Authors: Gabriella Lepore
I saw her through the rain, incomparably beautiful and eternally etched on my mind.
“I’m not afraid,” she said. “Tell me I’m not afraid.” She kind of smiled, shivering at the same time.
I smiled back in a similar, jittery way. “You’re not afraid,” I reassured her. “And neither am I.”
With my gaze so absorbed in Rose, I barely noticed Marco swooping in on us. And that was something I’d never forgive myself for.
He took Rose and flung her across the yard.
My heart stopped.
“No!” I cried as she collided against the minivan. In an instant I was beside her, stooped over her protectively. She was unconscious, but breathing.
Marco darted towards us again.
“Oscar, look out!” Caicus shouted.
I held my arm up and, using the last of my dwindling strength, I struck our attacker away.
He tumbled backwards onto the gravel. But it didn’t keep him down for long. In seconds, he was on his feet and blind with rage. He was feral now—and clearly couldn’t see sanity from lunacy, because, to my surprise, he went for Lathiaus.
The demon extended one withered ivory finger and curved it into a hook shape.
Marco stopped in his tracks. Then something strange happened. Marco clutched at his stomach, suddenly gripped by agony. As his pain worsened, his cries grew louder and more tortured. The sound was like nothing I’d ever heard before. It was unimaginable.
No matter what issues I’d had with Marco—and believe me, I’d had many—there wasn’t a soul in the world who would not have felt empathy for his suffering. I glanced at Caicus and he looked back at me, helplessly.
Marco crumpled to the ground, screaming and thrashing.
I covered Rose’s ears. I was sure it wouldn’t make much difference, what with her being unconscious and all, but it was something I did nonetheless.
Across the yard, Lathiaus’s unnerving smile broadened. It made me feel empty to look at him. Violated, even. I was looking into the face of evil. I was looking into the face of death—literally.
I held Rose close to me, distractedly rocking her back and forth. This was bad. Very bad. I snuck a glance at Caicus. He didn’t look too healthy—although, for the first time, I noticed the advantage of his location.
Silently, I spoke to him,
Go
, I told him.
Get out of Millwood.
He was close enough to the forest to escape without being detected.
But he didn’t budge. He didn’t even blink. He was frozen to the spot in terror.
I weighed up the odds of saving Marco. I knew it would be tricky at best, if it was even possible at all. I knew I’d have to try, though. What could I say? I was a glutton for punishment.
Sadly, the decision was made for me; I didn’t get the chance to try. Marco’s number was up.
He let out a gut-wrenching howl. Through his open mouth came an explosion of flames, which spilt over his body until he was engulfed by them.
I bowed my head away from the disturbing scene, and hoped, for Caicus’s sake, that he was doing the same.
I had to admit, to my shame, that I was completely powerless. By the time I returned my focus to Marco, there was nothing left of him but a pile of ashes, extinguished by the rain.
Lathiaus basked in the glory of his kill. The slaughter seemed to have strengthened him. His corroded body moved differently now, prowling forward with a serpent-like slither. His clawed fingers massaged the air as he approached us.
It was hard not to gawp at his face, mostly because he was so damn revolting. I retched at the sight of maggots teeming in and out of his mouth and around his eyes, feeding off the parched bone.
Go!
I ordered Caicus, willing him to move.
Run!
With a slow creak of his neck, Lathiaus turned upon his next victim.
Caicus.
The demon pointed his finger, then bent and twisted it into a hook—just as he had done with Marco.
“No,” I staggered to my feet.
He was going to kill Caicus.
I left Rose beside the minivan and sped out into the open. Now I stood staunchly in the path between Caicus and Lathiaus.
Run!
I urged Caicus.
Oscar, I can’t,
his voice came back weakly.
He’s going to kill us.
Lathiaus’s tormenting stare was on me now.
I tried to hold my nerve.
I’ll buy you some time
, I assured Caicus.
Just get out of here. And take Rose with you
.
I’m not leaving you here!
he whimpered.
I gave him a fleeting look.
Go. And don’t let anything happen to Rose
.
It was funny what I learned about myself when I was facing death. Like, I actually was stubborn. Wasn’t that a kicker? I’d spent eighteen years denying it, only to admit it in my final hour.
I rubbed my hands together. “Okay, bones,” I said to Lathiaus. “You don’t look all that. Do your worst.”
Taunting a demon? I really needed to sew my mouth up sometimes. Nah. Too restrictive. I’d take death, thanks.
Lathiaus bared his teeth at me.
“Lovely,” I muttered, gagging at the view.
He extended his finger and curved it upwards.
The pain came quicker than I’d anticipated. It was instant. And it was not like anything I’d ever experienced before, either. It burnt from the inside, as though my blood was boiling and my organs were on fire.
I clenched my teeth, fighting the urge to cry out. My legs buckled and I dropped to the ground. I was on the gravel now, my head spinning and my mouth filling with blood. And, to my dismay, I realised I was screaming.
I vaguely heard Caicus’s sobs, but I could barely hear anything above my own cries. I thought of two things: one being,
Run, Caicus, you moron
! And the other being,
Rose.
And then I heard her voice, smoother and more fluent than it had ever been. So much so, it made me wonder if she was an angel, coming to take me to the other side.
“Stop,” she said, quite simply.
The pain stopped.
I opened my eyes, but all I saw was gravel, and my body didn’t seem to obey my order to move. So I lay there, looking at the granules of stone.
“I’m the one you want,” she stated calmly. “Come here.”
“Rose, I can’t,” I tried to speak, but my throat was singed. “Where are you?” There was no way she could have heard me. Even
I
couldn’t hear me.
She spoke again. “Come here,
now
.” It was only then that I realised she had not been talking to me.
From where I lay, wrecked and immobilised, I saw Lathiaus pass me, gliding towards the minivan.
My heart began to race.
Caicus!
I called frantically.
What’s going on? Am I dead?
Apparently my silent voice had a lot more potency than my vocal one.
Oscar?
his words came back to me.
You look dead, but I don’t think you are. How do you feel?
I feel dead. What’s going on?
I used all of my willpower to tilt my head just enough to see across the yard.
Rose has summoned Lathiaus to her
, Caicus explained.
Through my bleary eyes, I surveyed whatever was in my line of vision. In a nutshell, Rose backing away from the minivan as the demon closed in on her.
“Rose!” I tried to shout, but it translated as a feeble groan.
I heard her speak. “Two will take her to him,” she began reciting the prophecy, “and all will be spared.” She paused. “Well, one took me to you. Will that do?”
I held my breath. What was she thinking? This was suicide. I expected to hear her screams at any moment. And there would be nothing I could do about it. This was, hands down, the most petrifying moment of my life.
“One took me to you,” she repeated, talking only to Lathiaus. “Oscar took me to you. I went all the way back to 1692. Do you remember that year, Lathiaus Rapp? It was the year you killed your first witch. The year that set you on course to become a cold-blooded demon.”
‘Two will take her to him, and all will be spared’? Oh hell.
Could that be true?
I wondered desperately.
Our salvation doesn’t depend on us sacrificing her to him
—
it depends on us performing the Retracing spell?
Caicus’s voice drifted into my mind.
Do you think she’s right?
he asked urgently
. Do you think we were wrong all this time?
I wasn’t ready to respond yet. Was it possible that centuries of witches had read the prophecy wrong? Were we really that stupid?
‘Two will turn away, and all will be slaughtered.’ Oh hell. We were that stupid.
Two will turn away
,
I replied to Caicus.
Not turn away from our duty, but turn away from
her
! Two will turn away from her, and all will be slaughtered.
So, what does this mean?
he pressed.
It means we’re idiots. We pretty much misunderstood every line of that entire cursed prophecy!
Hey, lucky you’re such a pain-in-the-ass rule breaker, then,
he teased.
Does this mean we’ve won?
I felt the gravel move as my lips tried to smile. But my rejoicing was premature. There was another line to the prophecy. A line which I would rather have forgotten.
‘Before the hour turns to twelfth, she must grant him her death.’
We have to help her!
I appealed to Caicus. I hated my limbs for refusing to comply.
Wait,
Caicus responded, with an air of nonchalance.
I want to see where she’s going with this.
Caicus!
I was outraged by his remark.
Shh,
he hushed me.
Give her some credit. She is the prophecy girl, after all.
“I’m told that I have to grant you my death,” Rose carried on, oblivious to our muted conversation—and seemingly oblivious to us as well. “I don’t want to do that, so I’ll give you the chance to leave now. Go back and lay to rest.”
Oh good God, she’s crazy
.
The poor girl had officially cracked. She thought Lathiaus was going to listen to a peace talk? That he was going to suddenly see the light and say, ‘Okay, I’m off back to hell, catch you on the next demonic rising’?
Rose kept going, “I’m giving you a choice.”
I squinted to see her. My vision was blurred and my eyes stung, but I couldn’t let her down. I had to fight through this.
Through my distorted sight, I observed Lathiaus stretching out his arm and curling his finger into that lethal hook.
“No!” The word came out that time. Though I didn’t know how loud it was, because no one paid me the slightest iota of attention. No change there, then.
Caicus, help me,
I begged.
Do something! Put me in Lathiaus’s path. Don’t let him hurt Rose.
There was no response.
“Caicus!” I managed to get another word out. But the sheer effort of it sapped me. Why wasn’t he answering?
What’s going on?
I demanded.
Finally his voice came back.
Nothing.
That wasn’t a sufficient answer.
What do you mean?
Nothing’s happening. He’s trying, but it’s… it’s not working.
Then Rose spoke. “Double jeopardy,” she simplified. “I haven’t read the book yet, but I think I get the gist. It’s all about being prosecuted for the same crime twice. If you didn’t commit the crime but you were still tried for it, then you can’t get tried for it again.” She shrugged her shoulders. “I was burnt for being a witch, but I wasn’t one. And now you want to do it again.” She wagged her finger disapprovingly at him. “By law of double jeopardy, you can’t touch me this time.” There was a brief hesitation. “And I’m guessing that’s why I was immune to Caicus and Marco’s powers, too. I was executed for being a witch, so now I’m out of bounds. I’m off the table.”
Lathiaus made a strange guttural rumbling sound. The sound of an angry demon.
It was perhaps a good thing that I couldn’t get up, because I probably would have collapsed right back down again. Was this really happening? Was she off the table?
Rose continued, coolly, “One last chance, Lathiaus Rapp. Go back to where you came from. I don’t want to grant you my death.”
I saw Lathiaus’s silhouette reflecting off the minivan. Even his reflection was intimidating. And Rose seemed so tiny compared to him, like a mouse facing a lion. But she held her ground.
Lathiaus turned his body, evidently bored of Rose now. What followed was a sound that made me wish for death.
Caicus let out a howl of distress.