by Bonnie Lamer
“Xandra, this is suicide,” Mom says. “We are all going to fight right along next to you.”
I look at her unyielding face for several heartbeats. “Mom, please.”
She shakes her head. “No, we are staying right here with you.”
I sigh heavily. What I’m about to do is going to make her really mad at me. I’ll probably be grounded for a year. I close my eyes for just a second to collect my thoughts. When I open them, Kallen, Mom, Dad, Zac, Aunt Barb and Grandma are being propelled backwards towards the house.
“Xandra, don’t do this,” Kallen says. “You don’t have to do this alone.”
“But I do,” I whisper more to myself than him. When they are all safely in the house, I throw up a wall that divides the house from where I’m standing with the Witan. I know it’s sturdy enough that neither side will be able to get through it unless I take it down.
Now, it’s time to deal with the Witan.
Chapter 17
“You are a stupid child,” Davina says speaking up for the first time. She has the look of pity around her. That’s okay. If they expect little from me, they’ll be even more surprised.
“It must take a lot magic to keep a wall like that in place,” Midar says. He lumbers up next to Maeva after finally leaving his spot behind one of the cars where he had been hiding.
I shrug. “Not really.”
His eyebrows rise in skepticism. “We are all seasoned Witches here. We know better than you how much magic things like that,” he points at my wall, “take.”
I offer him a simpering expression. “You know how much it takes of your magic. Not mine.”
Maeva waves her hand in the air as if to brush away my comment. “Magic is magic.”
“True,” I acknowledge. “But the power behind it is what’s most important.”
Louhi sneers at me. “You believe your power to wield magic is greater than ours? All eight of ours? The world will be a better place with one less fool in it.”
Hey, he just called me a fool. That’s not very nice. But I guess it’s better than some of the names that have been going through my head for him. “Can we just get on with this? I could use a nice hot shower. Here, I’ll even take off all these talisman and amulets.” Anything to hurry this along. My clothes are still a little wet and cold and I don’t have a coat on.
Beren’s eyebrows are nearly at his hairline. “Are you that confident or that eager to die?”
I pretend to think about it a minute. “I’m going to go with confident.”
Grandpa’s standing off to the side now and he looks a bit befuddled. He keeps glancing at these people who are supposed to be his most trusted council and friends. That seed of doubt I planted in his head seems to have taken root. I don’t think he knows whose side he’s on now.
“I’ll tell you what else I’m going to do. Let’s take turns. You guys do a spell and then I do one. Kind of like Russian Roulette.” The Witan look at each other. I think the thought ‘she’s crazy’ is going through all of their minds.
Finally, Fatin shrugs. “As the saying goes, it is your funeral. Shall we speak the spell again together?” he asks the others. He gets several curt nods. I notice he didn’t get one from Grandpa.
Seven voices ring out clearly as they say the spell to kill me again. Grandpa stays quiet. “From ancient times of rhymes and runes, these witches call upon the power of the moon to scourge the earth of magic black, and within its womb to take mercifully back, this one born in heresy and shame, and those who’ve shielded her also to blame, swallow their guilt and show us their pain. All this we ask in the goddess’s name.”
I count to ten and then say, “My turn?”
There are a couple of nervous glances exchanged before Louhi collects himself from the shock of me still standing and sneers, “Go ahead. We can take whatever you dish out.”
And they think I’m cocky? “I’m afraid I’m not very good with spells, so you’ll have to bear with me as I do my own thing, okay?” Louhi laughs cruelly.
Oh, he is so my first target. Pulling magic from the earth, I barely have time to feel it inside of me before I’m pushing it out. Half a millisecond later, Louhi is on his knees gasping in pain.
“What are you doing to him?” Davina demands.
“Significantly less than what you want to do to me,” I say acerbically.
“Let him go and I’ll take my turn,” Midar says in that fake English accent. He sounds so stupid. Why haven’t his friends ever told him that? Then again, he doesn’t seem like the type who would listen, anyway.
I shrug. “Okay.” I pull back my magic and Louhi falls forward, catching himself with his hands before he goes face first into the snow. He looks like he’s about to have a heart attack. He glowers up at me as he tries to get his breathing under control.
“There is no hope, only sorrow. Blackness fills your every tomorrow. This life of yours isn’t worth living, if you always take but are never giving. Put an end to the misery and pain, the circle of life comes around again. Each day will be a trip through hell under this Witch’s darkness spell, until at last, you can take no more, then end your days miserable and poor.”
As the magic from his spell comes towards me, wanting to wrap me in its dark cocoon, my wings shift. They fan out to the sides as far as they can, and then gently begin to curve in, creating a sort of shield. Apparently, it’s a good shield because Midar’s magic, which I can barely see, stops its forward progression. In a flash, it is heading back towards him. Too fast for him to shield himself or form a circle. As it hits him, his rotund body slips to the ground in a heap, his eyes become unfocused and he begins to drool. It’s really hard to look at the pathetic mess he’s just become as he finally gets a taste of his own magic.
Now, he’s crying so hard that a big stream of snot is coming out his nose. “Can we throw a blanket over him or something; that’s disgusting.”
Fatin cringes as he looks at him and then turns away in repulsion. “He has always been a weak mind.” And I thought all these guys liked each other.
I drag my eyes from the blob that is Midar. “My turn?”
Fatin waves a hand in front of him in a ‘be my guest’ gesture. But I’m torn, other than Louhi, who I abhor, I hate the rest of them the same. So, who do I go for now?
“Today would be nice,” Maeva says snidely. Well, that settles that dilemma.
“Alright. Maybe I will try my hand at a spell. I do need the practice and I’ve only blown up the house twice today. You don’t mind, Maeva, do you? Third time’s a charm, right?” A vein on the side of her head starts to spasm as if all her blood is rushing to her head to try to convince her to run. Her eyes dart back and forth to her cohorts; probably looking for a sign that they’re going to come to her aid. They don’t. Weasels. They don’t care about each other, only themselves.
The words for a spell pop into my head as if they’ve been eagerly waiting for me to call on them. I wonder if my wings are feeding them to me. “It’s a simple spell, but we all have to start small, right?” I give her a sweet smile and I walk towards her. She looks nervous but she holds her ground – even when I lay my hand on her shoulder. “You tell me if I get this right, okay?” I drag my hand across her shoulder and back as I walk around her in a circle. “Identities stolen, wrong skin worn, built from trickery and unchecked scorn. Strip away these magical lies; never again deceive one’s eyes. Magic abused, power out of control, I strip these now from your wicked soul. Witch no more shall you be, no spells, no evil trickery. Your magic has been set free.”
Maeva’s arms spread out to the side, her eyes roll back and her face looks towards the sky. A silent scream is torn from her as all of her magical abilities are scrubbed out of her – down to her very DNA. It looks really, really painful. Glad I’m on the casting side of the spell and not the receiving side. On a positive note, I didn’t blow her up.
Davina gasps and rushes to Maeva’s side as her silent screams are shouted to the sky
. When the very last soundless syllable is stolen from her mouth, she collapses into the other woman’s arms. I think she’s unconscious. Beren opens one of the car doors and helps Davina lay Maeva on the back seat.
A woman who’s been standing back towards the trees walks forward. I know who she is even though she’s kept her face hidden from me. I’ve seen her work. She’s the one that made the ugly doll that was supposed to be me. Maybe she should have taken a few sculpture classes over the years.
“Perhaps a different kind of magic is called for,” she says. From her coat pocket she pulls out a small doll. Yup, it’s just as ugly as the first one. Really, just one class probably would have helped. She pulls a lighter from her pocket, one of those old silver ones that you have to put lighter fluid in, and holds the flame to the doll. I refuse to say likeness because it looks nothing like me. “I melt this wax as I melt your will. Child of darkness, your body be still. I bind these hands as I bind thee, a force unbreakable ties you to me. Cast aside your desires, consumed by my fire, as I control your mind and bring justice to our time. As I beckon, come to me, your will is no longer free.”
I double over and stumble towards her as if pulled by a rope that I’m trying to frantically free myself from. I see the victory in her eyes as I move ever closer to her, one hand on my stomach, the other in front of me as if to stop the power of her spell. I glance at the others who are practically jumping for joy at Annika’s success.
I have to walk around both cars to get to her, as she has tried to keep herself safe by hiding behind them when magic was flying. She and Midar are a matched set in the bravery department, apparently. When I am directly in front of her, I stand up. And I snatch the doll out of her hand. The look on her face was worth the minute and a half of pretending to be beaten by this worthless bunch.
Giving my new wings a try, I think about where I want to be and next thing I know, I’m flying there. I’m back to where I had been standing. This is so cool but I’m a bit wobbly. I hope I have them long enough today to practice some more. I wonder how high I can go.
Giving Annika a smug smile, I say, “Don’t feel bad. Grandpa tried that spell on me earlier and it didn’t work for him either. But now it’s my turn again.” I tap a finger of my hand not holding the doll against my chin. “What shall I do?”
There are six Witches standing in front of me now who look a whole lot less confidant than they did fifteen minutes ago. At the back of my brain, I can feel Kallen, Grandma and Mom joining forces to try to free themselves from the magic I’m using to keep them locked in the house. It’s not going to work. The added power I feel because of my wings makes me stronger than all three of them put together.
“I know!” I say brightly which causes Annika to jump. Which makes me laugh. Turning to Louhi, I say, “Your theory as to why you have become this,” I wave my hand up and down to indicate I mean all of him, “is because of all those minds you are carrying around with you. I think you’re right, I can’t imagine that you always looked like this. I know we’re not supposed to judge people by their appearance, but you must scare small children with that face. Hmm,” I say as I tap my chin again, “I’ll have to ask Zac that when he wakes up. But anyway, I’m going to help you out with that. Free up some clutter.”
These ideas are jumping into my head from nowhere and as soon as I think it, I know I can do it. I think the Angels really did hold a little information back about these wings. I think they not only protect me, but guide me as well. Not that I mind. I’m so new to this stuff, I can use the help.
I close my eyes and I’m pretty sure that Louhi is growling at me. I can see him in my mind’s eye with his skinny little lips pulled up in a snarl like a rabid poodle. A rabid, bald poodle. Trying to ignore that, I send my magic out on its mission. I feel when it hits Louhi’s protection circle – and I feel it when it crumbles it like nothing more than a cobweb in a dusty corner. And then I’m in his mind and it’s just as dark and twisted as I thought it was going to be.
It seems that he has been able to portion his mind off into sections. There are dark pockets that are closed off from other parts of his mind. It’s in these pockets where he keeps the minds he has stolen from others. As if I’m a thief, I pick the locks and creep quietly inside these foreboding closets. When I open them to the light, bolts of lightning spark around me as these minds awaken from their long slumber. Louhi has quite a collection in here – and most of these minds I can tell are innocent. Incarcerated and lobotomized because their opinions differed from that of the Witan.
There are a couple who truly have committed crimes and were probably rightfully imprisoned. One had committed murder and other unspeakable things, while another had been abusive to his family and paralyzed his daughter. I let Louhi keep these minds as I set the others free. I lock the doors behind me so no one can get out, or in, and I pull myself from his mind.
When I open my eyes again, Louhi is holding his head as if he’s trying to keep those minds in place. But it’s too late. They’ve already escaped back to their rightful places, never to see the inside of Louhi’s mind again.
“Get her,” Louhi growls but the look to kill on his face is slowly being wiped off from the others. They are finally starting to see that this is a fight they might not win.
“It is your turn,” I encourage.
No one says anything. They exchange some nervous looks, but no one steps out and says ‘my turn.’ Well, I’m not going to wait all day for them. I’m cold. As if sensing my discomfort, my wings fold over my shoulders, giving me their warmth. “If you guys aren’t going to take your turn, can I go again to speed this along? I’m craving a cup of hot chocolate big time.”
Now they look even more nervous. I could probably even get away with saying scared. Even Fatin, so jovial in his cockiness earlier, looks ruffled. “Oh, this is ridiculous,” I say as I lose my patience. Turning to Grandpa, I say, “Release this man from his bonds. His mind is now his own.” Okay, it doesn’t rhyme but I’m pretty sure I got my point across to the magic.
Grandpa’s eyes that have looked a little glazed over every time I’ve seen him become suddenly clear. And then he realizes what has happened. His eyes are flashing hot with anger now as he rounds on his Witan. “You! I trusted you. All of you. And you have been preying on my anguished mind all these years! Turning me from a King to nothing more than a mere puppet! Turning me against my wife and my daughter. And my granddaughter!”
Nice of him to throw me in there at the end. Sort of like an afterthought. Turning towards me, he says, “My dear, I don’t know if you can ever forgive me, but I give you my word, I would not have done and said the things I have if it were not for the hold they had on me.”
I look at him with skeptical eyes. “Yeah, I’m not feeling the warm and fuzzies from that speech. Maybe you can try your luck with Grandma.” Yeah, fat chance. She fell for him and her life for the last eighteen years has sucked royally.
Grandpa looks sad. I still don’t believe his miraculous recovery is all legitimate, but I do feel sorry for him. He’s lost his family and his friends now. Looking a little lost, he says, “Where do we go from here?”
I raise my brows. “Is that your subtle way of saying that you don’t want to kill me anymore?”
Shame washes over his face. “I never truly wanted to kill you.”
Yeah, right. “Look, save it, okay? I’m cold and frankly, I’m tired of talking to the lot of you. I want to go inside; so the quicker I get rid of you, the better.”
He nods. “I understand.” Turning to the members of the Witan, he says, “This ends now. You will not do anything to harm my grandchild. As your King, I decree it to be so.” He looks each of them in the eye and they nod in agreement. Turning back to me, he says, “We will leave you in peace now.”
“Hold on a moment. You may be done, but I’m not. You and your lackeys have been abusing your power for a long time. I felt the minds that I released from Louhi’s grasp, and most of them were unfai
rly judged. I’m not going to just let you go off and do the same thing to others.”
Grandpa’s chest puffs out and his buttons have to hold on for dear life. I can almost hear their tiny little pleas for him to exhale before they pop off into the snow. “I am still King, young lady.”
Putting my fingers and thumb together, I cut him off. Literally. While he’s trying to get his mouth open, I say, “Whether or not you remain King is yet to be determined. You can bluster and spout off as loudly as you want, but only real change is going to allow you to remain in your current position.” I release the spell on Grandpa’s mouth but he stays quiet. I can tell he really wants to say something but he’s smart enough to hold his tongue.
The rest of them are dead quiet, hanging on my every word. I’ve already stripped Maeva and Louhi of their power, and Midar is a snot covered mess trapped by his own magic. I’m assuming that the others are hoping that if they stay quiet, I’ll forget about them. Not likely.