Cursed and Crazed

by Sophia Stafford

  Squeezing her eyes shut tight, Jaycen felt as if her insides were being pulled. She knew what was happening, so when the pain stopped, she refused to open her eyes, knowing what was on the other end.

  “And here she is alive and well. Just where are you, Jaycen?”

  There was no use hiding. Opening her eyes, Jaycen looked up, and there they were. Darius and McKenzie both looking at her. McKenzie was holding something in his hand, something that Jaycen couldn’t quite make out. Then he pulled out the knife, a body dropping to the ground.

  “Oh my god.” Jaycen’s breath got stuck in her lungs, unable to look away from the lifeless body.

  “I think I’ve figured out how we can communicate. I’ll kill someone with the knife and here you appear. Like magic. Or is it simply me you’re connected to? I can’t decide.” McKenzie smiled, wiping the bloodied knife on his jeans, the blade glowing and pulling Jaycen in.

  It took everything she had not to reach out and touch it. She had to focus on something else, anything else. Her gaze landed on her father who was smiling down at her with what she could only describe as pride, McKenzie, however, was now looking at her more intensely. His eyes skimmed the space around her, looking for something more. Her stomach got heavy with dread, what exactly could he see?

  “You are very strong, my daughter. So strong.” They both stayed away, keeping their distance.

  “She won’t survive another attack,” was all McKenzie said, his anger rolling off him as his eyes zeroed in on hers.

  Jaycen shook her head. “No. This time it’s you that won’t survive.”

  He smirked and knelt, his eyes now level with hers. “You have no power, none.” He held the knife up and shook it. “I think it’s still in here, waiting for you to either come and get it or die. And after today we both know you can feel it when I kill others with it. So that’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to carry on killing until you come out of hiding. And you are going to feel every single one of them. I’ll kill someone every single day if that’s what it takes. Not only will you feel it, but their faces will be plastered over every newspaper, every channel, so every time you see one of their face’s you’ll know that it’s because of you that they died.”

  She was shaking, her eyes burning with tears. He meant it, the determination in his eyes told her he meant it.

  “You can end this now. Just tell us where you are.”

  Her lips trembled as the tears spilled out. Realisation now hitting her hard that she had no choice. People were going to die, and not her, or Benedict or the entire Cure could stop him. People were going to die, and she could stop it.

  “Where are you?” he screamed, only inches away from her face.

  “I don’t know where I am. But I’ll meet you, I’ll end…”

  Jaycen wasn’t prepared for the odd feeling of a hand in her own. He stopped screaming and just looked down. She could feel the fingers tightening their grip, only when she looked down her hand was empty.

  “Jaycen,” McKenzie warned.

  Like she was being pulled by the hand Jaycen’s body was yanked backward, and just like that, she was back in the hall and surrounded by people.

  The first eyes she saw were Sampson’s, he looked unsure as he knelt on the floor next to her. “What just happened? You were in pain and then nothing. You just kind of zoned out.”

  Jaycen didn’t even look down as she lifted her hand, and therefore lifted the small manicured hand holding it, the hand of Sampson’s mother who was knelt beside her.

  “How did you pull me back?” Jaycen asked, loosening her grip on Samantha’s hand, so she could let go and stand.

  Samantha didn’t smile, instead, she twisted a thick silver ring on her finger. “Don’t mention it. Are you okay?”

  Sampson’s sister also noted the ring twist. “You wasted your magic on her?” she asked incredulously at her mother, even throwing Jaycen a disbelieving glance.

  “What does that mean?” Jaycen croaked before clearing her voice as she let Sampson help her to her feet. It was then that she saw Gemma at the back of the group, trying to peer over strangers to get a good look as she waited nervously.

  Sampson, now standing too had no idea what was happening. “So does that happen often?”

  Suzie pulled her mother away, other strangers taking their place in seconds.

  “No. It’s hard to explain. But what did your mother just do? How did she know what to do?” Samantha and Suzie were now out of sight, and Sampson just shrugged. “She said your body might be here but your mind somewhere else, and that was it. Was she right? Where did you go?”

  Sampson looked genuinely interested, as did all the other people who were listening.

  Realising the scrutiny, she was under Jaycen licked her lips. “Erm. Does anyone have a phone I could borrow for a minute? I need to make a call.”

  “I thought you said she was hiding. Who do you need to call?” someone called out, she couldn’t tell who.

  “I am hiding,” Jaycen stressed, turning in a circle so everyone could see her. “Which is why no one can know I’m here. You mustn’t tell anyone. Sampson shouldn’t have brought me here; it was a mistake. I need to leave but first I need to call my teacher.”

  A man in his sixties, who stood in the front of his group, smiled. “There isn’t anyone we would tell, you can trust that, girlie. This right here is a tight community, we look after our own, and Sampson is vouching for you. So like it or not you’re one of our own. Go make your call.”

  That was sweet, Jaycen thought, as she took the phone he handed her and made her way through the crowd and into the dark corridor.

  She knew it was a risk, but right then she had run out of options and she was quickly running out of time. So she dialed the number and waited for him to pick up.

  “Hello.”

  “Hi, Thorn. I need to speak to Benedict.”

  “Jay… What? Why are you calling this phone?” he hissed in a whisper.

  She had to press her lips together to stop herself from replying. They hadn’t spoken in what felt like a lifetime and that was all he could say to her? Wasn’t he happy to hear her voice? Even just a little?

  “I know. But I have no other choice, I really need to speak to him.”

  “Okay.”

  Then there was silence. For a minute Jaycen had actually thought they’d lost signal. Until he came back onto the line.

  “He’s here.”

  And that was it. No more talking to Thornton.

  “Why are you calling? Where are you? What’s wrong?” Benedict’s voice was urgent but not raised. He must know now that she wasn’t with the others, that she went behind his back to get Gemma. But none of that mattered now she needed his help.

  “I had no choice but to run. But Darius did this spell and now he knows I’m alive. He’s going to kill people until I come out. He means it. He said my magic was still in the blade, I can feel it when he uses it.” She scratched her head and squeezed her eyes shut. “I need to go to him Benedict, I can’t let people die.”

  “Not only will he kill you, but you being alive seems to be the only reason they can’t claim your magic. If you go to him he’ll only get more powerful, and he’ll only be harder to stop. What you need to do is listen to me. We’re close to getting him, we’re so close, and he knows it.”

  “I need to do something; I can’t just let people die.”

  “He won’t get near anyone, I promise. We’ll put out a mandatory message, telling everyone to stay inside. We’ll tell them about him, we’ll tell it all. But you must not go to him. You must not.”

  “You can’t keep everyone safe.”

  “Watch me.”

  Thornton

  “We need to get out there, talk to the people, let them know the Krull’s are still here, and still running for president. We need to be the solid face of this tragedy, turn this whole mess around.”

  Thornton listened to his mother and father as they planned their f
amily’s future as they described Jaycen’s apparent death as a mess.

  “Thornton should do more press,” his father interjected with a slow nod.

  “I agree. Maybe as soon as next week”

  Thornton pushed up from the chair. “I’m not doing any press. The whole election should be called off.”

  His father eyed the door as he leaned forward, “Make sure that doors closed. You can’t go around talking like that Thorn.”

  He stared at his father incredulously. “Have you looked outside the window recently? Demonstrations on the street, people being murdered. Its chaos out there. That needs to be a priority, not an election.”

  George shrugged. “Luckily for us, The Cure can control two things at once. The population and the election, it’ll all be fine.”

  “I need some air.” He lifted his hand in a half-hearted wave for leaving the room and then the family home as he walked into the street.

  He breathed in the New York air, then kept his head down as he made his way to The Cure. It was only a few blocks away, but he never walked it. In fact, he couldn’t remember a single time in his life that he walked that route.

  He savoured it, being outside and in the open. It reminded him of Jaycen and being back at The Cure academy where they would stay outside all day if they could.

  He came across the academy before he was ready, his step faltering when he saw the demonstration outside the main doors. The demonstration itself didn’t surprise him, but the size of this one did.

  Thornton headed to the back of the building, entering through one of the lesser-known doors, the guard recognising him and letting him pass.

  “Thornton, my dear. How are you feeling?” Julia Emka, a higher member of the council was walking over to him, an assistant hot on her heels.

  “I’m fine.” Thornton sighed, shoving his hands in his pockets as she got close.

  “I’ve heard you’ve been working more and more here, that’s good. Keeping busy, staying close to family.” Julia was smiling up at him with sympathy that just didn’t seem real. He knew what Julia had thought of Jaycen if Julia felt anything it would be relief that she was no longer around.

  He didn’t trust himself to speak, so he didn’t.

  Julia carried on talking, reaching out and patting him on his arm. “Losing someone is hard, I know that. I see you struggling, I see Benedict struggling. I know he was close to Jaycen. Her death is hitting him particularly hard. You’ve got to help him heal, help you heal, so we can all move on together.”

  She looked over her shoulder as if to see if anyone was listening before she leaned further in and rubbed his arm. He couldn’t help but think, was she coming onto him? The woman was friends with his mother, but he honestly wouldn’t put it past her as she whispered. “Maybe if you could get him to make an official statement on which candidate he’s going to support?”

  Oh, there it was. The real reason she had come over to speak to him. Julia, like his father, was also running for the presidency, and desperately wanted Benedict’s backing. They all did.

  “I’ll speak to him.” Thornton moved away and headed to Benedict’s offices, leaving Julia and her silent assistant to watch him leave.

  For years Benedict had stayed away from becoming official at The Cure for years, and the fact that he has now set up official offices had made a lot of people uneasy.

  Thornton knocked once before walking in, getting a chin lift from Benedict who was sitting behind a large wooden desk and was on the phone.

  “I’ve got to go, we’ll speak soon.” Benedict disconnected and sat back in his seat.

  “Was that Jaycen?”

  Benedict smiled but shook his head. “No, I spoke to her yesterday, though. She’s fine. Bored but fine.”

  Thornton had been getting these kinds of updates daily from anyone that could give them to him. And they were never enough. He always wanted more, like where was she? Who was she with? What was she doing?

  He refused to look that pathetic and ask though, so instead, he smiled. “That’s good.”

  Benedict looked at him as if he were seeing straight through his facade. “She misses you too.”

  Thornton straightened. “Could you tell her that….”

  Benedict held up his hand, effectively stopping him. “I’m going to stop you there. No. Hell no, in fact. I am not going to be passing notes on between the two of you like we’re all twelve. I respect myself far too much for that.”

  “You could let me speak to her,” Thornton pointed out as a man’s voice filled the room and then another. Like two men were having a conversation right there in front of them. “Who is that?”

  “For the love of…” Benedict stood ad started pressing the keys to his computer. “I hate computers. I hate them.”

  “The troops aren’t ready. We’re to split up, our resources are too stretched out. We should just lay low.”

  “What are we waiting for?”

  Benedict managed to turn it off then, throwing up his hands. “If it was up to me I wouldn’t work with technology at all.”

  “Who was speaking just then?”

  “A group we’ve been keeping an eye on. A large group of witches and warlocks who have been training for years separately, they have just recently joined forces when the truth about Jaycen came out. They’re probably last generation magic users and I think they saw Jaycen as their hope. Now she’s gone, they’re restless. I don’t think they’re anything to worry about though.”

  Thornton raised his eyebrows surprised. Of course, he knew about magical families whose blood was running clearer and clearer with each generation, but he had never actually met or heard about people who were on the verge of losing it altogether. What were these families going to do once it was all gone? How would they live? Were they being helped at all by The Cure?

  Thornton sat forward, rubbing the back of his neck. “Training?”

  “It’s a loose term, but yes. They are unable to actually perform spells now, so they’ve been learning how to store their magic up, little by little until eventually, it’s a spell. It’s fascinating really, and something I wanted to learn about when I opened the school, but one, of course, one of the conditions to it being open in the first place was that only actual on the spot magical users could apply.” Benedict shrugged his broad shoulders and scratched his beard.

  “So that was it? You didn’t push it any further?”

  “Sometimes you’ve got to pick your battles. It would have been useful information now. Because right now we have no contacts within the community, no leads into finding out what they’re thinking or how they’re planning.”

  “So you think they’re going to be an issue with The Cure?”

  “The Cure? Maybe. I personally think they’re going to rise against Darius’s supporters, if we’re not careful there will be a full-blown war happening right outside our doors.”

  Thornton pointed to Benedict’s computer. “Is it legal to listen in to people’s conversations?”

  He tipped his head to the side. “Technically speaking no. But it’s the only lead we’ve got. And honestly, it’s a fluke we got this much. We know a few of the people in this movement, and we could probably guess at how big it is. But that’s it, we’re literally in the dark where they are concerned.”

  The doors to the office opened and Azrael walked in rubbing his hands together. “Are you ready?”

  “Yes, I need to get you out of this place.” Benedict stood and closed his computer, actually looking excited.

  Thornton stood too. “Where are you going?”

  “We have a few leads for Darius that I want to chase. It might be nothing, but at least I won’t be trapped in this building any longer. Just give me a minute.” He moved around his office, picking up a coat and a bag that sat on another chair.

  Azrael turned to Thornton. “I hear you’re playing the mourning boyfriend well. Everyone feels sorry for you.”

  Benedict laughed. “That’s becau
se he’s actually mourning. Isn’t that right Thorn? You’re a little lovesick.”

  “No.” Yes. “I just wanted to know more about what she’s doing. To be kept in the loop more.”

  Thornton seemed amused. “As far as I’m aware there is no loop. Just a straight line that goes from Benedict straight to Jaycen and then back again. However, if it makes you feel better, people are saying that Benedict is taking Jaycen’s death practically hard. It’s even been said that he’s let his beard go.”

  Benedict laughed, his hand going to his neatly trimmed facial hair.“Gossip, so much gossip. They all know my beard is immaculate.”

  “The world could be ending and your beard would still be trimmed.” Azrael pointed out while opening the door for them to leave.

  “It’s true. I like my look.” Benedict picked up his bag and was on his way to the door when he pointed to his desk. “Are you staying in here?”

  Thornton thought on it for a beat then nodded, no one bothered him in Benedict’s office. “Yeah, if I can.”

  “Just lock up once you are done, and don’t touch the good coffee in my drawer.” Benedict clapped Thornton on the shoulder before turning to leave with Azrael.

  Then Thornton was on his own, the chants of the demonstrations outside mixed with the hum of the noise of The Cure, and here Thornton was, sat in the middle.

  He moved a bunch of Benedict’s papers to the side when he saw the book. It was so oddly familiar that Thornton had to reach out, just to find out what it was. He flicked through the first few pages and realised instantly what it was by the handwriting, it was Jaycen’s diary.

  He fell back in his seat as he flicked through the pages, had Benedict been reading this? He remembered Edmund handing this to Benedict back at The Cure, using its contents against Jaycen and her magical ability.

  He tapped the book with his fingers, deciding if he should look in it or…

  No. No, he should have left it; he wasn’t even sure why Benedict had brought it from The academy. Thornton put the book aside with the rest of Benedict’s papers, pausing when he saw Jaycen’s name scribbled down on a piece of paper with other notes surround it. Seeing her ancestor. Losing control. Unfeeling unconnected. Where these Jaycen’s thoughts? Without thinking Thornton grabbed the diary and started to read.