Spellbooks and Stakings

by Lily Webb

  “What about the girl who was attacked along with Delia? I’ve heard she had her memory erased,” Nolan said, and a lightbulb went off in my head.

  I’d completely forgotten about Phoebe, and now that I’d come to a dead end chasing every other lead, I was back to square one. Maybe getting to Phoebe’s memories was the piece I’d been missing all along — and I could take the opportunity to sneak into the staff’s minds to verify whether or not Nolan was in the hospital the night Seth died.

  Regardless, I had to figure out how to bring Phoebe back, and that was exactly what I intended to do first thing in the morning.

  “Well, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll see myself out,” I said. Nolan nodded and didn’t move as I stepped over the junk in his house toward the front door.

  “Good luck, Zoe,” Nolan called.

  I wasn’t sure I had much of that left.

  Chapter Eighteen

  As soon as I woke up, I reached for my phone to text Mallory and Mitch. I wanted to be at Willowvale as quickly as possible. I couldn’t say whether or not Mitch would actually see my message before he realized I’d missed work, but it was all I could do.

  Unsurprisingly, Mallory answered instantaneously.

  >>Mallory: You really want to go to Willowvale already?

  >>Me: Yes. It wasn’t Nolan who killed Seth and Delia.

  >>Mallory: Are you sure? You sounded convinced of it yesterday.

  >>Me: That was before I talked to Nolan again. He didn’t do it.

  >>Mallory: Then who did?

  >>Me: That’s exactly what I need to figure out, and I think Phoebe holds all the secrets. We have to figure out a way to access her memories.

  >>Mallory: I’ll meet you there.

  I didn’t bother showering or dealing with any of the other usual things I would do before I went somewhere. The only thing that mattered was getting to Phoebe as soon as possible, so I grabbed my bag on my way out the front door and hustled to the hospital.

  The sun was already high in the sky, bright and cheery, the exact opposite of how I felt. After all I’d been through, all the people I’d talked to, I still had no idea what happened to Seth and Delia, and it made me feel like I’d fallen down on the job.

  But now wasn’t the time to get down on myself. The only thing I could do was the same thing I’d always done: chase any and every lead that came my way. Right now, the only one I had was Phoebe, and even if it wasn’t much given her condition, it was something. There had to be some way to break through the curse put on her memory.

  When I reached the entrance to the hospital, as promised, Mallory was already there waiting. She looked impatient and antsy, her default state — not that I could blame her.

  “Morning,” I said.

  “Hey,” she said, fidgeting with her robes.

  “Well, let’s get on with it,” I said, nodding at the doors. Mallory sighed and gestured for me to lead the way, so I walked through and came face-to-face with Robin, the receptionist which who’d done me a favor once before. I hoped she’d come through for me again.

  “Look who it is,” Robin said, clacking her fingernails against the desk behind the thick wall of glass that protected her. “And you brought company this time!”

  “Good morning, Robin,” I said, smiling. “This is Mallory, my friend from school.”

  “Nice to meet you. How can I help?” Robin asked.

  “Well, it’s about Phoebe Thornton. Do you think Mallory and I might be able to visit her today? It won’t be long, I promise,” I said.

  “I don’t see a problem with that, but let me talk with Healer Killian first just to be sure,” she said as she reached for the phone on her desk. She smashed a few numbers and had a brief conversation with whoever was on the other end of the line before smiling and hanging up.

  “Good news,” she said. “Not only is it okay for you to go see her, but it also seems she’s come around a little bit.”

  “She has?” I asked, unable to believe my ears. The last time I’d seen Phoebe she was barely more than a vegetable. Had the Healers had some sort of success treating her? My heart skipped a beat just from the thought — finally, a lucky break.

  “Yes, but I’ll let you see for yourself,” she said and waved her wand to make the doors open.

  “Thank you so much,” I said and motioned for Mallory to follow me. She seemed uncomfortable like she had some sort of hang up about hospitals, but I paid no attention. Now wasn’t the time for being squeamish. We had a job to do, and truth to find.

  “This way,” I said, leading Mallory to the elevator. Inside, we smashed the button to take it to the sixth floor, and I tapped my hand against my leg to distract myself from how anxious I was. I seriously doubted whether or not we’d be able to glean anything from Phoebe based on my last interaction with her, but it was worth a shot given everything else I knew now.

  The elevator dinged at the six floor, and we stepped out. Unlike the last time I’d been there, I wasn’t greeted by Forrest, the Healer in charge of Phoebe’s care. In fact, it seemed like the floor was completely empty save for the patients. That was just fine with me.

  We rounded the corner from the elevator to Phoebe’s room, and the sound of Paravision drifted out into the hallway. Did that mean she was awake?

  I peeked my head into the room and found Phoebe still sitting with her knees pulled to her chest, her eyes wide as she stared at the Paravision broadcast. It was certainly an improvement from the endless rocking back and forth I’d seen her doing last time, but not by much.

  “Phoebe?” I asked, my voice barely audible over the sound from the show. Funnily enough, she was watching Moon Grove Tonight — Beau’s news show on Channel 666 — and she never looked at me, instead keeping her eyes glued on the broadcast. Did she understand any of it? It was hard to tell.

  “Phoebe, can you hear me? It’s me, Zoe Clarke,” I said as I entered the room. Phoebe’s eyes flitted to mine for a second before returning to her show. Mallory stepped inside like she was afraid she might be attacked.

  “Can I sit with you?” I asked as I made my way to her bedside. She didn’t say or do anything, so I took it as a yes. Slowly, I lowered myself down onto the bed. Someone had brushed her hair since the last time I saw her, and she did seem to be a little calmer overall.

  Still, I didn’t know where to start. When I tried to read her thoughts previously, they were nothing more than a jumbled mess, so I wasn’t sure if it was even worth trying again, but what other choice did I have?

  “What are you going to do?” Mallory whispered like she was afraid she might upset Phoebe if she spoke too loudly.

  “I’m not sure. I guess I’ll start with her thoughts,” I said as I reached for the closest of Phoebe’s hands. When we made contact, Phoebe jumped, but she didn’t recoil. Did that mean she trusted me?

  Because Phoebe wouldn’t look me in the eye, making a connection with her mind was more difficult than it should’ve been, but I focused as much as I could, and it didn’t take long until I felt myself slip into her thoughts like diving into a pool.

  Phoebe, it’s me, Zoe. Can you hear me? I projected. Phoebe’s head turned at a glacial pace until she looked me in the eye. Could she hear me? Maybe I was the only one she could hear.

  Can you blink? Give me two blinks if you can.

  It took longer than it would’ve for most people, but eventually, Phoebe managed to blink twice. That confirmed it, she really could hear me!

  Fantastic. I know someone attacked you, but I’m not sure who it was. Do you remember? Blink twice if you do.

  I held my breath as Phoebe struggled to blink once, and the air left my lungs when she blinked a second time. It wasn’t just a coincidence, she really could understand me, and we at least had some primitive way to communicate.

  Who was it? Seth Highmore?

  As if it pained her to do so, Phoebe slowly shook her head left to right. Robin wasn’t kidding, she really had improved. What had the Healers done to
help her? The last time I talked to Forrest, he told me the medical staff had no idea what was wrong with Phoebe.

  Okay. Was it Professor Grimm?

  Again, Phoebe strained herself to shake her head no, but that didn’t make me feel any better. If it wasn’t Seth or Nolan, who else could it have been?

  Then who was it?

  Phoebe’s mouth shook open, and a croaking sound came out of it, but she seemed unable to form words. It was difficult to tell, but it sounded like the start of a vowel.

  “Good morning, Miss Clarke,” a cheery voice said from behind me, making Mallory and me jump. I spun around to find Forrest smiling at me from the entrance to the room. “I’m sorry to have scared you, I wasn’t trying.”

  “No, that’s okay. I think Phoebe was trying to tell me something, so I was really honed in on it,” I said.

  “Yes, she does seem to be doing much better already,” Forrest said. “You know, it’s interesting. Since you came to visit, things have turned around quickly. I was hoping you’d come back.”

  “You mean this isn’t your work?” I asked. Forrest shook his bald head, which gleamed in the fluorescent light above, and shrugged.

  “Believe me, we’ve tried everything we can think of to help her, but none of it’s worked,” he said. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear you had something to do with it.”

  “I wish I could take the credit, but I definitely can’t,” I said.

  “Don’t sell yourself short. Phoebe hasn’t said anything to any of us, not even a sound. She loves to watch PV though. Speaking of, what are you watching, Phoebe?” Forrest asked as he leaned over to look at the PV set.

  Phoebe’s mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water as she raised one hand to point at the screen. I didn’t understand what she was looking at, because it was just a shot of Veilside’s five towers overlaid with a moving image of Beau, who told the story of the murders connected to the Academy.

  “Or,” Phoebe croaked.

  “What? I don’t understand,” I said. Phoebe jabbed her finger at the PV set.

  “Or,” Phoebe said, louder this time. “Or, or, no, no, no! Or!”

  The repeated no’s were the same thing she told me the last time I saw her. But I had no more idea what she was saying it about now than I did then.

  “No, no, no. Or elle!” Phoebe said, pointing at Forrest, and I realized what she was trying to say: Aurelia. But why? What did Aurelia have to do with any of this?

  Mallory shrieked, and I jumped off the bed to find Aurelia standing in the same place Forrest had been standing seconds before in an all-black skirt that cut way too high up her legs. What the…?

  “Surprise, witch. I bet you thought you’d seen the last of me,” Aurelia said as she tossed her shining blonde hair over one shoulder.

  Chapter Nineteen

  “What are you doing here?” I demanded, feeling helpless as Aurelia pointed her wand square at my face.

  “I came to finish what I started,” Aurelia said. “You know, when you first started sticking your nose where it didn’t belong, I thought I’d be able to outsmart you. But here you are, a stray still picking at scraps.”

  “You did this?” I asked, pointing at Phoebe.

  “Don’t be such a softie. I mean, at least I didn’t kill her,” Aurelia said, rolling her eyes as she twirled her wand between her fingers. Clearly, she wasn’t concerned about our ability to stop her.

  “Not yet you mean,” I said. Aurelia smirked.

  “I can’t leave loose ends dangling. I’m smarter than that,” she said.

  “You changed your appearance completely. How?” I asked.

  “Oh, no big deal. Just a bit of blood magic,” Aurelia said. My jaw tensed.

  “But don’t worry, I’m sure Healer Forrest knows he contributed to a worthy cause,” Aurelia said with a shrug. Dread swept over me. Now I knew why she’d decided to take a second job at Willowvale.

  For a moment, I wondered if my heart had stopped beating. All this time, I’d suspected the obvious people of dabbling in the dark arts: Aidan, Callum, Seth, Nolan, all the warlocks — but in the end it was a witch.

  “So much for us witches sticking together,” I said, and Aurelia scoffed.

  “I knew you’d fall for that sappy stuff,” she said. “I really thought I’d be able to convince you it was someone else, so I didn’t have to take you down, but dear Lilith, you are tenacious.”

  “I guess I’ll take that as a compliment,” I said. “So what are you going to do now? Are you really going to try to kill all three of us in a hospital in the middle of the day?”

  “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but there’s no one else around,” Aurelia said. She waved her wand. The door slammed behind her and locked. “Besides, it’s not like any of you can hold a wand to me when it comes to magic.”

  I knew Aurelia was dangerous, but she’d taken things to an entirely new level. She’d admitted to using blood magic to change her appearance, but where did she learn how to do it? Every time I’d talked to her about the murders, she pointed the finger at either Seth or Nolan — which was ironic because if I had to guess I’d say she learned this magic from one of them.

  “We’ll see about that,” Mallory said and made to raise her wand, but Aurelia beat her to the punch.

  “Dearmo!” Aurelia shouted as she whipped her wand through the air. Mallory slammed against the wall and slumped to the floor as her wand soared into Aurelia’s hand.

  “Nice try,” Aurelia said. In one swift motion, she snapped Mallory’s wand in half on one knee and tossed the pieces over her shoulder.

  Without a wand of my own, it was hard to think we weren’t in serious trouble. I needed to stall.

  “Why are you doing this?” I asked. “What did any of us ever do to you?”

  “Oh, blah, blah, listen to you. Zoe, have you ever stopped to think for one second that the world doesn’t revolve around you?” Aurelia asked. That was rich coming from her, the swan of Veilside.

  “I could ask you the same thing,” I said, and Aurelia’s eyes narrowed.

  “And to think that earlier today I was considering letting you live,” Aurelia laughed. “But to answer your question, I did it because I’m going to be the next Head Witch, obviously,” Aurelia said.

  “Somehow, I think killing your teacher and peers disqualifies you from running,” I said.

  “Anyone who crosses me, anyone who gets in my way, is toast,” she said as she stared me in the eyes. Chills rippled down my spine.

  “Is that why you killed Delia? Because she chose Phoebe over you?” I asked.

  “That wasn’t the only reason, but it definitely sped things up in my decision-making process,” Aurelia said. “As far as I’m concerned, any witch who mixes with vampires isn’t one we can trust.”

  Not only was Aurelia the killer, but she’d also done a masterful job of making me suspect and believe it was the warlocks by casting them as vampire haters — though she apparently had more issues with the undead than the warlocks did.

  “You mean witches like Opal Cromwell?” I asked. Aurelia glared at me.

  “Don’t you dare talk about her like that,” Aurelia snapped. “If it weren’t for you, Councilwoman Cromwell would still be alive.”

  So it was all about revenge? But why? Opal Cromwell was widely known to be getting support from the vampires, and wasn’t that sort of thing exactly what Aurelia claimed to hate?

  “I had nothing to do with Opal’s shady business dealings nor her death,” I said. “And how can you blame this on me when I was the one who caught her killer?”

  “If you’d just let her be, everything would’ve gone as planned,” Aurelia said. “Opal Cromwell would be sitting as Head Witch right now, I would be her right hand, and together we could’ve put the vampires in their rightful place — under ground. But you took that future away from me.”

  I didn’t know what she was talking about and it would’ve been pointless to argue, so I
changed the subject.

  “Then what about Seth? Why kill him?” I asked.

  “He had something I needed,” Aurelia said, shrugging.

  Blood magic, of course. Aurelia had lied to me about how she had no idea what Seth and the other warlocks were doing in their group, but clearly, she knew — and she wanted access to it.

  “Because you knew the warlocks would never share anything with you,” I said.

  “They’re so selfish, aren’t they?” Aurelia asked, smiling. “It’s always me, me, me with them. Frankly, it’s beyond boring.”

  “How did you do it?” I asked.

  “It was easy. At first, I had Seth help under the guise of tutoring him. He funneled my messages back and forth with Professor Grimm for me since it would’ve looked too suspicious otherwise,” Aurelia said.

  “But then that coward Grimm got nervous when Delia started snooping around, and I knew I had to do something before the half-breed ruined everything,” Aurelia sneered. “So, I did my own research. You’d be amazed what you can find in Veilside’s library and on the Internet.”

  Yeah, I knew a few things about that myself.

  “You taught yourself this magic?” I asked.

  “Not by choice, but sometimes the only option is to take matters into our own hands. I don’t have time to wait around for people to get on my level,” Aurelia said. “At first, I wasn’t going to kill Delia, but when she confiscated Seth’s book I had no other choice. I had to get the book back.”

  Did that mean it was Aurelia’s handwriting in the diary? Had she been the one writing about how best to murder a vampire — and getting Nolan’s advice about it in secret? That would’ve explained why the handwriting didn’t look very boyish.

  “There were mentions of stakes in that diary. I saw it myself. Is that how you killed her?” I asked.

  “More or less. Once I learned it was possible to change my appearance, I knew our friend Phoebe here would be the key,” Aurelio said. Phoebe groaned and pushed herself up the bed into the corner of the room, desperate to get away from Aurelia. I didn’t blame her.