Triumph of Chaos (Red Magic) (30 page)

“Your parents worshiped you, and that boy would have done anything for you.”

Her voice broke, and I stared at her, not understanding. “But you hate him.”

“You’ve always been dense, Lena. No, I don’t hate Justin.” She paused, struggling with a range of emotions that flitted across her face. “I never hated him,” she said softly. “But all he could ever see was you.”

My mind spun. “Rochelle, I never knew—”

Her dark eyes turned cold again. “I never wanted you to know. I thought it was hopeless, but then Hecate popped up in your living room, and everything changed. At first, I thought he’d abandon you, that I’d finally have a chance to show him how to love a
real
Witch, but no matter how awful you got, he stuck by you.” Her voice faltered. “No one ever treated
me
like that.”

I swept my hand through the darkness. “Are you trying to tell me that all this chaos is because you had a crush on my boyfriend?”

“He isn’t your boyfriend!” she spat, spinning away from me. “He deserves better.”

Her words stung, but I shook my head. “Trying to destroy the world isn’t better, Rochelle. Do you really think Justin could forgive you for everything you’ve done?”

“I never would have done it if he’d just picked me in the first place.”

Stunned, I stared at her.
All this time I thought her anger was directed at me, but it was really focused on Justin?
“You told me you hated him,” I finally said. “What did you expect me to do?”

“Use your eyes, maybe. If you’d really cared, you would have gotten out of the way after the two of you broke up.”

“Rochelle, you have to believe me when I say I didn’t know.” Impulsively, I reached a hand toward her.

“You had everything I wanted.” She pulled away, and after a moment, the pain that had crossed her face melted into satisfaction. “But now I have everything you want. And you’re about to give up.”

I shook my head, torn between pity and anger. “You don’t have anything, Rochelle. You’ll never have Justin; he’ll never forgive you for all this. Besides,” I added, glaring at her, “you’re not even a full Red Witch, like me: your magic is still Black.”

She laughed. “You really don’t get it, do you? That’s what makes me so powerful. I can go anywhere and do anything.
Your
magic is tied down by stupid territorial boundaries, but not mine.”

“That’s what you said in my dream,” I began slowly. “After my parents died.”

She grinned. “That’s right. I can cause chaos in Raleigh any time I want.” Rochelle paused, her eyes locked on mine. “I could even destroy a little village in India where a certain handsome young White Witch is hanging out right now.”

I felt cold. “You wouldn’t harm him.”
Gods, would she?

“Why not? If he doesn’t want me now, maybe it’s just because he has no idea how powerful I really am.” She stretched her arms wide. “You can’t stop me. And soon, you won’t even be a Red. You’ll never save him.”

“Leave him out of this, Rochelle,” I ground the words out, struggling not to blast her. “If you really want him, you’ll have to fight fair.”

She laughed. “You can’t make me. Give up, Darlena. That’s what you’re here to do anyway, isn’t it?”

Black smoke filled the tunnel, and I was blinded for a moment. I reached for Red magic, but I couldn’t seem to grasp it; it was as if it had never been there. I’d had the same sickening feeling a couple of times before, after the nuclear disaster and when I blew up Rochelle’s house, but it had never felt like this. I almost couldn’t remember what Red magic felt like anymore. Panicked, I walked forward, but I stumbled over something and fell to the ground. As the smoke cleared, I pulled myself up to my knees and realized I was kneeling in front of Hecate.

I scrambled to my feet, but just as I started to stand up, the air pushed me down.

“I like to see a Witch with humility. Stay there.” Hecate’s raspy voice was just as I’d remembered it, and I fought back a shiver. Even though my first impulse was to fight her, I gritted my teeth and bowed my head.
I can’t piss her off now or she’ll never let me go back.

Wind whipped around me, and I realized that we were no longer standing in the dark tunnel. Wherever Rochelle had been taking me, I’d arrived: the air was hot, and rough gravel littered the ground beneath my knees. I shifted uncomfortably, but that only seemed to make the pain worse.

“Where are we?”

Hecate’s laugh was like rusty nails. “You are hardly in a position to ask questions, girl.”

I looked around cautiously, but the wind wrapped around my head and jerked it back in place, forcing me to keep my eyes on the small, rocky square of ground in front of me.

“I need to know that they’ll all be okay.”

“You think this is a parlay?” Hecate’s breath was warm on the back of my neck, and I suppressed a shudder at the thought of her looming over my prostrate form.

“I have something you clearly want, or you wouldn’t have offered me this bargain.”

She laughed. “This is not a bargain. This is a last chance, Darlena. Surrender your magic, and I will graciously give you back the last two years of your life.”

My mouth was dry, and I couldn’t move my tongue.

She tapped my head with one of her sharp claws and I flinched. “Think of it, Darlena.” She lowered her voice, her words seductive. “You will be a ripe beauty of sixteen again, with all your love and lust ahead of you. Not the ragged creature you’ve become.”

“If I’m ragged, it’s because of you.” The words popped out unbidden, and I held my breath, waiting for her to kill me.

Instead, the goddess laughed. “I always liked your temper, Darlena. Do you remember when I told you that it would serve me well?”

Of course I remembered. I’d lost my temper with Hecate after I flipped over a car, killing two people, and the goddess had smiled like a snake. She thought I’d be a loose cannon, an uncontrollable force of chaos. I’d tried to fight against it, but in the end, she had been right. I had done so much more harm than good ever since declaring to Red magic. “I remember,” I said softly. “I’m surprised you do.”

“There is nothing I do not know about you, child. Don’t be surprised. I
am
the Queen of Witches, after all.”

I tried to nod, but the air still held my head tightly in place. Hecate kept talking.

“You have a chance to take my mercy, Darlena. Few mortals ever experience what you have known, and up ‘til now, I’ve never offered any the chance to reclaim their lives.”

Her words niggled at my brain, and I paused. “Why me?”

“Excuse me?”

I took a deep breath. “Why are you giving me this choice if it’s not something you usually do?”

I heard the goddess step away softly, but I still couldn’t move my head. Instead, I stared at the white stones on the ground. There was something naggingly familiar about them, but I couldn’t figure out what.

“Do not question the gift of a goddess, girl. You’ve heard about gift horses and mouths, I trust?”

I didn’t bother answering. “Will you release me? I don’t like talking to the ground.”

She clucked her tongue. “I don’t like arrogant Witches. Still, I suppose it does no harm.”

I felt the pressure around me lift, and I moved my head cautiously from side to side. Sitting back on my heels, I looked around, and my heart stopped.

We were on a cliff overlooking a barren expanse of dirt and rock. The sky above us was unnaturally orange, as if there was a fire burning somewhere on the horizon. This was the scene of Hecate’s triumph that I’d witnessed in my nightmare, the same mountaintop where she’d laughed as my friends were paraded by in chains.
Where they dragged Izzy’s body
. I struggled to control my face, but luckily the goddess wasn’t watching me.

I followed her gaze down the side of the cliff. Unlike in my dream, there was no chain of prisoners. What I saw was even worse.

There was an army of gods assembled beneath the mountain. I could make out Aphrodite’s golden hair whipping in the wind, and Kali’s many arms were impossible to ignore. There were hundreds more, gods I’d never met: a woman with the head of lion, a horned figure with black wings who looked like a gargoyle, a figure shrouded in black robes carrying a sickle like the Grim Reaper. But the one who pulled my eye was crouched in the middle of the group, his flaming hair like a beacon. Brad had been right: Loki was free again.

I made a choking noise, and Hecate glanced down at me. A slow smile spread across her face. “You’ve met some of my allies, I believe.”

I nodded; I didn’t trust myself to speak.

“So much power going to waste in the world.” She shook her head sadly. “A bit like you, Darlena.”

“What do you mean?”

“You could have been the greatest Red of all time. Instead, you’ve wasted the gifts I’ve given you and created a life of misery for yourself. But that will all be over soon.”

A hunched man approached us, holding out a knife. He didn’t look at me, but he handed the blade to Hecate. When she unsheathed it, I jumped to my feet eagerly.

“That’s my mother’s. Where did you find it?”

Hecate smiled, but she didn’t answer. “Your blood will undo your vow. Hold out your hand, Darlena.”

I put both my hands forward, and I realized I was shaking. “Like this?”

She gestured with the knife. “Palms up.”

I turned my hands, and I suddenly felt vulnerable. “You said you wouldn’t harm me.”

“Nor shall I. Just a small ritual shedding of blood to undo the promise you never really wanted to make in the first place.”

She nicked both my wrists with the knife, but she was careful to cut away from the pulsing blue vein. I flinched and watched red blood well up on my skin. “Now what?”

“Darlena Agara.” Her voice rang out over the cliff, carrying down to the assembled gods beneath us. I suddenly understood that she’d put me on display, and I stiffened my spine. “You stand at a crossing. Choose.”

Her words echoed in my mind, and I realized she had said the same thing to me on the night I declared to follow Red magic. I swallowed nervously.

The familiar words washed over me. “A choice must be made. Once made, the path becomes your fate. Which will you walk?”

I stared at my own blood, feeling lightheaded. The wind whirled around me, and for a moment, it felt like I really was about to witness the end of the world.

Hecate’s voice was harsh. “Do not waste this gift. Choose now.”

I lifted my face and stared into her golden eyes. We locked eyes, frozen in time, but then, I felt myself start to smile. “I choose chaos.” Tingles raced over my skin, but I stood a little taller.

The wind stopped. Nobody moved.

“I choose Red magic.” I raised my voice louder, hoping the gods below me could hear every word. “And I will defeat you, even if it takes everything away from me. That is my choice. I choose chaos.”

Everything happened at once. Hecate snarled, “This will never be over!” and lunged for me, but I moved quicker. I lifted my hands and spun to the edge of the cliff, facing the cruel gods beneath me. Red magic coursed through me, and I threw my head back, enjoying the heady sensation of power.

“This is for my family!” I thrust my hands forward, and an avalanche of fire rolled down the mountain. I didn’t stay to watch the chaos I had caused
.
Instead, I did the only thing I could think of: I ran forward and leaped off the cliff. Adrenaline rushed through me, but I wasn’t afraid. I laughed.

Rochelle was right; I just have to be fearless.
Hot air cushioned me for a moment, and I floated, flying over the burning mountain, but then everything went black.