Doorways to Infinity (49 page)

He looked exactly like the photo Eric and Terry had shown Jamie weeks before, with an Everyman’s face, short dark-blond hair, and an average build. Even though Jamie was still invisible, Cage stared intently in Jamie’s direction as if he could somehow see him. Cage said, “Who’s there?”

Jamie modulated his shield so that he became visible but was still protected, and the air around him shimmered faintly yellow. Cage’s eyes flared when he saw Jamie and he said, “What the hell?” Cage snatched a handgun from the floor beside him, raised it and fired three shots at Jamie, all in the blink of an eye. The bullets hit Jamie’s shield and bounced off harmlessly.

Cage’s jaw dropped and he rose to his feet with his weapon at his side. “Huh? How are you doing that?” Jamie didn’t answer. He floated in the air, glaring at Cage. Cage levelled the gun at Jamie again and squeezed off more rounds,
bam, bam, bam, bam, bam
, until he emptied the clip and the trigger clicked uselessly.

Cage threw the weapon aside and reached for his waist, and that’s when Jamie noticed the black utility belt full of vials.
The witches’ potions!
Before Jamie could react, Cage snatched one out and flung it in one rapid motion, directly at Jamie. Jamie flinched as the white powder filled the air in front of him, but its progress was halted by his shield. Jamie held his breath for an anxious moment, waiting to see if the witch’s spell would affect him, but he felt nothing unusual.

Cage reached for his belt again. Jamie needed to respond, and quickly. There was no guarantee his magical defenses would protect him from all of Cage’s witchcraft; Jamie had never tested his magic against Fred’s, and he didn’t know what his power could withstand. Jamie’s best option was to fire a blast, but he would have to drop his shield, and he would be completely exposed. His mind raced as Cage’s arm snapped forward like a rattlesnake strike.
What can I do?

Cage hurled the contents of the second vial at Jamie, a potion, and it spread out as it sailed toward him. Jamie recoiled as it struck his shimmering, magical barrier. The liquid stopped abruptly in midair, less than an arm’s reach away, and ran down to the floor like rainwater on a window.

Cage’s hand went to his belt a third time, but Jamie didn’t wait for Cage to pull out another spell. Jamie suddenly flew forward, and the leading edge of his shield caught Cage squarely in the chest. Cage lurched backward and his head smacked against the wall. His eyes closed as he sank to the floor.

Jamie hovered over the inert man for a moment before settling to his feet and dropping his shield, careful not to step in any of the witch’s powder that was scattered about. He clinched both fists and scowled. “Dang!”

Jamie felt cheated. It had ended too quickly. He was still upset about being hexed and nearly killed by Cage, and in his anger he had imagined a more exhilarating confrontation with this dangerous man, in a more intriguing location — a vast chamber, where Jamie could fly around like Superman, laughing while Cage shot ineffective weapons at Jamie’s shield. And Jamie would respond, firing bolts of incredible energy like…like….

Who would fire bolts of energy?
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
One of the Norse gods, maybe? No, Jupiter. He hurled thunderbolts, didn’t he?
His reverie was interrupted when Cage groaned and began to stir, so Jamie reached into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out a plastic tube full of Fred’s magic knockout powder.

At least I have the counter charm for this stuff
. He flipped off the cap with his thumb and poured some onto his palm.
But I bet you don’t
. Cage’s eyes fluttered and he raised his head as Jamie knelt and blew the powder into his face. Cage’s chin dropped and he slumped like a toy soldier whose batteries had died.

Chapter 22

Jamie opened a doorway to the storage room they had first entered and he stepped through it. Waiting inside were Eric and Terry, with Fred, Momma Sue, and Mrs. Malley. Three strange women were also with them, thin, pale, dark-haired and dark-eyed, with dingy, threadbare dresses and scuffed shoes. “Oh,” Jamie said when he noticed them. “What have we here?”

Fred gestured at the women and said, “These are Cage’s witches, Dumitra and Celestina, who are Romanian, and Timea, who’s Hungarian, I think.” The third woman nodded and a weak smiled flickered at her lips. “They had a translator, but apparently he ran off when the gunfire started. But that’s okay, because Dumitra speaks a little English, as well as Hungarian.” Fred chuckled. “But Cage didn’t know.”

The one named Dumitra grinned and bobbed her head. “We not tell.” She tapped her chest with one finger. “Our secret.”

“Um….” Jamie knitted his brow. “Shouldn’t these women be handcuffed or something?”

Momma Sue glanced at them before answering, “From what we’ve been able to gather, they are victims. They’re all outcasts from their communities because they are witches, so Cage took them in and promised to help them, but he just used them, instead. He gave them a place to live, but he forced them to make potions for him. He threatened to throw them out if they didn’t serve him, and they had nowhere else to go, so they submitted to him.” Momma Sue sighed. “Sammi was right all along about them. I should’ve listened to her.”

“So what do we do with them?”

“We’ll figure that out later.”

Jamie looked around the room. “Where is everybody?”

“Still somewhere in the building,” Eric said. “We came back here when we stumbled across Fred’s group with these witches. We’re getting ready to start searching again. Did you have any luck?”

Jamie smiled. “A little.” He turned around in the open portal and faced the limp form of Phillip Cage, still lying where Jamie had left him. Jamie flicked his fingers and the unconscious assassin floated through the glowing doorway into the storage room, minus his belt full of potions, his head slumped to one side, eyes closed.

“You got him!” Terry thrust her arms in the air as Jamie settled him onto the floor. “How’d you do it? I heard about Fred and Momma Sue and Mrs. Malley waking you up with their magic, but what happened after that?”

Jamie filled them in on how he’d found Mr. Cage and subdued him, and then the others told him about their searches through the monastery. Eric and Terry had killed three guards and another had escaped in one of the SUVs, but they weren’t concerned about him.

Carl, John Paul, Rollie and Nova returned during the discussion, and Jamie had to repeat his story from the start.

After he finished retelling of his encounter with Phillip Cage, Jamie glanced around the room again and said, “So where are Bryce and Melanie?”

“Still searching, probably,” Terry said. “We had to split up when we came to a fork in the passageway, but they should be back soon.”

“Jamie?” Fred said. “I’m worried about them. They must be lost. Can you find them and bring them back?”

“As long as they’re wearing their lockets.” Jamie made a small portal, put his hand through it, and retrieved his carved walking stick. He grasped it with both hands, closed his eyes and concentrated. His mind filled with thin glowing lines, and two of the brightest were together, the ones pointing to Bryce and Melanie. “I found them. I’ll go get them.”

He opened a magic doorway to a dark hall. “Bryce?” he called into the gloom. “Melanie?”

He turned when he heard Bryce’s stricken cry. “Jamie!” Bryce stumbled toward Jamie with Melanie in his arms. She looked unconscious, and Bryce’s cheeks were wet.

“What happened?”

“She’s hurt,” Bryce said, his voice cracking. “She’s hurt really bad. She’s been shot.”

“Ohmygod! Bring her inside.”

Bryce carried her through the portal and everyone in the room gasped when they saw her. That was when Jamie noticed the blood dripping from Bryce’s arms onto the floor, and Jamie sucked in his breath through his teeth.
This is bad
.

“What happened, Bryce?” Fred rushed to his side, as well as almost everyone else.

“She got shot. We found a guard in one of the halls, and Melanie started twirling her pendant, but she was a little late, and he still managed to pull the trigger of his rifle before he got stunned. The bullet ricocheted off the floor, I think, and came up under her vest. Can you help her with your healing jelly?”

“Not with a gunshot wound. I’m sorry!”

Carl yanked off his jacket and laid it on the floor. “Put her here, and everybody step back so I can have a look at her.”

Bryce gently placed her down and Carl bent over her and hurriedly removed her bulletproof vest, then he pulled her shirt out of the way. He grunted and placed both hands firmly over the wound. “It’s bad. How long has it been, Bryce?”

“I don’t know. Ten minutes, maybe. I’ve been carrying her all this time, but I got lost in the dark. I couldn’t hold my flashlight at the same time and….” He choked up, and Jamie felt his heart breaking at the sight. Fred stood beside Bryce with her hand over her mouth, all color drained from her face. The rest of Jamie’s friends were too stunned to speak, a horrified look in their eyes. Even Eric and Terry looked shocked.

Carl shook his head. “I’m afraid she’s lost a lot of blood.”

“We’ve got to take her to the hospital in Hendersonville,” Jamie said, “right now. Before she gets—”

“Where are you going to put the doorway?” Carl said. “By the time you find an inconspicuous place and get her to the emergency room, and then wait while they get her into surgery, she could bleed out.”

“I don’t care if people see the doorway. This is too important.”

“But it might cause so much chaos and confusion that it’ll slow us down. Think about it, Jamie. People will
freak
out when they see it. What if they call security?”

“Take her to Keeva,” Mrs. Malley said. “At the clinic. She can put Melanie’s body in a state and bring it to a stop. The bleeding will cease for a short while.”

“Then you can take her to the hospital if you want.” Momma Sue nodded firmly. “I agree with Bella. Keeva is Melanie’s best chance.”

Jamie stood with his mouth open and one finger raised, ready to make a doorway to somewhere, anywhere. He wasn’t sure what the best choice was, but the palpable sense of urgency was overwhelming. He turned to Bryce and said, “What do think? Clinic or hospital? Better hurry, though.”

Bryce held Jamie’s gaze for a couple of seconds, then he dipped his chin once. “Clinic. Right now.”

Jamie formed the portal in record time and opened it while Bryce lifted Melanie from the floor. Carl said, “We’ll stay here with Cage. Come back for us after you take care of Melanie.”

“We should go with them, too,” Momma Sue said. “Me and Bella and Fred, in case we’re needed. The rest of you should wait with Carl.”

Jamie led the way for Bryce as he carried Melanie through to the front of the clinic, and the others followed. Then Jamie held the door to the building open and they rushed inside.

Bryce nearly bumped into Keeva as he ran into the main room with Melanie in his arms. Jamie, Fred, and the two old witches were close on his heels. “We need your help,” Bryce blurted out. “Melanie’s been shot.”

Keeva took a quick look at Melanie, and she turned and shouted, “Dr. Burke. We have an emergency.”

Dr. Burke hurried from the back room, putting her glasses on as she came. “What is it?”

Fred quickly explained the situation, then the two women from the clinic had Jamie move the examination table to the center of the room. Bryce laid Melanie on it. Keeva eyed Melanie’s wound for a moment before resting her hands on Melanie’s abdomen, eyes closed and brow furrowed deeply.

No one moved or even breathed while they watched the young healer. After what seemed like an eternity, Keeva opened her eyes and said, “I can help her. I must still her body, first.” She touched the fingertips of one hand to Melanie’s forehead and whispered something, and Melanie’s skin began to turn gray, starting at her face and spreading downward until it covered her completely.

“Is it supposed to do that?” Bryce said. “She looks like she’s dead.”

Keeva turned to him and gave him a reassuring look. “I have put her in a state. She can survive this way for about ten minutes before the bleeding resumes. That will give me enough time to heal her.”

“Can you do that? Shouldn’t we take her to a hospital instead?” He looked at Dr. Burke, who shook her head and said, “If Keeva thinks she can do it, I say we should let her try. We still might have enough time to take Melanie to the hospital if she fails.”

“Fails?” Bryce’s voice grew strident. “She can’t fail!”

Keeva’s eyes were confident. “I believe I can heal her, but she will require more blood. Dr. Burke can take care of that.”

“I can give her a transfusion,” Dr. Burke said. “We have enough on hand, but I’ll need to start it as soon as Keeva finishes.”

“So what should we do?” Bryce glanced at the others for help, until Fred gently put her hand on his shoulder and said, “It’s your decision, Bryce, and I know you’ll make the right one. But do it now.”

Bryce stared at Melanie’s unconscious form and swallowed hard, one hand opening and closing at his side. “Okay.” He nodded firmly. “Heal her, Keeva. Please.”

“I think the bullet is still inside her,” Jamie said.

“We need to remove that, first,” Keeva said. “Jamie, will you do that with your magic?”

“I’ll try.”

Dr. Burke held a kidney-shaped surgical pan close to the table. “Put it in here, if you can.”

Jamie stepped to Melanie and placed his hands on her body, then focused his will and sent it inside her. “Ugh,” he said when he sensed the carnage the bullet had caused, tissue torn apart in a ragged tunnel that led upward through her abdomen. He sent his mind deeper until he found the slug, wedged against the back of her rib cage. He gripped it with his magic and translocated into the pan, where it landed with a metallic
thunk
.

“Gross,” Fred said. “It’s bloody.”

“But it is out of her body,” Keeva said. “Now I will need the help of another witch, the strongest amongst you, to join her magic with mine.”

“Why not all of us?” Fred said.

“This spell will only work when two are joined.”