Reaper (29 page)

“Now what?” he asked eagerly.

I turned off the hose. “I have no idea. That was our plan. And she slipped through our fingers. If I were her, I’d be pissed. I’d come back stronger and harder. Which,” I said softly and looked into Harrison’s blue eyes, “is why I think it’d be a good idea for you to go.”

“Seriously?”

“Well, your friends at least. If Mindy comes to the house, or even sends another body part, how are you going to explain it to them?”

“Me explain?” he asked incredulously.

“They already think I’m the freak of the week; it doesn’t matter to me what they think if something happens.”

Harrison glared at me. “Fine. Can you cast a spell and make them leave?”

“Without you?” I coiled up the hose.

He nodded. “I want to help you, Annie.”

I wasn’t sure why Harrison was so set on being involved in demonic business…and I didn’t want to question it. “I suppose I can.”

His eyes lit up with excitement. “Awesome. What kind of spell are you going to do?”

“I don’t know. I could put the agree spell on them and make them want to leave.”

He nodded. “Yeah. You should make them want to go to Chicago. That’s kind of believable, right?”

“I think so. They’re your friends; you know them better than me.”

“Yeah,” he said again. “They girls would love shopping.”

“I’ll do it.”

“Now?”

“As soon as I’m done in here. If you help, I can do it sooner,” I urged.

Harrison grumbled, but agreed to clean Neptune’s stall. I ran the plan by Ethan; he thought it was a good idea. I suggested that he help Harrison set up a hotel room in Chicago before I bewitched his friends. I could get them to agree to leave, but I couldn’t guarantee their competency in being on their own.

I went upstairs to gather what I’d need to cast the spell. I opened my bedroom door and walked into the sitting area. I pulled my BOS off of the bookshelf, though I didn’t need it to say the incantation; I had the spell memorized by now. Romeo woke up from the sounds of me rummaging through my shelf of magical items and scurried out of his cage. I set down a candle and a bag of incense to catch him. He saw me, jumped with excitement and raced out the door.

It wasn’t a big deal that he was loose; if I couldn’t find him, Hunter easily could. I was worried, however, that he might tumble down the stairs. When I passed the dresser, something caught my eye. I turned and stared into the mirror.

“Thomas?” I asked when I felt a chill run through me. It balled in my stomach and the room spun. I leaned on the dresser. “Thomas, if that’s you, give it up right now. I’m close to finding you,” I threatened. A shadow moved in the mirror. I whirled around, expecting to see something behind me.

When I saw nothing, I turned back to the mirror. There was definitely something there. I turned around again; still nothing.

“What?” I whispered and leaned close. It looked like a smudge on the glass. Slowly, I reached forward and apprehensively touched the glass. The smudge shifted. I yanked my hand back. “Thomas,” I repeated. “I’m done with your games. Just attack me already!”

I moved closer to the mirror, enthralled by what I was seeing. As if it was a window, I watched smoke wisp and billow inside the glass. I narrowed my eyes. I thought I could make out a face. I inched closer, until my breath clouded the mirror. I opened my mouth to threaten Thomas once more when the smoke suddenly twisted into a face. Screaming, it flew at me.

I gasped and jumped away, my eyes wide with terror.

“Anora?” someone said from the doorway, making me jump once more. I turned to see Ashley and Kaylin staring at me with curious expressions. “I didn’t think he was supposed to be out,” Kaylin said and extended Romeo.

“Th-thanks,” I stuttered and stepped over to retrieve my ferret.

“He’s cute,” she said slowly, looking at me as if I was insane. I wondered how long they had been standing there.

“He is,” I said quickly. “I-I should put him away. Thanks.”

Kaylin pressed a smile and spun on her heel. After looking at me like I was an exotic zoo animal for another few seconds, Ashley followed suit.

“Forget freak of the week,” I told Romeo. “I’m freak of the year now.” I closed the door and laughed. “At least they won’t be able to say that nothing interesting happened over spring break.”

Fifteen minutes later, Harrison knocked on the door.

“They’re distracted,” he informed me. “Are you ready?”

“I am,” I told him and stood. I scooped up Romeo and put him safely in his cage. “Are you
sure
you want to stay?”

My brother nodded, his clear blue eyes wide. “Yes. I want to help.”

“Ok,” I nodded as well. “But you know this isn’t going to be fun, right?”

“I know,” Harrison said.

“Ok and you’re sure you don’t mind me doing the spell?”

“Not at all,” he insisted. “It was my idea, after all.”

“Right.” I walked to the door. “Are you sure you’re sure?”

“Yes!”

I nodded and followed him downstairs. I felt like someone was watching me through the mirror in the family room. I glared at it suspiciously and planned to cover it up once I got rid of my house pests…I meant guests.

I shook myself back to what I had to do.
 
It was up to Harrison to distract his friends while I cast the spell behind their backs. Luckily, he was able to convince the girls to play Mario Cart just long enough for me to sneak into the family room. Harrison’s spellbound friends became completely still for a few seconds, causing them to fall way behind in the race. I smiled, knowing the spell was cast, and slipped out of the room.

Ashley set down her controller and asked Luke if they could go shopping. Kaylin chimed in, excited to walk around Chicago. Luke agreed, saying it would be much more fun than hanging out in my old farmhouse for the rest of spring break. Ashley nodded, excited that Chicago wasn’t far from here.

Yes
, I thought. It worked.

~*~

Ethan drove with Harrison to Chicago. They would be gone for a couple hours if traffic wasn’t bad. If it was, it could take all afternoon for them to return. I straightened up the house and called Laney. Every time I passed a mirror—or anything reflective for that matter—I had an urge to bash it. Not wanting a million years of bad luck, I didn’t give in. I covered most of the mirrors and shut the bathroom doors.

I lay down in bed, trying to relax. The feeling of being watched was growing stronger. Unable to take it anymore, I sprung up, grabbed my black mirror, a cone of sandalwood incense, a black candle, and sat cross legged on the floor.

I carved ‘Mindy’ into the candle, set it in front of me, and lit it. I closed my eyes and took several deep breaths, attempting to calm and center myself. Once I felt as calm as I would be, I concentrated on the reflectionless mirror.

“Mindy,” I called. I thought of her perfect face, her platinum hair, and her long legs. There was something so familiar about her. I recalled the sound of her voice, the way she struggled against Ethan. “Mindy,” I repeated. The energy shifted. Something moved inside the mirror.

Without taking my eyes off the mirror, I set the cone on fire. It ignited faster than I anticipated, wafting a puff of thick smoke in my face. My eyes burned and watered but my concentration did not falter. I knew the black candle was melting fast, the wax dripping down over the carved letters. I could feel its heat; hear the whispering flicker of the flame.

“Mindy,” I called, seductively this time. “Don’t you wanna play?”

Suddenly I was there—in her—seeing through her eyes. My insides sucked forward and I gasped for air. She—or I—sat up quickly, thrashing around in twisted sheets. I reached for a bedside lamp, the harsh bright light hurting my eyes when I flicked it on. Panic course through her veins, panic that felt all too real for me.

Who are you?
I thought to her. She screamed. Everything began to shake. An altar with a Baphomet statue at its head filtered in and out of view. A metal bowl filled with something thick and red was poured over it.
Ok, this is enough.
The feelings of shallow satisfaction filled me. The desire to be powerful and respected threatened to take over.

Leave me alone!
I screamed, hoping that would suffice as a warning before I pulled myself back into the coziness of my bedroom. My body flew back onto the floor.

“That was unexpected,” I told Hunter. I blew out the candle and ran my hands through my hair. “But I think it might have told me a little more about our friend.”

~*~

 
“If I poured blood over a baphomet statue, what would happen?” I asked Ethan during dinner. He and Harrison had gotten stuck in traffic and only returned a little over an hour ago.

“It would depend,” he responded without even having to think. “The kind of blood, who the baphomet was for, if a ritual was preformed…why?”

“I think I saw into Mindy’s mind.”

Harrison’s fork fell from his hand. Ethan stopped chewing and stared at me.

“I thought I saw something in the mirror,” I explained. “So I kinda looked in and ask if she was there.” I took a drink and gauged Ethan’s reaction. “I got a flash of her doing something. The baphomet was on an alter. Black candles were lit and she poured a bowl of blood over the statue. I think she was chanting.”

“Well,” Ethan said and wiped his mouth. “A baphomet doesn’t really represent just one thing. The symbol itself holds no power, other than to show devotion to Satan or demons in general.”

I nodded, trying to make sense of that. “So why would she do that then?”

He thought for a moment. “I’ve seen baphomets in cases with people messing with black magic. People who don’t know what they are doing. They read about shit on the internet and think they can summon some ‘dark power’. But two things happen: nothing or a real demon shows up, playing the role the dumbass expects them to play.” He shook his head.

“Easy prey,” I said softly.

“The easiest.” Ethan agreed. He held my gaze before sticking his fork in the pile of mashed potatoes on his plate. Something about what he said was familiar. I just couldn’t remember what it was. I cut up my chicken while I tried to recall it. Harrison was still staring at me.

“The graveyard!” I blurted when something clicked in my brain.

“What graveyard?” Ethan asked.

“The one Thomas led me to. Keith told me that there was a rumor that kids used to worship the devil there. He even calls it the ‘Devil’s Graveyard’. It’s just a rumor but what if…?” I trailed off.

“When people have these rituals, it stirs up raw energy,” Ethan explained. “That energy can manifest into anything, but it almost always takes on characteristics of the summoner. Like I said, most of the people doing the rituals don’t know what they are doing to begin with. They’re the kids that make themselves the social rejects by trying to be rebels, though all they’re doing is giving themselves another label. Anyway, those kids are angry, hurt…they feel rejected. They’re trying to summon something
bad
. That kind of hatred leaves scars on the earth. Those places are like residual battery chargers for malicious spirits. When people stay in places like that for too long, they can get tainted by the negative energy. It might make them physically ill or they might start saying and doing things they normally wouldn’t. Places like that need to be avoided.”

“I’m confused,” Harrison stated. “What’s the deal with the graveyard and what is a baphomet?”

“Whatever is causing the hallucinations led me there,” I quickly explained. “We didn’t have any idea why, until now. And a baphomet is an enigmatic, imagined deity. It looks like a man with a goat head. ”

“So,” Harrison began. “This Mindy person performs demon-worshiping rituals, and rituals were performed at the graveyard.”

“Yes,” I affirmed and ate a piece of chicken. “Keith also said that a girl supposedly died there. It’s all hearsay, so I don’t know how much is true.”

“It’s worth checking out,” Ethan noted. “See if Keith knows anything else and we’ll go from there.” He spoke quickly, making it apparent that he thought this could be a real lead.

I nodded. “I will. He’s at a book club with his grandma right now.” Harrison and Ethan snickered. “Grow up,” I scolded. “René is coming over later,” I told Ethan. “We’re riding.”

“I thought you had top secret demon stuff to do,” Harrison said.

“I do, just not tonight,” I reasoned. “I should say ‘right now’; who knows what later will bring,” I joked. Only Ethan found it funny. I asked Harrison what his plans were for college next year so we wouldn’t have to talk about demons for the rest of dinner.

While Ethan and I cleaned the kitchen, Harrison sat at the island counter looking through my Book of Shadows. He was so interested (and I think a little jealous) of everything I could do.

“Why don’t you just use magic to clean?” he asked.

“You saw what happed to Mickey in
Fantasia
,” I joked. “I do, sometimes.”

“I always would!” he exclaimed. “I’d never lift a finger if I had your powers!”