A buzzing and throbbing woke me up, but I was too afraid to open my eyes.
“We have to get you out of here,” Trevor whispered, shocking me to my senses.
“No,” I shot up. “I can’t leave.”
“Whatever you think you came here for isn’t going to happen,” Trevor replied softly. “You need to leave and never come back. Never be connected to the Wiccan world again. It’s the only way for your survival.”
“Where am I?” I asked, seeing nothing I recognized.
“My room, but it’s only a matter of time before they find you.”
“Why are you helping me?” I asked.
“Because I love you.”
“If you love me, you’ll help me get my mom and Logan’s mom out of here safely.”
“He’s too powerful, Triss. It can’t be done.”
“He’s not any more powerful than you or me.”
Trevor shook his head, and extended his arm to touch my cheek.
“Get me to Ellsy at least. I need to give her some items.”
I saw fear lodged behind Trevor’s eyes, and I wasn’t sure he could get past it.
“Please.”
He shook his head and helped me off the bed.
“I’ll take the items for you, but I won’t let you go there.”
I was getting somewhere. I sat back down on the bed and raised my legs up, lifting my pants up to reveal the bottled waters.
“You’re willing to risk your life to give her water?” he asked, narrowing his eyes.
I nodded.
“Why?”
“My father doesn’t have power so much as he’s been poisoning everyone’s mind with the food you eat and the water you drink.”
Trevor’s jaw dropped open. “That can’t be.”
“Well it is.”
“That meeting my father was having today?”
He nodded.
“I think it was to go over distributing it beyond our community. And that man he was meeting with was my grandfather.”
Trevor’s expression turned to horror, and his skin paled to a ghostly shade.
“I know. It’s pretty horrible,” I replied. This was what Trevor used to be like. I could talk to him. He seemed normal before—
“I destroyed him,” he muttered.
“Wait. What?”
My world was spinning.
“I didn’t know,” he replied. “I was trying to save you. He wouldn’t listen to reason. He wouldn’t stop throwing fire. I heard him begin the chant for the Golem, and I knew I had to stop him. I banished him to the underworld.”
“You can do that?” I asked.
“It’s a pretty common spell in black sorcery.”
My body began to overheat with worry as I remembered my grandfather’s words.
“When he met me in the woods, he implied he could be two places at once. That he was also with my father.”
“Oh no.” Trevor raised his hand to his temple. “Triss, you don’t understand what we’re dealing with. You have to leave. Your grandfather is very much alive. I’ve only made him angry.”
“What about you?” I asked. I began emptying my pockets of the granola bars and tossed them on the water bottles for Ellsy.
“I’ll be fine,” his replied solemnly.
“Please make sure she gets these.”
“Triss, she’s not there anymore,” he replied.
My soul felt like a bottomless pit of despair. I was too late. We were too late.
“She went missing.” He slid everything under his pillow and grabbed my hand, pulling me to the door.
Missing? She didn’t go missing. This was the surprise Logan had told me about, but that meant he had been on the property. Oh no. Please no.
The hallway was deathly silent as we snuck along the wall, hiding in the shadows. My heart was pounding so fast I wasn’t sure I’d hear anyone coming.
“We’re going to go out the back entrance,” he whispered.
I followed him down the stairs and knew this was far too easy. It was only a matter of time. My hands were wet with anticipation, and my mind was impossible to calm, but we made it outside. How could this be?
“This way,” Trevor said, pulling me to the land behind the house. The darkness provided cover, but also the realization that I didn’t know this part of the property. But I didn’t care. All I could think of was Logan.
“Stay here,” he whispered, pointing to a very tiny area.
The only way I could fit under the boulder was to curl into a ball.
“Triss, I’m sorry but this is as far as I can take you. Wait a little while and then do your best to run. Run as fast as you can and don’t stop until you reach the wall.”
I nodded, and he took off in the direction we came from.
I placed my hand on the nectunt to reach Logan. I needed to make sure he was all right — that Ellsy was okay — but there was nothing. I felt nothing.
“Logan,” I tried pushing the communication through, but it went nowhere. It was an empty word rattling around in my own mind.
I clamped my eyes shut. What did this mean? Where could he be?
I heard a rustling in front of me and opened my eyes to reveal a large shadow towering over me.
“Aw, there you are,” my father replied, reaching down he grabbed my neck.
“What have you done with him?” I whimpered.
“Who?” He grinned so wide, his teeth glistened in the night’s sky.
“How did you turn so evil?” I asked, as he pushed me in front of him. He knew I wouldn’t run. There was nowhere and no one to run to.
“The embarrassment you caused me in front of my father, your grandfather, is unforgiveable. He left angrier than I’ve ever seen him. He’s an old man, Triss. Do you realize I might never see him again? And my ignorant daughter chased him off. I saved you from him,” he ranted.
“You’re making no sense.”
“I saw you in the woods, but I didn’t let on that you were there and this is how you repay me?”
I didn’t even know how to reply. My father was insane. Dragging me across the property we finally arrived at the destination he intended.
“Do you think I got to this place of power by being foolish?” My father accused, shoving me into the shed that once housed Ellsy.
I clenched my eyes shut as my body slid against the floor, greeting every stone with pain. The anger was doubling inside, but I had to follow the plan. I promised Logan I would no matter what. It wasn’t only my life in jeopardy.
My flesh burned and stung as air began to touch the open wounds, but I wouldn’t shed a tear, not over this. Not over my father.
“Not at all,” I replied.
“Then why are you making me punish you like this?” he barked.
Images of my mother from the night before haunted me, and I vowed I wouldn’t become like her. I wouldn’t become an Altered Soul.
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong,” I said.
Opening my eyes, I stared at the back of the room. I quickly scanned the bottom of the wall and saw the shackle. Would he shackle his own daughter?
“You don’t, huh?” He began pacing behind me.
Shaking my head, I kept my mouth shut as I waited for his reply. I didn’t want to look at him. I swallowed my anger and steadied my voice. I’d come too far to lose control.
“Do you think I didn’t know you and your little boyfriend snuck up the lake to spy on me?” my father boomed. “I allowed you to leave unharmed.”
My heart quickened. He knew Logan was going to be here tonight. Oh, God. Please no.
“How naïve do you think I am, daughter?”
The grotesque recognition of our status began controlling me. I could no longer control myself. Not with Logan out there alone unknowingly planning his own demise.
“Daughter?” I snapped, turning to face the man I wanted to kill. “Don’t you dare call me that. You’re a sickening sight, pathetic, and I’m
nothing like you.”
My rage was unstoppable. Logan had no idea that this was a trap. We had been in control of nothing this entire time.
“Oh, I don’t know about that.” He smiled. “By the way, haven’t you been worried why you can’t get a hold of him? Is your little communication spell not working any longer? The entire point of communicating silently is so you don’t utter the words goodbye for a fool like me to hear.”
“You’re worthless. You couldn’t stand on your own if you tried,” I yelled.
“At least you’re feeling the hate. That will be useful.” He turned around, sliding the lock in the door ensuring I went nowhere.
The angry tears began flooding down my face. There was nothing I could do to warn Logan. What was my father going to do to him? Or did he already have him? I slid down the wall slowly as fear began to paralyze me. The blood was trickling down my palms, pooling at the tips of my fingers and I didn’t care. I felt like time was leaving me behind.
I rested my head against the wall and stared at the ceiling hoping for some sign, but my lids began getting heavy with anguish.
“Triss.”
My eyes blinked open and I attempted to orient the voice when I saw her. Aunt Vieta was staring at me, only a foot away.
“How did you get in here?” I hissed, glaring at her.
She ignored my question and knelt down quickly, placing a note in my hand.
I didn’t understand her. I didn’t understand her actions, and I probably never would.
“Take care, Triss,” she whispered, turning around and exiting the shed without another word.
Quickly unrolling the piece of paper, the confusion began spreading through me once more. Was she helping me or nudging me to make the wrong decision again.
I held in my hand the image that both Logan and I shared, bonding us as one. How would my aunt know about this spell and what was it meant to tell me? My other hand shoved my waistband down an inch allowing me to see the ink on my skin, praying it would tell me something — anything. It did nothing of the sort. It was cold and lifeless. Had my father already hurt Logan?
I dropped the note on the floor and closed my eyes. Curling my legs into me, I braced myself for an outcome I never wanted to imagine.
A breeze from the open window began to pick up, and I tightened my legs into my body, gripping my knees even more. I looked up to see if I could even reach the window to close it, and it didn’t look promising. It was up too high. I wondered how many people my father housed in here? My stare dropped back to the floor when I noticed there was something else scrawled on the backside of the note.
It was Logan’s handwriting. My hands trembled as I reached for the piece of paper that now seemed like the most important document in the world.
I love you, Triss
I always have and always will
Stick to the plan
I’ll be all right
Whether it’s in this world or the next
We’ll be together
We’ve got to release these souls
Yours forever,
Logan
My heart began beating so fast, my face turned flush with sorrow. He was writing me a goodbye note. Did he always know this was part of the plan? How could he do this to me — to us? I couldn’t stop the panic from spreading throughout me. My breathing was ragged with the anger that began filling me once more.
I couldn’t stick to the plan. Not now, not if it involves losing him. I folded the piece of paper as tiny as possible and stuck it under my bra strap as close to my heart as I could place it.
Knowing my father, he was going to make what was coming an example for his followers. Step out of line and you can expect to be punished. If my father’s ego could be counted on then there would be an audience for Logan’s arrival, and I’m certain my father would want me to be part of it.
I promised Logan I wouldn’t resort to black magic in order to stay protected from the spirits from the underworld, but I couldn’t stand by and watch him die.
“You’ll have to forgive me, baby,” I whispered for no one other than myself.
“Triss, stop,” Bakula whispered, scaring me to death.
“How’d you know I was in here?” I whispered.
“We were able to see the choice you were about to make,” Bakula said, fluttering to the front door. “It led us here.”
“Dace, have you unlocked it?” she asked impatient.
“Just about,” he replied.
“Logan, he’s in harm’s way.” My voice panicked.
“We can’t stop decisions that have already been made,” Dace whispered apologetically.
The door sprung open, and I ran outside toward the lake with Bakula and Dace flying away. We couldn’t afford to have them seen.
The property was deathly quiet, scaring me even more as I wondered where everyone was. By the time I got to the lake my heart was pounding.
I heard a group slowly edging up behind me. A murmur of excited voices met me next.
“Would you like to see a little better?” my father’s voice boomed.
He threw a flame and another, creating a bonfire, not unlike the one I saw the first night when Logan and I were on the lake. I turned my attention back out to the water, and my heart fractured as I realized Logan was out there in a boat, and he wasn’t alone. Trevor was with him.
“Don’t take one more step toward him,” my father ordered.
I heard whimpering in the direction of the boat and ignoring my father stepped forward to see Ellsy tied up in the bottom of the boat with her mouth taped shut. Her head was propped up on one of the wooden benches, as tears streamed down her face. My heartbeat quickened at the thought of what my father and Trevor planned to do to them. I forced my stare from Ellsy to her son.
“I love you,” Logan mouthed, his deep blue eyes calm.
Trevor’s blade was digging into Logan’s flesh, but Logan refused to wince. He stood strong, keeping his eyes on me, barely blinking. The boat bobbed only slightly in the mostly still lake, making the opportunity too perfect for me to miss.
“Do what he says,” Logan echoed.
“No. I’m not taking orders from anyone any longer,” I replied, shaking my head. “That includes you.”
My stomach constricted as I launched my verbal assault. I loved him too much to speak to him like that, but I had no choice.
Not backing down, I took a few steps closer to the water and heard the crowd of gasps behind me. Makes sense that my father would want an audience for something so atrocious.
Trevor’s eyes narrowed on me as he tightened his grip around Logan’s neck.
“Please let him go, Trevor,” I stated, feeling my weapon curl its way around my ankle. Apparently he was a better actor than I realized. The element of surprise had been meant for my father, but I wasn’t going to chance it. The new intended target was Trevor.
“I don’t think so.” Trevor’s laughter made the boat rock more than he expected causing him to stop abruptly.
The fury in Logan’s eyes couldn’t be hidden as he realized what I decided to do, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t going to let two people who I loved die in front of me.
“Don’t defy your father, Triss,” Logan grimaced as Trevor dug the blade against his neck.
Trevor smirked as he looked beyond me, over my shoulder. I wasn’t sure who in particular he was looking at until I heard his voice.
“Ooh, this should be fun,” my grandfather replied from the crowd. “Kind of ironic.”
“Isn’t it though,” I replied acidly, as my weapon slowly slid its way up my body and wrapped around each of my fingers. With the darkness of the night, they wouldn’t see it coming until it was too late. The adrenaline rushing through my blood was taking on a new form. I looked quickly behind me as the dislike for certain individuals turned to pure rage.
My eyes landed on my mom, whose eyes were now filled with tears. She could no longer stand up and was leaning against the
Adirondack chair that held my father. Was she any closer to becoming herself?
The coldness of the arrowhead pendant against my chest reminded me that time was not on my side.
I raised my arms up quickly, allowing the snake to turn to the bow before anyone realized what was happening. Taking aim at Trevor’s chest, I released the string; satisfied it would reach its intended target.
“Fragor Sagitta,” I uttered, watching the sharp point turn to flames as it burrowed its way into Trevor’s body.
Rather than release Logan when Trevor collapsed, the tip of the knife went into Logan’s flesh as they both fell into the lake.
Ellsy shot out a mumbled scream as I stood there numb. What had I done? The crowd surrounding my father went still and then erupted with joy. I turned to face them all, letting my bow fall to the ground before turning toward the lake.
“Triss,” my mother sobbed. She knew my father was going to end me, and so did I.
My father’s laughter rattled through the air as I dove into the dark waters searching for Logan. The water stung my fresh scrapes with every stroke, while old downed trees and aquatic life harassed me. I couldn’t find him.
Coming back up for air quickly, I swam back under the area of the small boat searching as fast as I could. He had to be around here. My heart shattered bit by bit with every second that I was unable to locate him. The slipperiness of the lake grass teased my senses with every grasp. Thinking I landed on Logan’s wrist time and time again, only to be let down by the swaying of the underwater weeds ushering me to another place in the darkened waters.
Shooting my head up for air, the crowd had now converged closer to the lake. Thoughts of Ellsy flickered into my mind, but thoughts of Logan drowning forced her out. Diving back under, I kicked to a new unexplored area when a hand grabbed my arm, tugging me farther under the surface.
***
I woke up to my body being dragged along the bank, but it was so dark I couldn’t tell by who.
“Logan?” I whispered.
“It’s not Logan,” a female whispered.
“Jenny?” I asked startled. “What’s going on?”
“I’m getting you to safety.”
“No. Stop right now. I’ve got to get Logan.”
Witch Avenue Series (The Complete Set) Page 43