by Erin Johnson
I closed my eyes and pictured the flow of energy through me as the size of an extension cord, a half-inch stream of magic, cording through and out of me to Iggy. I concentrated on it, drowning everything else out—the wind, the crows, the splitting of the frozen earth. And once I had it, clearly in my mind—bright, electric-blue magic—I imagined enlarging the flow. As I willed Iggy to burn out the vine, I became aware of the plant, magically. I got an idea.
I pulled energy from it, instead of the trees. I should’ve done that earlier. Now, I not only fueled Iggy, but weakened the vine at the same time. I opened the flow of energy up to the size of a broom handle, then the diameter of a rolling pin. More and more magic flowed through me, quicker now. I kept opening up the stream, wider and wider, until I felt that my entire body from toes to head, shoulder to shoulder, was a conduit of magic. My skin tingled, my scalp prickled, and I gasped in a full lungful of air.
A loud whoosh made me open my eyes. They stung and I squinted against the heat of the fire. Iggy now rose up to the height of the treetops, blazing a blinding white. I gasped. He licked forward, spreading small fires among the pine trees. Junie lifted her wand and, as if conducting an orchestra, swooped and bounced her hands, putting out the small fires almost as soon as they started.
Iggy opened his mouth wide and descended on the monster vine, enveloping it in flames. "Oh my—" His eyes rolled back as he gnawed the vine's writhing branches. "It's so good. Better than Linden branches, Imogen." And those were his favorite, so that was saying something. The vine emitted a high-pitched whistle as more and more white smoke poured into the black sky above. I panted, my chest heaving, as I willed more energy into Iggy to keep him hot.
Hank's eyes darted toward me. "I'm trying, but I have no idea how you're doing this."
I gritted my teeth. "Pull from the vine."
Hank nodded and Iggy's flames took to the vine in one spot, then another.
"It's working," Junie cried.
The white smoke turned black, and soon the entire vine burned. I let the flow of energy drain to a trickle as the monster vine burned and died and finally turned to a pile of sizzling charcoal and ash. Weary, I dropped to a seat on the cold, snowy ground, too weak to stand any longer. Hank crouched beside me and took my hand. "Are you all right?"
I nodded, my mouth slack.
He squeezed my hands, his eyes dancing. "Of course you are. You just took down a monster vine. You're amazing."
I gave a dry chuckle. "You helped."
He shook his head. "Barely. I didn't quite get the hang of it like you did—and at the end there, you pretty much single-handedly took it down."
"Uh, single-handedly?" Iggy grumbled.
Hank squeezed my hands once more, then leapt to his feet. He scooped up the black lantern and ran to the burning pile of vine rubble and coaxed Iggy back in. He carried the lantern back and set my little flame beside me, while Junie scurried about, checking on the damage to the graveyard.
"Good job, buddy."
"I know what I want for Bruma. More monster vine." His tongue of flame slid out and he licked his lips.
"Bruma's over, buddy. Maybe next year." And we'd barely survived it.
Iggy grinned suddenly. "So, you're called a swallow because you can take in magic, right? Since you can pour your magic into another vessel, should we call you a vomiter, too?"
"A swallow/vomiter. Sounds great." I gave Iggy a side-eyed glance, still slumped. "Well, you were my 'vessel,' as you put it, and so should I call you a toilet bowl?"
He stuck out his tongue and I did it back. Then we both burst into giggles.
Junie hobbled over at that moment, her lips pursed tight. "Well, Cordelia didn't do any damage to the graveyard, thank the earth. But if we have any chance of saving the other members of the heritage society, we'd better move now."
My heart froze as I remembered. I scrambled to my feet, dredging up the willpower to stand again. I grabbed Hank's hands, my eyes open wide. "Hank. The members aren't the only ones in danger. Our friends followed after all of them—Cordelia's coming for them."
30
Barn
Once we'd cleared the densely packed trees of the forest, and there was less a chance of us impaling ourselves on one, Junie and Hank invoked speed spells and we raced across the snowy fields back to town. I screamed the whole time—couldn't help it. When we dropped out of warp speed and skidded to stop behind the inn, I looked to Hank and Junie.
"Who should we look for first? Should we split up?" I really, really didn't want to. I was fairly certain Lady Cordelia would snap me like that monster vine had snapped the pine tree.
Junie's eyes danced. "I've had an idea, actually. Instead of chasing after a murderous vampire, which might be difficult…."
Iggy sniffed. "Just a little."
"We might lure her to us, instead."
Hank lifted a thick brow. "How?"
Junie folded her hands across her stomach. "I can see heart bonds, you know."
I frowned a little, not quite following.
"We'll need your vampire. And luckily, I know where he is."
After we retrieved Rhonda and Francis from Minette's dress shop, where she was cowering behind her counter, too scared to speak to them, we raced across town to the farm fields behind the church. Junie pointed at the bright red-and-white, two-story barn. "There."
We crunched across the snowy field and stepped into the warm barn, where we surprised Pandora and Beau. They looked up from the bale of hay they shared and paused their snogging. Slowly, Beau's hand dropped from Pandora's face and she straightened his bow tie. "Yes?" She batted her big blue eyes at us.
We explained everything, and Pandora's eyes grew wide in surprise, then her brows lifted in despair, and finally, her mouth settled into a grim line. "Fine. I understand. I'll help."
"Thank you," I gasped. "Please do it now, our friends and your neighbors are in danger."
Pandora stood and Beau stood with her, shoulder to shoulder. She threw her head back, opened her mouth wider than I would have supposed possible, and took a deep breath. Then she let out an ear-piercing shriek. And another and another. The horses stamped and pawed in their stalls and tossed their heads, but Pandora kept on screaming while Beau cheered her on… and on… until….
Lady Cordelia flung open the barn door with her remaining arm, her flaming red hair in wild curls about her head. "Pandora!" Eyes wide, she raced forward in a blur, but stopped short when Francis stepped between them. Francis was hundreds of years older, and stronger than she was. She crouched and her lip curled.
"If you've hurt my daughter—"
Rhonda scoffed. "If you've hurt our friends—"
Lady Cordelia's eyes darted around the room, her shoulders hunched up in her ears. Her breath came in uneasy pants and the horses grew even more nervous, whinnying and showing the whites of their eyes.
"Mum." Pandora stepped to the side so that she had a direct line of sight to her mother. Beau came with her, their hands linked. "They haven't hurt me."
"Why were you screaming?" Lady Cordelia's chest heaved.
Pandora gulped. "Don't be mad. They told me you'd hear and come for me."
"This a trap?"
Pandora nodded. "Yeah. But like, they told me what you did, so it seemed like the right thing to do."
Cordelia gritted her teeth together, her pale lips peeled back. "Those men were going to ruin your chances with Beau. I knew you truly loved him. And Pandora, I would do anything to protect you, anything to make you happy."
"I know, Mum." Pandora pressed her free hand to her chest. "That really means a lot that you would literally kill for me. I mean, it was wrong and bad, but I still love you. It's just—it was all kinda pointless. Beau loves me, too."
He flashed her his bright smile and Pandora swung their hands. "Dad being a crook and you being a vampire—those things don't matter to him."
"It's true." Junie nodded. "I can see it. Their hearts are bonded."
Cordelia's brows lifted in the center as she looked from Pandora to Beau. The young man took a deep breath and dropped down to one knee, right there in the hay. I pressed a hand to my heart. Now this was unexpected. There, among the sweet smells of hay and horse sweat, Beau confessed his love.
He took Pandora's hand in both of his as tears filled her eyes. "Pandora Allencourt, I know this is probably not the right time, seeing as your mum just got caught for committing two murders and attempting more, and actually you just found out she's your sister and a vampire—which I'm totally cool with. The vampire part, the murders are less cool." He sighed and shook his head. "Sorry, off topic. What I'm trying to say is, even in times like this, I just want to be with you. I love your goofy sense of humor and your talent and your smile. I love you. Will you marry me?"
"Yes!"
Beau stood and Pandora threw her arms around his neck as he twirled her around. My eyes darted left and right. Should I clap or… no, not the time? Hard to know the etiquette in a combination arrest/proposal type situation.
Lady Cordelia clasped her hands together, her eyes shining. "Pandora. You have grown up to be such a wonderful young woman and I am so happy for you." She gulped, her throat bobbing. "Will you—can you forgive me?"
Pandora smiled sadly, the corners of her mouth turned down. "Of course, Sister-Mum. I love you."
Cordelia nodded, once. Then she held her arm out, hand limp, and hung her head. "Arrest me."
Francis cocked a brow.
She snapped her head back up. "Come on, arrest me."
"Seems too easy," Rhonda mused.
Cordelia rolled her eyes. "I love my daughter more than I love my freedom. Arrest me, lock me up—as long as Pandora comes to visit now and then, it'll be better than a life on the run."
Francis floated forward with a length of rope he'd snatched from a hook on the wall. He bound Cordelia's hands and scoffed. "As if you could run from me."
She sneered but made no move to fight or escape.
"Maybe you'll get parole, Mum?" Pandora came to Cordelia's side with Beau. "Vampires live a long time, after all. And maybe the town will consider how you protected everyone from raiders and monsters."
Cordelia nodded and planted a quick peck on Pandora's cheek.
"We'll take her to the station," Rhonda chimed, jogging to catch up with Francis, who was already marching Lady Cordelia out of the barn. She grinned. "Those policemen haven't seen this much action in decades, I'd bet."
My lips twitched to the side. Maybe being locked up next to that brat Dylan would be punishment enough for Cordelia. Pandora and Beau trailed behind, hand in hand, discussing wedding dates and rings. Hank and Junie followed next, discussing how being a heart witch worked.
I smiled and sighed wistfully. Would Hank and I ever have what Pandora and Beau did?
As if he'd read my mind, Iggy snorted. "Don't get your hopes up."
"Excuse me?" I pressed my lips into a tight line. I'd had enough. Iggy's snark I could handle, but lately his comments had been caustic.
Iggy's flame darted erratically. "Beau Primpington might not care about Pandora's lineage, but Hank apparently does. He's marrying Shaday, Imogen. Move on."
I stopped dead and let the others outdistance us a bit before I answered. My heart felt heavy and I'd had as much as I could take that night. "Hank is marrying Shaday because his dad has ordered him to and if he disobeys, he'll lose his ability to do magic. If I could just move on, I would. But I have real feelings for him, and he for me. So why are you doing this? Hank's a good guy, Shaday knows about us and has someone herself. We're not hurting anyone." My bottom lip trembled.
Iggy made a choked noise. "I don't care about Shaday, or Hank—I care about you! You're going to get hurt!"
I hadn't expected that. "I thought you were judging us, since Hank is engaged." I folded my arms.
"I don't give two clams." Iggy scoffed. "Except that I just know it's going to crush you to have to bake his wedding cake and live on the sidelines, taking what spare moments you can get from him. You deserve more, Imogen! You deserve everything." Iggy's eyes grew huge and round. "I love you and I'm worried about you."
"Oh." Well, that kind of deflated me. My shoulders slumped and I felt weary to the bone. I took a deep breath, mulling it over. "I know where you're coming from now, and I can see that it's a loving place."
"Well." Iggy pressed his mouth so tight it disappeared for a moment. "I haven't been very kind about it, so I can see how you'd think I was being judgy."
I nodded. "And I can see why you're concerned… I am, too. I just… I need more time to figure things out." I sighed. "I have to admit, I've been kind of hoping Hank could sort of step down from his duties or something, or would back out of the wedding and his dad would understand."
Iggy's lips quirked to the side.
"But after what Francis said…. The king doesn't sound like much of a father. He doesn't care about Hank's happiness, he just cares about the political alliance. I mean"—I lifted a palm—"they set the wedding date without talking to him… or even telling him. And if his dad could take Hank's powers by disowning him… I mean, that's a part of who he is, a big part. And I can't ask that of him, or expect it."
Iggy sighed. "I'm sorry, Imogen. I know it's hard, and I'm sorry I've been making it harder on you."
I held Iggy up to face level and quirked my lips to the side. "It's okay. I love you, buddy. And I'm going to think about what you said. I'm not blind… I just wanted to enjoy it while I could."
Iggy nodded. "I'm just afraid that if you don't think about these things now, and let your heart get even more entwined, it'll be so much harder when you're forced to look at it."
Like when Hank walked Shaday down the aisle. I heaved a shuddering sigh. "Let's go back to the inn." I dragged my feet out of the barn, past the rows of horses in stalls, and caught up with the others. I didn't even remember taking my shoes off before throwing myself into bed and passing out. What a night.
31
Family
I slept in late the next morning. My body felt like it weighed a million pounds, and even Iggy was exhausted. I couldn't coax him into getting the fire in our fireplace going, so Maple and I stayed under the covers of each of our beds and talked with our heads poking out to stay warm. Hank had filled everyone in last night after the police arrested Lady Cordelia, but he carefully left out the part about finding my parents' grave and me learning about my history. He whispered to me later, "I'll let you tell that part—if you feel like it."
Now, Maple filled me in on what she and Wiley had been doing at the time and how startled they'd been when they realized Lady Cordelia had disappeared from the tree lighting. "I knew—I just knew at that moment that she'd killed those men."
I nodded, only half listening. My stomach twisted, not only with hunger, but with nerves. Maple was my best friend, but I was reluctant to tell her about discovering that Horace was my brother. It wasn't exactly that I thought she'd judge me or stop being my friend—I knew Maple was too good for that. But something else nagged at me that I couldn't quite put my finger on. When the rumblings of my stomach grew too strong, Maple and I dressed hurriedly and went down to breakfast.
We joined our friends at what was becoming our usual table in the crowded dining room. People sat at every seat and talked excitedly about the happenings of the night before. Cordelia's arrest was on everyone's tongue, and the dining room hummed with the murmur of voices. I greeted my friends and took a seat next to Hank, then set Iggy's lantern on the table. The prince squeezed my hand under the table.
"You sleep okay?"
I smiled, but dodged his limpid eyes full of concern. I forced myself to have a chipper tone. "Everyone all caught up on last night?"
Amelia nodded and leaned forward. "Yes, but you may not have heard. It seems this town's also ousted the governor—Lady Cordelia's been running damage control to remedy the man's habit of embezzlement all these years."
I nodded
that, thinking back. She had mentioned something along those lines last night. "So who's going to be in charge? Pandora?"
Rhonda laughed. "Nah. She and Beau are apparently heading back to London to continue their studies at the conservatory—though they've promised to visit Cordelia. Pandora even spent the night in the jail with her mother. Instead, they've formed a town council to rule by committee. The witch who helped you, Junie, is on it." Rhonda cocked a brow at Hank. "And let me tell you, as someone who's spent time in jail, the one here is pristine—like, really fancy. You need to talk to your father about updating Bijou Mer's." She crinkled her nose.
Hank lifted a broad palm. "Well, of course it's pristine, the police have apparently not arrested anyone for the last thirty years." They bickered back and forth in good humor.
I grinned. That was a good choice, putting Junie on the council.
We had a cheerful breakfast and made arrangements to leave within the hour. We'd continue on to London (the Earth Kingdom's capitol hidden among the non-magical) if Hank, Iggy, and I could burn through the monster vine the same way we'd done it last night. Hopefully we'd arrive in time to catch the tail end of the Bruma celebrations. Otherwise, we'd head back to Bijou Mer and let Earth Kingdom officials clear it. The whole time, my stomach turned and twisted and I bounced my leg. I felt uneasy not telling my friends about Horace—it seemed like lying after all we'd been through together. But I feared their reactions.
Maple offered to pack for me and waved off my protests. "I just hum a little song, and magic whips it all together. It'll take me no time at all." She smiled.
I squeezed her hand and accepted her offer, then took off for the Heart Witch shop across the town square. I wanted to see Junie again before I left. I ran to the shop and arrived panting and puffing steam into the cold midmorning air. I rang the little cat bell to announce my presence, then stepped inside. The warmth from the fire set my nose and fingertips tingling, and I inhaled the comforting scent of dried lavender and thyme and burning incense. I found not only Junie, but also Minette and the other three members of the Heritage Society sitting at one of the cozy wood tables scattered about the store.