M
andy woke up in a state of absolute panic a little over a week after she had lost consciousness. To her surprise, she was in a hospital bed, but she didn’t remember exactly where she was. Henri tried to kill me, she recalled, remembering how Henri’s knife felt on her skin and the devastating consequences that came with a single cut. She moved her limbs slightly, delighted to see they were no longer frozen like stone. Right. She suddenly remembered her location. I’m at the ICW facility.
She turned over on her side, facing away from the door. It was there where she saw Jason loitering by the other beds. Strange, she thought, since she was the only one in the infirmary at the time.
“You’ve been out for quite a while,” Jason said to her without turning towards her. “How are you?”
“What happened to Henri?” Mandy questioned. “Can he still reach me?”
“I’ve made sure to seal your mind so he can no longer communicate with you,” Jason said reassuringly, turning around slowly, “but I need to know how he managed to bewitch you into compliance.”
Mandy thought hard, recalling the first time she saw the immortal warlock. “He came to me in a dream,” she said, still slightly dazed. “He…made me drink something. And then, it was like a switch went off, like whatever spell he placed on me was steering my mind in a certain direction.”
Jason nodded thoughtfully. “And then, he grew impatient with you.”
Mandy gasped as her senses became fully alert. “He tried to…kill me.”
Jason studied her for a moment. “Eventually, he would have let you go after you gave him what he wanted,” he said. “If the circumstances were different, then he would have killed you. But you are a Foreseer, the only one he currently knows about. He desires your ability.”
“He’s going to try to reach me again?” Mandy questioned with frightened eyes.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if he does,” said Jason. “For now, he can’t, so don’t stress out about him. In the meantime, I’ll see what I can do to bring your visions back.” And then, he left, and Mandy fell back to sleep.
~~~
Holly: Munich, Germany
The day of the trivia portion snuck up on Holly—the twenty-second of December. With everything that had happened, the last thing she wanted was to be filmed answering a bunch of questions she may not know the answer to. Nonetheless, she slipped out into the hallway when the chaperones had already left and proceeded to walk towards the stadium.
While arriving at the stadium, she noticed she was by far the last one there, for all the others, participants and chaperones, were already present. Briefly, Jeffery looked at her disapprovingly before resuming with explaining the rules.
“As you can see, this portion by far will be…different. I will now assign the participants to eight of the chaperones, and you will go to your designated room. The other eight chaperones who were not picked will be joining Jason, like they do at every portion.” Jeffery paused briefly, pulling out a slip of paper. “Marie Girard, you’ll be with Tia Walker.”
Holly glanced at Marie briefly before her eyes landed on Kat. I thought she was gone, she thought. When did she return?
“Rosa Vega, you are paired with Grace Nelson,” Jeffery continued. “Viktoriya Ivanova, you will be with Kellie Marshal.”
Holly started to see a common pattern. The participants were not being paired with a chaperone from their clique. With this new knowledge, Holly glanced helplessly in Courtney and Andre’s direction, though only her cousin nodded at her as if to say, “You’ll be fine.”
“Ivi Rebane, you will be paired with Monica Wilkins,” said Jeffery. “Donnell Rizzo, you are with Roxy Brown.”
Only three more left to go.
“Kamilah Yoshida—”
“It’s Kami!” the Japanese participant bellowed. “Call me Kami!”
“Fine.” Jeffery sighed. “Kami Yoshida, you will be with Andre Robinson. Porcha Platz, you will be paired with Aspyn Roberts.”
That only leaves the Russian chaperones, Holly thought, glancing at Arizona and Kat. She didn’t want either of them, but now, she’d be forced into a room with one of them, answering seemingly endless questions.
“Holly White,” Jeffery finally said, “you are with Katherine Reid.”
Of course, Holly sighed as she went to join Kat.
“You are all dismissed to go to your separate rooms,” Jeffery declared. “Do not start asking the questions until Jason has finished the introduction.”
The next thing she knew, Holly felt herself being pulled by Kat into a small room that was next to the stadium—a room that consisted of only a small desk, two chairs, a television set where the ICW was being played, a camera just below the television, and two sets of microphones.
“Due to the fact that you missed the beginning of Jeffery’s instructions, allow me to explain how this is going to work,” Kat began. “At times, I will be asking you a question, and you are to answer it. By the time it is your turn to answer a question, turn on your microphone, and I will do the same. There is a series of sixteen questions that you will answer—two from each culture.”
Holly fastened the microphone into her clothing. Then, she sat in the empty seat that Kat was not occupying, staring at the television as Jason was giving his usual introduction.
“You’re not the first one,” Kat said reassuringly as she took out a stack of notecards. “When it’s time, you’ll know.”
Holly still felt her whole body shake at the sight of Kat. To her, Kat’s aura felt hot—like it was made up of yellow with a splash of orange. Yet, she knew it wasn’t real. She knew that lurking within Kat’s illusion magic was a cold aura—one that defined her as immortal.
Kat studied Holly, amused. “You’re trying to sense my aura,” she observed, almost jokingly. “Do you approve of what you sense?”
Holly was taken aback by Kat’s statement. “Did you force Jason to let you be my questioner?”
“You don’t trust me,” Kat observed. “Holly, the system was completely random.”
“Why should I?” Holly questioned. “After everything you’ve done—”
“We’re on,” Kat interrupted, reading from one of the notecards. “What is the capital of Estonia?”
What? Holly questioned, thinking back to her education at Witchcraft Academy. She remembered learning about the capitals of many different countries, but not the capital of Estonia. “Umm,” she pondered her answer, “Riga?” Suddenly, she heard the incorrect buzzer, and she turned off her microphone.
“Tallinn,” Kat said. “The answer was Tallinn.”
Holly stared at Kat accusingly. “How was I supposed to know that?”
“Riga isn’t even in Estonia,” Kat continued. “It’s in Latvia.”
Holly shrugged. “I haven’t learned about those countries.”
“Perhaps the education at your academy isn’t as top-notch as they say it is,” Kat commented, folding her arms across the table.
“You know nothing!” Holly argued.
Kat shushed her just then, and several minutes passed.
“We’re on again,” she said, picking up another card. “In East Asian countries, a ritualized form of making tea is practiced called a tea ceremony. What is another name for this ritual?”
“Tea Making,” Holly said as confidently as possible without making her answer sound like a complete guess. The incorrect buzzer sounded once again.
“The Way of Tea,” Kat said once the microphones were turned off.
“How am I supposed to know any of these?” Holly questioned.
Kat didn’t respond, and as soon as several more minutes passed, it was their turn once again.
“Easter is celebrated in many different countries, and it is a huge part of the French culture. However, unlike the United States, the concept of the Easter bunny is nonexistent. In France, what instead brings the eggs to the children?”
Holly remembered vaguely learning about the various Fr
ench traditions in her class one year. Shifting through her mind, she stumbled upon the answer that she presumed was right. “The church bells,” she said with strange confidence, and the correct bell rang.
“How is Andre doing?” Kat asked suddenly once the microphones were turned off.
“Why do you care?”
“I haven’t really had a chance to talk to her,” Kat said. “She won’t let me.”
“You know, there might be a reason for that.”
“I don’t appreciate your attitude,” Kat said suddenly.
“What?” Holly questioned, caught off guard. “What attitude?”
Kat leaned over the table. “Haven’t your parents ever taught you respect?”
“Not to an immortal witch,” Holly growled.
Kat snorted but said nothing.
A few more tense minutes passed, and Holly played with her hands nervously.
“We’re on again,” said Kat. “Here’s a question from the Russian culture.”
Thinking about Russia made Holly think about Tatiana, and she didn’t particularly want to think about the Innocent who came with the intention of luring Rebekah to Greece.
“As evident by their name, the Russian Wolfhound had originated in Russia, where it was bred to hunt wolves,” said Kat as she looked up from the card. “What is another name for this dog breed?”
“Excuse me?” Holly said, flabbergasted.
“As evident by their name—”
“Don’t repeat it!” Holly said as she tried to think. I have no idea! She knew nothing about dog breeds, since magic users didn’t particularly keep pets. She looked up at Kat. “What kind of question is that?”
“Holly, we’re live,” Kat responded. “I need an answer from you.”
“I have no idea!” Holly protested.
The incorrect buzzer sounded.
“Borzoi,” Kat said once they were no longer live. “That was the answer.”
“And how was I supposed to know that?”
Kat played with the cards a little. “Oh, and something I neglected to tell you is that each question is worth half a point.” A mischievous glint lit up her features, as if she relished in keeping that information from Holly for so long.
Holly narrowed her eyes at Kat. “So, I’ve only earned half a point?”
Kat nodded. “The maximum number of points you can earn is eight.”
“That’s absolute crap!” Holly bellowed. “These questions are hard!”
“The competition’s always been like this long before Jason hosted it,” Kat said, smiling at Holly. “What is new is the fact that there are now chaperones. Sure, there have always been people who judged certain portions and who administered the trivia portion to each participant, but they were never chaperones.”
Holly looked away from Kat right as she saw Viktoriya appear on their television screen. Viktoriya had been given the same question as Holly, and she had gotten it right. Of course she had gotten it right.
“The next question is favorable to you,” Kat said, and in a couple of minutes, she administered it: “The capital of the United States is Washington, D.C. What does D.C. stand for, and which state is it located in?”
“A two-part question?” said Holly. “Why?”
“Holly, just answer it,” said Kat. “It should be easy for you.”
Holly sighed. “District of Columbia, and it isn’t located in a state,” she replied.
The correct bell rang; she now had one point.
“Some of these questions have two parts,” Kat said once they were no longer live.
“And I’m assuming that if I get one of the parts wrong and the other part correct, the entire question is wrong?” Holly guessed, unamused.
Kat nodded.
The rest of the wait was spent in silence before they were live once again.
“After the Napoleonic War, Spain was economically ruined, and its territories in the Americas started to declare their independence. By the end of 1826, only two Spanish colonies remained under Spanish rule. Name those two colonies,” Kat said.
Because most of the Spies resided in Spain, it was required at Witchcraft Academy to learn about the history of Spain in sixth grade. For Holly, that was over two years ago, and yet, she still remembered a lot from that unit. “Cuba and Puerto Rico,” she answered confidently, and the correct bell rang.
“I’m impressed,” said Kat once they were no longer live. “I didn’t know you knew anything about Spain.”
“Well, I do,” Holly said coldly. “Learning about its history was a requirement for me.”
“Great,” Kat said as she chose another card. “The next question is about Germany, so let’s see how much you know about our host country.”
As Holly sat there in silence, she thought about Germany and what could possibly be asked. Her eyes wandered to the card that Kat held, realizing how little she knew about the country. She had already gotten three questions wrong and three questions right, and she knew that, if the questions maintained their same difficulty level, she would get most of them wrong. If she lost to Marie, she would never hear the end of it from Jamie. And if she received last place overall, she knew she would receive even more of Jamie’s wrath. Holly suddenly became overcome with dread as she thought of what Jamie would do to her.
“What year was Munich assumed to be founded?” questioned Kat as soon as they were live again.
Holly’s gaze never left the card as she used her magic to see through it. When she did so, the answer was right in front of her, and she didn’t hesitate to blurt it out: “1158.”
Kat’s eyes widened when the correct bell rang as she put that card aside. “And how do you explain knowing anything about Germany?”
“We’re in Germany,” said Holly as justification for her correct answer, hiding the fact she had just cheated. “I was bound to learn a few things about this country.”
Kat shrugged off Holly’s explanation as she retrieved another trivia card. “The next one is about Italy.”
Of course, thought Holly as she tried to see through the card again. Within seconds, she already knew the answer, and the question hadn’t even been asked yet.
Kat asked the question a few minutes later. “What is the name of the current president of Italy, and what number is he?”
“Giorgio Napolitano,” said Holly, “and he is the eleventh president of Italy.”
The correct bell rang again.
“Impressive,” commented Kat as she leaned forward in her seat. Then, she let a small smile appear on her lips as she folded her hands on the table. “And how do you know anything about Italy?”
She suspects something, Holly quickly realized as she stared at her hands. “Yeah, well—”
Before she finished her thought, Kat interrupted her with: “Do you think Andre will ever be able to forgive me for what I did to her?”
Shocked, Holly met Kat’s gaze. Here we go, she thought as the subject of her cousin was brought up again. “Why are you asking me that?” she questioned coldly.
“You can’t blame me for being curious, now, can you?” said Kat in response. “After all, she has grown up significantly since I had seen her last.”
“Forgiveness is out of the question,” Holly said.
“I suspected as much,” Kat said as she took another question card off the deck and placed it in front of her. “This is an Estonian question again.”
Great, thought Holly, secretly glad the conversation would be off her cousin temporarily. Soon, she knew they would be live again, and with only eight more questions to go, she couldn’t wait until the competition was finally over.
“In Estonia, they celebrate an independence day much like the United States does on July fourth,” said Kat. “What is the official date of their independence day?”
After Kat’s suspicions of the last question, Holly fought the urge to see through the card. Yet, she remained clueless as to what the answer was. “I…don’t know,” Holly said,
biting her lip to keep herself from cheating.
The incorrect buzzer rang.
“February twenty-fourth,” Kat said as she put the card aside. “It’s evident you know nothing about Estonia.”
No longer were they live, and Holly slouched in her seat in defeat. She had already gotten four questions wrong, and she knew that she needed to get the rest of them right, even if it meant cheating. No matter what Kat suspected, she would make sure she answered the rest of the questions correctly.
“I have another question for you, Holly,” Kat said, and Holly knew it wasn’t a trivia question.
She didn’t say anything in response.
Kat took her silence as an opportunity to continue. “Does Andre still feel malice towards her father?”
This question caught Holly off guard not because the subject of her cousin was brought up again but because Kat was asking something about Cody Robinson. Up until now, Holly didn’t think Kat knew anything about their family.
“How do you know about that?” Holly demanded.
“Answer my question.”
“No.” Holly shook her head. “Kat, what you’re asking is personal.”
A wicked smile crossed Kat’s lips. “Of course it is,” she said. “Answer it.”
Holly glared at Kat. “If you know anything about that situation—and I’m sure you do because you’re the one who brought it up—you’ll have your answer.”
“So, she does,” Kat clarified. “Is that what you’re telling me?”
Holly didn’t say anything in return. Kat knew what she was doing, and she also knew Holly couldn’t do anything about it.
“We’re on again with a question about Japan,” said Kat as she began to read the question. “Much like Hawaii, many islands make up Japan. How many islands does Japan encompass?”
Reverting back to what she had done previously, Holly willed herself to see through the card. “6,852,” she said confidently as the correct bell rang.
A shocked expression was plastered on Kat’s face as she put the card to the side. “There’s no way you would have known that off-hand, Holly,” she warned, confirming Holly’s suspicions that she suspected something.
Bleeding Misery (Threatening Souls Book 2) Page 25
