Harley Merlin 11: Finch Merlin and the Lost Map

by Forrest, Bella

  Hit him where it hurts! I tried to force the words out, but my throat had seized up. My lungs strained, trying to gasp in a breath. The pain literally stole each one away. I bent double, dragging my nails across the filthy ground.

  I managed to glance back at Erebus. Smoke rose from his body, meeting the black clouds. As he lifted his hands, the storm spread wider, obeying its master. Splinters of purple light darted between the clouds, like real lightning but twice as terrifying. As the guy turned to escape, one of those lightning forks crashed down. It bristled with purple-and-black energy, smashing the spellcaster right in the back. He toppled forward and smacked into the ground face-first.

  “Don’t… kill him!” I wheezed. “We… need him!”

  Erebus grinned. “I’m just loosening his tongue, worry not.”

  The spellcaster tried to stand, a howl ripping from his throat as the lightning bolt shivered through him. I could see the path it took, his veins lighting up and revealing the whole network inside him. Erebus twisted his hand in a circle, bringing the spellcaster around like a puppet on a string. The guy’s mouth opened wide, and another bloodcurdling howl ricocheted between the walls. Where the lightning bolt had splintered through him, the formerly glowing veins turned black. They spiderwebbed across his face and throat, like clawing hands trying to strangle him. He staggered on weak knees that gave up on him. He crumpled to the ground again, howling and screaming as the web of veins took over.

  How do you like it, huh? I would’ve really gone hard on the satisfaction if I hadn’t been in the same boat. My limbs stopped moving. My chest clenched in a vise. I didn’t know how long it’d be before my heart stopped, too. Everything had frozen.

  Casual as anything, Erebus walked over and pressed his palms to my shoulder blades. Warmth spread through me, like Deep Heat on a tight muscle. Oddly relaxing after all that pain. As it washed through my body, it unraveled the spellcaster’s curse. I could feel it breaking away, loosening up my limbs and muscles. As that weird, fluid sensation hit my lungs, I sputtered—they sensed the oxygen and went into panic mode. I gulped massive breaths, terrified it might be taken away again. But I could breathe and move, all that pain gone in a flash.

  I looked up at Erebus. “Th-thank you.” He’d saved me. No two ways about it. Much as I hated to admit it. Maybe you’re not so bad to have around in a fix. I didn’t say it—I wasn’t going to give him that much credit. But I felt it, blending with the wave of relief sweeping over me.

  “I need your abilities, remember?” he replied. “I couldn’t let you die on me.”

  “And here I thought you’d done it out of the goodness of your heart.”

  He smirked. “I’m still getting used to having a heart.”

  “Don’t Children of Chaos have them?” I asked, between deep breaths.

  “I suppose we must have an equivalent, but it’s not quite the same thing. I’ve never felt anything… beating in there before. Not for a long time, anyway. I had almost forgotten the sensation.” He put his hand to his chest and gave a stilted laugh. A second later, his eyes dropped to the writhing figure on the floor. “Now, shall we see what this wretch has to say for himself?”

  I nodded. “I think we should.”

  Erebus put out his hand. “Come, then.”

  “Thanks.” I took it and let him hoist me to my feet. To my surprise, he held on to my hand a while longer as he led me across the room. I was grateful for that. The pain might have gone, but my knees were hella shaky.

  As we neared the squirming rat, things took a turn for the weird. His face contorted, his eyes bulging. Yet, somehow… he looked familiar. My mind scrambled to figure it out. Yeah, he was in those pictures, but that hadn’t jogged any memories. So why did he look familiar now? It almost felt like I’d woken from a strange dream and was struggling to remember it. Every time I thought I had it, it slithered away again, back into the corners of my brain.

  “Who are you?” Erebus started the questioning.

  The guy spat blood onto the floor. “Go to hell!”

  “I suggest you make this easy on yourself. I’ll ask again. Who are you?” Erebus twirled his hand in the air, and the still-present clouds swept forward.

  “Ask all you… like. I’m not… saying anything… to you!” The guy’s face scrunched up as a purple bolt hit him in the skull. Pulsing threads of Chaos seared through bone and flesh. Black veins crept into his eyes. He even bit into his own hand to stop a scream. Blood trickled through his fingers.

  “Who. Are. You?!” Erebus twirled his hand again, unleashing another bolt. “My patience is wearing thin!”

  “None of your… damn… business!” The guy bit his hand again as purple light exploded through him.

  “I will ask one more time. If you don’t answer, I will scoop out your brain and find the answers myself.” Erebus waited. I looked at him, petrified. Would he really do that? Yeah, I was pretty sure he would. “Who are you?”

  The guy didn’t answer.

  “As you wish.” Erebus turned his hand halfway, ready to let loose a bolt that would crack open this dude’s skull.

  “Wait, wait!” he sputtered.

  “Are you going to cooperate?” Erebus smiled eerily.

  The guy’s lips twisted up in a bloodied scowl. “Wyatt. My name is Wyatt. I’m… I’m…”

  “You’re what?” I jumped in, spitting venom.

  His gaze turned to me. “I’m your uncle. Your dad’s brother.”

  “What?” I gasped. “No, you’re not. I’d remember you.”

  “I made it so… you wouldn’t,” he replied, battling through the pain. “Another trick I… learned from the African tribes. I couldn’t have you… coming after me… now, could I? Although, looks like you… found a way. That’ll be your… mom’s stubbornness. You were… always more like… her.”

  “I’d say you learned more than a few tricks, Wyatt.” Erebus stepped in. “Where did you learn such extraordinary Voodoo magic? I’d commend you if you hadn’t chosen to use it against me. You should know, much of Voodoo’s strength comes from my side of the coin. Your magic would never have worked.”

  Wyatt glowered at Erebus. “I spent years in… West Africa, learning all I could, living with… magical tribes. Tribes who still… revere and practice the ancient arts of Voodoo. It’s made me one… of the most powerful and… most dangerous Voodoo… practitioners in the world. All anyone knows is… the name Marie Laveau. But her magic… barely scratches the surface. If I’d had more time, I would’ve… made a dent in you, I’m sure.”

  Erebus snorted. “I highly doubt that.”

  “You put that curse on my mom.” I pushed in front of Erebus. “Why? If you’re really my uncle, why would you do that and make me forget?” Angry tears stung my eyes.

  “That’s my business,” Wyatt replied.

  “You better answer her.” Erebus narrowed his eyes.

  Wyatt grimaced. “Don’t blame me if you don’t like the answer.”

  “Just spill it, you bastard!” I snarled.

  He dragged himself up onto his haunches. “Not knowing must be killing you. I got away with this for so many years. Nobody suspected a thing. That’s the beauty of my artistry—it’s so subtle and perfect, it can even fool famous Voodoo queens.”

  “I mean it! I want to know everything!”

  Erebus raised his hands. “Get to the point, unless you want to find out how far I can push torture without actually killing a person.”

  Wariness crossed Wyatt’s face. “The truth is, I loved your mom. I met her first, at a party. I thought my brother might like her friend, so I set up a double date. Then, your parents spent the whole night talking, like me and this other chick weren’t even there. And the rest is history.”

  “Keep talking,” I warned, when it looked like he had stopped. “I want to know everything about why you did this. Every detail.”

  He shrugged, eyeing Erebus’s hands. “Your dad and I joined the Magical Forces. He met your mom
before his first deployment, and she decided to wait for him. I tried to persuade her not to, but she wouldn’t listen. They married when he came back. Anyway, the Forces didn’t end up being my style, so I ducked out on an honorable discharge. It wasn’t hard. I’d already developed an interest in blood magic, and an injury is easy to fake when you know how.”

  “Coward,” I hissed.

  “Who’s the brother that’s still alive?” He smirked coldly. “I’d rather live a coward than die a hero.”

  I lunged forward, but Erebus yanked me back. “If you want answers, I suggest you don’t beat him to a pulp.”

  “I came around when your dad was away, in the early days. I kept your mom company, helped with you. Your little sister wasn’t born yet. I kept thinking, if I just stayed persistent and showed her I was the better guy, she’d fall for me instead. It didn’t work, and I got tired of trying, so I took myself off for my first tribal experience. I came back now and again, met your little sister, but I couldn’t stand the sight of your mom playing happy family with my brother. It got harder each time. And then, I heard that my brother had been killed in Iraq. I’ve never felt relief like that.”

  I lunged again. “Shut your mouth!”

  “Kenzie!” Erebus barked, grabbing me.

  Wyatt chuckled. “I’d thought about killing him so many times, but I never had the courage. So perhaps I am a coward. Anyway, a bomb did it for me, in the end.”

  This time, Erebus preempted my strike and wrangled me into his arms. “Let him finish, then you can have justice.”

  “Did you not just hear what he said?” I snapped.

  “I did, but you asked for a cure. I cannot uphold my end of the bargain if I let you batter him to death before you have the entire story, and the chance to reverse your mother’s curse.” Erebus kept hold of me as I shot a death stare at Wyatt. “After all, he needs to be alive to perform the reversal. It is not a matter of killing him to break the curse. It would hold, even after his death.”

  “That’s right. You need me, don’t you? You think you have the upper hand, but I’m the one with all the cards.” He grinned bitterly. “If I don’t perform the reversal, your mom will keep deteriorating. So, how about you be a little nicer?”

  Erebus laughed. “You may have the cards, but I can make you use them. I can make you dance like a marionette if I wish, but I’m giving you the opportunity to do as Kenzie asks, willingly. It is your choice—continue talking or prepare for another onslaught.”

  Wyatt’s smile faded. “After a while, I went back to your mom, to try and convince her we should be together. I promised to build a better life for her, help her out with the house payments, and make sure you and your sister were safe,” Wyatt continued. “But she turned me down. After all that, she refused to even consider it. So I put a blood spell on her. Some of my finest work, if I do say so myself. It eats away, piece by tiny piece, until you forget who you are and there’s nothing left of the person you once were.”

  I wanted to snap his neck. And yeah, I wanted to punch the living daylights out of him. But Erebus was right. If I did that, I’d lose my shot at getting the curse off Mom.

  In that moment, all the fire went out of me. My body sagged in Erebus’s arms. I didn’t want violent vengeance anymore. I ached all over, and I was so freaking tired. Not from the Voodoo he’d thrown at me, but from the years of care, from watching Mom waste away in front of me. I had all my answers, and I had the culprit right here on the ground.

  I just want this over with. I just want my mom back.

  “Aren’t you sorry?” I asked softly. How could someone be so cruel? How could he have ruined our lives, just because my mom didn’t want him?

  Wyatt frowned. “Sorry? Why would I be sorry?”

  “You destroyed our lives.”

  “Your mom destroyed mine first,” he replied simply.

  “Are you sure you didn’t get whacked in the head on duty?” I gaped at him. “You’re a frickin’ sociopath. My mom has suffered for years because of you. Some days, she has no idea who we are. Does that make you feel good?”

  He smiled a creepy-ass smile. “Revenge is a dish best served cold.”

  “Yeah? Well, now I’m serving it.” I strained against Erebus until he let me go. “You’re going to undo that curse, or my pal here is going to scoop out the insides of your skull. As well as anything else he feels like scooping out.”

  A flicker of fear crossed Wyatt’s face. “I won’t. Not unless you swear I can walk free.”

  “What did you just say?” I spat.

  “I won’t take that curse off unless you swear I can live. I haven’t found a way to survive all these years just to die now.”

  “Wow…” I shook my head. “You really are a coward, aren’t you?”

  “Like I said, better a living coward than a dead hero,” he retorted.

  I held back the urge to kick him in the face. “My mom made the right choice. My dad was ten times the man you are.”

  Wyatt smiled. “That won’t bring him back, though, will it?”

  “At least he was loved. We still think about him every day of our damn lives. Who’s thinking about you, huh? I hope you wake up one day and realize how alone you are. And I hope it hurts like a bitch. Maybe then you’ll be sorry.” I turned to Erebus. “Make him undo the curse. I’m tired of hearing this coward’s voice. If he says another word, scoop him.”

  “With pleasure.” Erebus gathered the storm over our heads, ready to strike. Wyatt straightened up, and terror washed over his slimy face. He may have been the worst kind of coward, but his desire to live would work in my favor.

  Not long now, Mom. Not long now.

  Thirteen

  Kenzie

  Wyatt stood on shaky legs and took a moment to gather himself. He didn’t look nearly as scary now that all the black veins had receded. But I’d have Erebus hit him with them again if he screwed me over. Once he’d undone the curse, this pathetic flesh bag would go straight to Purgatory.

  My uncle knitted his brows together. “If I do this, I get to live, right?”

  “Yeah, I guess so,” I replied. “Get on with it, before I change my mind.”

  I watched him closely as he went to the disgusting table and collected all sorts of bits and pieces: a silver bowl, a gold-handled dagger, four rubies, two dried-up lizards, and the entrails of some poor beast. He grabbed one of the fleshy books and heaved it onto the table, upsetting one of the bowls of red goop. I turned away as it spilled onto the surface, but he wiped it away as if it were nothing.

  My anger spiked as he climbed a stepladder and took down a box from the top of a bookshelf. My mom’s name was written on the side of it. Like a forgotten prize, or old belongings that never got unpacked, just put up on a shelf.

  A thick coating of dust covered the box, and he blew the dust away. The puff sent out a flurry of motes that danced in the sickly glow of the apartment. When I was a kid, my dad told me that they were fairies, keeping watch over us. I stopped believing in fairies a long time ago, but the thought brought tears to my eyes. We’d been through so much, and Wyatt didn’t give a damn. He’d only cared about himself. He’d lost his brother, for Chaos’s sake, and hadn’t batted an eyelid. I didn’t need a shrink to tell me he was a few fries short of a Happy Meal. That didn’t excuse him. Finch had his demons, and he’d chosen to fight them, not give in to them.

  With unnecessary theatrics, Wyatt began. A few flourishes of his hands, sprinkling these herbs and those herbs into the silver bowl. I wanted to throw something at his head. This was serious, not an opportunity to fluff about. But I kept quiet. As long as he undid my mom’s curse, I could deal with his stupidity.

  With another dramatic twist of his hands, red tendrils poured out, the strands setting fire to the herbs and entrails he’d mixed in the silver bowl. I staggered back as the flames leapt a good four feet before settling into a smoky smolder. Erebus remained unmoved. He’d probably seen worse. Hell, he’d probably done wo
rse.

  Wyatt dropped the four rubies into the flames. Each time, the flames leapt up again, licking up hungrily. I could feel the heat on my skin. He added the crusty lizards and three types of powder: one black, one red, one white. An acrid scent stung my nostrils as the flames changed color, from blue, to green, to a hellish purple-red. I waited for it to change back to the usual orangey yellow, but it didn’t. It stayed that creepy shade and cast the whole apartment in the reddish tinge of an underground dive.

  “I whispered these spells to the Primus Anglicus a very long time ago, before they evolved into today’s magicals,” Erebus said, scaring me half to death. I hadn’t realized he’d come up behind me.

  “Are you trying to give me a heart attack?” I glowered.

  He snickered. “Apologies. I just wanted a closer look. I’m rather impressed, and somewhat flattered, that magic like this has survived to this day. I never thought I would see its like again. Fascinating, isn’t it?”

  “Yo, head in the game, Erebus. My mom’s health is at stake here.”

  Erebus gave a half-shrug. “Your point being?”

  “This isn’t some science experiment for me to go all gooey-eyed over,” I shot back.

  “How would one’s eyes go gooey, exactly?” He laughed coldly. “Your mom isn’t special, Kenzie. This spell, however, is something very special indeed.”

  Well, that didn’t last long. It looked like his friendliness had done a backslide. That worried me. I needed him to feel like I was still important. If he didn’t, how would I get him to make sure Wyatt wound up in Purgatory? His eyes practically had love hearts for Wyatt’s work. What if he decided to let my uncle walk free?

  I gritted my teeth. I just needed to wait until Wyatt undid the spell; then I could cross that bridge.

  Wyatt spoke in that strange language as he wafted his arms like a magician at a kid’s party. As he spoke, he delved into the dusty box and took out a cluster of photos. All of them were of my mom. He took out a wool cardigan, too. Pale pink and definitely not Wyatt’s taste.