“Something has changed about you. Your life force is weak, but there is more to it than that. You have an unusual power.” He took another long breath, and his eyes sparkled. “You’re in love.”
“How the hell would you know that?” I crossed my arms and glared at him.
“I can smell it on you. How rare for a Jinn. Based on your weak life force, I’m guessing it’s your mistress. Oh, what fun this is going to be. She’s a beauty.”
I lunged for him. He jumped out of the way.
“I do believe I hear my mistress calling me.” He disappeared just before I could wrap my hands around his skinny neck. We had to end this. Now.
I jogged back home quickly to find Ali waiting for me on the porch.
“I found something useful,” he said.
“Good, because I just ran into Samir again. We’ve got to kill him.” My heart raced. He tried to kill Liv once already. I wasn’t about to let him try again.
“We can.” Ali held up a slim book. “I was going to wait for you, but you took too long, so I read this without you.”
“What is it?” I asked.
“A book about Djinn.”
Holy shit. My fingers itched to snatch it away from him, but I resisted. “And?”
“And, read this.”
He handed me the ancient book, opened to a page about halfway through.
Contrary to popular belief, it is possible to kill one who has drunk the elixir of the gods. Find the sickle of Ra and slice off the head of the Djinn, and he will return to dust and smoke.
“Where is the sickle?” I asked, bouncing on the balls of my feet. The sickle of Ra was lost eons ago, but had powers that were beyond any Jinn or goddess. It seemed so simple. We could get rid of Samir in days, and he wouldn't hurt Liv. Then I’d read the rest of that book and see what I could do about being Djinn.
“No clue. Probably in Egypt somewhere. You ready to go back to your homeland?”
I was ready to kill Samir.
“When do we leave?”
The knot in my chest loosened. By tomorrow night I’d be free.
Chapter 21
Liv
Gabe showed up early in the morning again. He claimed he heard me summon him, but I wasn’t sure how that was possible with me being asleep and all. At first he’d told me he could only grant a wish if I spoke out loud, but lately he’d been granting all kinds of wishes that went unvoiced. It didn’t make sense.
He lay on his side, with me pulled into him, his arms forming a warm cage. I wiggled into his body, and he nuzzled my hair.
“I have to get up,” I said.
“No, you don’t. It’s Saturday. No school today.”
“But Dylan’s coming over, and we need to finish that project, so unless you want to see him, you have to go.”
He kissed the back of my neck. “You could wish the project done. Then Dylan wouldn’t have to come over.”
“I thought you weren’t going to be a jealous boyfriend.” I was a little irritated by it, but I wasn’t about to tell him that he had good reason to be jealous.
He continued to trail his lips across my shoulders. He was really distracting me right now. If he kept on like this, I’d be calling Dylan and cancelling.
“I’m changed my mind. I’m staying here. Maybe you don’t have feelings for him, but you’re irresistible.”
Butterflies floated in my stomach, and I flipped over so I could see his face. “You have to trust me.” I would never cheat on him. Dylan was just a friend.
He sighed. “I know. I have to go to Egypt for a couple of days anyway.”
My stomach tightened. I’d met Samir, and I knew what he was capable of. Every time Gabe went somewhere I worried that he wouldn’t return. “Why?”
“I think there is a weapon there that will help us defeat Samir.”
“Will I be safe?” As long as Gabe was around, I knew I was protected, but now he would be halfway across the world.
“Yes. Remember. There are protections on your house, so don’t go anywhere except school, if I’m not back in time.”
I let out a breath and my head fell back against the wall. I could stay in my house. That wasn’t unreasonable to ask.
“Okay. I have to run over to the Glittering Goddess this afternoon, but that shouldn’t take too long.”
He sighed. “Maybe you should take Dylan with you.”
“I thought you didn’t want me spending more time with him.”
“I don’t. But Samir is less likely to attack you if you aren’t alone.”
I leaned up and gave him a kiss. He stared at me for a moment and winked out of sight. I immediately missed him.
Summer couldn't come fast enough. As long as he got rid of Samir quickly, we’d have all summer to enjoy together. I didn’t want to spend the entire time cooped up in my house.
I showered and skipped down the stairs and stopped in front of Ty’s office. He was speaking to someone in a whisper. Probably Stacey.
I pushed the door open and plopped down into a chair.
His eyes widened. “Hey, I gotta go,” he said into the phone and set it down.
“Who were you talking to?” I asked.
“A diving buddy.”
“Liar. You were whispering. I bet it was Stacey. What’s going on?” I really hoped nothing was wrong with the baby or that they’d decided to break up or something. Ty would make an awesome dad and he needed to be there for his kid.
He shuffled a few papers around. “Nothing.”
“Ty, come on. I thought we didn’t have secrets.” At least we didn’t until Stacey came into the picture. I understood why he chose to hide her, but that didn’t mean I had to like it. Also, I wanted to meet this chick. Maybe she could come out here and help him move.
He raised his eyebrows. “Did Gabe spend the night last night?”
“What makes you say that?” I scratched the back of my neck. Ty and I didn’t talk much about this stuff. If he thought Gabe spent the night, then he thought we were sleeping together. I shuddered. I didn’t want my brother thinking those things.
“I heard him talking to you when I got up.”
I squirmed and considered denying it, but he wouldn’t believe that Gabe appeared first thing this morning. Technically, we didn’t sleep together. In more ways than one. Still, I couldn’t explain that to Ty.
“Yeah. So? Kole did all the time.”
His face fell. Kole spending the night had always been a sore spot between us. It was one of the reasons Ty hated Kole. I didn’t want him to feel the same way about Gabe. They actually got along.
I met his eyes. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up Kole. Things with Gabe are different. Please believe that this is not what you think.”
“Whatever. I have a lot of work to do.” He waved to the door.
“Fine, I’m going, but tonight you and I are going to have a heart to heart. I want to know what’s going on. With Gran speaking now, you can go, you know.” Maybe I needed to find Stacey’s number. She could help in convincing him to move.
I shut the door to his office and the doorbell rang. I rushed for the door and flung it open. Dylan stood there holding a bag from The Donut Cupboard. Oh, heaven. I grabbed it out of his hand.
“You’re an angel, you know that, right? These are the best.”
He chuckled. “Yeah, I know. We needed fuel to finish this thing.”
I stepped back and let him by. “That we do.”
After Dylan and I delivered my goods to the Glittering Goddess, I was bored. I sent Penny a message asking if she wanted to do something. She replied back immediately.
Dad’s opening up the ice cream shop this weekend. I’m going over to help him today. You wanna come?
I chewed on my bottom lip. Gabe told me to stay home, but there would be others around. If I called up Nora, she could come with me.
Samir only came after me when I was alone, so I was perfectly safe with my friends. I hoped. I couldn’t stay lo
cked up in my house forever. The Samir thing couldn’t end fast enough for me. Gabe was out searching for a weapon. They’d find it, and this would all be over.
Sure. I’ll bring Nora.
Fifteen minutes later Nora and I pulled up in front of the shop. Kelly’s Ice Cream was in a great location, right on the boardwalk. Penny’s great-grandpa opened it fifty years ago when he moved to the States from Ireland. Grand Haven appreciated their ice cream.
The stale air of a building hit me as we entered the little shop. Mr. Kelly was already in the freezer lining up ice cream tubs.
“Hey, Mr. Kelly.”
“Olivia, Nora. How are you? You girls haven’t been around in a while.”
I cringed at my name. No one called me Olivia, but Mrs. Kelly insisted on calling me that, so Mr. Kelly picked it up.
“I know, I’ve been busy,” I said.
“With a boy,” he said with a wink.
I blushed, and Nora saved me. “Got anything new this summer?” she asked. I wondered if he knew about Ali. Probably not. Penny kept her boys a secret from her parents. Even her dad.
“Naw. We’re sticking to the classics. After what happened with those blasted dots last summer, I’m not doing anything new for a while.”
“What happened with the dots?” Nora asked, and I retreated next to Penny.
“Couldn’t sell ‘em. I still have three boxes full. You and Olivia here to help?”
“Yep,” Nora said with a grin.
“Cups need to be put in the dispenser.”
We all grabbed an armful of cups and headed to the dispensers, dodging boxes and half put-together machines. The shop was cramped, but familiar.
“Where’s Scarlett?” I asked.
“You know how she feels about the shop.”
“Well, yeah, but she usually comes over anyway.”
Penny poked her head over the cup dispenser. Then dropped her face. “She’s out with a boy.”
“What?” I squealed.
“Shhhhh. Dad doesn’t know.”
“Who?”
“Some guy she met a piano recital in Lansing.”
I marveled at the sheer normalcy of our conversation. Between genies, Samir, and even Ty’s issue, nothing seemed light and sane anymore. It made me nostalgic for the days before I went to Egypt. Though if I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have Gabe. Was all the bad stuff worth it?
My heart swelled.
He was worth everything.
Chapter 22
Gabe
“Morning, boys,” Melissa crowed. “You ready to go?”
I growled and grabbed a cup of coffee.
“Oh dear, what’s your problem?”
“Dylan is at Liv’s house,” Ali said with a chuckle.
Melissa creased her eyebrows. “Isn’t he supposed to be protecting her?”
“He still doesn’t like seeing him over there.”
Enough about Dylan. I knew he would be over there today, but I wanted to run over there and threaten him with all kinds of bodily harm if he so much as touched Liv. I crossed my arms.
“How are we getting to Egypt?”
“I’m wishing you there,” Melissa said. “Then when you’re ready to return, Ali will send me a text, and I’ll wish you back.”
“She’s handy, you know that,” I said to Ali. I wouldn’t have thought to use a mistress to help me out like that. Most Jinn didn’t trust their mistresses this much.
“Tell me about it. Time to go, Mel.”
“I want you and Gabe to go to Egypt.”
“Thanks,” Ali said, and we disappeared.
We landed with a thud in the middle of the market. Familiar smells wafted off a cart. My stomach rumbled.
Ali handed me unfamiliar cash. “Get us both a hawawshi. I’m going to see if my contact is still here.”
He disappeared into a shop, and I wandered to the food cart that didn’t look much different than they had three thousand years ago. People shouted in Arabic, but the language was unfamiliar, as everyone spoke Egyptian when I was out last. But languages were not a problem for me. I could understand and speak them all.
I was nearly finished with my sandwich before Ali returned. He looked sheepish. “So, we need to go see Nut.”
“Are you insane?” Nut wasn’t as bad as Bast, but all of the original goddesses were psychotic.
“No, not really. Nut works with us quite frequently, actually.”
“She’s one of the originals. How can you trust her?”
“Oh, I don’t. But she’s the last one to have the sickle, so if we want to find it, we go to her.”
“What makes you think she’ll give it to us?”
“She won’t, but she’s fairly easy. She always says too much. The key is to keep our ears open.”
True. She couldn’t keep a secret if her life depended on it. And sometimes it did.
We hopped in a cab, and an hour later ended up in front of an enormous house. The doors were fifteen feet tall, and there had to be a least four floors.
Ali knocked, and a butler answered.
“Please tell Nut that Ali and Gabriel are here to see her.”
The butler left us in the entryway. Ali and I wandered the space, looking at sculptures and artwork. We both stopped at one painting of Nut and the pyramids. Seconds later the picture changed to her floating on the Nile. I leaned closer. It was digital.
“Looks like she’s adapted well.” Her house was as modern as they came.
Ali rolled his eyes. “She was always elaborate. I guess that comes from being able to get whatever you want whenever you want. Someone should put the goddesses on a leash.”
“You come in my home and insult me,” a sweet voice said.
Ali and I spun around. Nut’s dark hair was swept up in a knot on her head, and she wore a thin white dress. She was barefoot, but had bracelets on both her ankles and wrists.
Ali reached for her hand and kissed the back of it. “I wouldn’t dream of insulting you, but you have to admit, this is a bit much.”
She raised her eyebrows. “Nonsense. It’s never too much. Now what brings you two to my home?”
“We need help.”
“From me?” She placed her hand on her chest and blinked her wide eyes.
Ali nodded.
“Well, come in then.” She led us into a room with several couches and chairs and slunk down into a puffy chair. Ali and I sat across from her. “How can I help?” she asked.
She was being too nice. Ali and I would not get out of here unscathed. I let Ali take the lead since he knew how to deal with the goddesses now.
“We’re looking for the sickle of Ra.”
Nut scowled. “Why?”
“We want to kill Samir.”
She waved her hand. “Samir has been dead for years.”
“What makes you think that?”
“Because girls aren’t being tortured and butchered anymore. No evidence has been seen of him for thousands of years.”
“He’s alive in America. I’ve seen him,” I said. “And he’s torturing girls again.”
Nut leaned forward, clutching the armrests. “Bring him to me.”
“That’s not easy,” Ali said. “If you just give us the sickle, we can make sure he never hurts another girl.”
“I don’t have it, but if you bring Samir here, I can control him again.”
“Doubtful,” Ali said. “What happened to the sickle?”
“Bast happened,” she said, her face hard. Bast. Now there was a goddess I didn’t want to run into.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“She came crowing about capturing Samir and using the elixir of the gods to create a new Djinn. Begged me for the sickle, and I gave it to her. Then she disappeared. No sickle, no elixir of the gods, and no new Djinn. I have no idea what happened, but I promise you this. When she does appear, Isis and I are going to make her life a living hell. She betrayed us worse than the Jinn ever did.”
“That’s d
isappointing,” Ali said. “I hoped you’d be able to help us.” He stood, and I followed suit. He pulled out his cellphone and fiddled with it. I nudged him. We didn’t want to disrespect Nut, and texting while talking to her was rude. She’d be liable to turn us into frogs.
She cackled. “Do you think I’m letting you go?”
“No, not really,” Ali said. He didn’t even look up, just typed furiously on his phone. Nut stalked toward us, her eyes promising murder. I looked around, trying to find an exit. Damn goddess mood swings.
She waved a hand. “You are fools.”
Then, suddenly, she was gone, and we appeared in front of Melissa.
Ali let out a breath. “That was close.”
“Did you find it?” she asked.
“No, but we got a good lead.”
“No, we didn’t. Bast had it, and she hasn’t been seen in thousands of years.”
Ali clapped me on the back. “True, but we still have a lead.”
“How?”
He pulled out a small statue of the sphinx. “I did research on the sickle. It can be tracked through those who have possessed it before, so all you need is something of theirs. I pocketed this when we arrived. Nut owned it. Now all we need is a witch.”
More witches. They were lovely people. That is, if one liked death and gore. Ugh.
Chapter 23
Liv
Gabe sent me a message and said they were close to finding something, but they wouldn’t be in school for a few days. I was getting sick of not having him around.
Dylan waited on my porch with coffee from The Chain Gang. The sun was out, and the air was almost warm.
“Thanks.” I tried not to let him see my grumpiness.
“You ready for our presentation today?” he asked, all smiles.
We walked down the street, and I scowled into my drink. “You’re going do all the talking. I’m just manning the computer.” The thought of speaking in front of the class gave me hives. Maybe if I was talking about my art, I’d be okay, but even after finishing this project, I still didn’t have a clue what it was about.
He nudged me on the shoulder. “Aw, come on. You should totally do the talking. We all know Harding favors pretty girls.”
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