Midnight Dolls (24 page)

“How could you do this?” my father cries, stepping forward, his fists clenched. “How could you destroy Carrefour and put Eveny in danger like this? She could have died, Father! What have you become?”

My grandfather chuckles as he steps into the house over the splintered door. Caleb springs to my right side, and Bram stays protectively on my left as we watch him walk casually toward us. I resist the urge to back up; I won't run from this man.

“My son,” my grandfather says, his tone even and cold. “You have made so many wrong decisions in your life, but leaving Caouanne Island in order to ally yourself with this town was the worst one. I'm sorry that you got so attached to this place, but this was how it always had to be, from the moment you chose. You must realize that.”

“No,” my father says, “I made the right decision, because I made it out of love. Andaba and zandara have no choice now but to coexist. You can't wipe one out to save the other.”

“Oh, but I can,” my grandfather says. “It's already begun, Matthias. Look around you. You and Eveny have nothing to stay here for. The town is in ruins. All that's left are these foolish girls who contributed to its destruction.” He nods toward Peregrine and Chloe, and Audowido hisses angrily.

“You're wrong,” I say, stepping forward. “We have everything to stay here for. We'll rebuild Carrefour. I have no doubt about that. But know that for the rest of my life, I will always blame you for what happened here. How could you have allied with Les Jumeaux Noir?” I think of Aunt Bea, and anger surges within me. “The blood of the people we love will forever be on your hands.”

“Maybe a little of that blood is on your hands too, Eveny.” He shrugs. “You were so trusting and stupid. Just like your mother.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” my father asks.

My grandfather looks back and forth between us, and for a moment, he seems to be considering something. “I'm an old man, my son. And this cancer is destroying me. I thought Les Jumeaux Noir would be my salvation, the salvation of andaba, but by defeating them, you've destroyed me too. So before I go, you might as well know the truth. You think I have no power over you? No power over Carrefour? You're fools, both of you. I've held the power all along.”

He pulls out his Mind's Eye and beckons us closer. I take a step in his direction, but Caleb grabs my hand. “It's not safe,” he says. “You can't trust him.”

“I know,” I say. “But he can't hurt me now.”

My father nods at me, and together, we flank my grandfather and peer down at the smooth crystal. He closes his eyes and chants something softly, and after a second, an image appears in the Mind's Eye. I realize immediately what I'm seeing. It's the inside of my parlor, on the night of my mother's death. My mother and her sister queens are chanting, but I'm not seeing them from my perspective. I'm seeing them from the viewpoint of someone lurking in the shadows. It can only mean that my grandfather was there. I look at him in horror.

“I had to do it,” he says, and his voice sounds far away, hollow. “I had to take away your reason to stay in Carrefour, Matthias. I had to make you and Eveny return to Caouanne Island.”

My father stares at him. “What are you saying?”

But I already know. As I watch the scene unfold in the Mind's Eye, I see him snuff the lights out, creep through the shadows, and slit my mother's throat in one swift, clean motion before slipping back into the hall and away into the dark veil of the night. My heart feels like it's been split open as the image flickers out.
My own grandfather murdered my mother
. It's almost too much to bear.

“
You
did this?” my father says. “
You
killed Sandrine? The love of my life? The mother of my daughter?”

“You left me no choice, Matthias. I warned you. But the day you told me you planned to move back to Carrefour, that you couldn't bear to be away from your wife and daughter anymore, I knew I had to do something. I had to take away your reason for being here. And of course I couldn't
harm Eveny without ruining the future of andaba, so I had to make you believe that your return would put her in danger.” He shrugs and adds, “Well, it worked for fourteen years, didn't it?”

“You monster!” my father cries, lunging at my grandfather and landing a solid punch to his jaw. My grandfather flies backward, and my father lands on top of him, hitting him, tearing at him, like he wants to rip him to shreds.

But my grandfather doesn't cry out. Instead, he just takes it with an eerie smile on his battered face. “That's right,” he says. “Kill me. Become a murderer like I am. You're no better than me, son. No better than me at all.”

I reach for my father, and with Caleb's and Bram's help, I try to pull him back, but his hands are around my grandfather's throat, and he won't let go. He's crying, and so am I. “No!” I shout. “No. Don't do this, Dad. Don't become like him. That's what he wants!”

“But he killed your mother, Eveny!” he says, still pressing down on his father's neck. My grandfather is making gurgling sounds now, and his eyes are bulging out, but he still manages to look smug and satisfied. “He killed her, and it's my fault!” my father continues. “If I hadn't come into her life, your mother would still be here!”

“But
I
wouldn't be here, Dad,” I say, and I'm relieved when I see his grip on my grandfather's throat loosen a little.

“But Eveny . . . ,” my father says, his voice raw with emotion as he trails off.

My grandfather gasps for air as I go on. “What's done is
done, and it's not your fault, Dad. You saw it in Mom's eyes today. She loves you. You can't blame yourself. Don't let him turn you into something you're not. You're not a murderer. You're not like he is.”

My father continues to sob, but after a moment, he finally lets go. My grandfather coughs wildly and puts his hands up to his bruised throat as I pull my father into an embrace.

“You're cowards,” my grandfather says. “There's nothing worthwhile in either of you.”

“It's quite the opposite, Father,” my dad says, his voice shaking with fury. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Audowido moving across the floor toward us, and fleetingly, I wonder what he's doing. He's rarely away from Peregrine. “You're the coward. And now you'll spend the rest of eternity burning in hell. I'll call in every spiritual favor I have to make sure that's where you're headed.”

My grandfather opens his mouth to reply, but before he can get a word out, Audowido has slithered up to my grandfather's shoulders and has begun to wrap his thick, muscular body around the old man's neck. He constricts more and more tightly, and my grandfather's face turns red as he gasps for air.

“Audowido, no!” I say as my grandfather wheezes and flails, his face a mask of terror, his eyes bulging out.

“Stop, Audowido!” Peregrine says, struggling to get up from the couch.

But the snake doesn't listen. He just contorts more and more around my grandfather's neck, even as I try to pull him off. He squeezes until my grandfather collapses, his eyes wide
and unseeing. Then, the snake slowly unwinds himself and slithers back to Peregrine, who looks horrified. “He's dead,” she says in disbelief.

“Did you do that?” Liv says, staring at Peregrine. “Did you make your snake kill him?”

“No,” Peregrine says. “He did that all on his own.”

My father sinks down beside the lifeless body of my grandfather. He's still sobbing, and I don't know whether it's because of the revelation about my mother's death, the fact that he came close to killing his own father, or because the man who gave him life is now lying dead in our front hall. I kneel beside him.

“You were wrong, Grandfather,” I say, although I know he can't hear me anymore. “You said there's nothing worthwhile in my father or me. But my father loved you enough that despite everything, he couldn't take your life. Neither could I. My mother told me that love will always save us, and I believe her. Love always wins in the end.”

I stand and help my father to his feet, and after a moment, he puts an arm around me and pulls me close. “We're going to be okay, Eveny,” he says. “We're going to be okay.”

I look around the room at my friends, my family, the people I love. “I know,” I say. The worst is over. We've survived. Now it's time to move into the future.

P
ointe Laveau's prom takes place six weeks later. School officials considered not holding it, because of the suspicious fire that swept through the town and killed several students and teachers.

But Peregrine, Chloe, Liv, and I had volunteered to chair the prom committee and make the dance happen. It's the first step to restoring life and hope to Carrefour, and in that spirit, we've decided to invite the whole town. Carrefour Secondary's prom will be combined with ours, and adults and younger kids are welcome too. With a little bit of magic and a lot of hard work—which has helped take our minds off the tragedy that hangs over us—it has all come together beautifully. Meanwhile, the police investigation into the death of the mothers has concluded, with the police chief declaring that the strange identical twins suspected of starting the fire were
also the ones responsible for the murders. The townspeople seem to have accepted the explanation.

The theme of the dance this year is “The Pride of Carrefour,” and under a ceiling of twinkling lights at the Lietz Theater on Main Street, the walls are lined with photographs of people who were lost last month in what has come to be known as the Great Fire of Carrefour. All in all, the death toll was twenty-seven.

For the first time since I returned to town, Peregrine and Chloe seem to have bigger things on their minds than boys. Peregrine has come to the dance stag, and Chloe is here platonically with Pascal, who isn't trying to sleep with everyone for once. Liv, who has agreed to take the zandara oath and become a member of our sosyete, has come with a friend from Carrefour Secondary. Max and Justin are here together. Seeing them slow dance, their heads resting on each other's shoulders, gives me hope for the future of this town. Seeing everything around you destroyed makes you reevaluate what's important, and in the best of cases, losing people you care about inspires you to hold closer the ones you love.

I think that's what's happening with Caleb and me. He's my date to the dance, and unlike the Mardi Gras Ball in March where he was just doing his job, he's with me this time because he wants to be. The day after my grandfather's death, we'd strolled out to the garden together and made a promise: we wouldn't let the rules of the town dictate how we lived anymore. Neither of us wants to regret a single thing.
As my mother reminded us, love will always save you. And so we've agreed to rely on that—and on training and preparing for every possible danger that could come our way in the future. We also decided to sever the protectorate link between us permanently. After all, Peregrine's and Chloe's protectors, Patrick and Oscar, died in the attack, so it's the perfect time for us to start over without putting others in the path of danger. The future is what we make it, not what our ancestors dictated long ago.

I've just finished dancing with Caleb to Eric Clapton's “Wonderful Tonight,” which my dad has told me was my mother's favorite love song, when Bram taps me gently on the shoulder. “Can we talk outside?” he asks, glancing uncertainly at Caleb.

“Of course,” I tell him. I kiss Caleb on the cheek and follow Bram out the front door of the Lietz Theater, onto Main Street, where the town still smells of burning dreams. “I'm going back,” he tells me hesitantly without meeting my eye. “To Caouanne Island. It's where I belong, Eveny.”

I take his hand and smile sadly. I can't deny that with each passing day, I feel a little bit more for him. Thanks to the andaba charm cast long ago, it's inescapable. Besides, he's a good, kind person, and he risked his life for me and my family. But love trumps magic when it's strong enough, as was the case with my father and mother, and I believe my feelings for Caleb will overpower my feelings for Bram as long as Caleb sticks around.

I know that our paths will cross again someday. I'm Bram's sister queen, and I have a responsibility to Caouanne Island the same way I have a responsibility to Carrefour.

“Eveny, just don't let him break your heart, okay?” Bram says haltingly as he gives my hand a squeeze. “Caleb Shaw, I mean. He's a good guy, but I don't think he knows what he wants, or what's worth risking everything for. Until he can figure it all out in his own mind, he's no good for you.”

The words make me sad, because on some level, he's right. “I'll be careful. Thank you for worrying about me, Bram,” I say. “Thank you for everything. If you hadn't held my grandfather off, I wouldn't have been able to help save Carrefour. All of this could have been lost. I—and this town—owe you a great debt.”

He smiles. “No debt owed, Eveny. Just promise me you'll keep an open mind about the future. I know you believe now that your life is here. But as you get older, you may feel differently. Just remember, I'll be waiting, if and when you decide to come home to Caouanne Island.”

“Thank you,” I say, hugging him tightly. “But please live your life. Don't wait for me.”

“You know I can't promise that,” he says. He lets me go, smiles sadly at me once more, and turns to walk away. I watch him until he reaches his car two blocks down. He turns, raises his hand in a long, frozen wave good-bye, and then he's gone.

I stand there by myself for a moment, just breathing in and out. I'm not sure what the future will bring, but I know
one thing for sure: I'm
already
home. This is where I belong. And regardless of the fact that andaba and zandara will be pulling me in different directions for years to come, I'm making the decision now to take control of my own life.

The door to the Lietz Theater opens behind me, and I turn to see Caleb approaching, a look of concern on his face. “You okay?” he asks as he places a hand on the small of my back.

I search his eyes before nodding and leaning into him. He puts his arm around me and pulls me close. As I breathe in the familiar scent of him, I know his guard is down, that he's letting himself feel, instead of censoring his emotions. Right now, in this moment, he loves me as much as I love him.

“Yeah, I'm okay,” I finally say. I turn, stand on tiptoe, and kiss him gently. He kisses me back, and for a moment, cradled in his arms, I feel safe and hopeful and secure.

But then he lets go. “Should we go back inside?” he asks. “Before the others start to worry?”

I smile. My fate is mine. It's not what zandara or andaba dictates. I can chart my own path. After all, I'm a Queen of Carrefour. I'm a Queen of Caouanne Island. I have the right to choose—and I choose simply to be
me
, whatever that means.

“No,” I say. “I think we're just fine out here.” I kiss him again, and this time, he responds with an intensity that speaks volumes.

I can hear my mother's words in my mind, far away but clear.
Love will always save you
. That's what I'm feeling so strongly right here, right now: love in its purest form. Love
that doesn't exist because of magic, but that exists despite it.

“I love you,” I say. “Whether you like it or not, Caleb Shaw, I love you.”

Pain flashes across his eyes quickly and then it's gone. “I love you too,” he whispers. He kisses me gently on the forehead and says, “Now, do you want to dance, or what?”

He holds out his arms and I melt into them. “Forever,” I say. And as we sway to the music wafting onto the street from inside the theater, I realize that whatever the future brings, everything's going to be all right. Love will save us. And if I have love in my heart, and if I always believe in its power, I might just be able to save the world.