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“I’m guessing bullets won’t do anything against this thing, so that’s basically me out of the picture,” Aiden said.
“Not if you’re armed with a high-pressure backpack sprayer,” Eli said.
“And if the five of us hit her with salted water from different angles, there’s a fair chance we’ll be able to destroy her,” Belle said. “The problem is getting close enough before she senses us.”
I took another of those useless deep breaths. “She wants her skin, so I’ll deliver it. It should provide enough of a distraction for the rest of you to get close.”
“And if she hits us first?” Aiden said.
“Then pray like hell that fire-repelling spell I placed on your charm works.” I glanced at Ashworth. “Did Monty give you that fire screen spell he used when the soucouyant attacked the house that held her skin?”
“Yes.” He glanced at Aiden. “Where are we going to get pressure sprayers at this hour?”
“We’ve some up at the compound. I’ll go grab them and the skin, and meet the four of you back at the café.” He glanced at the facility’s portly owner. “Thanks for helping us out, Charles.”
“I’m just glad you didn’t damage the car,” he said. “That would have made for one unhappy customer, let me tell you.”
Aiden clapped him on the shoulder, then the five us quickly returned to the trucks and drove out. As Eli parked out the front of the café, Belle said, “Why would Monty point you toward the wild magic? Because I gather that’s what he was going to say before he was cut off.”
“I don’t know.” And I wasn’t entirely sure it was safe to be relying on a power that seemed to be gaining some form of sentience—one beyond Katie’s presence within it. I dragged my keys out of the pack and opened the door.
“Wild magic is a force of nature.” Eli said, “and, as such, can only be used by—and directed against—the living. Spirits technically aren’t, even if they can take on human form.”
“So why were we able to use it to contain the younger soucouyant?” I tossed the backpack onto the table and continued to the reading room. “And why would he mention it?”
“Perhaps he wasn’t suggesting you use it against the soucouyant,” Ashworth said. “But rather as a means of protecting yourself—like you did when the bitch flung the fireball at us.”
I skirted the reading room’s furniture and pressed my hand against one of the many panels that lined the back of the bookcase—which was basically little more than front for the multiple storage compartments we’d built behind each shelf. Magic stirred across my fingertips, then the compartment clicked open.
I grabbed the box of holy water, then collected my silver knife and its rarely used harness, and headed out. “The wild magic might have stopped the fireball, but it was Monty’s spell that actually saved us.”
He waved a hand. “Perhaps, but you’ve woven it successfully enough through the protections around this place.”
“Yes, but they haven’t exactly been tested yet.”
I placed the box on the table and opened it up. Inside were a dozen small bottles—our entire remaining collection of holy water. “Use these if you get burned. I used holy water on Anna Kang when she took the brunt of an explosion that had been meant for me, and it saved her from extensive scarring.”
And it would no doubt do the same for them if the soucouyant didn’t simply cinder them straight out. Whether four bottles would be enough to help Monty was another matter entirely.
I strapped the knife to my leg, then pulled the ring out of my pocket just to make sure Monty was still alive. He was, but the pulsating heat was getting worse. He was running out of time.
The bell above the door chimed as Aiden stepped through. “Everyone ready?”
I grabbed our backpack and followed everyone across to the door, locking up before striding over to the ranger SUV.
Aiden didn’t speak, but his tension filled the air and his aura was dark with fear and worry. We sped through the night and quickly reached the area where we’d found the second body.
Aiden stopped and, as Eli and Ashworth pulled up beside us, climbed out. We met at the front of his SUV.
“I’ll have to lead Ashworth and Eli in, as they weren’t here when we found the second victim. We can spread out a little once we get close.” He glanced at Belle. “Are you two going to be able to find the clearing again?”
I nodded and glanced at Belle. “Hopefully she’ll be so focused on me she won’t notice you behind me.”
“And if she does, I’ll soak her ass.”
“What’s the plan once we all get close?” Ashworth said. “She’ll undoubtedly hear us approaching—Aiden may be able to walk through the scrub without making much sound, but the rest of us won’t.”
I hesitated. “It might be best if you let me enter the clearing first. That way, she’ll be focused on me and hopefully won’t hear the rest of you. Belle can let you know when to run in and soak the bitch.”
