Silver Moon (27 page)

I have no idea what’s wrong with her. It’s like she’s frozen in place, only her lips are able to move. Even her hand is still stuck in the same position, holding the key.

“What?”

“Get behind me,” she orders.

Without a second thought, I obey, scooting as close to the door as I can.

And that’s when I see all three brothers walking toward us. If anything happens, Jana can’t fight them alone.
Oh, where are you Blake?

Ben’s eyes lock with mine and for a moment, we’re back in our place where no one exists but us. I can’t read him, though. It’s like whatever was there before has completely disappeared.

“Well, well, well, look who it is,” Cameron begins, interrupting my obvious show of affection. “I thought I might find you two here. I heard you got hurt the other night, Candra. Sorry to hear that.”

“Like hell you are,” I hiss.

Jana holds out her arms, like she can block anything they try to do.

“You three need to leave. Now,” she tells them. “We’re not doing this here.”

“It’s such a beautiful morning. I’d love to ruin it,” Ethan says.

“I’m sure you would,” Jana says. “But today is not the day.”

“Who said we’re going to do anything? Maybe we’re just out for a morning walk.” Cameron shrugs, glancing up at the sky. “The air’s so fresh.”

Jana remains in a protective stance.

Cameron chuckles, and then looks at me. His eyes turn into black pits. “You and I, on the other hand, have unfinished business.”

“Just because I kicked your ass doesn’t mean I want us to continue fighting. Grow up,” I say, my voice seething with rage.
 

“That’ll never happen.” He laughs menacingly. “We were born into this battle, Candra. Neither you nor I can stop it. One day we’ll end it.”

“Is that why you had someone try to kill me?!” I yell.

“Candra,” Jana says through gritted teeth, trying to cut me off.

“Whoa. Someone tried to kill you?” Ben asks.

I’m so pissed at Cameron that I forget Ben’s standing behind him. His hands are snugly tucked into his front pockets.

“Yeah, someone tried killing me. Two nights ago in
Hartford
. One of
your
Followers.”

“Candra, I had no idea,” Ben says. His eyes plead with mine.
 

“If Jana and Blake hadn’t saved me, I wouldn’t be standing here right now,” I choke. My throat constricts, forcing me to hold back tears.

“So it was—” Cameron starts, then stops himself.

Jana turns her head from Ben to Cameron faster than a human can. She lets out a low snarl. “Get out of my sight,” she growls.

“Go to Hell, bitch,” Ethan says.

Without thinking twice, I take the lid off my cup and throw the scalding hot coffee in Ethan’s face. He screams and flails, wiping it away as fast as he can. As the coffee runs down his face, something like makeup rolls with it, like he’s wearing foundation to cover something.

And that’s when I see it—the red shoe-print marking. It crosses his forehead and stretches down to his chin. I glance at my feet, my shoes, knowing instantly where it came from.

Me.

Jana glances over her shoulder. Her eyes expand. She returns her gaze to Ethan.

“What just happened?” I whisper, barely able to force the words to leave my mouth.

Jana murmurs only one word.

“Magic.”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

I
hold my breath, waiting for something utterly catastrophic to happen right here on the streets of
West Hartford
. But, despite the fact that we’re in a stand-off—and completely unequipped—a signal of hope pierces the malicious air between Jana and me, and the
Conways
.

Livia
strolls up, gawking at the two different alliances.

“What on earth is going on here?” she asks.

Cameron smirks. I know what he’s thinking:
Your ass is saved. For now.
“We were just going for a walk, saw Candra and Jana, and thought we’d say hi.”

Livia
doesn’t look convinced. “This early?”

Ethan wipes the remaining coffee residue off his face. “Early bird catches the worm,” he quickly responds. Too quick. And I don’t like his tone—something implies that he’s not talking about worms.

“You boys will catch your death of cold standing out here. Better find some place warm.” She sighs. “Jana, unlock this door. Don’t just stand there.”

Jana eases up on her stance in front of me, unable to redirect her eyes from the
Conways
. She fumbles around in her purse for the store keys.

“Ah, here they are,” Jana says. She shoves one in the deadbolt, turns. The other key slides into the bottom lock, making a
click
before the door opens.

I slither in behind
Livia
, and Jana stands in place to affirm the
Conways
don’t have a trick up their sleeves.

“C’mon, Jana,” I whisper, tugging on her brown, fur-lined jacket.

She continues to stare at the boys. “Why don’t you guys take
Livia’s
advice and warm up?” She dramatically rubs her arms like she’s freezing. “I know how much you
love
coffee, Ethan.”

He stomps forward. I take a step toward Jana, unsure as to what I could possibly prevent from happening. To my relief, Cameron latches on to Ethan’s shirt and pulls him back.

“Another time, ladies. Another time,” Cameron says.

After his comment, they continue their stroll down the street like nothing happened. Fleetingly, I catch Ben mouth the words,
I’m sorry
, as he passes by. I don’t know if I can believe him. A month ago, maybe. But a month ago I was a totally different girl.

“Can you believe that?” Jana foams through clenched teeth. “The nerve of those
asshats
! And I thought I’d seen it all.”

“Really? Because I was under the impression they always pulled this lame shit,” I tell her.

She shrugs. “They do. But to be so obvious about it? Never have they done
that
before.”

“Eh, well, there’s a first time for everything.”

“Girls! What are you doing just standing up there?”
Livia
claps her hands, like we have the attention span of a five-year-old. “I need you two to come help me pull these boxes out of storage, so we can get the winter clothes on the shelves. Winter
is
just around the corner, you know.”

Jana plants her hands firmly on her hips. “And what makes you so disqualified to do this task yourself?”

I gawk at her. Since when did she grow balls?

Livia
holds up both hands and wiggles her glossy, red-tipped fingers. “Manicure yesterday.”

Jana scoffs. “Oh, of course.”

I trail behind them to the storage room. Even though I should be focusing on work at the moment, I think about what Jana said, about the
Conways
never being that brazen about their antics. It’s because of me. Since I moved here, I’ve done nothing but stir up a boiling hot cauldron of trouble.

I have
got
to get out of this town.

~*~

“I haven’t been completely honest to everyone,” I say on the way home from work. Jana’s dropping me off. Just in case.

“About what?” Her face scrunches.

“Everything. I feel like I’m hiding something I’m not.”

Jana takes her hands off the wheel for a split second and holds them in the air. “Whoa. What’s with the riddle?” she asks, replacing them in their rightful spot.

I blurt, “This isn’t me. The old me would’ve punched them in the face back there. The old me would’ve stood up to Ethan in the corn maze, even if he was under some sort of…influence. Look, I know it sounds crazy, but that day I bumped into you guys at the book store, well, it wasn’t coincidence. I was given a clue.”

“From who?” Jana slows the car as we pull into the driveway.

“Would you believe me if I told you it was Maggie?” I cringe.

She hits the brakes. “Maggie actually helped you?”

“I know. It’s weird.”

“She must really like you. She never does that.” She stares through the windshield with a vacant expression.

“I’m as surprised about it as you are. But there’s a reason she wanted me there, even if she did beat around the bush about it. There are books about magic. Hell, the whole
freakin
’ store is loaded with books about it. I bought a couple so I wouldn’t look suspicious, and so I’d know what we’re up against.”

I bite my lip, waiting for her response.

When she doesn’t answer, I say, “Jana, talk to me.”

“That’s it! That’s what we’re missing.”

“What?”

“Maggie knows. Of course she knows. What am I saying? She knows everything. She’s an Ancient. That’s to be expected,” she rambles.

“Wait. Slow down.”

Jana turns to look at me. “Maggie gave you the clue, so you could do with it as you wish. She didn’t help either side, really. If you hadn’t gone to the bookstore, then you would never have known about the magic. But, since you did go, you’re fully aware.”

“I knew it existed before I went,” I murmur.

“What?”

“She showed me.”

Jana shakes her head. “We’re in too deep. We have to tell Randy and Beth. They’ll know what to do.”

“Do you think this has anything to do with the
Conways
?”

“I think it has
everything
to do with them. Maggie sent you there to prove something. Maybe they’re the ones Blake and I sniffed out near here.” She parks the car in front of the house. “Whoever it is, though, has to be stopped.”

We bail out of the car and jog to the front door. Inside, Beth’s preparing dinner. Randy sits on a bar stool by the kitchen island.

“Do I know you?” I ask him.

He grins, flashing me a set of almost-perfect teeth. “I should be asking you the same. Or maybe I should kick you out…stranger.”

I smile, but notice Jana’s features are dead serious. “Um, we need to talk to you guys,” I say.

Beth turns around from the stove, equally giving Jana and me glances. “About what?”

Jana steps forward. “We think the
Conways
might be using magic. We ran into them today, outside the store. Candra threw a cup of coffee on Ethan’s face, which revealed her shoe print marking.”

I chime in. “The same shoe print I used to kick the shadow man in the corn maze.”

Jana continues. “Anyway, so that cult near here
has
to be connected to the
Conways
. Maggie—” Jana starts, but hesitates by looking at me.

I finish for her. “I went to visit Maggie the other day. I wanted to see if there was a way to stop this mess. Of course she said there wasn’t. But she did warn me that there are greater things than this battle we fight, things I can’t possibly comprehend just yet. Then she showed me magic, and gave me a clue that directed me to a bookstore.”

Surprisingly, Beth is calm through this.

“I’m sorry. I lied to you and everyone else. I thought maybe
I
could be the one to fix this. I stirred up old dust when I came here, so it’s my place to settle it.”

Beth speaks. “I know where you’ve been, who you’re with and what you’re doing—most of the time. There are some areas Watchers refuse to go to.”

“Oh, yeah, I forgot about them,” I mumble.

“Candra, I’m not upset with you.” She takes my hand in hers. “I know you’re curious, and I know you’re trying to help. But the best thing for you to do is to stay safe until your eighteenth birthday. I’m fully aware that the
Conways
have dabbled in magic before. It’s nothing new.”