Shattered Souls (25 page)

“What happened?” Trevor eyed
me.

The familiar slither along my ankle brought a smile to my lips as it tightened around my leg. Logan thought of everything.

“Just a friendly reminder that he’s got my back,” I said, smiling. “I’ll go first.”

Trevor grabbed my arm. “Don’t think so. I’ll go first.”

I rolled my eyes and let him pass me as he began his descent into the hole. I followed quickly behind him. We both lit our wands and continued down the tunnel. Once we reached the base, I saw the underground tunnel system, the maze. It was all dug out of the earth. The mud walls took the confusion of Ethan’s maze to an entirely different level.

“Okay, I get that this is a maze
and all, but how are we supposed to get people to go down the stairs. I know very few people who would willingly hop and skip down a dark hole,” I told Trevor.

I heard familiar laughter in the distance
, and my heartbeat instantly quickened.

It was Logan. It had to be him.

“Well, you went in the exit,” a voice boomed through one of the far away tunnels.

I turned to Trevor smiling wider than the Cheshire
cat, and he cocked his head knowingly.

“You knew?” I asked, punching Trevor in the arm.

“We figured this was the only safe spot for you two to meet up before it all began,” Trevor whispered, pointing at my new face. “But now you two can see just how creepy it is.” He started wiggling his brows and spun around, climbing the stairs.

My heart was hammering so hard I was sure Logan would be able to use it as homing beacon.

“Don’t move, babe,” he called. “I’m almost to ya.”

“Don’t be shocked when you see Angela eagerly standing here looking like a dummy,” I
half-cried out. My eyes kept darting down each of the tunnels trying to surmise which one he’d appear from.

Hands from behind wrapped around my hips, and I had to stifle a
joyous scream. His fingers pressed against my waist, as his lips nestled into the crook of my neck. “Surprise,” he whispered.

“I should probably stay stationed this way,” I giggled.

“Probably,” he laughed.

“I’m so mad at you I don’t even know what to do,” I murmured. “I thought you’d left, like really left.”

“I wouldn’t do that to you. I just didn’t want to jeopardize anyone seeing us together, but I checked up on you,” he said, wrapping his arms around my waist. I felt his body flush against mine and enjoyed every second of being held in his arms.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Last night? Don’t you remember?”

“You were the black bird?” I asked in shock.

“A little grey magic never hurt anyone. I had to make sure you were okay.”

“Bakula told me about the
nectunt
…and you,” I said, turning to face him. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

His eyes locked on mine and I felt a charge run through me. “I didn’t want you to make a decision based solely on me.
I knew how you felt about it and I just didn’t want you to—”

“But you making the change with me
changes
everything, I have to look at things differently,” I whispered.

He nodded, smiling. “I get that.”

“So does that change your mind?” he asked, smiling coyly.

“Not sure.”

His face fell instantly and my heart shattered, but I couldn’t let him see that. We had a battle to orchestrate.

“So why don’t you tell me how this course works
, and we’ll ready ourselves for the first arrivals,” I said.

“Sounds like a plan,” he said, distance etching his words.

Chapter 31

The first boats arrived carrying Praedivinus members. I was seeking solitude in the second story of the home. Angela was in a safe room that Logan had built at the back of the property. Things were going as planned. I watched as the sorcerers filed one by one past the home toward the large canopy and stage that had been set up behind the house. That was the plan; make it look like an event that suddenly went terribly wrong. I looked around the space and back out at the landscape, realizing this was the same area that I had been housed in before. A familiar ache arose in my belly as I thought about what had transpired these last few months. I only hoped it would be over soon.

More canoes continued to drop off attendees on this side of the lake
and then were paddled back across to bring more sorcerers over. We knew the Praedivinus members who were against me would show up. They were the only ones who would care enough to make the trek. And this would give them their opportunity to take me out. Seeing them wander around the property brought my anger to the surface. They’ve just wasted so much time. So much of my time. And for what? Most of them were shifty, guarded. It would only be a matter of time before they attacked if all went according to plan. I only hoped they’d hold off until Ethan and the Demonikers arrived.

Inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly, I decided now was the time to let
my wandering begin. After all, that’s what this entire getup was for. I turned around, startled by mom’s presence.

“I wanted to tell you how proud of you we all are,” she whispered. “And we’re all here to protect you. You have to understand that.”

My eyes locked on hers. “I completely understand that, Veronica. And I appreciate it. It’s something I keep being told and don’t really like to dwell on it.”

She smiled at me and turned around, leaving me alone.
Was I the only one who thought we’d be able to pull this off? It felt like at every direction, someone was trying to forgive me for their death before they even died. Shaking the last thought, I peered outside one last time and my blood froze.

Ethan
dressed in a sharp, black suit stepped out of the boat and onto land, our land. Straightening his jacket, he pinched his cuffs and looked around. He tilted his head toward the sky, his eyes catching mine. Rather than look away, I held his gaze until he dropped his stare. My pulse quickened as thoughts ran wild inside of me. What if he knew it was me? Impossible. I glanced back outside and saw him talking to one of his followers as they proceeded up the bank.

I stepped away from the window and decided now was my time to venture outside.
I dashed out the room and down the stairs. I threw open the door and saw the back of my mom on the lawn. I continued rounding the bend and almost gasped, as I watched Ethan animatedly speaking with her. His arm caressing hers, laughing, and talking in a way I’d never seen from him before, except in my dreams.

I walked by my mom quickly, but Ethan grabbed my arm and pulled me next to him.

“Who’s this girl?” he asked. “She looks so familiar.”

“That’s Triss’s best friend,” my mom said, shrugging.

“Does she have a name?” he asked coolly.

“My name’s Angela,” I choked out.

“Interesting. She’s not our kind,” he said, eyeing me suspiciously.

“No
, she’s not. She wants to be though,” my mom said. “Now tell me what is it you want from my daughter?”

Ethan let go of my arm and continued on. Once I got out
of view, I rubbed the sting out of my flesh. His grip was so tight and the look in his eyes… I couldn’t afford to be paranoid. Not now. I kept walking toward the woods, hoping I’d run into Bakula. They would play a big part in tonight’s events, and I wanted to be doubly sure that everything was ready. I tried to find them earlier to no avail.

Wandering through the woods
, every step made a noise as the brittle twigs and limbs snapped from my weight. All I was doing was calling more attention to myself.

“Where is Bakula?” I asked, leaning under the tree branches.
I felt Logan come up behind me and became unsettled at how I could detect him even in Angela’s body.

“
You aren’t going to find her, babe,” Logan whispered. “Fairies are experts at being unseen.”

“I have a really bad feeling.”

“They wouldn’t do that to us,” Logan replied.

“How can we be sure?”

“We have to trust. They know this is all for them,” he said. “They’ll pull through for us.”

“I ran into Ethan,” I said.

“I know. I saw.”

“You did?” My brow raised.

“You think I’m letting you out of my sight?” He shook his head. “Ethan’s getting really antsy. I’m sure once he sees me, it’ll be on.”

“That’s the plan,” I muttered. The pull to Logan was so great. I wanted to hold him and tell him we’d make it through this, but I suddenly wasn’t sure.

“I’ll get the party started,” Logan stated, backing out of the woods.

Logan’s movements were incredible as he glided along the grounds. It was like his agility improved
in an inhuman way in the last few days. I gave it a few minutes before I left the woods. Trevor would no doubt be stirring the pot as Ethan and the Demonikers began to realize the reason they were here wasn’t because I was relinquishing any reigns.

I closed my eyes and imagined a new world where evil wasn’t a
factor. Where the Demonikers and Praedivinus were a thing of the past. As I opened my eyes, I hadn’t felt this amount of serenity for a very long time. I knew it was a false sense of reality, but I’d gladly take it at the moment. I began walking out of the woods with a new sense of purpose. I was ready for the show to begin.

It was close to dusk and my breath hovered in the air. I hoped the exertion I had planned for later would provide the warmth I was so desperately craving. My eyes
darted across the grounds, catching a few strays wandering toward the main canopy. I jogged over to them, surprised at their age once I got up close. One of the guys was probably around my age and the other, probably only a few years older. They were both attractive, but there mannerisms were shark-like, so that put them squarely in the Demoniker Order.

“Don’t wander t
oo far off from here. This is still the wilderness, you know,” I giggled, trying my best attempt at flirting with the enemy.

“Same goes for you,” the younger one said, eyeing me like a predator.
Against my better judgment, I looped my arm through his and began playfully pulling him toward the structure. Complying, the other one fell right in line as we walked in the direction of the night’s activities. A blip of guilt flitted through my mind when I looked over at the idiot. That was until his hand managed to slip down my sweater. I threw his hand off of me, and he became more aggressive and his friend decided it would be fun to get involved too. This wasn’t exactly how I wanted to start things, but it would have to do.

I turned away from him
, and grabbed his wrist with both hands, throwing him off balance as I swiftly grabbed his arm and backed into his hip. I bent over my feet lifting his body off the ground as it rolled off of mine before I slammed it in front of me. I couldn’t wipe the grin off of me, and I couldn’t help but delight in the years of Martial Arts Angela took.

His buddy started laughing, which only infuriated the guy on the ground. He jumped up and tackled me. My body crashed to the
ground, and I played lifeless. The guys started laughing. Once his laughter got far enough away, I cracked my eyes open and pushed up off the ground. I laid a nice roundhouse squarely into his abdomen. His body flew backward, landing against a large fir tree. Exhilarated by Angela’s muscle memory, I began hopping in place readying myself for the next attack. There were none. The other guy went to help his friend up, and they scurried off. Undoubtedly, they’d let the others know. I let out a sigh and readied myself for the rest of the evening.

Turning around, I let out a gasp as Caitlin approached. The dream flashed through my mind, and my palms became sweaty.
That’s why the dream felt so real because I was living it inside Angela’s body.

“There you are,” Trevor’s voice called. I glanced over at him, hoping he’d already seen Caitlin
and he had. He stood next to me and flashed a smile at Caitlin.

“How are you doing?” he asked Caitlin, wrapping his arm around my waist.

“Not as good as you,” she replied, narrowing her eyes.

“Want to introduce me?” I asked.

“Sorry. This is Caitlin. We used to date,” he said, trying to respect the situation and my premonition.

“Yes and do tell me why we stopped? I’d love to be reminded because I was never told
why you broke up with me.” She folded her arms.

Obviously someone took the relationship more seriously than the other.

“Distance,” Trevor said quietly. “That’s the only reason.”

And apparently not a good enough one. Caitlin quickly discharged a shot of
red light toward Trevor. He dashed toward the ground.

“Coward,” she yelled. “You didn’t even protect your new girlfriend?”

I watched her eyes canvass my body just as she did when I met her at Logan’s house. She quickly shot the same red light at me and I lunged out of the way. I didn’t have nearly the powers in Angela’s body and wasn’t sure I’d be able to make the right moves.

Trevor stood up and
barreled toward Caitlin, pushing her on the ground. I jumped up, just in time, as she grabbed a rock and attempted to jab it into Trevor’s head. I kicked her hand. The rock flew out of her fingertips as her bones shattered. She yelped in pain, grabbing her wrist as she tried to stop the pain. Trevor was about to finish her off, but I shook my head.

“Leave us alone,” I said, helping Trevor up. “And we’ll let you live.”

She nodded, laying on the ground and realizing she was in over her head. My mom appeared and motioned for me to come with her as Trevor took off. She glanced at Caitlin and pursed her lips.

“What a shame,” she whispered.

“At least it happened while Angela was,” I broke off.

“Exactly.”

The steady beats of a drumming ceremony began, and I smelled the wood smoke in the air. Trevor, undoubtedly, was making the rounds, confusing the Praedivinus and placating the Demonikers. I rounded the corner of the house, and took in the sight. The canopy looked to be filled to capacity. I glanced sideways at the entry to the underground and back to the gathering crowd. Sure enough, I spotted Trevor chumming it up with a few Praedivinus who would undoubtedly be waiting to jump the old me if she were to appear. I spotted Ethan in the far corner, sipping a drink, and listening to the two guys who I’d just run into. He was displaying his shark-like grin and an uneasy feeling surfaced, but I couldn’t let myself get caught up in worry.

I was ready to give Trevor the go-ahead, when a shrill scream echoed through the air. The tone in the
canopy changed immediately, and my heart felt like it was going to explode. Another scream surfaced, this time much closer and I realized it was me. It was my scream. They had captured Angela, thinking it was me. I shot Trevor a nervous stare, but he didn’t see me. He was already running toward the sounds.

Ethan was laughing, truly enjoying the spectacle that was unfolding. His people found her.
I slinked back behind the crowd, as I watched two men, push and pull Angela onto the stage. Ethan put his cup down and began clapping as he walked toward her. Trevor was nowhere in sight.

“Triss, it’s so nice to see you,” he said, climbing up the steps to the stage. He bent over and placed a piece of her falling hair behind her ear.
She spat in his face and the crowd gasped.

“Every time we meet, you just have the rudest way about you,” he said through gritted teeth. He wa
s standing facing the crowd now and scanning the audience’s reaction.

“It seems we were brought here under false pretenses,” he began. “You, members of the Praedivinus
, were here to see your faithful leader get sworn in. Isn’t that right? Although, I have it on good authority most of you had planned on killing her before that happened. Well, I won’t let you get away with it. That honor is solely mine.” He grinned and clapped his hands together, walking along the stage. “But what you didn’t know is that she never had any intention of becoming your leader. She wants nothing to do with the Praedivinus. I actually have heard directly from her own lips that she wants to destroy it. Isn’t that so?” He turned to Angela.

“I changed my mind,” she said.

My stomach knotted as I watched my friend struggle against the two men holding her down. I wanted to run up there and tear her away from them, but I knew I was no match for an entire crowd of people who wanted nothing more than to see me die. I had to trust that in a few more minutes things would begin to fall into place.