Malice (24 page)

“See how nicely that works?” she asked. “I thought it was a bit of cleverness on Levi’s part to make it look as if they ran off together. Typically, we don’t requisition two vessels from the same town. But these two, they were just too hard to resist. My new body even came with a driver’s license, proper identification. It’s so much easier to start over when the groundwork is laid.”

“And laying the groundwork starts by alienating them from their families,” I guessed.

She nodded. “After that, everything typically falls into place quite nicely. Oh, of course we’ve had issues over the years. Stubborn family members who won’t let go. They may hunt their beloved down. But even a doting parent can only handle so much rejection before they give up and move on with their lives.”

“And you destroy their lives in the process,” I ground out. I couldn’t help but think how heartbreaking it would be for a parent. First, to think that child has run away. Then, to track them down only to be shunned over and over again.

“It seems a small price to pay for a chance at eternity,” Hazel said softly.

“That’s because you aren’t the one paying it!” I cried.

“So many Lamia…does it really matter if a few go missing here and there?”

It did, obviously, but it seemed a waste of time to reason with her.

“What about me?” I demanded. “I’m not eighteen either.”

She scowled. “Well, you see, Levi got a bit sloppy. Then again, I suppose it really wasn’t his fault. Who would’ve guessed that Necromancer would be nosing around the cemetery? If it weren’t for that boy, the plan would’ve gone off as smoothly as always. But no, he had to go poke his nose where it shouldn’t have been. He saw both Bree and Jude; he started to put together what happened. Now the authorities are on our trail.”

“What does that have to do with me?”

She looked at me as if I was an imbecile.

“Your age is of little import now, don’t you think? Thanks to that meddling Necromancer, we are well past the time for prudence.”

“I’ll have to thank that meddling Necromancer the next time I see him,” I said with a grim smile.

“Oh, dearie, you must know that you and Tristan are the next chosen vessels. The next time you see your Necromancer friend, you will be in spirit form.”

A shudder escaped, rippling down my spine.  Never in my wildest imaginings did I ever think I’d be grateful for Alex, or his gift. But if her words were true, Alex might soon be my only tie to my life as I currently knew it.

Stop it
, I scolded myself. It wasn’t going to come to that.

“Levi wants you and that friend of yours, too. He seems downright intent on it, if I do say.” She cocked her head to the side. “Where is that fellow of yours?”

That was a very good question.

I had heard all I needed to hear. I jerked my arm free and pulled my magic to me. I felt it building in the palm of my hand. Fire wasn’t my affinity but it would be the most effective. Flames flickered in my hand. The moment before I released it, ropes appeared around my wrist. The flame flickered and died as magic spread out from the ropes, dousing my magic.

A silhouette had appeared in the doorway. The same doorway Hazel had emerged from.

This time, even though his face was drenched in shadows, I recognized the broad shoulders, the cocky stance, and the arrogant attitude that was so full of malevolent intent. The evil that wafted off of him was so thick I could feel the malice in the air.

How had I never noticed that before?

Had he cloaked it somehow? He wasn’t cloaking it now. Nearly invisible tendrils of oily magic slithered through the air. I glanced down as a rope, similar to the one around my wrist, looped around my ankle and began snaking and coiling it’s way upward. I tried to pull free, my own magic felt as though it had escaped me.

When I jerked backward, the ropes tightened, squeezing painfully hard against my skin.

I let out a shriek, instantly regretting that I put a voice to my fear. I glanced over my shoulder at the door I’d entered through. It remained firmly closed.

My thoughts darted to Tristan. He’d told me to trust him. But where in the hell was he?

“Temper, temper,” Levi said as he strode into the room. He gave Hazel a dismissive nod. “I believe I can take it from here.”

“Very well then.” She strode toward the main door and disappeared out into the gloomy night. I wondered if Tristan was there. He had to be somewhere nearby. He
told
me he had a plan. I’d trusted him because I’d had no plan of my own…other than to be sure my mother and sister were safe.

“I expect your cooperation, Samara. A deal is deal, correct?”

I glared at him.

“If you’d like me to remove your restraints, I suggest you answer my questions.

“We had a deal,” I grated out.

The ropes dissipated as the magic slid away.

“Are Mom and Magnolia really at The Bella Luna?” I demanded.

“They are.”

I shook my head, disgusted at the irony. If I’d only gone inside…but Levi was probably counting on the fact that I wouldn’t. I was, after all, under a time constraint.

“Now it’s my turn. Where is your friend?”

He came further into the room. His eyes scanning over me, as if appraising me. I felt like a sheep, being prepared for slaughter. I backed away until my butt hit the doorframe.

“I told you, Tristan ditched me.”

“You’re lying.”

“I have no idea where he is,” I said, my voice quaking.
That
was not a lie.

Levi narrowed his eyes at me. I assumed he’d press the matter. He simply shrugged. “I’ll have time to deal with him later.”

“Where’s Jude? I guess, I mean, where’s his vessel and the spirit you stuffed inside of him?” I asked.

“Ahhh, you mean Calvin? He was the buyer I had lined up. That really isn’t any of your business,” he said.

“Sure it is,” I argued. “Jude was my friend.”
Friend
was a stretch…but still. Before, I wanted to keep talking to get information. Now that I was in Levi’s grip, my intent was twofold. Get information, yes. But also, I was desperate to stall him.

“So it was all a lie? You were never in town to research the Striga? That was just a cover story?” I demanded.

He shook his head, a small smirk appeared. I felt as if he thought my questions were amusing and childish.

“It wasn’t exactly a cover. It’s always nice to search out allies.” The smirk fell away and his expression became more serious. His tone had a hard edge to it. He leaned toward me, his eyes flickering with anger. “The Lamia may think they’ve won. They haven’t. There are more of us than you know. Right here in
your
town, even. And we want to regain our rightful place in this world.”

I let out a bitter laugh. “And you think
this
is going to get it for you? If this is common practice for the Striga, the Lamia will never let your people come into power. Not ever again!”

“We won’t be asking for permission.”

“There aren’t enough of you—”

“It won’t matter,” he interrupted. “Those of us left, you have no idea how strong we’ve become.”

My argument died before it reached my lips. They’d always been stronger. Now, if they were collecting power as they slid into new vessels, they’d be more powerful still.

“But that,” he said, “is a topic for another time. You, however, I need to deal with now.”

“Deal with me how?” My voice wobbled. I was furious with myself for showing my fear. “I don’t understand what you want with me. You lived with us for weeks. You know my magic is average at best. Surely, someone else on that list would be a better fit.”

I didn’t want to throw any of my classmates under the proverbial bus. But the fact of the matter was that they were safely far away. I was here, clearly in imminent danger. I just wanted to give Levi something to think about. Ultimately, I just wanted to buy myself a little more time.

“That’s where you’re wrong,” he said. “By the time I’m finished with you, your
body
will be the most sought after yet.”

His words held no sexual connotation. He simply meant that someone was going to slip inside, wear me like a damn prom dress.

“You see, I think you’re missing a piece of the puzzle.”

“I think you’re right,” I snapped.

He pulled a small, glass vial from his pocket. “Guess who was able to show up just in the nick of time?”

“It would be helpful if you talked in a way that actually made sense,” I said, aiming for more bravado than I felt.

“I found your mother and sister. All it took was a simple strand of hair plucked from your mother’s brush during my stay, the perfect focal point for a locator spell. And rather careless of your mother.”

I ignored the insult. I clenched my jaw shut and kept my expression impassive.

“The timing couldn’t have been more perfect,” Levi continued. “That friend of your mother’s, Myra, I believe, had just stripped Magnolia of that wonderful power of hers.” He held the vial up again. “Guess who was able to capture it?”

Dread twisted through my body. This entire meeting was suddenly making a whole lot more sense to me. I had a sneaking, aching suspicion that I knew what Levi had planned.

“Family magic, such as this, can be a bit tricky to transfer. It’s best to keep it in the family if you can.”

My heart rate kicked up a few notches. I felt as though I were struggling for air.

“You’re great-grandmother was the first to exhibit such a gift. Magnolia is far too young to appreciate it, let alone control it. But you…”

“How do you know about my great-grandmother?”

“Your father was bragging about his daughter. His very gifted daughter. Of course, most people didn’t believe him. They thought it was all talk. That’s what he was known for. But I did start to wonder.”

My first instinct was to refute him. My dad couldn’t have done something so awful. Could’ve he? I honestly didn’t know. It had been years since I’d last seen him. My memories of him were foggy and clouded with a desire to see him in a positive light.

“Your dad drove a hard bargain, but eventually, he talked.”

I shook my head, not in denial, but disbelief. I didn’t want to believe this was true.

“He’s the reason we came to Granite Falls,” Levi said after not long at all. “He’s the one that told us where we could find Magnolia. Of course, he charged a hefty sum for that information.”

My stomach revolted. Our own father had sold Magnolia out? I wondered how much her life was worth to him.

“In all fairness, I’ll admit he didn’t know what our plans were for his little girl at the time. He probably thought we’d just try to recruit her, as we did with his dear grandma.”

His words did little to assuage my fury. Regardless of what my father thought would become of Magnolia, she was his daughter. Her life should be priceless to him. Even if he didn’t know their exact plans, he had to know enough to assume that she would be in danger. One way or another.

“So. Moving on,” he said brusquely. “In case you haven’t figured it out yet, we need to complete a transfer of power
before
emptying your vessel. Magnolia’s vessel is useless to us at the moment. She’s too young. But I already have what I need from her.
Now
what I need is a body to transfer that power into.”

He stalked toward me. I had nowhere to go in the narrow room. I pressed myself backward with all the force I had. The brick wall scraped at my back.

“While Magnolia’s body just won’t do, yours, on the other hand, will do quite nicely. I already have a buyer, a woman who is very anxious to leave the confines of her elderly body behind. She’s spent quite some time watching you from a distance.” He shook his head at me. “I have to say, I thought it rather useless to manifest a flashlight of all things.”

I heard myself suck in a breath of surprise. I
knew
someone had been watching me in the woods.

“Samara. Really? An iron fireplace poker, a knife, an ax, even a shovel would’ve been better. But you chose a flashlight. I will say, from what I’ve heard from my buyer, your ability to conjure and manifest have grown to impressive levels.”

This time I tried not to let my surprise show. Not only had someone been watching me in the woods, but from the sound of it, my own backyard. I was disgusted by my own naivety and carelessness.

“She has offered me a small fortune for your sister’s power within
your
body. She’s getting quite the deal, considering your magic is also part of the package.”

A bitter laugh shot from my mouth. “So essentially I have to die for you to get your payday.”

“No, Sam. I’m not going to kill you. I’m just going to free your body of your soul, of your essence.”

“It’s the same thing!” I cried. “Without a physical body to contain it—”

“Look at it however you wish. On the bright side, your sister is safe. That’s what you really wanted, isn’t it?”

The world swirled before me, flickering to shades of gray as nausea rolled through me.

I told myself if I was going to die, I was at least going to die with dignity.

Screw that
! a little voice in my head screamed. I was not going to die at all. I was going to find a way out of this, dammit. In an instant I’d conjured the full strength of my magic. My hands glowed in the midst of cobalt blue, my aura shining through.

I pulled upward and the concrete floor beneath our feet buckled and rolled. It was a trick I’d learned from Tristan on the beach. Levi let out a growl of contempt as the floor rolled under his feet. He stumbled back, colliding with the far wall.

The door next to me flew open. Crimson light poured in as Tristan stepped through the door. The sweet feeling of relief coursed through me. While my magic was like a sparkler, Tristan’s magic was full blown fireworks in comparison. I had no doubt that the two of us could easily take on Levi and win.

A streak of crimson bolted through the air. The vial in Levi’s hand exploded.

“No!” He grated out the single word as slivers of glass rained down. The fine mist that was Magnolia’s magic floated upward. It separated, dissipated like a cloud of smoke. It only took seconds before it had faded away, gone forever.

Levi lifted his gaze to Tristan. His face was a mask of hatred and confusion.

“I had hoped that I could talk some sense into you,” Levi said as he regained his stance. “I was hoping that you would join us.”

Tristan laughed. “Not a chance in hell.”

“If you don’t join us, there will be hell to pay,” Levi threatened.

“Then I guess I’ll pay it,” he said, his tone hard and cold.

I glanced at him.

His expression was determined. Resolute.

“Sorry, Sam.”

I didn’t have the chance to comprehend what he was saying. A wall of dark magic slammed into me, hitting me squarely in the chest. It took my breath away, knocked me on my ass and shot me through the cement wall, clear to the other side of the cemetery. The last thing I remembered was flying through the air. Then the hard, heavy impact of my head hitting a gravestone before the world slipped away.

~*~*~

“Samara? Sam? Open your eyes.”

I struggled to do what I was told. My eyelids felt heavy, weighed down. I willed them open.

“Fin?” I squinted. The room was too bright.

She looked back at me, her expression somber. My instincts immediately told me something was wrong.

A thread of emerald green buzzed through the air, hitting the overhead light. The room immediately dimmed. I glanced around. I was in my room. A rush of memories crashed over me. I struggled to sit up, my head throbbed. I let out a gasp of discomfort as I landed against my pillow again.

“Relax. You’re okay.” Daphne’s voice was surprisingly gentle.

“Mom? Magnolia?” I tried to sit once more. This time I moved slowly.

“They’re okay. They’re resting but Cecily is watching over them,” Daphne said.

“And Tristan?”

Finola and Daphne shared a pained look that could only mean one thing.

“No.” I shook my head, ignoring the pain. “No. Where is he?”

“Sam…”

“Just tell me! I have to know! I have a right to know!”

“He’s gone,” Daphne said simply.

“Levi took him,” Finola quietly added.

“What
happened
? What went wrong?”

“Let me start at the beginning,” Finola said. She and Daphne each took a seat on the edge of my bed. “Tristan told Alex what was going down. Alex and I were at the cemetery. We met Tristan there. He’d charmed his wristband, the one he gave you?” I nodded. “We could hear everything that was said inside of that mausoleum. Tristan’s plan all along was to storm in. He just wanted to be sure it was at the right moment. He wanted Levi to be unaware. He also wanted to make sure no one else was inside. You know? He needed to know what he was up against. That’s why he waited so long. He needed to be sure it was just you and Levi.”