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I threw my shoulder into the invisible barrier, again and again, trying to get inside yet attempting to think of the best way to handle this. I didn’t know if he was armed. I assumed he would be, but with what? And how efficient would he be with it? Was he only good when his prey was unaware and helpless? Or did he know how to fight? How big was he? How old? There were so many unanswered questions, and I didn’t want to put Hanlen in more danger than she already was. The ghosts couldn’t scout for me to get the lay of the land before I rushed in, and I couldn’t get a good enough visual inside to see what was going on. Not to mention, I didn’t know what else might be set up to keep me out. There wassomethingbut I couldn’t pin it down.
Just as I was considering trying the other side of the structure in hopes there might be another window slit, a scream rent the air, sending every hair on my body to attention, and filling my veins with fizz. I rushed towards the front and forward, ready to barge in somehow, personal safety be damned, only to hit a stronger invisible wall and be thrown back several feet, coming to land on my back, the ground knocking the wind from my lungs.
“Ooomph.” I lay there for a moment, trying to catch my breath and regain my senses, my instincts screaming at me.
Most definitely something else in place here.
What the fucking hell just happened?How?
I looked up to see a huddle of people surrounding me, all with concerned and terrified looks on their faces, though none of them able to assist. They couldn’t touch me. They couldn’t help.
I sat up and blew out a breath, shaking my head slightly and taking stock of my body. Nothing broken. But I didn’t feel all that great, and it had really slowed me down. Whatever that shield was packed a wallop. The strangest thing? It felt almost familiar. Like my magic, yet . . . not. Bastardized somehow. How was that even possible?
I finally jumped to my feet and looked at those surrounding me. “Do you guys feel that?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Wren said. “When we first got here and weren’t able to even get close, it was really confusing because it kind of reminded me of you. At first, I thought I maybe misunderstood my calling to come here, and that you were with Hanlen in there. But when Gunnie popped up, screaming, I knew that wasn’t the case. And then we heard him.”
“He went on and on about how she was supposed to be his. How she would belong to him,” Findley added.
“I have to get in there,” I said to no one in particular, tugging at my hair. Lark was supposed to be bringing some help. But I wasn’t sure I could wait. Another scream ripped through the still night air and tore a hole in my heart. Fucking hell.
I ran closer again, throwing magic at whatever was keeping me from Hanlen, urgency yet caution riding me and making me a bit woozy. Then I stopped, standing with arms outstretched to search for the source of the magic. There had to be some sort of . . . something to power it. Even I couldn’t work a spell like this without a charm or some kind of correspondence. I frantically looked and felt everywhere—on the ground, on the façade, in the trees. I didn’t see anything, but that didn’t mean much. It was dark as shit out here and all I had was my mini flashlight.
Just as I was about to risk a run at the door again, I heard pounding footfalls against the grass and looked up in time to see Lark, James, Padre, Sky, and Dakota rounding the bend. Hope surged for a moment, making me lightheaded for a second. I ran over.
“What’s going on?” Lark asked. “My psychic warnings are out of control right now. I couldn’t find Aaron or Jeremy.”
“A fucking psychopathic serial killer has Hanlen,” I answered, needing them to know what was going on but worried we’d waste too much time if they asked questions. “But there’s some sort of magic shield around the place. Something none of us can break through. It literally threw me back several feet when I tried to storm through the door.”
“Oh, sweet goddess,” Lark breathed. “What do you need? What can we do?”
“Dev?” Wren called, and I looked over. I jogged to her and looked where she was pointing. There, on the ground, right where they were all stuck, was a line of dirt and . . . oh, shit. Black salt. The most powerful banishing correspondence out there, especially if the right sea salt was used. Combine that with graveyard dirt and the right intention, and it was no wonder we were having so much trouble.
Fuck.
“Lark!” I yelled. She came running over and looked down where I pointed, to where my flashlight shone. “Oh, damn. That’s not good.” She looked up, shaking her head at me. “No wonder it kicked your ass. Who do we know that can do magic like this? It feels almost . . . I don’t know. Familiar somehow.”
“Yeah, it does. Because it’s my fucking magic. Sort of. It’s twisted, not quite right, but it’s mine. I just have no idea how.” I looked around the area, not sure why but hoping that I’d get some flash of inspiration. I needed to get in there. I had to save Hanlen. Just as I had that thought, another scream split the night, shattering my heart right along with it.
“God Almighty,” Padre said, crossing himself and whispering prayers as everybody else went on alert, the urgency ramping up another notch.
“Lark, Dakota,” I said, calling the women over. “Wren, Reagan, Findley,” I gestured for the ghosts. “We need to do this together. I need you all to use your combined power, magic, and intention to break through this barrier. I need to get in there to Hanlen. Now.”
“Use your love, Dev,” Wren said and reached out to me. I wished she could touch me. I would have loved a hug and some strength right about now. But she was right. I loved Hanlen, and love was the most powerful magic of all.
“Lord and Lady, spirits, ancestors, guides and friends, assist us this night to bring evil an end. Lend us your strength of three times three, this is my will, so mote it be,” Lark chanted.
Surprisingly, I heard Sky whisper-echo Lark’s last words and felt a flare of power in my chest. Interesting, but not something I could dwell on right now. She joined Padre, slipping her hand into his as he said the Lord’s Prayer. She wasn’t actually praying but lending him her strength, her stalwart belief in science and energy that was magic in itself. I then focused on the others.
I heard Gunnie and Wren chanting from their corner of the mausoleum, hands clasped. Findley walked around the building’s side to join in with Lark, their histories and beliefs more aligned, as Findley had been part of a local coven before his death. I heard Lark gasp, likely hearing and feeling Fin lend her his magic. We stood in a triskele formation around the structure, and I hoped the sacred geometry would work in our favor, as well.
“Keep it up. I’m going to get close. I’ll bet there’s another layer of protection at the door. If you guys can weaken the outer layer and then move forward, I think I can break the physical line and then muscle my way in. Especially since this is, in essence,mymagic.”
I both felt and heard the work ramping up behind me, and it gave me some confidence. I only hoped that the silence that reigned once again from inside was a good sign, an indication that he wasn’t currently hurting Hanlen. And not a bad one, meaning she could no longer make sounds.
When I reached the door, I heard Lark call over the din of voices. “Now, Dev. Do it now! We still can’t get through, but you should be able to. Go.”
I scraped my boot through the line of dirt and salt that was at the entrance to the mausoleum and felt the magic snap, like a rubber band stretched too far. I felt much the same.
