Bruja

by Aileen Erin

  “Bear with me for a second.”

  I took a breath and let it out slowly. “Okay.”

  “Muraco says he knows of mages who can fight the kind of magic Luciana is wielding. If you find those mages, and if they have that kind of magic, then it stands to reason that they might also be stronger than she is. Then, you could break your bond and return not only with the magic we need to fight Luciana, but also with the ability to save your coven members from their oaths.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t want to disrespect you or any member of the Seven, but I heard a lot of if’s in there.”

  “I understand that,” Donovan said. He was getting emotional, and his Irish was showing a little more, making his t’s sound harder than normal. “But there’s not much choice, lass. Turning you into a wolf isn’t an option, so you’re going to have to find one of your own that will break it.”

  I blew out a breath. “There’s one more option.”

  “What’s that?”

  The others knew Cosette was fey, but they had no idea how pure her blood was. They’d assumed she was lesser because she was here with us, but a lesser fey wouldn’t have an aura like hers. Not that I was an expert either, but I could tell she was special. “There might be a fey we can ask.” At the very least, she might give us more information if we asked directly.

  Raphael grabbed my arm. “No. If she could break it, she would’ve offered already.”

  “It might not be that simple.” I shrugged, not wanting to give away any more of her secrets than I already had. “There’s no harm in asking and if she can’t help, then I’ll think about Peru.” As brave as I liked to think I was, I wasn’t deluded enough to believe I could go through with getting bitten. I didn’t have a mate to anchor me, and after being bound to a fiancé I didn’t want, I wasn’t about to tie myself to some wolf on a whim.

  No. If Cosette couldn’t help, then I’d sit down with Muraco and try to get some specifics out of him.

  As the rest of them finished their tea and visited with Rosa, I said a prayer. Please, for once, let me find the answers I need.

  Chapter Four

  The afternoon hadn’t turned out the way I wanted, but that didn’t mean something couldn’t change. We stopped for food on the way back, and the sun was setting by the time we pulled through St. Ailbe’s gates.

  I’d been quiet all through the drive. The trip into Austin hadn’t been a total waste of time. I knew more now than I’d known before. And knowing was half the battle.

  The next step was getting Cosette to either help or point us to the fey who could. But something told me Raphael was right—if she could’ve done more, she would’ve done it already. She’d witnessed enough of Luciana’s type of witchcraft to claim that the fey would be on our side when the next battle came. Days had passed and she hadn’t said a word about any of her people headed this way, so I could only assume that there were other forces at work.

  Maybe I hadn’t said the right thing. Offered up the proper incentive to get her to work her magic on my behalf. Fey liked to make bargains—or so I’d read—and I’d rather end up bound to Cosette than to Luciana or any of the alternatives.

  As I broke away from the group and headed toward the quad, the others were making plans to go to the library. Do some more research. If I’d learned anything about Cosette in the past few months, it was that she liked being outdoors. And since coming here, she really seemed to like being around the wolves. She’d go wherever they gathered.

  Going on that instinct made finding her easy. Ever since we’d gotten here, the girl had been a magnet for the wolves. She lay sprawled on a blanket in the center of the quad, wearing large headphones and tapping her fingers as she flipped through a magazine. A ray of sunlight shone down on her, creating a sparkling prism effect on her aura. It was almost blinding.

  All around her, wolves prowled. Oh, they were pretending to do other things. Two guys chatted, shoving each other. One seemed to be doing some homework. A few others shared a pizza. But they all were watching her. Only half-participating in what they were doing.

  So much for asking her for help in privacy. I gathered up my courage and sat on the blanket.

  She slid off her headphones and then closed the magazine as she sat up. “How did it go?”

  I swung my braid over my shoulder. “Not great.”

  “So, what are you going to do?”

  Here goes nothing. “Tia Rosa did say that some fey have the ability to—”

  “No.”

  Wow. I hadn’t expected that much, but being shut down before I could even ask? “I understand if that’s not something you can do, but if you could point me—”

  “I’m not able to help you with that right now.” She twisted the cord of her headphones so tight around her finger that the tip went red, cutting off her circulation. “And believe me when I say that’s not the answer I want to give.”

  Now that I was listening for it, I could tell how carefully she’d chosen those words. She was only saying she wouldn’t help now. Not that breaking the oath was outside her power. “Let me rephrase then. Would you be able to break the oath if your circumstances were different?”

  “You’re learning how this works.” Cosette perked up so quickly that a few of the wolves forgot to act and stared outright, but I was too busy concentrating on her to pay them much attention for once. “I’m not allowed to answer that question.”

  But that was an answer in itself, wasn’t it? “Then you could—”

  “Still no.” She gave her head a sad shake, and her voice was gentle. “I’m bound as tightly as you are, just to a queen instead of a crazy witch.”

  “I thought the fey would be on our side.” She’d said as much. Unless Cosette was lying about not being able to lie? I hoped not. I was already a little hurt than none of this had come out sooner.

  “So did I.” Cosette slumped back onto the blanket and her hair pooled around her in a mass of curls. “But the courts want to stay neutral. Because I’m—” Her voice choked off and she made a frustrated noise at the back of her throat. “If I did what you wanted me to do, I’d have to take a side.”

  There was one more hope dashed, but I seemed to be losing them left and right today. I still couldn’t give up. “If your queen does nothing, she could be doing all of you more harm than good.”

  “That’s basically what I told her.” Cosette fisted her hands in the blanket. “The battle that’s coming is about more than witches and wolves. If I step out of line now, she’ll summon me home and I’ll be no help to anyone later.”

  “I see.” Except I didn’t see at all, because it sounded like she was saying she could help—she just wouldn’t where I was concerned.

  “Claudia…” Cosette sat up, rubbing at her temples. “I have no intention of letting you, yours, or any of these wolves die, but I can’t act yet. And I know you well enough to know you wouldn’t ask me to if you knew what it would cost.”

  I brushed my arms against the chill settling into me, trying to convince myself the feeling was just from the sunset. I understood what it was like being bound by hard rules better than anyone. Getting angry with Cosette would only make me a hypocrite.

  That didn’t make her words any easier to swallow. I had a solution. Right here. But I couldn’t use it.

  She glanced up at the sky and then started gathering her things. “Let’s get in before the moon comes up.”

  “Right.” Cosette’s audience of wolves was finally dispersing and none of us would be allowed out here after nightfall. I brushed off my skirt as I stood. “Thank you for being as honest as you could be.” And at least she didn’t intend for any of us to die. It was a small comfort, but it was better than nothing.

  “Please stop thanking me.” She let out a sad sigh. “I don’t deserve it and the habit’s going to get you in trouble if you keep looking for help from the fey.”

  “What if I asked your queen for help?” I didn’t know which court Cosette was align
ed with, but surely if I went to the top of the hierarchy, I could get what we needed. None of us would be able to stay neutral once Luciana started pulling demons into the world. It had to benefit the fey to help our cause.

  “Don’t even suggest that.” Cosette snuck a last glance at something in the air and then grabbed my arm to hustle us both off the quad. “She might take you up on the offer, and she’d require much more than a blood oath in exchange.”

  Cosette’s shudder passed through my arm and that response struck a cord. If I added up what she’d said and hadn’t said, and combined it with her aura, then I had one more question to ask and no reason not to finally let it out. “How closely are you related to your queen?”

  Her long strides faltered, and that alone was enough of an answer: close enough that I wasn’t going to get a straight response out of her.

  “No one ever thinks to ask me that,” Cosette said. “What makes you ask?” She slowed to a stop as we entered the courtyard.

  “Mostly your aura.”

  “You don’t give yourself enough credit, Claudia.” She tilted her head to the side. “I truly believe you’ll figure this out.”

  We’d see how much credit I deserved. Maybe I was overreaching by asking for help from the fey when I hadn’t explored all the options closer to home.

  It was time to talk to Muraco about Peru.

  ***

  I sat curled up on the couch in St. Ailbe’s library into the wee hours. Muraco had gone on a hunt. Apparently he didn’t like sticking close to one place. He’d become a bit of a loner in the past century, as Mr. Dawson had put it.

  Century. I laughed as I picked up the next book. Sometimes I wonder how much weirder life can get, and then it just gets weirder.

  I’d taken to studying all the books on witchcraft that St. Ailbe’s had on hand. Luciana had kept us all ignorant of some things. She didn’t want us gaining too much power and fighting her. Now that I intended to fight her, I had to make up for lost time. Reading kept me busy and awake when all I wanted to do was sleep. Plus, the library had a fancy coffee machine. Caffeine was essential to my don’t-fall-asleep plan.

  I stood up, stretching my tired muscles. Everyone else had gone to bed hours ago, but that was to be expected. I checked my watch. Three a.m. Only a few more hours until daylight. For some reason, it was easier to stay awake when it was light out.

  I walked over to the shelves and scanned for anything that seemed interesting. My vision was getting blurry from lack of sleep, and I was starting to feel more than a little loopy. After so many hours awake, it was almost like I was living in a dream. I jumped up and down, trying to gain some energy. Maybe another cup of coffee would help, too.

  I headed toward the machine, grabbed a fresh mug, and started pouring the thick brew.

  A siren went off and I jumped, spilling some coffee on my hand.

  I froze. For a second, I thought I’d fallen asleep, but the burn on my hand meant that I was awake.

  Fire?

  No. I didn’t smell any smoke.

  Then panic gripped my chest. Luciana?

  Samhain.

  Oh, no. Not yet. It was too soon. We weren’t nearly ready.

  I dashed to the door. The halls of the academic building were quiet, but the siren kept going. As soon as I stepped outside, the stench hit me.

  Vampires.

  It was an attack.

  And all my potion vials were in my room where they did me absolutely no good.

  So stupid.

  The alarm shut off, leaving only the snarls and shrieks and chaos of the fight.

  Wolves fought together, pressing back a swarm of vampires. Thirty or forty of them swarmed across the campus, attacking from every direction I could see, and their rotting meat stench made me clap a hand to my nose.

  The wolves were winning. Killing them off one by one. Without any of my potions, I wasn’t much help against them, so I stayed back. I drew a few knots in the air. Spells of protection and stealth and agility. I pushed the magic out to cover the wolves as I watched, waiting for an opportunity to jump in where I wouldn’t be in the way.

  Time seemed to slow as three figures dressed in white stepped off the path that led to the parking lot.

  No way. They wouldn’t do this. Not on my watch.

  I sprang into action. From this distance, I couldn’t see who they were, but it didn’t matter. I ran across the quad, drawing a knot of protection on my chest. A vampire moved toward me, then stopped as the protection hit home. I dodged the fighting wolves. I couldn’t fight the way they could. My getting involved that way wouldn’t do anyone any good. But the coven members that were starting toward the wolves—

  Them, I could stop. I wouldn’t let them any closer to the wolves. Not while I had breath left to spell them with.

  “Claudia,” Teresa’s voice rang out, but I didn’t stop. “Wait.”

  Something grabbed my shirt, pulling me up short. I spun around. “What?”

  “You don’t want to see this.”

  I turned back around as I heard Raphael cry out. “Daniel!”

  My blood ran cold. No. She wouldn’t do that. She couldn’t…

  Raphael and the others ran outside, racing across to the figures in white.

  “No. It’s not possible.” I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Daniel was there. He was one of the people in white.

  But he was dead.

  Oh God. The only way to make the dead to walk again was to possess them with some nasty demons. Daniel was a monster now, but my brother hadn’t realized that yet.

  I couldn’t stop it. I was too far away.

  Raphael reached Daniel, and froze. Daniel’s shoulders were hunched over, making him seem smaller than usual. His usual spiked up hair was limp. He leaned toward Raphael and I knew something bad was about to happen unless I found a way to stop it.

  I grabbed Teresa’s hand and pushed what little energy I had left into her, amplifying her werewolf abilities. “Run. Fast. Don’t let him kill my brother.”

  In a flash, her aura brightened until it was like staring at the sun. Her form shimmered—clothes falling to the ground—as she changed to wolf while running across the grass. My eyes couldn’t keep up with her. One second she was in front of me, and the next she was gone. She jumped on Daniel, knocking him from Raphael, but it was too late. Raphael screamed, and I could almost feel Daniel’s teeth as they ripped into my brother’s arm.

  I took off running as fast as I could, wishing I had even half Teresa’s speed. Pure terror clawed at my gut. This wasn’t happening. I couldn’t let this happen.

  When I got close enough to make sure I wouldn’t hit any wolves, a spell formed on my lips and I flung it at the two standing figures. Girls. Sadie and Antonia.

  The spell hit its mark and they stumbled back.

  Daniel was on the ground. Not moving.

  He was dead. He should’ve stayed dead. Not been corrupted by Luciana’s evil magic.

  “Come back with us,” Sadie said as she pulled herself to her feet. “Luciana can fix your wound.”

  “Never!” Raphael struggled to get up, cradling his arm against his chest.

  Relief made my limbs shake. He was okay. He wasn’t dead. He was going to be fine.

  “None of us are ever going back there,” Raphael said.

  The wolves howled, and I noticed the quiet that had fallen over the rest of campus. The vampires must all be taken care of because the wolves moved to form a tight circle around us.

  “Take them to the feral cages,” Mr. Dawson said. He wore only a pair of gray sweatpants as he stood among the wolves. Two more men came running, wearing the same clothes.

  “That’s not a good idea,” I said. I didn’t know what these feral cages were, but I wasn’t sure they were strong enough to hold a witch. “They’ll be able to—”

  “No. I’ll sedate them,” Dr. Gonzales said, appearing at Mr. Dawson’s shoulder with a black messenger bag slung over her shoulder. “They w
on’t be able to use their magic if they’re unconscious.”

  The two girls gripped each other as they were led away by the two men, six wolves, and Dr. Gonzales. They headed toward the building where classes were held. It seemed odd, but a groan from Raphael and I forgot all about them.

  “Let me see it,” I said as I knelt next to him.

  “Daniel… He…”

  “I saw.” No magic that animated the dead was good news. But this… This was beyond bad.

  Green oozed out with my brother’s blood.

  “Let’s get him to the infirmary,” Mr. Dawson said. “Dr. Gonzales can look at the arm when she’s done with the others, and we can see what we can do.”

  I swallowed down my fear. “Okay.” I didn’t say what I was thinking, because I wanted to hope and not scare Raphael any more, but if the bite was infected, it was infected with something that medicine wouldn’t fix.

  A hand came down on my shoulder and I looked up to see Yvonne. “One step at a time.”

  “What should we do with the body?” Mr. Dawson said as he motioned down to Daniel.

  I looked at what was left of my friend. We’d grown up together. Played together. Studied together. But this… This wasn’t my friend.

  This was an abomination.

  His skin had turned gray with patches of black. His mouth foamed white. Blisters covered his arms. And that was just what was visible. I stepped closer and choked at the foul stench of sulfur.

  He held no aura. No soul. Whatever had been animating him was gone now.

  “Burn it,” I said, and then I turned my back on him.

  I had to focus on what I could do. I’d been too late to help Daniel, but if my brother was hurt, there wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do to save him.

  Chapter Five

  “You should get some sleep,” Dr. Gonzales said and I nearly laughed. I’d used magic tonight—sending my already depleted energy reserves so deep into the red that my body literally ached all over from exhaustion, but sleep was not an option. Especially not now.