“Sorry, sorry.” Phoebe pushed Piper along the hallway to their rooms. She stopped at her door. “Let’s just hope it’s Ivan’s charm and not his evil plans that will keep Prue out all night.”
“I’m with you on that,” Piper said with a deep sigh.
CHAPTER
14
Piper sat up in bed with a start. Had she been dreaming? Something about Prue . . . Then she remembered. She never heard Prue come home last night.
Piper leaped out of bed and scurried to Prue’s room. She didn’t even bother to knock, she just flung open the door. Yes! Prue’s bed was definitely slept in.
Wait a sec. Did Prue ever make her bed yesterday? They had left the house in such a hurry. It was possible those rumpled sheets were from the night before.
Piper dashed downstairs. Phoebe was sitting at the table, eating cereal. “Did she come home?” Piper demanded.
“Note,” Phoebe said, her mouth full. “Counter.”
“Not had your full quota of coffee yet?” Piper asked. Phoebe grunted a reply and reached for her coffee cup.
Piper found the note. “Oh, my goodness!” Piper exclaimed. “A fire?”
Phoebe nodded grimly. “Just like in my vision.”
Piper scanned the note quickly. Prue explained that Kristin had scheduled an early meeting. Because of the fire, the carnival would be crawling with reporters, so she wanted to be there first thing. Prue also asked Piper and Phoebe to please stay home and said that she’d try to be back early to fill them in on everything.
“ ‘Please don’t worry,’ ” Piper read from the note. She shook the paper at Phoebe. “As if.”
Phoebe took another swig of coffee. “There’s no way that we’re staying here. I’m convinced our big sister is in danger.”
Panic crossed Piper’s face. “She did come home, didn’t she?” Piper asked. “This isn’t some kind of magical bogus note?”
“Don’t think so. There was a coffee cup in the sink when I got up, and Prue’s hair conditioner was sitting on the edge of the shower. She was here.” Phoebe gave a sharp, decisive nod. “And now we’re going there.”
“Spoken like a fully caffeinated witch.” Piper grabbed some OJ from the fridge. She knocked back a swig.
“From the carton?” Phoebe asked, incredulous. “You must be worried.”
Piper replaced the carton and shut the fridge. “We need to know what she knows, and she needs to know what we know. You know?”
“I know. I mean, I think I know.” Phoebe’s brow furrowed. “What did you say?”
Piper shook her head. “Never mind. Let’s just go.”
The girls dressed in a hurry. Piper grabbed her coat from the hook in the front hall. “Phoebe?” Piper called. “You ready?”
“In a minute!” Phoebe’s voice came from somewhere upstairs. In a few minutes, she bounded down the stairs, tucking a piece of paper into the pocket of her pants.
“What’s that?” Piper asked.
“A little protection.” She patted her pocket. “I copied down the spell for fighting off that zombie. We may run into him.”
“Good thinking.”
The doorbell rang. “Are we expecting anyone?” Piper whispered.
“I don’t think Gypsy zombies ring doorbells,” Phoebe said.
Piper peered through the lace curtains hanging beside the front door. “Jenny,” she said. She swung open the door and gazed at the girl’s eager expression.
“Are we going back to the carnival?” Jenny asked.
Piper sighed. “Well, we are,” she told Jenny. “But we just can’t bring you with us.”
Jenny’s face fell. “You—you don’t want me tagging along anymore, is that it?”
“No, of course not, sweetie,” Piper assured the girl. “There was a terrible accident there last night. It’s not safe.”
“Oh.” Jenny looked disappointed but a lot less hurt. That’s a relief, Piper thought. One less thing to feel guilty about.
Phoebe and Piper drove to the park. By now the security guard at the back entrance recognized them and waved them right through. They had formulated something resembling a plan on the drive over. Phoebe would try to find Prue while Piper conferred with Olga. The fortune-teller might be of use. She could shed some light on the zombie, Ivan, everything.
Piper and Phoebe arrived at the grove where Olga stationed her vardo. “I’ll bring Prue back here,” Phoebe promised.
“Assuming you find her and she agrees to come with you,” Piper pointed out. “We have no idea what’s really going on with Ivan.”
“You’re right,” Phoebe agreed. “We may need to cast a reversal spell if Ivan is using some kind of charm on her.”
Phoebe gave Piper’s hand a quick squeeze, then headed in the direction of the tent. Piper turned to face Olga’s colorful wagon. Olga had been pretty vocal about the curse on Ivan. Piper hoped the woman’s concerns would make her willing to talk about what she believed about Ivan. If she could, Piper intended to avoid revealing that she was a witch, though she suspected Olga had already sensed that about her.
“Olga?” Piper called.
Olga popped her head out through the curtain hanging across the front door of the wagon. “Ah, the young lady with the two sisters.”
“Hello,” Piper said. “Actually, it’s because of one of those sisters that I wanted to see you,” Piper said.
Olga’s eyes narrowed and she nodded slowly. “Come in,” she said.
Piper followed Olga into the dark wagon. Piper’s nose crinkled a little. An acrid, smoky odor hung heavily in the air. Olga must have been making potions or charms, Piper thought. Jars sat open on the shelves, and herbs crunched under Piper’s feet as she crossed to the table. Olga isn’t the tidiest practitioner, she observed.
Olga gestured for Piper to sit at the table. “It has been a terrible day,” she said, sinking into the chair opposite Piper. “Have you heard about Miranda? Oh, so sad. Such a shame. It is all that Ivan’s fault.”
That caught Piper’s attention. Olga certainly opened the door for questions about Ivan. Piper cleared her throat, finding it hard to breathe freely in the close atmosphere. Something smelled like it had been dead for a few days. Piper wondered how frequently Olga took out the garbage. “How is it Ivan’s fault?” she choked out.
Olga slapped the table. “Why, the evil that is upon him, of course!” she exclaimed.
“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” Piper said. “My sister Prue seems very, well, attached to Ivan.”
Olga threw her thick arms into the air. “Then her very soul is at stake. He shall destroy her as he destroyed Miranda.”
Could Ivan have been responsible for Miranda’s death? Piper wondered. So far, Olga hadn’t been very forthcoming with exactly how Ivan accomplished his evil deeds. Piper opened her mouth to ask Olga for some specifics when the fortune-teller clutched Piper’s arm.
“I am so relieved that you have come to see me,” Olga said.
Piper tried not to flinch in Olga’s powerful grip. “Why?”
“I saw Ivan luring your sister into a secluded area, behind the carnival.” She released Piper’s arm and made a sign against the evil eye. “Who knows what he plans for her?”
“Oh, no!” Piper gasped.
“I would have tried to stop him,” Olga said, wringing her hands. “But I am old and weak. No match for his evil. But you—you are young and strong.” She leaned across the table toward Piper. “You have power!”
Piper was startled both by Olga’s choice of the word “power” and by the woman’s intensity. Although Olga didn’t seem at all frail, Piper figured she was so afraid of Ivan’s magic that she didn’t see herself as a match for him.
“Which way did they go?” Piper asked. Olga gave Piper directions to the path where she had last seen Ivan and Prue and where she thought he might be taking her.
“Thank you,” Piper said, rising from her seat.
“I only hope you are not too late
,” Olga moaned.
Piper hoped so, too. She dashed out of the vardo, blinking in the bright sunlight. Her head whipped around, searching out Phoebe.
There she was—running straight toward her! The sisters charged at each other.
“I couldn’t find Prue anywhere,” Phoebe blurted. She bent forward and placed her hands on her knees, catching her breath.
“That’s because Ivan has her!” Piper exclaimed.
“Olga told me where he took her.”
Phoebe straightened up. “Let’s book.”
Piper led Phoebe along a rutted path, leading into the wooded area of the park. The foliage was so thick that the trees and bushes blocked out some of the sounds from the carnival.
Piper shuddered. Today the park seemed dark and sinister. The first day of the carnival had seemed so bright and cheerful. She remembered how carefree she had felt just a few days ago. Sort of the way she had felt before coming into her power as a witch, she realized. Being a witch was such a responsibility and had brought so much darkness into her life.
It had brought great joy, too, Piper reminded herself. Rescuing an innocent, setting things right, bonding with her sisters—these were all the good side of being a witch. But times like these—being put into danger, not knowing if this would be the day the magic failed, or if they would finally be confronted by a more powerful demon, a trickier warlock—these were the times when Piper wished she and her sisters had never found The Book of Shadows.
She glanced at Phoebe jogging beside her. Phoebe had taken most easily to the knowledge. She was growing in her spell casting and developing her ability to have visions. Prue, too, had been expanding her skills. In addition to telekinesis, Prue had discovered her ability to astral project. Well, if anyone could find a way to be in two places at once, Piper thought, it would be her big sister, Prue.
“Shouldn’t we have found them by now?” Phoebe asked.
“Should be soon,” Piper promised. “Olga was sure Ivan was taking Prue to a clearing just around that bend up ahead.”
“Do you smell something weird?” Phoebe asked. “Like dead fish?”
Piper nodded. “I was trying not to notice.”
A figure in the bushes caught Piper’s eye. She grabbed Phoebe’s arm and pulled her to a stop. “Is that Ivan?” she whispered.
“I don’t know,” Phoebe replied.
Before they could discern the figure’s identity, it crashed out of the bushes, trailing branches and leaves. It reached out its long bony fingers as it stalked toward the sisters.
“The zombie,” Piper murmured.
“I think we’ve discovered the source of that funky stink,” Phoebe commented. “That guy’s been dead for a while.”
Piper stared at the zombie as it moved toward them. Her stomach clenched as her eyes traveled up its tattered clothing to its horrifying skull-like face. Her insides twisted even more as she gazed at the figure’s hollow eye sockets and its peeling skin.
“What are you waiting for?” Phoebe squeezed Piper’s elbow. “Time freeze him.”
“Right!” Piper snapped out of it. She flicked her fingers at the zombie, sending the freezing energy out of her hands.
He took another lurching step toward them.
“It didn’t work!” Piper gasped. She turned frightened eyes to Phoebe. She saw her terror mirrored in her sister’s expression. “You just can’t predict dead guys,” Phoebe quipped.
Piper knew Phoebe’s feeble joke was an attempt to mask her fear. “Now what?”
“Three . . .” the zombie rasped. Its hollow, rumbling voice sounded to Piper as if it came from some other world. The zombie took another step.
“Spell!” Piper exclaimed. “You have a spell!”
“Right!” Phoebe cried. She rummaged through her pockets. “Where did I put it?”
Piper searched Phoebe’s many jacket pockets. “Why are multiple pockets in this season?” she muttered. Phoebe twisted and turned, checking each of her shirt and pants pockets.
“Hurry,” Piper urged. “If he gets any closer I’m going to pass out from the stench before he has a chance to kill us.”
Phoebe held up a tiny slip of paper. “Got it!” she cheered.
The zombie was now close enough for Piper to see the insects crawling all over it—in its ears, its mouth, its eye sockets. Oh, man, Piper thought. We need to do this spell quick, before I hurl.
“Three,” the zombie intoned again, only this time Piper thought it sounded more like a question.
“Shut up,” Phoebe snapped at the zombie. She and Piper huddled close so they could both read the spell. “Go,” she ordered Piper. Piper nodded. Together they chanted:
“Minion of darkness, ancient Gypsy tool
Sent for destruction, mindless yet cruel,
We break your commands,
We shatter your rules.”
Piper glanced at Phoebe. “That’s kind of mean, isn’t it? The mindless bit?”
“Again!” Phoebe ordered. “Put everything into it. It might work only with the Power of Three.”
They repeated the chant over and over, their voices rising, their pace quickening. Each time they said the spell, Piper could feel it grow in power.
The zombie swayed, its hollow eye sockets locked on their faces as if it could see out of those empty holes. As their voices got louder, stronger, more urgent, the zombie began to break apart. Its body collapsed in on itself, as if it were hollow inside. The shell of the zombie caved in, until all that was left was a pile of foul-smelling dust.
Piper and Phoebe stood holding hands, breathing hard, staring at the spot where only moments ago the zombie had stood, bearing down on them. Phoebe slipped the spell back into her pants pocket. “This time I’ll remember where I put it,” she promised.
Something puzzled Piper. “The zombie seemed confused that there weren’t three of us,” she said, nodding slowly. “It was sent to destroy us so that the Power of Three would be neutralized.”
“We lucked out because we didn’t match its programming,” Phoebe realized. “So the spell worked even without Prue.”
Phoebe and Piper gaped at each other. “Prue!” they cried in unison.
“We have to get going!” Piper declared. “The zombie may have been sent to delay us from saving Prue from Ivan.”
The two girls raced toward the bend in the road. Piper was certain that was where they’d find Prue.
If they weren’t too late.
“Almost there,” Piper panted.
They careened around a large oak tree, its broad spreading limbs seeming to reach out at them. They skidded to a stop on the dirt path.
“Uh, Piper?” Phoebe said quietly.
“Yes, I see,” Piper replied.
No Ivan. No Prue.
Just a great big tiger!
CHAPTER
15
Purely on instinct Piper threw up her hands and willed the tiger to stop.
The powerful creature froze midleap. Piper gave a quick thanks that her power had worked on the animal. After the run-in with the zombie she wasn’t sure it would.
She stared at the tiger. Its massive front paws reached out, claws extended. Its mouth was stretched back in a hideous grimace, its sharp teeth looking deadly and huge. Piper knew that if she hadn’t frozen the creature in time, she and Phoebe would be tiger treats right now.
They might still wind up snack food! Piper’s heart thudded as she saw another tiger creeping forward. Its belly was low to the ground as it approached stealthily. Any moment now the creature would pounce. Piper channeled her energy and sent the freeze out of her fingers toward the tiger. It froze, crouched low.
“Piper! Over there!” Phoebe grabbed Piper’s arm and pointed toward another pathway. One of Ivan’s bears was lumbering toward them. It threw back its head and let out an angry roaring growl. Piper froze it.
The air in front of her wavered. The first tiger was unfreezing. She zapped it again, then whirled to freeze the second t
iger. Just in time she noticed a movement behind her. Without even looking to see the attacker, she sent a freeze over her shoulder.
Phoebe glanced back. “A lion,” she gasped. “These are all of Ivan’s animals! They’ve been set loose!”
“And they don’t stay frozen!” Piper wailed. She refroze the bear. “They must have some kind of protective charm on them. Keep your eyes out for any more,” she ordered Phoebe. “I can’t remember how many animals Ivan has!”
Phoebe stood with her back to Piper. “I’ve got this direction covered.”
Another bear crashed through the bushes, and Piper froze it. She could tell her power was weakening. She was getting exhausted. She had never had to freeze so many creatures at once, over and over. How much longer could she keep going?
“Where’s Prue?” Phoebe asked. “Are we too late? Did Ivan feed her to the animals?”
“I don’t know,” Piper replied. “I can’t think about it. I need to concentrate. You think about how we’re going to get out of here in one piece.” She refroze the tigers again, then turned and caught the lion.
Voices! Piper heard two familiar voices back in the woods. Prue and Ivan. Her heart started pounding again. Is this where Phoebe’s vision comes true? Is Ivan going to strangle me?
Ivan and Prue were coming toward the clearing from a path off the side, away from the ones the animals were using. Ivan was luring Prue here to have the animals maul her, Piper realized. We weren’t too late—we were too early! He must have taken her the long way around. Probably pretending this was some nice romantic stroll. Ha!
Prue and Ivan sauntered out from among the trees.
“Prue, run!” Piper shrieked.
A look of shock crossed Ivan’s face. Piper wasted no time. She froze him.
“Prue, go!” Phoebe yelled. “It’s feeding time at the zoo!”
“What—” Prue’s eyes flicked from frozen animal to frozen animal.
“I can’t keep them frozen,” Piper shouted. “Get out of here.”
“Not a chance,” Prue declared.
The air around Ivan wavered. Piper knew her depleted energy must be affecting her freezing power. “Keep an eye on Ivan,” Piper told Phoebe. “You may have to take him out the old-fashioned way. I have to keep dealing with the animals.”
Charmed: The Gypsy Enchantment Page 11
