The Ravens

by Danielle Paige

  “I think that’s Mercury, but I have no idea what it means in this context.”

  “What about something to do with Greek mythology?” Reagan suggested. “Maybe—” She stopped talking as a faint hiss filled the air, like distant rain falling. “What the hell is that?”

  Vivi spun around to search for the source of the noise and felt her stomach plunge. One of the passageways had suddenly filled with churning water, and it was headed straight toward them. “Oh, shit,” she said, spinning on her heel and shoving her pledge mates forward. “Come on! We have to run. Now!”

  The hissing sound grew into a roar as the water drew closer.

  “Mercury was the winged messenger god,” Sonali said, panting. “The god of speed. The symbol was . . . telling . . . us . . . to . . . move.”

  Bailey’s and Reagan’s flames went out as they sprinted, returning the tunnel to pitch-darkness. Vivi stumbled on the uneven ground and her ankle rolled painfully. But then she felt the spray from the rushing water on the back of her neck, and a jolt of adrenaline surged through her. She kept running, trailing just behind the others, until Ariana’s cry rang out: “It’s blocked. There’s a wall.”

  The five of them skidded to a halt. Vivi squeezed her eyes shut and braced for the slam of surging water, but just like that, the roaring noise went quiet, and the water began to recede like hunting dogs called to heel. The damp still hung in the air, but now the tunnels stood silent.

  Vivi took slow breaths through her nose, trying to calm her racing heart. There had to be some way back to Kappa that didn’t involve swimming across an underground river. “Does anyone know a locator spell?”

  “There’s a spell to find the owner of an object,” Sonali said, also breathing heavily. “We could use it on that necklace to find Scarlett, but it’s a major arcana spell. We’re not supposed to attempt those until we’re full Ravens and have the power of all four suits.”

  “I’m for trying it,” Reagan said. “Anything beats standing around in the dark waiting for another sneak attack.”

  “We’re doing it,” Ariana said firmly. “Sonali, tell us what we need to do.”

  “First we need to join hands.” There was some shuffling as they all stumbled to find one another in the dark. Finally, they linked up. Vivi held Ariana’s and Bailey’s hands. “Vivi, do you have the necklace?”

  “I’m wearing it.”

  “Okay, everyone, repeat after me: ‘I call to the Hierophant and to the Star. We seek your wisdom to track from afar.’”

  Vivi shut her eyes. “I call to the Hierophant and to the Star. We seek your wisdom to track from afar.” Her voice came out shaky, hesitant. But as the other girls took up the chant, she grew louder, surer. Before long, their voices echoed through the tunnels, the sound so rich and resonant, it seemed like the sleeping dead had joined the chorus.

  “I call to the Hierophant and to the Star. We seek your wisdom to track from afar.”

  At first, all Vivi felt was the tingling in her fingertips, the now-familiar sign of her own magic stirring. But a few seconds later, the pleasant buzz began to swell into something else. Painful jolts of electricity shot through her chest, and her blood pulsed so thick and fast, she thought her veins would explode. The ground began to rumble beneath their feet, shaking loose dust and debris from overhead.

  “Vivi,” Ariana shouted. “Pull back. You’re giving the spell too much power.”

  Vivi gritted her teeth and tried to imagine her magic receding, but it felt like attempting to restrain a tornado. “I can’t.” She gasped, struggling for air. The rumbling grew more violent, and larger rocks began to fall. Vivi tried to raise her hands to protect herself, but she couldn’t move her arms, not even as something cold and jagged scraped against the side of her face.

  “You have to!” Sonali cried as the entire tunnel shook. “We’re going to be buried alive. Everyone else, keep chanting!”

  Vivi clutched her friends’ hands tighter and pulled in as hard as she could, straining like she was trying to dead-lift a tanker truck. Just when she thought she was going to burst, the pressure in her limbs began to subside and the rumbling grew fainter.

  “I call to the Hierophant and to the Star. We seek your wisdom to track from afar.” The words echoed off the tunnel.

  After a moment, the chain around Vivi’s neck tugged.

  “I call to the Hierophant and to the Star. We seek your wisdom to track from afar.”

  The pendant lifted off Vivi’s chest and hovered in front of her. Then, with a sharp jerk, it whipped around and dragged her backwards, up the leftmost tunnel. She gasped as the chain around her neck bit into her skin.

  “Vivi? What’s wrong?” Ariana called through the darkness as Vivi dropped her hand.

  She tried to answer, but when she opened her mouth, no sound came out. Desperate, Vivi yanked at the chain as stars started to appear at the edge of her vision. Using her last ounce of strength, she managed to pull the chain over her head. She took a huge gulp of air, grasping the pendant in her hands.

  Flames flicked up in Bailey’s palms once more, revealing the pledges’ worried faces.

  “You okay?” Sonali asked, her eyes wide.

  Vivi nodded and took a deep breath, wincing with the effort. “This way.”

  She led them in a stumbling parade, the pendant straining before her as if dragged by an invisible cord. Finally, she heard a thunk as the pendant collided with something solid. Ariana stepped next to Vivi and began to feel along the wall. “It’s a door.” She found the knob and wrenched it open, flooding the tunnel with light.

  Vivi winced and shielded her eyes as Ariana grabbed her arm and laughed with relief. “We made it,” she said hoarsely.

  “Made it where?” Vivi asked as she staggered out of the tunnel into what looked like a basement lined with dusty bottles. Some had strange labels: ADAM AND EVE, ATTRACTION, BETTER BUSINESS, DOUBLE-CROSS. Others, like wine bottles, were more recognizable.

  The pendant gave a sharp tug and pointed at the nearby steps just as someone opened the door to the basement.

  “You’re here already?” Tiffany appeared at the top of the staircase with Scarlett, who was staring suspiciously at the pledges.

  Vivi released the pendant’s chain, and it went flying across the basement.

  Scarlett caught it just before it collided with her. She turned the pendant over. “Did you use a locator spell on this?”

  “What else were we supposed to do?” Vivi asked, glancing at her fellow pledges.

  “The symbols on here were clues to the directions we painted in the tunnel. We wouldn’t expect first-years to do a locator spell.”

  “Well, it was Vivi’s idea and it worked,” Ariana said, a note of defiance in her voice as she took Vivi’s hand.

  Sonali told them how the tunnels had rumbled and almost caved in. “I’ve never seen power quite like that before.”

  “Wow,” Tiffany said, looking impressed. But Vivi was focused on Scarlett, who was staring at her, stonefaced.

  Vivi braced herself for a reprimand, but to her surprise and relief, Scarlett just smiled.

  “Nicely done, Little Sis. Now let’s celebrate.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Scarlett

  A tiny witch’s mark hidden in the flourishes of the calligraphy on the sign was the only indication from the outside that the little shop in old Savannah was anything more than a plant store. The sidewalk was an explosion of succulents and orchids, herbs and mini–fruit trees. But inside, if you knew which mirrored, unmarked door to open . . .

  “Whoa.”

  Scarlett could barely suppress a grin at the new girl’s dazed expression as she walked into Cauldron and Candlesticks for the first time. Dried herbs dangled from the ceiling. Crystals lined one wall, and candles in every color and carving populated another. The last two walls were taken up by bookshelves crammed with everything from ancient tomes to modern-day pop-witch books.

  “It’s like a magical s
peakeasy,” Vivi gushed.

  In the center of the room were shelves for the larger ritual equipment: brooms, altars, god and goddess statues from just about every pantheon you could think of. And, of course, the cauldrons and candlesticks from which the store took its name.

  “What are all these for?” Vivi gestured to a row of crystals.

  “Rose quartz for opening the heart, obsidian for grounding, lapis for opening the third eye. People carry them to enhance their moods or as protection charms.” Scarlett pointed to the herbs dangling from the ceiling. “Everything has energy within it. Certain herbs and crystals lend their particular energy to spells you’re performing, making them stronger.” She gestured toward the cauldrons. “Ritual items help focus your intent. They make you a stronger witch.”

  This was a mandatory Big-Little activity. It had been a few days since someone had burned the witch scarecrows on their front lawn, and they needed more supplies to fortify their protection spells, but Scarlett had to admit that shopping with Vivi was kind of fun. She was completely without shame. She gaped at every new thing like a baby tasting sugar for the first time. It was sort of amusing.

  She also had to admit that her Little was a lot more powerful than she’d realized. According to Sonali, Vivi had nearly caused an earthquake in the tunnels. That kind of power was rare—and, in the wrong hands, dangerous. But Vivi was working hard at control. Just that morning, during a lesson, she had managed to glamour the entire greenhouse to look like a rainforest.

  “So is this what we’re low on?” Vivi held up a bundle of juniper.

  “Yup. Grab at least five. We go through it like nobody’s business.” Scarlett held out the basket. “It’s kind of a catchall cleansing or smudging herb. Anytime a spell calls for bay leaves or cedar, you can substitute juniper.”

  “How do you know all this?” Vivi asked as she piled the dried branches into the basket.

  “My mother taught me.”

  “You’re lucky,” Vivi said wistfully. “My mom never even told me I was a witch.”

  “I’m not sure lucky is the right word. I mean . . . don’t get me wrong, I’m glad I’m a witch. But it comes with a lot of expectations . . .” She paused, unsure how much to reveal. “My mother puts a lot of pressure on me.”

  “I think I would’ve preferred that.” Vivi ran her hands over a row of crystals. “My mom never explained any of this to me. We used to just move on a whim. Like when we were living in Vegas, I came home one day to find all my things packed in the car. She said we were heading to San Diego that very moment because she saw ‘a wickedness’ in her tea leaves.”

  “And you didn’t wonder if you might be a witch?” Scarlett said pointedly.

  “Touché.” Vivi laughed a little. “I mean, I guess the signs were all there. But I spent most of my childhood assuming my mom was a fraud. And maybe she is? I’m still not quite sure whether she knows any real magic or if she’s just really good at telling desperate women that their deadbeat husbands are about to have a lucky turn.”

  Scarlett’s eyebrows rose. She hadn’t expected that. For some reason, she’d been imagining Vivi’s childhood as . . . well, normal. Free from all the pressure of the magical world. Free from the constant need to be the best, the smartest, the strongest. “She’s probably a real witch. Magic like yours doesn’t skip a generation.”

  Vivi tilted her head, considering. “So she hid it in plain sight my whole life? Somehow that seems worse.”

  “You think that’s bad? In the middle of my high-school graduation party, my mom gave a speech about how proud she was . . . of my sister.”

  “Whenever I fell behind in class, my mom always turned it around on the teachers. She claimed she knew things about them from the cards. Once, she even took on the principal and announced that he was part of a pay-to-play for college admissions. And she decided to do that while I was onstage for the talent show.”

  Scarlett laughed. “I’m sure you were super-popular after that.”

  “Positively drowning in friend requests. Of course, I guess Mom was probably right about every single thing. I just didn’t believe her,” Vivi said. “And hey, look at me now—about to join the most powerful sorority on campus. If you let me in,” she amended quickly.

  “Stranger things have happened,” Scarlett said, selecting a few more crystals for the house’s general supply. “I’ll be honest, I didn’t have much confidence in you at first.”

  “This is a really rousing pep talk, Big Sis.”

  Scarlett shot her a look. “Let me finish. I was lucky. I didn’t have just my mom growing up. I also had Minnie, my nanny.”

  “Of course you had a nanny.”

  “She was much more than that. She was with my family through two generations. She was a witch, though she never belonged to a formal coven. She preferred to practice on her own and keep her own rules. There have always been independent witches, some who shunned covens completely, others who chose to guide and teach, like Minnie taught me. Outsider witches are essential. They are impartial and have no stake in individual covens; their concern is for all witchkind. And the independent witch is an additional defense if a whole coven ever goes bad.”

  “Do you think my mom is an independent witch?”

  Scarlett shrugged. “Maybe. Have you tried asking her?”

  “Getting my mom to give me a straight answer would require Swords magic.” Vivi sighed. “Minnie sounds amazing, though.”

  “She was. She wasn’t blood and she wasn’t a Kappa, but she was a far kinder teacher than my mother. She filled in the gaps. And not just the magical ones.” Scarlett’s throat tightened. “She passed on last year.”

  “I’m sorry, Scarlett,” Vivi said softly.

  “Even though Minnie practiced alone, she used to say, ‘A single witch is powerful. A coven is unstoppable.’ You’re powerful, Vivi. Probably the most powerful Pentacles we’ve had in years. If I can see that, so will Dahlia.”

  Vivi gave a small smile but then her expression became troubled. “Scarlett, everything that’s going on . . . the burning witches on the front lawn . . . The Ravens are going to be okay, right?”

  “Of course,” Scarlett said quickly. “The Ravens have been around for centuries. We’re the most powerful coven in the country. Nothing is going to stop us.”

  If only she could believe her own words.

  She pointed toward the bookshelves on the far side of the store. “If you want to get ahead, I’d check out The Herb Compendium. I’m assigning that in our next session.”

  Vivi practically leaped at the shelf in response.

  Which gave Scarlett time to collect what she’d really come here for. Yes, the house-protection spells needed to be renewed. But she also needed something very specific for herself.

  She checked over her shoulder to make sure Vivi’s nose was buried deep in the herb book. Then she walked to the back of the store.

  To a maroon-shrouded shelf that held a grinning skull.

  * * *

  Scarlett pulled her jacket tighter around her. Her phone buzzed in her purse.

  Mason: Study break?

  Scarlett: Can’t. Official Kappa business.

  Mason: C’mon. I miss you, Scar.

  Scarlett: I miss you too. Txt u later.

  She put her phone back in her bag, feeling a pang. That was the third time she’d put Mason off in as many days, but being pledge master was a total time-suck. She’d given the pledges hours of lessons on the phases of the moon, had them practice doing tarot readings for one another, and gone through their wardrobes to select items that were not suitable for Ravens, which frankly had been half of Vivi’s clothes. But she wasn’t working on pledge tasks right now . . . She double-checked to make sure the ring was in her jacket pocket. The silver ring Gwen dropped when she’d come to Kappa House.

  Vivi’s locator spell had given Scarlett an idea. She’d modified the spell a little, set it to find the place the ring belonged, not Gwen herself. She’d hope
d it would lead her to wherever Gwen was staying, because after charming the registrar, Scarlett had learned Gwen didn’t live in any of the dorms or Greek houses.

  Scarlett had had enough speculation and worry. If Gwen had her powers back, if her return was related to all the strange things happening on campus, Scarlett needed to know.

  But now, as Scarlett turned onto a dilapidated block lined with neglected houses on the outskirts of Savannah proper, she wondered if this had been such a good idea after all.

  The ring pulled her toward a squat, rundown hardware store. It had an aggressive red CLOSED sign hanging beside a narrow screen door, the hinges bent so far they’d nearly broken off. Next to the screen door, an overflowing ashtray held a pile of cigarette butts, one still smoking.

  Taking a deep breath, Scarlett knocked on the edges of the screen door. Through the screen, she could see a hallway, then a staircase. “Hello?” she called after a moment. “Anyone home?” From the registrar, she knew Gwen was supposed to be in a medieval history seminar, but she wouldn’t put skipping the class past a girl who liked dabbling in wicked magic. She knocked again.

  No one answered.

  Heart hammering, she checked over her shoulder. Nobody else in sight. She tried the screen door. Open.

  She stepped into the hallway, then hesitated. The ring tugged her up the stairs to a door marked with a crooked 3. She knocked once more, louder this time, counted to twenty, then muttered an incantation under her breath. “I call to the Priestess and Strength to guide me true. Please allow me to pass through.”

  She’d learned this spell her freshman year when Dahlia, her Big at the time, gave her a Hell Week assignment to break into the president of Westerly’s office and rearrange her furniture.

  That door had proven a lot harder to open than this one. The lock barely protested at all. It screeched inward, the rust just about the only thing keeping it shut. Scarlett swallowed hard, took one last look around the dingy, poorly lit hallway, and stepped into the apartment. She wasn’t sure what she’d expected. Skinned animals, a sacrificial altar still wet with blood, maybe some bones or heaps of grave dirt. A lock of hair. Instead, she found . . . a normal living room.