“I’m fine,” Ava said.
She didn’t smile, but she had a flawless face. Kira arched an eyebrow. “You’re lying.”
“Excuse me?”
“It’s okay that you don’t want me to know. But you’re a terrible liar.”
Who was she to judge? “I’ll let you tend to the garden.” Ava started to walk away.
“I heard what you did for Colden. It was quite a selfless and remarkable thing.”
Ava stopped and turned around. “I had to.”
“Thank you for saving him.”
“You don’t have to thank me, but you’re welcome.”
“You’re a very brave woman, Ava. I don’t think you truly see it. You should work on that,” she said, and then turned to the flowers and began watering them.
The door opened and Peter and Seth walked outside, their eyes red and their hair disheveled.
Ava took Peter’s hand and wrapped her arms around him. “I’m so sorry.”
“It isn’t your fault.” He held her tightly.
“Why did you have her erase both of you from their memories?”
“They don’t deserve to be caught up in this, nor do they deserve to be tortured like I was.”
Ava flinched. A hot, aching guilt rushed over her. “Savina was going to do the same to you. My selfish part wanted you to be just like me and I wanted nothing more than to be with you. But your safety trumped all of that. After seeing what the Cimmerians did to you because of me, I can never forgive myself.”
“They’ll never do that again. And don’t blame yourself.”
Ava didn’t know what she would do if the roles were reversed, but Peter was keeping it together surprisingly well.
“I know no words can console you, but I’m here for you and won’t leave your side.”
“I know.” He scratched the back of his neck. “Seth and I are going for a drive.”
“Do you want company?”
“Not now. Savina and Aaron are taking Val and Amanda home and they’ll convince the parents to move. We just want to get out of here for a while.”
“Come on, man,” Seth urged. Ava didn’t miss the impatience in his voice.
Peter kissed her and then followed Seth to his car. Seth peeled out of the driveway and Ava’s heart faltered. For some reason, she felt guilty for what had happened.
She wanted to be there for Peter, but understood he needed time.
Ava went inside and had dinner with her father and a few others, but she wasn’t feeling social at all, even though it was her birthday. Melissa had texted her, wanting to take Ava out, but she declined. Instead, she retreated to her room.
She dropped down on the window bench and leaned her head against the glass. She stared out into the dark night, watching the wind pick up and blow the last of the leaves off the branches. The clouds raced across the sky, barely covering the waning moon.
It had started out as a good day, but she wasn’t kidding anyone when she thought it would last. She hugged her knees and sighed.
Valerie and Amanda were attacked today. Trudy tried to convince Ava to kill them. Would her mother have been proud? She refused to believe it. Was her mother really that awful of a person? She couldn’t remember a time when her mom treated her poorly. That didn’t mean she hadn’t been playing her and her father all along.
But for what? Had her mom really promised her soul to Havok? Or was that Xavier trying to get a rise out of her. If it were true, why would the Cimmerians kill her mom? If Havok had existed this long, how come the Elders have never heard of him? She couldn’t wait to speak to the Necromancer. It was looking more and more unlikely that she’d be going with the group. She needed to come up with another plan.
Ava was tired of thinking about it all. She wanted to just go to New Orleans and get the answers and be done with it. Maybe she should just go alone.
Someone knocked on the door and startled Ava.
“Come in.”
The door opened and Gabriel entered. “Hey. Are you okay?” She couldn’t help but notice his taut muscles beneath his white button-down shirt. His raven hair looked as if he had recently cut it.
She shrugged. “I guess.” Ava met his crystal-blue eyes and after a few seconds he averted his gaze. She didn’t understand why he sometimes looked at her with such intensity, but it daunted her.
“I heard what happened.”
“Lucky me, huh?”
He moved closer to her and sank on the edge of the bed across from her. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. I just wish I knew the truth about all of this. Savina won’t tell me. She always hides behind a wall, claiming to be protecting me, but I need to know.”
“Would it make a difference?” he asked.
“Of course it would.”
“How?”
She threw her hands up in the air. “I don’t know. I could understand myself better or the things I’ve done. I could understand my mom more. If your parents promised your soul to Havok, you’d want to know why, too. And how do we know Savina really killed Corbin? What if Corbin is Havok? Or was Havok around when my mom died?”
“You gotta stop obsessing over this, Ava. It will destroy you.”
“I think it already has.”
“How do you plan on learning the rest?”
She hesitated. She hadn’t told anyone except Colden, but if he suggested, how bad could it really be? “A Necromancer. I can talk to my mom directly.”
“Whoa, Ava, no. Don’t even think about it.”
“Why?”
“Seriously? Because it’s dangerous.”
Ava crossed her arms in front of her. “You sound just like Savina.”
“You don’t want to do it. You’ll regret it.”
“Why? She’s the only one I can ask why she gave up on me. Why she never loved me. Why she promised her only child to the Cimmerians.” Warm tears streamed down her face, and her body shook. She covered her face, and then felt his arms around her, holding her close. He made her feel comfortable.
“I’m sorry, Ava. But as your friend, please reconsider this.”
“Why?”
“It will leave you with regret and pain.”
“How do you know?” She pulled back and met his eyes.
He wavered. “Because I went to one.”
“You did? When?”
“Years ago. I needed to talk to my sister. When the Necromancer brought her into view, she was screaming. I couldn’t save her. Not then, not ever. I vowed I would avenge her, but I made too many mistakes.”
The pain in his eyes worried her, but he quickly hid it. He never seemed to let anyone in, except Natalia. Why was he slowly letting Ava in?
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know that.”
“The Cimmerians will use it against you. They’ll pull those images from your mind and force you to see them over and over, just like they’ve done recently.”
“It’s okay. I wasn’t really thinking of seeing a Necromancer. It was just a fleeting thought. Just something Link mentioned one time.” She hoped he believed that, but she could still feel his eyes on her.
“Is this really about your mom or is there more to it?”
“Yes.” She got to her feet and paced beside the bed. “It’s because I’m a murderer, Gabriel. I killed Jonah and Drew without a single hesitation. I punched Valerie in the face and almost tried to kill her and Amanda. I have Cimmerian blood and I feel like I’m turning into one. And it makes sense now that my mother was one. She betrayed me. Now they’re after me because it’s my destiny apparently.”
Gabriel grabbed her by the shoulders and she stopped. He tilted her chin up and her pulse edged up a degree. “Ava, you control your own destiny. You are the only one who chooses which side you want to be on. Even if your mom promised your soul to the Cimmerians, you ultimately make that decision.”
She wiped the tears from her cheeks. “But after all the terrible things I’ve done—.”
He shook his
head. “You acted out of self-defense in every case. And from what I heard, you tried to save Valerie and Amanda and refused to listen to Trudy. You are strong, Ava. Stronger than you give yourself credit for. You need to start believing it.”
“It’s hard to do that when I let them inside my head. It makes me feel weak. Even Savina thinks I’m too weak to handle the truth.”
His face fell. “She doesn’t think that. She just keeps a lot to herself because she believes it protects us. Look at all the good you’ve done. You saved Colden and your father. You healed me. Cimmerians aren’t Healers.”
“What?”
“They use their powers only for dark purposes. You’re a good person. Don’t let them take that away from you.”
She nodded and she felt her shoulders relax. He had a way of making her feel better. He challenged her, which she liked, and was a good teacher. “I need to learn to block the thoughts. You’re good at that. Can you teach me?”
“Of course. It’ll take time.”
“I don’t care. I need to learn it.” She returned to her spot on the bench. “What a birthday.”
“I know and I’m sorry. I have good news, though. That’s kinda why I came in here. Because there’s so many of us going, we can go to New Orleans.”
“You can teleport? How will they not get inside your head?”
“There will be too many of us, plus I know they’re out there and I’m expecting it. We can’t be gone too long though. Colden was pretty strict on that.”
Her heart raced. “When can we go?”
“Saturday night.”
This was it. She would finally talk to her mother. Ava was scared and nervous, but she wasn’t going to back out. She wanted to hear her mother’s side of the story. Could spirits lie beyond the grave? Would her mother be happy to see her? There was only one way to find out.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
ANTICIPATION
Blood poured from Peter’s chest as he collapsed to his knees. Ava lurched forward, but Gabriel held her back. Seconds later, Peter’s chest sealed itself and the bleeding stopped.
Maggie’s innate ability to transform her arms into any kind of weapon and cut through flesh amazed Ava. She usually preferred the three-pronged martial arts Sai weapon to use.
Peter laughed it off and walked back to the group who watched each person fight.
“Are you okay?” Ava checked him over.
He smiled and kissed her forehead. “I’m fine.” His gray shirt had a long slanted gash, with blood all over, but there wasn’t a single scratch on him. She knew if they were really in a battle, she would have been injured or worse by checking on him, but she couldn’t stand to see him get hurt.
He and Seth seemed to be doing a lot better since Valerie and Amanda left to go stay with their respective grandparents. Ava guessed that since they knew the girls were safe from the Cimmerians, they could fully give themselves to their Enchanter lives. But Ava knew they were still saddened that their friends left.
School had been uneventful the rest of the week, which Ava appreciated. At night, they’d spent their time training. She tried not to think about it, but the excitement about going to New Orleans had consumed her mind all week.
Peter squeezed her hand and she responded with a small smile. He knew she was excited. But didn’t know the real reason.
Gustav and Maya’s covens had arrived and were practicing with them. Having them there only made the thought of war a reality. It was going to happen. And they had nine days before the new moon to train.
Maya Gutiérrez’s Aureole, from Spain, consisted of her siblings, but there were only four because of one of Corbin’s attacks. Maya, Esteban, Diego, and Lucia were young with beautiful olive skin and brown eyes. Their black hair was thick and full. They kept to themselves mostly but they all seemed very graceful and patient. Both Diego and Esteban were easy on the eyes.
Gustav Kovalevsky was an Elder and was as old as Savina and Aaron. His face had deep battle scars, but his bushy gray beard covered most of them. His solemn green eyes were set deep. His hulking body made Thomas look small. His Aureole, from Russia, consisted of Ilya Anasenko, a shapeshifter with brown hair and boyish features, Zhan Burmakin, an older man with striking green eyes and cropped white hair, Konstantin Volodin, a tall blond with pale blue eyes, Alena Gorshkov, a short brunette with dark blue eyes and clear skin, and Anastasya Grigoryev, an older woman with dark hair and brown eyes. There was a scar right above her left eye.
Katarina Obolensky, the young girl in Gustav’s Aureole, was the other Protector. Her dyed dark, almost metallic blue, short hair tapered around her round childish face. She wore heavy makeup, especially around her large brown eyes and donned herself in all black. Ava guessed she was her or Joss’s age.
All morning they practiced and if anything got too out of hand, Savina, and now Ava, were there to heal them. The large group watched two witches fight, and whoever won the fight kept fighting until they lost.
Katarina walked up to Maggie and looked about the size of Joss—very petite, especially next to the tall Maggie.
Maggie moved her hands as fast as a lizard’s tongue, but Katarina suddenly jumped high into the air and flipped over her. She landed behind Maggie and grabbed her feet, forcing her to fall. Then, she placed a hand on Maggie’s shoulder and within seconds, Maggie turned white as snow and couldn’t move. Katarina released her hand and Maggie returned to normal.
Ava’s mouth opened wide. Katarina was the first one to defeat Maggie.
Konstantin leaned near Ava. “She can generate radiation.” He spoke in a thick Russian accent. “It’s so impressive.”
“Ava, you’re up,” Aaron said.
She froze. She was supposed to defeat the one person who overcame Maggie?
“Don’t lose sight of her,” Konstantin said and then smiled.
Ava nodded and then walked to the front and watched Katarina warily. Trying to keep her head clear and remembering that she could do this, she stood face-to-face to Katarina. She was taller than the girl and wondered how long she’d been a witch.
Katarina crossed her arms in front of her and Ava imagined the blue haired girl underwater, fighting for her life. Katarina didn’t move, just waited. So, Ava would have to conjure some water. Before she could, Katarina bolted toward her, and Ava quickly caught the girl and slammed her to the ground. She turned to face the downed girl and water soon rushed around Ava’s hands, waiting for her signal. Then, the water ran over the girl’s face.
Katarina coughed and choked on the water and then Ava stopped. Katarina walked back to the group with wet hair, and then Eric walked up to Ava.
With a single movement, Eric blindsided Ava with a kick to her stomach. She doubled over, but still watched him. He hadn’t moved at all. Then he grabbed her from behind and held her from moving. She still stared at Eric, right in front of her.
“Cheater,” she said. He’d duplicated himself and the version behind her held her throat, choking her. Water dripped from her hands as she attempted to call it, but nothing happened. Her air was depleting, until finally he let her go. As if the duplications were souls of his, they filed back into one body.
Eric chuckled. “Gets them every time.”
Joss was next and she played with a blue electric current in her hands. Eric spread out into five men this time, but Joss stood in the middle and spread her electricity to each of them in a swift movement.
Eric stood. “I’ll defeat you one day.”
She giggled. “We’ll see about that.”
They practiced with each other until sunset. The Elders gave everyone a few minutes to freshen up and then go to the library for a meeting. Ava showered and changed into a thin black sweater and jeans with her boots.
Tonight was the night.
Ava was so nervous her body shook. She didn’t even know how she was going to break away from the group to go find the Necromancer. She had to come up with a plan and calm down.
She met
Peter in the hallway. “Are you okay?” he asked.
“Yeah. Just excited to finally get out of here and do something.”
“Me, too. It’s just hard to be excited, given what’s going to happen in a few days.”
“I know. I’m trying not to think about it. Which is impossible.”
“Maybe they found some information and want to share it with us.”
“Maybe.” But Ava doubted it.
They walked inside the library and found Melissa, Lance, and the rest of their Aureole. Ava was glad the library was so large to hold that many people.
“Quiet, everyone!” Aaron raised his hand and slowly the room silenced. “Today was very productive and I’m happy that everyone did a great job. However, we do not know how big the Cimmerian army is. There could be hundreds or thousands.”
Way to make us feel hopeless, she thought.
Ava could feel everyone’s apprehension. It lingered heavily inside the room and she saw a few necklaces glow. Peter froze with fear. She tightened her grip on his hand.
“I say this not to put fear in you, but as a possible truth. I need all of you to be as prepared as you possibly can. We also do not know when they plan to attack. This could be a false alarm, but we need to be ready.”
“They want the Elementals by the new moon,” Savina said. “But they will not get them. We will overcome the Cimmerians once again. We are strong and powerful. They will not defeat us.”
“We prevailed once before, and we will again,” Aaron said.
That got a rise out of some of the Enchanters. They cheered and clapped. The energy in the room completely changed and everyone was alive with hope.
Ava felt herself smile and she exchanged looks with Melissa, Lance, Thomas, and Peter.
Melissa howled and Ava laughed.
Everyone started dispersing but Ava and her Aureole stayed behind and met up with Gabriel, Joss, Eric, Link, and Nicole.
“Is everyone ready?” Gabriel asked.
A chorus of yes’s was heard.
“Okay. Everyone hold hands.”
They stood in a circle and Ava took Gabriel’s hand in one and Peter’s in the other.
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