by Sarra Cannon
Jackson turned to Mary Anne. “Who else would have had permission to come down here without setting off the traps? Did your family have someone else they trusted? Anyone you can think of who pledged that kind of oath?”
Mary Anne shook her head. “I don’t think so,” she said. “But I only knew the things my mother told me. If they had some kind of secret alliance with another group or someone in town, I wouldn’t have known about that anyway.”
My shoulders tensed. In the wrong hands, those books could be extremely dangerous. We already knew they contained spells about black roses and instructions on how to kill the Prima and transfer the line to a new family. Who knew what other terrible magic there was inside?
“Whoever came down here knew exactly what they were looking for,” I said. “They knew where to find the most valuable books on dark magic. Who would do that unless they had every intention of using them?”
“I don’t know,” Jackson said. “But we’re not going to figure it out by standing here talking about it. We should get home before someone finds out we’re here.”
I turned around in the small room. “Is there anything we should take with us?”
“What do you mean?” Mary Anne asked.
“Any chance some of these other books might have a secret ritual that could break the spell that makes me the Prima?” I asked. “Without killing me, I mean.”
Jackson crouched down by a row of books. He shook his head. “I know these books,” he said. “Mostly standard magic books. Potions. Basic spells. Most of these books are in the library at Shadowford.”
“Library?” Mary Anne asked.
I threw Jackson a look and he shrugged. “There’s a secret library,” I said. “I’ll show you some other time, but for now, let’s finish looking through these books and get the hell out of this village.”
“Good idea,” Jackson said.
After a brief run through all the shelves, we had a stack of six books to take home with us. One rare book on shape-shifting. A book on powerful potions. And a few others written in a foreign language. None of the books held dark magic and none of them would free me from this curse of being Prima. Whatever important and dangerous magic had been housed here, it wasn’t here now. All I could hope was that whoever had those books had no intention of using them against me or Jackson.
“Let’s go,” Jackson said. “We’re not going to find anything else here tonight.”
“Stay behind me,” Mary Anne said. She blew out the candle and I followed the sound of her footsteps. My boot hit the bottom stair and I stumbled, throwing my hands out in the darkness to try to regain my balance.
I scraped my palm against the rough stone of the stairs and cried out. A warm trickle of blood ran down the side of my hand. “Crap.”
“You okay?” Jackson said, his hand on my back.
“Fine.” I gritted my teeth against the pain. A small rock had gotten pushed into my skin, but when I tried to brush it away, it wouldn’t budge. Great. It was really jammed in there and hurt like hell.
I cradled my injured hand close to my chest and made my way up the stairs. Once outside in the light of the moon, I held my palm up to my face and gasped. It wasn’t a rock stuck in my palm. It was a diamond earring.
A Pair That Looked Just Like This
The peroxide fizzed as it hit the tiny wound on my hand. I sucked a breath through my teeth as pain shot through my hand, then finally melted away. There was a good amount of blood for such a small hole.
I eyed the diamond earring in the soap dish. I wondered if the diamond was real. I wondered who it belonged to.
There was nothing special about the earring. It was the type of round diamond earring a hundred women in this town probably owned. Heck, Drake Ashworth had even tried to give me a pair that looked just like this on the night of my confirmation.
I paused.
What if he had given the earrings to his mom after I turned him down? It sounded like the kind of thing Drake might do. Forget her birthday or something and present the diamonds to her as if he were a thoughtful, loving son.
Maybe.
Or maybe these were cubic zirconia someone bought at the drug store down the road. I didn’t exactly have a diamond tester in the house with me. Besides, the odds that this was the same diamond earring Drake had tried to give me were low. All I felt sure of in my gut was that whoever had taken those spell books had been wearing this earring. Mary Anne said no one in her family even had pierced ears or wore any kind of jewels or diamonds. No, whoever dropped that earring probably also had those books.
I wiped the peroxide off my hand with a towel and slapped on a band-aid. This wasn’t a mystery I was going to solve at five in the morning. I had to be up for school in just a few hours, and tomorrow was going to be a long day.
The disappointment of not finding the spell books weighed me down as I took one last look at the orphaned diamond earring. I shut off the light and crawled into my bed, exhausted.
Famous Last Words
“It’s going to be the party of the year.”
I opened my eyes and stared at Lark. “What party?”
I was completely exhausted, but that one word sent my heart racing. Another party in this god-forsaken town? I mean, did these people not understand that the word party was synonymous with disaster in Peachville?
“Duh, where have you been?” Allison said, rolling her eyes. “The Halloween Ball is only the biggest event in Peachville every year.”
“No more parties,” I said. “No way am I going to another party in this town.”
Lark’s mouth dropped open like I’d just said I hated puppies. “You can’t seriously mean that.”
“She doesn’t,” Allison said, reaching over me to grab another slice of pizza.
We’d come to DeAngelo’s for dinner after a long cheerleading practice. All I’d wanted to do was go home and crash, but Lark insisted I come out with them. Now, I was seriously regretting my decision.
“No more parties,” I said again, shaking my head. “It’s like asking for trouble.”
“It’s tradition Harper,” Lark said. “Every year for the past one-hundred years, the Peachville Order has thrown a huge Halloween Ball for the town. It’s the party of the year for the Order of Shadows. You have to come.”
“You guys are acting like it would be the end of the world if Harper stayed home,” Brooke said, eyebrows raised. “She doesn’t want to go, and I don’t see why we should force her to do something she doesn’t want to do. I think we can handle one night without her.”
I nearly gagged. Of course Brooke didn’t care if I came to the party. In fact, I was pretty sure Brooke wished I had never come to Peachville in the first place.
“But everyone on the squad has to come,” Lark said. “It’s not exactly optional. Especially not for the Prima Futura.”
“It’ll be fun,” Allison said. “Besides, the entire Order of Shadows will be there. What could possibly happen?”
Famous last words.
I knew from experience that in this town, something always happened.
“You really want me to answer that question?”
Allison tossed a balled-up napkin at me.
“Okay,” I said, ticking the possibilities off on my fingertips. “Someone could try to kill me and end up burning the house down, someone might get stabbed with a ritual knife, a girl might get abducted and held captive in a ring of black roses. I mean, let’s honestly think about how the parties have all turned out so far this year.”
Everyone grew quiet. They knew I was right. Ever since I’d come to Peachville, the major party-type events had all ended in disaster or death.
“The Halloween Ball is going to be different,” Lark said. “You’ll see.”
“I don’t see what the big deal is anyway,” I said. “It’s just some party. I doubt anyone will miss me.”
“It’s not just a party,” Brooke said, raising her voice so loud a few people in the booths ne
ar us turned to stare. She leaned forward, her face serious. “It’s the one-hundredth anniversary of the Peachville gate. This isn’t just some kegger out at Foster’s. It’s a sacred celebration of our heritage. If you don’t understand the importance of it, maybe you don’t deserve to be there in the first place.”
I plucked the straw from my milkshake and swirled it around in the whipped cream. “Fine with me,” I said.
Brooke’s jaw tensed and her lips pursed together so hard, they turned a purplish color. I looked away, wondering why in the world I was still associating with her outside of cheerleading practice.
Lark turned to me, her face creased with worry. “I’ll seriously be devastated if you aren’t there.”
I sighed. “Why is it so important to you that I go?”
“My question exactly,” Brooke muttered.
I clenched my teeth. If she didn’t watch her tone, one of these days I was seriously going to punch her in the face. I started to say something, then decided now wasn’t the time or the place.
“Because it’s the first year Peachville’s had a future in a very long time,” Lark said. “The Halloween Ball is special for the Order, and it’s the first time in forever that we’ve actually had something to celebrate.”
I closed my eyes and tried to ignore the twisting dread in my gut. “I’ll go on one condition.”
Lark squealed and wrapped her arms around my shoulders. “Anything.”
“I can bring anyone I choose as my date,” I said, knowing full well there was one guy in this town the Order would never want me to bring.
Lark’s smile faded and Brooke made an ugly sound deep in her throat.
“I don’t know,” Lark said. “If you mean Jackson, he’s usually not invited to this kind of party. I mean, are you even sure he’d want to go?”
I shrugged. “I’d at least like to be able to ask him.”
Brooke mumbled something under her breath.
“What was that?” I said, leaning forward. With my eyes, I dared her to say something mean about Jackson.
“I’m going to get some water,” Brooke said, forcing a smile. “Let me know if Harper comes back down to reality.”
She stood and Allison followed her like a little puppy dog.
“Ignore her,” Lark said in a near-whisper. “Brooke’s just jealous because she’s not the center of attention in this town anymore.”
“Believe me, if I could make her the next Prima, I would.” I threw a napkin over my half-eaten slice of pizza. I’d lost my appetite.
“That’s crazy talk,” Lark said, squeezing my hand. “You’re the closest thing this town has to royalty now. Who would want to give that up?”
This girl.
I thought it, but didn’t say it. I knew Lark wouldn’t understand. In her mind, being a future was an honor, not a complete nightmare.
“Everything would be a lot easier if you found someone else to have a crush on,” she said. “Jackson’s probably the last person in town the Order wants you dating.”
I was about to tell her that what I felt for Jackson wasn’t just some crush. That there were deeper feelings between us that she could never understand. But that’s when I noticed a dark figure staring at me through the window.
“What is it?” Lark asked, following my gaze.
“Do you know that guy?” I asked.
She shook her head. “No,” she said. “Never seen him before. Why?”
The guy wore all black and had a piercing stare that cut me to the core. He was tall and tan with long beaded braids in his hair. Not exactly your typical small town guy. There was something about him that gave me the creeps. He reminded me of the Others. The ones who tried to kill Jackson.
And me, as soon as they found out who I really was.
“I need to go,” I said, suddenly feeling sick to my stomach. “Can you drive me home?”
“Shouldn’t we wait for Brooke and Allison?”
“Please,” I said. “You can call them later or something. This is important.”
Lark’s forehead wrinkled. “Are you sure everything’s okay with you lately, Harper?”
“I’m fine,” I said. “I just forgot about something I was supposed to do tonight.”
Lark scooted out of the booth. “I’m just going to tell them we’re leaving,” she said. “Meet me by the car?”
I nodded and rushed outside. I wanted to get a closer look at the man dressed in black, but when I walked out of the restaurant, he was gone.
Just Be Yourself
Jackson sat at his desk drawing furiously in his notebook. I hated to interrupt him, but this was important. If the Others were back in town, they were going to come looking for him. I knocked on the window.
Jackson’s head snapped toward me, his body tense at first, then instantly relaxed. He shook his head and smiled. My heart beat faster when he looked at me. Even after all these months of being close to him, I still hadn’t gotten used to the way he made me feel. I loved everything about him, from his bright green eyes all the way down to his leather boots. I loved the curve of his jaw-line and the way his lips always curled up on one side in that sexy half-smile of his.
He glanced down at his drawing, then turned the notebook over before standing up and opening the window. “You know, there is a front door to this house,” he said.
“Really?” I said, blinking fast and doing my best to look doe-eyed and innocent. “I had no idea.”
Jackson laughed and gave me his hand. I pulled myself through the window as gracefully as I could.
“Is everything okay?”
“I think we might have trouble.” I paced nervously in front of his bed. “I was in town tonight, and there was this guy dressed in black staring at me through the window of De’Angelo’s.”
Jackson pulled his desk chair out and sat down in it backwards, leaning his arms against the back of the chair. “Lots of people wear black, Harper.”
“I know, but there was something about him that gave me the creeps,” I said. “There was something… different about him. What if it’s the Others?”
“Even if the Others did come back here, they wouldn’t know who you are,” he said. “We killed the only three that knew who you were. Are you sure you aren’t just overreacting?”
I pressed my lips together. Was he seriously asking me this? I’d almost been killed half a dozen times in the past three months. Was it even possible for me to overreact at this point?
“You didn’t see the way he was staring at me,” I said. “It was like he knew who I was.”
Jackson ran a hand through his brown hair. He glanced over at the desk again, then back at me. I narrowed my eyes at him.
“What were you drawing just now?” I asked.
He shook his head. “Nothing.”
“I don’t believe you.” I took a step toward his desk, but he stood, nearly knocking the chair to the ground.
“Harper,” he said, standing between me and the desk. “It’s not finished yet.”
“If you’re drawing me, I have a right to see it,” I said.
He took a step toward me. “You know as well as I do that my drawings aren’t always what they seem,” he said. “It’s a scene taken completely out of context. There’s no way to know exactly what it means.”
I crossed my arms over my chest and tried to resist the closeness of his warm body. “I want to see it.”
Jackson stood his ground. “No.”
My lip trembled. “Is it really that bad?” I asked. “So bad you don’t even want me to look at it?”
“I just don’t want you to worry about something that can’t be changed.” He traced the side of my face with the back of his knuckles. “You’ve been through so much.”
I searched his green eyes. What had he seen? Whatever it was, it had him spooked. I glanced toward the notebook. Maybe he was right. Maybe I didn’t need to see it. I knew from experience that Jackson’s visions could be misleading. I also knew that everythi
ng he drew eventually came true. There was no way to stop it.
“Trust me,” he said. “Only seeing pieces of the future is torture. You’re better off not knowing.”
I closed my eyes and concentrated on the warm touch of his fingers on my cheek. “Don’t you ever draw anything happy?” I asked.
“Look at me,” he said.
I opened my eyes and for a moment, the world went still and there was only us. My pulse quickened.
“I won’t let anything happen to you,” he said.
I turned my head to the side and kissed the back of his hand. I wanted to believe him, but how could he stop the storm that was coming?
“And if that guy was one of the Others?” I asked. “What happens when they come for us? What if they’ve figured out what happened to Isaac and Mary?”
“If I look into it, will it make you feel better?” he asked.
I nodded.
“Okay, tell me what this guy in black looked like.”
“Tall, tan, about our age, I think,” I said. “Maybe a little bit older? I’m not sure. He was definitely not from around here.”
“How do you know that?”
“He had long braided hair,” I said. “And there were wooden beads braided in.”
Jackson froze. His face went pale and he reached out to the desk to steady himself.
“What?” I asked, touching his arm lightly. “Do you know him?”
“No,” he said. “Don’t worry about it. I can handle it.”
“Wait,” I said, totally not buying his story. “You reacted when I said something about the beads. What is it?”
“Nothing,” he said, waving me off. “But I doubt it’s anything to worry about anyway. You’re just letting your imagination run away with you. Besides, I can handle the Others or anyone else who comes after you. Especially now that I’ve got some of my power back.”
I looked up at him and drew in an unsteady breath. “Are you ever going to tell me about that?” I asked. “Your powers, I mean. Are you ever going to show me what you can do? Or tell me exactly how or why you got them back?”
