Graham had no answer for that.
“Anyway, it’s not about that anymore.” Violet turned, saw that Chloe had encountered a blockade, and frowned. She gave her head a disappointed shake, but other than that was surprisingly unperturbed by it.
Graham couldn’t see the colored strands the way he could when he was dreaming, but instantly he could tell she’d switched targets. It was the way Logan suddenly released Chloe and angled his body to face Violet. It was the way his brows softened and his eyes grew full of yearning.
“Logan,” Violet said. “Let her go, and punch yourself in the face.”
There wasn’t enough time for anyone to react. Logan obeyed, and when his fist met his cheek, he fell to the ground. Graham winced, realizing she’d done this to him as well. His stinging cheeks were proof.
A soft moan slipped through Logan’s lips, telling them he wasn’t completely out. And there was nothing good in that. If only he’d been knocked unconscious, it would be one less victim for her to toy with.
How was Graham supposed to combat this? A terrible feeling settled over him. There was no way they could beat her—no way to win. Even if they somehow all escaped, all but Jade would still be at risk to Violet’s control—at least until the meds wore off. And that didn’t seem like it would happen anytime soon.
Graham ached inside, wishing it could all just go back to how it had been before.
Violet’s lip curled in a satisfied smirk. “Get up, Logan.”
Somehow he managed to get to his feet, but he was a little wobbly. “Hit yourself again,” she said.
“No!” Jade scrambled for him, throwing her arms around his body. But she was too small to be of much use. Logan easily pulled his arms from her grasp and let his fist fly at his face again. A cry escaped Jade’s lips as she clutched him around the middle. Her grasp on him was the only reason Logan hadn’t fallen this time. But his shoulders hung limp to one side, and his face twisted with pain.
“I thought you wanted to be with him,” Graham said. “Why are you hurting him?”
Violet’s cold eyes watched Logan, lacking any remorse, regret, or even pity. “He hurt me. I’m just showing him what it feels like.”
“How did he hurt you?” Graham asked.
“He’s the reason I was in a coma!” She pointed a shaky finger toward Logan.
The expression on Logan’s face darkened suddenly, and Graham realized that Violet had temporarily released her hold on him. “He’s the one that turned down my affection,” she said. “He pushed me out of his truck.”
“Wait—pushed you out?” Graham asked.
“He told me to get lost and left me stranded on the road.”
Jade’s face had paled, and she shook her head. “He didn’t know—couldn’t have known that would happen.”
“It doesn’t matter if he knew.”
Logan’s jaw tensed. “You shouldn’t have been in my truck in the first place.”
Violet’s eyes lit, and she opened her mouth to retort, but Logan beat her to it. “But I’m sorry—really. I’m sorry you got hit by a car, and I’m sorry you were in a coma, and I’m sorry for all the pain I’ve ever caused you.”
Violet’s eyes were barely more than slits. “I don’t believe you.”
Graham took a step forward. “Okay, Violet. We get it. He deserted you, and you got hit by a car. But that doesn’t explain everything else you’ve done. What about Rasmussen Freeman, what you did to him?”
“That was an accident,” she said.
“Then what about Holly? She used to be your best friend. You killed, her, Violet.”
Violet stared at her hand as if she didn’t hear him. Her fingers flicked in and out one at a time, and she appeared to be fascinated by the actions. Her head slowly rose, and her eyes locked on Chloe, whose face went suddenly slack.
“Do you even get what that means, Vi? Killed her—Holly’s gone—forever. And now you’re trying to do that to Chloe.” Frustration bit at Graham’s mind. “Dammit, look at me, Violet!”
Violet’s gaze finally traveled to his.
“You killed her.” He held her gaze for what felt like a full minute, searching for anything remotely like remorse. What had become of his sister? When he spoke again, his words were softer, as if it were just the two of them. “What happened to the Violet I used to know? She never would’ve done something like this.”
“She was lame. A joke. Nobody cared about her.”
“I did,” Graham said. “I cared a lot about her, actually. Violet, you were my first playmate! And my first crush—until I found out you were my sister. That made you family, real and for true. But sister or not, I always considered you one of my closest friends.”
Violet blinked at him, listening. For the time being, she seemed to have forgotten all about the invisible threads that still clung to Chloe.
Graham saw something in her face that he hadn’t seen since her accident. A flicker of interest…but it was more than that. His pulse quickened. She was listening now. Maybe he could get through to her. If he could just help her find that connection they once had, way back before the truth had come out about their father.
Emboldened by this thought, Graham stood taller, beseeching her with his eyes. “I’m not just saying all that. I have an entire journal filled with poetry to prove it.”
“You wrote poems about me?”
He nodded. “About a million. And parts of some stories too.”
She looked dubious.
“I’ve always looked up to you, Vi. You’re the one who gave me the courage to share my writing in the first place. If it wasn’t for you, I doubt I’d be studying English now.”
She cocked her head as if absorbing the idea.
“And I miss you, Vi. I hate the rift between us ever since we found out that Dad—”
Violet’s eyes sparked at that, making Graham falter. He realized his mistake. This had always been a touchy subject.
“He’s my dad—not yours!”
“Can’t you just forgive him and get—”
“No! He doesn’t deserve forgiveness. Especially not when he goes off and abandons his family—he left me after I had an accident. Where was he when I finally recovered? Halfway across the world!”
Graham knew Bruce had his reasons, but those wouldn’t help right now. She needed to be understood. “I know, Vi. He shouldn’t have left. I feel the same way. Growing up, I needed him in my life so much more than the bits and pieces I got over birthdays and vacations. I still do. But we can’t change him. At least we still have each other. We can stick together—you and me.” Every word came straight from deep inside. Graham ached for the closeness again. “I don’t want to fight with you, Vi. I want you back in my life. I need my best friend.”
Her eyes flicked away, refusing to match his any longer.
“I don’t want to lose you. I need my sister.”
Violet blinked then her head tipped up in a slow, calculated move. “Okay.”
“Okay? Yeah?” Graham couldn’t believe he’d been able to talk her down. “So you’ll let Chloe go?”
“Not a chance.”
“But I thought you just said—”
“I’m willing to be friends with you again,” Violet said. “But I’m not letting anyone go.” She nodded toward Jade. “These girls have seen too much, so they both have to go. I’ll keep Logan…for now. His punishment’s not over yet.” She squared her shoulders and gave Graham a look that was something like appeasement. “But you’ve been kind to me. You came to get me in the hospital. You helped me get home when no one else was around. And I want to read your poems. So I’m willing to give this a try.”
Graham shook his head. “I want to be your friend again, Vi, but you have to let these people go.”
She put a hand on her hip. “You think you can tell me what I have to do? You have no power over me, Graham. You’re just a helpless little boy. I can snap my fingers and command you to do whatever I please.”
“But surely that can’t be as satisfying. Wouldn’t you rather people like you of their own accord? You want a friend to listen, to empathize with you? I’m here. You need an errand boy? I’ll do it. I’ll even be your punching bag if you need to beat up on someone. I’ll give you every part of me, willingly, if you just let them go.”
From the corner of his eye, Graham saw Jade’s face pale at his words. He knew she wouldn’t love what he was offering, but this would give them a way to escape. He wasn’t sure what he’d do if Violet actually tried to hurt him, but he’d deal with that when the time came.
A wry smile crooked Violet’s mouth. “That’s thoughtful, G. It really is. Thing is, you’re not as important as you think. And you forget that I’m the only one here who’s in a position to bargain.”
Graham’s heart sank.
“Chloe,” Violet said. “Step up to the edge of the roof. Don’t let them stand in your way.”
Chloe took a step, and Jade lunged to grab her. But Chloe sent an elbow behind, hitting Jade in the jaw and sending her sprawling. Logan came up after her, but Chloe made a fist and punched him in the same side of the face where he’d already taken two of his own blows. He crumpled with a howl, and Chloe stepped up onto the ledge.
Graham felt like he was being split in two. His legs yearned to run after Chloe, but he knew there was no way he’d get there in time if Violet told her to jump. The only card he had left in play was to pretend he was on her side. His hopes of gaining any advantage over her were trickling through his fingers with each passing moment.
“You want to be my BFF—and stay alive,” Violet said, “then you take my offer. The deal is, you can choose these losers and go down with them or choose me and get to be my friend. It’s up to you.”
Graham bit his lip. He was out of options. Either choice was a loss. Jade and Chloe he’d known only a matter of weeks, but he’d known Violet his entire life.
Pulse hammering in his mind, he thought of the only thing that could save his friends. It meant giving up his only sister and his once best friend. It would mean ripping Violet away from her family. Could he really make that decision?
Graham looked at Chloe’s profile as she stood on the ledge of the rooftop. The moon’s rays highlighted her cheek, and the wind softly whipped her hair. No matter what, he couldn’t let her die. He knew what he had to do.
He turned back to Violet, bent forward, and ran shoulder-first into her. She let out an involuntary gasp of surprise at the sharp impact. With all Graham’s might, he shoved her toward the edge of the rooftop.
~
Graham launched himself at Violet. She gasped in surprise.
She didn’t fall back because his arms gripped her around the sides, keeping her upright, even as she backpedaled. He shoved her, and in an instant she knew his intent. He was going to push her off the roof.
Part of her couldn’t believe Graham had turned on her. She’d given him a chance, considered his plea, and given him a way out. But he’d screwed her over. And he wasn’t just refusing her offer. He was trying to kill her.
A hot resolve took over her mind. She didn’t fight him, knowing they had a good ten feet before they reached the ledge. She had no fear, only anger.
How dare he pretend to be her friend? How dare he turn on her this way? She’d been wrong to give him a second chance. His chances were all washed up now. He had to die.
Her hands clenched into fists. She retracted her tentacles from Chloe and sent them like lassos around Graham. They coiled around his head like a dozen colored nooses, cinching tight for the kill.
Disoriented, Graham lifted his head and stopped. He wore an expression like a confused child’s, trying to wrap his mind around what was happening. He lifted an eyebrow at Violet as if asking what she would have him do.
She smiled sweetly at him, knowing he was no more than putty in her hands.
Watching it all unfold had made Jade’s insides crumple. Violet’s wild disregard for anyone but herself was shocking, and it was something Jade hadn’t seriously considered before this night.
Her jaw ached where Chloe had punched her, but the pain was nothing next to the agony of watching Violet hurt Logan and then lash out at Graham.
Jade watched as Graham tried to ramrod Violet toward the edge of the roof, but it was too far of a distance. She knew he wouldn’t get there in time. Logan was still lying in a heap on the ground, and she thought he might have passed out. Chloe was scrambling down off the edge of the roof. Any of them were easy pawns in Violet’s clutches. Jade was the only one out of her control. She was the only one that could do anything.
But her failure was the loudest thing in her head. She’d tried what Graham had suggested, but throwing emotional punches—first with anger then love for Logan—had backfired. Unlike how things had played out during her last two abductions, here they’d only seemed to heighten Violet’s resolve, making her even more dangerous. After that had failed, Jade relented to the cacophony of emotions like a ship in a storm. Since hers no longer mattered anyway, she let her mind sway to and fro and nearly succumbed to its dizziness.
Violet caught Graham under her spell again. Just a few feet from the edge of the roof, she managed to stop him, just as Jade had expected.
Jade crept closer to them, knowing the nearer she came, the more she was at risk to Violet’s touch. But she also knew she had to help Graham. She watched them from the side, slowly closing the gap while they were distracted.
Graham took a step back from Violet, all but scratching his head in confusion. Violet’s face twisted into a snarl, her palpable anger invading Jade’s mind.
“You shouldn’t have turned on me,” Violet told him, her voice low and throaty. “You picked the wrong side, and now you’re going to pay. Step up to the ledge.”
Obeying Violet’s command, Graham crossed the last few paces and stepped up on the ledge of the roof.
Jade’s heart beat wildly inside her. She knew what was coming next. One by one this woman would pick them off, probably saving Logan for last so she could punish him. Fury coursed through her. Violet’s, perhaps, but it grew in strength until Jade thought her own had overtaken them both.
It didn’t matter, though.
Violet lifted her hand toward Graham and opened her mouth to speak. Before Violet could utter the words, Jade ran at her. She crashed into the woman and shoved her the last few feet to the edge. Violet tumbled over the side of the building.
~
Graham was spat back into his own will with the force of a freight train plowing into him. He gasped, and his mind flicked through images until he realized what had just happened.
Jade had pushed Violet off the roof.
He turned and saw Jade nearby. Her face was paler than he’d ever seen it, and her eyes were as large as the full moon. Shock seemed to have overtaken her body. She looked frozen in place.
Graham hurried over to her, gripping one of her hands in his. It was warm, which he took as a good sign.
“Oh my God,” she whispered.
Graham couldn’t speak, but pulling her along with himself, he crept to the edge of the roof. Together they looked down four stories to the ground. The moonlight set off Violet’s white silk robe, clearly showing her still form. She’d fallen into one of the flower beds, and a nest of long, decorative grasses was splayed out under her body. Her face was upturned and looked surprisingly at peace. Even her eyes were closed. It was almost as if she lay sleeping in a cradle nature had crafted for her.
The sight twisted something inside Graham’s chest, and he pulled back. His breaths came fast, without him being able to control them. It felt as if his heart were being compressed into a hard stone. His sister…his only sister…
He gasped more and more, needing air but able to find none. A warm hand touched his shoulder. Moments later a strange, soothing calm came over him. It was the oddest sensation he’d ever had, this inner control when his mind was still being wrenched apart. He frowned and finally
looked at the person touching his arm. “Jade?”
She watched him with perfect empathy in her eyes, and he knew that she had planted this balm inside him. She gave a tiny nod. “We probably should call the police,” she said. “It’ll be better if we explain….” Her words trailed off as something snagged her attention.
Graham followed her gaze. He saw Logan hobbling toward them and Chloe steadying him with a hand clamped around his arm. When they came near, he heard Jade intake a sharp breath. Her eyes were glued to Logan.
The calm feeling inside Graham dissipated. Being distracted must have messed up her control. But now that his panic had been wrestled into submission, Graham’s breathing calmed again. His heart had ripped in two, and his mind was still in shock, but at least he had control of his lungs.
He nodded, realizing Jade was right. They had to call the police and somehow explain what had happened. “You guys go home,” he said. “I’ll make the call. I’ll explain everything. There’s no reason you need to be involved in all this.”
Jade finally looked away from Logan. “But how will you—”
“She killed two people,” Graham said. “I’m sure there’s evidence somewhere. If I can just explain it to the cops, hopefully they’ll be able to find what they need to indict her. That should leave me in the clear.”
“But how will you get back?”
Graham thought. “I’ll figure out something. Maybe the police can take me home…or I’ll call a taxi.”
Jade looked concerned, but Graham stood taller, hoping she wouldn’t fight with him. “We came to get Logan,” he said. “And you have him. So you guys get out of here and get whatever treatment you need. I can handle this.”
Jade hesitated then gave a resigned nod, and Logan looked too drained to argue. Graham couldn’t imagine the emotional and mental toll Violet’s spell might demand. The poor guy looked like he’d been beaten to a pulp—and not just from the purple splotches on his face and rubbed-raw wrists.
Putting an arm around Logan’s waist, Jade edged him toward the roof access stairway. Chloe didn’t budge.
Enchanter: The Flawed Series Book Four Page 28
