Fate Changer (The Lost Witch Trilogy #3) (14 page)

Sarah looked doubtfully back at Agnes and sighed miserably. “You mean third most powerful witch. Zane is the second,” she said with a sniff, holding back her tears just barely.

Lash winced, but nodded in agreement. What he had seen Zane do when they’d gone hunting for Mason had obviously impressed him.

Charlie looked critically at the paper and then back at Sarah. “She won’t be able to do it. She’s not that kind of witch. She’s powerful when she’s connected to Zane or the ocean or the air or the ground. That piece of paper won’t give her anything. Sarah’s right. We’re wasting time.”

Agnes looked affronted, but Sarah sighed in relief. There was no way she could find Zane this way as interesting as the idea was.

Gretchen sighed tiredly and shook her head. “It doesn’t matter if she can or can’t. If she doesn’t believe she can do it, then she won’t. Let’s look at the map logically and see if we can just figure out where Charles might be hiding out. He has to be close by. For him to be able to see Sarah on the beach yesterday there’s no way he’s in Bangor or Portland. But he’s very spoiled too, so he’s not living in a tent in the woods. So where does that leave him?

Charlie closed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. “I think he’s right here in town. Sarah’s lines are only a small circle going around Race’s house, the school, the stores and this house. That leaves more than three quarters of the town open to him. I’m sure he’s closer than we think.”

Lash grimaced and Agnes and Gretchen winced and turned pale at the thought. Sarah shook her head in disbelief. “But Zane felt so faint. I could barely feel him answer me,” she said, sounding confused and upset.

Gretchen stared at Charlie and nodded her head. “I think Charlie’s right. We don’t know why Zane sounded faint, but it could be for another reason besides distance. He could be drugged again, or he could have been in the middle of dealing with Charles,” she said, sounding upset by her own conclusions.

Lash looked away from the table and out the window. “If he’s in town, then I’ll find him. Sarah can’t cross her lines and you three shouldn’t attempt it. But I’m pretty safe from him.”

Sarah stared at him in surprise, “Lash, you’re just as at risk as the rest of us. I don’t want you taking chances with your life.”

Lash crossed his arms over his chest and looked uncomfortable. “I still have your blood in my veins Sarah. It’s just as potent as it was the day I took it from you. I’m ten times stronger than I’ve ever been before. Remember how well your magic worked on Mason? Well, I don’t think even Charles’s magic will work that well on me now.”

Sarah stared at him in surprise. And then she smiled. “Lash, you are our secret weapon. He won’t know what hit him!” she said, jumping up and down in her seat with a grin on her face.

Agnes and Gretchen started smiling too, and looked at Lash as if he were made of gold. Lash blushed and looked down at his hands. “I have Blutraush. It’s an addiction, not something to be jumping for joy over. But in this case, I guess it’ll come in handy.”

Sarah looked down at the scars on her palm and frowned. She traced the faint silvery lines and closed her eyes in gratitude. “By the way, I completely forgive you for taking my blood. And now, I think you should take more. I know you’re trying to beat the addiction, but you’ll have to finish that fight after we get Zane back. If you can take more of my blood, then that will just make you even stronger against Charles,” she said, standing up and walking towards Lash.

Lash shook his head and held his hand up to stop her. “No Sarah. Sit down. I made a promise to myself to never take your blood again. I’m not going to break that promise,” he said, deadly serious.

Sarah’s face fell in disappointment and she slowly sat down, looking at Lash with a frown. “Well,
crap
,” she muttered to herself.

Charlie cleared her throat and brought everyone’s attention back to her. “You never promised not to take
my
blood. I might not be as powerful a witch as Sarah, but I have my father’s blood running through me. I didn’t get his power, but my blood has it. Take mine and you’ll have all you need to stand up to Charles and free Zane,” she said, sounding a little ill and worried, but determined too.

Lash blinked in surprise and looked at her speculatively. “
Hmmm
.”

Sarah, Gretchen and Agnes looked at each other and nodded in agreement. It would work.

“Will it hurt?” Charlie asked nervously, staring at Lash.

Lash looked her straight in the eyes before nodding. “Yeah, it will.”

Sarah studied the pretty blond girl sitting next to Gretchen and smiled a little. Charlie was turning out to be the biggest surprise. She might just be the key to saving them all.

“Charlie, if you want, I’ll hold onto your hand while he takes your blood and I’ll take the pain from you and heal you as soon as he’s done,” she offered, noting that Charlie was looking more and more nervous.

Lash stared silently at Charlie for a few moments before standing up from the table. “Not now though. I’m going to give Charlie a night to think about it. She can change her mind if she wants to. I’m going to walk around town and see if I can pinpoint Charles’s whereabouts. Then I’m going to get a good night’s sleep. In the morning, if Charlie is still willing, I’ll take her blood and then go get Zane. If Charlie changes her mind, I’ll still go.”

Charlie looked relieved at the temporary reprieve and sighed audibly. Sarah studied Lash who was looking back at her and nodded. “Good idea Lash. Be safe
please
.”

Gretchen and Agnes walked with Lash to the door before he left to look for Charles, leaving Charlie and Sarah sitting at the table.

“Will I still be me?” Charlie asked, glancing at Sarah’s hand, where Lash had taken her blood.

Sarah raised her eyebrows questioningly. “What do you mean? Like, your power? Will you still be a witch?”

Charlie shrugged and looked away. “I’ll do anything I can to help. I’ll give my blood, you don’t have to worry about that. But I don’t have someone like Zane around to recharge my power. What if he takes all my power and I’m left with nothing? What then?”

Sarah frowned and studied her hands and remembered how wasted and powerless she had felt after Lash had drunk her blood. Of course that had been after she’d used her power to tunnel underground too though.

“You have a point about Zane recharging my power, but after I lose a lot of power, for whatever reason, I’ve always been able to recharge. It just takes, food and sleep and rest. You’ll be okay Charlie, but even if he did take your power, would you be willing to do that?”

Charlie flipped her white blond hair over her shoulder and studied her glossy black nail polish. “It’s never done me much good. I’ve been able to get what I want, but it’s never brought me happiness, you know? I wasn’t even able to heal my own mother. I didn’t even know to try,” she said miserably, looking back at Sarah.

Sarah winced and stood up. “Charlie it’s a good thing you never tried, or you would have been as lost as Teresa and living in the room right next to her. Don’t blame yourself. Just focus on the fact that one way or another, this will be over eventually and you and your mom will be able to live a normal, happy life together very soon.”

Charlie stood up too, now smiling at the thought of being with her mom. “You’re right. I’ll tell Lash he doesn’t have to wait until morning to take my blood. He can have it when he gets back.”

Gretchen and Agnes returned to the kitchen and smiled at hearing Charlie’s words. “I knew you’d do it my girl,” Agnes said, hugging Charlie and running a hand down her smooth pale flow of hair.

Gretchen smiled in relief. “Thank you Charlie. We’ll forever be in your debt for doing this.”

Charlie looked intrigued by that but Sarah shook her head at her. Charlie grinned and shrugged. “We all have a part to play. If giving my blood is my part, then so be it. I’m happy to do it.”

Agnes gathered up a few bowls and spoons in her hands and walked to the sink. “You know, if Lash is going to be putting his neck at risk trying to hunt down Charles, I’m wondering if we should offer up a distraction?”

Gretchen was in the process of wiping down the table, but stood up with a grin on her face. “Mom, you are brilliant. If Charles can see Zane and Sarah kissing on the beach, he has some way to see what’s going on. He just can’t physically touch her. So if Sarah does something crazy, then he won’t be aware of Lash sneaking around. I love it.”

Sarah pushed her chair in to the table and nodded her head. “Looks like this town is getting ready to see a witch fight,” she said looking at Charlie with a smile.

Charlie looked at her with wide eyes and stepped back from the table. “Oh no you don’t. I just promised you my blood. I never said anything about getting electrocuted. Even I have my limits.”

Sarah laughed and Agnes hurried to Charlie’s side. “How good of an actress are you?” Agnes said, looking at Sarah with a twinkle in her eye.

Chapter 12 – Witch Fight

Sarah sighed and wondered what was taking Charlie so long. She was supposed to have walked out of the store five minutes ago, but she was nowhere to be seen.
Probably reading a fashion magazine
, she thought in irritation. She glanced at her watch and then at the sliding doors of the grocery store. Agnes and Gretchen were across the street at the post office, keeping an eye on things from there.

The plan was that as soon as Charlie walked out of the store, Sarah would just happen to pass by on her way in. Charlie would start yelling and screaming at her for stealing Zane and then the fireworks would start. Charlie would pretend to throw the first ball of electricity and then Sarah would put on a little fireworks show. Gretchen and Agnes’s job was to keep innocent bystanders from noticing what was going on. It was hard to do a low key fake witch fight, right in the middle of town and still not end up on the evening news. Almost impossible, but worth a shot if it got Charles’s attention.

Sarah sighed in relief as she caught sight of Charlie’s white blond hair. Seconds later, she walked through the sliding glass door, looking angry. Sarah hid her grin and pasted on an appropriate sneer. She walked towards the store and gasped when Charlie knocked into her shoulder.
Hard
. Sarah stumbled and glared at Charlie for real.

“Watch it
graceful
. Put a dent in me and I’ll take a chunk out of you,” she warned.

Charlie raised a disdainful eyebrow and looked Sarah up and down with a laugh. “Oh you have got to be kidding me. Who picks out your clothes? Your
grandmother
? Oh,
oops
. She’s dead. I forgot,” she said with a vicious smirk that had Sarah seething for real.

Sarah swallowed, her eyes narrowing at Charlie and then Charlie winked at her. Charlie was better at this than anyone could have suspected.

Sarah nodded her head, “Yeah, that’s right. She did pick out my clothes.
Because she loves me
,” Sarah said, pretending to look around Charlie.

“Oh that’s right, you don’t have a grandma that loves you. Or anyone for that matter, huh?” Sarah said and then moved to walk around Charlie again, rolling her eyes.

Charlie’s hand snaked out and grabbed her shirt over her chest, twisting it and pulling it tight as she got in her face.

“Yeah, you made sure of that, didn’t you, you little freak. You stole Zane right out from under me. He was
my
boyfriend but you couldn’t accept the fact that he had feelings for me. What did you do to Zane? Did you put out? Did you bribe him? Because no way would
anyone
pick you over me.”

Sarah pushed Charlie back as hard as she could, making her stumble and let go of her shirt. Charlie’s eyes went wide and she looked at her warningly. Sarah sneered at her and then winked. Charlie’s face relaxed. They were both pretty good at this. Sarah was actually kind of enjoying herself.

“That’s it you little brainless slut, you’ve been asking for it since the first day I met you,” she said, her voice rising in fury. She lifted her hand and pretended to aim energy at her. Sarah allowed a flow of power to race down her arm into her hand. She’d worked on making sparks that faded into the air without causing any damage. The result would be pretty, but painless.

Charlie held up her hands in mock fear, just as Sarah was tackled to the ground from the side. She gasped as she was knocked to the pavement and covered by a crushing weight. She faintly heard squawks of alarm and knew she was in trouble. She groaned in pain and called all her energy into her arms and sent as big a shock of energy as she could into her assailant. If it was one of Charles’s minions, he was in for the surprise of his life.

“Get off her!” screamed Charlie just as the person was blasted back. Sarah cracked open her eyes and gently lifted herself off the ground. She felt a bruise on the side of her face and a scrape down her side and sent her excess energy throughout her body, healing herself as she turned to finish off whoever had the nerve to interrupt her fake witch fight.

The man who had attacked her was lying on his side five feet away, his coat smoking lightly and the rubber on the bottom of his shoes looking like it had melted. Agnes and Gretchen ran up, breathing heavy and looking frantic as they circled the man together. Sarah held her arms up to the three other women. “Stand back. I’ll fry him into dust if he tries anything else. I don’t want you getting hurt,” she warned.

Agnes looked at her in surprise, but Gretchen nodded in agreement. Charlie swallowed and stared at Sarah with new respect as she inched backwards. Sarah pushed the man over on his side and looked down into her father’s face.

Sarah bit her lip as she realized two things at once. Either her father no longer meant her harm,
or Zane was dead
.

She looked in anguish at Agnes who looked horrified at the implications as well. She stared unhappily at her father as he groaned loudly and turned on his side to push up from the ground.