Magic and Mayhem: A Collection of 21 Fantasy Novels

by Jasmine Walt

  “Ta-da!” I spun around for Ethan to see. He motioned for me to come over to him. He put his hands on my exposed waist.

  “You look so,” he kissed my neck, “hot.”

  “Thanks,” I said as I straddled him on the bed. “But we should get going. Laney is already at the Halloween party.” I jumped up and gave my costume another inspection. My top consisted of a midriff-showing leather bodice that laced up the front. The matching leather skirt was short and had a slit along the side. The temperature had dropped, so even though it didn’t really go with the costume, I put on a pair of black leggings. With tall boots and my dagger hanging from my waist, I looked like I was ready to march into battle.

  “Let’s just stay here,” Ethan suggested as he pulled me back on top of him.

  “Remember that you’re coming back here tonight and that my parents are out of town,” I whispered.

  Ethan groaned with want and kissed me again. It took everything in me to stop kissing him and go to the damn party. Resentfully, we broke apart and got into Ethan’s car.

  “Is Halloween worse for you?” Ethan asked on the way to the party. I knew exactly what he meant.

  “Yes. There are always more spirits around. It’s harder to block them out too.” I shook my head and let out a breath. “Hopefully this party will be a good distraction.”

  “And you will get drunk and frisky,” Ethan joked.

  “We’ll see about that,” I laughed, not telling him that I didn’t need to get drunk to want to get frisky with him.

  The house the party was at wasn’t much further. Harrison, Luke, the girls they came with, Laney, who was dressed as a bee, and Josh, like Ethan not wearing a costume, were already there. Marie and Gavin showed up not too long after we did. They were both dressed up as cops. I was having a blast, talking, drinking, and dancing. My drink was just Sprite for right now. I was having so much fun that I almost didn’t notice Mike and Alix, who was dressed as a slutty cat, walk in. Ethan had left to get me another drink, and they made a beeline for me.

  “Annie!” Mike put his hand on my arm. “Lookin’ good!”

  I yanked my arm away from him.

  “Here by yourself?” Alix asked, her tone mocking.

  “No, she’s here with me,” Ethan said from behind, sliding his arm around my waist. He gave me my drink.

  “Thanks,” I said, taking the red plastic cup from him. Ethan leaned down and kissed me.

  “This is my boyfriend, Ethan,” I said in as sweet a voice as I could manage. Alix ran her eyes over Ethan’s muscular arms. Mike’s face blanked. He shook his head and pushed his shoulders back.

  “She’s quite a handful, isn’t she?” he tried to joke, making it seem like he wasn’t bothered by us.

  “I’d say she’s more than a handful,” Ethan said, looking down my leather bodice. I gave him an “I-can’t-believe-you-said-that” look and laughed.

  “So how’re Hunter and Mystery?” Mike asked, trying to show off his knowledge of personal information about me.

  “Great,” I said shortly. “Actually, I want to thank you.”

  “Really? For what?” His baby blue eyes widened.

  “If you hadn’t been such a grotesque, pathetic, womanizing loser, I never would have left that party and found Ethan.” I smiled sweetly again, but fire burned behind my eyes.

  Mike stammered something that didn’t make sense and turned on his heel, pretending that he saw someone he knew. Alix threw a dirty look my way and slinked off after Mike.

  Ethan looked across the room again and then back into my eyes. “You know, it surprised me how much it bothered me seeing you upset.”

  I couldn’t help but smile. “You are so sweet.”

  “No, I’m not,” he said, his voice full of wicked seductiveness. He took my hand and led me back into the party.

  Maybe two hours later, Ethan’s phone rang. It was Sam. I set my drink down, grabbed my coat, and went outside with him. I watched the expressions on his face change from annoyed to worried.

  “Where are you?” he asked. “I can be there in about twenty minutes.”

  “Everything okay?” I asked, already knowing the answer.

  “No, but it’s not that big of a deal. If I go now, I can probably be back in an hour. You can stay here with your friends.”

  “Do you need my help?”

  “No, stay with your friends and have fun. I’ll tell you everything when I get back.” He picked me up and twirled me around. “I’ll miss you.”

  “I’ll miss you, too. Be safe!” He gave me a quick kiss goodbye and took off. I went back in the house and hung out with my friends for a while. I talked and laughed, but as each minute ticked by, an uneasy feeling grew. Laney suggested I have a drink to calm my nerves. I took a few sips, recoiled from the taste, and looked outside the large living room windows that faced the woods. Dim moonlight reflected off yellow eyes. I shivered, feeling like it was watching me.

  I took another drink. It could be an animal—a regular, normal, non-demonic animal. The more I drank, the harder it was to keep the mental shields up, and something dark crept in on my thoughts.

  An hour later, I couldn’t take it anymore. I tossed my cup and went outside, planning on sitting on the porch until Ethan came back. My breath clouded around me as I exhaled. Several people cluttered the small porch, drinking and smoking.

  Wrinkling my nose, I pushed past them, putting a hand around my dagger as I dashed down the steps. I slowly walked through the line of cars parked in the large yard, stopping at the edge of the woods.

  My fingers tightened around the dagger. A chill ran through me. Something was lurking in the trees. And I was going to find it.

  I pulled the dagger from the sheath. I cast my eyes to the blade, a smile subconsciously coming to my face. Slowly, I walked around a rusty van. Wind rattled bare branches.

  Aaaanorrraaaa.

  I spun around. “Hello?” I asked the darkness. “Who’s there?”

  I held the dagger up. My chest rose and fell. The wind blew again, blowing my hair into my face. I pulled it out of my eyes, taking a step back. My heel landed on a branch. It snapped, the sound echoing into the night.

  The feeling of eyes on me intensified. I whirled around. “I know you’re in there!” I shouted to the forest. “I’m not scared of you.” Oh, but I was. I pushed my pounding heart back into my chest.

  Ruunnn.

  I spun. Run? Was it a warning or a threat?

  Run. Noowww.

  Where was the voice coming from? A howl came from deep inside the woods. My stomach dropped, and I shivered as fear shot through me. I took a step back, too scared to take my eyes off the dark trees.

  Someone scurried through the dry grass behind me. Heart hammering with fear, I moved close to the van. Why did I come out here? This was a stupid idea. I should have waited for Ethan. What if a Pricolici was lurking about? Or worse, one of those bird-creatures from my dream?

  Footfalls grew louder. I could do this. I closed my eyes and nodded to myself. Maybe…no. I could. I had to. I press a hand on the cold metal of the van. One, two…I pushed off and jumped around the van, dagger raised.

  “What the hell?” Mike shouted, raising his hands over his face and sloshing beer out of the glass bottle he was holding.

  “Are you following me?” I asked, lowering my arm.

  Mike staggered back. Great, he was drunk. “I saw you leave alone,” he slurred. “I wanted to talk to you.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I don’t want to hear anything you have to say.” What I wanted was to get back in the house and away from the woods. I took a step forward.

  Mike stepped in my way.

  “Move, Mike,” I sighed.

  “Annie,” he started, reaching out to touch me. I pushed his hand away. Anger burned in his eyes.

  “Get out of my way.” I shoved past him.

  Mike grabbed my arm. “Don’t walk away from me!” he said, tightening his grip on my arm until it hurt.


  “Let me go!” I twisted my arm. Another howl filtered through the woods. The hair on the back of my neck stood up. “Mike!” I shouted. “Get the hell away from me!” Desperate to get inside, I bent my leg and kneed him in the balls.

  Mike doubled forward. His pain twisted into rage. He raised his arm back, holding the beer bottle over my head. My eyes widened, and I turned my head as he brought his arm down. The bottle broke into a million pieces. But I never felt any pain.

  I opened my eyes, slowly turning my head. Pieces of broken glass were suspended in the air, just inches from my face. My eyes went wide. Did I do that?

  Mike stumbled back. Blood dripped down his hand. He held it up in front of him, dumbfounded. He tore his eyes away from his bleeding hand and looked at me. Suddenly, the anger was back, and he came at me fast. He hit an invisible wall, colliding with the broken pieces of glass.

  Energy buzzed around me. I could feel it swirling around my feet, rising, and settling in my fingertips. I threw my hand forward, and Mike flew back, landing on his back in the dry grass. I let my hand drop to my side. The broken glass fell to the ground.

  “Freak!” Mike said and scrambled to his feet. “I always knew there was something wrong with you,” he stammered.

  “If by ‘wrong,’ you mean ‘awesome,’ then yes, that’s true,” I said, fingers curling around the hilt of the dagger. The energy filled me, and I felt on fire. I smiled down at Mike. “If I never see you again, it would be too soon.”

  I stepped over him and marched into the woods, not stopping until the lights from the house disappeared from view. My hands trembled, and my heart raced. Taking in that much raw energy was better than several shots of espresso.

  The adrenaline soon gave way to fear, and I regretted coming out here. It was dark, so dark. I slowly edged forward. What exactly was I planning to do if the Pricolici showed up? Stab it to death? I looked at the dagger. Ethan said it would make a demon burst into flames. Would I burn too?

  I turned around. I had come straight in, right? All I had to do was retrace my steps, and I’d be back in the yard. Then I could rush through the yard, tell Laney about what happened with Mike, and be surrounded by people. The demonic bounty hunters wouldn’t come after me then.

  An owl hooted and took off, wings echoing throughout the dark forest. Smart, Annie, really freaking smart to come out here alone. My hands still shook but this time from fear. Another howl came from not that far away. I crept forward. I had to be getting close to the house.

  I pushed branches out of my face and stepped into a cold spot. Oh crap. The air left my lungs as if I was being sucked down, faster than gravity could take me, into ice water. Before I could inhale, I was blinded by blue light.

  Then I fell, landing hard on the cold ground, and everything around me faded to black.

  18

  “Anora?”

  I tried to open my eyes. Everything hurt. My throat was dry and sore, and my head throbbed.

  “Anora?”

  I knew that voice. Who was looking for me? What did they want? I had no energy. I wanted to melt into the forest floor and never wake up.

  “Anora!” he desperately shouted.

  Ethan. That’s who the voice belonged to. I flattened my hand on the ground, leaves crunching under my palm. I couldn’t open my mouth. My body was paralyzed.

  Branches rattled as someone crashed through the woods. “Shit, Annie,” Ethan said and knelt down. I could feel the heat radiating off of his body. “Annie? Can you hear me?”

  He scooped me up, pressing me close to him. “You’re freezing. What the hell happened?”

  I was like a rag doll in his arms. What had happened? I was too tired to even think about that right now. I opened my eyes long enough to see the worry on Ethan’s handsome face. My head rolled back, and I passed out again.

  The next time I woke up, I was in my bed. Ethan’s arms were around me, and Harrison and Laney stood by the foot of the bed.

  “Anora?” Ethan said when I stirred.

  I opened my eyes, and an intense pain shot through my head. I thought I might puke. Ethan helped me sit up. “Hey guys,” I croaked.

  “Annie, what happened?” Ethan asked, his voice tight.

  I ran my hands through my hair. Little bits of leaves and twigs stuck were stuck in it. “I don’t really know.”

  Laney moved to the bed, sitting on the edge “Marie said she saw you talking to Mike. Did he…”

  “No,” I said and shook my head. The movement was too much. I closed my eyes and put my hand over my mouth. When the lump of vomit in my throat never came up, I looked at my friends again. “He followed me out. He was drunk and I…I…” My mind was fuzzy. I got a flash of Mike grabbing me and smashing the beer bottle over my head.

  But it never hit me. I was surrounded by an invisible force, making me untouchable. The broken glass floated in the air before my eyes. “I pushed him down. Then I…” I trailed off, flicking my eyes to my brother. I heard the howling, I remembered that. And I had gone after it. “I went into the woods. I stepped into a cold spot.” I closed my eyes, remembering what happened. More howling. Feeling like I was going to die. Then the light. It was beautiful and bright, so bright. “That’s all I remember.”

  “Cold spot?” Harrison asked.

  “From a spirit,” Ethan said. “Right?”

  I nodded, feeling sick again. “Yeah.”

  Ethan pulled a blanket over me. “Did you have a dream?”

  I shook my head. “Not that I can remember. But I don’t think it meant to do me any harm.”

  Laney raised her eyebrows and hugged her torso. “Any harm?” she laughed. “It practically killed you!”

  I bit my lip. I knew I couldn’t explain it to her. Hell, I could barely explain it to myself. It happened so fast. The icy air. The light came out of nowhere. It wrapped around me, blanketing me. And then I was on the ground, being woken up by Ethan. Something about it was familiar…protective even. And I was still alive. The Pricolici hadn’t gotten me.

  My stomach churned. I got out of bed, stumbling into the attached bathroom in time to throw up in the toilet. Laney held my hair back, and I heard Ethan explain that electromagnetic energy in large doses had that effect on people.

  I rinsed my mouth and crawled back into bed. Laney helped me change into pajamas, and Ethan tucked me in. Hunter jumped up and lay down next to me, resting his head on my arm.

  “You guys can go back to the party,” I told Laney and my brother. Harrison tipped his head to the side, zoning out. He was drunk. I smiled at him, feeling a bit emotional that he cared enough to come home to make sure I was all right.

  “I don’t want to go back to that house,” Laney said with a shiver. “Not if there is a ghost lurking that close.”

  “You’ll be fine,” I assured her. The ghost wasn’t what she should be worried about.

  Her eyes widened, and she shook her head. “No way. I will avoid ghosts at all costs, thank you very much.”

  I nodded. It was tempting to tell her than her little sister’s invisible friend was really a ghost.

  Harrison shuffled forward. “You sure you’re okay?” he asked me. “Mike didn’t touch you?”

  “He tried,” I confessed. Both Harrison and Ethan stiffened. “I scared him off.” My eyes landed on the dagger. “Seriously, go back to the party. I want to sleep.”

  Harrison nodded, and Laney gave me a hug goodbye. Ethan got under the covers on my other side. Being sandwiched between him and Hunter was comforting. Ethan ran his fingertips and down my back. I zoned out for a while, so close to sleep.

  “Ethan?” I asked softly.

  “Yeah, Annie?” he replied.

  “Just checking. I thought you left.”

  “I will never leave you,” he whispered and kissed my cheek. I rolled over, every moment taking an enormous amount of effort, and rested my head on Ethan’s chest. His arms went around me, and he kissed my forehead.

  “If vampires were
real, do you think stores would stay open later?” I asked.

  “Maybe,” he answered with a chuckle.

  “But not grocery stores.”

  “Why do you ask?”

  I shrugged. “Just wondering.”

  He hugged me tighter. “Get some sleep, Annie. You need it.”

  I closed my eyes. “Sorry. I know we were both looking forward to a night alone. I told you, being me sucks.”

  Ethan kissed me. “No it doesn’t. Besides. We still have the morning.”

  “Try again,” Ethan encouraged. It was Sunday morning, and we were still alone in my house.

  I closed my eyes, inhaled, and relaxed. I slowly let my breath out and opened my eyes. I put my hands on the table and stared at the bay leaf. It was floating on the still surface of water in a mixing bowl. Move. The tip of the leaf bobbed underwater. Spin. The leaf began to turn clockwise. Faster.

  “Holy shit,” Ethan said, running a hand through his brown hair. He shook his head and took a step back. “You’re telekinetic. Annie…” He trailed off, not knowing what to say.

  I didn’t take my eyes off the leaf. With my mind, I picked up it and out of the bowl. Water streamed down. I couldn’t help by smile. I mentally let go, and the leaf floated down into the water. I turned to Ethan, expecting him to share my excitement.

  “Do you think I’m a freak?” I blurted when I saw the horror on his face.

  He blinked, looking from the leaf to me several times. “No. Not at all. It’s just…just…I’ve never seen this before. I didn’t really think it was possible, to be honest. Not by a human at least.”

  I blinked. “A human?”

  He nodded, staring at the leaf. “I’ve seen demons have active powers. But never humans.”

  My shoulders sagged. “You think I’m a freak.”

  Ethan laughed, then saw that I was serious. He stepped over and put his arms around me. “No, I don’t. Not at all.”

  “Well, why not? I am.”

  “Annie, I was raised in the Order. After school, I had weapons training. I’ve been quizzed over demons since I was ten. Instead of studying for the SATs, my dad had me memorize crystals and their magical uses. I went to college against the Order’s will. They thought staying home and training was more important. I am the freak.”