Tithes (Ava Delaney

by Claire Farrell

  Ari returned with a spell book, a bowl of water, a map, and a basket of candles. She spread out the map on a table, using the candles to hold down the corners. She placed the bowl of water on top of the map and lit the candles.

  “What does that do?” I asked.

  “Mind your own business,” she said sharply. She put on the jacket—I could have sworn she sniffed it first—knelt in front of the map, and chanted from a page in the book. As she recited, she dipped her finger in and out of the water and let it drip onto the map. She sprinkled some on me then swiped her thumb across my forehead.

  “What… oh.” I felt her magic probing at me, searching me. She curled invisible fingers around me and stole the best parts of me. She kept looking at the water, dipping her fingers in, and chanting constantly.

  My strength began to drain. I had to lean back in my chair, unable to sit up straight.

  “Ari, stop,” Noah said. “She looks sick.”

  “I don’t have it yet,” Ari said without missing a beat in her chant.

  “Keep going,” I said. “I’m good. Just find him.”

  Sweat trickled down my temples, and I laid my head on the back of the chair and stared up at the ceiling, black spots screwing with my vision.

  “Are you okay?” Noah asked.

  My mouth was dry, my limbs were shaky, and my head felt as though it might roll off my shoulders at any moment, but I wasn’t running on empty yet.

  “I’m fine,” I said hoarsely.

  “Maybe I should get you something to eat or—”

  “No!” Ari shouted. “Get out, Noah.”

  “I’m staying,” he said firmly.

  I closed my eyes and concentrated. Ari’s magic felt cold and unnatural, like slimy hands roughly touching my body. My insides felt hollow from her touch, and I wasn’t sure how long I could keep going. I panicked, my heart racing as a rush of adrenaline ran through me. I opened my eyes and looked at my hands. They were grey and pallid. My veins bulged as though my skin had been pulled taut by an unseen force.

  “I don’t…” I murmured. “I…” But the encroaching darkness surrounded me before I could figure out what I wanted to say.

  * * *

  When I woke, Peter and Alanii were standing over me. “Oh,” I said.

  “Are you all right?” Alanii said. “The kids said you were tired and passed out.”

  “Yeah, well, that curse was heavy,” I said. “Alanii, I’d take that cup of tea now. A couple of sugars, please.”

  She smiled. “I’ll make a fresh cup.”

  I looked for the teenagers as soon as she left. Noah and Ari were sitting in the corner. He looked relieved. She looked just as pissed off as usual.

  “Are you all right?” Noah asked. “I thought you died for a minute there.”

  I sat up then clutched my head as pain shot through my skull. “I’m okay,” I said after a moment. “Just a little shaky. Did you find him?”

  “I did,” Ari said. “I have a connection to him now. I can see where he’s going, but to keep it up, I’ll have to maintain a connection to you, too.”

  “Do it then,” I said. “I’ll follow him.”

  “What’s going on?” Peter asked as I slowly got to my feet.

  “Phoenix is hunting down Egan. We have to stop him before he does something he regrets.”

  “I can’t say I’d be sorry if Egan came to harm,” Peter said.

  “It can’t happen like that,” I warned. “He needs to go to trial. And I need a lift. Can you help me?”

  “Yeah, I’ll do it,” he said.

  Ari stood. “I’ll have to keep in touch with you. I can see him and follow his path, but I don’t know where he’ll end up.”

  “I’ll go with them.” Noah nodded at me. “I can help follow Ari’s directions, and you might need me if things go bad.”

  I hesitated. I wasn’t sure I wanted to be responsible for Noah if anything really did go wrong.

  “He’s strong,” Peter said. “If Phoenix gets in a fight, we’ll need a hand. You’re too weak to be much use right now.”

  “Go then,” Ari said. “I’ll confuse Alanii.” She sneered. “It won’t be hard.”

  We snuck Noah out of the children’s home. Alanii was going to hate me if I kept tricking her, but I didn’t have time to wait for permission that might not come. We didn’t have time to go pick up Val, either. We had to catch up to Phoenix first.

  We drove for two hours. Noah kept Ari on the phone for directions. I napped in the backseat, beyond exhausted. Ari’s power was dangerous and strong. I wondered if she had drained me out of necessity or just to teach me a lesson. I was too tired to truly care.

  Finally, we came to a farm in Kilkenny.

  “I don’t think this place was on the list,” I said.

  “Think we took a wrong turn?” Peter asked.

  “Nah, that’s Phoenix’s car outside.”

  All of the lights were on in the building, which was massive. Figures hurried past the upstairs windows.

  “Come on,” I said. “Noah, stay behind, just in case.”

  “No way,” he said. “I’m going with you, remember?”

  “Just… be careful.”

  The three of us got out of the car and kept in the shadows until we reached the front door, which had been destroyed completely. Wooden shards lay all over. With a heavy sense of foreboding, I stepped inside then froze as something blocked me from going any farther.

  Great. More magic.

  22

  Peter and Noah pressed against me before I could warn them not to come inside. We were pinned together, struggling to move. We couldn’t even back up.

  “I can’t move,” Noah said.

  “Don’t panic. And stop pushing. You’re getting nowhere but tighter against my back.”

  “What the hell is this?” Peter gasped.

  “Magic.” I shoved, but I kept coming up against resistance. “I’m getting really sick of this human using magic all of the time.”

  “It was me,” a soft female voice said.

  I looked to the stairs. A young woman stood there, looking nervous. Her light-brown hair hung past her shoulders in messy waves. She wore no makeup or decoration, bar a brooch pinned at the collar of her old-fashioned tea dress.

  “You’re a witch,” I said accusingly.

  “Am I?” She fidgeted with her sleeves. “I think… I think they’re going to kill him. Are you here to stop that?”

  “Nobody has to die tonight,” I said. “Enough people have died.”

  “You’re the one.” She blinked a couple of times. “You were supposed to give her a different life. They said you wouldn’t fail, but she came back. I wanted so bad for her not to come back, but he brought her home. The favour didn’t cost him much, and she ended up back here.”

  “Who? The baby? Are you the mother?” I asked. “Did you leave her on my doorstep?”

  “Not I. A friend with no face and no voice. But many voices said you were the one. Were they wrong?”

  I shivered. The way she spoke was creeping me out. “Just stop this magical crap, and we can talk about it. I tried to protect her, but somebody came and kidnapped her. They used magic.”

  “It’s true,” Noah said. “I saw… something.”

  “He likes magic. It makes everything safe.”

  The woman raised a hand, and the magic lifted enough for the three of us to separate from the uncomfortable position. I took two steps and found myself entwined again.

  “This is getting really annoying,” Peter snapped.

  “Are you Lavinia?” I said as the woman turned away.

  She hesitated then turned back to look at me. “Yes,” she said. “Did you find… Tomas left clues, always clues, but nobody noticed. Did you find one?”

  “Maybe.” I had no idea what she was on about. “Where’s the baby?”

  “Downstairs, with Tomas,” she said solemnly. “Safe. Protected from the other magic.”

  “Wh
at other magic?” Peter asked.

  She pointed at the stairs. “Up there. My magic doesn’t harm. Hers does.”

  “Who’s up there?” I said, suddenly scared. “Who’s being hurt?”

  She made a movement with her fingers. “Go see. But the barrier up there is not mine.” She fled, but the magic stopped blocking us.

  “I have to go see what’s happening,” I said. “Noah, go after her. See if you can get people out of here. Call Shay for help. And if she gets pointy with her magic, get out of here.”

  “I’m with you,” Peter said.

  I ran upstairs, closely followed by Peter. I half-expected to come upon a dead body. The hallway was empty. I sent out my other senses as we ran. Three people were upstairs—many more were downstairs. The barrier kept us out of the rooms we passed until we reached one at the end. It was a massive bedroom, mostly empty of furniture.

  I ran into the room and immediately got stuck. Again.

  Declan Egan laughed from where he relaxed on the bed. “Sticky, sticky traps.”

  “Phoenix!”

  “You shouldn’t have come here,” the fae prince said without looking at me.

  Phoenix was close to the bed, his arms outstretched as though he were almost free. Clementine was on the other side, rapidly murmuring what must have been a counterspell to the magic trapping him.

  “She’s almost done,” Phoenix said. “What will you do then, Egan?”

  “Exactly as I wish,” the human said. His charismatic persona was gone, and a manic look had replaced it. “You think I care what you do to me? My plans are worth more than—”

  “You’re done,” I said, trying to sound confident. “It’s over. The world knows what you are.”

  “What I am?” he sneered. “You don’t know what I am, and they don’t know what I will be.” He laughed at Phoenix. “You’re not exactly your mother’s son, are you? Or are you angry because I took what you wanted?”

  “I will never be like you,” Phoenix said.

  “More’s the pity.” Egan sat up. “That daughter of yours will be a nice addition to my collection. She’s been spending too much time on the beach these last few weeks. You should warn her to stay inside more often. I wouldn’t like her to ruin that delicate complexion.”

  Phoenix let out a roar of anger just as Clementine’s voice rose into a triumphant shout. We were free.

  Phoenix lunged at Egan, fell back at another barrier, then pulled out the whip, a fae weapon that electrified with its touch. I stopped moving just in fear of the memory of its bite. It hurt more than anything else I had ever experienced. It was living pain, the kind that never died, not even in my dreams.

  “Phoenix, don’t,” I whispered, feeling faint. Ari had taken too much from me. I couldn’t smother my fear without any strength. “Please don’t.”

  He lashed at Egan, whose body rocked and twisted on the bed. The human’s face grew taut and red as he struggled against the pain rushing through his body. But a bizarre smile lit up his expression, even while he looked agonised.

  “Thank you!” he screamed. “You’ve saved me precious time!”

  “Madman,” Phoenix snarled. “Are you the only one controlling this? Branding children and spying.” He pointed in my direction. “Sending fools to shoot those getting in your way!” His voice rose as though he were working himself up into a frenzy.

  “Stop it!” I cried.

  “Don’t get in the way,” Egan shouted hoarsely. “We can’t let him kill you, too. You’re far too useful, dear.”

  I almost felt the next lick of the whip myself, flinching as Phoenix struck again. I couldn’t have outlasted that pain, and I feared the life would leave Egan in front of my eyes. Phoenix’s gaze was dark and malevolent, focused only on harming the man he believed was a threat to his children.

  I couldn’t let Phoenix turn into that person. I pushed away my own fear and ran to him. If I could at least grapple him, then perhaps Egan could run. Peter could get him away long enough for me to calm Phoenix down. If I could just—

  “Stop!” Clementine’s word rooted me to the spot.

  “What are you doing?” I demanded, unable to move all over again.

  I heard footsteps at the door. Noah was there with Lavinia, but they couldn’t come in.

  “I made a deal with him,” Clementine said. “I won’t let you ruin it for me. I can’t afford it.”

  “Phoenix, don’t!” I cried. “He’s not worth it!”

  “Let him,” Peter said from behind me, a darkness in his voice I hadn’t heard in a long time. “Egan deserves everything he gets.”

  “What are you talking about?” I said. “This could kick off something we can’t stop!”

  “You don’t get it,” he said. I could barely hear him over Egan’s fresh screams. “My son was in that slave market. Egan didn’t begin this today or this year. He was working with Fionnuala for years to get to this point. For all we know, he was responsible for taking our children from us. Let him burn. He’s a monster.”

  I called Phoenix again, and this time, he looked at me. “You know this isn’t the way.”

  Clementine spoke another word, and my mouth shut. I couldn’t move or talk, and Phoenix was about to torture a human to death and provoke a war we couldn’t win.

  They were all against me, all fixed on doing something terrible in an attempt to erase something worse. Life didn’t work that way. We couldn’t wipe away the past, no matter how hard we tried..

  Egan’s agonised howls filled the air as the whip lashed against his skin again. Had I screamed that way? Phoenix had lost all sense of himself, and he almost looked as though he were enjoying himself. I wondered if we could ever get him back.

  Noah murmured something, but it was lost under the screaming. Then I heard Lavinia’s voice in my head as though she were right next to me—just one word.

  “Speak.”

  I moved, gasped, and breathed all at once. My legs were still stuck, but I could talk. “Phoenix!” I screamed. “Look at me! Please.”

  He did, sweat gleaming on his face. He was wild and too far gone to respond, but something I knew well flickered in his eyes. I could get through to him. I had to. I heard Clementine’s furious attempt at another spell, and I knew I needed to be quick. I wasn’t sure why Lavinia had helped me, but I had to take advantage.

  “Phoenix, this isn’t the way,” I said. “Torture doesn’t make us better than him. We have to do things right. We aren’t in a war anymore. The violence has to end sometime. And this man is less than nothing, but by hurting him, we just add fuel to the fire. The humans who hate us will grow in number, and the supernaturals will rise up against them in return. We have to be the ones who stop this, who stop the circle of violence.”

  “He deserves it,” he panted, but some of the darkness had seeped from his tone.

  “He deserves to be punished,” I said. “But not like this. If you kill him, you’ll give him exactly what he and people like him want—an excuse to do harm. Let him face justice in court. Let the world see who he really is. Show the humans that we’re capable of peace and mercy. But Phoenix, most of all, don’t let him ruin you. Look at yourself. Look at what you’ll let yourself become. Don’t give him that power. You said… you said yourself that we’re all capable of darkness, but it’s our choice that matters. Please don’t choose this, Phoenix. Not this.”

  Phoenix looked at the writhing man on the bed, at the people trapped in the room, and at Lavinia, who was depending on us to save her and her child. His gaze returned to me, and the anger began to leech from him as though it were a fading colour in his cheeks. He took a step away from the bed, regret plastered all over his face.

  “You’re just like your mother, after all,” Egan taunted.

  Phoenix’s grip on the whip tightened, then he dropped it. It fell to the ground with a loud bang that made me flinch.

  “Do you really think I’ll let you judge me?” Egan scoffed, his nose bloody from his trau
ma. “I’ve been working toward this my entire life, and I’ll get what I deserve, get everything I want.” He slipped his hand under the pillow and pulled out a jewelled dagger.

  “No!” I shouted, but I couldn’t reach him.

  Egan uttered a word I didn’t recognise then stabbed himself in the heart. He fell back on the pillow with a permanent smile etched on his face. He welcomed death. But why?

  23

  “He never wanted to be human,” Lavinia said softly. The magic in the room released us all.

  “He’s dead,” Clementine said. “It’s done, Phoenix.”

  “Good riddance,” Peter said.

  I shot him a sharp look, and he looked away.

  Phoenix sank to his knees, the epitome of a broken man. I doubted any possible outcome could have made him feel any less destroyed.

  “We need to call somebody,” Noah said. He sounded calmer than anyone else did. I couldn’t help but wonder about the things he had seen in his life that this was no big deal.

  “We have to do something,” I said. “He killed himself, but…” I looked at the others. “That’s all that happened, right? All of you, go downstairs and figure out who needs help. Lavinia will help with that, won’t you?”

  The young woman nodded, looking more curious than upset. She bade him follow her downstairs. He shot me one last glance before leaving with her.

  “Great,” I said. “Peter, figure out how many people are here, then call Shay and get him here.”

  “What should I tell him?” Peter asked.

  I glanced at Phoenix and bit my lip. He hadn’t moved. “Tell him we need help. We can get our stories straight before anyone arrives. I just… go on. We’ll follow in a few minutes.”

  Clementine nodded. “Right. We have to take care of things.” She stumbled out of the room as though shell-shocked.

  Peter paused at the door. “I hope you know what you’re doing, Ava.”

  “I just want to help,” I said firmly. “Don’t you? I mean, now that he’s dead.”