Darker Days

by Jus Accardo

  The paper slipped from my hands and fluttered to the ground.

  Chapter Thirty-five

  One hour left…

  Rene Morgan and her husband opened the Morgan house the year I was born. Up until the fire several years ago, it was one of Penance’s only tourist draws. Apparently, some big travel magazine had done a spread on them. Now the formerly beautiful three-story Victorian was a pale, hollow ghost of its glory days.

  We were about to start up the walkway when Lukas doubled over.

  “What is it?”

  He sucked in a deep breath and glared at the house. Straightening, he said, “We have to hurry. Time is short. The box is preparing to call us back.” With a quick glance at my bag, he started forward again. I followed.

  I raised my hand to knock, but thought twice. This wasn’t a social call. The lamiae hadn’t knocked when she’d sent them to snack on us.

  Adjusting my backpack, I turned the knob. Unlocked. Not a shocker. I stepped through the door, Lukas on my heels. There were a few candles lit around the room—witches lived for candlelight for some reason. They cast odd, dancing shadows on the wall that seemed to follow us with each step we took. I took a breath through my mouth in hopes it would help with the stench. The air was thick with dust, and the place smelled like burnt plastic and mold. It made my eyes water.

  A few steps in and my sneaker came down on a creaky board. I cringed as the protesting wood announced our entrance with an echoing moan. So much for the element of surprise.

  “What’s this?” Lukas stepped around me and picked a small yellow piece of paper from the floor. “Basement,” he read aloud and turned it around so I could see. It had a big smiley face on the front.

  Creaking to our left announced the door—I assumed to the basement—opening.

  Lukas snorted. “She always was all about showmanship.”

  I couldn’t help smiling. Holding out my hand, I said, “Well, let’s go give her the ride of her annoyingly long life.”

  We rounded the corner and started down the dark stairway. Flickering light at the bottom told me Meredith hadn’t bothered magically rebooting power to the house. It made navigation tricky—but not impossible.

  “You made it!” she squealed as we reached the bottom. “I was starting to wonder which one of your parents I’d have to torture first.”

  Under my T-shirt, the black crystal Valefar had given me lay warm against my skin. Not yet, a tiny voice inside my head whispered. Wait.

  “Okay, so we’re all here. Now what?”

  “Where are the other Sins?” she asked casually. She was leaning against the wall at the far corner of the room, grinning like we were all old friends. Around the edges of the unfinished basement were the other three Sins—Amari, Vida, and Kendra. Standing flush against the wall and still as stone, they watched us in silence. At the other end of the room, Mom and Dad sat in a corner side by side. Next to them, a woman lay crumpled and unconscious.

  I held up my bag and nodded to my parents. “In the box. Let Kendra and my parents go.”

  “Give me the box first.” She turned to Lukas, batting her eyes. “And you come stand over here by me.”

  Neither of us moved. Meredith sighed and put her hand out, wriggling her fingers. “Come on. Hand it over. Time’s almost up.”

  “Kendra and my parents first.”

  “Aww. Someone has trust issues.” She snickered. “Fine, then. I don’t have time to do this the easy way.” With a snap of her fingers, Lukas was in front of her, and just like the other day, I couldn’t move.

  As if some unseen force was dragging him to the ground, Lukas struggled to stay on his feet. “Meredith—”

  “If you won’t take my gift voluntarily, I’ll force it on you. You’ll thank me for it later—after you realize you still love me.” From out of nowhere, Meredith produced a small blade. Slicing open the palm of her hand, she held it against his forehead and began to chant. “EGO dico in phasmatis of Ira, solvo is vultus. EGO dico in phasmatis of Ira, peto tectum in alius cognatio populus.”

  Pale and shaking, Lukas let out a blood-chilling scream. It bounded off the walls and echoed in the small space, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand at attention. Fists balled tight, he lost his battle with gravity and collapsed under an invisible weight at Meredith’s feet.

  “Phasmatis of Ira, EGO to order vos licentia is somes.”

  The girl. She was going to transfer Wrath to the unconscious girl.

  But nothing happened. With more force, Meredith repeated, “Phasmatis of Ira, EGO to order vos licentia is somes.”

  Eyes blazing, Lukas let out a laugh. The sound rivaled the most spine-numbing cry I’d ever heard. When he spoke, his voice had an inhuman echo to it. “You can’t take it unless I let you.”

  “Phasmatis of Ira, EGO to order vos licentia is somes,” Meredith said again, louder and with more force. Fingers threading through his hair, she was starting to look annoyed.

  I could feel the ward tingling against the skin on my back. It was fighting the magic that kept me rooted. Just a little more… Any second I’d be free.

  “Phasmatis of Ira, EGO to order vos licentia is somes.”

  More laughter from Lukas. Only this time, he was standing. With a growl, he knocked Meredith’s hand away and took a single step forward.

  Meredith might have been cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs, but I could see it in her eyes. She knew a roadblock when she saw one. Expression morphing from annoyed to amused, she thrust both hands out and sent Lukas flying backward without laying a finger on him. He careened through the wooden banister and crashed against the wall, landing with a thud at the bottom of the steps.

  Satisfied he was out of her way, Meredith turned to me. “Fine. Your turn, then.”

  I laughed. “I hate to tell you this, Mer, but I’m not an angry girl. That transfer mojo won’t work on me.”

  She was still smiling. Not a good sign since I’d just poked a state-sized hole through her little delusion.

  “For Wrath, you mean? Of course not. He won’t give up the Sin to save a stranger. I wouldn’t expect him to give it up and trap you in the box.” Her smile widened. “But someone else is more than willing.”

  I tried flexing my arm. No luck, but the fingers on my right hand twitched. Getting there. Just needed to stall things a little longer…

  “I don’t understand something,” I mused. “You said, and I quote, Your fate has been arranged for a long, long time. If you planned to off me then what was that supposed to mean?”

  She started pacing, head tilted in reflection. For once, I was glad she loved hearing herself talk. It might buy me the time I needed. “Well, just between us girls, I wasn’t supposed to touch you. That was the deal. Valefar did me a solid back in 1882 by giving me that spell and a way to gain my freedom. He said he would ask for a favor in the future, but imagine his surprise when he came to collect and found me buried like last week’s trash.”

  “Yes. Imagine that…”

  She ignored my sarcasm as though I hadn’t spoken. “We have quite a history. He does me a favor—I do him one. It’s all very convenient. I owed him for the spell, and then again for freeing me from Simon Darker’s prison.”

  “So he told you I was hands-off and you, what, pretended not to hear? Because this is kind of the opposite of leaving me alone. Just, yanno, FYI.”

  Meredith grinned. “He cut me a deal. I owed him two favors, but he would wipe away all my debt if I simply found the box containing the Seven Deadly Sins and arranged to have a person of his choosing open it. A demon named Damien. He told me I was free to exact my revenge on the Darker line with the single stipulation that I leave you alone. He even said I could take Lukas back if I wanted.” She leaned in close and giggled. “I agreed, of course. I was free and got to have my revenge on the Darker line, and I could have another chance with my fiancé. Really, I was making out in the agreement. But then I met you at the school, and I knew there was no way I could do as pr
omised. You insulted me and waved Lukas in my face. He was mine first, and you had no right to him.”

  Lukas said Meredith had always been a spoiled child. Obviously, nothing much had changed. She threw away her toy, bored with it, then as soon as someone else showed an interest, she wanted it back. “You put him in the box—or have you forgotten? Why the hell would you care?”

  Her eyes narrowed. “I told you I changed my mind about that.”

  “So now what? You’re obviously planning to double-cross Valefar. Is that such a good idea? Demons don’t take kindly to backstabbers.”

  “I admit, I do feel badly about going back on my word, but there are just some things a girl can’t ignore. I was hoping you’d be open to Wrath. That would have been poetic, but Pride will have to do.”

  My blood ran cold. The box. She was going to put me in the box.

  Hand still dripping from the cut she made, Meredith reached for me. “EGO dico in phasmatis of Superbia—”

  From the other side of the room, Mom let out an anguished scream.

  That was the moment my knees unlocked. Hand going straight for the knife in my belt, I launched myself at the witch, ready to draw blood.

  But as fast as I was, a witch was always going to be faster. She blinked out of existence, reappearing by the base of the stairs where Lukas was just getting to his feet.

  “Look out!” I yelled as she appeared behind him.

  Lukas swiveled and threw his weight at her middle. Caught off guard, they both hit the concrete floor and rolled a few feet.

  With Meredith occupied, I turned and started for the other end to free my parents but didn’t get more than three steps when something hit me in the back of the head. I went down on one knee, catching myself before I tumbled completely, but my bag wasn’t so lucky. It slipped from my shoulder and crashed to the floor a few feet away.

  I saw the box a fraction of a second before she did. Throwing myself forward, I shot it across the floor toward Lukas. It skated over the concrete, coming to a jarring stop when it hit his feet. He grabbed it and whirled to the wall. Chained by Meredith’s magic, Kendra, still controlled by Envy, had no place to go.

  “I’ll make your eternity more painful than you can possibly imagine,” she snarled.

  There was no hesitation. No retort on Lukas’ part. In one swift motion, he had the latch undone, the box opened and aimed. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, as a bright green light began to form, Kendra’s eyes went wide.

  “NO!” Kendra’s body bellowed. Her scream was cut short as the light surged up her throat and out her mouth, diving for the box. Finally free from Envy, Kendra, slumped forward, eyes closed and silent.

  One down. Two more to go. I left Lukas to recapture the other Sins and was on my feet again, lunging for my parents. Somewhere behind me, I heard Vida scream and saw a flash of dark blue light shadow across the wall. Lust had been banished. Only Pride left.

  “Why didn’t you just shadow out?” I panted as I fumbled the knife.

  Dad held out his wrists, bound in thick rope. “Soaked in quartz.”

  I got the blade to the rope and was about to slice when I was jerked backwards. The knife flew from my hands and clattered to the floor, just out of Mom’s reach.

  “Not so fast. We have unfinished business.”

  I climbed to my feet. Lukas was inching his way around the room, behind Meredith and over to where Amari—AKA Pride—stood against the wall.

  “Your family has been a thorn in my side for over one hundred years. Simon Darker threatened me.” Meredith laughed. “Me!”

  She held her hand out and I was stuck again. This time, the ward was useless. She’d underestimated me last time. Not again.

  “He told people I’d killed my parents. And Lukas.”

  I couldn’t help it. “You did!”

  “And then you come along and try to take what’s mine.”

  Lukas was almost to Amari.

  Meredith glared at me, then, with a smile, whirled toward Lukas. Pointing to Amari, she said, “Not that one.” Like it was attached to a giant rubber band, the box flew from his hands and landed in hers.

  “EGO dico in phasmatis of Superbia, solvo is vultus. EGO dico in phasmatis of Ira, peto tectum in alius cognatio populus.”

  Like someone had dropped a building on my shoulders, my knees buckled and I crumbled to the ground just as Lukas had before. With each word she spoke, the pain intensified. Lukas had said it was like being pulled apart and set on fire. That didn’t even come close. It started in my legs, spreading like poison throughout my entire body. A pulling sensation accompanied by fierce heat. A thousand tiny fingers were gripping my skin, tugging hard enough to remove it from my bones. With my eyes closed, I could almost see them. Ripping and shredding my flesh.

  Meredith’s palm, sticky and wet, rested against my forehead. “Phasmatis of Superbia, EGO to order vos licentia is somes.”

  A scream ripped from my throat.

  “Phasmatis of Superbia, EGO to order vos licentia is somes. Phasmatis of Superbia, EGO to order vos licentia is somes. Phasmatis of Superbia, EGO to order vos licentia is somes.”

  Most of the breath left my lungs in a single, painful push. One word. I only needed to be able to say one more word. “Val—” The rest was lost to an involuntary scream as the remainder of the air squeezed from my lungs.

  Meredith grabbed a handful of my hair. Jerking me forward, face in mine, she whispered, “Phasmatis of Superbia, EGO to—”

  I couldn’t gather the air to scream it, but I did manage a whisper. “Valefar…”

  Meredith was close. She heard the word and, for a minute, looked utterly confused. She blinked several times before pulling away, eyes wide.

  Everything went silent. Mom’s yelling. Lukas’ curses. Even the occasional dripping pipes had stopped. It was like the entire room just…froze.

  “Stand, Jessie,” a deep voice boomed from behind me.

  Like someone had opened a window on a cool, spring day, the air rushed back and most of the pain faded.

  Valefar stood in the middle of the room. He was wearing the same clothing I’d seen him in earlier, along with the same amused expression. Part of me was surprised. Deal or no deal, in the pit of my stomach, I was afraid he’d find a way to weasel out.

  “Free your parents.” His voice was even, but something underneath it all gave me the chills. Like the eye of a hurricane. Dormant and waiting to decimate. In that instant, I felt sorry for Meredith. If the look on the demon’s face was any indication, she was screwed.

  Grabbing the knife from the floor, I made my way to where Mom and Dad were bound. With a little pressure, the blade sliced the rope like it was cutting through pudding.

  I was so focused on freeing my parents that I didn’t notice Dad’s expression. Once his hands were free, he reached for the black crystal on my neck. I’d tucked it under my T-shirt, but in the confusion, it must have slipped out. He tugged it—lightly at first—then harder. The string stayed firmly in place. Like a shackle, I couldn’t help thinking.

  “What did you do?” he whispered.

  “What I had to.” I turned to Mom and cut through her ropes. She said nothing, looking back and forth between Dad and me with a slightly panicked look on her face.

  “We had a deal,” Meredith cried as I stood. My dad was helping my mom off the ground, while Lukas came to stand beside me.

  Valefar laughed. “I honored my end of our deal. Are you not free? Did you not have ample opportunity to exact your revenge on the Darker clan?”

  Meredith was shaking her head. In fact, her whole body was shaking. There was a good chance she was going into shock. “I—”

  “I don’t understand,” Lukas said. “You helped Meredith in 1882 for a favor, but how did you know you would need one? Joseph hadn’t been born yet so you had no way to know he’d go back on his.”

  Valefar winked at him. “I make it my business to secure favors whenever possible. Deals. It’s what demo
ns do, boy. You never know when something might come up.”

  Meredith ran her hands through her hair and let out a whimper. She was looking at the ground and rocking back and forth. Valefar patted her shoulder and leaned close to whisper in her ear. The witch stiffened, eyes growing wide.

  Straightening, the demon flashed us a smarmy grin. “I knew Miss Wells had a tie to the Scotts. The Scotts have a very interesting history with the Darkers. And the Darkers have always been…interesting to me. I freed Meredith from Simon Darker’s earthy prison and arranged for her to get the box. I promised that she would get what she wanted—an opportunity for revenge—and instructed her to ensure Damien opened it. By involving Damien, I surmised it might eventually lead Jessie to seek my aid. When she arrived on my doorstep, it provided me with the opportunity to satisfy the deal Joseph Darker made.”

  “That’s so…contrived,” I said.

  Valefar turned to me and tipped an imaginary hat. “I’m a demon, Sugar Plum. It’s how we roll.” His grin faded. “You requested my aid in freeing your parents. I have done so as promised. You plan on honoring your end of our deal, correct?”

  “What choice do I have?”

  “No!” Dad roared. He whirled on Valefar. “Do not do this. I have served you faithfully for the last thousand years. Spare her.”

  The demon’s expression darkened. “It is done. And because I like you so much, Jessie, I’m going to throw in an extra gift.”

  “Gift?”

  “No,” Mom whispered. She was gripping Dad’s hand, face pale.

  “You especially will like this one, Klaire Darker. I promise.”

  “I want to leave,” Meredith said, voice shaky. “Can I go now?”

  “In a moment, dear,” he answered offhandedly and turned to Lukas. “I’m going to free you.”

  “But you said—”

  “Ahh, very true. Let me rephrase.” He turned to Dad and made a sweeping gesture. “I’m going to let Damien free you.”

  Dad hesitated for a moment, gaze lingering on Mom. Watching Valefar and him, I wondered if there wasn’t some kind of boss-employee demon mind-meld thing going on.