“Mom,” I gasp, nearly dropping the box. “Your hands.”
She returns her determined gaze to me and holds out a burnt palm between us. “Forget it. They will heal. Focus on your mission. There’s a homicidal Horseman on the loose and we don’t want to be on the receiving end of whatever he has in mind. Trust me.”
My mouth snaps shut, and I nod. She’s right. Besides, if this goes the way I think it will, none of this will matter. What I’m about to do could alter everything.
Swallowing hard, I soften my focus on her hands and look past them to the commotion in the hallway. I can make out Diana and Cat, but Colton must be somewhere near the Horseman. Blood is smattered against the side of Diana’s face, but her expression is as fierce as ever.
I can’t believe any of this. It’s like a nightmare beyond anything I could have imagined. Wade’s gone and his body has become a Horseman for the end of days.
The box is in my periphery, reminding me of everything that needs to happen and why.
Turning back to Mom, I fight back angry tears and say, “I might need your help for what comes next. We need to get the Fates here.”
“The Moirai?” she says, clearly startled. “Why?”
“Because I’m taking them down,” I say, my jaw firm. “It’s the only way this ends. I think that’s what Wade’s father wanted me to do. I think this box is meant to trap their sins—their discretions. But it’s too big for me to do it alone, so it needed to be housed somewhere else.”
Her eyes are wide, hazel orbs. “Are you sure?”
“Not really, but I have to try,” I say. “Can you help me? I don’t know if I can do it alone.”
Dropping to her knees beside me, she nods. “If you want to summon the Moirai, it requires a lot of power. But the Moirai are bound by the laws of the Ancients. In many ways, they’re more susceptible to the pull of magick than even you and I are. If we summon them forth with clear intention, they should be forced to heed our call.”
All of a sudden, the commotion on the other side of the hospital room door kicks up again. By the looks of it, the Horseman has managed to break free from whatever Colton and the others were doing. Colton’s form flies through the air and the backlash from this turn of events is a fireball so big it unleashes the hospital’s sprinkler system.
Water pours out of the little ceiling spigots, dousing everything.
“Goddamn it, Cat—” Diana curses from somewhere nearby.
The Horseman laughs, and the deep, jovial nature of it sends a shiver straight through me. Suddenly, his black streak rushes past the window and without a shadow of a doubt, I know Diana and the others are in serious trouble.
My heart leaps into my throat and I know it’s now or never.
“Come on, Moirai. Is this all you’ve got?” I yell, directing my anger and terror in their direction. Water cascades in sheets across my face, and I wipe it away with the back of my hand. “Why don’t you come back here and be a part of this fight? Or are you the type that only lets others do your dirty work? I bet that’s it, right?”
“You need to use their names,” Mom warns, cradling her hands to her torso. Water drips from the ends of her hair, but she doesn’t even shudder.
I set down the box in front of me and tip my chin in acknowledgment. Then, I tip my gaze to the ceiling, as if they are somehow watching me from above the way a scientist watches rats trapped in a maze.
“Clotho, Lachesis, Aisa—where are you? Come out and join this mess you’ve created,” I demand, balling my fists at my side. “You wanted this. Come get your own hands dirty.”
“Speaking of hands, hold mine. You’re right, you need help. The message will broadcast better if we summon them together. They won’t be able to ignore the both of us,” Mom says, extending her charred hands. The blackened skin is already flaking away, dropping to the floor in large chunks as the water hits it. Bones peek out from underneath, their soft white in clear contrast to the dying skin.
“What about—” I say, pointing.
“It’s fine. We need to make a physical connection through our energetic centers. The hands are secondary chakras. This is the easiest way,” she says, flicking her skeletal fingertips.
I shoot her an apprehensive look.
“It’s only pain, Autumn. I’ll live,” she reiterates.
Cat screams in the hallway. It’s the kind of blood-curdling scream that comes from true pain.
Pressing my lips tight, I reach out, grabbing hold of her hands as lightly as I can, given the panic rising inside me.
She winces slightly and lets her eyes drift closed. “Here we go. Be ready,” she says, nodding in my direction.
I inhale sharply. “I’m ready.
Mom exhales, trying to relax her shoulders. “Clotho, Lachesis, Aisa,” she calls out. “We summon you to join us.”
She doesn’t wait for them to respond. Instead, she continues to repeat their names over and over again, letting the energy of it build. There’s a strange vibration in the room, like too much static electricity that needs to be released soon or it could cause a spark.
I keep my eyes open wide, peering around the room as I join her. “Clotho, Lachesis, Aisa...” I call out, repeating their names like a mantra.
At first, nothing happens other than getting completely soaked by the torrent of water falling from the ceiling. Just when my insides start to scream at me, telling me this was a ridiculous idea, tiny particles of light begin to swirl around the small, enclosed space.
Within seconds, the three sisters materialize. Clotho forms fully first, her red-hooded jacket standing out in deep contrast to her sisters. She turns to Lachesis, whose white pantsuit is turning gray as the water douses it. They exchange a confused look. Aisa, on the other hand, simply flings back her black-hooded cloak, looking completely irate.
“How dare you summon us for your petty vendetta,” Aisa spits, turning her wrinkled face toward us. Her bright-blue eyes flash menacingly as she takes a step toward my mother and me. “What’s done cannot be undone. This is fate.”
Lachesis and Clotho again exchange a confused glance. They edge closer together, backing away from Aisa, as if they know the tides are about to turn and their mission is to simply differentiate themselves.
“Autumn, now,” Mom say, her voice firm, as she turns to me. Her eyebrows raise expectantly and she glances down at the box.
Letting go of her hands, I pick up the box, and fiddle with the lid to force it open again.
Aisa takes a step forward, watching my movements closely without saying a word.
The moment the box bursts open, the vacuum of light flares to life and begins to suck all energy into its center like a black hole.
Whatever power was left in the generator gives out and the sprinklers abruptly stop spewing water. The emergency lights go out with a pop and the fringes of the room drop into shadows as the box becomes the only light source.
The two younger sisters continue to stand back, but Aisa takes another step forward. For whatever reason, the box alone doesn’t seem to even touch the Moirai. The three of them stand there, staring at the box with a semi-awed and confused expressions.
“Why isn’t it working?” I sputter, turning to look over my shoulder at Mom.
She shakes her head frantically. “Don’t look at me. I’m not the sin-eater.”
Aisa raises a single gray eyebrow and nearly bursts out laughing. “And just what is it you thought would happen, child? You would trap us in the box?”
“N-no,” I stutter, trying to regain my confidence. “I thought I could—”
Lachesis steps forward, leaving Clotho’s side for the first time. Recognition and interest pique in her gaze. “You thought you’d consume our sins?”
I inhale sharply, suddenly feeling very exposed.
Aisa cackles. “You can’t vanquish the sins from the living. You’re not God.”
Lachesis shoots me an apologetic look, but shakes her head and drops her gaze to the floor. The crease
of her forehead relays the message loud and clear that she’s disappointed I didn’t take her advice. However, there’s still a hint of something lingering in her features, but I’m not sure what it is.
My heart plummets into my stomach and I realize that I’ve made a terrible, horrible mistake.
“Did you put your bets on this one?” Aisa snorts, looking over at her two sisters. “You always were the fools.”
Behind Aisa, the door to the hospital room thuds loudly as the Horseman tries to break the wards my mother set in place. She stands up, raising her shriveled hands to revitalize the wards, but nothing happens.
“The box must have taken some of my powers. It’s not working—” she says, turning to me with terrified eyes.
Before I have time to respond, the door to the hospital room crumples inward with a force that knocks Mom and I back into the wall and window behind us. Clotho and Lachesis step back, turning to the doorway. Aisa once again cackles, clapping her hands together like a giddy schoolgirl.
“Oh no,” Mom breathes, scrambling to get back to her feet.
I look up, brushing blood and debris from my face just in time to see the Horseman step into the room. From an outstretched hand, Colton dangles by his throat. Behind them, the bodies of Cat and Diana lie on the ground in a heap of blood and debris.
Oh, my god. This is how it’s going to end.
Chapter 25
Sin-Eater
I fight back the hysteria building within me, but it’s useless. Everything I know and love is coming to an end before my eyes. On top of that, everything I’ve been through up until now has been completely pointless. Necromancy, astral projection…even sin-eating. It’s all useless.
With a sickening snap, the Horseman’s black hand clenches, breaking Colton’s neck and severing his head from the rest of his body. His body crumples to the floor beside the Horseman with little fanfare.
I clap a hand over my mouth, forcing back the guttural scream trying to unleash.
Immortal or not—I’m not certain anyone can survive a Horseman of the apocalypse.
Tears flood my eyes as I try my best not to give in completely to despair.
There’s absolutely no resemblance to Wade remaining in the exterior body of the Horseman. It’s like I’m staring at a completely different entity altogether—and in some ways, I suppose I am. Yet, I swear I can still feel him. Like he’s still here with me, even though it seems impossible. God, how I wish he was still here with me.
Glancing down at the open box, I blow out a slow burst of air, trying to calm my nerves. What if there is a way to reach Wade? A way to make him remember who he really is… Even if only for a moment.
Could it be possible?
Wade never crossed over. His soul never left his body. Whatever he is now, he’s some sort of distorted hybrid. Something exploited for the gains of the Moirai—or at the very least, Aisa. Maybe the universe, too. But then again, the universe rarely takes sides.
Completely ignoring the bright light and intense energy of the box still clutched in my hands, the Horseman simply flicks his wrist and Colton’s head flies across the room. It hits the wall to my right with a sickening thud before it comes to a rest on the cold tile floors. Blood pools around it and I bend over, fighting back the urge to vomit.
Mom is suddenly at my side, her bony hands resting on my back as she tries her best to comfort me. It’s no use though. We’re all doomed.
“You know, it’s ironic, really. We had no idea at first that this horrid existence was finally coming to an end,” Aisa says gleefully, turning away from the Horseman to face me and my mother. “It was foretold eons before you were born, but we never knew just when the day would come. It was hidden, even from us, if you can believe it.” She snickers to herself.
Lachesis turns her gaze from Aisa to me, her eyes wide. She opens her mouth, as if she’s about to say something, but Clotho grabs hold of her arm. When Lachesis looks at her, Clotho shakes her head.
I narrow my gaze, unable to believe any of this.
“Why would you want to bring on the end?” I sputter, trying to stand back up.
Even as I talk to Aisa, I don’t take my eyes off of the Horseman because I know he won’t stand by for long. Despite myself, a plan begins to form, and a strange serenity settles over me. It may be a Hail Mary pass, but I’m ready to take it if the right moment presents itself.
“Because we’ll finally be free,” she states, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.
My mouth drops open.
Freedom? Of all the things she wants, it’s the same thing as the rest of us.
How’s that for ironic?
Well, if it’s freedom she wants, maybe there’s more than one way to give it to her.
As if on cue, the Horseman stalks forward, his dark, hulking form sending complete terror racing through me, despite any plans. I hold out my free hand, as if my feeble hand gesture could do anything to make him stop.
“Wade—please,” I plead, refusing to look away from him. “This isn’t you. You don’t want to do this.”
“That’s not Wade, Autumn.” Mom steps closer to me, grabbing onto my right arm as she winces through the pain.
I look over my shoulder into her terrified eyes. It’s clear that everything she fears about this magickal world is coming to fruition right before her and there’s nothing she can do about it but watch it unfold. It must be her worst nightmare as much as it’s becoming mine.
I straighten my shoulders, shaking my head at her words. “You’re wrong. He’s still in there…somewhere. I know he is. I can feel him,” I say, stepping forward and pulling out of my mother’s reach. My heart thumps loudly in my chest, but I can’t bring myself to cower in fear anymore.
If this is going to be the end, I’m going out the way I want to—believing in the power of love. Our love. “Wade, if you can hear me. You can fight this. Don’t be controlled by the Moirai. Don’t give in to this,” I say, again raising my hands out between us. “I love you.”
The Horseman continues forward, making his way directly for me with determination painted across his blackened face.
“Autumn,” Mom warns, her voice shaking.
It must be hard for her, being as powerful as she is and having that power weakened right when you need it most. Despite her warning, I stand my ground, refusing to back away.
“Wade, please,” I beg, hoping somehow his connection to me will bring him back around.
As the Horseman reaches me, there’s no sense of recognition at all. Instead, he reaches out, grabbing hold of my neck and lifting me straight off the ground.
The box drops to the floor as my hands fly to his outstretched arm out of reflex. I press my toes down, trying to touch the floor, but I barely graze it with the tip of my shoe.
Behind me, my mother scrambles to kick the box away from the Horseman’s immediate reach. Then she races toward him with her hands clenched into skeletal fists. There’s a strange summoning of static electricity as she nears. However, whatever power she summons has no effect on him. Without blinking or even glancing in her direction, the Horseman uses his free arm to knock her back. She sails through the air, slamming into the wall and dropping to the floor. Bits of drywall and dust crumble with her.
Instantly, the magic she had begun to call forth is extinguished. From the corner of my eye, I can see her shake her head, then slumps to the floor. I can’t tell if she’s okay, or if she’ll try again.
It doesn’t really matter, though. This is the moment I was waiting for.
My vision blurs as my throat closes under the Horseman’s tight grip. Releasing my grasp on his wrist, I extend my right hand, placing it over his heart. His bare chest is cold to the touch and feels more like that of a snake than the warm place I have rested my head.
I force myself to stare deeply into the black pools of the Horseman’s eyes. When I can sense a connection is made, I summon as much energy as possible to speak.
&nbs
p; “What about our baby?” I say breathlessly, doing everything I can to fight against the pressure that’s making the edges of my vision darken.
For the briefest of moments, the Horseman’s expression shifts and a spark of recognition lights in his black eyes. It’s not much, but it’s enough.
“Please, remember…” I squeak.
He lowers his arm just enough for me to make contact with the ground and I take a labored inhalation. It doesn’t provide the best relief, but it manages to keep the darkness at back for a moment longer.
“We’re not your enemy,” I say, each word more difficult than the word before it. My hand remains on his heart and I leave it there as a reminder of our connection.
He tilts his head ever so slightly, as if pondering the meaning of my words. His grip loosens a little as he looks down at my hand, like it’s the first time he noticed it was even there.
All of a sudden, he releases his hold on my neck entirely. I drop to the ground like a rag doll, unable to hold my own weight as the oxygen comes rushing back at me. Reaching up, I rub my throat, trying to get the muscles to work again.
“Enemy,” the Horseman whispers.
“No,” Aisa breathes, her eyes wide with shock and anger. “What are you doing?”
With unearthly speed—speed I didn’t even realize he could wield, or I would have been absolutely immobilized by it—the Horseman turns to Aisa. Before any of the Moirai can react, he severs Aisa’s head from her body and tears her dreaded shears from her hand.
As her body slumps sideways to the floor, he lunges forward, flinging the shears through the air like an expert dart player. They hit their mark, puncturing straight through the center of Clotho’s chest. Blood splatters from her mouth as she turns a confused eye toward her final sister.
Lachesis reaches out, trying to catch Clotho before she falls. She barely manages to clip her sister’s arm before the Horseman is behind her. She freezes, her terrified eyes searching for something...
The Horseman wraps his large black hand across the front of her face. It contrasts boldly with her pale skin as he twists her head backward with a loud snap.
The Windhaven Witches Omnibus Edition : Complete Paranormal Suspense Series, Books 1-4 Page 82