Watch Me Burn: The December People, Book Two (37 page)

“You’re sure he’ll know what to do?”

“No…but we have to do it anyway. Look at him. He’s losing.”

“I’ve never tried anything like this.”

“I did. Once. Give him your magic. It’s like anything else. If you want him to have it, he will.”

“So, shall we?”

Evangeline hesitated. “Now.”

They had given Patrick a moment of reprieve. Not out of kindness, but to discuss their next plan of attack. He didn’t know why they kept going. They had won. They had taken every last drop of his power. He would give them anything to make them stop. Anything. He could no longer remember why he was here in the first place. Or, where he would rather be. He wanted to be in a place without pain. He didn’t care where. He didn’t care if that meant death. As long as the pain stopped.

So, when he felt the pain coming, he tensed, perhaps more than he had before, because he didn’t understand it. Caroline spoke to Jude, and they both faced away from him. He had at least grown a minor sense of comfort knowing when pain would come, and when it wouldn’t. It would only come if she touched him. This made no sense. And that terrified him.

The pain didn’t run down his nerves as when Caroline touched him. It started at his core and worked its way out. If his soul existed, then that’s where the pain centered. A cold, darkness that blotted out the light behind his eyes. His skin burned all over. But he realized relief could come. The darkness would take him away and make him numb. It would take his soul. Take his life. And then there would be nothing. He welcomed it, willing his body to stop fighting against it, despite the powerful instinct for survival. The darkness would come, and when it did, they could never hurt him again.

But then, as if the darkness realized it comforted him, a new sensation rushed in. A horrible, horrible heat. A fire burned him from the inside out, and filled him with the life he wanted to escape. A life that burned far too hot. He couldn’t stop himself from crying out.

The rush of pain made it hard to see, but he sensed Jude and Caroline coming closer.

“What are you doing to him?” Jude asked.

“Nothing.”

“What do you mean, ‘nothing?’ “

“I’m really not, Jude.”

Patrick had the urge to run, to fight, to do anything to get the fiery monster off of him. And in his panic to flee, he flew out of the chair, breaking the magical bonds that held him there.

But he couldn’t stand for long. He tasted blood in his mouth, and crumpled to the floor.

“Oh no,” Julie said. “No. No. No. We’re killing him. We have to stop.”

Evangeline felt the same way. She hated seeing Patrick suffer, especially knowing she caused the pain. But she had to be the tough one. Julie was way too soft.

“Wait. Please, wait. Look, he broke the paralyzing spell already. Don’t stop.”

“He’s not moving.”

“Please, Julie. Don’t stop. Of course, it hurts him. How do you think it would feel to have pure summer and winter magic blasted into you at once? Just wait.”

Evangeline thought maybe he
was
dying. She could sense his light fading. But the light was still there. Even if he didn’t realize it, he had so much power right now, he didn’t need training. He could take them down with a look. But he still didn’t move. He had his face pressed against the ground, and Evangeline thought she could see blood trickling from the corners of his mouth.

Jude kneeled next to Patrick. Evangeline could see the scene but she couldn’t hear it, however, it looked like Jude shouted something at Caroline.

“He’s no use to me dead, Jude,” Caroline said. “Why would I kill him? I’m not doing this.”

“Then what the fuck is happening?”

“I don’t know. I keep telling you, I don’t know.”

“Shouldn’t you though? Aren’t you supposed to be the omnipotent genius?”

“Stop talking and let me think.”

“I can still feel his pulse.”

Then Patrick realized Jude touched him. Jude had his hand on his wrist. His touch jolted him back into reality. He hated Jude. He hated him and he loved him at once. And that made him so, so angry. He wanted Jude to stop touching him. He wanted him away.

Patrick felt a surge of magic leave him and enter Jude at the point where their skin made contact. He had no idea where the magic had come from.

“Jude?” Patrick heard Caroline’s voice, but the light behind his eyes was so bright, he couldn’t see anything around him. He blinked until he could focus. He saw Jude lying near him, Caroline kneeled beside him, shaking him.

Patrick pulled himself up. His body felt so weak, but he found that he didn’t need his muscles. He wanted to stand, and so he rose, powered by magic alone. And he hovered over Caroline. She turned and looked up at him.

Her eyes looked red, as if she had started to cry, but she still smiled up at him. “I’m glad it’s you. The fall.”

He hit her with a spell. He didn’t take much time to think it through and had no idea what he hit her with. He wanted her down. He wanted her to be no longer a threat. He only needed to want it, and it happened. She crumpled, her head falling on Jude’s back.

Patrick must have blacked out, because he didn’t remember anything else until he saw Evangeline and Julie hovering over him. His sight went in and out, his eyes burning with light and then covered in dark. He knew if the girls kneeled over him, then they must have won. It was over. But he still felt so much pain. His heart raced, and skipped irregularly. He knew his body couldn’t handle any more.

“Are you okay?” Julie asked.

“No,” Patrick said.

“You did good,” Evangeline said.

“What?” Patrick asked.

“We should stay back,” Julie said. “He’s confused. And still all filled with magic. He could curse us too.”

“Are you going to curse me?” Evangeline asked.

“No.”

“I know you’re in pain, Patrick. But I promise. It’s over. They’re gone.”

Patrick felt heat. He sat up and looked around. Pain shot up his arms and legs as he moved. Summer had returned. Early summer morning, the light in the sky still a cool purple, and the heat still bearable. The perfect moment between light and dark.

“Caroline’s spell, it’s gone? We can walk out.”

Smoke still darkened the horizon, but it had dissipated since yesterday, which meant the fire had burned down.

“Yeah, they’re gone,” Evangeline said.

“Gone? As in…dead?” Patrick asked.

“No. Just gone.” Evangeline cast her eyes down as if this disappointed her. “If you had wanted them dead, they would be dead. But that must not be the spell you cast. They got knocked out, but by the time we made it out, they were gone. And all the spells cast around this place went away.”

“Where did they go?”

“I don’t know. Where did you send them?”

“It wasn’t like that. I didn’t know what I was doing. I wanted it to stop. I wanted them away.”

“Well, then that’s what happened. If you wanted them away, they are
way
away. Probably on their way to China. They’d be going to the moon if it was possible.”

“How?”

“I told you. I saw it in the park. You can use other wizard’s magic. And you can use it well. Decisively. More than what the wizard alone could do. We gave you ours. Me and Julie.”

“You did that. That…pain. I thought I was going to die.”

“I’m sorry,” Evangeline said. “But you’re not going to die. Not today, anyway.”

“I’m sorry, too,” Julie said. She smiled at him tentatively. She looked different from the girl in the photo. Thinner. And much less bright. But alive. And she could go home now.

Patrick reached into his pocket, took out her charm bracelet, and held it out to her. He could swear she already glowed brighter. At least, she smiled bigger when she put the bracelet on.

“Thank you,” she said.

“Okay. I want a cheeseburger. And a chocolate shake,” Patrick said. “Let’s go.”

And so they walked out. Slowly. Patrick still hurt everywhere. His muscles spasmed with every move. The girls wandered like lost ghosts, tired and weak. But they walked.

When they came through a patch of trees, they all stopped in their tracks. The trees dropped off suddenly. They had reached the edge of Caroline’s spell, and found a perfect line, obliterated by fire on one side, and untouched forest on the other. The wildfire side still smoldered, but they could see the road through the black carpet of ground and field of black sticks that used to be trees.

Patrick felt another surge of unease seeing the power of Caroline’s spell. And she was still out there. Probably looking for the spring equinox to round herself out.

“How do you think the Mundanes are going to explain this?” Patrick asked.

“Aliens?” Julie suggested.

“Come on,” Patrick said and they padded their way across the charred earth toward the road.