The Darkness Within (32 page)

“Yeah, well obviously, that’s not what happened.” Dylan pointed to the swirling, green magic. “The coven obviously found you, and they cast a spell on the tea this time.”

“Only you didn’t drink it. Dylan and I did.” Shannon shivered. “Does this mean I have dark magic in me now?”

Dylan sighed. “It
does
explain why you and I were at each other’s throats.” He shook his head. “I really didn’t mean all that stuff. At least, not the way it came out.”

Shannon nodded. “I know. Me too.”

Well, they were getting along again—that was something. Who knew dark magic could have a positive effect on them?

“What do we do?” I asked.

“We have to tell Mirabella,” Dylan said. “She might need to help us get rid of the dark magic inside us.”

“Hang on.” I bent down by the dark magic again. “Why is it still here? I mean, if we were right earlier and the stuff has a mind of its own, then why didn’t it
all
go inside you when you took your first sips?”

“I don’t know,” Shannon said.

I looked at Dylan. “Did you finish your tea?” He nodded, looking green at the thought. I realized the irony. Green with sickness and green with dark magic. Great. Now I was the only member of the coven who didn’t have dark magic inside them. “You’re right. We need to go to Mirabella.”

“What if she isn’t finished with Ethan?” Dylan asked. “You remember what happened to him when you interrupted the first session.”

Yeah, I didn’t want him to go through that again. “Okay. We won’t interrupt, but we need to dump that tea down the drain before anyone else drinks it.”

“I’ll do it.” Shannon walked out of the room.

“I’ll clean up the floor,” Dylan said.

“Look for some latex gloves under the sink or in the closet. Don’t come into contact with the tea. I’m going to sit quietly on the stairs and wait for Mirabella and Ethan to finish their spell. I’ll bring them up as soon as they’re done.”

Dylan nodded.

I headed downstairs, careful not to make a sound. If I made either of them lose concentration, Ethan would pay the price. Mirabella was hovering about three inches off the ground. I’d never seen
anyone levitate before, so it was more than a little weird. How was she managing to do that and perform the spell with Ethan? Unless levitation was a side effect of the spell. I sat down on the bottom step and continued to watch in silence. Ethan’s eyes were closed like Mirabella’s, but he looked like he was sleeping. Mirabella’s eyes twitched under their lids, and her forehead wrinkled in concentration.

After a few minutes of nothing happening, I got bored. My eyes scanned the room. Mirabella’s spell book was open on the couch next to her. Curiosity had never been my friend, but it consumed me now. I’d wanted to see that book since the moment Mirabella had clutched it to her chest and protected it like her baby. I stood up, careful not to make a sound, and crept over to the couch. Mirabella’s hands were holding Ethan’s—more like clutching Ethan’s. She was keeping their connection secure, no doubt about it. Her mouth moved in a silent spell that she was probably saying over and over in her mind. I remembered she’d said she and Ethan would be able to speak in each other’s minds while they were connected. I’d hated the idea, but at least he could hear the spell.

Since I couldn’t, and my need to know what was involved in the spell was growing by the second, I tiptoed to the book and scanned the pages. Most of the words were written in a really slanted script that was as difficult to read as my brother Jacob’s chicken scratch. I tilted my head, thinking that might help. It did a little. I was able to make out a few words here and there.
Darkness. Transfer. Host
. It seemed like more of an explanation than a spell. Maybe it was on the wrong page. Sometimes spells created wind. The page could have turned. I reached for the corner and turned the page back, careful not to let the paper crinkle or make the slightest sound.

This page wasn’t about the same spell. It had something to do with time and slowing the aging process. That explained Mirabella’s appearance. She’d gotten the spell to make her look younger from this book. Part of me wanted to read more. A spell like this could definitely come in handy in the future, but I had to find out more about the spell Mirabella was using on Ethan. I made sure they were still deep in their session before I turned the page back to the previous spell I’d read.

I scanned the handwriting, starting to get more used to the slanted script.
Dark magic can be transferred to a willing host, but the new host body must be strong enough to take it. The magic has to be severed from the previous host and pulled into the new one. It cannot be transferred by a third party. The new host must be the one pulling the magic into their own body
.

I whipped my head around and gaped at Mirabella. She wasn’t sending the dark magic to her mother’s grave. That would’ve made her a third party. The only way Mirabella could take the dark magic was if she put it into her own body. I had to show this to Shannon and Dylan, but if I took the book, Mirabella would be seriously pissed off, and she might stop helping Ethan. As much as I questioned Mirabella, she was still taking the dark magic from Ethan. Even if she was lying about how she was doing it, she was still curing Ethan. I couldn’t do anything to jeopardize that.

Still, I couldn’t let this go without showing the others. I needed proof. There had to be a spell that would help me get this information to them and allow me to read more of the book. I glanced at Mirabella and Ethan again. They were still oblivious to my presence in the room. The spell had them so deeply connected that they couldn’t sense me. I picked up the book and closed it. Fanning through the pages as quietly as possible, I whispered, “Absorb the knowledge from within this book. Remember it all with the briefest look.” As soon as I got to the last page, I flipped back to the spell Mirabella had opened and placed the book back on the couch exactly where I’d gotten it. I backed out of the room, making sure Mirabella didn’t open her eyes and catch me. As soon as I reached the stairs, I ran up.

Dylan and Shannon were in their room. I still wasn’t sure how they were sharing a room without killing each other, but at least now I knew their issues were being caused by spells the coven kept placing on our food and drinks. I knocked on the open door. “I have huge news.” I rushed inside and shut the door behind me.

“What’s up?” Shannon asked. “More green, swirling magic? Because I just finished cleaning up all the tea in the house. Mirabella had cups of the stuff everywhere. She must keep a pot around at all times. Ms. Matthews’s coven picked the perfect thing in this house to spike with dark magic.”

I sat down on the edge of her bed and tried to catch my breath. “It’s not the tea. It’s Mirabella’s spell book.”

Shannon sat up straight. “What happened to it? Did the coven somehow steal it?”

“No. It’s downstairs on the couch where it always is during Ethan’s sessions, but I read some of it.”

Dylan
tsk
ed. “You snooped around in Mirabella’s private spell book?”

“Yeah, that’s like reading a witch’s diary,” Shannon said. “Big no-no.”

“Well, I’m glad I read it. Something’s up. Mirabella is taking the dark magic into her own body.” I resisted the urge to say “I told you she was evil.”

Dylan threw his feet over the side of the bed. “That’s crazy, Sam. I think you need some rest. Your head is—”

“I know what I saw. That spell wasn’t just to remove the dark magic from Ethan. It was to place it in a new host.”

“She said she was sending it to her mother’s grave.” Shannon shook her head. “Honestly, Sam, why are we going through this again?”

“The new host has to be the one to remove the dark magic and pull it into herself. That’s what the spell said.”

“No one would willingly do that,” Shannon said. “It’s suicidal.”

“Maybe not. Look at Nora. She was totally evil. She tried to tap into dark magic all the time. And so did Mirabella’s mom. She took in so much of it, it killed her.”

“Exactly,” Dylan said. “So why would Mirabella try the exact same thing that killed her mother?”

“I don’t know. I’m not saying I understand any of this. I’m just telling you what I read.”

“Show us.” Dylan crossed his arms.

“How? You want me to march up to Mirabella and demand she show us the book?”

“No. You used magic to access those pages, right?” Dylan stared at me so intently, like he was waiting for me to admit I’d made this all up. I nodded. “That means you can project the pages you saw into the air for Shannon and me to read.”

I could do that? “How?”

“Picture the pages and say, ‘From my mind, project the image I wish to find.’ Then wave your hand in a counterclockwise motion, and we’ll see the image.”

Okay, that sounded simple enough, and then they’d have to believe me. I raised my right hand, holding it still until I said the spell. “From my mind, project the image I wish to find.” I rotated my hand counterclockwise and watched as the air rippled and the pages appeared. “There. Read it.” I stepped away, letting Shannon and Dylan get a better look.

Shannon ran her finger across the image as she read it. “This says in order for dark magic to leave its host, a new host must be ready to accept it. But it doesn’t say the host has to be alive. Mirabella easily could have done a spell to make her mother’s body accept the dark magic.”

“What? Yes, it does. I saw it.” I pushed them away and studied the image myself. Had I done the spell wrong? Were words missing from the image? I read the words, but I had to read them again and again. “They’re not the same. This isn’t what I read in the book.”

“Sam, you did the spell. It projects what you saw. This is what the book said.” Dylan put his hand on my shoulder, probably trying to be sympathetic, but the gesture sent me through the roof.

I shrugged Dylan’s hand away. “No! Something went wrong. The spell didn’t work right.” These weren’t the same words I read downstairs. Something was interfering with my spell. Someone didn’t want me to share the true spell with Dylan and Shannon.

Shannon shrugged. “Are you sure you pictured the pages right in your mind first?”

This couldn’t be happening. I hadn’t imagined this. I wasn’t crazy or delusional.

“Sam, we’re all stressed. We’re being hunted by other witches, and Ethan is struggling with the final sessions. It’s a lot on you right now. We understand that you’re not thinking clearly, but you can’t go accusing—”

I pushed past Shannon before she could finish. If she didn’t believe me, I had to go to Ethan. He was the only one who could hear the spell Mirabella was using. He must have had some idea of
where the dark magic was going. And if he didn’t remember, I’d have to use magic to get the memory out of him.

34

E
THAN
and Mirabella were just finishing up when I came back downstairs. Ethan turned to me, looking rather groggy. “Perfect timing.” He wobbled and had to grab the fountain to keep from falling over.

I rushed to him. “Are you okay?” I couldn’t help looking at Mirabella, wondering what she’d done to him.

“Yeah, I’m good. A little lightheaded, I guess. I don’t remember feeling this way after the other sessions. Not since I passed out the first time.”

“I think you should rest,” Mirabella said, her book clutched to her chest once again. “We are almost finished ridding you of the dark magic. Your body needs time to adjust.”

“Shouldn’t he be feeling better without the dark magic inside him?” I had to ask.

“He will soon. Trust me.” She walked by us and up the stairs.

Trust her
? Not likely. Not after what I’d read in that book. “Come on. I’ll help you up to our room.”

“Can we sit for a minute? I don’t think I’m strong enough for stairs just yet.” He sat on the couch and pressed his palm to his forehead.

“Headache?”

“Sort of. I’m dizzy and kind of spacey. I’m sure it will pass, like Mirabella said. My body’s got to be happy to be almost rid of the dark magic.”

“Yeah, about that.” I lowered my voice even though we were the only two people in the basement. “I came down here during the spell, and I happened to see Mirabella’s spell book.” Ethan lowered his hand so he could look at me. Before he could give me a lecture on snooping, I continued. “I saw the spell she’s using on you, and it’s not exactly how she described it to us.”

“What do you mean?”

“According to the spell, the person who removes the dark magic is the one who takes it into herself. Mirabella is getting your dark magic.”

“You must’ve read it wrong.” He shook his head, then cringed. “Ugh, that hurts.”

“Ethan, do you remember the spell? Do you remember what she says during it?”

“No. I’m in sort of a trance. I can hear her talking, but I can’t process what she says.”

Wasn’t that convenient for Mirabella? “Would you let me cast a spell to trigger your memory?”

His eyes widened. “You want to use magic on me? Now? While I’m like this?”

“I guess it can wait.” I looked down at my knees. They shook with fear. Fear for Ethan. Fear for my coven. “I just don’t want to be blindsided again. I trusted Nora. I thought she was trying to help me, and instead she used me in her own vicious game of kill the witch. I’m not going to sit around while Mirabella plans her own deception. If she’s up to something, I want to beat her to the punch.”