by Nicole Maggi
“Do you even have an e-mail address?” Bree said.
Heath ignored her and held up the phone so we could read the text.
Griffin is winging east.
“I suppose that’s code for she’s getting on a plane.”
“That’s a really dumb code,” Bree said. “Any idiot could figure that out.”
“Do you think they rescued Dario?” I asked.
Heath bit his lip. “I hope so. Nerina is a little paranoid about electronic communication, obviously,” he added, waving the phone, “so she hasn’t told me. But I don’t think she would come back unless he was okay.”
“Unless he’s dead,” Bree murmured, taking the paper from Heath’s hand and replacing it in its folder.
“Bree!”
She looked up at me. “Sorry,” she said, shrugging. “But that’s a distinct possibility, isn’t it?”
“Yes, but—”
“All right, let’s all just think positive,” Heath interrupted. He reached for the next folder in the pile, the very last folder we had managed to steal from the Guild. I looked around at all the progress we’d made. Everything had been separated into piles according to their usefulness. I thought of the folder with Jonah’s name on it, currently hidden between the mattress and the box spring in my room. I didn’t know how useful it would be to the Benandanti as a whole, but it was precious to me.
Heath spread out the few papers in the folder on the table in front of us and shifted so we could all read them at the same time. The papers were old and yellowed, the handwriting on them faded from time. My gaze moved across the text, not quite taking in what I was reading at first. Next to me, Bree drew in a sharp breath. On my other side, Heath seemed to have stopped breathing. I looked back at the first page and carefully read it all again, my heart skipping beats with each line.
We all seemed to realize at once what we were seeing. I gripped Heath’s knee, my fingers digging in hard. Bree slid off the couch to kneel on the floor, her hands splayed over the papers.
“It’s the spell,” she whispered. “The spell that makes everyone agree with them.”
If we had the spell, surely we could figure out how to break it. I closed my eyes. It wasn’t just the spell. It was the answer.
Chapter Nineteen
The New Mage
Alessia
As badly as I wanted to skip school the next day to wait for Nerina to get home, I had tests in both French and government, and I didn’t want to give Morrissey any reason to call a conference with Lidia. I walked to school holding my notes in front of my nose, trying to absorb them by some sort of magic. But all I could think about was what we had found in the Guild papers. I knew the enormity of the discovery would erase any anger Nerina might have about me and Bree breaking into the office without her permission. It could truly be the turning point in the war with the Malandanti. Focusing on school was the least of my priorities, but I couldn’t draw suspicion to myself by doing badly.
I spotted Jenny ahead when I passed the turn-off to her house. Ever since our fight, she purposely hadn’t waited at the corner for me, and I’d been forced to stare at her back while we walked the last few blocks to school in silence. It was ridiculous. I tucked my notes into my bag and jogged to catch up to her. “Hey.”
“Hey,” she said without looking at me.
I fell into step with her. “Seriously? How long are you going to keep this up?”
She still didn’t look at me. “Until you apologize.”
“Jenny, come on.” I stepped in front of her, forcing her to stop and look at me. “I tried to say I was sorry, and you just walked away. I am sorry, but I was really hurt.”
Jenny’s gaze darted all over the street until it finally rested on my face. “How ’bout we both say we’re sorry and call it a day?”
“Deal.” I reached out to touch her arm. “I’m really sorry. I’ve just been going through a rough time.”
“I know. I’m really sorry, too.” She dropped her bag to the ground and pulled me into a hug. “I should’ve been more understanding.”
We walked to school slowly, our steps in sync once more. “We’re still saving a spot for you,” Jenny said. “On the girls’ weekend. If you want to go.”
“I do.” I bit my lip. “Are you sure Carly and Melissa want me there?”
“I think if you show up at lunch today and grovel a little, they’ll be okay,” Jenny said, grinning. “Have you mentioned it to your mom?”
“No.”
Jenny groaned. “Well, you’d better do that before any of us get our hopes up. Maybe my mom should call her.”
“Maybe.” It wasn’t Lidia I was worried about, though. There was no way Nerina and Heath would let me out of Twin Willows, not with our hold on the Waterfall hanging by a thread and the promise of victory over the Guild so ripe in our hands.
The French test wasn’t fun, but somehow I made it through even though I was very aware of Jonah bent over his own test paper behind me. When lunchtime rolled around, I clutched my lunch bag to me as I approached. Jenny smiled and waved me over. Melissa and Carly looked up, tight smiles on their faces. I guessed Jenny had said something to them.
“Hey, guys.”
“Are you ready for the government test?” Carly asked.
I rolled my eyes. “Not even a little bit.”
She scooted over and gestured to the notes spread out in front of her. “Let’s cram.”
I slid in next to her, and we bent our heads together. Melissa and Jenny chatted while Carly and I studied. The normality of it filled me with relief. I didn’t care if I failed the test. Getting back into my friends’ good graces was worth more than any grade.
When the four of us emerged from the front doors at the end of the school day, everything seemed to be restored. “I already scheduled a tour for us at Williams,” Melissa told me, “so you have to talk to your mom ASAP.”
“I will, I will.”
We walked across the lawn toward Main Street. A huge black SUV idled at the curb. Josh Baker and Bree stood next to it, having what appeared to be a heated conversation.
“Trouble in paradise,” Melissa said, nudging me.
I watched them for a moment, snatches of their words carrying on the light wind. “You can’t expect me to drop everything for you,” Bree was saying.
“But it’s been like four days,” Josh whined.
I moved a little closer to eavesdrop, my friends at my heels. “Get a grip,” Bree hissed. “I am not on your hook like the other girls in your harem.”
Carly whistled low. “You go, girl.”
“He’s such a player,” Melissa said. “It’s about time someone gave him a taste of his own medicine.”
Bree moved away from Josh, but he grabbed her arm and swung her to face him. I took several fast steps, but before I could reach them, Bree had pulled out of his grasp. “I never said we were more than what we were,” she said. “I was just playing by your rules.”
“You’re just a little whore, aren’t you?”
“Hey!” I shouted. I broke away from my friends and jogged over to Bree. “We’re still on school grounds, you know. I’d be happy to report you to Morrissey for harassment.”
Josh sneered. “Whatever. Good luck getting anyone to touch you with a ten-foot pole after this, Bree.”
“As if I care.”
Josh climbed into his car, revved the engine, and pulled away from the curb without looking.
A little hatchback coming down Main Street had to slam on its brakes. Bree tossed her hair and looked at me. “Thanks.”
“He’s been an asshole since the second grade,” I said. I turned back to Carly, Melissa, and Jenny. “Right, girls?”
For a moment they looked between me and Bree. “He tried to feel me up when we were eleven,” Carly said finally.
“His dad pinched my mom’s ass,” Jenny said. “She gave him a black eye.”
“I think I like your mom.” Bree laughed. The sound caught my friends off gu
ard, as if it reminded them she was a human being with feelings too. I grinned. Nothing like boy troubles to bond girls.
Jenny, Bree, and I said good-bye to Carly and Melissa and headed down Main Street. Bree turned down her street with a quick wink at me. I knew she’d double back as soon as we were out of sight. Now that school was over, I couldn’t wait to get to Nerina’s. I wondered if Heath had already told her about our discovery. And I wanted to know what had happened in California.
“So you’ll talk to your mom?”
I started. “What? Oh, yeah. Definitely.”
“Let me know if you need my mom to call.” Jenny narrowed her eyes at me. “Promise?”
“Promise.” I swiped my fingers across my chest. “Cross my heart.”
I waited until Jenny was out of sight and broke into a run all the way home. I bypassed the house and headed straight for the woods. Along the stone wall, through the hidden door, down the secret stairway . . . I skidded to a halt when I emerged into the living area.
Heath and Nerina stood entwined on the calfskin rug, unaware that I’d come in. He held her face in his hands like a precious object, his lips moving against hers as if he were a man starved. Her fingers dug into his shoulders and back, her body molded to his as though they were made for each other. And with an intake of breath, I realized they were. How could the Concilio keep them apart?
I backed up the steps on tiptoe. My cheeks tingled with heat as they disappeared from my view. I closed the door quietly. A twig snapped behind me, and I spun around.
“What’s up?” Bree asked.
“Jeez,” I breathed, pressing a hand to my sternum. I leaned against the wall to catch my breath.
“Aren’t we going in?”
“Ah . . . let’s give them a few minutes.”
Bree raised an eyebrow and grinned. “Heath’s finally getting some?”
“Ew! No!” I shuddered. “Could you be any more crass?”
“Well, yes. Yes, I could.”
“Well, don’t.” I curled my lip. “Gross.”
“But they are—”
“They’re making out. Okay? Are you happy?”
Bree rubbed her hands together. “Excellent.”
“Look,” I said, launching myself away from the wall, “I don’t want them to know I saw them. They’re not supposed to be together—the Concilio ordered them to be apart. It’s complicated.”
“Why? Because she’s immortal? That’s insane.”
“Yeah, well, in Italy if your family orders you to do something, you do it.” I glanced at the closed door. “Maybe we should go in.”
“Are you kidding?” Bree grabbed my arm. “We should give them at least an hour.”
“Bree!” I pulled away from her. “Don’t you want to know what happened at the Redwood site? And tell her about what we found?”
“And don’t you want to get your Guide laid?”
I held my hand up. “Don’t make me vomit.”
Bree laughed. “Come on. I bet your mom has some biscotti laying around.” She took me by the elbow and guided me away from the wall, but at that moment, the door shifted open, and Heath appeared.
“Oh—hey,” he said. His lips were raw and red, and his shirt was untucked.
“Hi.” I slid my arm out of Bree’s grasp. “We were just coming to see you guys.”
“Nerina’s inside,” Heath said. He glanced down and shoved his shirt back into the waistband of his jeans. “I was just, um, leaving.”
“What? Don’t you want to stay and tell her what we found?”
“I did.” Heath walked away from the wall, back toward the farm.
Bree threw her hands up. “I wanted to be the one to tell her!”
“Sorry,” Heath tossed over his shoulder. “See you later, Alessia.”
I watched him go, my insides a little twisted. “Something must’ve happened between them,” I muttered. “I mean, after I walked in.”
“Let me guess. It went something like this. ‘Oh, Nerina, I love you so much,’” Bree said in a mock-Heath voice. “‘But caro, we cannot. The Concilio—’”
I had to stifle a laugh. Bree’s imitation of Nerina was pretty dead-on.
“‘Damn the Concilio! I want you!’
“‘They are my family! Do not make me choose between them and you!’
“‘Because you choose them!’
“And scene.” She took a little bow and descended the stairs into Nerina’s lair.
I followed her, shaking my head. I was certain that was how it had gone down, too. That was the only thing keeping them apart, even with the Concilio so far away. Nerina’s duty to them always came first, even over her own heart.
When we came into the living area, Nerina was sitting in the oversized chair, a sheaf of papers in her hands. She was looking at them, but I could tell she wasn’t seeing them. Her lips, too, were swollen, and her eyes were red-rimmed. She looked very much like the teenager she once was, small and vulnerable.
Bree cleared her throat, and Nerina started. “Oh, there you are, girls. Come in, come in.” She set down the papers and stood to hug us both. “I am so very proud of you. You were naughty to go without my permission,” she added, wagging her finger at us, “but it paid off. Sit, sit.”
We settled on the couch. I tucked my feet underneath me. “What happened in California? Is Dario okay?”
“Sì.” She sighed and leaned delicately into the back cushions of the chair. “He was hurt, but he will recover. The Redwood Clan is caring for him.”
“Did he give up anything?” Bree asked.
“No. He held strong.”
I swallowed. I didn’t want to know the extent to which he’d been tortured. I wasn’t sure if I could hold strong under the same circumstances. “And the Redwood site is safe?”
“Sì. And just before I left California, I received even better news.” A smile danced across her lips, lightening the redness in her eyes. “Pakistan has been recovered too.”
“So we have three sites in our control now?” I gulped in a breath and reached for a folder that lay on the coffee table in front of me. “And with this information, we can bring down the Guild. This is great, right?” I looked from Nerina to Bree. “Right?”
“Yes. It is fantastic.” Nerina pressed her palms to her cheeks. “But we cannot stop to celebrate. We are winning battles. But we have yet to win the war.”
“But this could help us!” I waved the folder. “We’re getting close.” I shoved aside the niggling thought in my brain, that if we won the war, I could leave the Benandanti. I could have a normal life. Heath had promised. But another thought sliced through that one. If the Benandanti won, where did that leave Jonah?
“And I have an idea to bring us even closer,” Nerina said. “I spoke to Dario about it and was able to convince him, too.”
I met her gaze. “The mages.”
“Sì.” Nerina brushed a hand over the papers on her lap. “It’s time we have our own Rabbit. And I know just the person.” Her razor-sharp gaze settled on Bree’s face.
Bree shrank into the corner of the couch under my and Nerina’s stares. “What, me?”
Nerina stood. “Yes, Bree. You.”
Chapter Twenty
My Super-Awesome Jedi Mind Trick
Bree
I dropped my head back against the couch cushions, letting out a loud sigh. “Seriously?” I said to the ceiling. “Every time I think I’m out, they pull me back in.”
“Out?” Alessia said. “How could you think you’re getting out?”
“I did my part!” I sat upright and waved at the stack of books and papers we’d stolen from the Guild. “I spied on the Guild; we broke into the magic office and got the stuff. I thought I was done.”
“You’re in too deep to be done,” Alessia said in such a matter-of-fact tone that I wanted to punch her. “We need you now more than ever. Isn’t that right, Nerina?”
I could actually feel my hand flexing into a fist, and I had
to sit on it so I didn’t slam it into her jaw.
Nerina obviously saw that I was on the edge, because she came to sit between me and Alessia. “She’s right, Bree,” she said, resting a hand on my knee. “You are invaluable to us, and we cannot lose you.”
“But a mage? Why me?”
“I told you, cara. You have magic in you—powerful magic. It could be the single greatest weapon we have to use against the Malandanti.”
Me, a weapon? Uh, no, thank you. “I don’t want to be a weapon. I want out.”
“How can you be so freaking selfish?” Alessia yelled.
My mouth dropped open. I’d never heard her volume go above five.
“Do you have any idea how much I want out?” she said. “But I can’t get out. Maybe, just maybe, there is the tiniest sliver of possibility that if we win back all seven sites, I can.”
I shot a glance at Nerina, whose eyes were wide. This was obviously news to her too.
“Heath promised,” Alessia said. “He said if we got back all seven sites I could get out.”
Nerina opened her mouth.
Alessia held a hand up. “I don’t want to hear no right now. I need to know there’s the slightest chance it could happen. I need to have hope.” She looked at me again. “And without you, there isn’t any. So stop thinking about yourself for once.”
A hot, white rage bubbled up inside me. “I wasn’t thinking about myself.” My voice shook with the effort to not scream. How dare she? How dare she, when she knew who I was really doing all this for? My gaze lasered straight into Alessia’s eyes. Her face paled. After a moment, she blinked and looked away. Yeah. She knew exactly who I was thinking about.
“You would be helping Jonah as well,” Nerina said. I swung to face her. “If we destroy the Guild, if we take down the Malandanti, he will be free too.”
“If he doesn’t die in the process,” I snapped.
Nerina tilted her head. Her calmness irritated me so much my palms itched. “And as a mage, you could make sure that didn’t happen. You could protect him.”