Giselle’s cheeks go red. “Watch what you say. I’ve got more power than you, little girl.”
I wave my hand, and she flies across the room. Let her make of that what she wants. There’s no way she has more power than me.
Benny grabs my arm. “That wasn’t a good idea.”
He’s got some nerve thinking I shouldn’t be using my magic.
“Right. Look at her. She flew like a ragdoll.”
Benny frowns. “But we don’t know what we’re dealing with yet. I don’t even know what she is.”
“Yes, we do. She’s the same stupid girl who happens to work for my mother.” I cross my arms and glower at Giselle. She’s not anything special at all.
“I’m not a hundred percent sure of that,” Benny says, and I look at him for a moment. What on earth could she be?
“Well, I’ll give that she might be some lower-class witch trying to get in good with Lorena. Maybe Lorena will come to the island if I kill her pet.”
Giselle growls, but I ignore her. She slowly crawls up on all fours and stands.
“What spell do you think will work on her? Probably one that is for dogs.”
She ruined my evening, and now I welcome the fight. I want her to go back to Lorena and tell her how powerful I am.
Giselle sprints across the room and collides with me. We fall to the floor in a tangle of arms and legs. My head hits the floor, and my ears ring. Okay, I wasn’t expecting that. I thought she’d go for magic over brute force to prove her power. Maybe she isn’t a witch after all. But then what else could she be?
I shove at her, but she grabs my wrists and gives me a twisted smile. I try to buck her off, but she doesn’t go anywhere. For a small woman, she weighs a ton.
“Gotcha,” she snarls. Her eyes flash red, and for the first time, it occurs to me that I may be dealing with something that’s not human. A witch maybe, but this is downright strange.
Her body shivers, her nails lengthen, and hair sprouts on her hands. Her nose grows, and her teeth distend into sharp points.
Oh crap. I’ve heard of these. She’s a rougarou. A werewolf. I should’ve seen this coming. She had all the signs, and I missed them. Of course, Lorena would have one in her arsenal.
I’m an idiot.
Benny wraps his arms around her waist.
“Benny, get back. She’s a rougarou. She can’t kill me, but she can kill you. Let go.”
Thankfully, he listens. I don’t know what I’d do if she hurt him.
Her transformation is complete. She almost looks like a Bigfoot. I think through all the spells I know, but nothing comes to me about fighting rougarou. Probably because I never thought I’d come face-to-face with one.
I don’t know how much normal magic will work against it because it’s a magical creature. I kick her hard in the stomach, and she doubles over. I wave my hand again, and she flies out the door.
Benny stands by the table, looking shocked.
“Benny, call your birds.”
He nods once and goes to the window.
I go outside with Giselle so she doesn’t come back into the boat to go after Benny. On her hind legs, she stands taller than me now, her eyes two tiny red dots.
“Go. Tell Lorena she can do whatever the hell she wants to me. I’m going to destroy both her and the island. She won’t win.”
I bet her immortality is tied to the island. If I destroy it, she dies. I wonder how she knew that’s what I was doing.
Giselle growls at me and lunges.
She hovers over me, her breath smelling like rot and blood. Her saliva drips onto my face, and I wipe it away. I shove at her rough fur, but she doesn’t move. She snaps her jaws, and I flinch. She can’t do any lasting damage, but she can still hurt me.
A flutter of wings comes from above, and I let out a breath of relief. The birds attack her eyes, and she backs up. Hundreds land on her and peck at her fur. She jerks around, her jaws snapping.
I shuffle back so she won’t trample me. Benny comes out of the boat and helps me stand. The birds continue to strike at Giselle, but she holds her own. She slowly backs down the dock, the birds staying in between her and me.
She transforms into a human, and the birds back away. She stares right at me.
“This isn’t over, little girl. I’ll take you out before Lorena does. But first. I think I’ll feast.”
She turns back into a rougarou and races into the forest.
“She’s going after the humans.”
She’s going to hurt everyone I love. As well as all the innocent people who keep coming to the circus.
I chase her, but I’ll never catch her. She’s too fast. I’m close to the entrance of the circus, and screams ring out. I run faster. I explode out of the forest and stop dead.
I don’t see her.
A few people scream at the scorpion man. I don’t know where Giselle went. The circus goers will think she’s part of the show.
Benny is right behind me. He’s out of breath when he catches up.
“Where did she go?” he asks.
“I have no idea. Let’s split up. You have your birds. If you find her, use them, and I’ll use my magic.” The lights of the circus make it easier to search for her, but the screams of the scared circus goers don’t. She could be anywhere.
I go right, and Benny heads left. I listen for screams of possible victims and follow them, but they all lead to dead ends. Damn circus. It hides her. I run past the funnel cake tent, and the smell follows me.
I’m hoping maybe she left, leaving only empty threats. She might’ve if she was really scared of me and just showboating.
I head toward the docks. The circus is crowded, so it’s hard to push through the people. She could have a practical feast if she wanted. There aren’t that many islanders, so she’ll probably go after one of the circus guests, but still. I don’t want her hurting anyone.
I finally make it out of the crowd. The path to the docks is fairly clear as most people are in the circus. I come around the corner, and the docks come into view.
Sure enough, she’s on the dock, and I let out a breath of relief. She was just messing with me. I get closer and notice she’s on all fours and hovering over something.
Oh no.
I run.
She looks right at me, blood dripping off her snout.
No. No. No. No.
I’m too late.
Something like a smile creeps across her face, and she leaps away from the small figure. She jumps into the water and swims out of view.
I race to the tiny body who will now live out his life as a rougarou. I drop to my knees and examine the bloody mess. I turn his face toward me and gasp.
It’s Jeffrey.
Amy’s going to kill me.
Chapter Thirteen
Benny clambers onto the dock. He falls next to me and gasps. Jeffery’s unconscious, thank goodness, but he’s bleeding pretty badly. Benny puts a hand on my shoulder. Tears stream down my face at the horrors done to this child. He was my favorite of Juliette’s siblings. This is not fair.
Giselle’s musty scent still hovers over him, but now it’s tainted with the cloying smell of blood. Jeffrey whimpers. Poor boy. I swallow the lump in my throat. This is my fault. I don’t know what to do for him.
“Should we let him die?” Benny asks.
I spin my head around. “No, Amy cannot lose another child.” I can’t believe Benny would even consider the possibility. The heavy hot air around me suddenly feels suffocating.
“She hasn’t really lost one. Juliette is still around. But, Callie, if Jeffrey lives, he’ll be a monster. We cannot have one running around the island unless you want an island full of rougarous.”
He doesn’t understand. “It’s not our choice whether he lives or dies. You go get Amy, and I’ll take him to Ruth. Amy can make the decision.”
He nods. “That’s a good idea. I guess we can always cage him at night. It might be good if you aren’t there when she come
s to see him.”
She’s likely to go batshit crazy, and I can’t say that I blame her. I gather the boy in my arms and try not to think about what happened.
If Lorena sent a rougarou to our island, what else can she unleash? Giselle was pretty specific. If I don’t stop messing with things, Lorena will get involved, and that will be ugly for everyone on the island.
I have to talk to them. They all need to leave, whether they want to or not. I can’t have them risking their lives anymore. And I have to do it before the sun rises so they can get on that boat.
But first, we have to fix this poor boy who is bleeding all over me.
I enter Ruth’s tent, and she lets out a squeak. She takes Jeffrey and sets him on a table. “Goodness gracious, girl, what happened?” Her eyes roam up and down his bloody body.
“A rougarou got him.”
Ruth jerks back. “I can’t treat that.”
“Please, you have to save him.”
She throws her hands up in the air in frustration. “I can’t.” Then her eyes flash to me. “But you can.”
“What do you mean?”
“There’s a spell. I don’t know what it is, but voodoo can cure the rougarou. My magic is useless.”
Oh hallelujah. Jeffrey does not need to live his life out as a monster. There are a lot of things I can forgive myself for doing on this island, but this would not be one of them.
I race out of the tent and back to my boat. I listen for Amy’s wail, but I must be too far away to hear it. That poor woman. She’s going to hate me for life, and I don’t blame her. It doesn’t matter though. What matters is finding a spell that will save Jeffrey.
If there is any chance I can save him, I will, no matter the cost. Though look what happened the last time I said that. I died. Maybe I shouldn’t be so quick to think that.
I rush through a flock of birds and fling the door open. I grab a book and flip through pages, looking for the word rougarou.
Nothing.
I open book two and find a spell on how to ward against rougarou but not how to cure them. I pray to all the gods there will be a spell in the last book. There has to be. If it’s as common as Ruth said, then it will be here.
Halfway through the book, I find it, thank goodness.
Quickly, I read through the spell and deflate.
To cure the rougarou, you need blood from the one who created him.
And Giselle is gone.
Chapter Fourteen
I search frantically for another option, but there isn’t one. I take a few minutes and go through all the books again. We can only cure him if Giselle comes back, and Jeffery will be a monster long before that happens.
I take the book with the spell and sprint to the medical tent. I hesitate in front of the door. I don’t want to go in there and face Amy, but I have to. She’ll yell and rail and possibly even hit me, and I won’t fight back. I deserve everything she throws at me.
I enter and find Amy and Lizette holding Jeffrey’s hands. The room smells of blood and antiseptic. Ruth has bandaged the wounds as best she can, and Jeffrey looks deathly pale, but he’s breathing. At least he’s not conscious and crying. Amy sees me and shoots up out of her seat.
“Please tell me you found a cure.” Her face is begging me to give her the right answer. And so I do. Just for a moment.
“I did.”
Her entire body relaxes, and she sinks back into the chair next to him. “Oh, thank goodness.”
Now I have to burst her bubble. I’m not looking forward to this. “Don’t be thanking me yet. There is a problem.”
“What’s that?” Her expression falls.
“I need the blood of the rougarou who created him.”
Amy swallows. “So where is she?”
“She hopped off the dock and swam away.”
Amy stands up. “So go and get her.”
“I can’t. I can’t leave the island.”
“Then I’ll go.” She crosses the tiny room to the door.
“You could leave tonight, but you won’t be able to return for two weeks because the island only lets boats on and off on the full and new moon, and she could hurt you.”
Amy pauses, but I know she wants to keep going.
Benny approaches and places a hand on my back, but he keeps his eyes on Amy. “There might be another way.”
“What’s that?” she asks.
Benny looks down at me. “Did you get any of her blood on you while you were fighting?”
I look down at my bloody shirt. “Maybe. But it’s all mixed up with Jeffrey’s blood, and there is no way to tell it apart.”
Amy slumps onto her chair and sobs. Lizette comforts her, glaring at me.
I’ve used a few blood spells before. The first one, I used the birds to get it.
That’s it. Relief floods through me. We should have her blood.
“Benny, call your birds.”
He stares at me for a moment. “I don’t think they can leave the island.”
“No. They were protecting me from her, remember? Chances are at least one of them has blood on their beak. I only need a few drops.”
Amy sits up taller, but I can tell she doesn’t want to get her hopes up. Even if the birds did get blood on them, they probably cleaned it all off by now.
Benny goes outside and whistles for his birds. I trust him to find the right bird. I sit next to Amy and look over at Lizette.
“Can you go get the rest of the islanders and your siblings? I only have another hour or so before I disappear, and I need to talk to you guys about a few things. It’s important.”
Amy looks up and nods. Lizette looks like she doesn’t want to leave, but she slinks out the door. After the girl leaves, Amy faces me. “Thank you. I know we haven’t been the best of friends, but I’m grateful for your help.”
It’s my fault Jeffrey is in this mess and that Juliette is dead, but Amy’s always been quick to forgive. Quick to anger for sure, but also she’s welcomed me many times when she probably shouldn’t have. She’s a better woman than me for sure.
“We still don’t know if we can cure Jeffrey. Plus, Lorena has nasty things in store for us if we don’t stop fighting her, and I’m not willing to stop fighting.”
Amy sighs. “You shouldn’t. She’ll do horrible things anyway. I’m so tired of this.” Her life has literally been a living nightmare since she arrived on the island, and Lorena killed Tyson. Sure, she’s got her kids, but living on the island is not easy. I can’t imagine the worry she constantly has for all of her kids.
“I know this is all my fault. You guys were happy before I showed up.”
“No, we weren’t. Not really. We thought we were, but it was an illusion. An illusion that would’ve shattered at some point, with or without you.”
“Thank you for understanding. I’ll get her in the end. I promise.”
Amy takes my hand. “And I’ll help you. I need to. For my kids.”
Benny comes in carrying a squawking raven with a bloody beak. I jump up, catch the blood off it, and get started on the concoction that will save Jeffrey. Thankfully, Ruth has everything else I need—crushed catfish bone, mayhaw juice, and cocoa powder. I mix it all together and mutter the Creole words over the concoction.
Jeffrey’s still unconscious, which is good because it smells nasty. If he were awake, he probably wouldn’t drink it. I’m just finishing when the islanders walk in, and I give it to Ruth to pour down his throat.
Juliette shows up as well as Luke, but the room feels more empty than it should.
Luke puts his arm around me. “How you hanging in?”
“I’m fine.” I rub my head. “Stressed, I guess.”
“How come I haven’t seen you in a while? Usually, you visit me at the cats at least a couple of times a week.”
I can’t very well say I’ve been watching Benny’s every move. It seems so stupid now. I should’ve been out looking for a solution. I love him, but I can’t afford to be distract
ed right now. I have to save my friends and destroy the island. After this, I’m going straight to Reken.
Luke squeezes my arm a little tighter.
“Oh, um, you know around.”
“Trying to save the world again, aren’t you?” He smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. Sure. Let him think I am being noble.
I give a stiff nod. He lets go of me, and Ruth waves him over.
The islanders all settle around the room. Amy and her kids crowd around Jeffery’s bed, even though he won’t wake for twelve hours.
I let out a breath and look over them all. “Lorena’s coming after us.”
“Why?” Ruth asks.
“Because I let the islanders go, I think. I don’t know. As far as I know, her immortality is tied to the island. Somehow, she found out I was planning on destroying it, and she’s angry.”
Amy takes her eyes off Jeffrey. “What can we expect?”
“Honestly, I have no idea. Just be aware of the possible dangers. Stay on the lookout for anything unusual. I know that on this island nothing is unusual, but you guys know it better than anyone. And if Giselle shows back up, stay far, far away from her. We got lucky this time.”
Amy snorts. “I wouldn’t say that.” She looks down at her son. We did get lucky though because we can cure him, but that won’t always be the case.
The kids shuffle, and I can tell they are scared, but they have to know what they are up against, or they’ll be careless.
“What if we want to die?” Franny asks.
“Franny, I won’t have any more deaths on my conscience. Besides, death is only one of the many things that could go wrong. You don’t want to turn into a rougarou, do you?”
She shakes her head. Those two are so strange. I wish they had left the island with the others. I know Ruth, Amy, and Elias. George and Missy too. They all have decent heads on their shoulders. Frank and Franny are nuts, and I’m afraid they’ll get in the way at some point because they don’t seem to care what happens to anyone, including themselves.
“What are you going to do?” Amy asks.
Circus of the Dead: Book 4 Page 10
