by Sarra Cannon
“I can try,” I said. “What does it involve?”
“Are you familiar with glamours?” Marco asked.
Lyla took my hand in hers again, and I was grateful for the reassuring motion. It was good to know she wasn’t horrified by me.
“We actually just showed her how to do one earlier tonight,” Lyla said. She glanced at the marks on my neck. “Think you can do it again?”
I nodded. As long as it didn’t involve vomiting mosquitoes, I was good to go.
“What do you want me to do?”
Marco locked eyes with Lyla. “This involves you, too,” he said. “And it’s asking a lot, so if you want to say no, there’s no shame in that.”
Lyla’s mouth opened in surprise. “What is it?”
“We need the two of you to change places,” Mordecai said. He walked over to the broken window in the living room and looked out. “I’m guessing we don’t have much time to pull this off. I can feel their energy moving closer. We’ll have to time it just right to make it work.”
“What do you mean switch places?” I asked.
“I need for you to glamour yourself to look like Lyla, and for her to do the same with you,” he said. “That way anyone following Franki gets confused and follows the wrong trail.”
“You want me to be a decoy Franki?” Lyla asked. Her hand slipped from mine. I couldn't tell from her voice if she was upset or resigned. “They'll all follow me instead.”
“Lyla, I can't ask you to do this,” I said. “I’ll run. If we go now, we could leave before the others arrive.”
She turned to me. “Franki, there's no way I'm letting you leave without at least trying this,” she said. “I'll do whatever I can to save you.”
“Why?” I asked, shaking my head. “Why are so many people risking their lives to save me?”
She gave me a small smile. “You’re a part of our family now. Our Venom family. And if you mean this much to Rend, you mean this much to all of us.”
“If something happens to you, I'll never forgive myself.”
“It’s going to put you in serious danger,” Marco said. He stood in front of Lyla and put his hands on her shoulders. “Like I said, I know this is way too much to ask of you. If you don’t want to do it, we can just take our chances and hope Franki gets away without our help.”
“But you need to decide now,” Mordecai said. His dark eyes searched the yard in front of the house, his shoulders tensing.
“She’s really important, isn’t she?” Lyla asked, almost as if I wasn’t standing here beside her. “What does the Devil want with her?”
“We don’t know exactly, but Rend suspects the Devil wants to perform a permanent spell of some sort. One that requires a powerful blood sacrifice.”
Lyla turned to me. “Who are you?”
I shook my head. Now was not the time for secrets, but I had never been more ashamed of my family line than I was at that moment. “I’m a descendant of the Mother Crow,” I said, giving voice to the truth for the first time.
“Oh my God,” Lyla said in a whisper. She backed away from Marco and lifted a hand to her mouth. “So, it’s not just powerful blood that runs through your veins. It’s blood that's tainted with the darkest kinds of magic.”
I flinched, knowing she was right. But also knowing I had never asked for this darkness.
There was no way Lyla would risk her life for me, not after finding out who I really was. I couldn’t blame her.
“If the Devil is able to use you for a blood sacrifice, he'll be unstoppable,” she said. “He could gain enough power to rule this world if we don’t stop him.”
“We have to stop him,” Mordecai said. “No matter what it takes.”
Lyla faced Mordecai and took a deep breath in through her nose.
“Let’s do it,” she said.
“No, Lyla, please.” I grabbed her hand and shook my head, but no one seemed to care what I had to say about the matter. Lyla had said yes. That was all that mattered.
“I’ll watch the back door,” Marco said. “Mordecai, you keep an eye on the front. Ladies? Hurry.”
“Let’s go upstairs where it’s quiet and, um, less bloody.” Lyla pulled me toward the stairs. When we got to the landing, she sat down and motioned for me to sit across from her.
We sat in exactly the same position we had earlier tonight, knee-to-knee, our legs crossed beneath us and our hands clasped.
“Just breathe,” she said. “Focus on that energy deep inside, like we talked about earlier.”
Tears sprang to my eyes. “I’m not sure I can do this,” I said. “Not after what happened earlier.”
“You can and you will,” she said. “All our lives depend on this. Don't be scared, Franki. Your power manifested the way it did because you were angry and full of fear. Concentrate on something else. Control the power. Don’t let it control you. You can do this.”
My breath hitched in my throat.
Could I? How could I be sure my power wouldn't consume me again? How could I be sure I wasn't going to kill anyone else?
“You ready?” she asked.
“No. But let’s try this anyway.”
She squeezed my hands. “Take a moment to study my face. Take in every detail you can, from my hair to my eyes, everything that would make me immediately recognizable at a glance. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but it has to at least be enough to fool someone in the dark.”
I nodded. I studied her, taking in her chin-length brown hair and her dark brown eyes. I knew she was several inches shorter than I was. I studied the curve of her lips and the shape of her nose.
Mordecai peered around the bottom of the stairs. “Hurry up, ladies, we have to move. They’re coming.”
“Shh,” Lyla said to him without taking her eyes off my face. “Don’t let panic cloud your energy. It’s going to be okay. Now, close your eyes.”
I took one last look at her face, then closed my eyes. I felt us both breathe in together. We clasped hands, knowing our lives depended on this moment right here, right now.
We had to get this right the first try or there might never be a second chance.
I focused on the energy inside my core, pulling away at first, then pushing forward. I had to trust that I could embrace the power inside me without allowing it to turn to darkness.
I focused on the spark of power buzzing through me, then tapped into it slowly, allowing the warm strength of it to flow through me. When I felt connected and ready, I pictured every detail of Lyla’s face and skin and hair. I saw her clearly in my mind’s eye, picturing myself becoming her.
I felt the change of my hair immediately. Instead of my long, heavy hair, it was suddenly light and slightly curled around my face. Curls tickled my cheek and I opened my eyes.
I gasped, the sight of her a shock to my system.
I was looking at a perfect replica of myself.
Chapter 5
Not A Chance
Marco stared at us, narrowing his eyes, as if trying to catch any missing details.
“Either it didn’t work at all or you guys are fucking good at this,” he said.
I exhaled. If we could fool Marco—someone who had known Lyla for many years—we could fool anyone.
I hoped.
“You’ll never know,” Lyla said, winking.
Marco leaned toward her. “You may look like Franki, but you're still acting like Lyla.”
“Shit,” she said, wrinkling her nose. My nose. Sort of. “I didn’t think of that.”
“Just don’t speak and do your best to act and walk like the other girl,” Mordecai said. “You’ll be fine. Hopefully no one will ever get close enough to see the details, anyway.”
“Where will we go?” I asked.
“Separate ways,” Marco said. “That’s all you need to know for now.”
Shadows moved across the lawn and all of us tensed. Fear rippled across my skin.
“Here we go,” Lyla said, squeezing my hand one last tim
e. “Be safe.”
“You too,” I said. I pulled her into a hug. I still couldn’t believe she was willing to do this for me. To save me. “Thank you.”
“You owe me one,” she said, smiling.
Marco grabbed her hand and nodded to Mordecai. “See you in this world or the next, my friend.”
Mordecai clasped his large hand around my bicep and raised his eyebrows at me. “Let’s go,” he said. “Hold on as long as you can.”
I nodded, understanding what he’d meant earlier about this glamour taking more power to complete. Hiding the marks on my neck had only taken a small amount of my energy, but becoming Lyla had taken more out of me than I expected. A headache was forming behind my eyes and my knees felt weak.
I knew if we were forced to fight again, I would be of no use to any of them.
The shadowy figures on the lawn burst through the front door and the window just as Marco and the fake Franki took off through the back.
Mordecai and I followed, the vampires close behind us. Just as we passed through the back door, Mordecai pulled a vial from his pocket and smashed it onto the floor. A thick silver fog rose around us, hiding us all as we made our escape.
Two cars waited for us out back—a large black Escalade and a sporty white Mercedes. I followed Mordecai’s lead toward the Escalade as Marco and Lyla ran to the Mercedes.
Just before I ducked my head inside the car, Lyla and I locked eyes. I hoped this would not be the last time we saw each other.
“Go,” Marco yelled. “I’ve got Franki.”
He said it loud enough for the shadowy figures to hear as they emerged from the rubble and fog inside the house.
Mordecai started up the car and took off before I could even get my door closed. I slid across the seat and quickly buckled up. I had a feeling this was going to be one hell of a bumpy ride.
I turned to look behind us as we raced down the driveway. Marco and Lyla got into the Mercedes and tore off in the other direction.
I waited, watching with nerves tingling. I bit down hard on my lip. The vampires didn’t have cars, but they could fly. The leader of their group of six turned to watch the two cars.
In the distance, sirens sounded. Someone in the neighborhood must have called the cops.
The vampire leader pointed a shadowy finger toward the Mercedes. The leader and three of his followers shifted to smoke and flew off after Marco’s car. The remaining two followed us.
Mordecai took a corner so hard I slammed against the seat and had to grab the handle to keep from crashing into the side of him.
“Hold on,” he said.
He pushed his foot down hard on the gas pedal, blasting through a four-way stop without any hesitation. The vampires followed, their bodies nothing but blurred shadows hovering in the air behind us.
“Can we outrun them?” I asked.
“Not a chance,” Mordecai said. He flashed a smile. “But I have other plans.”
He let up on the gas just a little as we approached a red light up ahead. Thankfully, it was so late at night no one else was out on the road. If he kept driving like this, though, the cops we heard would find us and we'd be forced to stop.
The shadows of the two vampires hovered near my window. I looked at them, hoping they couldn't tell the difference between me and the real Lyla. I concentrated on the power holding the glamour, begging it to hold up just a little bit longer.
Mordecai punched the gas again, then turned the wheel hard to the left and slammed on the brakes. The two vampires crashed into the side of the Escalade, their bodies shifting back into human form and falling onto the pavement.
Mordecai laughed, then hit the gas as hard as he could. “That should hold them a few minutes.”
He turned down several side streets before coming out near a major intersection and pulling onto the highway. When we'd made it several miles away, he checked the rear-view mirror again, then slowed to a normal speed. Our car blended in with the rest of the late-night traffic on the Interstate.
I let out a deep sigh of relief. At least for now, we were safe.
Over the miles that followed, I didn’t say a word. I had a million questions about where we were heading and if Rend would be waiting for me there. But the question that kept me silent was one Mordecai couldn’t answer any better than I could.
Would Marco and Lyla be okay? What would happen to them if the other vampires caught up to them?
And what if even more came after them?
I slumped down in the soft leather seat, staring straight ahead as Mordecai drove south, away from the city.
I still couldn’t believe Lyla had been willing to put herself in so much danger to save my life. What had I ever done to deserve that kind of loyalty?
I didn’t understand it. I didn’t deserve it.
And Lyla wasn’t the only one willing to risk her life. Selena had died to save me. She had argued with Rend about the explosive device. She didn’t want to take it from him. I'd heard her clearly say she wasn’t going to risk her life for me.
And yet she had.
What had Rend whispered in her ear last night to make her change her mind? What could he have possibly said to make her take the small bead and put it in her pocket?
And as she lay dying, when her eyes locked with mine, what thought had gone through her head? Why did she choose to make that sacrifice to save me?
I closed my eyes, letting the sound of the tires on the highway calm me.
I might never know why these people I’d just met were so willing to lay down their lives for me, or why Rend had taken a chance to protect me. But I vowed that night to make sure their sacrifices had not been in vain.
I vowed to make sure I did not become the sacrifice the Devil wanted to turn me into.
I would not let him win.
I would do whatever it took to take him down and make sure my new family at Venom never had to risk their lives for me again.
I drifted off to sleep with that thought heavy on my heart.
Several hours later, as Mordecai slowed and pulled off the interstate, the change in rhythm pulled me from my sleep. The sun colored the sky in pinks and purples on the horizon.
I rubbed my eyes and sat up in my seat. “Where are we?”
“About an hour north of Nashville,” Mordecai said.
Nashville? How long had I been asleep? The clock on the dashboard read seven thirty-three.
“I didn’t mean to fall asleep,” I said.
Mordecai glanced over at me and smiled. For such a big man, he had a soft smile that warmed me and made me trust him.
“You needed your rest,” he said. He reached behind the seat and pulled out an Atlanta Braves baseball cap. “Here, put this on. We’re in the clear for now, but you lost your glamour in your sleep and I don’t want to risk anyone recognizing you.”
I leaned over and glanced at myself in the rear-view mirror. My eyes were ringed with dark circles and my skin looked awful with no makeup, but I had my own face back for now. I pulled my hair up and slipped the ballcap over it.
“Have you heard anything from Marco?” I asked. “Did they get away?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “We can’t have any contact with anyone from Venom for now. It’s too risky.”
My face crumpled. What if something terrible happened to them? I would never forgive myself.
Mordecai glanced over at me. “I think they’ll be all right,” he said. “Marco’s a lot stronger than he looks, and there were a few other friends waiting to help them out on their journey. As long as they were able to make it to the airport, they’re okay. Probably halfway to Las Vegas by now.”
“Vegas?”
“Rend had a private jet waiting for them at the airport. He filed a false flight plan to New York, but that’s not really going to fool anyone for long. They’re really headed to Vegas, and once they get there, Marco knows where to hide out. He’s got people there.”
I nodded. “And what about us?”
I asked. “Where are we heading?”
A smile played across his lips. When he turned his head, the beads in his dreadlocks clicked together. “A place called Peachville, Georgia,” he said. “I’m taking you to meet your cousin.”
Chapter 6
More To Your Power
The rest of the trip flew by. All I could think about was meeting a member of my extended family for the first time in my life.
I had a cousin! And somehow, despite what Rend told me about the crows never breaking free of the control of the Mother Crow, this girl had managed to break free all on her own.
Mary Anne.
I couldn’t wait to meet her.
But at the same time, I wondered if going to her house would put her in danger.
“You said she’s there with a group of other witches?”
“Witches and demons,” Mordecai said. “Some real bad asses.” He smiled again and cut his eyes toward me. “You’ll fit right in.”
I couldn’t help but smile back at him. He looked intimidating with his broad shoulders and muscular build, but he had an easy way about him that put me at ease.
“The group there has been through a lot, but they know how to handle their shit,” he said. “You’ll be safe there. And Rend thinks it’ll be the last place the Devil will think to look right now. Truthfully, even if he finds out you're there, I don't think he'd want to draw this crowd into the fight.”
“I hope,” I said. “But I don’t want to put anyone else in danger. It’s not right that everyone is taking so many chances to keep me alive.”
“It’s like Lyla said. If you’re important to Rend, you’re important to all of us,” Mordecai said. “He doesn’t take his relationships lightly, and he doesn’t ask us to back him up unless he has a reason. I’ve known Rend for many years and I’ve never seen him so concerned for a woman. You’re very special, Franki.”
“So I’m told,” I mumbled. “I just wish I understood why.”
“Did Rend ever explain to you about blood sacrifice?”
“Not really,” I said. “Lyla mentioned it earlier, but I didn't really know what it meant.”
“A blood sacrifice is one of the darkest magics there is,” he said. “When you cast a spell like a glamour, or a rope of smoke or whatever, it’s temporary. It takes power and energy to maintain, which is why, when you fell asleep, your glamour dropped.”