People were running past us as Boone helped me to my feet.
Sean McKinnon, Roy, Maggie, Mairead, Mary Donnelly, Fergus and his furry companions, Mark and Fiona Ashlyn, Mairead’s parents—Beth and Gregory, Cheese Wheel Aoife, Father O’Donegal, even Mrs. Boyle. They all rushed through the forest and into the clearing and formed a circle around Carman, who was pinned to the ground by a burst of golden light.
Aileen.
She stood above the ancient witch, her hand outstretched and her silver-streaked hair flowing backward. Behind them, the base of the hawthorn was alight with a blinding glow.
Aileen was the only thing standing in the way of Carman crossing over, but something amazing was happening. The villagers formed a circle around Carman, their arms linked at the elbows and their crystals clutched in their hands. Even Donkey had joined the chain, Fergus and Mary grasping her mane. Jack stood on his best mate’s back, his teeth bared, and the little spear of quartz on his collar glowed a bright shade of yellow.
I ached all over. I could feel my joints grinding together and the cuts on my knees and arms stinging as I moved toward the circle. Boone’s arm slid from my waist, and his hand grasped mine as I wound my other with Aileen’s hand. Sean yanked Boone into the circle with a grin, happy to have his best friend back and mostly in one piece.
The entire village of Derrydun surrounded Carman, and the power of their crystals joined together. As Aileen and I placed our magic into the circle, the web tightened, forcing our prey to cower.
“No!” Carman screeched. “Human scum!”
“Well, I never!” Mary Donnelly exclaimed.
“It’s over,” Sean said. “You can’t hurt us anymore.”
“We won’t stand for it,” Mairead added.
“No one messes with Derrydun,” Beth said.
“No one at all!” Cheese Wheel Aoife cried.
Donkey hee-hawed, and Jack barked to add their support.
The light of our circle grew, whipping up a gale as Carman fought back with the Legacy she’d stolen. I felt Boone’s power rise beside me, clear and crisp as it was when he’d grasped my ankle. We hadn’t been enough to fight her then, but all of us together was just enough to bind her bitch ass in place.
“I have to close the doorway,” Aileen said, her gaze meeting mine. “My spirit will bar the way, then you can end her. The athame is in my boot.”
“No!” I exclaimed. If she did that, she would… I couldn’t lose her again.
“It’s the only way.”
“No, you can’t sacrifice yourself. Not again.”
“It’s the only way,” she repeated. “The loss of one life is better than the loss of millions. I know you wanted to save the witches magic, but it can’t be done.”
I desperately racked my brain for another solution. Boone was safe, his connection to his mother severed, but it would mean nothing if Carman crossed over into the fae realm. We had to kill or imprison her… Any of those would do.
My gaze caught Mairead’s, and I had an epiphany. We had to give Carman a new home. One she couldn’t get out of this time. One that would allow me to take back what she’d stolen.
“Can you hold her without me?” I asked.
“Skye…”
“Can you or not?”
“Not for long.”
“I’ve got a better idea,” I declared, hoping my crazy idea would save everyone, not just a few. “Stall her for as long as you can.”
“Skye—”
“Trust me, Mum.”
She choked, a tear falling from her eye. “That’s the first time you’ve called me that.”
“Third,” I corrected her, breaking away from the circle. “Buy me ten minutes.”
Aileen nodded, grasping Boone’s hand. He stared at me, his wild hair blowing in all directions.
I blew him a kiss, then I was off.
My boots pounded on the path as I sprinted toward the village. The icy air burned my lungs, and my heart beat faster than it had ever beaten before. I was so not made for track and field. Short distances were my best friend. Why was the cottage so far away? I never did sign up for those mixed martial arts classes…
A branch whipped my face as I sped past, opening a cut on my cheek. Ignoring the sting, I pushed on, adrenaline fueling my flight. The coven was counting on me, so was the village. I’d vowed to protect them whether they knew it or not, and seeing them all standing there, all of them human, facing a thousand-year-old suped-up witch gave me the chills. I couldn’t fail them now.
The cottage came into sight, and an otherworldly force I hoped was Siobhan urged me on. I leaped over the fence like an Olympic hurdler and barreled up the path, not even missing a step. I fumbled for my key, but dropped it, cursed, then used my Legacy to blast the lock open. The door crashed inward, cracking the plaster behind it. Whoo, boy! It felt good to use my power openly for once.
Skidding to a stop in front of Mairead’s painting, I focused on the ruined tower house she’d painstakingly outlined with the tip of her littlest brush. It was perfect. Museum-worthy, even.
Just what I was looking for!
I practically tore the canvas from the wall and bounced back and forth down the hall until I was outside again. The painting was intact after my uncoordinated exit, so I ran toward the clearing, leaving the cottage door wide open and the picture balanced awkwardly against my head. It was massive, and the amount of work Mairead had put into it was on epic levels. Man, I hoped she wouldn’t be pissed. Pfft! How could she be angry when her work was going to save the world?
That was if my plan worked. It was going to work. No ifs, ands, or buts. It would work.
Light filtered through the forest as I approached the clearing, wind whipping the leaves into a frenzy. Debris whipped past my face as I ran down the path, the gust almost ripping the painting from my hands.
“That’s me paintin’!” Mairead shrieked as I reappeared in the clearing.
Slipping back into the circle, I propped the canvas against me and held it steady with my free hand. I felt Boone and Aileen connect their Legacy to mine, and I was back in the game. Time to suck that bitch into her prison.
“You think you can trick me?” Carman cried. She was on her feet, pushing back against the villagers. “I have the Legacy of a thousand witches!”
“Yeah, fat lot of good that’s doing,” I drawled.
“We were always a match for one another. Two halves of a whole,” Siobhan said through me. “You cannot overpower the united Crescent Legacy, Carman. Have you already forgotten in your lust for revenge?”
“Who’s speakin’?” Maggie asked. “That’s not Skye’s voice.”
I felt Siobhan’s ghostly hand grasp my shoulder, and my Legacy flared. The golden light that bound Carman twisted around her, completely enveloping her body.
“No!” she shrieked, holding up her arms to shield herself. “You’ll regret this, sister! I’ll come back for you, and you’ll pay!”
“I don’t think so,” I said, holding the painting steady as the witch was drawn into the image. “You’ll never be free again, Carman.”
A sucking sound filled the clearing as Carman’s body circled the drain, her physical and spiritual essence flowing into the painting. She was ripped away from reality, twisting and turning, shrieking and calling us names, then she was gone.
The villagers let each other go with a collective sigh, the light from their crystals fading. The wind dropped completely, and the din created by the mini-tornado died down. Silence stretched out into the forest as we stood before the hawthorn.
Carman was gone.
The painting shuddered in my grasp, and I jumped. I almost expected her to break free as it shook and shook, but it held true.
“Freaky,” Mairead said, staring at her masterpiece. “She’s really in there?”
“Hey,” Maggie said, turning toward the tree. “Is that music?”
“I hear it, too,” Roy said.
“It sounds like a trumpet,” Sean added.
I glanced at Boone, who nodded toward the hawthorn.
“Somethin’s arrived,” he said, taking the painting from me.
This time, I turned toward the light. The doorway was still open, and we still had to face what was on the other side. This didn’t end with Carman. There was still more.
Go…Siobhan’s spirit urged.
But I didn’t know what was waiting for me. I imagined darkness and fire and a horde of grotesque fae waiting to devour my magic.
Come… This time, it wasn’t Siobhan speaking to me. It was someone else.
Sucking in a sharp breath, I took a step toward the door. Who or what was inviting me in, there was no way of knowing, but I wasn’t afraid. Calmness flowed through me as I let go of Aileen’s hand.
As I walked toward the light, no one tried to stop me. I felt Boone’s gaze on my back, but he didn’t call out, either. He knew what awaited me. He always did in a way, which was one of the things that infuriated me most about him.
We’d won the battle, but the next part of the story was mine and mine alone to tell.
When the time comes, open yourself…
I stepped through the doorway.