Awakening (23 page)

I was starving. I quickly peeled the
orange and shoved a piece of it in my mouth. It was sweet and
delicious. I quickly ate half of the orange and handed Luke the
other half. “You stole all this?”

He nodded his head, making short work
of the rest of the orange.

“
Was the house empty?” I
asked.

He pulled out half a loaf of French
bread from one of the bags. “No, but I got in and got what I needed
without anyone spotting me. It was early, the family was still
sleeping.” He tore a large piece of bread off and started eating
it. “I’ll go back later and leave money with the family to pay for
all this. It’s just some clothes and a bit of food. They won’t miss
what I took.”

I gasped. “You could’ve been
shot.”

He handed me a piece of bread. “Not
really. When guns first came they seemed a magic on par with ours,
where any non magical person could take down a wizard. So all
powerful wizards who do combat magic learned to block bullets early
on. It’s one of the first spells we’re taught. I’m not quite good
enough to bounce them back ‘return to sender’ but I’m not in any
danger from guns. There’s no time for you to learn the spell, so
when guns start blazing be sure to stay behind me.” He pulled me
into his arms. “I shouldn’t have left without telling you, but you
were sleeping. I figured I’d scout around.”

He stepped back with a half grin, and
his hand came up to caress my cheek. “Now eat the bread before I
try to talk you into giving me your piece. I’m still
starving.”

I returned his smile and broke off a
piece of my bread and handed it to him before shoving the other
piece in my mouth.

My upper body was nice and toasty
thanks to the flannel I was wearing like a jacket, but a breeze was
making its way around my legs and up under the t-shirt. I looked
down at my bare knees. “Any chance you found a pair of jeans for
me?”

He shook his head. “I just grabbed
what I could and got out of there before someone woke
up.”

“
You didn’t see the men
from last night?”

“
No, but they might still
be around.”

“
Do you think it’s safe to
go back to Pagan’s?” I licked my fingers. My stomach grumbled. Half
an orange and some bread barely made a dent in my current level of
hunger. I sorely regretted not eating more yesterday.

“
No use risking it. But the
question is, how did they find us? First they tracked us down at
the magic shop and now out here.” Luke pulled out a half gallon
plastic jug of milk from the bag. He took a swig and gestured it in
my direction.

I took it from him and gulped down a
couple swigs of cold milk before passing it back to him. “They have
to be using magic to track us. It’s the only thing that makes
sense. No one followed me when I came to the magic shop. I was
careful.”

He took a swig of milk and wiped his
mouth with his sleeve. “If it’s magic it’s not a spell I’m familiar
with.”

“
So where do we go?” If
Pagan’s house was now off limits, where did that leave
us?

“
I know this area. I spent
a lot of time here as a kid. There’s someone I know about two miles
from here. If we can get to his house, he can help us. He’s not one
of us--not from the guild. He’s a friend I grew up with. Not mage
born, but he can lend me some money, maybe loan me his car.” Luke
watched me, his expression turning serious. “You said last night
that you know where Darla is. Are you sure you can recognize the
place?”

I nodded. “Sarah showed me,
in my dream.” Had it been a dream or a vision? I still wasn’t sure.
I did know I didn’t want to go through anything like that again.
Re-enacting someone’s death. Forget re-enacting, more like reliving
their death. I felt everything Sarah had--her terror, fear and pain
as she was first hunted and then killed. A chill went down my spine
remembering the horror I felt as I was drowning. No, as
she
was drowning. It was
a terror I hoped never to feel again. I glanced at Luke. He was
watching me, concern in his eyes.

“
They held Sarah in a
mansion for a few days before they killed her. A big place above
the lake, surrounded by trees.” I tried to focus in on the images
of the house still echoing in my mind from last night.

Luke moved away from me and started to
pace, lost in thought. I stood quietly by, watching him.

Seconds dragged into
minutes. And then he spun around and said, “There’s an old hotel, a
resort that was popular in the twenties. The Freemont. It’s big,
very old school money. It’s the only place I can think of that
would pass for a mansion up there.” His words came out in an
excited rush. “It’s surrounded by ten acres of private woods. You
could do anything up there without people knowing about it.
The
closest
neighbor is miles away. It has to be the place.”

Finally, we had a destination. Now all
we needed was a plan of action. “So we go there and save
Darla.”

“
We need to regroup. Need
to get supplies.” He looked down at my legs. “And we
definitely
need to get
some decent clothes for you.”

“
All of which your friend
can help with?” A friend who wasn’t mage-born, Luke had
said
.
“Can your
friend help us go after Darla?”

“
No. It’ll just be the two
of us.”

“
The two of us going
against how many?”

Luke didn’t answer.

“
When those men attacked, I
had no way to help you.” I had watched him make a stand against the
men and my only recourse had been to run. I didn’t want that to
happen again. The next time we were in danger I wanted to be by his
side. “Can you teach me some of your spells?”

He shook his head. “Spells take time.
You have to learn proper Latin, learn how to build up your power
slowly so you can wield it.” He reached out and grabbed my hand.
“Even if I started teaching you some spells today, it would be
months before you could properly perform them.”

“
Then I don’t understand
what I can do to help when we go after Darla.”

His fingers tightened around mine.
“You can learn to wield banshee magic. To control banshees, get
them to do your bidding.”

Banshees. I took a step away from him.
“You want me to force someone’s spirit to follow my
orders?”

“
To do your bidding, yes.”
Luke’s voice was low. “It’s a powerful magic, controlling the dead.
If you had banshee magic, it might be enough, it could be the
tipping point to help us save my sister. You’ll be able to control
banshees after the last ritual.”

The time had finally arrived--the last
ritual. First I’d had to die, then I had to be possessed. What did
I have to do in this last one?

“
Tonight we do the last
ritual.” Luke wouldn’t meet my eyes.

I didn’t want to know, I really
didn’t, but I couldn’t help myself. “What do I have to do this
time?” I whispered.

His expression was grim when he
answered, “You have to take a life.”

* * * *

We left the barn and walked
down the country road in silence.
Take a
life.
I had heard the words, but my mind
refused to fully comprehend what he’d said. As a healer my path had
always been one of helping others. Luke said that his kind no
longer did human sacrifices, those kinds of things were no longer
allowed and hadn’t been for centuries, so I knew deep down he
couldn’t really be saying that he wanted me to kill someone. Could
he? I gave myself a mental shake. It wasn’t possible.

We left the dirt road, crossed a
pasture and then went over a small hill. On the other side of the
hill sat a white farmhouse.

Luke pointed toward the house. “There.
It’s just a bit further. How are you doing?”

“
I’m fine. About what you
said… the last ritual.”

“
What about it?”

“
You said I have to…to take
a life.” I forced the words out. “You aren’t saying you want me to
kill someone, are you?”

“
I want you to help someone
pass over to the other side. Someone who’s sick and in
pain.”

I froze at his words. “But I’m a
healer.”

He stood and watched me for a few
moments. “You were a healer. Now you’re a death dealer.”

I shook my head and took a step away
from him. “I can’t do it.”

“
You have to,” he said
quietly.

“
I can’t kill
someone.”

He reached out and grabbed my arm. His
fingers pressed hard into my skin. “It has to be done. You aren’t
killing them. You’re helping them move from this plane into the
next.”

Taking a life. I’d spent my whole life
trying to save lives. I couldn’t do this--I couldn’t help someone
die, not when everything in me would be screaming for them to
live.

“
Who… who…” I couldn’t get
the rest of the words out.

“
I found someone that needs
our services. Last night they called.”

I couldn’t believe what I
was hearing. “When we were at Pagan’s someone called and asked you
to
kill
them?”

“
There aren’t a lot of us.
Those who know about us, find us if they need help to end the
suffering of a family member who’s sick and in pain.” His grip on
me relaxed, and his voice turned persuasive. “They ask for help for
those who no longer have hope, those whose existence is filled with
suffering.”

I tried to get my mind around what he
was saying. This was something his guild did on a regular basis?
“Have you ever done it, helped someone to the other
side?”

His expression was solemn. “I have in
the past. A couple times, but this time I’m not doing the
transition, you are.”

“
You can’t ask me to do
this!” my voice this time was louder, a bit more
hysterical.

“
Colina, you’re stronger
than you know. You’ve gone through the first two trials and
survived. This is the last one. The last bridge that has to be
crossed for you to be initiated as a death dealer.”

Maybe there was another way. “But I
can communicate with the dead. I can talk to them now whether I
want to or not.”

“
Yes, you can communicate
with the spirits, but you can’t control them. Not in the way you
need to in order to-”

I interrupted him. “Bind them to
me!”

“
Yes, bind
them.”

I pulled my arm out of his grasp. “And
by murdering someone I’ll gain this power?”

He was getting angry. I could see it
in his eyes. “It’s not murder. I told you that kind of behavior has
been condemned for centuries.”

“
Tell that to the man
holding your sister.”

His anger boiled over this
time--his voice came out in a low growl. “Whoever’s doing
this
will be brought
to justice for what he’s done.”

“
You really believe
that?”

“
I do. My people won’t let
him get away with the things he’s done. There’ll be a reckoning.
There will be justice.”

But how many more would die before
this justice came about? His people weren’t around. There was no
one to stop this madman but the two of us.

“
This last ritual won’t be
easy, but I know you can do it. You have to remember, the family
requested our help. They’re asking, begging for our
help.”

I didn’t know what to say. I wasn’t
sure, when it came down to it that, I could actually go through
with it.

Luke started walking again. What
choice did I have but to follow him?

We made our way down to the farmhouse.
Luke pounded on the front door. After a while, it opened. In the
entrance stood a good looking guy about our age, with dark,
disheveled black hair, cut short and spiky, his shirt only
partially tucked in. He was a bit taller than I was, blocky and
muscular, built like a football player. When he saw us, a huge grin
spread across his face.

“
I heard you were back.” He
swung the door open wide and waved us in.

Luke stepped inside, and I followed
close behind him.

“
Freddy, this is
Colina.”

Freddy took in my outfit and then
looked over at Luke. “You show up at my house at the break of dawn
wearing that? You party a little too hard last night? Have car
trouble or something?”

“
We’re in
trouble.”

Freddy’s expression turned serious.
“Okay. Fill me in, but can you do it while I make some coffee? You
know how I am before I have my first cup of java.” Freddy started
heading out of the room.

Luke followed him.

Freddy stopped and turned back toward
me. He gestured to the couch. “Sit down, and I’ll turn up the heat.
You look cold. Make yourself comfortable.”

I looked around the room. I’d never
been in a farmhouse before, but it looked like I’d imagined. The
furniture was mostly older, worn but clean and comfortable. There
were antiques scattered around. Overstuffed cushions on the blue
couch beckoned me to relax into the security and warmth of the old
house. I gave in, sunk into the cushions and curled up on the
couch, wondering if it was possible for me to ever feel truly safe
and relaxed again.