Third Time's a Charm (Halloween LaVeau) (14 page)

Liam navigated the French Quarter streets and we rode in silence. It was actually quite awkward. The bar wasn’t far, and I was thankful
when we finally arrived so I could get out of the cramped backseat.

Spells and Spirits
was in an old building, but it had lots of neon lights with potion bottles and other gimmicky symbols splashed across the front. We finally made our way through the crowd on the sidewalk and got inside the club.

The music was pumping. Bodies were packed into the place and the pace at which people were moving across the space was incredibly slow.

“There is no way we’ll ever find them in here.”

“You need to try a spell,” Nicolas said.

I quirked a brow. “What? What kind of spell? What if something goes wrong?”

“What could go wrong?” He bit his lip. “Oh well, I’m sure things will be fine. It will be better if you do the spell because you are the one looking for
Giovanni the most.”

I began reciting the spell. It was specifically stated on the outside sign that no spells were allowed
—just like every witch bar. But I was the leader and this was an emergency—surely there would be no problem with that.

Suddenly the crowd thinned out and the men came into view. The club seemed to come to a halt. Giovanni and Kevin spotted me. Giovanni glared and raised his arm up. He pointed at me and I braced for the spell that I knew was about to hit me. Multi-colored lights zinged across the room. It was like a light show. Screams and gasps rang out across the room.

I fell backward and landed on my butt. He’d definitely knocked the wind out of me. The men must have cast a spell on everyone, because people seemed to be frozen to the spot. I stumbled up and pointed at them, reciting the words. I pulled energy from Liam and Nicolas. Of course Misty and Kelley didn’t offer to allow me to use their energy.

Giovanni and Kevin took off across the room and disappeared down a
dark, narrow hallway. Liam, Nicolas and I took off running in that direction. When we reached the hallway we spotted a door. We opened it and stepped out into the alley, but the men were nowhere in sight. Nicolas checked behind the Dumpsters, but didn’t find the men. When I caught a whiff of the nearby trash, I regretted inhaling. And the last thing I wanted to see was a rat. 

“They got away again,” I said, letting out a deep breath.

“Are you okay?” Nicolas asked as he grabbed my arm.

“Yeah, I’m okay.” I nodded.

“Let’s get back inside and ask if anyone knows where they were headed,” Liam said.

When we returned inside the main area of the club, the music had stopped and people were standing around talking. All eyes were on us when we entered. They stopped talking and stared at me. The frowns on their faces took me off guard.

A man stomped over to us. “What the hell is going on here? Didn’t you read the sign?” he asked with venom in his voice.

“My name is
Hallie LaVeau. I’m the new leader of the Underworld. I’m sorry about the magic, but we have a bit of a problem with those men. Do you know them or where they might have gone?” I gestured over my shoulder.

The man didn’t look impressed that I was the leader. “I know who you are. He told me all about you. You should give him the book,” he said.

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. People had gathered around now and I was beginning to think that we should get out of there soon. They seemed to be forming a mob and it looked like they were ready to knock me out.

“All these people aren’t happy with you either and they w
ant you out as leader,” he said. They all glared at me.

This definitely wasn’t going as planned. It looked like it was time for us to get out of there. “If you’ll excuse me, we’ll be leaving now,” I said.

I couldn’t believe that Giovanni had already told people about me. Who else had he already told about the situation? Soon he’d have the whole Underworld against me. I had to get to the bottom of this soon. There was no telling what would happen if I didn’t.

People gathered around
, circling us. “I think it’s time we get out of here, Hallie,” Liam said.

I nodded. “Yeah
, that’s a good idea.”

Everyone watched us as we moved across the space. Misty and
Kelley were still waiting by the front door. When I looked back, everyone had stopped moving and seemed to be frozen in time. This was not a good sign.

“What is going on?”
Kelley asked.

“I don’t know, but Giovanni told these people that I’m the enemy.”

“I can see that,” she said as she looked around the room.

The room was still standing still. I had to stop the spell that Giovanni had cast. I reached my arms out and recited the words. Lights and wind flashed and flew across the space. But it did nothing but make everyone collapse onto the floor. That definitely wasn’t the right spell.

Kelley stepped forward. “I’ve seen a spell like this before. Can I help?” 

I shrugged. Where had she seen this spell before?
Why did her magic work and not mine?

She whipped her arms around and the wind and lights seemed to do the right thing this time. Everyone climbed up from the floor. They seemed dazed at first, but soon their confusion turned to confrontation and they were glaring at us. We had recreated a hostile environment.
Nicolas grabbed my arm.

“I think we’ve made a few people mad,” Liam said coyly.

I needed for Misty to tell me everything that had happened. “If you don’t tell me everything, I will have to take away your position as the leader of the Enchantment Pointe Coven,” I said.

Her mouth dropped open. “You can’t do that.”

I stared at her.

“Well, I guess you can, but I don’t know anything. All he wanted was the book and I told him I wasn’t sure if I could get it,” she said.

I knew what she was thinking. She thought that I didn’t have the right to fire her. She felt that Giovanni was the leader and should make that choice. But as of right now I was still the leader, and it was still my job to make sure the coven leaders did the right thing.

Maybe the men had decided to go back
to the vampire bar, but I didn’t want to play a game of cat-and-mouse all night. It was time to give up for the evening. Maybe I would think of a new plan in the morning. I certainly hoped so because I was currently all out of ideas. I thought everyone else was out of ideas too. If they weren’t, they sure weren’t telling me about them.

When we arrived at the manor
that night, the coven members had already returned. I had no idea how they had got there because they were tight-lipped about events. Heck, they could have flown back on brooms for all I knew.

A noise sounded in the middle of the night.
The old manor made lots of creaks and groans, but I’d learned the difference. This was more than an old place settling. Something… or someone was down there.

Nicolas and I wasted little time
jumping from bed. We headed downstairs to check it out. My eyes finally adjusted to the darkness as I descended the grand staircase. Nicolas led the way and I was right behind him, holding his bare arm. There was no sound now other than my heavy breathing.

With each step forward my anxiety grew. What if someone had broken into the house? What if another evil spirit had found its way to
LaVeau Manor. There were too many what-ifs  for my mind to even comprehend.

Noise sounded again and I knew it came from outside.
When we reached the front door, Nicolas peeked out the front door.

“It’s Giovanni,” he said, opening the door and running out after him.

I took off after Nicolas. When my eyes finally adjusted to the darkness, I spotted Giovanni running into the woods that surrounded LaVeau Manor. Oak and pine trees filled the area. Each time I stepped under the canopy of trees, it was like being carried away to another world.

Nicolas and I headed into the woods to see if we could find Giovanni. If that had really been him then we were determined to confront him. He had no reason to be at the manor. All he wanted to do was cause trouble.

After we found him and told him to get lost, then I had to try to find a spell that would banish him from returning forever. I didn’t care if he did claim the book was his—until I knew for sure, he needed to stay away.

We finally reached the line of trees and stepped into the darkened area under the shade of the tall trees. The air was cooler and silence encircled us.
The scent of earth and pine filled the air. This was where Nicolas had first traced the delicate skin of my neck with his fangs. My heart sped up just thinking about it—the thought of something so intimate was a little thrilling and scary at the same time. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it, but it was something I would have to discuss with him soon. Giovanni was nowhere in sight.

“Are you sure you saw him?” Nicolas asked.

I nodded. “I’m positive. I don’t think he would have had time to get to the other side yet.”

We walked deeper into the woods, but there was still no sign of Giovanni. This was getting old quickly. He’d probably pulled off a spell that was concealing
himself from view. I wouldn’t lie, it made me angry that he was better at magic than me. Maybe he should be the leader. I mean, after all, I had no clue what I was doing.

The air changed around us.
It was like breathing through a thick cloud, energized with emotion. My senses were on full alert. I knew that Nicolas felt my anxiety.

“Do you feel that?” Nicolas asked.

I nodded. “Yes, I think he’s playing games with us.”

Nicolas nodded and looked around. “Come on, let’s keep going.”

Nicolas and I headed out across the area. I knew once we made it to the other side that we’d come upon my neighbor’s home. I hoped that Giovanni didn’t pay her a visit. She was a nice lady and she’d even kept some of my great-aunt Maddy’s things and given them to me.

The air continued to change around us and I grew more anxious by the minute. I expected Giovanni to pop out at any moment. We’d almost reached the edge of the woods when we stepped forward and smashed into something
—something unseen by the naked eye. It was as if we’d stepped into a wall. We were slammed backward, landing on our butts. It took me a moment to realize what had happened.

“What the hell is going on?” Nicolas asked. He reached over and helped me to my feet.

I shook my head. “I don’t know. It was like we hit a wall.”

Nicolas narrowed his eyes. “I know this spell. Giovanni cast a spell blocking us from going forward.”

Okay, now I was really angry. Who the hell did he think he was? We tried to move forward again, but the invisible barrier stopped us once again. It knocked the air out of my lungs each time I tried to break through.

“Maybe if we try to go through at the same time and hold hands,” Nicolas said.

I nodded. “It’s worth a shot.”

Nicolas
and I moved forward one more time. But we were thrown back again. I shook my head and tried to get over the shock. It knocked energy out of me each time we tried.

“Maybe we should go back. I want to get the car and drive over and check on my neighbor. I don’t want Giovanni messing with her because I’m sure he went to over there.”

Nicolas grabbed my hand and we made our way across the area again, careful of our footing and watching for the fallen branches. We reached the other side and just as we stepped on the edge, we were knocked back again, falling to the ground. It was as if a bubble had captured us.

Panic surged through me. I felt trapped. How would we get out of here and what was Giovanni planning to do to us
? I jumped up in a panic and moved forward again, sure that I could break through this time. It didn’t happen though because I landed on the ground again. I was going to have some serious bruises. If I got a hold of Giovanni again I wasn’t going to let him get by with this.

As I moved forward again, determined to break through no matter how many times it took, I fell back, stumbling and trying to remain upright. Nicolas reached to grab me before I hit the ground. But before he could save me, he lost his footing too, and landed near me. I let out a groan.

Nicolas moved closer and looked into my eyes. “Are you okay?”

My head was pounding and my body ached. I wasn’t sure how many more times I could try to break through that barrier.

I rubbed my head. “I think I’m okay.”

Nicolas inched closer and wrapped his arms around me, looking into my eyes. “Don’t worry. I’ll get us out of here,” he whispered.

The sound of branches falling echoed around us and my heart pounded. I wasn’t sure if it was because of the dire situation we were in or the look in Nicolas’ eyes and his nearness. He leaned down and pressed his lips against mine. My tension eased and I felt comforted just knowing that we were in this together. If he said he would get us out of there, then I knew he meant it. He eased away and helped me up.

“We need to use magic to break through this. It’s the only way out
,” Nicolas said.

My magic was drained and I didn’t think I could push forward any longer.

Nicolas and I held hands to use each other’s energy. To break the spell that had us captured, we’d call to the elements. Facing north, we recited the words: “Element of Earth, we call to you. Empower us with your energy to break free.” We turned to face the west, and recited the words: “Element of Air, we call to you to push away the negative that entraps us.” We shifted to face the south and recited the words: “Element of Fire, we call to you for protection and strength. Help us break free.” Completing the spell, we moved again to face the east and recited the words: “Element of Water, we call to you for force and guidance. Give us the force to break the obstacle that’s blocking us.”

When the energy from the spell began to fade, another blast of wind stirred. The foreboding feeling swirled within the wind. Little by little the wind carried the foreboding feeling away. Finally the magic around us disappeared and I knew that the barrier had been broken.

I’d never felt more trapped in my whole life and I wasn’t going to let Giovanni get away with that. Nicolas and I held hands and rushed out from the trees surrounding us. This time nothing stopped us.

After we got out of the magic barrier, we headed over to check on my neighbor. She
was extremely unhappy with me when we showed up in the middle of the night, but at least I knew that she was safe and Giovanni hadn’t paid her a visit.