For once, I didn’t want to argue with him. I looked to Fallon, but she avoided eye contact with me. Something told me she might have been the one to let slip our plan. “Are you coming with us?”
She bit her lip and hugged herself. Covered or not, I heard the guilty racing of her heart. I knew what that meant. “Fine, stay. See if you can talk some sense into Aiden while you’re at it.” I hoped it didn’t come out as snarky as it sounded in my head. I couldn’t really be mad at her for letting her boyfriend know what we were doing. It’s not like we meant to do any harm by it. And the wolves up to this point had been very supportive of our efforts to release Lysander from the soulstone.
“Save the sweet goodbyes for later,” Nicholas barked at me. “Go get Santino and get to the van. We need to leave now if we want to make it to the city before dawn.”
I glanced back at Fallon. “Call me if you make any progress.”
She half smiled at me. It wasn’t very reassuring. “I’ll do my best. Just try to stay safe.”
I tried to stay positive. It might work to our advantage to have her stay behind. Aiden was the second in command, and she had his ear.
CHAPTER 17
Crammed into the van, we drove away from the wolf preserve. For miles we sat in silence, no one daring to say the thing that had to be on all of our minds.
It was Santino who chose to put our fears into words. “We won’t be safe at Zuri’s house. You can be sure the Acta Sanctorum knows of its location. We could have been followed when we recovered the crystal.”
His words rang true and sent a shiver of fear down my spine that chilled me more than the winter ever could. We’d be sitting ducks come daytime.
“Where else can we go?” We were on the run with no safe place to hide from the sun. And worst of all, our allies were either mad at us or already dead. Things couldn’t look much bleaker, could they? I didn’t dare tempt fate and utter those words aloud.
“We’ll do as we’ve done before,” Nicholas said calmly, though his hands were wrapped tight around the steering wheel. “We will hide in plain sight. Wait out the day in some populated but indoor place, and then return to Zuri’s house come nightfall.”
Ariana cleared her throat and turned around from the front passenger seat to face us. “You can stay at my place if you don’t mind being cramped. I rent the second floor of a triple-decker in Dorchester.”
I wasn’t quite sure what exactly a triple-decker was, but anything was better than having to stay out in the open all day. We’d done that once before and it wasn’t much fun.
“Are you sure the Acta Sanctorum has not gained knowledge of your home?” Santino asked.
“I told you before, I didn’t have any dealings with them. Mysti had to have set everything up, and she never knew where we lived. When it came to coven meetings, she called us to join with her.”
“There is no guarantee they haven’t learned of your home though simple traces.” Santino turned to look out of the window. “The Saints are resourceful.”
With Ian out of commission and no better solutions, this sounded like our best option. “We might as well do it,” I said. “What other choices do we have?”
Crystal crossed her arms and leaned back into her seat. “I don’t see any other choice either.”
“We’ll all take turns keeping watch. The Acta Sanctorum is ruthless, but I doubt they would burn down other God-fearing humans’ houses to get to us. We should be okay for one day,” Drew added, attempting to sound comforting.
“I don’t know how many God-fearing people there are in Dorchester,” Ariana said hesitantly. “It can be a pretty rough neighborhood, but if the thought of it keeps my house off the arson list, great.” She finished with a nervous laugh.
“We’d better warn Zuri as well not to go home. She’s been out on patrol this whole time. She’s probably unaware of what’s been going on,” I said in a strained voice. “She should still be safe with the wolves; they’re not mad at her or Ian, just us.”
“Yes. For a few days at least,” Nicholas agreed. “The wolves should keep them safe.”
We drove slowly through the snow and slush with Ariana as our guide until we reached her home. Under the soft glow of the streetlamps, the house looked large and majestic: a beautiful three-story heather-gray clapboard building filled with windows. Large L-shaped porches wrapped around one corner of the building. Painted in a stark white, they created a striking accent.
We parked in the back on a concrete slab shared between two of these large three-story homes. It appeared to have been recently shoveled.
“So this is a triple-decker?” I asked.
“Yeah, you don’t have these in Vegas?” Ariana responded.
“We have apartments.”
“We have those too, but these buildings are more common around here. Follow me.”
We walked toward a small concrete set of steps at the back of the building. Ariana fumbled with her set of keys while the overhead light flickered and threatened to go out. Once she’d located the right one, she opened the back door and revealed a tiny, two person wide hallway. Directly ahead of us was the front door of the building. To my left appeared to be someone’s front door, with a large peep hole in the center. To the right was a narrow set of stairs. We took the steps single file up to the second floor. Our footfalls echoed in the tight passage; mixed with the groaning of the wood, we sounded like an invading army.
So much for going in unnoticed. We could wake the dead with all the noise.
Ariana didn’t seem to care. She pushed forward, up the stairs to the second floor landing. “Here we are. Home sweet home.” She unlocked the only door on this floor, an ancient wooden thing with a large peep hole in the center.
Inside, the air was thick with rich herbal scents, and I spotted a few incense holders that could have been the source. Shiny hardwood floors met richly painted walls of sage and twilight. A large flat-panel television had been mounted to one wall. Below it sat an entertainment credenza filled with DVDs of all kinds. A small altar had been set on top of the credenza. Sitting on a neatly folded blue cloth with the goddess symbol atop it was a miniature cauldron with pentagrams emblazoned on its side. Flanking the cauldron were two small candle holders with small thin green candles inside. Next to the right candle sat a cobalt blue glass goblet. Around the room in every corner sat potted plants, probably herbs she used for her witchcraft.
“Make yourselves comfortable,” she said as she headed into the kitchen, “I’ll be right out in a minute.”
“What about Lysander’s coffin?” I asked. “We can’t just leave it out there in the van all night.”
Nicholas took one look back down the stairwell. “I’m not sure we’ll be able to get it up the stairs.”
Drew shook his head. He heaved a sigh and looked at me with sorrowful eyes. “He may be safer down there in the van. If we need to make a quick escape, trying to carry around a coffin would slow us all down.”
I didn’t like what I was hearing. My voice shook as I spoke. “But what if someone breaks into the van? Or if the Saints do find us?”
Nicholas put a hand on my shoulder. “This is not the perfect situation, but we have to work with what we have. Drew and I will secure the van and cover up the coffin before dawn. We’ll all take turns keeping watch during the day. That’s just going to have to be good enough for now.”
“But, Lysander—”
“Is like a brother to me,” Nicholas spoke in a carefully controlled tone. “I won’t see any harm come to him, okay?”
As much as I didn’t want to, I had to trust Nicholas. He could be a jerk most times, but he really did have our best interests at heart. And if he felt that we’d be okay for one night, he was probably right.
“Fine.” I crossed my arms, hugging myself, as if that would help keep my anxiety in check. “But if we end up staying longer, we have to come up with a better solution.”
“Agreed.” Nicholas smiled at me.
I turned and walked away, wandering around the room. My nervous energy was going to get the better of me again. I had a feeling I’d spend another day wide awake. “I guess you can give me first shift.”
Ariana had one small shelf of books that had been filled with magic-related texts; books like
The
Solo Practitioner
,
Crystal Healing
,
Elemental Craft
, and
Moon Magick
. Small statues served as bookends. I was admiring the tiny green figurine of what looked like a wolf when Ariana came back out into the living room carrying dark sheets.
“I thought you might want some coverings on the window, to help with the sunlight. It’s not much, but these should help.”
“That’s really thoughtful of you,” I said, wondering if she was making up for the little episode back at the wolf preserve.
She handed me some thumbtacks and the end of a black sheet. Together we pinned them to the edges of each of the three windows in the front.
“Nice place you’ve got here,” Crystal said, collapsing onto the overstuffed microfiber couch in the living room. Drew joined her.
“Thanks.” Ariana beamed at them. She gave off a definite sense of pride in her home. “I’ve tried to make the most of it. These older places have a lot of character, but the upkeep is tremendous.”
Santino cleared his throat. I looked over to see him standing like a sentry, guarding the front door. “The time for small talk is later. We should assign shifts now so that some of you can get rest.”
I continued my pacing, unable to stand still from nervous energy. “I already said I’d take first shift. I’m not going to be sleeping anytime soon.”
“I’ll stay up too,” Crystal added.
Ariana finished pinning another sheet to a small window in the kitchen. “I’d like to study the book some more. I want to find out what might have gone wrong with the spell.”
“We’ll need more than women to guard us,” Santino said curtly.
“Excuse me?” I glared at him. “You’re really going to play the sexist card here?”
“If the women want to take first shift, that’s perfectly fine.” Nicholas stalked over to Santino. “They’re more than capable of keeping watch for a few hours.”
“And if we are attacked?” The menace in Santino’s voice was unmistakable, but he avoided looking at any of us
women
.
“They will alert us.” Nicholas matched his tone.
“Every second is key in an attack. The women are not—”
“You might want to consider your words carefully,” Nicholas said through clenched teeth. “If not for Alyssa, you wouldn’t be here. She took on Connor to keep your sorry ass alive. And she’s the youngest of these women. Show some respect.”
It was odd to hear such approval coming from Nicholas, but I really appreciated it.
I might just have to rethink all those times I called him an asshole or a jerk.
“So be it,” Santino said dismissively. “Let the women take the first shift.”
Nicholas nodded curtly, and then turned to me and whispered, “Don’t fuck it up and make me look bad, Little Warrior.”
Perhaps I was too hasty in taking back the jerk comments.
“Thanks,” I said with a slight groan.
Ariana showed Nicholas, Drew, and Santino to a room where they could rest and then returned to the living room.
“I have a theory,” she said, but there was hesitation in her voice.
“Okay?” I sat at the edge of the couch waiting for the bad news.
Ariana grabbed the book from the coffee table. She flipped through the pages, finding the one with the soulstone on it, and showed it to us.
“When one is created, it acts like a vacuum and pulls in the nearest soul it can find.”
“Right. Lysander’s soul was sucked in. We know that already.”
“But he’s not alone,” Ariana said poignantly. “Those were the words you said he spoke.”
I knew where she was going with this, but I didn’t dare say it aloud. And I didn’t have to. Crystal had come to the same conclusion.
“Aniketos,” she said.
“Yes. That would mean the Pandora’s Box is empty.”
My heart momentarily stopped. I’d thought of it as a possibility, but hearing it spoken aloud made it all that much more true. After all of our hard work, all the sacrifice, the loss of life, we might not have defeated the bloodthirsty spirit of Aniketos. The Pandora’s Box had been our only hope. He was unconquerable, being a true immortal, born of the gods themselves. Only the magical cage of the Pandora’s Box had been strong enough to keep his spirit locked inside. If he was locked in the crystal with Lysander, it was no wonder it was fading so fast. And as it faded, Lysander’s spirit grew weaker. I felt our bond, the connection we shared as master and fledgling, fading.
“What happens then, if we let the crystal fade?” I asked, praying that my deepest fear, Lysander’s death, would not be the solution.
“I wish I could say. The book is hazy on the details. Most spirits bound to a stone are preserved, not used up. If his spirit is exhausted, it could strengthen Aniketos, and he might be strong enough to break free of the crystal himself.”
Used up
. Those words sounded so dirty. It was as if his soul were equal to a piece of tissue that once used could be discarded without a second thought. No. Lysander wouldn’t be treated like that.
“He cannot be allowed to break free of the crystal.” Crystal’s brow furrowed. “It seems we may need to plead our case to Connor, at the very least, to retrieve the box. That’s the only thing we know of that can hold Aniketos safely inside.”
“The box that’s buried under how many feet of concrete?” I didn’t try to hide the hopelessness in my voice. It was uncertain if the wolves would continue to be our allies, and they were the ones who kept watch over the Pandora’s Box.
“All we can do is try.” I could tell Ariana was trying to sound positive, but the effect was lost on me.
“Let’s say we do get the box; what then?” I asked.
“We try to summon out the spirits again. Both of them this time,” Ariana said, with added emphasis. “And then recreate the ritual to put Aniketos back in the box.”
“Simple as that,” I said sarcastically.