Taken (16 page)

Daddy roared like an angry bear and tossed Hunter aside like a rag doll. “What tracker? What’s his name? I’m gonna kill that son of an Empty!”

Hunter said, “He’s already dead.”

Daddy stumbled backwards and collapsed onto a new sofa Channie had never seen. It groaned under the sudden weight then broke in half.

Momma said, “Monroe Belks! How many times do I have to tell you to take it easy on the furniture? And quiet down. There ain’t no be-calm spell in the world gonna keep them babies asleep with you howling like a banshee.”

Daddy pressed a hand over his heart and looked at Hunter. “Did you kill him? The man what ruined my baby girl?”

“No sir. Channie did.” Hunter’s eyes filled with tears as he gazed at Channie. Did he believe the lie? She felt bad for distressing him, but she couldn’t afford to set him straight. “And she ain’t ruined. It wasn’t her fault.”

Daddy swiped at his cheeks then nodded his head for a few minutes before speaking. His voice was rough, but kind. “I’m glad you see it that way, son. Mighty glad. You still willing to court her?”

“Yes sir. I certainly am.”

Channie wanted to punch Hunter. She fisted her hands and said, “I’ve been through hell and back and I don’t want to be courted. All I want is to go to bed.”

Momma said, “Not until I get my book. Now go get your useless hide back in that car.”

Josh should’ve come back by now. Everyone in the room was reading her energy field, but Channie couldn’t keep her mounting panic under control. Hopefully they’d attribute it to her fear of Momma.

She said, “Mr. Abrim was ready to call the police when y’all showed up. I think it’d be better if you just let Hunter go get the book.”

Hunter said, “I ain’t sure I can find my way back. You better go with me.”

Momma said, “How do I know you ain’t gonna steal my book and take off again?”

Channie placed her hand over her throbbing cheek and said, “I learned my lesson, Momma. Besides, maybe you can figure out how to get my powers back once you have the book.”

Momma narrowed her eyes at Channie. “I don’t trust you.”

“I promise to come home before sunrise and bring the book with me. I’ll even swear a death-pledge if you want. ”

Momma nodded and grabbed Channie’s wrist. “But I want you back here with my book in one hour.”

“Now hold on a dang minute.” Daddy yanked Channie out of Momma’s grasp and said, “That’s just plain foolishness. You don’t know what might happen between here and there. What if they git a flat tire or something? Just the fact she was willing to swear a death-pledge proves she’s trustworthy.”

Momma’s face turned beet red but Daddy and Hunter both covered Channie with their shields before Momma could curse her.
 

Daddy grabbed Momma around the waist with one arm then tossed his keys to Hunter.“You two git back here as fast as you can.”

Hunter grabbed Channie’s hand and said, “Yes sir,” then hauled her out the door without looking back.

~***~

As soon as they got in the car and shut the doors, Hunter said, “Is it true? Did that tracker rape you?”

Channie knew the best way to keep a lie believable was to have as many people believe it as possible, but she could feel Hunter’s distress. “He tried but the drugs he used to subdue my powers wore off in time for me to stop him.”

Hunter sighed as he exhaled icing the windshield with his breath. He started the car then ran his hands over the dash. “Where’s the damn de-fogger?”

Channie pulled the instruction manual out of the glove compartment and programmed the climate controls.

Hunter was quiet until they merged onto highway 36. “I meant what I said.”

“About what?”

He shifted his gaze to her face then back to the road. “I know you ain’t a virgin, but I don’t think you’re ruined. I’m still willing to court ya.”

“I’m
married
.”

“You was willing to carry on with Josh iffen you’d had to marry me.”

“We’re heart-bound!”

“And you don’t feel nothin’ for me?”

“Not since I met Josh.”

“But you did … before?”

“I don’t know, Hunter. It doesn’t matter. There’ll never be another man for me. Josh is it.”

“But things have changed. Y’all cain’t be together.”

“Josh and I will figure something out.”

“Well, just so you know, I’m here if you change your mind.”

Channie slammed her palm against the dash. “Don’t do this to me!”

“I ain’t doin’ nothing to you, I’m just telling’ ya how I feel.”

“And it’s making me miserable. I don’t want you sitting around waiting for me to change my mind. It ain’t happening!”

Hunter snorted then glanced sideways at Channie and smirked as he rolled his eyes. “I ain’t no girl. I intend to have me some fun while I wait, but I didn’t want you to see me with other women and think I’d fallen out of—“

“Don’t say it. You are not allowed to say that.”

“Not saying it won’t make it go away. But I’ll shut up and pretend I ain’t head over heels in love with you, if it makes ya feel better.”

Channie turned on the radio and cranked the volume up so loud she felt the bass vibrate in her chest then closed her eyes and leaned her head against the window until the car rolled to a stop.

She wasn’t surprised that Hunter found his way back to Ezra’s neighborhood without any help. But she was surprised when he punched in the correct code at the gate.

She turned off the radio and said, “How’d you do that?”

“I just paid attention when Josh did it earlier. You never know when something like that’s gonna come in handy.”
 

Channie didn’t want to knock on the front door and wake up Ezra and Carmen. She especially didn’t want to face Ezra after running off the way she did. “Let’s go around back. Josh used a rope ladder to sneak out of his room. Maybe it’s still there.”
 

It wasn’t. But the light was on in his room. Channie picked up a pebble and tossed it at the window thirty-five feet above her head — and missed.
 

Her feeble attempt was followed by a sharp
tink tink tink
as Hunter’s pebbles found their mark. He grinned and said, “Not the first time I’ve done this.”

Josh opened his window and leaned out. “Channie?”

“Yeah. Let down the ladder.”

Josh helped Channie over the window sill then wrapped her in his arms. “I knew you’d come back.”

Hunter scrambled in after her and said, “We ain’t got much time so none of that lovey-dovey stuff.”

“What do you mean ‘you don’t have much time?’”

Channie pressed her ear over Josh’s heart and inhaled his delicious scent. “We came for the Book of the Dead. If we’re gone too long, Momma’ll get suspicious.”

Josh dropped his hands and stepped back. “I see.”

“I don’t think you do.” Channie’s eyes stung. “I didn’t want to leave with them, but I didn’t have a choice.”

“Really? What about running away to California?”

“I haven’t even seen the trips yet. And what about Elijah? They all know we’re back. How are they going to feel if we up and disappear again?”

“So what does this mean for us?”

“We’ll just have to figure out a way to see each other when Momma and Daddy aren’t around. Now that Abby’s back, I imagine Momma and Daddy are going to spend every minute they can in Blackhawk.”

Hunter said, “Channie’s folks think I’m courting her. I’ll get her out of the house and then you and Carmen can meet us somewhere.”

“Carmen’s not interested in you.”

“She will be as soon as Mr. Belks gets me my papers proving I’m twenty-one. But I need to get Channie back home, so let’s just go get the damn book.”

Josh scooped his keys off his dresser and tossed them to Hunter. “You go get the book. I need to talk to my wife.”

Hunter rolled his eyes. “Where’s your car?”

Josh groaned. “Damn it. It’s in the garage. Wait here.”

Hunter flopped back on Josh’s bed with his hands behind his head. “No wonder he’s such a sissy, living in luxury and sleeping on a bed soft as a lady’s bosom.”

“Josh is not a sissy!”

Hunter yawned and said, “Whatever,” then closed his eyes. He was asleep before Josh got back.

Josh dropped the daypack on the floor then pulled Channie into his arms and kissed her. He pulled back and rested his forehead against hers. “You sure we don’t have time to strengthen our bond before you go?”

Channie sighed then kissed the tip of his nose. “I’m sure. But we’ll figure something out. I promise.”

Josh picked up her left hand and kissed the ring on her finger. “What did your folks say about this?”

“Nothing. With everything going on, they didn’t notice it.” Channie pulled her ring over the first joint of her finger, but Josh grabbed her hand and pushed it back into place.

“Tell them whatever you want. But don’t take it off.”

“I don’t want to take it off, but Daddy already thinks Hunter’s courting me. I don’t want him to think we’re engaged.”

Josh narrowed his eyes. “Courting? What exactly does that mean?”

“It means that Daddy’s gonna watch Hunter like a hawk. He’s already told him to keep his hands to himself.”

“All right.” Josh slipped Channie’s ring off her finger and onto his pinkie. “I’ll keep it for you. But I want you to wear it at school.”
 

“Of course.” Channie’s finger felt naked without her ring.

Josh took her chin between his thumb and forefinger and traced the still burning marks where Momma slapped her with his other hand. “Channie? What happened?”

“It’s okay. The worst is over.”

Josh let go of Channie then grabbed Hunter by the front of his shirt and yanked him off the bed. “You said you’d protect her!”

Hunter blinked and shook his head like a wet dog. “What?”

“Look at her face! How could you let this happen?”

Hunter shrugged his shoulders and said, “It could have been a lot worse.”

“Really? Worse than physical abuse? No. That’s it. You are not going back there. I’m calling the cops. Those people belong in jail.”

Hunter snorted and rolled his eyes. “Ain’t no Empty jailer gonna be able to keep a mage locked up. Especially not them two.”

By now Josh was yelling as well as pacing. Channie was afraid he was going to wake up Ezra. She shot Hunter a meaningful look and said, “Josh. I want you to
be calm.
”

Hunter nodded and cast a be-calm spell that rolled Josh’s eyes into the back of his head. Channie caught him as he fell, but she wasn’t strong enough to keep him off the floor.

“Jeeze, Hunter. You didn’t have to knock him out. Help me put him to bed.”

Channie turned down the covers while Hunter maneuvered Josh onto his shoulder. He dumped him on the bed like a gunnysack full of grain. “I was surprised he didn’t raise his shield. Ain’t nobody can get a shield up as fast as Josh. At least he’ll sleep good tonight.”

Channie removed Josh’s shoes, pants and shirt, leaving him in his socks and boxers, then tucked him in like a child. She kissed his forehead then picked his shirt up off the floor and stuffed it into her back pack. It wasn’t as good as sleeping with Josh, but at least she’d have the comfort of his clothes on her body and his scent in her bed.

~***~

When Hunter pulled into the driveway, Momma parted the parlor drapes. Her silhouette in the window sent a chill down Channie’s spine. She took a shaky breath and said, “Maybe you better wait out here until after I give her the book.”

Hunter said, “I don’t think so. Your momma’s even scarier than your daddy. When did that happen?”

“I’m not sure, but I think it had something to do with this book.” Channie pulled the pillowcase holding the Book of the Dead out of her backpack and said, “Take my pack. I don’t want Momma or Daddy to find my journal … or Josh’s shirt.”

Hunter said, “Where do you want me to put it?”

Channie pointed to her bedroom window. “Wait until Momma and Daddy are distracted, then climb up there and leave it on the roof. I’ll grab it when I go to bed.”

“What if they wanna know where I am when you go inside?”

“I’ll tell them you needed a smoke. Momma don’t allow tobacco in the house so they won’t question it.”

“I don’t smoke.”

“Momma and Daddy don’t know that.”

Channie’s joints stiffened as she forced herself to climb the porch steps and open the door.

Momma yanked the bundle out of Channie’s arms, threw the pillowcase on the floor and clutched the book to her breast as if it were a long-lost child.
 

A creaking sound, followed by a loud pop drew Channie’s attention into the parlor. Daddy climbed out of a recliner and joined Channie and Momma in the entryway. He put a hand on Momma’s shoulder and said, “You got your book, can we go to bed now?”

Since when did Daddy ask Momma’s permission for anything?

Momma lowered the book and gazed lovingly at the back cover. She turned it over, and gasped. Channie held her breath as Momma ran the tips of her trembling fingers over the name engraved on the front.
 
Her eyes widened, showing white around ice-blue irises.
 

Channie’s chest heaved with shallow breaths as Momma stepped closer, pulsating with rage.
 

“What is that name doing on
my
book?”

Daddy said, “Calm down, Prudence. We agreed we were going to hear her out before punishing her.”

Momma hit Daddy with a bolt of raw energy that knocked him off his feet. He hit the parlor floor with a house-shaking crash.

Channie had seen Momma angry before, many times. But this was different. She barely recognized the crazy woman creeping towards her with murder in her eyes.
 
Momma blocked the front door. Channie was trapped with no hope of escape, but her feet moved of their own accord, backing her up towards the stairs.

Momma hit Channie with a double curse — a no-speak spell that cut off her air supply and a vicious stinging spell that felt as if fire ants were eating her alive. Unable to scream, Channie clawed at her skin even though she knew it would only make it worse.

Momma released Channie from the stinging spell first, then the no-speak. Tears streamed down Channie’s cheeks as she gasped for air.