Fight.
Fight, damn it.
Leila, help me fight!
Chapter 35
Leila heard me.
Fight, Leila. Join with me and fight!
I threw myself at freedom. Reached for Cash, Marc, the living world beyond my cage.
Petra stumbled forward, a step closer to Cash. My connection to the living flared with his proximity. Pictures focused with sudden clarity.
Again.
Join with me!
Leila strained to connect with me, and I her. I could feel her soul through a veil. The closer we got, the more I distinguished Petra’s grittier aura next to her lighter soul, coating it with thick darkness. Leila pushed toward me. I pushed back. So close.
Again!
Petra stumbled and shuffled my body, losing control. Only a few feet in front of Cash.
“No!” she cried, taking hold of my head between my hands.
To the outside world, the one beyond my body, it all happened in a matter of seconds. But inside, it felt like an eternity. Petra and I battled with our wills. I was stronger closer to Cash, even more so with the help of my sister propelling me forward. But I couldn’t quite break the barrier holding me. Like a rubber sheet bowing when I touched it, I couldn’t get through.
Cash saw what was happening and lashed out with his foot, tripping me up. My body fell forward, hands shooting out to break my fall. I collided with his body—my soulmate. With our tactile contact, my hope bloomed, and it gave me the power to reach through the elastic barrier, to take control.
Momentarily, Petra and I occupied the same space. A beat in time as big as the universe. Something The Others said at the airport came back to me. I had been pining over my last few dollars and they’d snickered, Control is an illusion.
I didn’t believe that.
My name is Roo. My hair is brown.
I’m not an evil witch. I’m not a Soul-Eater. I’m not the friggin’ queen. I’m me!
“My name is Roo.” I ordered my hands to reach for a cable fixed into Marc. “My hair is brown!” I grasped and gave an almighty heave. The cable tore free. With one side gone, the other dislodged. Instantly, Marc dematerialized. I caught the flailing power cords and pressed both live-wires to myself, one on each thigh. Electricity ripped through me. Intense power quaked. My heart convulsed in my chest. Everything inside me seized, including the souls. I cleaved down the middle of them with my surging power, splitting them in two. But they were still there and Petra had already taken control of my body, she could do it again. I had to get them out. With immense effort, I ripped the cables from my thighs and collapsed in a heap. I smelled like barbecued pork.
For a minute, I thought Marc had left us, but he reappeared behind the two Epsilon boys and placed a hand around each neck. His aura amplified, stinging my eyes with its potency. Flames engulfed all of them, licking up their bodies with crackling heat. Then Marc lifted his gaze to mine, through the roaring fire, and then he simply wasn’t there anymore. Grains of disintegrated clothes and dust fell in a cascade to the floor. The boys were gone. All that was left was a pile of smoking ash where each of them had stood.
A movement to my side brought my attention around. Half expecting to see Ava, I crouched into attack mode, but it was Cash. Still tied to the chair by the neck, thumbs hooked behind the cord to save his breath. The rest of him was bruised and battered.
“Cash.” I grit my teeth and ordered my hands and legs to move. Petra still fought me for control, but I forced my legs to shuffle to his side, placed my heated fingers on the neck restraint and seared through it.
“I’m so sorry.” Tears burned my eyes as his heavy body tumbled into my arms. I held him tight, not sure what to do. Unable to sense his aura, I pushed my index finger under his jaw to look for a pulse. It was there. Barely.
“We need medical help,” I said.
Cash moved in my embrace, and a sound came from his throat. He was trying to say something.
“What is it? Are you okay?” My eyes stung. Please say yes.
“Lincoln,” he rasped.
“Oh shit.” I turned around to see Lincoln frozen in air.
I sent a mass of energy his way and broke through the barrier Petra had placed on him. He collapsed to the floor. Alive, breathing, but trembling with fear.
I held up my palms. “It’s okay, I won’t hurt you. It’s me, Roo.”
As the words came out of my mouth, I knew they weren’t true. The souls writhed and swirled inside me. We occupied the same space, and I held control through sheer will. I had to get them out, I had to be sure Petra couldn’t take over again.
Cash rolled to his side on the floor and moved into a fetal position. We needed help. His injuries were extensive. I couldn’t help him.
“Cash,” I whispered and placed a hand on his shoulder. “We’ll get you help. As soon as Marc returns, I’ll get him to send for help.”
Cash moaned. His eyes were two puffy slits fluttering stubbornly, trying to stay open. “I’m okay.”
“You saved me, Cash. When you kicked Petra’s feet, we fell into you. Just touching you strengthened me. Don’t you see what that means? I love you, okay? You’re my soulmate. Don’t leave me.” I swept the hair from his forehead, leaving a smear in red. My throat closed up when his eyes closed. “Cash.” I patted his face. “Don’t leave. You said you wouldn’t leave.”
But his breath grew shallow. Short gasps between long lengths of time. Then he stilled. His eyes wouldn’t open. I pushed my fingers to his pulse. It beat sluggishly under my touch.
“Wake up.” I squeezed his shoulders, but he didn’t move. “Cash, wake up!”
My throat closed up. I couldn’t do this again. First Tommy, now Cash. I couldn’t lose him.
“Egnatius,” I screamed. “Get your butt back here!”
“No need to have a conniption, love. I’m already here.”
Marc walked in, dressed in his dapper suit and tie, the epitome of charm. No trace of the horror he’d just endured.
“He’s dying Marc, we need that blood. You said it would help him.”
Marc’s eyes fell sadly on Cash as he contemplated something. “It will help him, but I’m not sure if we should use it.”
“Why not?”
He stepped toward me and crouched to meet my eyes. “Because, love, it’s the last of your blood.”
“What do you mean?”
“When I arrived back at the Empire, you were all but wasted away.”
“Stop calling me her. I’m not her!”
He sighed and looked at Cash. “She had left her body locked away in her chambers. Nobody had broken inside, no food, no water—a husk on her bed. Frozen in beautiful despair. On her nightstand, there was a letter addressed to me. It was as though she knew I would be the only one who could enter. The Sephie of my dreams forever asleep.” His eyes darted back. He swallowed. “The vial was there, ready to go. But when I picked it up, something triggered a spell of some sort. Her body crumbled into dust. The blood must have been tethered to keep her body alive. It’s all we have left of her. So, it’s for you, love, not for him. It will turn you back into Seraphim, to be born immortal again.”
Damned woman, controlling my life from light-years away. I was sick and tired of being manipulated.
“I don’t want it.” I wiped the wetness from my eyes. “Give it to him.”
“You’re the queen, love. It must go to you.”
“No!” I screamed. “You’re not listening. If I really am this queen, you have to do as I say. Give it to him. I order you.” My finger flung to point at Cash. “He deserves it more than me.”
I slumped. Tired, so tired. Petra wasted my energy with needless displays of power. Then I used reserves to overcome her. Now… I was spent.
Marc sighed and straightened, looking around the room. “Where is the vial, anyway?”
“I thought you had it?”
Marc blinked at me.
“Ava’s got it.” L
incoln walked over, hesitant, wary eyes on me.
Icy fingers trailed down my spine.
Ava.
Slowly and with purpose, I lifted my weary bones and stood. “We need that vial. Marc. Send for Corvus House.”
“Already done, love. They’ll be here soon.”
I took one last look at my poor lover and traced my finger over his cheekbone, the only part of his face unwounded. Then I stuffed my emotions down, drained it from my body until pure, cold hard determination was all that was left. I closed my eyes and swept my senses outwards, searching for Ava’s aura, her unique energy signature. She couldn’t have gone far.
A spark of life to the north.
“Found her. She’s still in Luna Park.” I rushed to a display stand at the counter of the café and pulled out a park map. I opened it and faced in the direction I sensed her, trailing the imprint she left. Soon, I had her location narrowed down to a small area.
“There,” I said pointing to a spot. “Take me there.”
Chapter 36
Marc enveloped my hand in his and tugged me to his chest. His scent surrounded me: forest, nature, the wild. I shut my eyes. When I opened them, we were in another part of the amusement park, outdoors and under the hot sun.
And I was naked.
Shit.
Marc covered himself in an illusion-construct and then did the same to me. I gaped, watching the fabric form before my eyes. Within seconds, I wore the same clothes I did before—jeans and a singlet. Even my feet felt like they had shoes on them. Whoa. But then…
“Are you telling me you could’ve done this after every journey?” I hissed, thinking about all the times he’d taken me through the in-between and let me scurry to find a cover up.
His brow lifted coyly, and he shrugged.
“We’ll talk about this later.”
I surveyed our surroundings. In front of us was a giant warehouse with amusement attractions. Coney Island, the sign said. It housed the Wonky Walk, the Mirror Maze and Devil’s Drop. The door had been broken open.
I took a step then stumbled. A feeling swelled inside me, almost like nausea.
“Love, you okay?”
“It’s Petra.” I grunted. “Not near Cash, now. She’s making a play.”
With a worried look, he placed a palm on me. “You can do it. Fight her.”
I held on to him and forced her back down until it was just me again, leaving forward, bracing myself on my knees, breathing hard. “I’m good.”
We kept moving. Marc darted a glance to me every five seconds. I cringed as we stepped across the threshold to discover the perfect horror story backdrop inside.
“Looks like fun,” Marc said. “Ooh, dibs on taking a dip on that giant wiggly slide.”
“Marc, quiet,” I whispered and glared.
He made a zipping gesture at his mouth and winked.
If I had half the confidence he did, I’d be fine. As it was, I barely held it together.
Our footsteps echoed in the warehouse, against the wooden floorboards and large walls. I couldn’t tell the difference between the echo and my heartbeat. It drummed a rhythm that pounded loudly.
“That way,” Marc and I said in unison, both sensing Ava’s aura.
I pointed further into the warehouse where an oversized barrel lay on the side and open and dark to us. Normally, if the park was open, it would be rotating for people to walk through.
“In there,” I whispered.
We walked passed the vintage arcade games and approached the barrel with caution, stopping under the sign. Barrels of Fun. I almost snorted at the irony. She was in there alright, but we couldn’t see. Invisible, or sheltered by the shadow of the interior. But I felt her.
“Come out Ava. Give us the vial,” I called.
No answer.
I indicated with my head to the barrel, hoping Marc caught my drift. I wanted him to go around, catch her on the other side, but he blinked at me in surprise.
“You want to go for a ride? Now who’s being irresponsible.”
I rolled my eyes at him. “Go around. Block her in.”
The second I said it, Ava’s energy propelled toward me.
On instinct, I threw up my hands and forced the air in front of me to solidify. She crashed against it, like a bird flying into a window. The impact jarred my arms, sliding my feet backward.
She became visible, slumped on the floor two feet in front of me. Spent, my legs weakened and collapsed under me. I couldn’t let Petra in. That was a lot of my energy in the shield. I fell to my knees.
Marc was there in an instant, slipping his hands under my arms.
“No, get the vial,” I said.
He moved to Ava’s lifeless form. She wasn’t dead. Her energy was strong. Marc nudged her with his foot. Then rotated her body until she was face up.
“Ah, there we go.” He plucked the cord from her neck and held it to inspect. “Good. Still in there.”
“Take it to Cash, now. Can you take it? Will it travel through the in-between?”
“It’s encased in an organic polymer container, made at the Empire. Yes, it will travel, but, love, it’s yours.”
I poured the full force of my fury into my voice. “Take it to him or I’ll never forgive you.”
Slowly, he nodded. “What about her?”
“Take it, Marc.” He reached for me, but I flinched away. “No. Leave me here. I have to get them out of me.” I pointed to the Mirror Maze. “I’m going to trap Petra in there.”
“Love, no.” He shook his head. “I can’t leave you here by yourself. You’re exhausted.”
Ava groaned on the floor, coming to.
Marc stepped toward her.
“She’s not going anywhere. Go! I got this.” To make my point, I held out my hands in her direction as if I were going to hold her with my power.
“I’ll be back.” With a frown my way, Marc dematerialized.
Instead of holding her at bay, I let what was left of my energy extend past my body until it made contact with hers, and then siphoned.
The rush of her essence electrified me, and I stumbled, eyes wide. It was like pouring iced water down a parched throat. My body and mind sighed as I rejoiced with replenished energy.
Ava grimaced. “What are you doing to me?”
I didn’t reply, but kept pulling, slowly, surely. Not too much. Just enough. Not too much, Roo.
Her grimace turned into a glare. A growl tore from her throat. Her hand reached behind her back and before I registered what happened, something pinched my middle.
I let go of her energy and glanced down.
A knife hilt protruded from my stomach. The one from the café. White hot pain seared through me. I twirled, hands hovering, hesitant over the hilt. What to do. Take it out? Would I heal fast enough? Thousands of thoughts battled in my mind. The surrounding scenery rotated. Barrels of fun.
In my periphery, Ava got to her feet.
The sight spurred me into action. My fingers closed around the hilt and I gave a sharp tug. Blood sprung from the wound like an oil slick, but not a geyser. Good. That’s good.
A force knocked me backwards. My body launched into the air, legs lifting in front, head tilting back. The ceiling flashed into view as I crash landed through a curtain and slid into a darkened room.
My lungs didn’t work, winded.
The Mirror Maze.
A flutter in my belly soared high. This was where I needed to be.
I scrambled to my feet, but was knocked sideways by a bulky shadow. I fell further into the maze. Fractured reflections of myself distorted my sense of direction. Fear squeezed my heart. Ava was in here, with me, but I couldn’t hone in on her aura. Her energy signature bounced off the surrounding glass, just like my reflection, pinging from mirror to mirror. Seizing my panic as an opportunity, I felt Petra batter my defenses, trying to rise to the surface. It took everything I had to keep her down.
My palms planted on the mirror in front of me and I g
lared into my eyes.
“You’re in control. You have brown hair. Brown.”
But strands of red spliced through.
“No!” I screamed. The glass trembled. The room shook. “Brown!”
A laugh echoed, bouncing off the mirrors. My heart galloped. My head spun to pinpoint Ava’s voice, but it reverberated everywhere.
“You think you’re special because you’re the queen?”
Another gasp, a hitch of my breath. I moved through a mirrored tunnel, shards of my reflection followed me, always following. A shadow of myself, watching, assessing. The eyes that looked back at me were large, liquid, terrified—and full of doubt.
“She created worlds and mastered souls. Before the king died, she razed civilizations with him. You can’t even control your hair color.”
The evil truth punched me in the stomach.
She was right. I was a poor imitation of the all-powerful queen. Like the surrounding reflections, there was no substance. Whatever killer instinct she had, I lacked. Where she was driven to build worlds, I preferred to drive a motorbike. But that’s what made me, me. I had to hold on to that.
“It won’t be long before people see you for what you really are.”
Tired. My limbs were heavy. My mind was heavy. My breath fogged the glass as my cheek hit the cold surface.
When I sensed her aura coming for me, I didn’t move. Let her come.
Her fingers slithered around my throat and her face came into being inches from mine. I faced her with my back against the mirror.
“You ruined your chance,” she said. “Even with your perfect lover, you fucked it up. He doesn’t want you anymore. He hated the queen.”
Pressure tightened around my throat as she squeezed.
But something she said got to me. It stuck in my mind.
Cash hated the queen.
But, he’d known my true identity since Houston, and he still wanted me. Me. That day in the cafe, he’d said: “For this person you are today, I’d do anything for you.” The new me. The one who had been molded by my time on this planet, by the friends I’d made and the hardships I’d faced. I didn’t have to be her. I still had a choice. I could do things my way.
The Game of Gods: Series Box Set Page 69