Eliza nudges a dead squirrel with the toe of her Gucci shoe. “Resurrecting an animal isn’t the same as resurrecting a human?”
“Not at all,” Evander tells her, coming down the back porch steps. “Though it’s just as dark.” His eyes go to me, and I just nod. I know what I’m getting myself into, though I’m not worried.s
Black magic is illegal because it’s a gateway to Satanism. And when Satan is your uncle who you talk to on the regular anyway… I’m not worried.
“And I have what I need for the spell,” I tell her, looking at the deer that Freya and Pandora caught. I grimace, not looking forward to slicing it open and pulling out the entrails. “I should get started.”
“Do you have a cage?” Felix asks. “Or a metal trash can, perhaps?”
“There’s an old rabbit cage in the shed,” I say, and Eliza takes off to get it. We moved outside after realizing that the animal resurrection spell is going to get a little messy. And even after moving the furniture out of the living room, we were tight on space. We’re in the backyard, just a few feet from the porch, and Nicole and Naomi have been carefully crafting the intricate circle—with magic, of course. I had to temporarily remove all my wardings, and the house feels unnervingly vulnerable right now.
Everything is almost ready, and I’m getting nervous. I hate that there is doubt in my mind, but what if this doesn’t work? Then what? I’ve faced evil before, but nothing scares me as much as the thought of losing Lucas.
“This rusty thing?” Eliza asks, coming back with the cage. It’s in worse shape than I remembered, but it should do.
“Yeah.” I take it from her and carefully put it in its place inside the circle. I put the dead squirrel in next, laying it on its back. Binx caught and killed it, having quickly snapped its neck to keep the carcass clean.
Then I grab the back legs of the deer and give it a tug. The thing is surprisingly heavy. It’s bleeding but is still very much alive. We’ve placed a paralysis spell on it, keeping it from running away…or thrashing in pain. In order to bring back the squirrel, I need to take the life from something else.
I don’t look at the deer’s face, not wanting to risk seeing the pain and fear in its eyes. Sacrificing an innocent animal makes my stomach hurt, but it has to be done.
“Here.” Eliza comes over and takes one of the legs from me. As if it’s no effort at all, she moves it several yards from where it was, next to the circle.
“Thanks,” I tell her, wiping blood or mud—or maybe both—off my hands. “Did you ever think you’d be assisting in a dark ritual like this?”
She gives me a pointed look, cocking one eyebrow. “When I was a human, we lived in fear of witches. My mother used to tell us stories about witches in the woods who would come out and go into town, looking for unchaperoned females to take back and train in dark magic.”
“That would make me want to go out alone.” I step over a line of the circle and start toward the house.
“Witch trials weren’t as popular in the 1700s as they were the century before, but many people still feared witches just as much,” she goes on. “And then after I was turned into a vampire, I was taught to avoid witches at all costs.” She lets out a heavy sigh. “And now I’m surrounded by them.”
“Lucas taught you to avoid witches?”
She nods and opens the back door for me. “He was alive during the War of Light and Dark. He really didn’t take part,” she reminds me, though I have no reason to doubt Lucas. He’s not ashamed of anything he feels or does and would tell me if he had taken part. “Avoiding witches saved us a lot of drama, I know now.”
“You seemed scared of me the first time we met,” I say and then regret it, thinking I’m going to piss her off.
“I was,” she admitted. “Lucas told me stories about witches, stories I thought he made up just like my mother to keep me in line. But then I saw you and saw what you could do…” She shakes her head. “It wasn’t just you but realizing everything I’d been told was true.”
“You lived for nearly three hundred years without seeing a witch?”
“Lucas kept me safe.” She can’t help the smile that comes to her face when she talks about him. The relationship between progeny and sire is something I don’t quite understand, but they love each other unconditionally without that love being romantic or sexual. Most of the time, Lucas acts like Eliza is his daughter, but often they come across more as siblings. I used to think it was weird, but now I like it, and I’m glad Eliza is part of my family in a sense.
“He’s good at that.” I go to the cast iron pot on the stove and check the potion. “And now it’s our turn to keep him safe.”
Pandora, who’s been watching the potion for us while we set everything else up, meows, letting me know it’s done and ready for the final ingredient. Eliza holds out her arm, and I take a potion vial and a knife from the block on the counter. I hesitate only a second before slicing her skin open, collecting as much blood as I can before her wound heals.
Then I carefully add three drops to the potion and stir it counter-clockwise thirteen times. The potion bubbles for three-and-a-half minutes, and then I remove it from heat, giving it only a minute to cool before scooping a ladleful and pouring it into a glass bowl. I wrap a towel around the bowl and take it outside.
“Should I get him now?” Eliza asks, and Felix nods.
“It is time.” His eyes meet mine. “Are you ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
Evander reaches for my hand and gives it a squeeze. “You can do this, sister.”
“We can do this.” I squeeze his hand back and set the bowl on the ground, next to the paralyzed deer.
“Witches!” Naomi calls. "Gather round.”
We all join her, sitting on the ground inside a simple salt circle. She gives us all a teacup and holds up a Mason jar full of cleansing tea.
“Invocabo elementum. Gubernet, et protegat. Libera nos a malo. Solidius nostrum vinculum efficiendum,” we all chant together.
Naomi pours a small amount of tea in our cups, and we all down it like a shot. Cleansing tea tastes terrible, but it’s good for your aura and helps you channel energy better.
“All right.” Felix holds up his empty glass as if in a toast. “It’s go time.”
We stand and go back to the main circle right as Eliza and Lucas are coming out of the house. More blood stains his shirt, and he looks even more ragged than he did a mere half-hour ago.
This has to work.
“Lie down in the center of the biggest circle,” Felix tells him. “This is going to hurt. We’ll have to restrain you.”
Lucas’s eyes meet mine for a second and he nods, slowly lowering his large frame to the ground.
Evander steps forward and holds his hands up, index fingers and thumbs touching to form a triangle. He closes his eyes, and the ground starts to rumble. “Coercitio.” He splays his fingers in the air, and tree roots come up from the ground and wrap around Lucas’s wrists and ankles.
Eliza, who was sitting on the porch steps, stands, eyes wide. It’s an impressive sight, I’ll agree, and showcases just how powerful we are.
Once the roots are properly wrapped around Lucas, anchoring him to the ground, Evander ignites a bundle of herbs, wafting the smoke over Lucas. He’s undoing the binding spells, and the moment they’re lifted, the curse will start sinking back into Lucas, killing him.
I look away, knowing this is going to hurt…and it’s not going to be the worst part. Lucas winces but holds still as the binding is lifted. Evander tosses the bundle of herbs into dewy grass, and Eliza stomps it out.
I inhale and step forward, next to Felix. Nicole and Naomi move into the corners, standing behind my familiars. They’re acting as backup, risking themselves to help keep the curse contained.
I pick up the bowl containing the potion and an athame and lift them into the air.
“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,” I begin, tipping my head to the star-studded sky above me. “Daughters of darkness, hear my cries. What once was dead now shall rise.” I slowly kneel, spilling a bit of the potion down the side of the bowl and all over my hand, and set the bowl back on the ground. I hold the athame up with both hands, closing my eyes and drawing in the power from the dark side of the moon.
I dip the tip of the athame in the potion and then plunge it in the belly of the deer. Doing my best not to cringe, I pull the blade down, ripping open the deer’s flesh. Its guts spill out, and I turn back to the sky, holding my arms out as I feel the life slip away from the creature.
“Mors et lutum. Lutum ad mortem.”
The spell is necromancy at its roots, and I can feel the darkness rippling through me. I hold steady, letting it fuel me, and then redirect my energy to the dead squirrel.
“Mors et lutum. Lutum ad mortem.”
My eyes fall shut again, and I throw my head back. Something else pulses through me, something I can only describe as warm and bright. Blue energy sizzles around my fingers, and suddenly, the squirrel jumps up, squealing and chattering.
I let the athame fall from my fingers and exhale. It worked. Now for the hard part.
Felix holds out his hand and calls the spirits to the circle. My familiars shift into shadows, dark forms hovering over three of the four smaller circles drawn on the ground. Binx lets out a harrowing roar, and three gray shadows rise from the ground, moaning and wheezing. He commands them, and they obey.
Nicole and Naomi hold up their hands, whispering a protective enchantment. Evander hands me a sheet of paper with the spell written on it.
“Ready?” he mouths, and I nod. It’ll take the three of us to rip the curse out of Lucas’s body, and if the corners of the circle can hold, then we’ll be able to shove it into the undead squirrel and let it finish from there.
This nightmare is almost over.
Felix casts the first circle, invoking the spirits and peeling back the first layer of the curse. Lucas balls his fists, turning his head to the side.
“Hold steady,” Evander whispers, knowing seeing Lucas in pain is hurting me as well. I inhale and look at my paper, reading the spell over in my head.
“Now,” Felix tells us.
“Nox atra invocabo,” we all chant together. “Iubes voluntatem meam.” Dark blue smoke swirl up from Lucas’s chest, and his fangs come down. He pulls against the restraints, pain radiating through his body. “Auferte deos nocere.”
Lucas lets out a shout of pain, and the smoke rises, spinning faster and faster.
“Again,” Felix tells us.
“Nox atra invocabo. Iubes voluntatem meam.” More smoke pours from Lucas, looking like it’s ripping open his chest. My own heart races, and sweat drips down my forehead. It’s taking great force to command the spell, and I can feel it resisting, pushing against us. If one of us falters, the thing will be set free. “Auferte deos nocere!”
Lucas pulls against the roots, body twitching from the pain as the curse is ripped from him.
“Nox atra invocabo. Iubes voluntatem meam. Auferte deos nocere!”
Lucas suddenly stops moving, and the smoke rises with a fury, swirling around the confines of the circle.
“Now!” Felix shouts. Evander drops to his knees and thrusts out his hands, creating a protective shield over Lucas to keep the curse from settling back down into his chest. I take several steps to the side, holding out my hands.
“It’s strong,” Felix says through gritted teeth, wrestling against it. I throw up my hands, fighting with it as well. The curse bounds toward me, hitting the wall of the circle with a thunder-like clash. Blue light sizzles, illuminating little cracks.
“The circle is breaking!” Nicole screams, and my familiars and the spirits surge forward, fueling the walls.
“It’s too chaotic,” Felix grunts. “I…I…can’t control it!”
Gritting my teeth, I plant my foot hard against the ground. We didn’t come this far only to come this far.
You’ve got fire in you, kid. Hellfire.
I love Lucas with everything inside of me. I’m not letting him die. I will fight with everything I’ve got for the man I love.
“Burn,” I whisper, and the blue energy around my fingers starts to sizzle and smoke. Suddenly, the string of energy erupts into flames, burning red in the night. “Burn!” I shove my hands forward, sending a ball of fire into the circle. It hits the smoke, and a hundred voices hiss and scream in pain, and the smoke recedes from the edges of the circle.
I draw back the flames, and Felix starts chanting again.
“Get the hell away from my husband,” I growl and jerk my hand to the side, pulling the curse away from Lucas. Felix shouts the final incantation, and together, we shove the curse inside the squirrel, who immediately starts spasming in pain.
I drop my hands, getting hit with a wave of dizziness. Blinking to focus my vision, I stumble into the circle, ignoring Evander’s warning to wait and make sure the curse is really gone.
“Lucas,” I pant, dropping to my knees.
His dark blue eyes are open, staring straight up at the night sky.
“Lucas!”
He blinks and lifts his head up then yanks one arm free, tearing the roots from the ground.
“It worked,” he grunts, yanking another arm free. He sits up and grabs me, fangs drawn, and kisses me. I madly climb on him and pull his shirt up, looking at the wound. His skin is healing, pushing the pink thread out. I reach down and yank it, tearing through the wound, mesmerized as it heals in seconds.
“Holy shit,” Nicole says. She’s standing a few feet in front of us, face pale and eyes wide. “He’s okay?”
Lucas rips his legs free and stands, pulling me up with him. “I am.”
Not convinced, Eliza zooms forward but stops at the salt line of the circle, not able to cross it now that it’s been invoked. I turn, giving Binx a nod, and he disbands his legion of spirits. Freya and Pandora shift back into cat form, and Evander waves his hand, clearing an opening in the salt.
“You’re okay?” Eliza whimpers, tears falling from her eyes. Lucas takes one arm off of me and pulls her close, kissing the top of her head.
“I am.” He looks up at Felix. “They did it.”
The squirrel thrashes, pitifully crying out. I look at it, wincing. Evander hurries over and holds up his hands, casting a spell to silence the creature.
“Thank you,” I tell him and force myself away from Lucas. I take both of Evander’s hands in mine. “For everything.”
“You spoke another language,” he whispers. “Again, from what I’ve been told.” He gives me a wink and pulls me in for a hug. “If he asks, say it was a new spell.”
“Okay,” I whisper back and squeeze Evander. “Is everyone else okay?” I ask, looking around the circle. Nicole is holding her twin’s hand, and Felix is staring at me in awe.
Shit. He had to have heard me speaking Enochian. I just got Lucas back. I don’t have time for another problem.
“That was incredible,” he says, dark eyes going wide. “It worked! It actually worked!” He plows a hand through his hair and laughs. “Holy shit, it worked!”
Lucas speeds forward, fangs still bared. Felix tenses but holds his ground.
“Thank you,” Lucas tells him, holding out his hand. Felix hesitates for only a second before shaking it. “If there is anything I can do to repay you…”
“Seeing the spell I’ve been working on for years actually work is payment enough.” Felix looks past Lucas to me. “And Callie is an old friend.”
Lucas growls, and I roll my eyes.
“She’s helped me out a time or two in the past. Though…if you want to talk payment, a few drops of your blood would do wonders for enhancing my spells.”
“Of course.” Lucas speeds into the house, moving so fast a slight breeze blows in his wake. Only a few seconds later, he comes back with one of my potion vials. He pops the cork and holds up his arm, sinking his fangs into his flesh.
Blood pours from the wound, filling half the vial before the wound heals. Lucas bites himself again, letting more blood drip into the vial before capping it and giving it to Felix.
Naomi links her arm through mine. “You should sit,” she says, taking me to the porch steps. I sink down, head spinning. Usually, using that much power takes a lot out of me, yet right now I don’t feel drained of power.
If anything, I feel power coursing through my veins.
“You conjured fire,” she whispers, and I know the real reason she brought me over here was to question me. “That was no spell.”
“I know. I, um, I think it was hellfire.”
“Hellfire?” Her brows go up, and her lips part. A fleeting moment of panic crosses her face, and then she smiles. “Well, it worked.”
I look at Lucas, and my heart swells in my chest. He’s back to himself. Strong. Fierce. The vampire I fell in love with, who I can be myself around.
Using the hellfire worked…but will there be a cost?