Shattered Souls

by Karice Bolton

  I shook my head.

  “Don’t read too much into it,” she said stammering.

  I raised a brow and threw her a half smile as she flew off the counter toward the window.

  “You know. Maybe he didn’t want you to know until now. Maybe it was part of the plan so that no one could find out,” she offered, standing on the window ledge.

  “I hope so,” I whispered.

  She gave me a toothless smile, for which I was grateful and took off out the window.

  When we arrived at the lake that separated the road from my father’s compound, I was relieved to see a ton of boats tied up. At least we’d have plenty of transportation once the visitors arrived. The experiences that Logan and I shared on this lake quickly took me over, and I had to walk away from the group to catch my bearings.

  “You doing okay, Angela?” Jenny asked, rubbing my back. We had agreed as a group that we’d be called the respective names until we switched back.

  “Yeah, thanks for checking. A lot to think about,” I said dismissively. “Plus you know how I am around water.”

  “That I do,” she said laughing. “You and Triss both aren’t great around the liquid stuff.”

  Nice save Jenny. I guess if I’m being called Angela, I should at least try to act and think like her. I flashed Jenny a grateful smile and she gave me a knowing nod. I needed to get in the game.

  Walking over to the canoe, I stepped inside and steadied myself before taking a seat. Jenny climbed on board and pushed us off. My pulse was racing, hoping on the off chance that Logan would be waiting on the other side of the lake, but I knew that was a waste of energy. The ripples in the water calmed me as I focused on the different patterns that were being created. Things always happen for a reason. I have to remember that. We glided across the lake quickly and butted up against the shore. Jenny hopped out and pulled us the last bit, which was kind of her. I stepped onto dry land and looked around the compound. It was unrecognizable.

  Instead of the scattered stone and timber buildings, there was one large home. It appeared to be in the same location where the other home had been. The rubble had been removed from where the fires occurred. It was like I was on an entirely new property. This would have taken more than a day and more than Logan and a few dozen buddies.

  “Wow,” Jenny whispered. “This place doesn’t look anything like we left it.”

  “No. It doesn’t.” I looked behind me to see my mom and everyone else pulling up in their boats. They, too, were in shock, except for Trevor, of course.

  “Do you know who was doing this?” I asked Trevor.

  “Logan had crews working on this almost from the moment we all left it,” Trevor said.

  “That’s why he wanted to access his trust fund,” his mom whispered. Her hand cupped over her mouth.

  “This makes no sense. Why would he put all of this time and money into this place and then let us use it as a battleground?” I asked, feeling sick to my stomach.

  “I don’t know,” my mom whispered.

  “Let’s go take a look. The instructions were supposed to be left in the main structure. I thought that meant something entirely different before we got here, but I’m assuming it’s over there,” I said.

  We walked along the shore and then moved up the hill toward the home. There were a few construction workers-slash-sorcerers wandering around as if they were finalizing some last details, but other than that the property was pretty quiet.

  Reaching the front door, I twisted the knob and it opened right up.

  The door opened into a great room. It was completely empty, but we walked through it to the kitchen, where the plans had been placed. A thick book was placed next to the paper, and I immediately knew that he had found the covenant for the Praedivinus. I glanced back at the paper and recognized Logan’s handwriting, and my belly constricted. I couldn’t for the life of me fathom what he was doing. I flipped the sheet of paper and began looking at a detailed diagram of a maze.

  I started laughing, and the others craned their heads so they could get a look at what was so funny.

  “Wow. This is impressive,” I said, shaking my head.

  “I think this is Logan’s present to Ethan after he trapped us in the maze,” I said, smiling.

  “Where is it?” Trevor asked.

  “It looks like it’s underneath us,” I replied.

  Trevor looked at me for a thoughtful moment before speaking. “Are you okay?”

  I nodded. “Yeah. This gives me hope, actually.” I tore out the diagram and handed it Trevor.

  “Let’s check it out,” Trevor said. “It looks like the entrance is out where—”

  “They held me captive,” Ellsy said. Her eyes connected with mine, and I linked my hand with hers.

  It felt like Logan had taken a cue from Ethan and quite possibly set up a little house of horrors for our guests. I wasn’t sure if that was the case, but we’d find out shortly.

  We walked outside along a path that I remembered travelling several times before on the way to visit Ellsy. My breath caught as I saw a large opening in the ground with a staircase spiraling down into a hole.

  “Do you think we should save this for our visitors?” Angela squeaked.

  “I think just Trevor and I should take a look,” I agreed.

  Trevor grabbed his phone out of his pocket and checked the time. “I wouldn’t be surprised if witches don’t start showing up in the next few hours. I think we need to be as ready and informed as possible. I know we all know the plan by heart, but this adds another dimension,” he said, scanning the steps.

  “Indeed it does,” I said, gasping.

  “What happened?” Trevor eyed me.

  The familiar slither along my ankle brought a smile to my lips as it tightened around my leg. Logan thought of everything.

  “Just a friendly reminder that he’s got my back,” I said, smiling. “I’ll go first.”

  Trevor grabbed my arm. “Don’t think so. I’ll go first.”

  I rolled my eyes and let him pass me as he began his descent into the hole. I followed quickly behind him. We both lit our wands and continued down the tunnel. Once we reached the base, I saw the underground tunnel system, the maze. It was all dug out of the earth. The mud walls took the confusion of Ethan’s maze to an entirely different level.

  “Okay, I get that this is a maze and all, but how are we supposed to get people to go down the stairs. I know very few people who would willingly hop and skip down a dark hole,” I told Trevor.

  I heard familiar laughter in the distance, and my heartbeat instantly quickened.

  It was Logan. It had to be him.

  “Well, you went in the exit,” a voice boomed through one of the far away tunnels.

  I turned to Trevor smiling wider than the Cheshire cat, and he cocked his head knowingly.

  “You knew?” I asked, punching Trevor in the arm.

  “We figured this was the only safe spot for you two to meet up before it all began,” Trevor whispered, pointing at my new face. “But now you two can see just how creepy it is.” He started wiggling his brows and spun around, climbing the stairs.

  My heart was hammering so hard I was sure Logan would be able to use it as homing beacon.

  “Don’t move, babe,” he called. “I’m almost to ya.”

  “Don’t be shocked when you see Angela eagerly standing here looking like a dummy,” I half-cried out. My eyes kept darting down each of the tunnels trying to surmise which one he’d appear from.

  Hands from behind wrapped around my hips, and I had to stifle a joyous scream. His fingers pressed against my waist, as his lips nestled into the crook of my neck. “Surprise,” he whispered.

  “I should probably stay stationed this way,” I giggled.

  “Probably,” he laughed.

  “I’m so mad at you I don’t even know what to do,” I murmured. “I thought you’d left, like really left.”

  “I wouldn’t do that to you. I just di
dn’t want to jeopardize anyone seeing us together, but I checked up on you,” he said, wrapping his arms around my waist. I felt his body flush against mine and enjoyed every second of being held in his arms.

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “Last night? Don’t you remember?”

  “You were the black bird?” I asked in shock.

  “A little grey magic never hurt anyone. I had to make sure you were okay.”

  “Bakula told me about the nectunt…and you,” I said, turning to face him. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  His eyes locked on mine and I felt a charge run through me. “I didn’t want you to make a decision based solely on me. I knew how you felt about it and I just didn’t want you to—”

  “But you making the change with me changes everything, I have to look at things differently,” I whispered.

  He nodded, smiling. “I get that.”

  “So does that change your mind?” he asked, smiling coyly.

  “Not sure.”

  His face fell instantly and my heart shattered, but I couldn’t let him see that. We had a battle to orchestrate.

  “So why don’t you tell me how this course works, and we’ll ready ourselves for the first arrivals,” I said.

  “Sounds like a plan,” he said, distance etching his words.

  Chapter 31

  The first boats arrived carrying Praedivinus members. I was seeking solitude in the second story of the home. Angela was in a safe room that Logan had built at the back of the property. Things were going as planned. I watched as the sorcerers filed one by one past the home toward the large canopy and stage that had been set up behind the house. That was the plan; make it look like an event that suddenly went terribly wrong. I looked around the space and back out at the landscape, realizing this was the same area that I had been housed in before. A familiar ache arose in my belly as I thought about what had transpired these last few months. I only hoped it would be over soon.

  More canoes continued to drop off attendees on this side of the lake and then were paddled back across to bring more sorcerers over. We knew the Praedivinus members who were against me would show up. They were the only ones who would care enough to make the trek. And this would give them their opportunity to take me out. Seeing them wander around the property brought my anger to the surface. They’ve just wasted so much time. So much of my time. And for what? Most of them were shifty, guarded. It would only be a matter of time before they attacked if all went according to plan. I only hoped they’d hold off until Ethan and the Demonikers arrived.

  Inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly, I decided now was the time to let my wandering begin. After all, that’s what this entire getup was for. I turned around, startled by mom’s presence.

  “I wanted to tell you how proud of you we all are,” she whispered. “And we’re all here to protect you. You have to understand that.”

  My eyes locked on hers. “I completely understand that, Veronica. And I appreciate it. It’s something I keep being told and don’t really like to dwell on it.”

  She smiled at me and turned around, leaving me alone. Was I the only one who thought we’d be able to pull this off? It felt like at every direction, someone was trying to forgive me for their death before they even died. Shaking the last thought, I peered outside one last time and my blood froze.

  Ethan dressed in a sharp, black suit stepped out of the boat and onto land, our land. Straightening his jacket, he pinched his cuffs and looked around. He tilted his head toward the sky, his eyes catching mine. Rather than look away, I held his gaze until he dropped his stare. My pulse quickened as thoughts ran wild inside of me. What if he knew it was me? Impossible. I glanced back outside and saw him talking to one of his followers as they proceeded up the bank.

  I stepped away from the window and decided now was my time to venture outside. I dashed out the room and down the stairs. I threw open the door and saw the back of my mom on the lawn. I continued rounding the bend and almost gasped, as I watched Ethan animatedly speaking with her. His arm caressing hers, laughing, and talking in a way I’d never seen from him before, except in my dreams.

  I walked by my mom quickly, but Ethan grabbed my arm and pulled me next to him.

  “Who’s this girl?” he asked. “She looks so familiar.”

  “That’s Triss’s best friend,” my mom said, shrugging.

  “Does she have a name?” he asked coolly.

  “My name’s Angela,” I choked out.

  “Interesting. She’s not our kind,” he said, eyeing me suspiciously.

  “No, she’s not. She wants to be though,” my mom said. “Now tell me what is it you want from my daughter?”

  Ethan let go of my arm and continued on. Once I got out of view, I rubbed the sting out of my flesh. His grip was so tight and the look in his eyes… I couldn’t afford to be paranoid. Not now. I kept walking toward the woods, hoping I’d run into Bakula. They would play a big part in tonight’s events, and I wanted to be doubly sure that everything was ready. I tried to find them earlier to no avail.

  Wandering through the woods, every step made a noise as the brittle twigs and limbs snapped from my weight. All I was doing was calling more attention to myself.

  “Where is Bakula?” I asked, leaning under the tree branches. I felt Logan come up behind me and became unsettled at how I could detect him even in Angela’s body.

  “You aren’t going to find her, babe,” Logan whispered. “Fairies are experts at being unseen.”

  “I have a really bad feeling.”

  “They wouldn’t do that to us,” Logan replied.

  “How can we be sure?”

  “We have to trust. They know this is all for them,” he said. “They’ll pull through for us.”

  “I ran into Ethan,” I said.

  “I know. I saw.”

  “You did?” My brow raised.

  “You think I’m letting you out of my sight?” He shook his head. “Ethan’s getting really antsy. I’m sure once he sees me, it’ll be on.”

  “That’s the plan,” I muttered. The pull to Logan was so great. I wanted to hold him and tell him we’d make it through this, but I suddenly wasn’t sure.

  “I’ll get the party started,” Logan stated, backing out of the woods.

  Logan’s movements were incredible as he glided along the grounds. It was like his agility improved in an inhuman way in the last few days. I gave it a few minutes before I left the woods. Trevor would no doubt be stirring the pot as Ethan and the Demonikers began to realize the reason they were here wasn’t because I was relinquishing any reigns.

  I closed my eyes and imagined a new world where evil wasn’t a factor. Where the Demonikers and Praedivinus were a thing of the past. As I opened my eyes, I hadn’t felt this amount of serenity for a very long time. I knew it was a false sense of reality, but I’d gladly take it at the moment. I began walking out of the woods with a new sense of purpose. I was ready for the show to begin.

  It was close to dusk and my breath hovered in the air. I hoped the exertion I had planned for later would provide the warmth I was so desperately craving. My eyes darted across the grounds, catching a few strays wandering toward the main canopy. I jogged over to them, surprised at their age once I got up close. One of the guys was probably around my age and the other, probably only a few years older. They were both attractive, but there mannerisms were shark-like, so that put them squarely in the Demoniker Order.

  “Don’t wander too far off from here. This is still the wilderness, you know,” I giggled, trying my best attempt at flirting with the enemy.

  “Same goes for you,” the younger one said, eyeing me like a predator. Against my better judgment, I looped my arm through his and began playfully pulling him toward the structure. Complying, the other one fell right in line as we walked in the direction of the night’s activities. A blip of guilt flitted through my mind when I looked over at the idiot. That was until his hand managed to slip down my sweater. I
threw his hand off of me, and he became more aggressive and his friend decided it would be fun to get involved too. This wasn’t exactly how I wanted to start things, but it would have to do.

  I turned away from him, and grabbed his wrist with both hands, throwing him off balance as I swiftly grabbed his arm and backed into his hip. I bent over my feet lifting his body off the ground as it rolled off of mine before I slammed it in front of me. I couldn’t wipe the grin off of me, and I couldn’t help but delight in the years of Martial Arts Angela took.

  His buddy started laughing, which only infuriated the guy on the ground. He jumped up and tackled me. My body crashed to the ground, and I played lifeless. The guys started laughing. Once his laughter got far enough away, I cracked my eyes open and pushed up off the ground. I laid a nice roundhouse squarely into his abdomen. His body flew backward, landing against a large fir tree. Exhilarated by Angela’s muscle memory, I began hopping in place readying myself for the next attack. There were none. The other guy went to help his friend up, and they scurried off. Undoubtedly, they’d let the others know. I let out a sigh and readied myself for the rest of the evening.

  Turning around, I let out a gasp as Caitlin approached. The dream flashed through my mind, and my palms became sweaty. That’s why the dream felt so real because I was living it inside Angela’s body.

  “There you are,” Trevor’s voice called. I glanced over at him, hoping he’d already seen Caitlin and he had. He stood next to me and flashed a smile at Caitlin.

  “How are you doing?” he asked Caitlin, wrapping his arm around my waist.

  “Not as good as you,” she replied, narrowing her eyes.

  “Want to introduce me?” I asked.

  “Sorry. This is Caitlin. We used to date,” he said, trying to respect the situation and my premonition.

  “Yes and do tell me why we stopped? I’d love to be reminded because I was never told why you broke up with me.” She folded her arms.