Brianna's voice trembled as she addressed the group. "She's getting impatient. I have to go. Now. My sister's life is at stake here."
"I'll call one of Brent's limos. That way we can all ride together," Jared said.
As she departed the tall glass building, Brianna's heart thumped in her chest. Blood rushed and pounded in her ears. What if Licinia hurts Mandy? Even the thought was numbing, and the pain was too excruciating for her conscious mind to bear. She had to save her. She would do anything.
During the half-hour journey, the group devised a plan of action. I love you, Mandy, Brianna thought over and over. She prayed that the message would somehow get through to her sister.
The limo pulled into the deserted parking lot of a breakfast cafe approximately twenty miles away from Rocky Ridge Mountain. "Hopefully everything goes according to plan, and we all show up at about the same time,” Renee said. “We'll utilize all of our physical and mental power to fight this evil. If any of us become captive, mental energy will be our best method of attack. As long as we act as a team, we should be able to take her down.” Jared, Brad, Charlotte, and Gavin agreed before they exited the vehicle. Brianna remained in her seat.
"I want to go with you." Brianna faced Renee and Maeve.
"No. It's you she wants. Using this spell will weaken us a bit. You need to be as strong as you can be," Renee said.
Maeve nodded. "She's right, Bri. You need to save your energy for the battle."
Brianna wrapped her arms around both girls in a tight hug. "Please, keep yourselves safe. Text us as soon as you get there."
Renee nodded, chin held high in determination. Brianna reluctantly stepped outside. In the dark parking lot, she rested her head on Jared's broad chest. Now all they could do was wait.
Chapter Fifty-Three
At eight p.m., Logan called Mandy. Her cell was off. He left a message. After waiting a half hour, he called back. Still off. Weird. Logan decided to call her house.
Mr. McKinney picked up. "Hello."
"Hi, Mr. McKinney. Is Mandy home?"
"No, Logan, she's not home right now. I'll let her know you called when she gets in."
"Do you know where she is?"
Mr. McKinney laughed. "Mandy is always out and about. I can never keep track."
"Oh, okay. Thanks." Logan hung up.
It didn't make sense. She wouldn't have gone off without letting him know. The second hand of the clock in Logan's living room seemed to tick louder with every passing second. Where could she be? She wouldn't blow me off, Logan thought, pacing back and forth across his bedroom. He knew her better than that.
His heart raced as all the endless possibilities whipped through his mind. Minutes felt like hours. He picked up his cell phone and dialed again. It went straight to voicemail. "Hello, this is Mandy McKinney. I can't get to the phone right now. Leave a message after the beep, and I'll call you back as soon as I can."
Logan threw the phone to the ground in frustration. Where are you? Why aren't you answering your phone? His hands trembled. There was no way she had forgotten. He loved her so much, and she loved him too, he hoped.
Partly because he was scared to death of her response, and partly because he'd been waiting for the right moment, Logan hadn't told her yet. He had held back those three words so many times. What a coward and a fool he was! Now he might never get the chance to tell her how he felt.
He watched the hands of the clock, anxiously. A quarter after nine. Even if she had gotten caught up with something, she would have gotten back to him by now. Wherever she was, she was not able to call him. His chest felt tight, his stomach in knots. What if she was in danger? What if she was hurt? He had to help her, but how?
Mandy, Mandy, where could you be?
Suddenly it occurred to him. Going there might be a bad idea. She might not even be there. It could be dangerous. He had to try anyway. He couldn't wait anymore. Logan raced out of the front door, jumped into his car, peeled out of the driveway, and stepped on the gas.
Chapter Fifty-Four
Inside the limousine, Maeve and Renee closed their eyes. Holding hands, they began to chant.
"There is danger
If she can sense
The power within me,
And hence,
Undetectability
Is my best defense."
When the witches opened their eyes, their bodies were outlined by a thin, blue light. Within moments, the light faded.
"It worked," Maeve whispered as the girls got out of the vehicle.
The witches ran with nimble strides up the narrow path carved along the edge of the mountain. A three-thousand-foot drop was inches away, the distance growing as they continued the incline. They sprinted on tiptoe, soundlessly grazing the top of the earth. Light rain fell from the cloudy, charcoal sky.
Racing through the darkness, Renee was caught off guard when a hand grasped her arm. "Watch out," Maeve whispered, nodding toward an obstruction on the trail. Renee's feet were centimeters away from a long, thick metal post. She had nearly tripped, which could cause a clamor and blow their cover.
"Thank you," Renee whispered. The triangular yellow sign, which read Caution: Expert Hikers Only, had been uprooted and lay across the ground. The witches carefully stepped over the pole and continued up the mountain. The rain intensified from a light mist, then a steady shower.
They were halted by the sound of Licinia's voice. They stepped off the trail and knelt behind a dark green bush. Peeking through the branches, they could see Mandy. The redhead squirmed wildly on the ground, desperately trying to break free of the ropes that bound her arms and legs. Licinia stood by the cliff's edge, tapping her foot.
"She should have been here by now," Licinia said to Valerie. "They are plotting something. Let me know if you see or hear anything suspicious." She sniffed the air. "Hey, I thought you said there wouldn't be any humans up here this time of night." The wampire inhaled, sucking the night air deep into her lungs. "There's someone about a half-mile east. Smells like a male."
"Should we go check it out?" Valerie asked.
Licinia snorted. "No, we're staying right here. It might be some kind of a trap. I'm not stupid, and I'm certainly not afraid of some measly human. Let him hang out over there. If he's just some poor innocent bystander that happens to cross my path, well, that would be unfortunate, but I'd have to drain him dry. At least his death wouldn't be in vain."
Maeve glanced at Renee quizzically, and mouthed, "Who?" Renee shrugged, her eyebrows furrowed with concern, then nodded, her chin pointed at her cousin’s pocket. With slow and cautious movements, Maeve removed her cell phone from her jacket pocket. She texted Brianna and hit send.
Then, her fingers slipped on the smooth plastic, slick with raindrops. The phone began to drop. Renee and Maeve watched the effects of gravity in horror. They scrambled to use their powers, but it was too late. Now inches from the hard ground, the phone continued its descent. Clunk!
It was a sound that would never be heard by human ears amidst the wind, rain, and all the utterances of the woods. However the witches knew it would be loud and clear to Licinia's supernatural senses. Renee grasped her cousin's hand tightly. She nodded at Maeve, and the witches tilted their chins up toward the night sky, rain pelting their faces.
Half a second later, long black-painted fingernails parted the shrubs. Licinia's black eyes widened with fury. "Well, well. Lookie what we have here. Did someone drop something?" She retrieved the cracked purple cell phone from the pebbly ground. "Let me get that for you. I hope it's not broken. These fancy phones are just so expensive, aren't they? I hope you bought insurance."
Renee squeezed Maeve's hand, their fingers snugly intertwined. The witches stretched their free hands overheard. They began to chant in unison. "We call on the spirits to banish the evil from your soul. We call on the spirits to cleanse you. We call on the spirits to banish the evil from your soul." Their voices grew louder as they repeated the incantation over and over.<
br />
Licinia doubled over with laughter, and patted Renee on the head. "Oh, you are too funny. How amusing! What great material! Val, did you bring the popcorn? I believe our friends are performing a special standup routine for us."
Chapter Fifty-Five
Raindrops fell from the night sky, dampening Brianna’s hair and t-shirt. Her phone vibrated. She breathed a sigh of relief. Renee and Maeve were safe—for now, at least. "It's time to teleport," she said.
Adam wrapped his arms around Brianna and held her close. His eyes met Charlotte's. "We are headed to the mountain top, twenty miles northeast of here. Will you be able to find it?"
Charlotte put her arms around Jared. "I'll do my best." Her voice quavered.
Adam focused his attention on Brianna. "Are you ready?" he asked.
"Yes."
A moment later, she was overtaken by a centrifugal force. The sensation was of extreme pressure and rapid rotation.
Dizzy and exhilarated, it took a few moments for Brianna to realize when she had stopped spinning. "You okay?" Adam asked, his arms still around her.
"Yes, I think so. That was a trip!" Pulling away slowly, Brianna steadied herself with her hand against his chest. "Where are we?" she whispered. The rain had escalated to a heavy downpour. An eerily thick fog settled on the earth. Shadows of trees and thorn bushes swayed in the darkness.
"Somewhere on Rocky Ridge Mountain. I can sense Licinia. She's nearby. She must already know we're here."
Charlotte appeared in the mist. "Hey," she whispered. "I made it."
A miasma of evil roiled in the darkness. Brianna glanced around, her heart pounding. "Where's Jared? Where's Ren— " She couldn't finish speaking Renee's name. It was the strangest sensation. Her mouth was stuck open. Globules of cold rain tickled her tongue. Her brain pleaded with her muscles, but they would not move.
Chapter Fifty-Six
A few minutes had already passed since Jared had watched Brianna and Adam disappear, leaving behind a small, cloudy tornado. Moments later, Gavin had took flight. Jared and Charlotte were still standing on the concrete lot of the abandoned restaurant.
"What's happening?" Jared demanded. Every second counted.
"I'm sorry. I'm trying," Charlotte said. "I don't think I'm strong enough to take both of us."
The air surrounding them began rotating like a cyclone. Was it working? It was difficult to see through the smoky mist.
When the white air dissolved, Jared was alone, arms held out awkwardly in a semicircle. “NO!” He jumped into the air and soared into the night sky, his arms flapping faster than a hummingbird's wings.
Chapter Fifty-Seven
The fog began to contort and contract. It swirled and curlicued, then melded into one colossal blob. Skinny appendages sprouted from the center, snaking through the shadows. Serpentine structures whirled around Brianna's waist and circled her neck, threatening to choke her. All of a sudden, they retreated, rejoining the mass. The mist bent and curved into the shape of a thin woman, a white haze of Licinia's form, and then she materialized.
"How nice of all of you to show up." Licinia spoke in a throaty voice as she slithered toward Brianna. "It's going to be quite a party."
Brianna could not run. She could not fight. Her legs were locked. Her arms felt like blocks of stone. All of her fingers stiffened. Every part of her was frozen.
What happened to Jared and Charlotte? Brianna could not turn her neck. Charlotte was not in her field of vision. From the corner of her peripheral view, Brianna could see part of Adam's arm, elbow bent, unmoving. Adam is frozen, too.
Step by step, the wampire drew closer. And there was nothing Brianna could do. She had no method of defense. She could not flee. Trapped in the open air, she was a captive inside her own body.
Licinia's nose grazed Brianna's ear. "Boom!" she shouted. Brianna's heart jumped inside her hardened skin. At that instant, she lost her vision. She had the sensation of motion, wind, and kinetic energy, but being blind made it difficult to know what had happened. Licinia laughed. "The sound effects weren't necessary, but definitely made it more fun!"
"Is that Adam Payne?" Valerie squealed. Brianna could hear the snapping of photos.
"Oh, please, Val," Licinia muttered.
Mandy's scream penetrated through the night. "What have you done to Bri? You leave her alone!"
Valerie giggled. Brianna heard footsteps nearby. "Hold on," Licinia said. "I want her to see this."
Brianna's vision returned. She was on the top of Rocky Ridge Mountain, her back facing the edge. Brianna, positioned a little behind her friends, had a clear view. On her right, Adam and Charlotte appeared to be posed mannequins. Toward the left, Renee and Maeve looked like crouching statues. In front of her, her twin writhed on the ground, arms and legs bound by thick white rope.
Valerie's green eyes blazed with malevolence as she hovered over Mandy. A wicked smile spread across from cheek to cheek as she ruthlessly kicked her victim in the gut. Mandy howled in pain.
Brianna's anger was so severe that she saw red. Her powers boiled in her veins with a ferocity she had never felt before. She summoned them to try to break the shell encasing her, but it was no use. Licinia's control was just too strong.
"Oh, what have we here?" Licinia mused, staring at the sky. "It's not nice to show up so late. Where are your manners?"
Oh, no. Jared. Just turn around. Don't come near here.
A blond vampire swooped overhead and then smashed into a sturdy tree trunk. Gavin's body was scraped and cut by branches as he dropped to the ground. Seconds later, Jared landed nose-first in the dirt.
"Oh, no. Did our superhero have a crash landing?" Licinia chuckled.
Jared rose from the ground and stormed toward Licinia, hands balled up in fists. Suddenly he started dancing. Licinia hummed a sinister melody as she manipulated her puppet.
Jared's face twisted into a menacing scowl. "Oh, poor baby. What's wrong? You don't like to shake it?" He glared at the wampire. "Oh, some people just have no sense of humor. Maybe you'll like it better just standing still, you old fuddy-duddy!" Laughter echoed through the trees as Jared became another of her dummies.
Gavin rushed forward impetuously, the last hope for their survival. Within moments, he was in the same predicament as the rest.
"Okay, now it's time for the real fun to begin," Licinia said. Brianna's heart hammered as the wampire straddled her twin sister.
"Get off me, you disgusting, evil witch!" Mandy screamed, her body twisting in all directions. Licinia brought her hands to her captive’s neck.
No, no, no! Kill me, not her! It's me you want! Brianna struggled fruitlessly to speak, to offer herself in her sister’s place.
Licinia's long fingers wrapped around Mandy's throat. As she squeezed, Licinia's eyes fixated on Brianna. Valerie smirked as the blood drained from Mandy's face. The evildoers basked in their triumphs.
At that moment, Brianna remembered the backup plan they'd discussed earlier. Instead of focusing her powers on breaking free of Licinia's spell, Brianna summoned every ounce of energy against her opponent, thinking of destruction and deep, excruciating pain. She thrust all her powers at the wampire.
They ricocheted backward. Licinia's strength surrounded her like a thick, impermeable psychic substance. Brianna imagined slamming a baseball bat against the barricade. Nothing. It was like trying to push through cast iron with a pen. Maybe she could scratch the outer layer, but never achieve any depth.
Her twin was writhing beneath her attacker, still alive. Brianna couldn't let her die. Power seethed through her veins as she pounded against Licinia's walls. It felt like striking a sledgehammer on a thick piece of hard plastic. She chipped at the surface.
All around her, Brianna could feel her allies' powers doing the same, crashing relentlessly against the wampire’s blockade. As she smashed the sledgehammer into the wall, she could feel her nemesis weakening. Her bulwark shook with each hit. After another mighty blow, Licinia's wall separat
ed.
Somehow Brianna knew what to do. She imagined a long, sharp boning knife and stabbed it over and over through the narrow crevice.
"Ow!" Licinia released her grip from Mandy's neck. She clutched her side and examined it as if she expected to see an injury. "Ooohhh!" she hollered, still gripping the invisible wound.
"Ouch!" Valerie shrieked. Brianna watched in shock as Logan appeared as if from nowhere and smacked a metal pole against the backs of Valerie's knees. Valerie fell to the ground, moaning in pain.
As Licinia spun around, Logan swung the steel pole from a dislodged sign at her face. Metal hit bone, causing a cracking sound that resonated through the murky night. Licinia dropped to the earth, momentarily halted. He bludgeoned the wampire repeatedly.
Brianna could move again. The unexpected attack seemed to have broken Licinia's focus and hold over her opponents. Brianna directed all of her supernatural strength, her anger, and her rage toward Licinia. She could actually see the energy shoot through the air, a yellow beam of sparkling light. Her power cleaved a path through Licinia’s wall, leaving a gaping hole in the wampire's defenses.
"Everyone, concentrate! Together now!" Adam commanded.
Brianna's gaze focused on Licinia, who was now rising from the ground. The wampire ripped the pole from Logan's grasp. Growling, she raised a hand toward Logan before she faltered. She folded over, clutching her head in pain. Her skinny legs trembled as she struggled to maintain her balance.
The full force of group’s united power encompassed the wampire. An immense, golden ball of heated energy burned her skin. Smoke streamed into the black sky. Brianna envisioned all of the energy surrounding Licinia transforming into a thousand flaming blades. Glowing knives pierced every part of her without mercy.
In Shadows of Magic Page 21