“Camilla betrayed me.” Liam nodded at the sky and held out his hand. “We must get started.” His skin was cold and dry. Not human. He led me into the circle of scorched grass and pointed at the four stakes. “You must lie there.”
I lowered myself to the ground without a word. He had to believe that I’d given up all hope.
Liam secured my left arm with a leather strap to the stake that faced north. “I’m sparing you the heartache.”
“What?”
“You think you understand love, but you don’t. What you feel for Peter or the hunter, it’s not so. In time, it would’ve faded. After much heartache and tears, you would’ve realized the truth - that all you have in this life is yourself. You are the only real thing. I’m saving you from the heartache of that realization.”
“I don’t get you.”
Liam secured the second strap. “No?”
“Why do this?” I nodded at my restraints. “Why extend your life if you’re so miserable? So lonely?”
“I believe this is better than death.”
A tear slid out of the corner of my eye.
“Don’t worry. It will be quick.” Liam patted my head. “You will hardly feel any pain.”
Liam secured the final two straps. My hands and feet were bound. I could flex my wrists, but only in one direction - north. The sky was an unforgettable mixture of purples, pinks, gold and crimsons. Liam retrieved a dead raven from a faded gym bag and placed the carcass on my chest so the animal’s eyes faced me.
The sun’s fading light vanished behind the trees and an indescribable pain exploded inside of me. I tried to fold into the fetal position, but my hands and legs were tied.
“This is your last transformation pain before you receive.” Liam calmly stood over me. “It will be extremely painful, but it will be over shortly.”
Molten liquid fire spread over every inch of my body. I screamed at the top of my lungs as heat consumed me. Consumed my thoughts. Consumed all of my senses, so that all I felt was the blaze.
My body flopped like a fish. I tried to fight the ache. The sting. The horrid inferno of hurt. I was being burned alive. I opened my eyes and my vision went red. Hot. Heat. Burning. Scalding.
Brief bouts of blackness cut out seconds of heated agony. I didn’t know what was more alarming - the intense pain or that I was slipping in and out of consciousness because of the pain.
I wasn’t going to survive the transformation. I didn’t care. The pain was too much. I couldn’t live another second with this impossible pain.
Death would be easier.
Then, as if someone had thrown water over me, the pain subsided. The fire simmered from my limbs and shrunk to the center of my belly, right below the raven carcass. The flames extinguished until there was nothing left but a slight vibration.
“You have received.” Liam emptied a tube of blood onto his palm. “It is time.”
CHAPTER 23
My body was drained from the transformation, but I was stronger. More alive. Powerful. The unmistakable, all prevailing energy pumped through my veins. Every nerve tingled like I’d stuck my finger in the electrical socket.
Liam smeared blood across my cheeks and forehead. Each breath I inhaled was permeated with the coppery stench of blood. The leather strap around my wrist was secure, but I could flex my palm toward the trees. Toward north.
“Plinte honmaice etu lutive,” I whispered.
“What did you say?”
“Chetyri ensumae jaospey exorcisum.”
Liam leaned over me. “What are you saying?”
“Expeltae multie sanorientum lae.” I flexed my palm.
Ethan assured me it would work over the short distance, but nothing was certain. A chill spread through the air. Goosebumps rippled my skin. Static noise buzzed until the waves of energy were palpable all around us.
“Are you saying a spell?” Liam displayed a long dagger. “A last ditch effort? My dear, your time is up.” The blade glinted in the dying rays. With one last check at the setting sun, Liam raised the knife high above his head.
I shouted the final line of the incantation. “In victum latsos spirtae en bandi en cortus!”
An ear piercing, earth shattering shriek erupted throughout the forest. A high pitched, unworldly scream. It rang from every direction. North. South. East. West. It carried in the wind. It slithered through the grass. It whispered through the trees. It was everywhere.
The dagger froze above Liam’s head. He squeezed the handle so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
A vaporous black cloud sped through the trees and around the old cedar tree. It broke the plane of the circle of pumpkins and hovered over Liam and me for a brief second before it plunged into my chest.
My body convulsed with the assault.
Static noise threatened to explode my eardrums. My vision shifted from perfectly clear to deep red as an undeniable otherworldly presence filled me. My heart pounded against my chest. A surge of power rocketed through my limbs. I flexed my arms and the leather bounds snapped.
The dead raven opened its eyes. Its wings flapped. The bird snapped its beak. I jumped to my feet and the raven flew off my chest and into the sky.
“You…? What…what have you done?” Liam stumbled to the ground. The dagger fell to the grass.
“Hello, son.” The voice that left my mouth wasn’t mine. It was deep and hollow. And angry.
Lara Ross.
Liam crawled backward. “Mother. You…Alexandria, you found the diamond? How? Where?”
I didn’t waste time. This was my element of surprise. I squeezed my eyes shut and did as Ethan had instructed. I pushed the heavy feeling down in my chest. I pressed Lara’s spirit to the pit of my stomach. The deep red receded from my vision until my eyes were clear again.
I was a pure blooded Ross witch. I was too powerful. I could control any spirit inside of me - even a two thousand year old spirit. I felt Lara’s extraordinary power, but she was no longer in control. I was.
I shoved both arms forward. “Vieomorphis!”
Liam spiraled through the air and slammed against a tree.
An enormous green fireball rocketed out of my palm. Liam ducked. The ball of energy exploded the tree and bark shattered everywhere. The twenty foot oak crashed to the forest floor.
Liam shot to his feet. He pointed to the ground between us and a line of flames sped over the grass toward me. It was just like the fire Ethan had created a few weeks ago. I didn’t have time to conjure a blizzard, so Vieomorphis would have to do. I shouted the spell and the air immediately extinguished the flames.
Lightning lit the sky. The air around us crackled. Hurricane force winds whipped the leaves and knocked over the pumpkins. But there was no storm - only magic. Ross pure blood versus Ross pure blood.
“I’m going to make you pay,” Liam said.
I squeezed my fingers together and crushed the air in front of me. Liam’s hands flew to his neck as I strangled him from ten feet away. His face turned red and he fell to one knee. I was choking him to death. He pulled a hand from his throat and aimed his palm at me. A black fireball launched through the air.
I ducked.
“You may have that wretched woman inside of you, but you are still not strong enough to beat me.” Liam staggered to his feet like he was drunk. He threw his head back and yelled at the top of his lungs. His right hand squeezed into a tight fist.
My heart.
Tightness spread across my chest and each thump slowed to a faint echo. He was stopping my heart. I raised a futile hand at him. The gush of wind poured from my palm and blew Liam backward, but not far enough. He squeezed harder.
I fell to my knees.
“This is what my spirit did to your Grandma Claudia when it tried to possess her.” Liam squeezed his fist and blood dripped from his clenched hand. “Just like that. How does it feel to have your heart crushed? This is the pain she felt before she died alone.”
I unleashed an inhuman scr
eam. A sonic boom shook the earth. The pumpkins. Trees. The ground. Liam. My rage was amplified by my pure blooded transformation. Amplified by Lara’s spirit.
Tree limbs crashed at Liam’s feet. It wasn’t enough. I wasn’t strong enough. I couldn’t stand. Each breath was a burden. Each heartbeat grew weaker.
I was about to die.
Grim satisfaction fell over me. Liam wouldn’t have his sacrifice. I would die fighting on my own terms. Just like James’ wanted.
A familiar scream rang throughout the forest. A deep roar of anger.
Ethan stood at the base of the old cedar tree with both hands shoved in front of him. His face was flushed with exertion and sweat glistened his forehead. His mouth was still open from his gut-wrenching scream.
Liam twirled around, but he was too late. Just as Liam raised his eyes to my father’s scream, Ethan’s yellow fireball connected with Liam’s right hand. The hand he was squeezing. The hand that was killing me.
Ethan’s fireball obliterated Liam’s hand. Chunks of skin and bone exploded in the air. Liam howled and doubled over. Ethan went limp against the old cedar tree. My dad saved me. He’d bought me a few seconds of life.
I pushed myself to a standing position and shot a fireball at Liam. He was bent over, but he managed to shift out of the way. The fireball zoomed harmlessly over his shoulder.
Liam brought the bloody stump inches from his face. He screamed and bared his teeth. Murderous rage flashed in his eyes. He turned toward Ethan.
“Vieomorphis,” I shouted at Liam, before he could make a move against my father.
The wind knocked Liam over. His legs flipped in the air and he fell hard onto his back, but he wasn’t deterred. Liam motioned from the ground and Ethan screamed.
I ran at Liam. He narrowed his eyes at me and my father’s cries immediately ceased. I sprinted at full speed, but Liam’s levitation caught and lifted me off the ground. I soared over the ring of scorched grass and into a tree.
Liam stood and straightened his shoulders. His brilliant green eyes were furious. Mad. Frightening. His mouth pressed into a tight line, so thin that I could hardly see his lips. The vein in his neck bulged. Blood dripped from his bloody stump.
“When I’m done with you,” Liam hissed. “I’m going to kill every single one of them. Slowly and painfully. They will scream for you and there will be nothing you can do, because you’ll be rotting in Hell.”
He ran at me like a wild animal. Spit spewed from his mouth. I’d never seen him so un-composed. So un-polished. So out of control. He was going to rip me to shreds.
Something whistled through the air.
A thick wet sound. Liam stopped mid-stride and looked down at his shirt. A sharp metal arrowhead stuck out of his chest. Three inches above his heart. Blood pooled around the wound.
Liam blinked twice. He reached with his left hand and snapped off the arrowhead. He twirled around to find the culprit. The shaft of the arrow still stuck out of his back.
Peter was on one knee with the bow still aimed at Liam. A smile escaped his lips, but he scrambled to his feet.
Liam flicked his wrist.
The sacrificial dagger that was lying harmlessly on the grass flew into the air. It shot through the night like a bullet. Peter ran, but the dagger honed in on him like a missile.
Peter glanced over his shoulder.
My dreaded premonition was coming true. And just like my previous nightmares, they weren’t word for word, shot for shot, true. But the essence, the gist, of the dream was real. A glimpse of what was to come.
It wasn’t a fireball that was going to kill Peter, but a dagger.
CHAPTER 24
The dagger sliced through the crisp air.
Peter couldn’t move out of the way. There wasn’t enough time. The magic that propelled the blade was too fast. Too quick. As the blade carved through the air inches from Peter, something jumped in front of the knife.
It happened so fast, but every detail would forever be seared in my memory.
The dagger buried itself into Peter’s savior. Deep into James’ stomach. James collapsed to the ground with the hilt of the knife stuck in his abdomen.
“NO!” Peter ran toward James.
My throat burned raw as I shouted into the night. My eyelids fluttered. My hands went numb. Energy flowed through me in violent waves. Clouds parted and the sky turned from midnight black to bright purple. Rain poured from the cloudless night. I lifted all restraint and allowed Lara’s spirit to rise inside of me. I wanted to unleash her darkness.
Darkness that was a part of me, too.
Liam jerked unnaturally as blood seeped from his orifices.
I threw my head back. Rain pounded my face. I unleashed another scream. Wind blew sideways. Thunder crackled. Lightning bolts struck the forest floor.
Liam bent at the waist. He tried to stand upright, but he was too wobbly. Blood oozed from his ears and nose.
While Liam stared at my madness, a bright yellow light zoomed in from the right. At first, I thought it was lightning, but it wasn’t. It was a fireball. A yellow one. Liam tried to move out of the way, but Ethan’s fireball smashed into his leg. He crumbled to the ground.
Ethan staggered forward with his arms raised to shoot another fireball. His butterscotch eyes were filled with rage. He sucked in gulps of air. His hair was plastered against his forehead. He could barely stand, but he continued his assault on Liam.
Lara’s rage met my own. My body vibrated. Lara’s power radiated through me. Her anger and horror and loneliness. Her fury.
Liam crushed his hands to his head. He doubled over in pain. Blood leaked from his ears, nose and mouth.
I shoved my palm forward and shot an enormous green fireball. It soared through the night and crashed into Liam’s side. Heat seared through his wet shirt and into his pale skin. He fell to the ground just as another one of Ethan’s fireballs collided against his chest.
Liam’s limp body shook from the impact and went momentarily still. Then an explosion erupted from Liam’s eyes. White fog spewed out of his orbits. The pure blooded witch spirits he’d consumed to extend his own mortality sped from his body. Hundreds of spirits finally freed by his death. They swirled out of his eyes and into the air, disappearing into the night.
“In victum latsos spirtae divindae sortilea,” I screamed. Pressure built in my chest and rose to my throat. My head tilted back and an explosive tremor erupted through me. Lara’s vaporous black spirit shot out of my mouth like a cannon. Lara’s spirit funneled into a dark cloud and dissipated into the air.
I inhaled and she was gone.
Ethan stumbled forward. He reached for me and I fell into my father’s arms.
“Is he? Can he die?”
Ethan nudged Liam with his foot. Large burn holes covered his body and dried blood stained his face. His right hand was a bloody stump and empty seared orbits replaced Liam’s electric green eyes.
“He’s dead,” Ethan said.
My shoulders collapsed in momentary relief, but then I sprinted across the clearing. Peter held James’ hand. I dove to the ground beside them.
“James.” I slipped my hand under his neck and pulled his head into my lap. The dagger was still in his stomach. The hilt protruded from his belly like a terrible nightmare. Streams of blood leaked from his shirt and puddle beneath him.
“Alex,” James said softly.
“I’m here. I’m right here.”
“Is Liam dead?”
“He’s dead.”
“You did it.”
I sobbed. “No, I couldn’t have done it without you all.”
Tears stained Peters’ cheeks. “That knife had my name written all over it, Lover Boy.”
“Then you wouldn’t be around to take care of Alex.” James lifted the hand that was in Peter’s and squeezed it. “Take care, Peter.”
Water pooled out of my eyes. I had to wipe away the tears to see him clearly. This wasn’t happening. It couldn’t be happening. No
t after everything we’d been through.
“Why’d you do it?” I whispered.
“Because you need him.”
I choked back another sob. James had saved Peter’s life. He knew my premonition was coming true and he prevented it at the cost of his own life.
My hand hovered over James’ stomach. I didn’t know what to do. If I pulled the blade out, he’d bleed to death. But I couldn’t leave it in. I had to do something. “You’re going to be okay. We’re going to get you to the hospital. Or I’ll find a spell or -”
He grabbed my hovering hand and pulled it to his chest. He laid it over his heart. The slow thumping of each beat was a reminder that time was slipping. “No magic.”
“But, I can fix -”
He squeezed my hand. “It’s not supposed to be, Alex.”
“James -”
“I was running on borrowed time. My number was up last night. Olivia gave me extra time to tie up loose ends.”
I turned to Ethan. “Dad, please help him. We have to help him. Please.”
“I can’t, sweetie,” Ethan said. “You can’t. Alex, he doesn’t have much time.”
My sobs rang out through the trees. The wind picked up speed. Leaves swirled into small tornadoes around us.
I turned back to James. “I’m so sorry. This is my fault. Please don’t go. Please.”
“Best year of my life,” James said.
“James.” I cradled his head against my chest. “I’m sorry.”
“I love you.” He closed his eyes and his body relaxed.
“I love you, too. No, no, no!” I grabbed his hand, but he was gone.
An acute hollowness filled me. I knew then that I’d always have that hole. I crumbled forward. Peter’s arms enveloped around me, but I wouldn’t let go of James. I couldn’t let go of him.
We’d been through too much. Endured too much.
And now he was gone.
EPILOGUE
Ten Years Later
“Mama, mama.” James crawled to me. I picked the baby up and went out to the patio.