Chapter Twenty Three – Spellers and a Cellar

“Ivette,” I gasp at my eldest sister. Clothed in a black lace dress with knee high boots, Ivette strolls closer to the door. Her dulled reddish brown hair is held back in a tight bun, more elegant than I’ve ever seen it be. Though time had taken a slight toll, there is no denying it’s her. She advances forward over her home’s polished hardwood flooring.

Ryan glances at the both of us, one at a time. Seeing the look of horror on my face, he turns to my sister, not knowing the deadly appearance she’s hiding. “Mama Ivy, how do you know them?”

“Oh, Emily and I go way back,” she says. Xan and I back away but Katie doesn’t move. I grab her wrist but she stays stiff and undaunted. “Don’t bother, Em. She’s only listening to me anyway. Katelyn, why don’t you come in?”

Katie obeys and steps into the house. Her arm slips from my grasp as if she doesn’t feel me. Xan pulls me back onto the porch, still wondering what to do himself. I struggle in his grip, wanting to grab my best friend and bolt. But he, knowing Ivette as well as I do, knows how stupid it would be. My sister laughs at my feeble efforts to be the hero.

“What a lovely home you have,” my best friend compliments. Her fingers play idly with the roses on the living room’s table as her brown eyes travel over the wooden furnishings and the family photos on the walls. “It’s quaint and so beach-house chic.”

“What the hell is going on,” Ryan exclaims. He backs away from the unfolding scene. I don’t blame him. “Gail, how do you know my stepmother?”

“Run,” I whisper softly, fear making my voice breathy. I look to Ivette who rolls her eyes. She doesn’t seem fazed by my warning to him. “Trust me, Ryan. Get out of here!”

“Ryan,” she turns to him with a sickly sweet voice. “Go to your room, please.”

“But what is going on?”

“Stay out of this, honey.”

“But—”

“I said go to your room!”

Her anger could freeze even the most hardened criminal. Ivette uses her Demon strength and forces Ryan away. He stumbles onto the floor and looks at his stepmother with complete shock. During this argument, Xan’s grip on my arm tightens. His hands clench into fists and although I can’t specifically read his mind, his energy is telling me he has a stupid idea racking his brain. I’m not the only one to feel it.

“Don’t you dare,” Ivette turns and warns the boy. It’s too late. Xander lunges into the house to make a mad grab for his girlfriend. I take one step before I know I can be of no help. I cry out as Ivette storms over and pulls Xander from Katie, easily throwing him on the ground over to her stepson. My friend’s body slides on the floor but he’s quickly up and ready to fight again.

“Stop it,” I shout. Ivette ignores me. I run to grab Ivette’s grey arms but I’m not match for her strength. She tears my fingers from her skin in a flash and grabs my throat with her silk-gloved hand. Her amber eyes like mine are gone, replaced with the icy demon blue. My feet leave the floor and the air in my lungs is trapped.

“Ple-,” I choke out. “Can’t bre—”

“It’s what we started this for Emily,” she reasons with me. I can barely hear her over the blood pumping in my ears. “The Spencings are beneath us!”

My head gets lighter until her grip on my neck releases and I crumble to the ground. I glance up in time to see Xander grab her from behind but Ivette turns and takes his wrist effortlessly. She forces his face into the ground and I hear a cruel pop from his shoulder. Xander cries out in pain before wheezing through his mouth. All this and Katie doesn’t react.

“Stop fighting and this will go much easier,” Ivette threatens.

“What are you doing?!” Ryan pushes past his stepmother and helps Xander roll onto his back. Xan is clutching his arm and I see tears dampen the corners of his eyes. “Gail,” Ryan turns to me next. “You okay? Oh my god!”

Not wasting any more of her time, Ivette drags Ryan away by the collar of his shirt. He gags for air and fights to get away. I stretch my hand to his but he’s out of reach. My sister picks up the vase of roses from the table with her gloved hand and smashes it over Ryan’s head. The glass shatters loudly and Ryan falls to the ground beside Katie’s feet. Xan and I stop our attempts of escape and silently watch the Demon woman’s triumphant face.

“That boy is always too nosy for my liking,” she tells us as if it would justify what she did. “But I guess you can’t choose whose parent you have to be in order to get their summer house. His father was worse but I convinced him well enough to marry me. It just goes to show how well I can turn a phrase and just how much nonsense I can really handle.”

Ivette walks over from Ryan’s barely conscious body, picking glass out of her lace gloves. The shards drop to the floor in little clinks. I crawl over to Xan and flip the dreads from out of my eyes. This can’t be happening. I haven’t even learned my Phoenix powers yet!

“This week was supposed to be a bonding time for me, him and his sister,” Ivette continues. Xan and I are frozen in place but I feel his anger bubbling beneath his skin. “Little Brenda is already tied up downstairs. You have no idea how long I wanted to gag that little brat.”

“Don’t touch me,” I spit at her as she goes to pat my shoulder. My gaze turns back to my best friend whose focus isn’t there. “What have you done to Katie?”

“Don’t worry, sister,” Ivette replies with a smirk. “I’ve had one of my living Witch associates place her in a trance.” Ivette caresses Katie’s cheek.

“Get off of her,” Xander yells. Even moving to shout at Ivette hurts his shoulder. My sister laughs and continues to admire the trance’s work intimately. She kisses Katie’s forehead and inhales the scent of her hair. Katie will always be hers to find now.

“Mhmm, that Witch girl has so much potential.” A knock at the door makes us all twist our heads but only my sister smiles. “Speak of the little devil.”

Ivette goes to open up for the visitor and I scramble to Katie. I inhale to relax so I can find any trace of her old self in her mind. My energy probes into her thoughts but I’m blocked. Everything I’ve learned isn’t working. There’s nothing but an empty cave.

“Em,” Ivette calls for me. “I believe you’ve already met but this is my assistant. Emily, this is Tamara.”

Ivette opens the front door and betrayal seethes in my bones. Petite height, spunky clothing and lavender hair. I’ve never wanted more than to hurt someone in my entire life as Abigail. She sold me out.

“Aw, the baby Phoenix is getting angry,” Tammy coos at me. The smug expression on her face kills me. Tammy turns to my sister, as if she was queen of all. “Shall I?”

“Please,” Ivette commands her and gestures to us. Tammy smiles and juts her chin in Katie’s direction. My best friend falls to the ground, eyes shut tight and no sign of life. I kneel to her body and shake her.

“Oh god, no,” I cry to her. Xander follows suit. His body relaxes on the ground beside me in a deep state of sleep. I face the Demon and the traitor Witch narrows her eyes at me. I’m next.

Tammy’s energy drives into my mind with enough force to push me away physically. My vision blackens for a second before a memory of my room invades my eyes. There’s my bed, my nightstand, the numbers of my clock showing a little after midnight. Wow, I’m exhausted. Tammy forces my body asleep. I fall onto the floor, pulled into the memory of a peaceful night with the lasting images of Xan and Katie lying unconscious beside me.

~*~

I’m tied up again. My wrists struggle against the plastic cord and I cough into the dirt floor. It’s a struggle to sit up. This time my hands are secured tightly behind my back. Four other bodies lay before me, three of which I know. The youngest girl gagged in the corner I’m guessing is Brenda, Ryan’s sister. We must be in the cellar. God, this is a nightmare.

“Gail,” Xander calls me.

“Xan, I’m here,” I whisper back. I shift my body closer to realize my ankles and knees are also bound together. The duct tape reflects in the little light there is down here. They’re making no mistake in keeping us immobile this time. He groans as he sits up, flinching fiercely.

“My shoulder’s dislocated. I can barely breathe.”

“Hang on,” I tell Xan, trying to calm myself more than him. I glance around the dank room, noticing the window. The sun outside has gone down, leaving the last few rays of orange around purple clouds. I wish I could spend time staring at the beauty but I have to find a way out.

Finally, my eyes met a broken mirror. I scoot over with some difficulty and angle my back. My fingers feel around the glass, taking a small piece and cutting my fingertip in the process. I inhale through gritted teeth but work on what I’m guessing is a zip-tie. It takes several minutes where Xan’s heaving lungs and the snoring of the others are the only sounds. One final snap and my hands are free, sporting red bands from what once was there. My duct tape leg bindings are quickly undone and I rush to my friend’s side.

“Turn as much as you can,” I instruct Xander. He does what he’s told with great difficulty. I use the same piece of glass to undo his bindings but he can’t move anyway. He groans as his released arm shifts forward. I’ve never had to pop a shoulder back into place before.

“Grab my wrist tight,” Xan tells me. He uses his good arm to usher me to his side and points me how to sit. This might make me puke. Xan winks at me, knowing how strange this will be. “Now pull slowly until I say stop. Ready?”

I nod my head but I’m so not ready for it. I pull gently and wince in guilt at the pain on his face. A minute passes and I hear that pop again. He lets go my wrist and I shudder. That’s so gross.

“Ah, better,” Xander sighs. He sits up and rotates his shoulder. Once he sees my disgusted face, he smirks. “Kickboxing, remember? This isn’t the first time it’s been done.”

“Still not making me any less nauseous.”

Xander scoffs before he and I set to work freeing the others. We’re not sure when they’ll stir but they might be less panicky if they weren’t tied up when they woke up.

“So let’s not skip around the obvious here,” I whisper, still checking the floorboards above me and wondering if anyone is up there listening. “I need to know how to do this Phoenix shit.”

“I know you want to help but Lisa—”

“Xan! Forget what Lisa wants. This is happening now. I need to know!”

There’s a long pause from him. With his back to me and him in my direct view of the window, I see his silhouette scratch his hair. The ruffled blonde spikes shoot back up with a heavenly glow with the setting sun’s orange lighting. Why is it now of all times I feel most attracted to him? The hot sensation is creeping through my shoulders again. The worst thing is I’m not sure if it’s Witch related or it’s a human hormone thing.

“Fine,” he says reluctantly, searching the room. I do the same but no one is awake enough to understand what we’re saying anyway. “Uh, okay.”

He swings his hands in the air, trying to come up with the words. I do that a lot too but he never did. Weird.

“Spit it out already.”

“I’m getting there,” he tells me off. “Well, Witches have much more energy born into them and some say that’s the reason why they have different afterlives than humans. They’re souls get trapped in their bodies when they die so their souls’ energy transforms them. Demon souls are stuck in their bodies since the breath can’t escape the throat. And Demons are strong, stronger than humanly possible. They’re filled with raw emotions and everything they feel turns to anger. Once a Demon has a Spencing’s scent, they can find them whenever and wherever. We already knew that from the last ti—”

“Xan,” I interrupt. “The CliffsNotes version!”

“I am!” He looks around and up at the ceiling hoping Ivette hasn’t heard. When we’re satisfied that nothing is happening upstairs, he turns back to me and continues. “As a Phoenix, you can control fire. The closer you are to the spot you died, the more powerful you are. And looking at where we are I’d say you might have the advantage. During old Witch trials there were only one or two real Witches who were burned at the stake. None of them survived since their baby forms were killed so not many people know what Phoenixes can really do. Some say their emotions have a lot to do with it. Um, Mermaids… they can control water but they can only do it if they’re in their Sea-Witch form. Nymphs can control the vegetation only in the area they were buried in.”

I hush Xan as footsteps tap above our heads.

“Do you know how I can call out to someone,” I ask softly. “Like the Emerald did with me that day we were kidnapped?”

“Yeah?” I widen my eyes and he gets the drift. “Uh, concentrate. Think of who you want to talk to, their face, their smile. Focus on what makes them different from anyone else and then shout in your mind.”

In an instant, Trevor’s entire personality floods my mind. His funny laugh, his generosity, his smile. He’s such an original person that it’s hard choosing any one part to focus on. But in everything, I know Trevor’s heart stands out the most. He’s so kind and brotherly. That’s what I choose.

“Now focus on him,” Xan urges me. “Let the imprint of his energy resurface in your mind.”

My lungs expand, letting the energy swell within me. This is for all the marbles, I guess. I unclip my bracelet from my wrist and set it down gently.

Trevor, I start with. I open one eye to Xander who waves me off to continue. Can you hear me? I’m at The Ledge. Demons! Please respond!

There is no answer. Minutes pass. Longer and longer time ticks by. My bottom lip starts to quiver from me failing at a really big time in need.

“It might take a while,” Xander comforts. “It’s only your first time doing it.”

“Yeah well we might not have a while.”

Another groan startles us both from our ensuing argument. The girl with short curly hair stretches out, using the entire room with her slim stature. My heart sinks with her smiling face. I’m afraid who I might find. Is it the girl who led us here or my best friend? She opens her brown eyes and lets them adjust to the dark basement light.

“Oh god, a bug!”

Yeah, Katie is back.

“Katie!”

“What the actual fuck?!”

Katie freaks out, crawling scared to the nearest wall. Xan and I quickly move to hush her and both of our hands clamp onto her shrieking mouth. Once she realizes who we are, her screams subside but her fear and questions get worse. I remove my hand and let her get out whatever she needs to say.

“Seriously, whatever prank this is, it’s not funny,” she tells us. My jaw hangs loose knowing she has no idea what happened. “I’m not afraid to whoop both your asses if it means I go home. What the hell guys? Ahh!”

My best friend grabs onto her head, raking her fingers through her hair and massaging her scalp. I turn to Xan.

Memories, he mouths to me. It makes sense. She was barely conscious.

“What did I do? I don’t remember that but… I’m reliving it. What did you guys do to me? I don’t do drugs anymore.”

“It wasn’t us I swear,” I try and reassure her. “Katie, do you remember who the last person was you talked to before you came over to my house?”

“What?”

I ask again more insistently. I don’t think she’s realized the danger we’re in. Ryan rolls over moaning behind us, making Katie panic a little more. But her fear makes it that much clearer to her.

“Yeah, a new friend,” she hesitantly replies. “After I left the hospital one day I bumped into her at the mall and we started hanging out. Her name’s Lavender.”

“Lavender,” Xan pipes up. “How subtle…”

“Haha, yeah,” she cynically chuckles. “I always found it funny since her hair was that color too.”

My eyes meet with Xander as a cold sweat breaks on both of our foreheads. Tammy was conspiring with my sister all along.

So why now?