by L. J. Smith
Nick pulled Cassie aside. “You’re avoiding me. There’s no reason for that. If we have to talk about it, we should talk about it.”
Cassie’s mind began swimming too fast to complete a coherent sentence. “I don’t know what happened last night,” she said. “I’m sorry, I haven’t been myself lately.”
“Take it easy,” Nick said. “Nothing catastrophic happened.”
“Nick, I kissed you. I practically jumped your bones. Adam would think it was pretty catastrophic.”
Nick smirked. “True. But I kind of understand why it happened.”
“I wish I understood. I’ve been working so hard to get you to be my friend again, and then I go and …” Cassie couldn’t finish the sentence.
“Look, it was just a fleeting moment,” Nick said dismissively. “I’ve had a million moments where I wanted to do something like that.”
“You have?” Cassie took a deep breath. “I don’t want this to mean—”
“It doesn’t mean we should be anything more again,” Nick said. “Or that you should jeopardize what you have with Adam. I get that.”
This cool reaction from Nick didn’t exactly match their heated exchange yesterday, but Cassie would take what she could get. “You forgive me then,” she said.
Nick shook his head. “Stuff happens sometimes, Cassie. Especially between good friends. Wires get crossed; things get confused.”
“So that’s what we are?” Cassie asked. “Good friends? Still?”
Nick avoided the question by glancing at the movie he was missing. “Although it was a pretty hot kiss, if I do say so myself.” He smiled, and Cassie tried to ignore the slightly condescending note in his voice.
The fact was, she was lucky enough to have not one but two guys in her life who really cared about her. If only she felt worthy of either of them right now.
She thought back to her tense conversation with Adam. If they were drifting apart, she wasn’t going to let their relationship end without a fight. Refusing to let Scarlett, or Nick, or anyone get between them was the only way to prove to Adam that she loved him—and proving it was more important now than ever.
“I’m glad we’ve cleared the air,” Cassie said. “Now I should probably go do damage control with my boyfriend.”
“I guess that means you’re going to tell him,” Nick said.
“I have to. I know it won’t help your friendship, but I can’t keep it from him.”
“Maybe you should remind him that this room is spelled for protection. So he’ll have to drag me out of it if he wants to kill me.”
“Let’s hope it won’t come to that. Besides, I think this time I’ll be the one taking the blame.” Cassie gave Nick a peck on the cheek. “Wish me luck.”
“You don’t need luck,” Nick said. “Adam’s not going to let you go that easily.”
Cassie ran back upstairs and out of the house, sprinting down the sun-drenched block while practicing her apology to Adam in her head. She found herself at the wooden threshold of his front door within minutes. Adam’s Mustang, she noticed, was absent from the driveway, but he often parked it inside the garage, so that didn’t mean much. First Cassie knocked on the heavy oak door, and then she rang the bell. But all she could hear on the other side was Raj’s incessant barking. Adam wasn’t home. Nobody was, it seemed. But ever since their conversation that morning, Cassie had known something was off. She suddenly imagined Adam hiding inside, waiting for her to give up and leave him alone.
Would he really pretend to not be home?
Cassie looked to her left and right; there was no one in sight except for a blue uniformed mailman wearing giant headphones and bobbing to music only he could hear. Cassie hastily used a spell to unlock the door. It unlatched with a click, and she squeaked it open. Inside Raj was jumping and barking anxiously, as if he knew something was wrong. She gave the dog a pat to quiet him and scanned the shadowy living room and den.
Where could Adam be? Wherever he was, he clearly didn’t want her to know, or he wouldn’t have sounded so strange on the phone earlier.
Cassie crept into Adam’s bedroom to have a quick look around. His bed was an unmade mountain of blankets, and his history books were lying unopened on his nightstand. He obviously wasn’t studying for a history test. At least now she had proof he’d been lying.
She searched his desk for some clue as to where he might have gone, or what he was up to. As she shifted a few papers to the side, her finger accidentally brushed against the mouse to his computer and the monitor came to life. A gray image of an old house filled the screen. It was the Stockbridge Mission House, Cassie was sure of it. It was the very same house that had appeared during the locator spell. And below its ghostly image were step-by-step driving directions to get there from New Salem.
He didn’t, Cassie thought.
But as she clicked through the information on Adam’s computer, it became more and more clear that he had. It was the only logical explanation, and it suddenly all made sense—his lies and anxious tone on the phone, and how at their meeting he’d reluctantly agreed to do more research when only a moment before he’d been itching to go after Scarlett immediately. Do-or-die time, he’d called it.
Adam had gone after Scarlett. Alone.
CHAPTER 16
How could Adam be so stubborn? And so stupid? He didn’t stand a chance against Scarlett by himself. Cassie hurried out of Adam’s house in a panic and headed straight to Diana’s. Diana would know what to do.
She banged on the glossy front door of Diana’s lemon-yellow house, but nobody answered. Not again, Cassie thought. She was ready to do another unlocking spell when she tried the nickel handle. It clicked easily beneath her thumb. The door was unlocked. Cassie stepped inside the house’s slick foyer and called Diana’s name. Her voice echoed off the polished mantel and brass knickknacks.
There was no answer, but the thumping bass of too-loud music echoed from Diana’s bedroom. That explained why she hadn’t heard Cassie knocking. Cassie made her way up to Diana’s room and pushed open her door.
“Diana?” she said, as the image before her registered. Diana wasn’t alone. She was on the bed with—
“Oh my God.” It was Max. And he was kissing Diana. And she was kissing him back.
“Cassie!” Diana screamed, pulling away from Max hastily. “What are you doing here?”
“The door was open,” Cassie stuttered. “I tried knocking, but—I’m sorry.”
Max jumped from the bed to a standing position and in one quick motion turned off the music. “It’s not what it looks like,” he said. He was up on the balls of his feet and his tanned calves were flexed, like he was poised to sidestep the rush of a full-on attack.
“It’s okay.” Diana looked sympathetically at Max. “It was only a matter of time before someone found us out. At least it’s Cassie.”
Max settled back on his heels and ran his hands through his hair. Then he dug around on the floor for his socks and sneakers. “You two probably need to talk,” he said in a voice that sounded like an apology. “I should go.”
“You don’t have to leave,” Diana said to him, softly. “Just give us a minute.”
Cassie stepped aside as Max staggered toward the doorway, avoiding her eyes. “I’ll be downstairs.” He closed the door behind him, and Cassie turned to Diana.
“Please let me explain,” Diana said, without giving Cassie a chance to react.
Cassie didn’t know what to say. She needed to tell Diana about Adam going to the Mission House—it was a matter of life and death. But before she could get out even one word, Diana broke into tears.
“This secret has been killing me.” Diana’s emerald-green eyes grew pink with emotion. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I just … I knew it would be hard for anyone to understand.”
Cassie sat down on the soft-feathered bedspread across from Diana and let her talk. She’d obviously been holding this in for a while and needed to get a lot off her chest.
“I don’t doubt it.” Cassie tried to sound objective and unprejudiced. “But Max is our enemy. He marked Faye himself and his people killed Constance and Portia. He must know you’re a witch, too.”
Diana nodded, starting to sob. “I know that. I haven’t forgotten all that he’s done to us. But the cord? The connection that you and Adam have? I’ve seen that between me and Max.”
Cassie swallowed the lump in her throat that formed at the mention of the silver cord. They seemed to be popping up everywhere lately. “Are you sure?” she asked.
Diana was crying so hard, Cassie knew she couldn’t be mistaken.
“You of all people must understand,” Diana begged. “You can’t always choose who you fall for.”
Cassie recognized that Diana never would have chosen this path if she’d had a choice. She felt sorry for her in a way. It couldn’t be easy, falling in love with your sworn enemy.
Cassie rubbed Diana’s back in gentle circles. “I don’t blame you for falling for him. He’s gorgeous and he’s loved you since the first time he saw you. But I guess it’s hard for me to understand exactly how this happened.”
Diana reached for a tissue to wipe her tear-muddled face. “When I was trying to spend time with him, to spy on him, I got to see what it was actually like to be him. How he’s had to move around from place to place his entire life chasing witches with his awful father. How he has no mom, no siblings. Just like so many of us, Cassie.”
Diana plucked a fresh Kleenex from the box and dabbed her eyes. “It’s so hard for him to trust people. He’s scared and alone. Do you know how that started to feel? To trick this really good guy into believing I had no ulterior motives for spending time with him?”
Diana didn’t wait for Cassie to answer. “And then one day we were hanging out in his room and his father came home early. The moment the front door slammed, Max turned to me, terrified. He grabbed my hand and led me to the window and I realized it was me he was worried about, not himself. We climbed out his window and dashed for the woods behind his house. We were barefoot, with our shoes in our hands, and rocks and twigs cut up the bottoms of our muddied feet, but we didn’t stop. Long after it was obvious we were safe, Max was still clutching my hand, pulling me along, until finally I couldn’t go on. I stopped, breathless, and asked him why we were still running. And that was when he kissed me for the first time. He leaned in and placed his lips on mine, and a wave of energy passed through me like nothing I’d ever felt before. He said, ‘I want to keep running until we’re free.’ And it was as if I were suddenly floating outside myself. I could see the two of us standing there in the woods and how we were connected by a band of energy—a silver cord that hummed and sang and bound us heart to heart. And I understood that it could never be broken, that our lives were linked.”
Cassie remained silent, looking at Diana with sympathetic eyes.
“I know it sounds crazy,” Diana said, “but I trust him, Cassie. He wouldn’t do anything to hurt me.”
“If you trust him,” Cassie said, “I trust you. But as things progress, it’s likely there will be a battle between us and them. You understand that, don’t you?”
“I know.” Diana exhaled deeply. “It’s practically all I can think about. But until we get to that point, can I ask you to keep this between us?”
Cassie wanted to be supportive, but she worried about the position Diana was now in. She would be torn between her love for Max and her devotion to the Circle, and Cassie knew how powerful the draw of true love could be.
“Let me ask you an important question,” Cassie said. “And I need you to tell me the truth. Is there any chance your loyalties will be skewed when it comes time to fight?”
“There is absolutely no chance of that happening.” Diana had stopped crying, but her eyes remained puffy and red. “I assure you. My allegiance will always remain with the Circle, even if it kills me. I’m just not ready for them to hear about this yet. Please.”
Diana sounded pretty convincing. And she was right that the Circle would never understand how she could possibly be in love with Max.
“Your secret is safe with me,” Cassie said. “But we’re not done talking about this.”
Then Cassie stood up to leave. All this talk about cords and irresistible connections was making her even more nervous about Adam. But she didn’t want to risk explaining the Adam situation to Diana with Max so close by.
“Wait.” Diana followed Cassie toward the door when she realized she was leaving. “Didn’t you need me for something?”
“Nothing important,” Cassie said. “Never mind.”
She would have to go after Adam alone. But she had to go now, before it was too late.
CHAPTER 17
Using the driving directions she had found on Adam’s computer, Cassie arrived in Stockbridge just after sunset. The Mission House was hard to miss once she had crossed the bridge. It was an old gray house in terrible disrepair with crooked wooden shutters and moss lurking up its facade—just how it had looked in the water of the location spell.
And just as she saw it in the spell, the house was surrounded by a pointed iron gate. Cassie found it was low enough to pull herself up and over it without difficulty. She landed with both feet upon the spongy mud of the side yard and began exploring the fenced-in property.
Cassie walked the perimeter, figuring out all her options for entering the house—and also for escape. As far as she could tell, there were three doors—one in front, one at the back, and one on the side of the house. All of them looked shoddy, flimsy, and easy to open, but the back door wasn’t even latched closed. It creaked open in the faint breeze.
Cassie let herself inside quietly and then waited for her intuition to alert her to where Adam was. She closed her eyes and centered her energy, calling him with her mind.
But then she heard something in the main room. It was a wispy, delicate sound—the wrinkling bend of pages turning.
Cassie followed it down a long, musty hallway. The sound echoed periodically, guiding her through the dark and across the dusty hardwood floor. It led her right to the threshold of the main room.
It was a carelessly-laid-out space filled with what looked like secondhand furniture. Everything was mismatched, as if the owner had just left all the odds and ends he didn’t want in one room before abandoning the place.
Adam was there, standing before Scarlett, breathing heavily. “I brought you your father’s Book of Shadows,” he said. “What more do you want from me? I have nothing else to offer.”
The book. Cassie thought she had recognized its call, and now her worst fear was confirmed. Adam must have taken the book from her room. He was the only one who knew where it was hidden and where to find the key.
The book’s worn leather cover looked even more sinister than usual in Scarlett’s pale hands, and Cassie’s insides stirred. That book was hers, just like Adam was hers.
Scarlett leaned in close to Adam, so their faces were nearly touching. “I want from you exactly what you want from me.”
Adam didn’t turn away. “All I want from you are the Master Tools,” he said, his mouth just centimeters from Scarlett’s. “Nothing else.”
Cassie started to interrupt, to reveal herself, but stopped at the last moment. Adam was safe, for the time being. And in Cape Cod, Scarlett had the upper hand, but Cassie had the element of surprise. If Cassie could catch Scarlett at the right moment … her mind started spinning with possibilities.
“You’re lying.” Scarlett rested her hand on Adam’s chest and held it there. “But at least your heartbeat tells the truth.”
Adam stepped back, swatting Scarlett’s hand from his body. “I know the Tools are here somewhere. If you’re not willing to hand them
over, I’ll find them myself.”
He turned toward a chest of drawers, then to the closet.
“I like you, Adam,” Scarlett said. “But that doesn’t mean I won’t hurt you. Do you honestly think I’m going to let you walk out of here with the Master Tools?”
Adam ignored Scarlett’s warning and charged for the chest of drawers.
“Fool,” Scarlett muttered, shaking her head. She shot Adam with a dark spell that brought him down to the floor. Cassie winced just watching it.
“Why do you insist on defying me?” Scarlett’s hands hovered over Adam’s body, drawing a wounded shriek from his mouth. “This pain you’re feeling,” she said, “I want you to understand that it’s your own doing. You’re making me do this to you right now.”
Adam cried out like an injured animal, clawing at the floor, trying to get away.
“And if you make me destroy you,” Scarlett continued, “so be it.” She thrashed her fists and Adam squealed as if he’d been whipped. She did it again, and then again. Each time, Adam screamed louder, begging for Scarlett to stop.
Cassie couldn’t stand by and watch him being tortured for another second. She ran at Scarlett with outstretched hands and shouted, “Fragilis!”
It was the same spell Scarlett had used on Cassie last time they fought. It was a black magic spell, but Cassie knew how to perform it now. She had absorbed it somehow these past few weeks.
Before Scarlett even knew what hit her, she fell to the floor beside Adam, like all the energy had drained out of her body. She struggled to lift her head, to see who’d blindsided her in her own hideout.
Cassie turned to Adam and yelled, “Get out of here!” But the moment he was up on his feet, Scarlett recited a line, “Hoc funem est carcerem,” and Adam flew backward onto the wooden chair across from the sofa. The threads of the chair’s upholstery unraveled in thick ropes and tied Adam tightly in place.
