Tethered (A BirthRight Novel) (28 page)

“Deliver us, Lord, from every evil,
and grant us peace in our day.
In your mercy keep us free from sin
and protect us from all anxiety
as we wait in joyful hope
for the coming of our savior, Jesus Christ.

“Lord Jesus Christ, you said to your apostles,
I leave you peace, my peace I give to you.
Look not on our sins, but on the faith of your Church,
and grant us the peace and unity of your kingdom
where you live forever and ever. Amen.”

Father Gabriel crosses himself again. “Be gone, demons. Leave the Crawford family and this land. Damn ye back to hell where ye came from!”

The tentacles from the candles reach out, grabbing hold of the walls in ravenous pursuit.

Upon contact, the entire room lights up in a blazing inferno.

Within seconds, the flames are everywhere—trapping everyone inside its impenetrable cage.

I hear the painful screams pleading for help. The excruciating sounds seem to make the flames hungry with need.

Within seconds, the entire side of the house is ablaze.

They’re dying.

Father Gabriel. Mr. and Mrs. Russo. Their daughter and her husband. The four visitors. And the children who are sound asleep upstairs.

Then the vision stops.

My heart pounds with so much force, I swear it might break through my ribs.

“Chloe, are you okay?” Aunt Morgan asks, rubbing the hand still holding hers.

“Yeah. I’m okay. Just a bit shaken. I saw it. I saw it
all
.” My voice is shaky. So is my head.

“I know. I saw it too,” says Aunt Morgan, in the same frightened voice as my own.

As the words resonate, I search her eyes. “What do you mean?”

“When I held onto the Rosary Beads, I started to see things about Michael’s father. But then you touched my hand and I went to the future right along with you. Somehow, our powers linked together. I targeted Mr. Russo from the past, but you were able to link-in and jump to his future. It was incredible...but awful because of what happens.”

“Will one of you
please
fill us in on what you saw?” Gram’s agitated voice makes me jump.

Oh god, I’ve never been good at conveying bad news. You can do this, Chloe. I take a deep breath, making eye contact with Michael. “Well, your father is going to hold an exorcism at his house, like you said, sometime tomorrow. I didn’t recognize four of the people, but Natalia and her husband will be there with the children. While they’re upstairs sleeping, the rest are down stairs performing the ritual. From what I could tell, things start going crazy and the candles they have lighting the room end up catching the entire place on fire. The fresh paint must make it
extremely
flammable.”

“What? I
told
him not to use oil-based paint and stain. Damn it!” His eyes open wide. “
Please
tell me they get out okay?” Michael’s face turns white, paralyzed with fear.

“I’m so sorry, Michael.” Aunt Morgan’s voice cracks, eyes glazing over in remembrance of what she’d seen. “Unless we figure out a way to stop them, they all die in the fire.”

He shakes his head. “No. This
can’t
happen. There
must
be a way to stop him. Are you sure it happens tomorrow night?” Michael’s fretful eyes dart back and forth between us.

“Yes, I’m sure,” I answer. “I don’t know
how
I know, I just know.” Even though this isn’t what he wants to hear, I have to be honest. I can’t help but wish I didn’t.

Gram gets up, pacing across the pewter slate tiles. “Michael, you
must
try again with your parents. Do whatever you can. If you’re not able to convince him to
not
go through with this, then we need to figure out a way to save them before it’s too late.”

He holds his palm to his forehead. “Okay. I’ll try. I’ll also call my sister and tell her to stay home with Emma and Isabelle.”

“Do what you can.” Gram hugs him with genuine tenderness. “Don’t worry, dear.
No one
will get hurt. I
promise
.”

“But on a positive note...at least now we know what Mom meant by us using our powers together.” No matter how bad the situation, it feels good knowing I can make a vision happen—if I need to.

“That
is
a good thing,” Gram replies. “I’m sure it’ll be
very
useful when we understand how to use it. But right now, we need to come up with a plan. And it will take
all
of us to do it.”

Without giving it another seconds thought, I text Hunter with a nine-one-one, asking him to come over ASAP.

Once everyone’s together, we work with Michael and Hunter to form a back-up plan for tomorrow night.

This whole thing is partly
our
fault—so we
have
to make it right.

Aunt Morgan and Michael sit, pouting after yet another failed visit with his parents. And just as we expected, Mr. Russo refuses to listen to reason.

He’s convinced it’s
all
lies—so there’s nothing they can say to change his mind. And to add insult to injury, now he thinks we’ve brainwashed his son. He’s even refusing to speak to Michael as long as he’s “
tangled up with those devil worshipers again”
.

I sit in the living room, watching the surprising change in Aunt Morgan these last two days since she’s been talking to Michael. And considering the goo-goo eyes they’re giving each other, it’s clear how much they’re still in love, even after all these years.

How wild is that?

To lose the love of your life and spend the next two decades broken hearted—thinking he wanted nothing to do with you and the children you created—only to find out it was a lie and you’ve been hating the wrong person. Yeah, she’s
gotta
be on a cloud.

Last night, I overheard Michael say he’d gotten married after college, but was never
in
love with her. She was his best friend, so he thought it only made sense to get married. They were together for ten years, but his never wanting to have kids eventually destroyed their marriage. The pain he felt from losing his twins with Morgan was something he never got over—so he never wanted to
try
again.

But now he’s found his way back to the woman he’s always loved, and the children he always wanted, but lost.

I can’t see what the future holds for Michael and Aunt Morgan, but my gut tells me they’ll find a way to work through it. Being apart for so long has done nothing to diminish their feelings. It’s extraordinary.

I guess it’s never too late to start over.

I suppose I can even understand why the boys feel so strongly about
not
helping Mr. Russo. But given the fact that we now know innocent people are involved—two of which are children—even the boys agree we have to help them.

According to my vision, we have mere
minutes
to get them out once the fire starts. So we’ve spent the last few hours devising a plan that makes the most sense for
everyone’s
safety.

We know the adults are together in the den when the fire breaks out, while Emma and Isabella are upstairs. And Michael thinks he can get his mother to let us know what room they’re in after Natalia puts them to bed.

I keep trying to figure the exact time this so-called “
exorcism
” takes place, but I can’t trigger another vision. We know it’s after dark, so we just have to sit around watching the house for the first sign of a fire. Can you imagine? To make matters worse, the Russo den is the only room without windows, so we’ll be lucky if we’re not too late.

Oddly enough, everyone’s in a good mood today. The idea of being able to use our powers, in light of this linking thing, has everyone buzzing with anticipation.

As usual, it’s me who’s the worrywart—so I can’t get excited like they are. Not that I don’t understand where it’s coming from, because I do. My mind just refuses to let me think about anything other than what
could
go wrong.

I sit on the couch watching Hunter shape-shift with my brother and cousins. It’s surprisingly impressive to watch. I’m just not sure what I think of this whole thing yet. It’s like nothing you can ever imagine.

He must feel my eyes burning a hole through his forehead, so he turns my way and smiles. My god, even after breaking my heart, he still manages to make me flutter.

I smile, turning the other way.

We’re getting along okay, but it’s still somewhat unsettling having Hunter know
everything
about the family. My entire life I was never able to share our secrets with a single person. Now, not only does he
know
about us, but he also has his own secrets, which
we
need to protect in return. It’s a lot to handle.

Like the gentleman he is, Hunter’s giving me plenty of space, but I’m still not myself. Yes, I made the choice to forgive him. And I can’t blame him for doing the exact same thing I had done. So what’s still holding me back? I miss holding him—and
kissing
him—yet I won’t allow myself to get too close.

Is it possible hearing him say he’d fallen for me, freaked me out more than I realized? The night he told me, I was so overwhelmed by my vision, I suppose I might have over looked it.

I was so convinced this was just a crush. But now I know destiny has
other
plans.

It’s uncanny how well Hunter gets along with my family. As I sit here admiring the bonds he’s formed overnight, I’m reminded of what it was like
before
he came into our lives. He’s had an effect on each and every one of us. Is
that
part of the prophecy, too?

We try deciphering the riddles to figure out
who
will play
what
part in the prophecy. The only thing we know for sure is, tonight’s plan is the pivotal event that puts everything into motion.

But no pressure!

I watch the four guys as they practice playing out possible scenarios. It’s fascinating to see how they can link their powers. If I weren’t so freaked out, I’d be joining in on the fun.

No one has any idea how things will work out tonight—or
if.
There are any number of things that
could
go wrong on this rescue mission, but I need to have faith in our abilities. We
can
do this—I know we can.

I force myself to stop fretting so I can spend some time with the ladies of the house. Another five minutes watching the guys and I might have testosterone-overload.

I drag my feet into the kitchen, finding the rest of the group going over the plan with Pap. Even though he can’t make any magical contributions, he still wants to help any way he can.

“What’s up with the face?” Pap asks as I plop on the bar stool next to him.

“Oh, you know me.” I admit, shrugging with a sigh.

“Well, get over it for a few minutes and have some pie. Key Lime or Boston Crème?” His joyous grin makes it impossible not to smile.

“How about one of each?” I lean my head on his shoulder as he chuckles.

“Good call, dear. Who else wants a piece?” Gram opens the fridge, pulling out two heaping pans.

Everyone raises their hands. She shakes her head, grabbing a stack of paper plates and plastic forks from the pantry.

“Are the boys ready?” Aunt Morgan turns to look out towards the living room. “It’ll be dark soon.”

They were pretty much done when I left the room. “Yeah, I’d say so. They’re just messing around now.”

“Well, I’ll go tell them it’s almost time. I’d feel much better if we’re ready and waiting before the sun goes down.” Aunt Morgan tugs at her tight collar, heading towards the boys.

“Good idea. Let’s hurry up with dessert and get everyone together on the front porch.” Gram puts what’s left of the pie back in the fridge.

We shovel down dessert then head out to get the group together.

On our way towards the front porch, Hunter grabs my arm. “Chloe. Can I talk to you for a minute?”

Once everyone goes out the door, I turn to him. “What’s up? You aren’t getting
nervous
, are you?”

He shakes his head. “No, no. It’s nothing like that. I’m used to these types of situations. Usually
much
worse. It’s just that, we haven’t really
talked
since everything was brought out in the open. I’m not sure how we are...and I really miss you. I didn’t want us going into this without telling you how I feel.” Predictably, he shoves his hands in his front pockets.

Oh my god, I’ve missed you, too! “I know what you mean. And I know I’ve been distant. I guess I just need time to digest everything. Not to mention the fact that I’ve been worried about tonight. And for the record, Hunter...I miss you
just
as much. I was
so
happy a few days ago, and then someone pulled the rug out from under me.” I look into his eyes, seeing his pain over the distance he’s caused.

My stomach ties up in knots to see him like this.

“Well, we have no way of knowing how this is going to work out tonight, but I need you to know...I love you. I don’t want you to say anything back. I just need to make sure I tell you, just in case something should go wrong.” He pauses, taking a deep breath. “We haven’t been seeing each other very long, but I knew I would love you from the very first moment our eyes met at the airport. I’ve never experienced anything like this, and I just hope you give me the chance to prove it to you one day.”

Whoa!

My heart races, his words registering with undeniable clarity. I wasn’t expecting this at all. There’s so much swimming around in my mind, but I know this isn’t the time to get into it. So instead of trying to find the right words, I reach out for his hands. The second our skin touches, all sense of reality disappears.

I tug his hands around my waist—then I wrap mine around his neck.

Our eyes only meet for a second, but it’s all I need to make me forget my own name.

Up on my tippy toes, I search to find the sweetness of his lips. My legs tremble. I hunger for the taste of his mouth—but I crave his touch more than anything. As we get lost in the most delicious, passionate kiss, the sound of giggling breaks our trance.

“Are you kids coming out...or were you waiting for your personal invitation to come in the mail?” Pap chuckles, turning away from the open door.

I’m not ready to let go just yet, so I rest my head on his chest, continuing to hold on tight. I can feel he wants me in his arms, just as much as I want to be here. But we have an important job to do. The lives of innocent people are about to be in
our
hands.

We dolefully pull ourselves apart without saying a word, exchanging a knowing glance as I grab his hand and lead him to the porch.

No one must be aware what Pap walked in on. My family sits, watching the Russo house in pained silence, awaiting the moment of a reckoning.

Gram stands up. “Does everyone know what they’re supposed to do?” With slow, deliberate eyes, she looks to each of us.

Everyone nods.

“Okay, good. Does anyone have any questions?” She eyes us again, but no one utters a word.

Hunter clears his throat. “Well, I don’t have a question, but I
do
have a suggestion.”

“What is it, dear,” Gram asks, wearing her pleasant, business-like smile.

“Well, even though I’m not
actually
a fireman, I’ve still had a lot of training in emergency situations. So if we’re planning to run into a burning house, it might be a good idea to wet our clothes first to avoid catching on fire ourselves.”

“You know, I can’t believe we never thought of that. We were so worried about getting everyone
out
of the house, we never thought about it from that side of things. Terrific idea, Hunter. Dru, would you please grab the garden hose and pull it around to the front?” Gram points to the back yard.

“Sure thing, Gram...I’m on it.” Dru jumps to his feet and takes off around the corner of the house.

“Also,” Hunter adds, “we should have on pants and long sleeves to protect our skin. I know we plan on being in and out like lightning, but you just never know what might happen. I’d feel a lot better if we had on footwear and clothing that wouldn’t melt, but I know it’s too late for that. Just be as quick as you can.”

“You heard him everyone. Hurry up and change your clothes. Chop-chop!” Gram barks the orders, smacking her hands together like a teacher.

A few minutes later, everyone’s dressed and ready to go.

For thirty minutes, we wait for a sign.

Something. Anything.

Michael still hasn’t heard from his mother about what room the kids are in—so we’ll have to wing it.

My stomach knots, thinking of what we’re about to do.

I look around at my family, all wearing the same apprehensive, furrowed brow. We’ve never done
anything
like this before. It’s enough to freak
anyone
out.

Michael stands up. “I’ll be right back. Maybe I can see something.” He walks over to his parents’ house, turning back every few seconds to look at us. If
we’re
worried, he must be going out of his mind. His
entire
family is behind those walls.

He disappears around the side of the house.

Dru steps in front of us, his face turning snow white.

Within seconds, Michael flies back around the corner shouting, “Now! Now! I hear screaming inside! Go
now
!”