The gentle wind that had seemed calming seconds before now whipped into a frenzy. It turned so cold that I could see my breath puff into the frigid air.
An inky cloud of mist formed between us. Barbie turned her otherworldly gaze toward the wavering form. She lowered her arms shoulder-level, and held her palms toward the
sheut
.
“I give you sanctuary, Lelia Briarstock,” she intoned. “I offer thanks for your service to this world, and your soul peace in the afterlife.”
My aunt’s
sheut
solidified. She turned to me, her gaze full of sorrow.
“Oh, Molly,” she whispered, her voice breaking. “What have you done?”
“Gods do not experience death, and so they often lack compassion for those who must die. It is not that the gods are without hearts, for they have love for the earth and its inhabitants. No. It is that the gods do not have souls. Without souls, they cannot experience life and therefore, cannot know compassion.”
~
Secret History of Reapers, Author Unknown
“And the
Kebechet
said unto Anubis, ‘Who am I? What is my purpose?’ And the great god of the Underworld replied, ‘You are the seventh warrior, the daughter of my heart and of my seed. You will save the world.’”
~
Anubis and The Seventh Warrior
, author unknown
Chapter 14
“W
E’RE BREAKING YOU free from Set,” I said. “You won’t be in pain or have to worry about me anymore.”
“No,” said Aunt Lelia. “Don’t do this!”
“Set’s coming for me, no matter what I do,” I said. I was tired of feeling afraid, tired of wondering if I could handle my so-called destiny, and really damned tired of feeling like I was a failure. “We’re setting you free, Aunt Lelia.”
“You are strong, Molly. But so is your mother. She’s been watching you. Waiting. You’re not safe anymore.” Tears slipped down her pale cheeks.
“My mother?” I asked.
“You were the sacrifice,” she whispered. “The heart of a god beats within you, Molly. You are the key to releasing Set.”
“Me?” I asked, stunned. “I release him?”
“When you were ten, Al found out the truth, and he forced your mother away. You’ve been protected ever since … until now.”
“I’m supposed to save the world,” I whispered.
“You can also damn it,” said Aunt Lelia. “I’m sorry, Molly. I’m so sorry.”
“We can’t wait any longer,” hissed Barbie. Her purple gaze was wavering. “Give me your arm.”
I lifted my left arm and Barbie drew her sharp blade across my skin.
“Blood of the binder,” said Barbie.
Blood seeped from the thin stinging wound and I watched blood drop to the ground where Lelia’s
sheut
wavered. Her gaze was on mine. Her sorrow was palpable.
“Blood of the releaser,” said Barbie.
I lifted my right arm. Once again, the knife pierced me. This time the sting was more pronounced, and the wound deeper. Blood splattered the ground, mingling earth and
sheut
.
“With the blessing of Anubis, the compassion of
Maat, and the love of Isis, I free thy soul’s shadow, Lelia Briarstock. Unite with your soul once more and find peace everlasting.”
Aunt Lelia wept as
she faded away, slipping into shadow, and then into nothingness.
Barbie released a huge sigh, and sank to her knees, dropping the knife.
I bent down and grasped her shoulders. “Are you all right?”
“Yeah,” said Barbie. “I’m just tired.”
She glanced at my arms. “You need bandages, here.” She handed me two large bandages and helped me put them on my wounds. Then I helped her.
“That was wild,” I said.
“What your aunt said … I used to think my gift sucked,” said Barbie. “But you have it a hundred times worse.”
“Molly!”
The fear in Ally’s voice had me getting to my feet and twisting my ring, mentally calling for my scythe.
It was too late.
My mother stood between Rath and Ally. Rath hovered about a foot above the ground, his eyes bulging and breathing labored as he tried to fight my mother’s magic.
She had Ally by the hair.
My mother was much as I remembered her, except her eyes and smile were hard, and her blonde hair cut very short. She wore the hooded leather jacket, and I recognized it instantly.
She seemed to interpret
my expression. “Yes, I followed you into your precious temple. I never expected Mac Jacobs to send me away. He’s not exactly a fan of our family.”
“Mom, let them go.”
“I don’t think I will. But, hey, thanks for getting rid of my big sis,” she said. “She was really making it difficult to get to you. Oh, and your so-called father. After you left, all those protection spells of his were weakened … and then there was that awful fire. How is dear Al, by the way?”
I wanted to hurt her.
I wanted to hurt my own mother.
“What do you want?”
I asked.
Mom shook her head. “Weren’t
you listening to Lelia’s confession? I want you.” She pulled Ally’s hair so hard my sister screamed. “Get out of the circle.”
“
Stop! She’s your daughter, too,” I said.
“She’s a mistake,” said my mother. “And if you don’t think I can’t hurt your reaper boyfriend … think again.”
I sent a worried gaze to Rath. He was struggling, and obviously in deep pain. I stepped forward, but Barbie grabbed my arm. “No, Molly. You’re safe in here. She can’t get to you.”
“
I can get to them.” My mother lifted her arm and Rath bent backward, choking and flailing. Then she pulled Ally close and wrapped an arm around her slender neck.
“You’ll have to choose, Molly,” she said. “Sacrifice those you love. Or sacrifice yourself.”
“Uuuuuh!” The zombie yell was followed by Jon Lemons, who raced out of the forest. With the force of linebacker, he knocked Rath out of the air and into the circle with us.
Rath rolled across the ground and lay still.
I ran to Rath and knelt next to him. He moaned once, and then slipped into complete unconsciousness.
Fury roiled through me. I stood up, and found myself once again being grabbed by Barbie. We watched as Jon Lemons tried
to figure out how to get at Mom without hurting Ally. He reached grayish green arms out, going for her face.
“See? This is why I hate zombies.” Mom aimed her free hand at Jon Lemons. A black rope of magic uncoiled from her fingertips and wrapped around his neck.
“Stop!” yelled Barbie. “You’re hurting him!”
“Silly, girl. Zombies can’t feel pain.”
Ally stomped on Mom’s foot at the same time she rammed back her elbow. Mom yelped and her magic disappeared.
Now free from Mom’s grasp, Ally dove toward the zombie, and shoved him sideways.
He landed in the circle.
“This is fucking ridiculous.” Mom grabbed A
lly by the hair before she could find safety with us, too.
“Stay with Jon Lemons,” I said. “Don’t let him out of the circle.”
Barbie ran to her zombie and enchained him by the waist. With his owner clinging to him like that, Jon Lemons stopped moving and became as impassive as a statue.
I ran, and
I jumped over the candles and salt, landing less than a foot away from my mother and sister.
“Let her go,” I demanded.
“You want her? Take her.” She released my sister’s hair.
I snatched Ally
away from Mom. “Go, Ally.”
Ally’s eyes were tear-filled, her gaze raw with pain. She stepped over the line of salt, joining Barbie and the zombie.
I took a warrior stance.
Mom
eyed me, and then laughed. “C’mon, little girl. Whatcha got?”
My first punch hit air, and my snap-kick got
the edge of her jacket. One minute she was dodging me, and then next she was behind me.
Her arms went around my neck and my waist like two iron bands.
“That’s enough, Molly,” she whispered. “It’s time for you to do what you were born for.”
I kicked back, hard. I hit her knee and heard a crack.
Mom screeched and let me go, stumbling away. I whirled and executed a round kick to her chest. She flew backward, and landed on her ass.
She got to her feet, arched her neck, shook out her legs, and then—without seeming to be injured at all—she marched toward me, fury in her eyes.
“Enough.”
My mother stalled, and then she smirked at me. “
Well, well. Looks like the cavalry arrived.”
I turned
and saw the ancient Egyptian goddess standing less than a foot away. On either side of her were two very powerfully built men with the faces of lions and the bodies of The Rock. They bared their teeth and growled.
“Seek your safety, daughter of Anubis,” said Maat in her unearthly voice.
I didn’t need to be told twice. I scuttled sideways into the circle. I risked a glance at Rath. He was still unconscious, and that worried me. He was dead. He shouldn’t be prone to the same conditions as humans.
“Return the feather,” said the voice. “Or know the judgment of Maat.”
“Feather? Sorry,” said Mom, apparently unconcerned about Maat or her bodyguards. “I don’t have it. I guess Anubis didn’t find it, either. Whatever happened to him?”
The hairs pricked up on the back of my neck.
Anubis was missing?
“You will not always have the protection of Set,” said Maat. “You will come to justice. And so will he.”
“I don’t think so,” said my mother. “We will watch this world burn. And then
we
will come for
you
.” Mom turned toward me. “I’ll see you soon, Molly. I can’t wait to catch up.”
Mom
transformed into an oily shadow that drained into the ground.
“Wow,” whispered Barbie. “Your mom has serious
bitch issues.”
“Molly.”
Maat’s voice had me straightening away from Ally and Barbie.
“Yes, goddess?”
“The feather of judgment was stolen. I sent Anubis to find it, and he has never returned. I now task you to find the feather, and your father.”
“Me?” I squeaked.
“Did you not agree to fulfill three favors for me in exchange for fixing the wounded soul of Rick Widdenstock?”
“Yes,” I said.
“Good.”
Maat studied me. “We know they are both in the Underworld. You have forty-eight hours. Do not fail me.”
Maat
and her bodyguards transformed into sparkling gold lights that shot up into the night sky.
“Holy shit,” said Barbie.
I couldn’t really add much to that sentiment, so I turned and strode to Rath. I knelt beside him and brushed the hair away from his face. “Rath?”
He groaned, and his eyes fluttered open. “Molly. You okay?”
“I’m not the one on the ground,” I teased. “How do you feel?”
“Like I’m dead.” He smiled and then leaned up on his elbow. “Did we win?”
“Maat showed up,” said Barbie. “And scared away the demon mother from hell.”
“
Yeah,” said Ally. She sat down in a cross-legged position. “Then Maat gave Molly two days to find the feather of judgment and the very missing Anubis.”
“Two days?” asked Rath. “But the
Kebechet
challenge is—”
“I know,” I said. “It’s tomorrow. I have to start the search now—in the Underworld. I need to find my father. I need to help him get the feather back.”
Rath sat up and pulled me into lap. He hugged me tightly. “I’m sorry, brown eyes.”
“Wait a minute,” said Barbie, standing above us with her hands on her hips. “You mean Clarissa is going to win by default?”
“I guess Mom got what she wanted,” I said softly. “Clarissa’s going to be the champion of Anubis.”
So much for destiny.
All that training. All that work. All that sacrifice. For nothing.
Nothing!
I would not be
Kebechet
.
As of now …
I was unchosen.