by Erin Johnson
My stomach turned. Great, another secret to keep from Hank. Then again, if we were really going to break into Carclaustra, I was going to be dead soon anyway, so did it even matter?
Horace looked up and behind me, over my head. “And that goes for psychic girlfriends, too, vampire.”
A chill washed over me. Horace knew Francis was here?
Maple and I shrieked and ducked as a black shape swooped down from overhead—a giant black bat. I wrapped my fingers over the flour-dusted edge of the worktable and rose to a crouch. I peered over the edge and found a tornado of magic careening through the bakery. The giant, hairy bat screeched and dove for Horace’s head. My brother shot an arm out and grabbed Sam’s heavy wooden rolling pin. He whirled and swung at the bat, but Francis resumed his more human form midair and caught the rolling pin in his long, thin fingers. With his supernatural strength, he wrenched the pin from Horace and snapped it in two.
Sam whimpered. He cowered on the other side of the table from the fight and blinked at the broken pieces of his rolling pin.
“We’ll fix it, Sam,” I whisper-yelled at him as I held my hands to the side of my mouth.
He nodded, then skittered back as Francis knocked a baking pan off the table and nearly onto his head. The vampire swiped for my brother, only to close his strong hand around thin air. Where Horace had been, a black mouse now skittered along the floor. Francis became a bat once more and dove. Right before his mouth closed around the mouse, Horace transformed into a black cat, flipped onto his back, and swiped at the bat. At which point Francis transformed into his vampire form and went for the cat. The chase went on and on, under and over tables and in the air. I grabbed Maple’s arm and pulled her back as Francis and Horace, in human form, rolled over a table and crashed to the floor beside us. We scrambled away and hid behind one end of the table.
“I hope Francis bites his little mouse head off.” Annie clenched her fists and shot metaphorical daggers at the whirling blur. I gulped. Point taken—never threaten Annie’s grandchildren… not like I’d planned to. She raised her wand, but Wiley shook his head.
“You might hit Francis.”
She huffed through her nose and crouched lower behind the table.
“What should we do?” Maple let out a whimper as they rolled into a pantry alcove and the sound of shattering glass followed. “They’re going to destroy the whole bakery.”
They rolled back out a moment later. The blur of motion came to a halt when Horace resumed human shape and flung a spell at Francis. He froze midair and a purplish haze shimmered around him. Horace’s chest heaved and he slumped against the nearest table, where broken spoons, bowls, and cookie cutters lay strewn in pieces. His left shoulder showed through the hole in his jacket sleeve and blood trickled from his lip. He roughly wiped the back of his mouth. The haze around Francis dimmed and the vampire trembled.
“Hear me, vampire—and all of you.” He blinked, as if trying to focus his pale eyes. “You know I’m leader of the Badlands Army. Do you really think killing me would save your families? I have operatives posted throughout the kingdoms. If they don’t hear from me at an appointed time, they have orders to kill all your families and friends and you, yourselves.” He paused to catch his breath.
My eyes slid to Francis. The vampire blinked—the spell was wearing off.
“So you have a choice to make. Join me in my plan, or choose to suffer as everyone around you is killed—and then die yourselves.” He gave a slow blink and slid his eyes to Francis. The vampire writhed now, wrenching his arms free from the enchantment. “Vampire, I know you have… special circumstances. I won’t ask you to participate in the plan, but I will ask for your silence, or you risk everyone you care about.” Horace shrugged. “And since vampires aren’t famed for their sentimentality, I’ll sweeten the deal.”
Francis bared his teeth and hissed, saliva dripping from his fangs. I shrank back and leaned against Maple beside me. I’d forgotten how scary Francis could be.
Horace appeared unfazed. “The spell you seek, the one that binds you to this bottom-feeding royal family—I have it.”
Francis’s black eyes widened and his face relaxed some.
“Keep your bloody mouth shut, and it’s yours.”
Was that a pun?
“Maybe you’ll finally figure out a way to break it.”
Francis’s nostrils flared and his dark eyes blazed with hunger. “I’ve been searching hundreds of years for it—why should I believe you have it?” The spell broke and he reached Horace in two long, gliding strides, his feet hovering a couple of inches above the ground.
This time Horace lifted his chin and held his ground. I gulped—I had to give him props for staring up into the face of an angry vampire like that.
“I’ve been many places and seen many things, vampire. I have the spell—on my honor.”
Annie snorted. “The honor of a man who threatens to kill children in cold blood.”
Horace ignored her and looked up at Francis, awaiting his answer.
The vampire lifted his pale nose and closed his eyes. He took a deep, long sniff and held his breath. He exhaled and opened his dark eyes to look down at Horace. “You smell of truth.”
I frowned. Really? Horace was telling the truth?
Horace gave the vampire a lazy once-over. “So… we have a deal? Your silence for the spell—and your freedom?”
I shook my head. “Wait—so this spell would free you, Francis, from being tied to King Roch and Hank’s family?”
Francis swung his head to me. “Perhaps. If I could find a loophole, or devise a counter spell.”
Huh. I hadn’t realized that was possible.
Horace’s throat bobbed. “I’m surprised you haven’t joined me already, vampire, with all they’ve done to you.”
Francis didn’t answer. My eyes widened—how badly was Francis treated that he’d consider joining the Badlands Army? Then again, I’d been prepared to go to the Badlands with Horace myself.
“Do we have deal, vampire?” My brother lifted a brow ever so slightly.
Francis stared at him. “If you truly have the spell, you know in what way I am bound.”
Horace’s lips quirked to the side. “I do.”
Francis’s eyes slid to us bakers, hiding behind a table, then back to Horace. He let out a low, throaty growl. “Fine. It’s a deal.”
I shook my head and muttered to myself, “I don’t like this.”
Annie made a disgusted noise. “Ugh. How can he go along with it?”
“Francisss isssn’t going to help usss?” Sam clasped his hands together at his chest.
Wiley shook his head. “Sorry, buddy, looks like we’re on our own.”
I glanced at K’ree’s empty spot. “K’ree left at the right time.”
Annie scoffed. “You mean before we all got arrested trying to break into the kingdoms’ highest security prison?”
I curled my lip. “Yeah. That.”
“I think we have to go along with it, too.” Maple gulped. “We can’t let him…. If he hurt my family, I’d—”
Wiley grabbed her shoulders in his big hands. “He’s not going to.” He gritted his teeth. “We won’t let him. We’ll think up some way to trap him or tell someone or—”
Maple shook her head. “We can’t—he said his army is ready to act and—”
“They won’t act if we have their leader,” Wiley hissed as we all gathered close. I glanced over my shoulder to Horace and Francis, who stood in conversation. What were they talking about?
Annie hugged her arms tight around herself. “No.”
I raised my brows. “But I thought you—”
She shook her head. “No. We can’t risk it. I don’t want to go along with this any more than any of you do, but you saw what I saw. Francis couldn’t even catch him, or stop him. Francis.”
“Annie, I know you’re scared—I am, too. But….” I sighed. “Look, I know you’re all going to think I’m just being gu
llible, but part of me has a really hard time believing Horace would actually kill all the people we care about and if we—”
“He set the fire monster on us.” Maple slowly slid her eyes from her lap to my face. “He was ready to kill a whole city.”
I gulped. “Yeah. Maybe you’re right.” I widened my eyes. “But maybe Wiley’s right. Look, this morning Hank and I found this skeleton in a coffin made of swallow’s mew. If we could somehow trap Horace in it, he’d be powerless and maybe we could ransom him back to the Badlands Army in exchange for our families’ safety.”
Wiley closed an eye and scratched his ear. “Back up to that part about a skeleton.”
“What are you guys talking about?” Iggy shouted from across the room.
I quickly filled them in on the room we’d found, but Annie and Yann were unconvinced.
I looked to Maple.
“Sorry, Imogen.” She pouted. “It’s a good idea, but I don’t think we can win against the Badlands Army.”
A muscle jumped in Wiley’s jaw but he kept quiet.
“Sam? What do you think?”
He turned to me and pushed his glasses up his nose. They magnified his already large eyes. “You guysss are my family and my friendsss.”
Maple looked up and pressed a hand to her heart.
Sam’s glasses slipped and he pushed them back up his nose, then hung his arms at his sides. “My mother devoured all my brothersss and sssisstersss at birth.”
My eyes widened.
Wiley shifted and cleared his throat. “O-kay.”
“Ssshe wasss a sssnake.” Sam nodded. “Ssso. Ssso, if you guysss feel the way about your familiesss that I feel about you, then we ssshould do whatever it takesss to keep them sssafe.” Sam hung his head and his glasses slid again.
I moved over to him and slid an arm around his shoulders. “Sam. We feel that way about you, too, you know?”
His eyes flicked to mine. He blinked at me a few times. “Really?”
“Of course.” Annie planted her hands on her hips. She shook her head. “I don’t want to risk any of your lives, either. But… well, that’s where we’re at, isn’t it? No good choices.” She blew a gray strand out of her face. “That’s the thing though, isn’t it—at least we’re choosing to do this together. Our families and friends—I just don’t think we can make that choice to put them at risk without them having any idea what they’re getting into.”
“I choose to help break into thee prison.” Yann puffed up his massive chest. His apron barely covered a tiny portion of it.
Sam nodded.
Annie grinned. “Who knows, maybe it’ll be kind of exciting.”
I frowned. “Seriously?”
Her lips quirked to the side.
Maple shrugged. “I’m in, too.”
Wiley gave the slightest of nods.
“All right.” I scoffed. “Looks like we’re breaking into Carclaustra with Horace.” My nerves hummed and buzzed and my stomach twisted. This was actually happening. I bit my lip—maybe Horace was bluffing?
I looked down at my feet. “I’m really, really sorry, you guys.”
I gulped as no one answered.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about what happened in the Fire Kingdom. And I’m sorry—” Tears trickled down my face. “I’m sorry that I’ve gotten you into this.”
Maple slid her arm around my shoulders and Sam took my hand—though he did it by wrapping his whole hand around my thumb. I gave him a watery smile—almost got it, buddy.
“Yes, you were going to go to the Badlands with Horace,” Maple began.
“Your very scary brother,” Wiley interjected.
She shot him a look. “But when you found out that he planned to unleash a monster on us, you risked your life to warn us and help save the city.” She hugged me closer as tears trickled down my cheeks. “I may not understand why you need to know him, but I know that it’s coming from a good place. Everything you do, Imogen, you do with a good heart.”
I pressed my hands to my hot, wet face. “I’m just so sorry. I feel responsible for getting you all involved. I mean—if we do this—it’s a suicide mission, right?” I raised my head and looked around the little circle.
Annie stared at me hard a moment, then her face softened. “Maybe… maybe we just need to think of it as a crazy adventure.”
Yann’s shoulders shook with a chuckle and the corner of my mouth peeled up. Well, that was some positive thinking.
“And Imogen, everyone’s got a black sheep in their family.” Annie grinned. “For me, it’s my cousin Darryl. He got involved in this dragon fire pyramid scheme and—”
She was cut off as Horace clapped. We all jumped and turned. Francis had disappeared—maybe he’d flown out the open windows? Then again, the guy floated over the ground—it wasn’t as if we’d have heard him leave.
“So—do we have a deal?”
I frowned at my brother. The half-closed lids, the slight pout to his lips—he always looked bored, lazy. But below that lay a calculating, fierce, and troubled mind. Maybe the appearance of laziness was intentional, disarming. I sighed. He’d certainly fooled me into thinking he might actually care for me, that he might have some redeeming qualities.
“You’re threatening our families and friends. What choice do we have?” I shook my head. “You know, this whole thing is ridiculous. How are we supposed to break in there? If you want to kill us, you should just get it over with.”
Yann raised a thick finger. “I am not having da agreement wit dat.”
Horace let out a heavy sigh. “So little faith. I have blueprints to the prison.”
I folded my arms. “Which you killed a man to get.”
He flipped a palm up. “I had a man get them for me, and he made the decision to kill for them, not I.”
I rolled my eyes and sniffed. He expected me to forgive him on technicalities?
“I have a plan, one that we’ll go over in a few days after you’ve arrived in the Air Kingdom.”
“How do you know we’re going—” Maple shook her head. “You know, never mind.”
“So.” He folded his long fingers. Despite his ruffled hair, torn jacket, and bloodied lip, he still managed to look collected and in charge. “I’ll ask again. Do we have a deal?”
The other bakers and I all exchanged looks. I saw my own fear reflected in their eyes, but determination, too.
I glared at my brother. “Yes.” The others nodded and agreed as well.
“Good.”
Maple lifted a finger. Her voice came out small and quiet. “Why are we doing this?”
He cleared his throat. “There’s someone—someones I need to break out of Carclaustra.”
My stomach turned with nerves and fear. Part of me still couldn’t believe this was really happening.
“Who?” Maple gulped.
I snorted. “Isn’t it obvious? His lover and best friend—Pritney and Nate.” I glared at my brother. “Never mind that they tried to kill me.”
Horace’s lips quirked slightly upwards. “From what I’ve been told, they tried to kill your boyfriend and his family, but you interceded and absorbed all the poison into yourself. At which point, Nate did indeed try to save you.”
I folded my arms and grumbled. “Another technicality. And he wasn’t doing a very good job.”
Horace looked amused. “You did consume enough poison to kill ten people.”
“Whatever.” Good comeback, Imogen. I looked up suddenly. “Hey—why are we doing this? I mean, you have an army of trained operatives—why not use them instead of a bunch of bakers to break in?”
Horace’s face darkened and I shrank back some. “Because this, despite my careful plans, is a suicide mission. Not only do I not want to risk any of my army, but for this to work I need people who have everything riding on the line—and who are used to sacrificing for each other.” He looked around the room. “You each have skills—you will need to employ them to the best of your ability
to survive this.”
I gulped, my throat tight.
“We’ll go over all of it in a few days. For now, remember that you cannot tell anyone… at least, if you want to live.” He pushed off the table he’d been leaning on. “I’ll see you in the city of clouds.” He walked toward the heavy doors to the bakery.
I frowned. “How are you going to get out of here?”
“The way I came.” He blinked at me.
“Which is how?” I shook my head. “The swallow gates are still in effect.”
He let out a dry chuckle. “The palace’s security measures are a joke. I turned into a bird and flew over the wall. I distracted a guard and waltzed through the gate unobserved. Or maybe I levitated up from the cliffside—do you want me to continue?”
I scowled.
“This is nothing to the security at Carclaustra.” He looked at each of us. “If we’re going to pull this off, you all need to start thinking a lot bigger.”
With a whoosh of magic that ruffled the pages of a nearby recipe book, Horace transformed into a mouse again and scuttled out under the door.
“Or a lot smaller!” Iggy cackled from the oven. “Because of—he turned into a mouse. Nobody?”
7
Having a Ball
“Oof!” I doubled over and slipped my heel back into my black stiletto. Why had I ever thought these were a good idea? My feet throbbed already. And they were definitely not the shoes to try and run in, even if I was late for the first ball of the spring celebration.
I straightened and smoothed my dress with one hand, my velvet clutch in the other. I’d chosen this silk, floor-length gown with its fantastical floral pattern of winding vines and mythical birds because it felt light as air—perfect for the Air Kingdom. It had a low cowl neck that showed just a hint of the lacy black slip I wore underneath. The three-quarter sleeves made my arms look good, and the knee-high slit showed off my calves. I grinned to myself. That’s why I’d chosen these insanely high heels—my legs looked pretty great, if I did say so myself.
I gingerly patted my bun and confirmed it still sat perfectly atop the crown of my head. I took careful, slightly wobbly steps across the polished marble floor of the giant balcony that formed the foyer to the party.
