Ms. MacAllister leapt to her feet. “There isn’t any time to waste,” she said. “We have to get to the Standing Stone. That’s where he’ll try it this time, I’m sure of it.”
Minion hefted himself to his feet beside her and gave a low, rumbling growl. “Of course you can come,” she told the dog. “I’ll need you, old friend.”
He pressed his head against her palm, and she ruffled his ears.
Normally, this type of exchange would cause me to send Charlie a wide-eyed stare. But I kept my eyes fixed on my toes, on the purple polish already chipping off my nails. I couldn’t look at him right now. I couldn’t think about what Ms. MacAllister had just told us. I had to concentrate on stopping Ransom.
I had to concentrate on rescuing Leah.
Ms. MacAllister was already climbing the stairs with Minion at her heels. “Run home, Amelia, and change your shoes,” she called back over her shoulder. “You can’t expect to beat a hundred-year-old madman and the ghost of an evil witch while wearing flip-flops. My grandson and I will meet you outside in a few minutes.”
Her tone left no room for arguing, and the last thing I wanted to do was to be left alone with Charlie. He didn’t appear to have such reservations, however—he grabbed my hand as I turned to leave and pulled me to him, his fingers tangling with mine, desperation shining in his eyes. He didn’t even give me time to protest before he slid his other hand into my hair and captured my lips in a searing, white-hot kiss. Any resistance I’d had melted away as my mouth parted for him, and I kissed him back. He guided me backwards until I was pressed against the wall, pinned between smooth plaster and his warm body. My free hand curled into a fist against his chest—I couldn’t tell whether I was holding him close or pushing him away.
As abruptly as he’d started, Charlie stepped back, his breath ragged, and dropped his forehead to mine. “I don’t care what she says,” he growled. “I don’t believe for a second that what I feel for you is anything but real. This is real,” he said, motioning between us, his blue eyes burning bright. “That was real. I love you, Amelia. She can’t take that away from us.”
I pressed my hands to my mouth, holding back tears. “I’m sorry,” I whispered back. “I… I…”
I didn’t finish my sentence. I ducked under his arm and ran for home as quickly as I could, leaving him standing in his grandmother’s parlor.
Alone.
I sprinted down the steps and across my driveway. I tore through the house until I found a pair of my sneakers sitting by the back door. I pulled them on hurriedly, blinking away tears.
Leah. We have to find Leah. There’d be enough time to worry about my love life—or lack of one—once she was home safe and sound.
“Honey?” Mom hovered in the doorway leading to kitchen, worry creasing her face. “Is everything okay?”
I wiped at my eyes and climbed to my feet. “Fine,” I lied.
“You’d tell me if there was something wrong, wouldn’t you?”
I paused, my hand on the knob. “Of course.” Another lie.
She sighed. “Going out with Charlie?”
I nodded. What was one more lie, at this point?
She smiled. “He makes you happy. I like him.”
I couldn’t help it. I flung myself at her and wrapped her in a hug. “I love you, Mommy.”
She stiffened in surprise, but relaxed almost immediately, holding me tight. She pressed a kiss to my forehead. “I love you too, sweetheart. You’re sure everything’s all right?”
“I’ll tell you later,” I promised, and raised myself onto my tiptoes to press a kiss to her cheek before I pulled myself away and opened the back door. “I promise, I’ll tell you everything later.”
She smiled, the worry never quite leaving her eyes. “Have fun!” she called after me.
I stepped out onto the porch, straightened my shoulders, and hoped more than anything else that I’d be able to keep that promise to my mother.
***
Ms. MacAllister and Charlie waited at the edge of the woods with Minion pacing back and forth at their feet. Ms. MacAllister’s face was pale and drawn, her arms crossed over her chest. Charlie had his back turned toward me, his posture stiff. My stomach twisted at the sight, but I took a deep breath.
Leah. I had to focus on Leah.
The dog regarded me with worried eyes as I approached; once he deemed I was near enough, he woofed softly and took off toward the path. Charlie followed, never once glancing back in my direction. I fell in behind Ms. MacAllister, who strode swiftly, black skirts swirling around her ankles. We walked in silence until we reached the first fringe of blighted trees. Ms. MacAllister’s breath caught. “I hadn’t realized it was so bad,” she said.
Neither had I. Last night, it had been too dark for me to see anything, but the last time we’d been out here in daylight, we’d walked for another five minutes or more before we’d reached the blighted section of the forest. It had spread quickly.
Too quickly.
“Listen, you two,” she said. “When we reach the clearing, I need the two of you to stand back and let me take charge of things. Ransom is little better than a madman. He’s been killing people for a century to stay the way he is. There’s no telling what he’ll do.”
“Grams, no,” Charlie said. “I can’t let you do that.”
She clapped her hand on his shoulder and spun him around to face her without breaking her stride. “You listen to me,” she said, her voice stern. “I swore to your mother that I would protect you. Allowing you to think that you’re any match for Ransom is doing the opposite of that. It’s my fault you’re untrained. I’m the MacAllister, and while I still draw breath, I will not let you throw your life away. Do you understand me?”
His eyes met mine, and he flinched, jerking out of her grasp. “You’re wrong, Grams. He trained me. I know better than anyone the way he thinks.”
“You know only what he wants you to know!” she cried. “Charlie, if you do nothing else, please listen to me.”
He stared at her, his face a mask of stone. “I can do this.”
“I believe in you,” she said, her voice pleading. She stepped toward him and laid her hand on his cheek, her touch tender. “But I’m asking you to let me do what I promised myself I’d do the day you were born. Let me protect you, my darling boy.”
“I can’t just stand there and do nothing,” he whispered.
“I’m not asking you to.” She inclined her head toward me. “I need you and Amelia to do whatever it takes to get Leah to safety. Do you hear me?”
“What about you?”
“I’ll be fine,” she said softly, like her tone could mask the lie that hung in the air between them. “I’ll meet you back at the house. Don’t wait for me. Don’t look back. Just take Leah, and then you run as far and as fast as you can.”
Charlie swallowed. “Grams, I—”
Pain etched over his face, and I ached to step to him, to wrap him in my arms and hold him tight. But I was part of the reason that pain was there in the first place, and I was afraid that touching him would only make it worse for both of us in the end. I clenched my hands into fists at my sides.
She did this to him. To me, I reminded myself. Marin had treated us both like puppets, had tangled our feelings together until there seemed to be no escape.
I vowed right then that she’d pay for that.
Ms. MacAllister dropped her hand from Charlie’s face. “I’ll meet you back at the house,” she repeated. Minion nudged her leg, and she ruffled his ears. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, they glowed a brilliant blue in the shadow of the trees around us.
“Let’s go.”