I don't understand.
And then suddenly, I did. He said himself that Parker’s body remembered Elizabeth. Her icy beauty must have been too much for him to fight off. But still, I thought he was stronger than that. He would never have acted like he didn't care about my feelings. How could he be so cruel about this to me? It was almost as if-
And then I knew.
Jimmy would never text me such a hurtful message. Not ever. He would rather bleed than hurt me or make me think he didn’t care. He always treated me with respect and love. Always! He had saved me from rape. He had helped me remain strong when my mother shot me up with heroin. He had loved me from the very beginning, and would always love me.
No, my Jimmy would never go to Elizabeth’s house and he would never do anything to ruin what we had. I knew this as surely as I knew my name.
Which could only mean one thing- someone else was texting me with Jimmy’s phone.
Prudence.
My breath left me in a whoosh as I furiously began mass-texting The Pastels.
Me: Jimmy in trouble. I think Prudence has done something to him.
Within seconds the replies came pinging in, one after another.
Cindy: What's going on?
Erica: What did she do?
Belle: Why do you think this?
Devon: Whatever you do Roz, DON'T GO TO THEIR HOUSE!
Jess: I'm on patrol right now. Headed over there.
The reply from Jess made no sense.
Me: Jess- patrol? What's that?
Jess: We take turns patrolling neighborhoods of the Dark. I'll check back in soon. Hopefully all is well.
Me: Why didn't I know about that before? I swear you guys always keep things from me.
Belle: It's a witch thing. Sorry.
Me: I'm a supernatural too, ya know.
Erica: Yeah but you're not a witch.
Me: And what does that have to do with anything? I already know all about you guys, why can't I know about your patrols too?
Cindy: Well, you know now. Besides we just started doing it this week. It's still a new thing for us.
Devon: There was unusual activity at the Tate home a couple weeks ago. We decided it wouldn't hurt to keep tabs on all of them.
Me: What kind of unusual activity?
Devon: There was a storm over their house. ONLY their house. It lasted for 13 minutes and then vanished.
Erica: Which means Dr. Tate is gaining power with his elemental magic, if he can conjure a storm.
Me: What kind of storm?
Erica: Heavy rain. Thunder. One big cloud and no other.
Me: Did the neighbors freak out? Anyone get pics?
Belle: They don't have neighbors. They're on an isolated street just outside town. The only house out that way.
Cindy: Makes it convenient for him to practice magic.
Me: OK. So what do we do about Jimmy?
Devon: Jess is there, she'll let us know.
I sighed. I waited in silent fear for several minutes, not knowing what was going on with my love and not hearing anything more from my friends. I grew antsy with each passing second and then realized I couldn't wait anymore. I needed to try to do something.
Jimmy had saved me once before. Now I would save him.
***
Focus, Roz.
I was lying on my bed trying unsuccessfully to both fall asleep and use astral-projection to get to Jimmy. However, nothing was working.
There was a moment when I wished for the pills I had once been prescribed to appear in my hand. They had made me sleepy before, and I wanted to have that relaxation again. But I quickly admonished myself for the thought.
You can do this on your own. You're not like your mother. You're stronger than that.
I took in a deep breath slowly, held it in for several seconds, and released it. I forced my mind to go blank and concentrated on only one thing- the Evans house. I took in another breath deeply, picturing Jimmy’s bedroom, and as I exhaled I imagined myself standing in it. Another inhale as I visualized Jimmy. On the exhale I imagined the sounds, scents, and sights of his room.
It went like this for several minutes.
Inhale. Visualization.
Exhale. Focus.
Eventually I got frustrated that nothing was happening, and I opened my eyes. But the sight that greeted me caught me unprepared.
I was in Jimmy’s bed! In his room!
It worked!
I sat up, my breath catching in my throat as I jumped from the bed and immediately began searching the room. He was nowhere to be seen. My bare feet stepped on something rough and gritty in the carpet and I looked down, finding a small pile of some kind of golden ash. I knelt down and ran my fingers through it, letting it fall. The miniscule jolt of power that tickled my fingertips when I touched it told me what it was- remnants of magic.
That was not a good sign.
A shadow passed across his bedroom window, causing me to gasp. His room was on the second floor of the house, so I knew it wouldn't possibly be a person at his window.
I was wrong.
On closer inspection, my jaw dropped when I realized what I was seeing in the moonlight.
Jess!
She floated just outside his window, peering in. I jumped up and waved my hands at her, causing her to lose concentration for a moment. She dipped in the air and then righted herself, and I rushed to the window to open it for her.
“What are you doing here?” She whispered as I helped her climb in.
“Astral-projection,” I whispered back. “I couldn't wait anymore. I had to help him.”
She shook her head at me and nudged my arm. Keeping her voice hushed and quiet, she said furiously, “Devon told you not to come here!”
I looked at her. “Jess,” I whispered, “It's Jimmy.”
She nodded. “I know who it is. But you could get hurt. We don't know what we're going up against right now.”
“Then let's go find out!” I urged.
“Fine. But stay close. I'm going to cloak us so we won't be seen.”
“What's cloaking?” I asked.
“We're going to be invisible,” she said. “But my power only extends so far so stay close. If you get too far away from me I won't be able to shield you.”
“Wow,” I whispered in awe. “I don't think I've ever seen you use your power before. First you’re flying outside the window, and now this? It's so weird.”
She shrugged. “We don't use our powers unless completely necessary. You really have no idea of the things we can do.”
“I believe that!”
She gestured for me to be quiet and then with a wave of her hand and a word I didn't hear murmured from her lips, she disappeared from my sight.
“Jess!” I whispered loudly. “Where'd you go?!”
“Shh!” She answered and I felt her hand on my arm. And just from her touch, I vanished too.
I stared down to where my legs should have been, but all that was there was air.
Holy Lord I'm invisible.
“Hold onto me,” she ordered, “So you stay cloaked.”
“Gotcha!” I said and gripped her hand with my own.
Together, cloaked in her power, we exited the bedroom.
Chapter 36
~Roz~
“Lead me around,” she whispered as we stepped into the hallway. “You know this house, I don't.”
I took the lead and headed us for the one place I felt Prudence would be holding Jimmy. The same room I had witnessed her torture of him the night I realized who he was.
Her office.
Thankfully, the Evans seemed to be asleep, or gone. The house was dark and empty. I used the moonlight streaming in and the glow of the outside street lamps to navigate us.
We crept down the stairs, through the bottom floor den and kitchen, and through the downstairs hallway where I had been before. The door to her office was open, no light showing from within. We peeked in. It was empty.
; “I thought they would be here,” I whispered to Jess. “Now I don't know where else to look.”
“Let's just keep searching,” she whispered back.
Silently we crept through the remainder of the rooms in that hallway. A guest bedroom, a bathroom, another office with a computer and file cabinet which I assumed belonged to Mr. Evans. Each one totally empty.
“Back upstairs?” She asked in her hushed voice.
“Not yet,” I whispered, “There's still the living room and dining room.”
I held her hand and guided our invisible forms back into the kitchen. I knew the den was straight ahead, and would lead to the upstairs portion of the house, and even though I wasn't sure what was to the right from here, I was sure it would take us to the living room.
Pulling her hand, we went to the right.
I was correct, it was the living room, and further beyond that was a formal dining room. And both rooms were like the rest of the house. Empty.
“Hey, what's that?” Jess whispered, and suddenly let go of my hand.
“Hey!” I whispered angrily as I became visible once again. Of course, she was still cloaked so I couldn't see her.
“Sorry!” She exclaimed quietly. “But, look! The backyard!”
She removed her cloaking power and became visible again, and stood at the wide window in the dining room. I crept forward silently, moving to stand beside her so I could see what she was talking about.
The backyard had a large in-ground pool which was lit from below the water’s surface. To the right stood a small pool house with tightly closed shutters and a terra cotta roof.
A soft light glowed from the cracks of the wooden shutters.
“I bet he's in there,” she said softly. “Let's check it out.”
I agreed. I had the feeling we would find him there, too. I just prayed that he was in one piece and unharmed.
She cloaked us once again and we found the back patio door in a reading room just off the large living room. I waited while Jess silently slid the glass door open and felt her tug on my hand, guiding me outside.
We moved as one in silence around the large pool and soon stood at the door of the pool house. I felt her warmth as she leaned in close and whispered, “I'm going to try the knob. If she's in there, she won't see us but she'll wonder why the door opened.”
I nodded, then realized she couldn't see me.
“I'll be ready for anything,” I whispered back.
I kept my eyes on the doorknob and watched as it turned. It was unlocked. Slowly, silently, Jess pushed the door open.
I was unprepared for the sight before me.
The room was lit with a hundred black candles of various sizes, circling around the open space. There was no furniture, just an open, concrete floor with a pentagram drawn in white chalk in the center.
In the middle of all the burning candles was Jimmy.
He was suspended from the ceiling wearing only a pair of bloodied jeans. His hands were cuffed and above his head, attached to a metal rod which connected to a beam above. His feet were bound together and a black strip of fabric had been tied around his eyes.
As if that wasn't bad enough, symbols unknown to me had been engraved into his naked chest and stomach. They weren't deep enough to do serious damage, but they were deep enough to draw blood, and the red color dripped down his abdomen in tiny rivers into the waistband of his jeans.
The wave of nausea hit me instantly. I let go of Jess’ hand and vomited in the doorway.
“Who's there?” Jimmy whispered from his position.
Jess revealed herself and held my hair back as I continued to spew my dinner.
“Is Prudence here?” She asked softly.
“Jess?” He asked. “Is that you? Please, get me down from here!”
“Where's Prudence?” She demanded.
“I don't know,” he replied, voice shaking. His body began to twist and turn as he tried to fight against the bindings. “She left a little bit ago.”
Standing up, I wiped my mouth and pushed away from Jess, rushing to my beloved who hung helplessly from the ceiling.
“Jimmy,” I said brokenly as I began trying to untie his feet. “Jess help me!”
His body stiffened. “Roz? Jess, get her out of here, now!”
“Not without you!” I cried.
Jimmy begged and pleaded for Jess to get me to safety the entire time we worked on freeing him, but neither of us would hear it. I cared nothing for myself, all I needed to do was get him down and to safety. After that, we'd figure out the next move.
Jess used her power to lower him gently and remove the cuffs. We both knelt beside him, getting chalk all over ourselves from the pentagram. I quickly pulled off the blindfold and wiped the wetness from the corner of his eyes as his vision readjusted to the soft light.
I wanted to grab him, hold him, but the markings embedded in his skin prevented me. I couldn't do anything that would hurt him further.
His face was ashen, his eyes frantic as he began scouring the gutted pool house.
“We have to get out of here,” he said hurriedly. “She'll be back any minute.”
“Can you astral yourself back home?” Jess asked me.
I shook my head. “I'm not leaving here without him.”
“Then we do this my way,” she said forcefully. Looking at Jimmy, she gave him the same instruction she had given me. “Keep a hand on me at all times, and do not speak!”
She reached out for me and Jimmy both, grabbing our hands and mumbled the strange word once again to invoke the cloaking spell. We went invisible and inched out of the pool house, just in time.
From around the western side of the house, Prudence came. Her hair was disheveled, falling out of the tight bun I knew she always wore. Her sensible navy business suit had dark stains all over it, as did her hands.
Blood.
Jimmy’s blood.
I stifled my gasp of anger as she approached the pool house. Her steps came to an abrupt stop when she saw the opened door.
“No!” She shouted, running to the entrance.
A sharp tug on my hand had me running too, away from the pool house, through the backyard, around the other side of the house, running and panting until we were out on the street.
The tugs on my hand became less insistent and Jess whispered, “Just walk slowly now, so she doesn't hear our steps on the sidewalk.”
I turned my head slowly, afraid to look behind me but knowing I had to see if she was after us.
Prudence stood directly in front of her house, scanning the street up and down for any sign of Jimmy. Her eyes glided right over us as we continued to walk slowly, silently.
“Keep moving,” Jess said in the softest of voices possible.
We did. I kept my gaze behind me to make sure she couldn't see us. It wasn't long until we had turned to the left and were safely out of view of the Evans house.
I let out a slow breath.
“That was close!” I said.
“Shh!” Jess whispered. “We're staying cloaked until we get to somewhere safe. Knowing her, she's already in her car looking for him.”
She was right. Just then, a champagne-colored sedan turned the corner behind us with tires screeching, and flew past us.
“Oh my god,” Jimmy muttered. “She's insane.”
“We all agree on that!” Jess said. “Now, where should we go from here? I won't be able to hold the cloak up for much longer.”
“The bookstore,” I said immediately, thinking it was the safest place and willing to risk Bonnie’s wrath for Jimmy’s safety.
“No good,” Jimmy said, his voice strained from the pain. “She knows about it. She knows about all of you.”
“Then where do we go?” Jess asked.
Remembering the text conversation I'd had earlier with my friends, I asked Jess, “Do you have your phone on you?”
“Yes, why?”
“Text Odie,” I said. “She'll know where to send us.”
>
Chapter 37
~Roz~
We waited in silence, ducked behind two large bushes that grew in someone’s front yard. Jess had been forced to remove the cloaking spell, she didn't have the energy to keep it up any longer. So, we did the only thing we could.
We hid.
She had texted Odie, who told us to meet her at Will’s house. She said there were no parents there to ask questions, and Prudence Evans didn't even know Will, so she would never consider that we'd be hiding there.
I was all for that.
Belle was driving on her way to get us, and we kept watch on the darkened street for her minivan. The bushes we'd found to hide behind offered the perfect cover from any late night drivers or passersby, but I still fretted.
She can't find us, she can't find us, she can't find us.
I watched Jimmy worriedly. He sat with his his bare back leaning against the thickness of the brush, as comfortably as possible. His eyes were closed tight and his breathing erratic. His lips were pale and dry, his skin a sickening grey. The symbols carved into his flesh oozed blood and glistened in the moonlight. I gripped his hand and squeezed, trying to fill his soul with my love.
He kept his eyes tightly closed, but smiled painfully.
“I'm yours, forever,” he whispered.
Tears pricked my eyelashes. “I know,” I whispered back, caressing the back of his hand with my thumb. “I love you.”
“I love you, Earth Angel.”
We fell back to silence as I worried over his wounds. Something about them were menacing. Likely it was because the markings were foreign to me and purposely carved into him, but I didn't know what they meant and I was sure I wouldn't like it once I found out.
Jess followed my train of vision and whispered, “Summoning symbols.”
I glanced at her.
“What does that mean?”
She followed the circular pattern of one of the symbols with her finger in the air, not touching his tender skin. “This is to summon pain and fear.” And then pointed to the second shape, a marking that resembled a curved star, “This is to summon loss.” Her finger moved on, pointing out the third. “This is to summon anger.” the last pattern, she said, was, “To summon hate.”
Rage in Pain Roz: The R.I.P. Series Book 2 Page 19