Mystics 3-Book Collection (92 page)

“I said, let her
go,
witch
,” said
Elizabeth with venom in her voice. “Or I will shove this blade from
the nape of your neck to your forehead.”

With a strength Zoey didn’t know Mrs. Dupont
possessed, the woman grabbed her by the throat and tossed her in
the air.

Zoey dropped her sword so that she could
protect the bag with her body and crashed into a row of chairs. She
turned over and groaned. She waited a second, but she didn’t
explode into a million pieces. The UECs were still intact.

“Have you seen what you look like,
Elizabeth?” teased Mrs. Dupont. “You’re in no shape to fight
me.”

She twirled her blade in her hand.

“You’re injured. You
already look
dead
. You probably only have one or two good moves left in that
frail, sick body of yours. You’re no match for me. You never were.
I will kill you first—” she paused and turned towards Zoey. “And
then I will kill your miserable, meddling precious
daughter.”

Elizabeth waved her sword from side to side.
She looked like she had been waiting for this moment a long
time.

“You won’t lay a hand on her. I’ll kill you
first.”

Quietly and carefully, Zoey stepped over the
chairs.

Mrs. Dupont picked up Zoey’s sword. “So be
it. But don’t say I didn’t warn you,” she laughed with an ugly
sneer.

“Let’s finish this,” said Elizabeth. “Once
and for all.”

“Let’s.”

Mrs. Dupont lunged.

Elizabeth feinted low, and then brought her
sword high. Mrs. Dupont blocked Elizabeth’s first blow and replied
with three strikes in quick succession. The monstrous woman ducked
low and slashed her blade dangerously close to Elizabeth’s
ribs.

Zoey held her breath as her mother darted
away.

Elizabeth stumbled as she parried and
blocked, trying to regain her footing and give herself some space.
But then Mrs. Dupont swung savagely and knocked the sword from
Elizabeth’s hands.

Instead of retreating, Elizabeth leaped for
Mrs. Dupont’s neck.

But the cat-faced woman’s strength was no
match for her mother’s weakened body.

Mrs. Dupont struck
Elizabeth on the head with the pommel of her sword and then kicked
her so that her mother went stumbling into a row of chairs. Zoey
heard a gut-wrenching
crack
as Elizabeth hit her head and went
down.

“Mom!” Zoey rushed forward—but something
hard hit her in the back and knocked her down. Her chin hit the
floor, and she tasted blood in her mouth.

“You should have stayed
down, girl,” said Nazar. “Now I’m going to have to kill you, and
you know how I
hate
killing children.”

His single white eye gleamed like a gem.

Zoey grimaced and looked over to her mother.
She wasn’t moving.

“Get the bag,” ordered Mrs. Dupont. She
paused to flatten the front of her blue outfit. “And then kill
her.”

Nazar’s dark tailored suit and black leather
gloves made him look like an assassin. He held out a gloved hand.
“You heard the lady. Give me the bag.”

“No.” Zoey shook her head stubbornly and
cradled the bag protectively in her arms.

Instantly Nazar got behind her and wrapped
his arm around her throat. She reared back, but he held on. Zoey
cried out in pain as he squeezed the air from her lungs. Her face
burned. She couldn’t breathe.

“STOP!”

Elizabeth pulled herself to her knees and
raised her hand.

“Don’t hurt her, please,” she wheezed.

“Why not? She’s been a real pest, and I’ve
been longing to take care of her once and for all,” said Nazar. His
cold white eye turned to Zoey

Elizabeth steadied
herself, “Because she’s your
daughter
.”

Chapter 23

N
azar paled.

He looked at Elizabeth curiously, trying to
determine if she was lying.

He turned his attention back to Zoey. With a
flash of recognition, he let her go and stepped away from her, as
if she frightened him.

Zoey gasped for breath,
trying to make sense of what had just happened. Had she heard her
mother correctly? Did she say that this man, Nazar, this murderer,
was
her
father?

Nazar looked at her like he was staring at a
ghost.

Mrs. Dupont laughed nervously. “She’s lying,
Nazar. Don’t believe her. She’s desperate. She’ll say anything to
keep her brat alive. Kill the girl. I said kill her!”

But Nazar just stood there, looking at Zoey
as though he had just laid eyes on her for the very first time.

“Look at her,” said Elizabeth. “You know I’m
telling you the truth—”

“I said kill her!” roared Mrs. Dupont. “Kill
her, you idiot! Can’t you tell the truth from lies? Don’t be blind,
you foolish man. Kill her, or I’ll do it.”

Nazar didn’t move.

“You fool!” Mrs. Dupont’s face twisted in
fury. She raised her sword and lunged at Zoey.

“NO!” cried Elizabeth.

Nazar stepped between Zoey and Mrs. Dupont.
He raised his arms and gripped Mrs. Dupont by the throat.

“Na-Nazar!” coughed Mrs. Dupont, her face an
ugly purple. “What—are—you—I—can’t—breathe—”

Nazar raised her in the air so that her feet
didn’t touch the ground.

Mrs. Dupont dropped her sword and hit Nazar
with her fists. “Let—me go! What’s—wrong—with you! Nazar!”

Zoey watched as Nazar squeezed his
mistress’s throat. He looked like he had gone mad.

“Take your mother and run,” said Nazar. His
voice was gentle, like she had never heard it before. “Go quickly,
and use the bombs. Go!”

Zoey pushed the questions
and suspicions and misgivings out of her thoughts. She wanted to
ask him to come with them, but somehow she knew he couldn’t come.
She knew that she
had
to go.

Zoey gripped the bag tightly and ran to her
mother. “Can you walk?”

“Yes,” said Elizabeth on shaking legs, but
she moved swiftly and followed Zoey down the stairs. Once she
reached the bottom, Zoey looked back. Mrs. Dupont dangled in
Nazar’s grip like a puppet. She no longer spoke. She was flushed,
and her eyes bulged out of her deformed face.

A cry came from the shadows. Zoey stopped
and discovered Sonya hiding behind a chair. Her face was streaked
with dirt and tears.

“Mom, wait!”

Zoey jumped over a row of seats, “It’s Sonya
isn’t it?”

The girl blinked at Zoey. “Yes.”

“We’re getting out of here. Come on!”

“We are?” said Sonya in a dream-like
state.

“Yes.” Zoey steered the young woman by the
elbow, and together they ran across the grounds towards Tristan and
Simon.

“How nice of you to join us,” said Simon at
the sight of Sonya. “Simon Brown at your service.”

When he saw her collar and shackles, he
pulled out Doctor One’s remote. “I knew it was a good idea to keep
this.” He pressed the release button and Sonya’s restraints fell to
the ground.

Tristan saw the bag in Zoey’s hands, but he
also saw the pain and horror on her face. He moved quickly towards
her. “Zoey, what happened?”

“I’ll explain later—no time,” she
answered.

“Simon,” she urged, “how much time do we
have?”

Simon pulled out his cell phone, “Man,
you’re not going to like this. We’ve got thirty-three minutes
left.”

Zoey’s heart sank. She looked towards the
platform. The Keepers stood around the platform proudly, but there
was no sign of the Alphas, or of Nazar and Mrs. Dupont.

“Keep Sonya hidden between you, I’ll be
right back.”

Zoey ran back towards the platform. She
stood below it and raised her voice. “Lord Gigor,” she said, “You
said you would escort us back to the portal, right?”

Gigor looked surprised at Zoey’s sudden
appearance, and a little annoyed that she had interrupted his
conversation. The giant lord looked down and nodded. “Yes, that’s
right.”

“What’s your fastest
ride?” She knew she was pushing it, but she
had
to try—for all their sakes, even
though he had no idea she was also saving
his
life.

Gigor looked at the bag. She cursed herself
for not giving it to Tristan.

“My mother needs medical help,” she blurted
out. “I need to get her to our doctors right away—she’s dying.” She
lied easily, “I don’t want to lose her again.”

Gigor said something to the nearest Keeper,
and the creature made its way swiftly off the platform. A few
seconds later, a great black coach driven by two plum-colored stags
hurtled in the arena, circled around them once, and then drew to a
stop. The driver climbed down and opened the door. He stood back
and waited.

They all climbed in, and Zoey shut the
door.

It smelled of mildew and cigar smoke, but
she sat back in the red leather seats and held the bag of bombs
securely.

Zoey jerked back as the carriage took off.
The city vanished quickly as their ride soared over the red
deserts. When Zoey was about to complain that they weren’t moving
fast enough, the stag-creatures tripled their speed as though they
had been waiting to let loose and show off how fast they really
could go.

Black, jagged mountains and red hills flew
past in a blur.

“Simon—time?” asked Zoey as she tried not to
show the real panic she felt.

“Less than ten minutes left,” said
Simon.

“Ten minutes left for what?” asked Elizabeth
who had been silent the entire carriage trip.

Zoey opened her bag and inspected the UECs.
“Ten minutes left before the end of the world—”

“Worlds,” corrected Tristan.

“What are you guys talking about?” inquired
Sonya.

Zoey looked at her mother.
“We’ve got
nine
minutes to reach the portal, detonate one of the UECs, and
then cross over and detonate the other—”

“All the while
trying
not
to get
attacked or killed by the Alphas,” added Simon.

Her mother smiled. “Sounds like fun.”

The carriage was silent for a moment.

“
Eight
minutes,” said Simon. His face
flushed. “I feel a panic attack coming on. Oh my God, I’m having a
panic attack.”

Tristan rolled his eyes. “Stop it, Simon.
You’re not having a panic attack. We’re all a little nervous.”

The carriage rocked.

Zoey peered outside the little window, but
she couldn’t see anything except a blizzard of red sand. She
couldn’t see more than a few feet. The worlds were breathing their
last.

“
Seven
minutes,” Simon’s voice was
high pitched this time. “We’re not going to make it.”

“Shut up, Simon,” said
Tristan. “We’re
going
to make it.”

Suddenly, everyone was thrown forward. The
carriage slowed to a stop, and the door swung open.

Zoey climbed out and was
immediately hit by the rough winds and the hot toxic air. She
squinted into the wind blown sand and could see the giant
oval-shaped portal right in front of them. Its
interior
churned like hot magma.

“
Four
minutes!” she heard Simon yell
over the roar of the winds.

Everyone’s eyes were on her. It was time,
but she had to wait for the carriage to leave. If the Keeper saw
what she was up to, he would stop them. Unfortunately, he was
waiting for them to cross . . . .

Tristan whispered. “I don’t think he’s
leaving.”

“I know,” she answered.

“If you take it out now, he’ll see it,” said
Tristan. He moved forward and sheltered her with his body.

“I know.”

Zoey withdrew the first UEC with sweaty,
trembling fingers.

“I’ll open it, and then toss it in the
portal as I step through.”

“
Two
, freaking, minutes!” cried
Simon.

“Be careful,” said Tristan.

Zoey couldn’t stop shaking. Her head started
to spin. The quality of the air was so poor that she feared she
might pass out if they didn’t move soon. She flattened the UEC
against her chest and waited.

Tristan raised his voice. “Let’s go!”

He beckoned to the others, “Everyone,
through the portal, and be careful once you get to the other side,
we don’t know what to expect. The Alphas might still be there.”

“Fantastic,” said Simon.
“The fun just
never
ends.”

He and Sonya escorted Elizabeth through the
portal, but Tristan stayed back.

“You go with them. I’ll do it,” he said.

Zoey shook her head “No, I’m doing this. I
need you to protect my mother for me.”

She knew she had to do it.

“Go! Hurry,” She pushed him, but her hands
slipped, and she nearly dropped the UEC. Tristan shook his head to
signify that the Keeper hadn’t seen. He looked once more at Zoey
and then stepped through the red portal.

Zoey
had less than
sixty seconds
to
detonate both UECs. Praying that the Keeper couldn’t see what she
was doing, she moved towards the portal.

She
unscrewed the
lid, flicked the fuse, and stepped into the red portal.

Just as the familiar feeling of being pulled
forward overtook her, she rolled the bomb out of the portal behind
her.

. . . forty-five seconds . . .

And then she started to doubt herself.