Maxie Duncan Box Set

by Webb, Melissa L.

  She pulled my tee-shirt aside and stared at my bandage. “Have you had anyone look at this?”

  I shook my head, gritting in pain. Now wasn’t the time to ask me questions. Couldn’t she see I was dying? She pulled back the bandage, tugging at my skin as she did. I bit back a scream as it felt like my whole shoulder came off with it.

  “Oh my Gods,” Van said, staring down at the wound in my flesh. That wasn’t good. Maybe she had peeled off my whole shoulder.

  I looked, my head crowding Van’s as I tried to see what the damage was. I gasped in horror when I saw the red, puffy flesh. It peeled and oozed, festering right before our eyes. It was infected. There was no doubt about that. But that’s not what had me scared.

  Black swirls swam out from the wound, covering my well tanned skin from breast bone to my back. It looked like a child had used me as an art project.

  “Can that come off?” I asked.

  She licked her finger, rubbing lightly at one of the swirls. I cried out in pain at her touch. She pulled her hand away quickly and looked back at me. “No.” The infection in my shoulder was spreading, turning my skin black as it went.

  I was going to die.

  Van ran to the bathroom and back, slipping a new bandage in place, before pulling my tee-shirt back down. “We’re going to see Jensen. Now!”

  Twenty Nine

  Van raced through L.A. like we had a devil on our back. And maybe we did, only it was on my shoulder. I cried out with every bump. The pain reached out, making me feel like my whole body was one exposed nerve. Thank God the traffic was light, but it was still the longest 35 minutes of my life. When we got to Long Beach, I was barely conscious. The pain was so bad I would have paid someone to kill me right then.

  Van found Jensen’s store with ease,(Of course, she had probably been there a million times.) pulling up against the curb right outside the front door. “Wait right here,” she said as she jumped out of the car, her door slamming shut behind her.

  Yeah, like I was going anywhere. All I wanted to do was curl up in the fetal position and die. I raised my head and looked at the building. It was a rundown, tiny hole-in-the-wall place, but at least it was across the street from the beach. He must get a lot of the tourists. No wonder he opened it so far away from the Cove.

  Dropping my head, I started breathing through a particularly bad wave of pain. My door was suddenly yanked opened. “Oh God, Maxie,” I heard Jensen mutter. With a sudden click of my seatbelt, strong arms wrapped around me. I cried out in pain as I was lifted out of the car.

  “I’m sorry. I’m being as gentle as I can,” Jensen whispered against my hair. I knew he was, but every inch we went felt like miles of hot blades against my skin, stabbing and cutting, until I had no skin left. I didn’t know whether to scream or cry. To tell the truth, I was probably doing both. It would explain the soft comforting words Jensen whispered against my ear.

  We got inside, Jensen laying me down on a black leather couch. I gasped at the pain in my back as I made contact with it. What? Did he have his couch stuffed with barbed wire or something?

  Jensen turned and looked at Van. “Come with me,” he said quietly.

  It was quiet as I laid there, suddenly realizing they had left me all alone. Was this Van’s great plan? Frantically rush me here so I could die on Jensen’s couch? Alone? Here I thought she wanted to save me, when in reality she just didn’t want me to die in her apartment.

  I let my eyes flutter closed as I fought another tidal wave of pain. I was dying. I was sure of it, and suddenly I didn’t care so much. Not as long as it meant the pain would stop.

  “Here you go,” Van’s soothing voice washed over me like a balm, bringing me back from the pain. I felt something cool and wet pressed against my forehead as Van hovered over me. “It’s okay, Maxie. Just hold on.”

  “Okay, let me see this,” Jensen’s voice joined Van’s as he no doubt hovered over me, too. Gentle fingers fluttered over my skin as my tee-shirt was tugged aside once again. “I’m sorry about this,” he murmured softly as fire bit down into my shoulder. I wondered how much skin came off with this bandage.

  Silence filled the room as I tried to focus on my breathing. Pain washed over me in a thick, red haze, but I fought against it, refusing to be dragged down into an unconscious abyss.

  Someone shifted nervously above me. “Have you ever seen anything like this, Jensen?”

  “No. I haven’t.”

  Fingers drifted against my cheek, pulling me back to the people next to me. My eyes fluttered opened and I stared into Jensen’s concerned face. “What did this to you, Maxie?” he asked softly.

  I focused on him, on the glint the florescent lights reflected off his glasses, and swallowed, forcing the pain away. “I don’t know,” I said thickly, my tongue much too big for my mouth. Why was it so hard to talk? “Some dumb red bird.”

  Jensen looked at me a moment longer, slowly taking his fingers away from my cheek and then turned, reaching for a very large, very old leather book behind him. I was dying and he wanted to play librarian. Excellent. He flipped through the ancient pages, sending dust into the air around us. Okay, so if the bite didn’t kill me, allergies would.

  He silently studied the pages in front of him. Suddenly, he looked up at me, a strange look on his face. “This bird didn’t happen to talk, did it?”

  I nodded weakly, which turned the volume up on the pain. “Yes,” I grunted through gritted teeth. I felt a hand slip into mine, silent support in the face of adversity. I didn’t know who it was and I didn’t care. I focused on their energy and continued, “They called themselves Bang Gories, or something ridiculous like that.”

  “Byangorma?”

  “Yeah. That’s it.’

  Jensen let out the breath he had been holding. “This isn’t good.” His eyes locked onto mine, a sadness deep within them. “It bit you?”

  “Yes,” I breathed, feeling weaker by the moment. I tightened my fingers around the hand in mine, never letting go of Jensen’s gaze. I was a witch, darn it. I wouldn’t let this be the way I went out.

  “Maxie,” he said my name softly. “It says Byangorma saliva causes death within four hours.”

  “That can’t be right,” Van said excitedly next to us. “It’s already been 24 hours since the attack.”

  He looked at her, shocked. “You’re kidding.” He turned and looked at me, frustration in his eyes. “Why didn’t you come see me right away?” he demanded.

  “What can I say? I’m stubborn,” I told him, the last of my strength leaving with that admission. I was going to die and it would be my own fault. If only I wasn’t so adamant about doing things my own way.

  Jensen leaned close, his fingers once again on my flushed cheek. “You’re also a whole lot stronger than anyone gives you credit for.” Closing his eyes, he hummed softly. It was a tuneless melody that seemed to reverberate through my bones. The fingers of his other hand traveled to my shoulder, probing softly at first, then clamping down, opening a conduit between us.

  I cried out in pain and the hand in mine tightened, obviously Van’s, unless Jensen had a third I didn’t know about, sending me warmth that reminded me of a summer’s day.

  Jensen’s humming grew louder until it turned into words. Words I didn’t understand. But I guess that didn’t matter, because with each word, the pain diminished, until, after what seemed like an eternity, it disappeared all together. His fingers were soft on my skin as he ran them over my shoulder. “There. Done. But I can’t do anything about these.”

  I sat up gently, glancing down at my shoulder. The black swirls were still there. They looked like some kind of tribal tattoo. I wondered just how much of my body now looked liked that. My mother was so going to kill me. “But…I’m not dying?” I asked, fixing my tee-shirt. It still surprised me what magic could do.

  “No,” Jensen said, shaking his head. “You’re not dying.”

  “Thank the Gods,” Van said, pushing Jensen out of the way and
hugging me in relief.

  Jensen laughed as he picked up the book and sat it on a desk across the room. “She wouldn’t even have come that close, if she had come to me sooner,” he said, looking at me. “I could have probably even stopped the black marks.”

  I sighed as Van let go of me. That would have been nice, but how was I supposed to know I was becoming the tattooed lady? Still…this was my own fault and I owed Jensen big time. “Thanks,” I told him. “I won’t wait so long next time.”

  “You better not,” he said in mock anger, but I could tell I had scared him. Both of them. A lot.

  Looking around the room, I realized we were in some kind of office. Must be Jensen’s office, except…this room was as big at the building I saw outside. Had they taken me in someplace else? This couldn’t possibly be the office to the bookstore.

  They both watched me, a knowing smile spreading over Jensen’s lips. He stepped away from the desk, coming closer to me. “You’re probably wondering where you are, aren’t you?”

  I nodded as I continued to look around the room. “We can’t possibly be in the bookstore.”

  His smile deepened. “Oh, you’d be surprised. Come on,” he said, holding a hand out for me.

  I slipped my hand into his, letting him pull me to my feet, grateful for the help. I wasn’t sure if I could stand on my own yet.

  He didn’t let go as he led me into a cavernous area filled with bookshelves as far as the eye could see. “Welcome to Curiouser and Curiouser. My pride and joy,” he said, motioning to the stacks around us.

  I blinked in shock. Something wasn’t right. This place was huge, and we’re not talking bookstore huge. It was more like two-story mall huge. This had to be a joke. They had snuck me into some warehouse while I was out of it. I turned around, glancing behind us. A check-out counter stood there, next to some window displays and the front door. Van’s car sat parked at the curb, silently waiting our return. I turned back and stared at them. Jensen and Van both had amused looks on their faces.

  “When are you going to stop being so shocked when you encounter something unknown, Maxie?” Jensen asked, squeezing my hand slightly. “You need to get used to it. It’s your world now.”

  I let my hand slip from his, taking a step forward. The shack outside had been roughly the size of a pre-school classroom. There was no way this could fit in it and I was just supposed to accept that? I turned quickly, looking at them. “But it’s bigger on the inside,” I exclaimed.

  Van giggled. “They always say that.”

  Jensen shrugged. “It’s a simple expansion enchantment. Nothing too fancy.”

  Nothing too fancy? This man could heal the dying and take space that didn’t even exist, and he thinks it’s not a big deal? What could he do if he really tried?

  “Okay, time to get down to business,” Jensen said suddenly, all the humor gone from his face. “What’s going on, Maxie? The attack in the elevator, and now this? They aren’t just random, are they?”

  “I have no idea,” I told him and meant it. How was I supposed to know anything? Two months ago, I was only a spoiled rich girl, and now reality kept shifting on me. Tomorrow I’d probably wake up to find my shoes talking to me. And let me tell you, the price I pay for shoes, they’d have one heck of an attitude.

  “Ryan told Maxie he’s a vampire this morning.”

  “It’s about damn time,” Jensen muttered, glancing over at me. I turned away quickly, hoping to hide the betrayal in my eyes.

  “I told her about Richard Everheart,” Van continued, “I’m beginning to think he might be the one behind these attacks.”

  “I wouldn’t be surprised. He wouldn’t want anything to pull his heir even farther from the empire.”

  Vampire Empire? I couldn’t help but giggle at that one. Was that something they really called it? How could you be evil and still call your domain that?

  “Maxie, this is serious,” Van said, frustration in her voice.

  “You have no idea what Richard Everheart is capable of,” Jensen added, trying to make me see reason.

  “Okay, I get it. This is bad,” I told them, a little frustrated myself. Of course, I knew this was bad. I had been the one attacked. “What do you want me to do about it? If you haven’t noticed, there’s not much I can do right now.”

  Jensen nodded. “I know. We need to fix that. There’s some books on the back wall which might help,” he told me, sympathy clouding his eyes. “Most witches know what they are from an early age. They spend their childhood developing their powers, learning to control them. Unfortunately, you’ll have to play catch-up. We just don’t have time to do it the usual way. I’m sorry.”

  It was my turn to nod. It wasn’t his fault I didn’t know who I was. Yet, I knew he’d help me in every way he could, even if I wasn’t his responsibility. “Thank you. I know I have to get control of them. I’d feel safer if I did.”

  “We all feel that way, Max,” Van said, sincerity making her words mean even more.

  “Why don’t you head back there?” Jensen said. “You can’t miss it. The whole back wall is covered in the books we need. There’s a table and chairs back there as well.” He glanced over at Van. “We’ll meet you back there, Maxie.”

  “Okay,” I said, before turning around and heading into the stacks, praying I wouldn’t get lost. Jensen should offer a map to his customers. Even malls had that “you are here” thing.

  I glanced over my shoulder, suddenly feeling very alone. I couldn’t even see the front anymore. I couldn’t make out Van and Jensen’s voices. It probably was for the best. I knew they were talking about me. Probably pitying the poor little witch who didn’t even have enough sense not to get involved with vampires.

  Well, it wasn’t like I knew, was it? Not one of them had come out and said, “Run, Maxie. Ryan’s a vampire.” That would have been nice. An honest warning. Though, truthfully, it probably wouldn’t have mattered much. Like I would have believed them at the time.

  I walked forever it seemed. Finally when it felt like I was in another zip code, I reached the back wall. There was a table, chairs, a few couches, and several of those strange egg shaped chairs I could never remember the name of. Sun light spilled in through the windows scattered around. I glanced down the wall. It went on for miles in both directions. I sure hoped the books we wanted were in this section, because I wasn’t walking anymore.

  I moved to a shelf, running my fingers along the spines of the books as I read the titles. These were the ones. It seemed everything on this shelf had something to do with witchcraft and magic. I started pulling books off the shelf, placing them on the large, round wooden table nearby. I didn’t know what I was looking for, but I was sure Jensen could find something useful in one of the books.

  I started to relax, a calming sensation flowing over me as I pulled a chair out and sat down. This place was amazing. I loved old bookstores and this one was the most magnificent one I had ever seen. It had a “welcome home” vibe as if the store itself had been waiting for me. I smiled at that thought. I think I had found my new favorite hangout.

  Grabbing a book off the top, I started flipping through it as I waited. Maybe I’d get lucky and find one called Witchcraft for Dummies, cause that’s what I felt like. A dummy that would die before she got her powers under control.

  I wasn’t that lucky. Not one dummy book among the pile. Just a lot of old books with archaic words I didn’t understand. Huffing in frustration, I pushed the books aside. Except for passages like “no doubt in your heart,” “pure of mind,” and my personal favorite “know you can do it,” it was all nonsense to me. There was no way I was going to figure it out on my own. I had a better chance of winning the Nobel Prize for my achievements in Quantum Physics. AKA, never going to happen.

  Tapping my nails in frustration, I looked around, waiting for my friends. What was taking them so long? Was it possible that Jensen could get lost in his own store?

  A tap echoing mine sounded on the window be
hind me. I turned, wondering if they had walked down here from outside. It certainly would have been a faster trip. The window was empty. Nothing but buildings lay beyond it.

  With a shrug, I went back to tapping my nails. Must have been a trick of sound, nothing more than my own taps bouncing back at me. Besides, I didn’t know why I had thought it would be Jensen or Van, it wasn’t even like there was a door in this part of the building.

  More tapping followed mine. I listened to it, then tapped again. The tapping copied mine perfectly. That wasn’t an echo. There was someone behind me. I spun quickly, hoping to catch whoever was toying with me. And this time I wasn’t disappointed.

  A small blonde girl stood there, peeking in the window. She smiled at me, her pig tails blowing slightly in the breeze.

  “Elizabeth?” I said, startled. I rose, going to the window as fast as I could and stared down at the girl. “What are you doing here?”

  Her eyes darted nervously around her. “Help me, Maxie. I’m scared.”

  “Why?” I asked her, but I knew she needed help if she was here, it really didn’t matter why. “How did you get here?” Elizabeth was my next door neighbor’s daughter. I mean next door to my house in New Haven, Maine. The Freemont’s weren’t careless with their nine-year-old daughter. Especially not careless enough to lose her all the way cross country. There was absolutely no reason for her to be in L.A.. Not unless someone was using her to get to me.

  “Elizabeth, sweetheart, what’s wrong?

  She looked over her shoulder, her eyes widening in terror. “They’re here, Maxie. They want to hurt me. You have to stop them.”

  I pressed closer to the window, desperately trying to see her attackers. “Who is, honey? Who’s out there?” I asked as calmly as I could, even though calm was the last thing I was at the moment.

  “Please,” she begged, panic in her voice. “You have to stop them.” Tears clung to her lashes as she stared up at me, hopeless in her fear.

  “Okay. It’s okay,” I said and looked around me. How could I help her? There wasn’t any way to get to her. Wait. I couldn’t, but maybe my friends could. I turned around, peering down one of the aisles. Where were they anyway? “Guys!” I screamed. “There’s a little girl outside who needs help. You need to go to her. Please!”