by Liz Schulte
“But why was there an emblem at her feet? How did she get it? Why would they possess her and make her kill people instead of actually looking for the Pole? It doesn’t make sense,” Sebastian said.
Selene sat back in her chair and twirled a long, dark piece of hair around her finger as she thought.
“Maybe it’s a message,” Devin offered. “You know, like a calling card. Maybe whoever you took it from wants to talk to you, but doesn’t really have a way to reach you.”
“So he killed six people to what? Get my attention?”
“Stranger things have happened,” I said.
She sighed. “That doesn’t do us much good. I can’t summon a demon without dark magic and that isn’t a trick I would like to teach Frost at this point.”
“I’ll do it,” Edith said from the doorway. It was a bit of a surprise to see her. She had been staying with us for a while, but I barely encountered her. When she wasn’t in the archive working on writing spells for Selene, she stayed in her room.
“You can’t,” Selene said. “You said yourself you feel the pull of the dark magic on you.”
Edith nodded. “That’s why I need to do it. I am old and my life is nearing its end. Whatever urges I feel won’t have long to wear down my control.”
“It might be your best bet. If Edith wants to do it, isn’t that ultimately her decision?” I asked. I knew that wasn’t the answer Selene wanted, but we really didn’t have time to find another solution. With Selene’s father snooping around and hearing about the Pole, the last thing we needed was for him to add fuel to the fire and target Jessica. We still had no idea what his angle was or what he wanted. I motioned Selene over to the side before she could argue.
“Your father came to see me.”
Her eyes narrowed. “So?”
“He asked a lot of questions—fairly specific questions about the Pole. He is up to something, but I don’t know what yet. However, with him looking into this, we really don’t have time to find another way. We know there is someone out there who knows about the Pole and is spreading rumors of its existence. If you’re right and the hellhound is still here, perhaps it’s the culprit. When the rumors didn’t work to get your attention, it killed our people.”
I took her hand. “It’s about more than saving yourself. Yes, if people find out you brought it here, you will be punished, but at the same time a new life-altering force has been introduced to the Abyss. Everyone will be trying to get at it. If it were to fall into the wrong hands…”
She nodded. “Everyone will suffer.” Her tongue darted out to wet her lips. “I hate that I can’t cast this spell myself. Why can everyone else manage to cast at least one dark spell, but I can’t even carry the damn book?”
“I don’t know, but I would rather have you and our child safe than test it.”
She looked back at her grandma and raised her voice. “If you’re sure.”
“I am,” Edith said.
“Then let’s do it.” She squeezed my hand before she let go. “We will summon Charon.”
Once it was decided, we wasted no time. We went to the ballroom so there would be enough space for Edith to draw three circles on the ground. I retrieved the spell book for her and the witches helped her prepare and find the ingredients she would need. She placed Selene in the circle to her right and left the circle to her left empty.
“Activate your circle,” she told Selene. At that, Selene closed her eyes for a moment, and then a shimmering gold column sprung from the floor around her and rose to the ceiling. When Edith was satisfied, she began her spell. The language she spoke was strange and guttural. A dark mist formed in the circle to the left, swirling and fading in and out until it formed a human-like figure. The dark cloak covering his head cascaded down to the floor in rich folds. A long, unkempt beard appeared, starting at his feet and reaching all the way up to his thin, grim mouth and furious, glowing blue eyes that were focused only on Selene.
“Thief,” his voice boomed as he pointed a gnarled finger at her. “Do you know what you have done?”
Her shoulders straightened as she faced him. “Did you possess my friend?”
“No souls can cross to Hell. The tenuous balance of the underworld has been threatened by your impudence, elf. Return the Pole at once or I will do more than possess your feeble friends. I will absorb your world into the underworld and everyone will be punished for your pride.”
“I would gladly give it back, but I don’t have it. I should, however, have it back in my possession by tomorrow night.”
He screamed in fury and frustration, but seemed to accept what Selene had said. “A moment later and you will feel my wrath.”
He began to disappear. “Wait, what about the hellhound?” she called out, but he faded into nothingness as Edith collapsed to the floor. The coven went to Edith while Sebastian and I headed for Selene. When I reached her, she looked me in the eye. “Are you satisfied now that Jessica didn’t commit those crimes of her own free will?”
I nodded. “I’ll release her. Are you okay?” She looked fine physically, but her hands shook beneath mine and she swayed slightly where she stood.
“I’m okay. Just let Jess go and we can start working on the spells we will need for tomorrow night.”
I left Selene with Sebastian and headed for the dungeon. The more I thought about it, Charon didn’t actually say he possessed her. He said he would do more than possess her feeble friends…no, I was overthinking it.
Jessica sat quietly inside her cell with the guard standing outside of it. Most of the time people wept or called for someone or at the very least made friends with the guards, but not her. She sat quietly waiting, as if she knew the hour would come. I nodded to the guard to unlock the door, then I went inside.
She looked up at me but said nothing.
“Selene found who possessed you. I’m sorry this had to happen.”
She nodded only once. “I understand.”
“Had it just been up to me I wouldn’t have taken these measures. I hope you know how much you are valued by Selene and by me. You’re one of our dearest friends.” I undid her shackles.
She stood, rubbing her wrists. “I honestly do understand. This was as much for my protection as anyone else’s.” She shook my hand. “No hard feelings.”
I clasped a hand on her shoulder. “Thank you. I believe the coven is waiting for you in the archive. They are going to work on the spells for tomorrow night. They would love to see you.”
“What about the necromancer?”
“Selene feels she has been trained enough.”
Jessica nodded with a faint smile. “I imagine she does.”
She started down the hall and up the stairs. I redirected my attention to the guard. “Has she said anything?”
“Not to me, Erlking.”
I nearly accepted his answer, but something about it bothered me. “Not to you or not to anyone?” I asked.
The guard shifted from foot to foot nervously. “She hasn’t said a word to me, but I could hear her in there whispering.”
“Whispering?”
“I don’t know what she was saying, but she was whispering something, then she would go silent like someone was talking back, then she would whisper again.”
I had a bad feeling about this. I had a bad feeling about her. Selene would never listen. Not after fighting so hard to get her released. I hoped my feelings were misplaced and that Jessica was fine, but I needed to be sure. I turned to address the guard again. “I would like you to follow her. If she shows any signs that she might hurt someone again, contact me immediately.”
He nodded.
“She will be in the archive with the queen.”
“Yes, Erlking.”
The elf left and soft, musical laughter drifted from down the hall, deeper into the dungeon. There was only one person it could be. The one person who remained here awaiting judgment. Alanna.
“Poor Erlking. Betrayed at every turn,” her lilting
voice drifted down the hall toward me.
I looked toward the stairs then back down the damp hall that was barely glowing with torchlight. I didn’t need the complication of talking to Alanna now, but if she knew something I couldn’t risk not talking to her.
Her cell was dark like all of them, but fairy lights decorated the inside ceiling, giving the impression of the night sky and lending the room a pleasant glow. Her long, flowing red hair looked perfect and a dress that accentuated every curve clung to her. How could she have been in here this long and still looked so good?
“You should have chosen me. Do you not yet see? We would have been partners. We would have ruled the fae like no others and they would have loved us.”
“What do you want, Alanna?”
“To help, only to help.” She ran her perfect fingernails down the thick iron bars.
“And why would you help me?”
“I was frustrated when I betrayed you, but now I see you’re just blind. I want to help you see who your prized little half-elf really is.”
“I know who Selene really is. If this is all you have for me, then I’m leaving.”
“Do you know she met with the vampire, quite hidden and far from respectably, only a few hours ago?”
“Yes and what of it?” I asked. I actually had no idea she’d met with him, but this was hardly earth-shattering news.
“And after their little rendezvous he went to visit the necromancer, but she followed. She didn’t look happy at all when she came out of the garden. I think someone may have been jealous. Now, what would your perfect, loyal little queen have to be jealous about, hmm?”
Selene’s expression when she came into the archive came back to me. Was she upset over Corbin and Frost? Or was Alanna lying as she so often did? “How do you know all of this?”
“Spies, my dear, spies,” she said bluntly. “I have them everywhere.” Her white teeth flashed in the darkness. “And now she has convinced you to let her psychotic human friend go. By the time she’s done with you, Cheney, you will be the laughing stock of the entire fae race. Unwrap yourself from her finger while you still can.”
“Who are you passing what you learn from your spies to?” I asked. Maybe Alanna was our leak.
“Wouldn’t you love to know?”
I grabbed Alanna’s wrist and pulled her hard against the bars of the cell. “If you do anything to threaten my family or position, the last thing I will do as Erlking will be to take your life. Do you understand?”
“When are you going to realize, Cheney, that I am your only true friend?”
“When are you going to realize that I will never fall for your trickery or deceit? I mean it, Alanna. Whoever you are working with, you better stop now if you value your life at all.”
“And if you value the life of your pretty queen, then I would put her friend back in the dungeon. She’s dangerous.”
I stared at her for a moment, debating whether or not to believe her. “Like you would ever do anything to help Selene.”
“Perhaps not, but are you willing to gamble on that? Admit it. You’re not sure yourself. Can the human be trusted? Tick-tock, Erlking. You’re living in a house of cards, and the wind is starting to pick up.”
WHEN JESSICA WALKED IN we bombarded her. She accepted the hugs and words of encouragement stoically, which wasn’t unusual for her, but she looked tired, fragile, and there was still something a little off about her. Of course she’d just spent 24 hours in a damp, windowless dungeon that I knew from my own experiences had rats—big ones—so who could blame her.
She cracked her neck and massaged the muscles in her shoulders with both hands. “So where are we with the binding spell?”
“I think Gram has it worked out. We need to do a practice cast on another book to make sure it works, but otherwise I think we’re good.”
“Let’s do it,” Jessica said.
Together we bound a completely innocent book about the great brownie invasion of 1485 that probably hadn’t been cracked opened since…well, 1485.
“Try it,” Katrina said, nudging the book toward me.
I picked it up and opened it, but every word and picture was gone from the inside. I flipped through the pages to make sure, but nothing was there. I smiled and tossed the book back to the center of the room. “It worked.”
Devin picked up the book and looked through it. “I can’t believe it. Not that I didn’t have complete faith in you, Kat, but wow. This was a very specific spell. You’re really growing as a witch.”
“So we’re ready?” Leslie asked.
“Not quite,” Jessica said. “Who’s helping Frost and who’s casting the spell? We won’t be able to set all of this up like this tomorrow. I mean, Frost has to be able to use the book, and once we know her spell works then we need to cast on the book. So we have to split up. It will be tricky. Is there a way to quickly break the spell if we’re wrong on the timing? Like, what if it’s the wrong spell?”
All smiles disappeared as we stared down at the harmless book. It looked like our work was just starting.
Several hours later we finally had everything sorted out. Jessica would help Frost—though none of us were happy about it, she insisted she at least knew what to expect and it wasn’t dangerous because she wasn’t actually going to be reading from the book. I would be on the side with the elves (Cheney, Sy, and Sebastian), but I would use my telekinesis to move the book to the center of the circle between Grandma, Katrina, Leslie, and Devin to be bound as soon as their spell had worked, then I would focus on making sure we retrieved the Pole. We practiced every scenario, even the ridiculous ones. By the time I headed up to bed, I felt prepared and ready for whatever could be thrown at us tonight.
Cheney wasn’t in the bedroom, so I turned around and went to search for him. I found him sitting in front of the fireplace in his office. He looked worried and tired, but it all vanished from his face when he glanced up at me.
“How’d it go?” he asked. “How’s Jessica doing?”
“Surprisingly well on both accounts. I think we’re as prepared as we can be for tonight, and Jessica fell right back into planning and helping like nothing ever happened.”
He scratched his jaw. “So she seems fine to you?”
“Of course. Why wouldn’t she be?”
He sighed. “I spoke with Alanna. She’s in a cell that’s a little bit away from where we put Jessica. She…she indicated that we shouldn’t trust her.”
I scoffed. “I think we have a pot-and-kettle situation here. Alanna is hardly the most trustworthy person. She’s probably just trying to make trouble.”
“I had the same thought….” He looked back at the fire. “But we are depending heavily on all the pieces falling into place just so, and there isn’t really room for error.”
“Jessica is fine. But even if she isn’t, what exactly do you think she could do to hinder us?”
“She could take the Pole or the book just as easy as Frost.”
“She isn’t doing anything with the book tomorrow. She’s assisting Frost on casting and we have a plan to bind the book before they finish their spell. It will be safe for me to give it to her, then once she sees it’s empty we will take it back and destroy it.”
“What about the Pole?”
“That’s our job. I’ll be with you, Sy, Sebastian, and Corbin. Our main goal will be to get the Pole from whoever has it. The coven and Grandma will take care of the book. Hopefully, Frost can find a spell that will immobilize it for long enough for us to take it. Once we have it in our possession, it shouldn’t be hard to put everything back.” I bit my lower lip. “But we might need a little luck…”
He looked back at me, blinking those golden eyes a couple times. “It’s too dangerous to bring Lily into it. And not just for her. Her luck isn’t free. One lucky event can be followed by disaster in all other things.”
I stood up and mentally counted to ten. “I am doing the best I can here. Honestly, Cheney, you need to wo
rk with me on this. First you tell me we have to kill Frost and when I get on board with that, you treat me like I’m a monster for agreeing to what you already agreed to. I get Corbin on board to help and you don’t want to trust him. I prove Jessica didn’t willingly kill anyone and you still want me to punish her when all she has ever done is help us. And now you won’t involve your ‘sister’ who you have only known for like, two seconds, whereas I have everyone I have ever known and loved putting their lives on the line. How is any of this fair?”
“I’m not the one who brought the Pole back,” he snapped.
“Oh, so this is my fault? You’re punishing me? I see. Tell me, would you rather that I had just stayed dead?”
The tension between us broke when my phone rang. Cheney let out a breath, his fingers combing restlessly through his hair.
“That’s not what I’m saying. You’re putting words in my mouth.”
I answered the phone. “What?”
“I need to see you,” Corbin said.
“Where?”
“My house. It’s almost sunrise.”
“Okay.” I hung up, promptly turning on my heel and walking out. Seething anger still coursed through me. Why was Cheney making this so hard? I was trying to make things right, but I couldn’t do it alone. Outside of the castle, I transported to Corbin’s house. He let me in before I could even knock. He was wearing a slight, knowing smile that I wasn’t in the mood for playing at the corners of his mouth.
“What did the elf do to cause this face?” he asked tilting my chin up.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” I said, my voice barely a whisper as I met Corbin’s dark eyes. The fleeting thought that my life would be so much easier with him crossed my mind. The old, familiar, alarming yet comforting urge to run away from all my responsibilities beckoned and caressed my mind, urging me to accept it. I didn’t have to do any of this. The Pole wasn’t really my problem. Corbin and I could leave and everyone else could sort it out.