“We saved you some,” Tommy said, nudging a plate toward her.
“Did y’all come up with a plan while I was out there?” she asked, pulling out a chair.
A blush colored Ceri’s cheeks. “We might have.”
“Good,” Amber said with a grin. “Fill me in while I eat.”
Chapter 27
AMBER
“What in the seven realms are you wearing?” the demon asked, drifting in a circle around her.
“I dressed up as Boggy Killspree,” Amber explained, adjusting the tusks that now jutted out from her lips. They sparked as the charm settled into place.
She stepped back from the mirror and took in her outfit. Green skin, bright purple mohawk, shredded tank top, leather pants and bracers. It was spot on, and she was completely unrecognizable. “He’s a troll. Lead singer of my favorite band.”
The demon crossed his arms. “Aren’t women supposed to use this holiday as an excuse to dress as slutty as possible?” he asked, sounding put out.
She rolled her eyes. “Don’t be a perv.”
“Just because I appreciate the confident display of a woman’s body does not make me a perv,” the demon huffed, a plume of smoke blowing from his nostrils.
“Can you even have sex?” She asked, gesturing at his lack of legs.
He chuckled, sending a chill down her spine. “Oh, I definitely can. Come to hell and I’ll show you,” he purred.
She grimaced. “Let’s pretend I never asked that.”
Grabbing her wallet, she stuffed it in her back pocket and looked around to make sure she hadn’t forgotten anything. With one last admiring glance in the mirror, she went to the kitchen. This whole plan they had was a little insane, but Amber couldn't deny the sense of anticipation. The more they learned about the Trials, the more she doubted she'd survive them. This was something she could do.
She opened the refrigerator and stared at the mostly empty shelves. They went through groceries like they were starving lately. She had thought the increased appetite was only after shifts, but apparently, it was constant.
The demon’s head popped out from behind a bottle of beer. She didn't flinch this time.
"I'll get you next time," he muttered, pouring out of the refrigerator. Even though he wasn't solid, she took a step back. She disliked it when he passed through her; it made the mark tingle oddly.
"What do you think?" Genevieve asked.
Amber turned around and found herself at a loss for words. Genevieve wore a bright red, spandex bodysuit. A tail waved behind her, the tip flickering with fake flames. She held a pitchfork in her left hand, and a red mask obscured her features. Her distinctive pink hair was black instead.
“Now she has the right idea,” the demon said, a red smile appearing on his shadowy face as he circled Genevieve. She was oblivious to his presence.
Amber bit back several retorts, but only because she didn’t want the others thinking she was crazier than she was.
"You look… striking," she said with a smile. Genevieve’s petite frame was well-suited to the tight fabric. She didn't have an ounce of excess fat on her.
Tommy walked out, but if Amber hadn't been able to smell him she would have thought a stranger had strolled in.
"What the hell are you wearing?" she asked with a laugh as she took in the ridiculous costume. He wore a ratty gray wig topped with a pointy black hat. An old, lacy black dress was draped over his lanky frame.
"You think the witches will like it?" he asked, picking up and twirling in a circle with a smug grin that looked extra creepy behind the disguise. He paused mid-twirl and sniffed, his bulbous, warty nose twitching.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
He walked through the living room and the kitchen, still sniffing the air. “Do you smell that?” he asked, crouching down to peer under the table. “It smells weird, like smoke or sulfur. One second I get a whiff of it, the next it’s gone.”
She stiffened. “I haven’t smelled anything weird.”
Angel swooped around her, cackling. “The boy is perceptive."
She ignored the taunt and shouted toward the back of the house, "Ceri, you ready?"
“Almost!” Ceri shouted back. “I’ll meet you at the truck!”
CERI
Ceri adjusted the fur sprouting from her jaw. She'd bought a bottle of Wolf Charm for the Halloween party. No one would be able to recognize her behind this disguise, which was important considering what they had planned.
The fur sticking out of her collar itched. Scratching it absentmindedly, she reviewed the plan in her head one last time. Amber and Genevieve were going to create a distraction, while Tommy would be her lookout. He’d make sure no one else came in until she was done with the sabotage.
That’s where the hard part came in. She had no idea what they were planning for their display. Every coven guarded that knowledge like their life depended on it. No one wanted to risk being copied or shown up. Once she got in the room, she’d have to improvise.
She grabbed her phone and wallet, stuffing them in her pockets, and ran outside. They were all already in the truck. Tommy and Gen scooted over to give her some room on the bench seat, but it was going to be a tight fit. Especially with the pitchfork.
"The devil and a witch, huh?" she commented, smiling at Tommy's ridiculous costume. Snooty witches like the Blackwood coven hated ugly witch costumes. It was perfect.
Amber started the truck and backed out of the driveway. Woggy poked his head out of Tommy's wig, then squeaked in excitement. He scrambled over Gen's shoulder and launched himself at her. She caught him and helped him stand up on her palm.
"He missed you," Tommy said with a grin. "He's been signing for you all day." He leaned over and pointed at her. "Who is this?"
Woggy's long fingers formed a C that he placed over his heart. He held it there for a moment before pointing at Ceri and jumping up and down. The single remaining nub on his back wiggled as though he were trying to fly.
"That's how he says your name. He picked it out yesterday after I taught him how to say love," Tommy said.
She swallowed around the lump in her throat. "Thank you so much for teaching him," she managed, though her voice shook with emotion. She hated the witches all over again, especially Selena Blackwood, the asshole who had ripped off his wings. Tonight, she was going to pay for that. Turns out karma is a witch.
Chapter 28
TOMMY
If they hadn’t had a mission, Tommy would have been having the time of his life. This was almost better than The Market. The stately homes that filled the subdivision were lit up with magic.
They passed one house that looked like it was on fire, but the flames were cool to the touch. He wasn’t sure if it was an illusion or some kind of fake flame. Kids ran in and out, shrieking in excitement.
For such a secretive bunch, he’d always found it odd how witches congregated together in these subdivisions. They must like to keep their friends close, and their enemies closer.
The busy street wound around, then dead-ended in front of the biggest house in the city. He didn’t know much about witches, but everyone knew the Blackwood name. Blackwood meant power and money. After tonight, they’d know it for a different reason, too.
He’d already liked Ceri, but after the plan she’d come up with, he had a whole new level of respect for the witch. Her revenge was going to be public, and all the blame would be laid at Selena’s feet.
“Where’s Woggy?” Ceri asked, jogging up beside him.
“Last I saw he was in your hair. Here, let me look.”
They stopped, and he dug through the thick, red hair. It was weird to see her without the blonde curls. She looked eerily like Amber in this costume. Woggy stuck his head out of the mass of hair and crawled onto his hand. “Here he is.”
The pixie crawled onto Ceri’s hand, immediately darting up her arm, trying to get back in her hair.
“Woggy, what is the matter with you,” she said grabbing hi
m. “I’ve never seen him this scared before.”
Tommy looked around them. “Maybe he’s scared of witches?”
“Oh, of course,” she said, clutching the pixie close. He curled up in her palm, shivering. “I shouldn’t have brought him here, but I worried about leaving him alone.”
“He’ll be okay. Just keep him with you and let him hide.”
Amber walked over, followed by Gen, who was twirling her pitchfork like a baton.
“Should we go ahead and split up?” Amber asked. Despite the punk rock costume, she was still unmistakably herself. He was a little worried anyone that had met her would immediately recognize her.
“Yep, let’s do it,” Ceri said, adjusting her costume.
“Stay safe, okay?” Amber looked like she was barely resisting the urge to drag them all out of here. She was more mother hen than werewolf.
“We’ll be fine. I won’t let anything happen to Tommy, I promise,” Ceri said, putting her hands on Amber’s shoulders.
Amber nodded and grabbed Gen, walking toward the front of the big house. “You’re going to hit someone with that thing.”
“I haven’t hit anyone yet!” Genevieve protested.
Ceri shook her head as they walked away. “She’s going to have a nervous breakdown by the time we’re done.”
He laughed. “If she was going to have a nervous breakdown, she’d have already had it.”
Ceri laughed at that and hooked her arm in his. They headed away from the crowd while doing their best to look nonchalant. His heart was beating a mile a minute but no one could tell underneath his costume.
It was hot and itchy, but the suffering was worth the offended looks on the faces of random witches. Some people didn’t know how to take a joke.
They stopped at a hedge, and after a quick look around, jumped over it. Stooping down low, they ran behind the house. He gave Ceri a boost over a fence, then jumped over it himself. He didn’t even have to use a hand. A very few things about being a werewolf were kind of awesome.
Three houses down was their target. It was quiet back there. The line of houses muffled the sounds of the crowd. Ceri held her finger to her lips to remind him not to speak and jogged ahead of him.
A few feet away from the property line, she stopped them. He looked around to make sure they were still alone as she knelt and pulled out a knotty wooden stick. She traced an intricate shape while chanting in a strange language. Magic tickled his nose, and he held back the need to sneeze.
The way she moved when she was casting was elegant. He’d seen a lot of witches do magic, but never like her. They were always so forceful and angry. She didn’t try to force the magic; she just let it happen.
There was a light pop, and she stood back up, yanking him over the property line with her. “Sorry, we only had a few seconds,” she whispered.
“It’s fine. Let’s get you inside. It’s already a little later than we planned,” he said, urging her toward the back door.
“This part is going to be a little harder. The wards on the backdoor are probably really intense,” she whispered.
He nodded and stood beside her while she crouched in front of the door. She ran her hands an inch above the surface from the bottom to the doorknob, then frowned.
“What is it?” he asked.
She cocked her head to the side and repeated the motion, checking it from different angles. Her frown deepened. “There’s no wards. How could they possibly leave the back door un-warded? It’s so…arrogant.”
“I think you just answered your own question,” Tommy said as he knelt in front of the door. “But it makes it way easier for us, so I’m not complaining.”
He pulled out his small lockpick kit. It wasn’t exactly professional grade, but it always got the job done. He used to break into the school so he could shower and sleep in one of the classrooms.
This lock was a little trickier, but after a moment of wriggling, he heard it click. With all his senses focused on detecting any movement inside, he turned the door handle slowly.
The door swung open silently, and Ceri stepped inside. They both held their breath, waiting for a shout of alarm, but there was nothing. He followed her in and shut the door carefully behind him.
Woggy stuck his head out of her hair and squeaked in alarm. Tommy pressed his finger to his lips and signed for the pixie to be quiet. Woggy looked around with wide eyes, then retreated back into Ceri’s hair. He knew the pixie had understood him. Hopefully he would listen and stay quiet.
They were in some kind of dining room. The pictures on the walls were of old men and women with stoic faces and dark eyes that seemed to follow them as they moved across the room.
This house was creepy. When they’d moved into Thallan’s guest house, the place had seemed warm and welcoming. Coming in here was like walking into a coffin. His skin prickled with goosebumps, and he stayed as close to Ceri as he could.
She’d told him the entrance to the spell room would be obvious. Because it was Halloween, there were also going to be coven members inside. That’s where Amber and Genevieve came in. Ceri had given them each a handful of what looked like marbles. Apparently, they blew up. Sort of.
All it took to set one off was a loud noise, then they’d start popping in a chain reaction. They couldn’t hurt anything, but they were loud, and they’d rattle everything around them with a shock wave.
As they walked through the house, the dark feeling he’d noticed when they walked in increased. His nose twitched at the overwhelming scents. There was something rotting here.
Most of the coven members were outside, but they were drawing closer to two witches. He tapped Ceri’s arm and pointed at the door ahead of them. She nodded and led him out of view of the door. They crouched behind a bookcase, and Ceri pulled out her phone and shot a quick text to Amber.
He heard the warning whistle from Amber and clamped his hands over his ears. One loud boom rattled the windows, followed by another, and another.
Two witches ran out of the work room as the explosions continued. One was Selena. Her long black hair hung down her back, contrasting sharply with her bright green dress. The other witch was dressed in all black, so Selena must be the one presenting tonight.
He counted twelve of them then dropped his hands from his ears. Closing his eyes, he focused on the room behind them instead of the chaos outside. Once he was sure no one had stayed behind, he nodded.
Ceri ran inside. Full of misgivings, he pressed himself against the wall and listened intently for anyone other than Ceri. He really hoped she worked fast.
Chapter 29
CERI
They’d left the door standing wide open. Idiots, Ceri thought to herself. The coven must really think no one would dare try to break in. Or maybe they thought they were invincible.
The wards on property line were strong. Most witches wouldn’t be able to get past them without their full coven, which would make it obvious.
She stepped into their sacred space and smiled. If only her mother could see her now. She’d be so proud. Actually, she’d probably be pissed.
Woggy poked his head out of her hair and tugged on her ear like he wanted to drag her out of the room.
“Sorry, buddy, I’ll be quick,” she said, hurrying forward.
It was obvious what they were prepping. The ingredients were all laid out, and the spell book was open to the recipe they were using. It was a summoning spell for a flurry of wisps. If successful, they’d bring good luck to everyone who saw them. Supposedly.
Her eyes scanned everything that was laid out. She had to think fast, but her mind had gone blank. Woggy climbed out of her hair and hopped off her shoulder onto the table.
She tried to grab him, but he darted under her hand and ran for a little pot of fine, white granules. She snatched him up just in time.
“That is not sugar, that’s salt,” she whispered disapprovingly. It looked exactly like sugar, but it was important to make sure you were using the right o
ne. If you combined sugar with…she paused. “Oh my gosh, you’re a genius.”
She stuffed the pixie back in her hair and searched the room frantically. Over by the door was a spice cabinet. Sugar was used in spells often, as were other common spices.
She grabbed the jar of sugar and the little bowl of salt, searching for a place to dump the salt. There was a large furnace in the corner of the room. She yanked the door open and tossed the salt inside.
Replacing the bowl in its exact spot, she refilled it with sugar. Her hands shook as she poured, and a little sugar spilled next to the bowl. She grabbed Woggy out of her hair and held him above the spill like a vacuum. His tongue flicked out, cleaning up every grain.
“Good boy,” she said, putting him back on her shoulder. He curled into her hair, smacking his lips in satisfaction.
She turned to leave but hesitated, her hand hovering over the spellbook. She could take it. Leave them crippled.
Shaking her head, she pulled her hand away. They’d come after her if she did that. There’d be no stopping them. Even without that, they’d be impossible to take on alone.
“Ceri!” Tommy hissed, appearing in the doorway. “Run!”
She ran back to the cabinet, shoved the jar inside, smacked the door shut, and then ran toward Tommy.
They sprinted out of the room and back around the corner. He clamped his hand over her mouth to muffle the sounds of her breathing, and they held perfectly still as Selena and the other witch hurried back into the spell room.
“I can’t believe Erica didn’t notice what was happening. They better find whoever caused those explosions,” Selena said angrily.
Ceri shut her eyes and tried to slow her breathing. They hadn’t caught Amber and Genevieve. Now they had to hope they could get our unnoticed as well.
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