Witness (35 page)

“What?!” I screamed. “You evil bitch!”

She just laughed. I charged at her again, missing and falling to my knees. She was doing everything in her power to steer me away from where Draven was, and it was infuriating me. Then I saw Madison’s emerald green eyes glisten in the darkness, and I knew she was awake - waiting for her moment. The next time Bianca came near me, I threw her toward Madison; before Bianca had a chance to fade or appear again, Madison had her arms around her. The two of them screamed and yelled, throwing slaps and punches.

Aden yelled, “Draven – Charlie!”

I turned to see that the darkness around the fireball he was standing in was clinging to him – and more was coming; the night sky was pouring into him. I ran to the circle, not even questioning if the fire would burn me. Instantly, I heard the screams of innocents, and I saw the demise of lost souls...I felt the addicting power of their energy pouring into Draven.

I screamed his name, and his eyes blazed right through me. He was struggling to keep his arms down, for them not to reach for me - but as his fingertips reached toward me, I felt part of my soul, my light, being pulled to him. I knew if I didn’t do something – anything - Silas would appear and end him – end us.

I stepped forward and laced my fingers through his. He held my stare; his eyes were still blazing, and an uncharacteristic lust was there. They were changing him, calling him back to the evil he was in the past, which was echoing around us, telling him that he had two choices: either step into the numbness, or fight his past. I wanted him to have three: I wanted him to see his victories, to see the moment he decided to be good long ago. I knew if I could get him to see that moment, he’d be strong enough to fight this pull of darkness forever – strong enough to help me starve out this evil realm.

“Draven!” I screamed. “What happened next?! What happened after this? When was the first time you saw me?”

I had to cover the images before him – block out the sound of the shadows. I imagined the tiny gems surrounding us – encasing us. When they appeared, silence instantly came and the energy around us was tense; it was as if the gems were numbing him, fulfilling his craving for energy – my energy. I had no idea how long this would work, when the desire to pull the light from my soul would take over him.

“What happened next, Draven?” I asked again in a calm, gentle voice.

As the scene around us changed, voices came to life. Together, we witnessed him sitting on a throne, his court entertaining him with a dance. An image of me stepped through the large entryway to the ballroom – and instantly I had his attention. Somehow, I knew this wasn’t the first time I’d laid eyes on him, that I’d been in his presence before. I heard echoes of our voices speaking words that led to that moment.

My gown was long and cream-colored, but the candles in the room made it look white. He stood as his court parted for me to move closer, ordering everyone away. The image of me ran from him, but he caught me in his arms on an open balcony, then gazed into my eyes and whispered, “I shall give you anything if you allow me to live here.” As he rested his hand in the center of my chest, you could see the glow of my skin under his touch – my light being pulled from me. My image placed my hand on his chest and said, “Set them free - all of them - and I will stand by you for all of time.”

His eyes grew wide with surprise. It was as if that was the last thing he expected me to say - as if I were the first person to acknowledge what he was.

“Promise?” he whispered, holding my gaze.

“Promise,” I replied in a shaky voice that was trembling with fear. It wasn’t an empty promise; I could see the passion, love, and devotion I had for him in my eyes...I was just as addicted to him as he was to me.

In that instant, shadows came to his eyes, then poured out of his body. He began to scream in pain, and in a natural instinct he began to pull them back to him. I fell to my knees next to him and held his face in my hands. “The pain is temporary – I am eternal...set them free.”

He gasped in pain, then all at once every ounce of darkness escaped his body, and the night sky turned to daylight. His people, his servants were restored; all that was taken from them was retuned, and the light of their souls beamed around us.

I knew what we were seeing was temporary and that at some point after this moment, he would be thrown out of that life - punished by the devil himself for releasing the darkness. I didn’t want him to see that.

“Draven,” I whispered again, calling us out of that illusion into the hell that was all around us. I took his hand and put it on the center of my chest, then placed mine on his. “Release them...live with me in eternity.”

In his image, I saw a glow beaming from me. I didn’t want it to be too tempting to him – to make this harder on him. I thought of my butterflies, and instantly they all appeared, surrounding us; it was as if at that moment, they were a perfect combination of both of our powers – both light and darkness…it was a balance that couldn’t tempt either of us.

At that moment, he screamed in pain, and shadows seeped from every part of him. The rocks around us fell, and the butterflies pulled the darkness from him and into the sky above; they were leading them to their escape – a way out of this realm.

He wrapped his arms around me, holding me for dear life. Over his shoulder, I saw Madison fling Bianca over the edge of the mountain.

“Finish the song, baby,” I whispered into his neck.

I felt my soul jolt, and all at once I was back on that balcony. The lights were on Draven as he began to sing the chorus again: ‘A devil risen - an angel fallen - this world will not be our prison – fate is calling.’

I turned and ran for the stairs. Madison was right behind me

“Did you kill her?!” I yelled over the music as we raced down the stairs.

“No, not yet; she’s just begun to torment us. But I will – I promise you that!” she answered.

When I reached the bottom of the stairs, I ran down the hall, looking for an entrance to the stage. I saw Evan ahead, holding a door open for me, and I raced past him, finding myself on the stage just as Draven played the last chord of the song. I didn’t care that there were thousands of people watching; I ran to him. He pushed his guitar behind him and held his arms out for me. When I reached him, he squeezed me as tight as he could and spun us around in circles as Aden finished the last beat of the drums. The crowd roared, and the energy in the room was pulsing through us.

He sat me down gently, leaned his forehead to mine, and let his hands rise to my face. “Eternity!” he yelled over the crowd.

“Promise!” I yelled as I reached up and let my lips rest on his. Our embrace just made the crowd grow even wilder. Our lips slowed, and he whispered into my ear, “Do you hear that?”

I nodded. “They love you.”

He shook his head. “Listen.”

With questioning eyes, I stared at him and listened; the crowd wasn’t making all the noise...my whispers were back – and they were fierce, screaming our names. I looked out at the crowd to see the confetti falling from the ceiling. Shadows mocking the dark images of lost souls were in every dark corner of this place...we’d done it: they were back.

Chapter Nineteen

Draven and the others bowed to the crowd, then with his arm around me we left the stage. His father was waiting for him with a proud smile.

“Proud of you, son,” Evan said.

Draven held my hand tightly as the other band members flocked around him. One of the lead vocalists from the band that played before him patted Draven’s chest and said, “Man, those were some wicked roars near the end of that song – your throat must be killing you!”

Draven half-heartedly smiled and squeezed my hand as we both remembered what had caused those roars. As others flocked around us, I felt arms around my waist and looked up to see Aden holding me. In my ear, he whispered, “You’re fearless – I couldn’t have touched that snake,” in a teasing manner.

“Yeah, right,” I said, rolling my eyes. “I saw how badly you wanted to move.” He nodded his head and smiled, revealing his trademark dimples, then handed me his drumsticks before pushing his way through the crowd. There were so many people, I couldn’t breathe.

“I’m gonna get air,” I said to Draven as I let his hand go. I could tell by the look in his eyes that he didn’t want me to leave him, but he could see that I couldn’t breathe, so he let my hand go.

I pushed through the crowd, hearing “Happy Birthday, Charlie!” over and over. I couldn’t tell where it was coming from, so I just said “Thank you” over and over. Madison was on her phone by the door. I handed her Aden’s drumsticks, then nodded to the door, telling her I needed air. She took them as she nodded and held up one finger.

I felt the cool October air rush by me as I stepped outside, and I heard something devious that made me smile: my sinister whispers - they were back, and I was ready to help them now, to find a way to their light…I just had to figure out how.

I took in a deep breath, then let another one out. I tried to process what had just happened; it all seemed unreal, like a nightmare that had come and gone, leaving me peacefully in my reality. People were pushing past me, so I walked away from the door and down the sidewalk, feeling my breaths slowly come back to me.

In the distance, I saw a small shadow sitting on the curb, facing the football field. I walked in that direction, thinking it was odd for someone to be all alone way over there. When I got closer, I saw that it was a girl, and when I’d almost reached them I saw that it was Monroe.

“Hey,” I said as I got closer.

She didn’t turn at the sound of my voice, which scared me, so I jogged to her. When I put my hand on her shoulder, she looked up.

“Why are you over here all alone?”

She looked back to the field in front of her. “Listening.”

“To what?” I asked, wondering if she heard more in the whispers around me, beyond the honks of all the cars trying to leave at once; they were all I could hear.

She didn’t answer me; she simply held out the palm of her hand and showed me a single white butterfly that was glowing in the night. She blew gently, and the butterfly fluttered to the field; my gaze followed to see a purple haze in the distance.

Without knowing why, I crossed the parking lot and stepped into the field. The moment my feet landed on the dying grass, I heard silence and felt a calm come over me – a familiar calm. A few wandering butterflies drifted to the right, and I followed them.

Sitting on the stands, staring into the nothing of the night was Silas. I thought about turning away, running back to Draven’s side - but I had to speak to him; I had to make sure this was over.

When I reached his side, I let my hand rest on his shoulder. “I told you I would end it – save him.”

He looked at me, and I found myself falling into the alluring color of honey that his eyes reflected. “It’s just begun.”

“How? He fought it...I told you he’d fight it.”

He stood beside me and gazed down at me. “You pulled him from that moment, but not before he felt the power he had in another life. It may take him a while...a day, a week, a million years - but he will grow weary and come for your light to sustain his.”

“He won’t,” I promised.

Silas smiled innocently. “I wish I had your optimism. Truth be told, Britain is more than likely the reason you have it - but his day will come, too.”

“Britain?” I questioned, not understanding what he had to do with any of this.

“Your light was strong enough, powerful enough to maintain him for countless years – but now he’s growing weak...he will seek it again.”

“He has Madison,” I whispered, thinking I’d beat the demon that taunted Draven.

“Who does Draven have?” he asked as he reached for my hand. When I didn’t answer, he spoke again, “No one else. He has only two sources: you and the darkness.”

“Why are you ruining this victory for me?” I asked.

His eyes grew sad. “I’m sorry…I just need you to know what lies ahead. I need you to be strong – strong enough not to be naïve.”

“I’m not…I’m not blind anymore.”

“There is so much left for you to perceive – worlds beyond this one. A darkness that knows no rest is now hungry for revenge.”

I didn’t know if he was talking about Bianca or the devil himself, but my chest swelled with pride. I would take any of them on in a heartbeat to protect not the only the ones I love, but all those that are damned.

“I’m ready for it.”

He smiled gently. “I believe that you are.”

Headlights flashed across us, and I looked over my shoulder to see Draven’s Hummer at the edge of the field. He got out of his truck and walked slowly to the front of it.

I squeezed Silas hand and said, “I have to go.”

He pulled me closer and leaned his forehead to mine. “I’m only a breath away...never forget that.”

I didn’t know if that was a promise or a threat, so I looked into his eyes and said, “I know,” to let him know that I’d call him when I needed to feel the hum of his energy – when I needed to breath – and that I’d never let my guard down when it came to Draven; I would defend and protect him to the end of my existence.

I pulled away from him and whispered, “Thank you,” then turned away from him and walked to Draven.