“Leave the wards to me,” Blackstone said.
The hunter’s confidence was irritating. He would not have to face the fallout if he took down Marcella’s wards and then failed to find this evidence he wanted so badly. Marcella would know Adolphus had been party to the violation of her privacy.
“You are asking me to take a considerable risk,” Adolphus said.
“I understand. You must weigh that risk against the potential benefits, of course. Besides, it seems to me that you face risks either way.”
Indeed. Doing nothing would allow things to progress in the intolerable direction they were already going. The opportunity to be rid of the two demon witches was too good to pass up.
“I agree under one condition,” Adolphus said.
“Name it.”
Adolphus stood. “We go now. Marcella and Cyrus have been leaving in the middle of the day and returning in the late evening. I don’t know how long that pattern will continue.”
Blackstone smiled. “Thank you for that bit of information. It makes me even more certain I’ll find the evidence I need.”
“Let us hope that you do,” Adolphus said, picking up the call-back paperwork. “I need a moment to hand these calls off to my assistant, and then we can go. Reggie will be at work, so we should have the Foundation to ourselves for a while.”
Chapter 34
Exorcism Interruptus
Jonathan ran out the door after Reggie, but Amanda knew there was no way he could catch the stronger and faster werewolf. Where was Kyle?
An “oof” and the sound of a scuffle ended in a thud and a grunt of pain. Kyle and Jonathan dragged an unconscious Reggie into the room by his armpits. After setting Reggie down, Kyle said, “Sorry. I didn’t see him arrive. He must have come in through one of the side doors.”
Jonathan tilted his head toward Jessie. “She’s okay now, right? We’d better get out of here.”
He was right. With Skyler gone, Amanda had been about to release the spirits and end the exorcism anyway. If Reggie was home, they were running out of time fast. Then she glanced at her watch and hesitated. “He’s early. I wonder why?”
“Does it matter?” Kyle said. “We should get going before anyone else shows up.”
Jessie stood and touched Amanda’s arm. “I’ll help, if you want to do it now.”
As she looked into her friend’s eyes, Amanda blinked back tears. Jessie knew exactly what she was thinking. Like Kyle, Jessie understood what her brother might be experiencing.
“Everything is ready,” Jessie continued. “There will never be a better time.”
Well, that wasn’t exactly true. Although she had the backing of her coven this time, Amanda’s first time through the ritual had still been tiring. “Do we have the strength?”
Looking at Tanya and Cara, Amanda tried to judge how much energy the two had left. Neither said anything, but both looked bright eyed and eager. Amanda understood what they must be feeling. This was the first major working they’d ever attempted without Noreen at the helm, and they’d all performed amazingly well. She hoped that their pride wasn’t making them overconfident. On the other hand, the coven had never managed to fully deplete Tanya’s reserves, and Jessie was still relatively fresh.
Amanda could hardly believe it. The one-in-a-million chance she and Kyle had talked about had arrived. How could she be hesitating? “Okay, let’s do it,” she said.
“No!” Jonathan shouted, stepping forward. “We’ve done what we came to do. It’s time to go.”
Kyle glanced at his watch. He looked at Reggie. “It’s risky,” he warned.
Was it really? Their spying had revealed that Reggie was the most likely resident to return home while they were skulking around the Foundation. Well, they got that one right. Dr. Rutlinger wasn’t expected until after the clinic closed, which gave them at least another hour. Marcella and Cyrus hadn’t been returning to the Foundation until much later in the evening.
As Jessie had said, there would never be a greater opportunity.
While Amanda considered the risk of proceeding, Jessie signaled Cara to drop the protections and let her out of the circle. She went over to Jonathan and hugged him fiercely. After a moment, she pulled back and looked him in the eyes. “You don’t know what it’s like.” Her gaze went to the werewolf’s slumped form. “We have to do this. For Amanda and for Reggie.”
Jonathan let out an exasperated sigh. “Is the small chance we can help Reggie worth all of our lives? Maybe orphaning our children?”
“He’s right, Jessie,” Amanda interrupted. “You two have your kids to think about. I think I can do this with Tanya and Cara’s help. You can wait for us back at the cars if you want.”
“Right,” Jessie scoffed. “Abandon you after all you did for me.” She turned toward her husband. “Honey, you do what you have to. I owe Amanda my life, so I’m seeing this through.”
Jonathan stepped back as if she’d slapped him. “I wouldn’t leave without you.”
“Then it’s settled,” Jessie said, turning her back on him. She returned to the circle. “Let’s do this.”
During Jessie’s and Jonathan’s standoff, Kyle had been exploring the closet. He came out with a coil of shiny black rope. “Here, we can tie him to the chair with this.”
Kyle had apparently reached the same conclusion as Amanda—that the subject of the exorcism should be restrained during the rite. Amanda took the rope from him and ran her fingers over it. “How strange. This feels like silk.” She gave a section of it an experimental tug. “Should be strong enough. Where’d you get it?”
Kyle dipped his head, blushing. “I found it in a chest of … toys. There’s a felt-lined set of handcuffs if you think they’d be a better option.”
“Felt lined?”
“Yeah, I guess we shouldn’t be surprised that Marcella has a kinky streak.”
Amanda handed the rope back to Kyle, touching it only with her thumb and forefinger. “Eew.”
With Jonathan’s help, Kyle used the rope to immobilize Reggie and anchor him to the chair. Amanda observed nervously, certain that Reggie’s strength could easily shatter the chair if he managed to get any leverage.
As soon as Reggie was secure, Jessie purified the circle again, having a much easier time of it the second time around. In fact, with the four witches working together, all of the preliminaries went smoothly and quickly. Amanda’s confidence in their chance of success grew.
Out of the corner of her eye, Amanda saw Jonathan turn and speak to Kyle. “You should go back down to the entryway and keep watch.”
“Don’t bother,” Marcella said from outside the doorway.
Marcella’s voice shocked Amanda into immobility. Cyrus took advantage of everyone’s surprise, streaking past the dark witch into the room. He went for Jonathan first, knocking the hunter into the wall with a straight-armed blow to the chest. Jonathan dropped his rifle as he slid down the wall, stunned and with the breath knocked out of him. Kyle grabbed at Cyrus, but the wiry werewolf twisted away, swinging a back-handed blow that barely missed Kyle’s jaw.
While Cyrus distracted Kyle and Jonathan, Marcella uttered a rapid incantation and thrust her hand forward. Cara’s protections dropped so quickly that she gasped and collapsed to her knees.
With the exorcism interrupted, Amanda turned her thoughts to defense. The dark witch was going to fry them all if they didn’t protect themselves. She reached into her pocket for the Resonance Star pendant. Individually, they couldn’t match Marcella’s strength, but together they might be able to hold her off until they could figure out a way to fight back.
Marcella wasted no time following up after she dispelled the circle’s protections. With a few quick phrases and a casual wave of her hand, she hurled a blow of force that knocked Amanda off her feet. The pendant flew from Amanda’s hand and rebounded off the wall before sliding under the dresser.
Well, Amanda thought, we can always link up the old fashioned way. She rolled next
to where Cara was kneeling and grabbed her hand, glad to see that Tanya was already holding the other one. Nodding to Cara, she confirmed the questioning look the air witch gave her. Any of them could cast a shield, but Cara’s were the best.
Cara’s shield was barely formed when Marcella’s attack flared against it. A hot blast of air ruffled Amanda’s hair as the shield deflected the bulk of the spell.
Marcella’s eyes narrowed with calculation, and she started another incantation. She seemed to be taking her time to build a stronger attack that would probably blow right through Cara’s shield.
Jessie had stepped away from the circle to check on Jonathan who seemed to be recovering. The struggle between Cyrus and Kyle surged in the space between Jessie and Marcella, keeping her out of the magical line of fire. When the dark witch started her new, more lengthy incantation, Jessie took the direct approach. Grabbing a heavy crystal from the trunk of magical paraphernalia, she stepped out from behind Cyrus and Kyle and hurled the stone at Marcella.
Hoping Jessie’s distraction would give her a few seconds, Amanda turned her head to look for her piece of the Resonance Star. From her position lying on her side, she could see light glint off the dark blue stone at the edge of the shadows under the dresser. Marcella’s grunt of pain told her that Jessie’s missile had struck home, which probably bought her another few seconds. Amanda slid her fingers under the dresser to retrieve the pendant, careful not to push it under further.
From behind her came a new unwelcome sound: Reggie stirred with a groan.
Amanda hooked her finger on the pendant’s loop of chain and pulled the stone out from under the dresser. She slid the pendant over her neck and turned to check on Reggie.
Reggie had raised his head and opened his eyes, struggling to make sense of the chaos around him. After a failed attempt to move, he looked down at his bindings and then at Amanda. Bright panic shone in his amber eyes. When he closed his eyes again and relaxed back into his seat, Amanda knew they were about to have a problem. Reggie was preparing to transform. His wolf form would probably slip free of the bindings, and then he’d either escape or attack.
Amanda’s hand tightened around the pendant. Her instinct was to block Reggie’s transformation somehow, but she didn’t know if such a thing was even possible. She turned her attention back toward the greater and more immediate threat.
Marcella glared at Jessie as she side-stepped Cyrus and Kyle. She aimed her hand with her fingers curled like claws and started another incantation.
Jessie hastily brought up a shield and rushed through phrases that would reinforce it. Amanda prayed that the Star would give Jessie the power she needed. Could the coven last long enough to wear down the dark witch? There was no way to know.
Jonathan staggered to his feet. He glanced from Marcella to Jessie and seemed to be thinking about interposing himself.
“No!” Amanda shouted, but Jonathan had already drawn the dark witch’s attention. She shifted her aim toward him instead. Jessie’s mouth dropped open with shock. While Marcella could change the target of her attack right up to the moment she released the spell, it wasn’t so easy for Jessie to alter her shield on the fly.
Jonathan had to know he was in grave danger. Still, he launched himself away from the wall toward Marcella. His only hope was to tackle her before she could finish her spell.
A blur flew in through the doorway and toward Marcella before Jonathan could complete his first step. Marcella and her new assailant crashed into the dresser and rolled to the floor.
Before Amanda could sit up and see who had tackled Marcella, Blackstone appeared at the doorway. His eyes narrowed when he spotted Reggie, and he raised his hand, palm forward. He spoke a few words in what sounded like Latin.
With Marcella distracted, Jonathan tried to help Kyle with Cyrus. That turned out to be a mistake. Kyle had been gaining the upper hand, but he had to step back when Jonathan entered the fray. Cyrus took advantage of the distraction to strike, using his magic to strengthen a blow to Kyle’s solar plexus. Kyle’s breath whooshed out, and he doubled over, staggering backward. He lost his footing and crashed to the floor, coughing and retching. Jonathan got one good blow in to Cyrus’s head, but the werewolf merely shook it off and came back with a roundhouse punch that made Jonathan’s head snap around. He collapsed to the floor next to Kyle.
Jessie took a half-step toward Jonathan when he hit the floor, but she couldn’t go to him without dropping her shield. There was no mistaking the promise of retribution in her gaze when she locked eyes with Cyrus. He answered with a mocking smirk and a casual attack spell that sparked against the shield, as if to test its strength.
Cyrus effectively had Amanda and her coven mates in a standoff. As long as the witches were connected through the Star, they couldn’t act individually. All of their energy was powering Jessie’s shield, which they didn’t dare drop.
Amanda stood up and was surprised to see that it was Dr. Rutlinger who had tackled Marcella and was rolling around on the floor with her in a tangle of limbs. Although it seemed that he was stronger, she was clearly more vicious. The doctor’s face was bleeding from several scratches, and he couldn’t seem to restrain the dark witch for more than a second. Rutlinger seemed to finally be getting the upper hand as he straddled the dark witch. He had a grip on both of her hands, but every time she started an incantation, he had to release one hand to slap her and interrupt it.
The crystal Jessie had thrown at Marcella had fallen to the floor near where the two werewolves were struggling. The next time her hand was free, Marcella’s hand flashed out and grabbed it. Before he could dodge, Marcella struck Dr. Rutlinger on the side of the head with the stone. The doctor toppled off of her and rolled onto the floor.
Marcella leapt to her feet. She took in the situation with a quick glance around the room, her attention settling on Blackstone. With an expression that said bad things for his future, she started an incantation, forcefully spitting out the phrases.
Amanda thought quickly. Was there any way to help Blackstone? The Star was their greatest strength and their greatest weakness. To help Blackstone, they would have to drop the shield, and then they’d be defenseless against Cyrus.
Blackstone turned his attention from Reggie to Marcella when she started her incantation. He spread his arms wide and closed his eyes as if welcoming her attack, and then tipped his head back and began speaking Latin-sounding phrases again.
When Marcella’s spell struck, Blackstone wavered on his feet. The violet lightning that flowed from her hands to his body arced all over him, making his hair stand on end and fluttering his clothes as if he were standing over an air vent. The storm of electricity never seemed to actually touch him although small trickles of blood appeared under his nose, ears, and eyes. Marcella shouted and then screamed the words of her spell as she poured more and more energy into it.
Amanda had never seen such a display of power in her life. She hoped Cyrus wasn’t that strong, or she and her friends were all doomed. She glanced at Reggie, wondering if he would try to transform now that Blackstone was otherwise occupied. But Reggie was transfixed by Marcella’s attack on Blackstone.
Better transfixed than transformed, she thought.
Blackstone’s voice had dropped to a strained whisper, and Amanda thought he was about to succumb to the onslaught. Then his body started to glow as he swept his hands slowly forward. The glow brightened as his hands moved closer together. It became so bright that Amanda had to avert her eyes. When his hands came together, a searingly bright stream of light sucked all of the energy that twisted around him into a beam that slammed into Marcella. It seemed to enter her and light her up from the inside, her skin glowing a translucent red. Marcella screamed and her body shook violently. When the beam of light suddenly stopped, she dropped like a marionette with cut strings.
Blackstone’s hands fell to his sides, and he bowed his head, breathing heavily. When he looked up again, he fixed his attention on Cyrus.
After Cyrus left, Jessie dropped the shield. Amanda went to Kyle’s side while Jessie checked on Jonathan. Both men came around quickly.
Dr. Rutlinger sat up as well, gently touching his head where Marcella had struck him. Amanda squared off against him, uncertain of what he would do next. Seeing her wariness, he held up a hand in a gesture of peace. He slowly got to his feet, using the dresser to steady himself, and looked at Marcella with a dour expression.
“It seems you won’t need that evidence after all,” Dr. Rutlinger said to Blackstone.
“I will,” Blackstone disagreed, “but for different reasons now.”
“Would the Order truly hold you responsible for her death?” Dr. Rutlinger asked.
Blackstone took out a handkerchief and started wiping the blood from his face. “Probably not,” he answered. “But it’s always good to be able to show justification.”
“She tried to kill you,” Amanda said. “What more justification do you need?”
“I need to justify why I was here antagonizing her in the first place.” He raised an eyebrow. “As will you.”
Amanda looked at Jessie and smiled. “My justification is right there,” she said.
“So Skyler is gone?” Dr. Rutlinger asked in a heavy voice.
Amanda turned to him with narrowed eyes. “You knew?”
“I suspected.”
Amanda’s jaw clenched in anger, but her ire faded when she couldn’t think of a way to blame him. He hadn’t harassed Jessie in any way. In fact, none of the Selkirk Pack had approached her, which indicated he’d kept his suspicions to himself. Given the exorcism ban, Marcella would surely have gloated over Jessie’s plight.
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