“Olivia, I'm so sorry for the things you've had to suffer through,” she said quietly, pulling back to look at me. “You look exhausted, and have you been eating at all?” Her dark eyes fixed upon my face, and she looked at me with tenderness. I grinned up at her.
“Ivanna, you look great, too,” I said, drawing a chuckle from her. Perry gave me a smile that made his eyes crinkle, and gripped me in a bear hug. Sylvia rushed up to me as soon as she was through the door, and wrapped her arms around me.
“I missed you so much,” she gushed, her caramel eyes twinkling. “Everything has been horrible and boring. Finally, we get some real excitement.” And then, because deep down she knew the severity of the situation, she added, “I'm glad you're okay.” I gave her an indulgent smile and turned to Charlotte, who had tears in her eyes. She gathered me up in a hug, too, and then moved aside so Everett could slide in beside her. He gave me a huge grin, and then we had our arms wrapped around each other and I was crying.
I'd missed him so much; more than I even realized. I had so much to tell him. I wanted to spill my guts right then and there, but it wasn't the time. He held on to me for a long moment and then whispered into my ear.
“Don't cry, Livvy. Everything's going to be okay. I have a surprise for you.”
I pulled back from him and flicked the tears from my cheeks. “A surprise? Is it a new car?”
Everett laughed and I could hear Ivanna chuckling, too.
“Nope. Even better,” he answered. He looked toward the doorway, and my eyes followed his gaze. Through Claire's front door stepped a boy with dark hair and eyes the color of a summer sky. It was Joshua, the boy from the orphanage!
“He came to us, Livvy,” Everett said. Joshua gave me a shy smile from the door, and I crossed the distance between us quickly and hugged him. He chuckled, but returned the hug tightly.
“Thank you,” he whispered. Then out loud, he added, “You look a lot younger than I remember.” This gained a big laugh from my family, who no doubt remembered my 'middle-aged' illusion that Ivanna had given me the morning we'd gone to rescue him. I was overwhelmed, but watched the door expectantly. When no one else entered, I turned. Everyone was standing around Claire's kitchen table, some looking at their feet and others wringing their hands together.
“Where's Max?” I asked, looking at Ivanna.
“He's mad as --” Sylvia began, but was interrupted.
“Max is at home,” Ivanna said. “I felt it was best for the coven that he stay.” I looked at her for a few heartbeats, and then I finished her sentence in my mind. In case we don't make it back. She wanted someone left in Eagleton to carry on. I nodded briefly.
“Ivanna, Perry, Charlotte, Sylvia, Everett, and Joshua, this is Jackson and his mother, Claire,” I made the introductions quickly and Claire welcomed my family to her home, thanking them for coming. Ivanna gave the woman a small hug and Claire asked everyone to sit. Jackson helped her bring a few more chairs from another room, and then we were all seated. It seemed as if no one was really sure what to say, so I decided to talk. I'd been chewing on something for a few moments, ever since I'd seen the look on Ivanna's face when she'd told me where Max was.
“I would imagine that Max feels rather punished, not being able to come along,” I said, tentatively. The way Ivanna's head rose and her eyes met mine told me I was on to something. She glanced at Sylvia and then back at me.
“I'm sorry to tell you that I've been deceiving you a little, Olivia,” she said. “Our Sylvia is more gifted than you know. She originally saw the Venator coming long before Margaret did. In fact, she saw a large number of them coming to Eagleton to look for someone. I naturally assumed it was you, Olivia, being that you hold the power I would imagine is most valuable to them. I needed to keep you safe, and when you and Everett returned that day, you looked as if you expected to be punished. That's when the idea formed. I hope you know that I truly trust your judgment and I know you'd never endanger us, but I had to make you believe I was angry or you'd never have stayed away.”
I clasped my hands together in my lap and said, “And then the course the Venator were on changed.”
Ivanna nodded. “If I'd only known that by sending you to the safe house, I'd be putting you further in danger...” She trailed off, shaking her head.
To my surprise, Claire spoke up. “I think sometimes that despite all of our plans, life will simply take us where it wants us.”
Ivanna smiled at her. “I do believe you're right. And now we're left with a situation to tidy up.”
I looked around the table at my family, at Jackson and his mother. At any moment, the Venator would be here and we needed to be prepared to fight. I wondered how I might say goodbye to them all, how I might make each of them know how important they were to me, before I died.
Chapter 16
I pulled the blankets up to my chin and stared at the dark ceiling in one of the guest bedrooms in Claire's house, thankful for the blackout curtains. We'd known that we needed a plan but no great ideas were coming to anyone yet. Most of the time was spent talking about gifts and comparing talents. Perry had been so impressed at Claire's gift that he'd demanded a demonstration. I'd volunteered right away, but Ivanna thought it was too dangerous to experiment with my talents.
So Everett and Jackson's powers had been switched and Everett performed a healing on Perry, who nicked his finger with his pocket knife. While Everett had seemed a little cool toward Jackson before that, it was obvious that he'd been awed by the power. This led to a discussion about Jackson's strange ability to heal me, or what he preferred to think of as the times I'd been able to let my guards down. Perry and Ivanna were extremely interested in this, and I promised that we'd try some experiments when this was all over, and I'd really try to drop whatever guards Jackson was talking about.
When my eyes were drooping and my body refused to stay awake any longer, Jackson showed me to the guest bedroom and after squeezing my hand, left me alone. It was only then that I remembered what he'd handed me just before my family arrived. I'd stuffed it in my pocket out back, and now in the dim light, I pulled it out. It was what looked like a few pages from a book, and then I realized that it was hand-written. I unfolded the crinkled paper and read the lines.
She is beautiful. She's more than beautiful. Anyone looking at her could tell you that, but there's something else. Her face is as smooth as glass and just as cool, and I think that even if the world was burning down around her, she'd still wear that same expression.
The most beautiful part of her, though, is when something makes her lose the cool facade. Then the song stored away in her gray eyes comes to life and it's as if I can really hear the music. I've seen this happen a few times now, and I find myself trying to think of things that might make it happen again.
When she was a little girl, her mother tried to end her life. Ten shimmering scars tell the story that I still don't really know, but I can't help but recognize the similarity - even though Olivia is so very different from me. Sometimes I think she materialized out of a dream...that I might have created her myself. She is everything cool, soft, and sweet...like a rain shower in the middle of a stifling day. Is she real, this little slayer with the hold on me?
In the quiet of the room, I let burning tears slide from my eyes, held the paper close to my chest, and let the darkness take me.
When I woke up, I could tell that many hours had passed. I still had the writing from Jackson's book clutched in my hand. I glanced out the thick curtains to see that it was nearing twilight, and the smells of food reached me even on the second floor of the house, making my mouth water. Instead of running right down the way I wanted to, I stole some of the clothes Sylvia had brought with her and took a long shower in the guest bathroom.
As the steamy water loosened the tight muscles that my long sleep hadn't fixed, I thought about what Jackson had told me. He hadn't really betrayed me! I thought about the words he'd written; the ones Paula had read. He said I had a hold
on him, and remembering this sent my heart racing. I finished my shower and got dressed. Sylvia's jean shorts and t-shirt fit better than Claire's clothing had, and I pulled her brush through my hair before going downstairs. I needed a distraction from thinking about...things, and what better than trying to come up with a way to survive?
The entire gang was in the kitchen again, seated around the table and passing around dishes of glazed chicken that smelled spicy and sweet, rice with slivers of vegetables, buttered rolls, and various other treats. I inhaled deeply. “Charlotte's been cooking,” I said, rubbing my stomach. I was greeted by 'good mornings' and an 'it's alive,' from Perry.
“There's really not room because we sort of thought you'd died up there,” Sylvia said with a playful smirk.
“It's a good thing Everett, Max and I decided you'd be the first sacrifice to the Goddess if things got tough,” I joked, winking at Joshua, and then felt a pang reminding me that Max wasn't here.
I sat down in the empty chair and bragged about Charlotte's food until she was blushing, eating my fill slowly. Dinner was a lighthearted event, with my siblings joking back and forth, and the older coven members talking about happenings in the world other than Venator. While none of these were particularly joyful topics - the Wise Ones' growing unrest about human intolerance, the Aylwen Prophecies, and more - they weren't terrifying.
When the dishes were cleared away, Perry was the one to say what we'd all been thinking, but didn't want to say ourselves. With a big sigh, he looked around the table.
“There's no telling how much time we have, but the fact remains that we need to come up with a plan. There's just no way we can fight the Venator by hand.” He glanced quickly at Sylvia and I easily followed his train of thought. A large portion of us didn't have powers meant for battle.
Jackson furrowed his brow. “Olivia can't handle all of them by herself. The amount of energy it takes from her is astounding.”
“Absolutely not,” Ivanna agreed. “She'd kill herself before she took out half of them.” I didn't want to admit this, but it was true. It had taken a long time to recover from the last couple of times fighting the Venator and those were just scouts; not hunters bent on capturing or killing an entire family of Wise Ones. Still, Jackson's words gave me a possible idea.
“We also have to think about their magick,” Everett said. Venator had magick as well, and we'd have no way of knowing what powers they might be bringing with them. I drummed my fingers on the tabletop quietly, trying to gauge just how much strength was truly inside of me.
“What if,” I began, gathering the attention of my family, “the Venator were injured when I killed them?”
There was silence for a moment and then Perry said, “What are you getting at, Livvy?”
“Well, I know I don't have the energy to take them out with full life forces, but what if they were significantly injured when I attempted it? I think I'd have the power to do it. Sure, it'd be pushing myself past what I've done, but each time I kill, I grow stronger. I should be strong enough to do it.”
I could see Perry was at least entertaining the idea; trying to work it out in his mind as well. Ivanna still looked as though she were trying to figure out precisely what I meant.
“Olivia, how could we guarantee they'd all be injured before you took them on? Like Everett said, we don't know what kind of magick they're bringing. In addition to that, the Venator will most likely scatter rather than being in a convenient clump for you to scream at,” Ivanna said. I bit my thumbnail.
“You're right. Their natural instinct would be to scatter, but not if it was easy for them to find the thing they were looking for,” I said, flicking my eyes toward Jackson. The plan was slowly coming together in my head, but at the moment I was trying to find a way to plug the holes in it. Claire picked up on what I was alluding to, and her hand went to her throat in a nervous gesture.
“Explain, Olivia,” Ivanna said, her tone curious.
“If Jackson and I were together in some place, out in the open, and the Venator came after us, we could probably get all twelve of them together,” I said simply.
“And as for injuring them?” Everett asked. “Do you plan to have us hiding in trees with bows and arrows or something?” He was joking, but he'd made his point. If Jackson only had an offensive power we could utilize. My eyes went to Joshua and I immediately looked away. It had crossed my mind that his power could be used to damage the Venator. He was a powerful fire user, but it couldn't be asked of him. Not after what he'd just been through with his family.
Everett must have been following my line of thinking; something he'd been able to do since we were children. “Wait a minute, Olivia. You might be onto something.” I started to shake my head and prevent Everett from saying anything, but it was too late. “If we were hiding somewhere, Joshua could use his power to damage the Venator...provided they were clumped together like Olivia said. Once they were under the fire, they wouldn't be able to scatter much, and Olivia could finish them off.”
Claire spoke up quickly. “Just a minute. I know you said Olivia couldn't be affected by magick, which would be how Joshua could use his fire against the Venator without hurting her, but if Jackson were there, as bait, he would be right in the cross hairs.”
“Not to mention the fact that Olivia's not immune to physical damage, and if the Venator were to get that close, they'd have access to her,” Ivanna added.
Jackson ran his hands through his hair. “I think I know of a way to keep me out of the fire, if the scenario worked the way we want it to,” he said. “Follow me outside, Everett, Perry, Joshua?” I watched Jackson lead Everett, Joshua and Perry outside, but was still distracted. My plan was definitely a stretch; something that would only work if every domino was placed correctly so that they fell in a coordinated fashion.
“The physical pain, Olivia?” Sylvia asked, bringing me out of my calculated thoughts.
“That is the least of my worries, Sylvia.” At Ivanna's sharp look, I remembered everything she'd compromised and risked in order to keep me safe, and I added, “Besides, Jackson has proven that he can heal me.”
“Only occasionally,” Claire interjected. “You'd have to learn how to drop those guards very quickly.” I resisted the urge to shush her, because it looked as though I'd almost had Ivanna convinced.
Instead, I said, “You're right. I think I might know how to do it. We'll practice before.” For a long moment, it was quiet as we all tried to imagine the plan. Then, Ivanna shook her head.
“Olivia, you can't ask Joshua to use his power in that way after what he's been through. Think about it. We've only had him for a little while. He's still very vulnerable. He's learning quickly, but he's still traumatized,” she said. This was the only thing I really couldn't argue with. I remembered the way I'd felt when I'd first come to Eagleton. I rebelled against my destructive powers. I hated who I'd been. Asking Joshua to help us kill a group of men he didn't even know would be cruel.
To my surprise, Claire spoke up. “Well, he wouldn't have to use his powers by himself, necessarily.”
Ivanna and I glanced at each other and then I realized that Claire was right. “Claire can switch his powers with someone else,” I said. “Perry or Everett. Then he wouldn't have to do it. He would still be helping, but not in a traumatic way.” Just then, Perry, Everett, Joshua, and Jackson reentered the house, animated and chatting.
“We think we've figured out a way to keep Jackson safe,” Perry said, then looked at Claire. “As long as you don't mind your backyard getting a little scorched. He looked slightly apologetic, but Claire shrugged as if to say that Jackson's safety was far more important than her blooming flowers and hedges.
“So, we'll be luring the Venator here?” Charlotte asked, a small thread of worry running through her voice.
“It's the easiest way,” Perry said. “We can't fight them openly in the town of Staves. Plus, like I said, I think this would be the best place to protect Jackson.”
“They'd most likely be hanging out around Stallott's or the safe house,” I said, glancing around the table. Some of my family nodded their heads slightly while others didn't look too happy about the thought of bringing our greatest enemies right down on top of us. I could see that Ivanna was conflicted; unsure of whether to approve the plan or not. At the same time, I was considering something else that I was hesitant to say out loud at the moment.
I knew how to get the Venator here, but convincing the others of it would be even more difficult than convincing them that my quickly-conceived plan would work. I needed a little time; some way to make sure they understood that this would work.
“Let's sleep on this tonight,” Ivanna said, with an air of finality. “In the meantime, we'll set up watches. We don't want to be ambushed in a vulnerable moment. Olivia, Jackson, you have the first watch. This will give you hours of time to practice the healing thing, which is central to this whole plan of yours anyway.” For the briefest moment, Ivanna looked at Jackson and me, and I wondered if the practicing was the only reason she was putting us both on first watch.
After a few more minutes of chatter and wishes for a good night, the group dispersed to the various guest bedrooms and pull out sofas in the house.
“Come on, Slayer. There are a few comfortable chairs on the front porch that'll be better for watching. Also, there's a friendly face out there,” Jackson said, standing up and running his hands through his hair. I followed him outside into the balmy night air, thick with the possibility of rain. To my surprise, Zeus greeted us on the porch, nearly knocking me over as he jumped up and put his huge front paws on my chest. Jackson must have gotten him during the day while I was still sleeping. Giggling, I scratched him behind the ears before settling into one of the wooden rocking chairs.
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