Page 20 (1/2)

By an hour before sunset, Stacy and I were both exhausted, and while ood as it was realistically going to get We both decided we needed a little nap, and while Cain finished up the last of his preparations for the night, Stacy retreated to a guest room, and I went into my room I tried to close my eyes, tried to sleep, but even with the conduits spread over town,with power, and I kneouldn’t get any sleep The best I could hope for was a little rest I curled up onas I pet him and stared off into space

Despite the direness of the situation, despite the fact that I didn’t know if it would even work once the sun had set, I felt oddly exhilarated For the first ti, this power, this sense that anything and everything was possible si at the sky as it grew ever pinker, and tried not to think about the two possible outco in their oay

Occasionally, I would see a for at the corner, and for a ht be Tobias, but he didn’t show up Not that I expected him to I had asked him to leave, and he’d done what I’d asked I could only hope that he was already on his way out of town, that any danger that enius or ot nothing else out of tonight, Tobias’s safety would be soh

It would have to be

The sky grew darker, and as the last bits of pink dimmed on the horizon, I reached into the cardboard box I’d set next to ether I picked up Niles and slowly pulled hihly as I moved him away from his companion For his part, deaf and blind, Gibson felt Niles’s absence and shuffled froainst the cardboard edges of the box I picked up the pencil I’d also stored in the box, and lifted Niles’s little wing

"Sorry, this ht," on the underside of one wing, then held hiht He circled Gibson’s box a couple of times, then flew on his way

I took the box back inside and set it down by the open hich I left open so that, when Niles was done with his journey, he could find his way back to his best friend, and they would be together

If you can’t get the happy endings you want, sometimes you have to settle for the ones you can have

Cain and Stacy had been at work for a while, gathering up supplies and conduits, transporting the Grace and Addie’s B&B van I walked; although it ell past sunset, I knew Davina wouldn’t show up until closer toso close to the conduits, so rushed with all that power madeeach step, feeling gratitude for each breath In the afternoon, when the sun was out and this moment was beyond ood idea Now, it felt a bit like walking the plank No way to go but forward, and no idea ould be waiting forfaster than I had expected; it seemed like I was on my road, and then a moment later, at my destination Cain had done his work; the white sand circle close to the ht of the full ht; close enough to be called upon when I needed theh away that hopefully, Davina’s spidey sense wouldn’t go off

I was alone there for a while, the summer air sticky and warm on my skin I tried to feel for the power fro Had it been dayti No tingling in ht its shade of noroing until

I tried not to think about that, though

"Well, hello, baby"

I looked up and there was Davina, her heavy backpack slung over her shoulder, her bright yellow dress ht Niles fluttered in a circle around her head for a bit, then flew over to me, buzzed my shoulder, and flew off to find Gibson, I presumed If I’d had the choice, I would have done the sa As it was, I turned my focus back to Davina and the task at hand

I had expected ht of her, but instead, what I felt was so conflicted I had liked her, a lot She had been a friend, some part of her had wormed its way into my heart, and despite all reason, that was still there

"Glad to see you came to your senses" She poured the white sand into a circle around us, her voice casual, as if ere girlfriends out for a night’s friendly witchcraft "I know it feels awful, but you really are doing the right thing You’re a daht" I stepped inside the circle, and she did the saet it over with"

"You’re a down-to-business kind of girl, I can respect that" She reached into her backpack, pulled out a blue water bottle this time, and handed it to me

"I need a minute," I said "This stuff se up"

"Fair enough," Davina said, then grinned a very cold grin "I got all night"

"There’s no way you can et down?" I asked "I mean, what’s in this stuff?"

"Eye of newt Little turpentine" She rolled her eyes "It’s a potion, baby, not a nightcap"

"Let , pulling out ould appear to be a normal bottle of Aquafina Davina’s eyes narrowed as I slowly undid the cap

"What are you - "

And then, while herCain’s conduit potion in her face

"What the?" She sputtered a bit, and I could see that sootten into her h that it just seeping through her skin rail For every drop she sed, I got a little et this ball rolling I recapped the bottle quickly and dropped it to the ground at my feet; it bounced outside of the circle, out of uarded shot at her twice, but I’d wanted to have it handy, just in case

Davina stared atMy terror began to grow - it’s not going to work, oh hell, I’ic, flowing into et me started

"You little bitch," Davina said I could feel her trying to fight h control to hold her backjust barely, and only for a little while longer I needed to move fast

I closed hts I’d spentthehout the wooded perihts sounded like a plague ofas they were finally released to do the job I’d cohts came into view, hundreds of the in clusters over ht out of their asses and down onto us

Davina turned in a circle, sloatching as the conduits stood up in their little pools of light, as the solar-light fireflies danced frenetically above the, rapidly, and the captured sun in the solar lights was not paying off as well as I had hoped it would I couldn’t feel e I’d been able to get off Davina was fading, and ht had been a long shot, and I’d known it, butshit

"Baby, what kind of woerous What little control I’d had over her was gone

"I don’t know, Davina," I said, trying to concentrate on the fireflies, slowly pulling them closer, away from the conduits Plan B would have to do "What kind of woman are you?"

Davina walked closer to me, her eyes almost sad, like she felt a little sorry for me Once, I would have believed that expression, but nowI saw so else behind the false emotion in her eyes

It was the certainty of an easy victory

"I’m the kind of wouess what she meant by that, so I had to just stick to the plan I closed ic in from the fireflies With a thunderous crash, they fell in the forest, leaving the conduits in the dark I felt the power fro down, I could see little wisps of yellow light dancing around ht be able to do so voice caht, I could see a stocky for forced to do every h, I could see Millie, her hair wild, her face streaked with tears, still wearing the hospital gown she’d probably been in when Davina had taken her She looked haggard and tired and terrified

"Millie"

"You were right, Liv," she said "She’s not ht her"

"I can’t" She sniffled "Tell Peach and Nick that I’m so sorry"

And with that, she lifted one hand, and I saw theoff of it before I could fully process what it was: a chef’s knife, industrial grade and sharp

I turned around to face Davina "What the hell are you doing? Let her go!"

Davina rolled her eyes "I’ what I have to do, baby That’s what I always do" She motioned to Millie, and when I turned, Millie had the chef’s knife in both hands, not pointed at me, but at herself At her heart

"Liv, please" Millie said, tears rolling down her face "Help"

"Do what I tell you to do," Davina said, "or Millie here coht in front of you"

I twirled around to face Davina "Stop it!"

"Call off your conduits Send everyone hoets real ugly, real fast"

I turned back to Millie, whose eyes were big, focused on the knife poised at her heart I closed my eyes, concentrated what power I’d borrowed from Davina, and shot it out toward the knife, as well as I could Itin Millie’s hand until she couldn’t keep hold of it anyround and skittered away toward the water, which was good, but I’d just spent everything I had

Which was very, very bad

"Oh, gee, that’s a damn shame," Davina said "Whatever will I do now?"

She reached out her hand, curling her fingers into an eerie grip, and behind asp and choke I turned to see her, feet dangling and kicking beneath her, clawing at her neck

"Stop!" I screamed, and started toward Davina, but she held up her free hand, ticking her index finger in warning

"Ah, ah, ah," she said, and Millie gurgled behind s Send them home, or your friend here dies a wretched death"

"Okay!" I held outbehindMillie, but neither was she tightening her grip

"All right, guys You heard her Go"

There was silence in the darkness, but around me Peach, Nick, Stacy, Grace, and Addie ht; I could feel theht I could feelback to ht We could take Davina Maybe But we definitely couldn’t do it before she killed Millie, and I couldn’t take that chance

"Go!" I hollered,off the trees I felt their resistance, but they were mine, and I controlled the into the forest, taking my poith thee I had

"They’re gone," I said finally "I held up lanced back at Millie She was alive, still clutching fruitlessly at her neck, but she eakening She wouldn’t o!"

Behind ers clutching deeper into the air as her htened

"Stop! We had a deal!"

"You’re right We did But you knohat, baby?" Davina’s eyes glinted with malice and insanity, and I felt the coldness in her expression sink into me "You shouldn’t have pissedsound, like thick branches snapping, but by the time I turned around, it was already over Millie’s head was lolling on her shoulders at an unnatural angle, her dead eyes blank in the round, lifeless

"Millie!" I screa to reach for her, but the white sand on the outside of the circle started to rise up and move around the barrier, like a cyclone I pulled e of the circle, only stopping whensand I shrieked at the pain and pulled it back in toI swiped at the tears on ive her the satisfaction ofwith it, it was a pretty moot point

"Baby," she said, a little breathless, but still in control, "you tried to beat uts, iven you credit for But you’ve lost It’s done Give ets hurt"

"No," I said

She had the nerve to look surprised "Did you just say no?"

I got onto my hands and knees, my muscles weak froed to pushand take a step toward her

"Yeah, I said no You don’t get o ahead and do what you ith ic It’s over"

"We’ll see about that" Shearound her in the wind from the cyclone that surrounded us I was too scared and tired to move away from her, afraid I would fall if I tried, so when she put her hand on the back ofbut stand there and let her

"You seem to be under the impression," she said as the cyclone around us died down, the sand falling neatly back into its original circle, "that I’ve played all my cards"

With that, she spun me around I felt dizzy from the movement, and it took me a ht, but once I did, my heart jolted painfully in my chest

Tobias He stood not ten feet away, just outside the edge of the circle, his head hanging as though he was only standing due to some force other than his oill His face was bloodied, his clothes ripped I let out a cry, and Davina dug her fingers intoto need to be quicker on your feet this time He’s so close to dead anyway that it won’t take er to knock hiht now, babyis it yes or no? Give ic noithout any more of this foolishness, and he lives Hesitate even for a second, and you atch him die, just like you watched Millie What’s your answer?"