him?”
Without waiting for his answer, I drag Dylan along with me. I don’t why, but I feel like if I let him go, he will disappear too.
Katie’s eyes grow wide when she sees me approach, hand-in-hand with Dylan. She hooks her arm through Trevor’s and pulls him off the dance floor and away from Ella and Caroline.
“Have you seen Marcus?”
“No, why?” she asks, looking from me to Dylan curiously. “What’s wrong?”
“Can you help us look for him?”
We split up into two groups to search the crowd.
“Seriously, Lucy, I think you’re overreacting,” Dylan says. “Maybe he stormed off, pissed that you and I were dancing together.”
“No, something’s wrong. I feel it.” Dylan nods and I wonder how much he knows about our dads’ relationship.
After working through the crowd twice, Dylan and I reconnect with Katie and Trevor. We check the halls outside the gymnasium and Dylan and Trevor check the boy’s bathroom. We file out to the parking lot. Marcus’ car is still here.
I feel sick.
“Where would he go?” Katie frowns.
“Can I borrow your phone?” I ask her. She pulls her cell from Trevor’s suit pocket and hands it to me. I punch in Marcus’ number and listen as it rings five times before voicemail kicks in.
Then it dawns on me. “It’s the oldest trick in the book.”
Dylan looks at me. “What is?”
“A diversion.”
Momma’s on again-off again boyfriend, used to bring his friends, Terry and Carl, over and they would party with a few of the neighbors. Jimmy, Terry and Carl had a well-orchestrated con that relied on diverting everyone’s attention while one of them lifted wallets and drugs off their unsuspecting marks.
“Do you need to drive Rachel home?” I ask Dylan.
“We drove separately. I had her meet me one block over and we walked together.”
“Then I need your help. Can you give me a ride?”
“Sure. Whatever you need.”
Katie takes my hand. “What about us? What can we do?”
I think for a minute. “Stay here. Keep looking for Marcus and call me when you find him.” I dig through my purse, finding only lip-gloss, a house key and my necklace. “My phone!” My heart drops like a rock. “Marcus has it in his suit coat pocket.”
Dylan moves to Katie’s side. “Here, take my number. And give me yours.”
They trade information and then I hug Katie. “I’m going to track down Jack Callow and his friends. I’m going to get Marcus back.” I know right where to find them.
Chapter Forty
“Where are we going?” Dylan asks as we get in his car.
I’m glad the car is dark. “To see Jude.”
“Jude.” I feel the weight of his stare. When I don’t elaborate, he sighs and starts the car. “The devil himself. Goody.”
When I’m not giving Dylan directions, I’m checking and rechecking his phone, hoping for a message from Katie. As if in slow motion, I recall Dylan coming over to dance with me and Rachel dirty dancing with Marcus. Then Jack, Troy and Matt blocked my view, attracting everyone’s attention. Rachel came over and slapped Dylan, keeping us distracted so Jack and his thugs could kidnap Marcus.
Jack’s not smart enough to come up with such a clever plan. Someone put him up to it. I’m guessing that someone is Jude.
We pull up to the gate, which happens to be open. He’s expecting me.
“Count Dracula’s Manor?”
“Pretty much.” With lots of places to hide Marcus. Please, please, please don’t let him be hurt.
Dylan pulls up the driveway. He whistles low as he takes in the huge knotted trees.
“This is creepy as hell,” Dylan mutters. He sees my expression, illuminated in the glow of the outdoor lights. “I’m not scared. I’m just saying...”
I reach for the passenger door.
“Wait!” Dylan grabs my arm and pulls me back. “What’s the plan?”
“There is no plan!” I try to wrench free. “You know what Jude’s capable of. We have to stop him before he hurts Marcus.”
“But we don’t even know he’s got Marcus,” Dylan protests. “You can’t go charging in there and accuse Jude of kidnapping your boyfriend. Who knows what he’ll do?”
I lean close so our noses are only inches apart. “He’s got Marcus. I’m going in. You can stay in the car if you want. I really don’t care.”
A burning sensation starts in my palms. My fingers twitch. I jerk my arm from his grasp. I need to keep Dylan out of my line of fire. I reach for the door handle and suddenly hear a noise. Dylan and I look at each other.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
It’s coming from the top of the car.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
This time it’s coming from the back of the car.
“Uh, Lucy…” I follow Dylan’s gaze to the crows landing on the hood. Three of them. No, six of them. No, twelve of them. They keep coming.
Tap. Tap, Tap. Thunk. Bang.
I cry out as a swarm of crows attack the car. All of them have red eyes. Birds pile on top of each other, their beaks pounding the car and each other. They’re robotic and persistent with their peck, peck, pecking on glass, metal, feathers and flesh. I press my hands to my ears, trying to block out the horrific noise. It’s worse than the worst hail storm. It sounds like a chorus of jackhammers. Dylan turns on the windshie
ld wipers, but it only makes a bloody mess of the mangled birds.
“We have to get inside,” I yell above the noise. I avoid looking at the carnage.
Dylan yanks off his tie and throws it on the dashboard. I remove my heels.
His gaze locks with mine. “On the count of three,” he hollers. “One…two…THREE!”
We throw open our doors and run.
“Lucy! Watch out!”
They swarm, blocking out the sky, and descend. I wish I hadn’t looked up.
“Run faster!” I scream.
They lunge for my face, my eyes. I bat them away, but they keep dive-bombing us. My ears fill with the violent flapping of so many wings and their crazy screeching.
“Oomph!” A crow slams into the side of my head, its sharp beak striking my temple, and another against my shoulder, causing me to sway to the right. I shoot a quick glance at Dylan. He’s punching the evil birds, sending them sailing.
Something wet and sticky trickles down the side of my face and down my shoulder. Blood. The front door is twenty feet away. We can make it.
Then I hear the growling. The three Rottweilers slink out of the darkness and stand guard at the door, heads low and ears pressed flat. They snarl, saliva dripping from their jowls. We stop short and the birds retreat.
I try to recall Darcy’s command, but it’s no use. How do I get past the stupid dogs? They’re just a bunch of thugs. Thugs? I take a closer look at the three. I look in their eyes, at the recognition and the resentment and I gasp.
The growls become angry barks punctuated by flecks of flying saliva.
“Lucy…” Dylan grips my arm, pulls me backward. I shake him off. These aren’t dogs. They’re just jerks.
“Hey Jack! I know it’s you! Be a man and show yourself. Or are you only a tough guy when you’re on all fours?”
The dog standing front and center bows his head and whimpers, sinking back onto its haunches. It trembles violently. There’s a symphony of snapping bones and groaning tendons and ligaments. I watch in horror as the dog’s fur disappears and the body elongates, morphing into a man. Jack rises to his feet, naked, a wicked grin on his face. Dylan shoves me behind him.
I grab Dylan’s hand and march forward. “Get out of our way.”
Jack leans against a column, arms folded across his chest and gestures us toward the door. Troy and Matt, still in canine form, bare their teeth.
“So you’ve come to rescue him,” Jack sneers. “They will be very disappointed.”
They?
I tug on Dylan’s hand to get him to follow me up the steps.
“The winged freak is already toast.” Jack laughs.
Dylan and I are at the door when Jack’s words sink in. Fear rips through my insides, churns, transforms, and becomes white-hot fury.
I close my eyes and focus inward, searching, trying to find what I need. Jude’s words reverberate in my head. My powers are unleashed. It’s time to use them.
I jerk my head back and stifle a cry as blazing heat courses through my body. I tremble from the power of it. My thoughts race and my heart hammers against my rib cage. I turn around and step between Dylan and the dogs. I point at the dog closest to Dylan, the one baring its teeth and snarling at him. Flames bolt from my fingertips and strike him on the back. The smell of scorched fur fills the air. The dogs tear off, tails between their legs, yelping. Jack is right behind them.
I charge the door and as my hands touch the wood, it implodes, splinters flying everywhere.
Dylan steps over the mangled door and wood shards to stand beside me. “Should I ask?”
“Trust me, you don’t want to know.”
I close my eyes and focus. Use your gifts, dammit! Marcus isn’t in Jude’s office. Suddenly I catch it. It’s so slight, I have to concentrate really hard. A dull, rhythmic sound. A heartbeat. A vision of Marcus fills my head. Injured and barely alive.
Down below.
I glance at Dylan and jerk my head for him to follow me. “The basement.”
My body twitches and I’m hyper alert as adrenaline courses through me. I run to the right, passing the hallway that leads to Jude’s office. “We need to try every door until we find the one that leads downstairs.”
“Got it,” Dylan confirms, close on my heels.
I race down a hallway. It’s dark, like the rest of the house. I try every door, but none lead where I need to go. I swallow a whimper, desperate to find Marcus, and fearing the worst. We pass a massive dining room and kitchen. I pause at a door to the left of the pantry. I glance at Dylan as I swing the door open. Bingo.
Feeling along the wall, I find the light switch and flip it on. I sprint down the stairs, Dylan’s footsteps matching my own, as we maneuver around the bend and down more stairs. We reach the bottom and find ourselves in a large room designed like a movie theater.
Dylan nudges me. “What? No concession stand?”
Leave it to Dylan to add levity to the situation. I love him for it. I mean…I’m grateful for it.
Where’s Jude? We’ve been in his house for this long…why hasn’t he confronted us?
“We need to hurry,” I tell Dylan nervously. I close my eyes and listen, trying to pick up the sound again.
I catch it. A faint rhythmic sound. A heartbeat.
“This way!” I rush to the left, my stomach barbed with fear.
Another hallway, with another zillion doors.
Behind the last door on the left. There’s a strange sound. A low, repetitive humming. Some kind of machine?
“Let me go in first.” Dylan pushes me aside.
“Not a chance.” I slip around him and shove the door open.
“Oh, my God…” My eyes grow wide in horror.
Lola and Serenity.
The air whooshes from my lungs. Two cages sit side by side, wires run between each of the birds and some kind of medical equipment. Tiny metal shackles and chains restrain the ravens. They huddle on the floor of their cages, barely alive. Tears blur my vision.
“Help me shut off these machines,” I choke.
“Sick bastard,” Dylan mutters under his breath. He finds the power switch and shuts it off, then unplugs the machine for good measure.
I make little cooing noises to the birds as I unlatch their cages.
“Lola, Serenity, it’s me, Lucy,” I approach them slowly, slipping a hand into each cage to stroke their heads. “We’re taking you home.”
I turn back to Lola, my anger growing at the sight of her mangled, dirty feathers. I want to kill Jude. My power flares but I force it down and keep up a steady quiet chatter in an effort to soothe the ravens.
“Do you want me to disconnect the other one?”
“No, I’ll do it,” I say softly. “They know me. We need to do this slowly.”
I stroke Lola’s head and gently lift her so I can remove the wires. A wave of nausea rocks my body as I pull the needles from her delicate, trembling body. With my thumb on her breast, I pick up her dull heartbeat. Tears fill my eyes. She’s alive and soon she’ll be home.
I pull her from the cage and hold her to my chest, blinking back tears as I stroke her head. She wiggles suddenly. I raise her up to eye level, so I can see what’s got her so fussy.
“It’s okay Lola-Bean, we’re going to keep you safe.”
Lola starts to jerk violently. Her eyes close as her head twitches back and her beak opens wide.
“Lola!” I gasp. Did I hurt her when I removed the needle? Is she having a seizure?
Dylan wraps his arms around my waist. “Lucy, what’s going on?”
My knees grow weak and I’m thankful for Dylan’s support as a bright light appears in Lola’s open bill and moves toward me.
Tears spill onto my cheeks.
“Lucy…”
I realize he’s practically holding me up and I should probably do something about that but all I can do is stare at Gram’s beloved raven. Her familiar. The guardian of her powers.
Persephone’s words r
eplay in my head. Your grandmother entrusted them to Lola until you turned sixteen and are ready to receive them. This is your birthright, Lucy.
The light radiates toward me, growing brighter, warmer. As the light reaches me, I inhale. A beautiful, euphoric feeling spreads throughout my body. I open my eyes. Lola’s eyes are open now, too. She huddles in my hand, trembling violently.
“What was that?” Dylan’s voice comes out a groan. He shakes his head repeatedly, his gaze locked on Lola. His shoulders curl forward as his eyes roll back and close and we both almost fall to the floor. Now I’m supporting him.
“Dylan!” I slap him.
His eyes fly open and his head jerks back.
“You okay?” I ask, trying to prop him up against my shoulder and cradle Lola at the same time.
“Good. Fine.” His eyes look a little glassy, but he’s alert. “Sorry.”
I return my attention to Lola. My body fills with a comforting sensation.
“We need to get moving.”
I hand Lola to him. He holds her close to his chest to keep her warm as I move to Serenity’s cage. Persephone’s beloved little girl.
After pulling the needles from her body, I hold her close and stroke her head. “Let’s get back upstairs.”
We make it back to the foyer and I turn to Dylan. “I need you to get the birds to your car.”
“Nope.” He shakes his head stubbornly. “I’m not leaving you.”
“Dylan, please. I can’t tell you how important they are.”
He glances at the wood shards strewn on the floor, then at me. “Okay. I’ll come find you.”
I nod quickly. “Wrap them up in your suit coat. Don’t let the crows get them.”
I hold both birds while he slips out of his coat. We conceal them inside.
“I’ll be right back.” He studies me. “Try not to set the house on fire.”
“I’ll try.” I swallow hard as I run my clammy palms down the fabric of my dress. I should go with him, make sure the ravens are delivered safely to the car. But…what about Marcus? What if Jude has already done harm? Divide and conquer. That’s the answer.
He takes several steps toward the door.
“Wait!” Why didn’t I think of this before? I retrieve Persephone’s amulet from my purse. “Wear this.”
The Girl and The Raven Page 25
