The Curse Keepers Collection (148 page)

“The same reason we ambushed Steven at the university this morning.” He turned to look at me. “To shake us up and throw us off. But we can do this.
You
can do this.”

“I still don’t know what to do with the ring, Collin.”

“You don’t even have the ring, so it might turn out to be a nonissue.”

“I got the distinct impression she’s going to give it back to me to use. What do I do?”

A sly smile lifted his mouth. “You’ll figure it out.”

I was glad he had so much faith in me. “No pressure. I’m just the salvation or the destruction of the world after all.”

“Don’t be such a diva.” He picked up the sword and got out of the truck while I climbed out on my side. I’d only had the sword for a few days, but I felt naked without it. Still, having Collin carry it was the right decision. He could use it to save David while I created the vortex.

We headed for the back gate, the way we’d gone in almost two months ago. I’d been a different person then. Naïve and blind. My eyes were open to a whole new world now, but I felt as blind as before. I still had so much to learn.

As we entered the gate, a white-hooded figure stepped out from behind a tree and I squelched a shriek.

Collin, on the other hand, was unimpressed. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” he grunted. “I thought you people were the real deal, not some kids playing dress-up.”

The man kept his face hidden. “You’ll find out how real we are soon enough. Especially since you tried to deceive us about the location.”

Clouds blew in and covered the moon. Was it the work of the wind gods? I couldn’t imagine the spirit world was happy with these people messing around with the gate. For once, I was actually hoping that demons would show up. Sure, being away from the water meant that Big Nasty wasn’t about to come to our rescue, but he wasn’t the only creature that went bump in the night in Manteo.

As we rounded the corner to the giant oak tree, I noticed scores of candles on the ground and at least twenty more figures shrouded in white robes. A man was tied to the oak tree, but his face was slumped forward. He was wearing a rumpled blue dress shirt covered in spots of blood and dirt.

David.

He was standing, which meant he was alive. When our guide led us past the tree, I couldn’t take my eyes off him, even if I couldn’t bring myself to call his name.

Collin moved closer and leaned into my ear. “We’re in deep shit, Ellie.”

My gaze turned to what he was looking at: a pentagram burned into the grass with candles at the tips. While it looked spooky as hell, I wasn’t sure what it meant. But I did have an idea what the rectangular table in the center meant. I looked up at Collin.

His jaw tightened. “They don’t want to send the demons back. They want to enslave them.”

My head felt fuzzy, especially when I realized they had the weapon to do it. The Sword of Galahad supposedly had the power to subdue gods. Did they plan to enslave Ahone and Okeus? Did they want to use me and the ring to seal the gate shut? If Collin and I were right, we were on our own in this. The demons and spirits might act crazy, but they had to be smart enough to stay away from this mess.

Our guide pointed to a place at the head of the star. “You may stand there.”

We had a perfect view of the entire scene. We were directly opposite the tree, and the fifteen-foot pentagram spanned the space in front of us. A golden chalice had been placed at the head of the table, which was covered in a white tablecloth. The robed figures made up two arcs of a circle, the tree on one side, Collin and I at the other.

Terror raced up my spine and I took an involuntary step back.

A man broke free of the circle and moved toward us, staying clear of the pentagram.

“Ellie, Collin, I’m Jeremiah, and I’d like to thank you for joining us this evening.” The man’s voice echoed off the trees. His chin lifted, pulling the hood back slightly so we could see his pudgy middle-aged face. He wasn’t what I’d expected.

David’s head jerked up at my name and he looked directly at me. His face was a bloody, swollen mess.

My emotions threatened to overrun my senses, but I had to keep them in check. David—not to mention all of creation—was counting on me.

Collin took a step forward. “Well, an engraved invitation is hard to resist. Only mine didn’t mention that it was a white-tie event. Sorry we’re not dressed appropriately.”

Jeremiah chuckled. “You’ll do.” He turned his attention to me. “But Ellie, you’re the guest of honor tonight.” He smirked. “Not to worry, Collin, your presence is still needed.”

The man’s words elicited a reaction from David, who began to tug at the ropes securing him to the tree.

Collin lifted the sword and moved in front of me, blocking my path. “We were told you’d give me the spear and free Dr. Preston if Ellie and I show you the gate to hell. We’d prefer to play our part, then let you get back to it.” He waved the tip of the sword to the group.

“All in good time.”

Two figures broke from the group and moved toward me, grabbing my arms. Collin spun around, ready to strike with his sword, but the man on my right lifted a knife to my throat.

Jeremiah pressed his hands together in front of his chest. “Collin, why don’t you stand back and give Ellie some room to join me.”

My blood pulsed in my head. Collin was right—we were in deep shit. I knew what the table and chalice were for. The Nunnehi had said my blood was strong. Had she been sent to test me just like the Raven Mockers? I’d lost enough blood in the last thirty-six hours, and I really didn’t care to share any more. I wanted to call Tsagasi for help, but what if he’d betrayed me too?

Collin reluctantly took a step back but kept his sword in a defensive position.

The man in charge beckoned me with his hand. “Come, Ellie. I’m sure you’re eager to be reunited with your ring.”

The ring.
Surely Ahone hadn’t planned for this to happen. Could I use that to my advantage? Plus, I could still use the words of protection. Hell, I’d even ride away with Okeus on his giant snake if it meant getting out of this, because I doubted these people planned to let me live. “Tsagasi,” I whispered, reasoning that he was probably hundreds of miles away. If he could hear my regular voice, he could hear a whisper. He and his friends had taken a blood oath to protect me to their death. I had to trust them and their promise. They were one of my last, best hopes.

I took a deep breath and tried to slow my racing heart. “And the Sword of Galahad?”

He laughed. “You’ll see it soon enough.”

Oh, shit.

David renewed his efforts to break free of his restraints.

“I don’t like surprises,” I said. “So let’s make a deal. I’ll be a hell of a lot more cooperative if I know what’s going on and what to expect. Why don’t you go ahead and fill me in.”

His hood had fallen over his forehead again, revealing only his lower face. The image shook a memory free and I was transported to a stormy night fifteen years ago. When Collin’s father had worn a hood over his head.

“Collin’s father was one of you.”

The leader laughed and clapped. “Very good, Ellie.”

Collin’s mouth dropped open. “
What?
”

Suddenly it was all so clear. “Miriam was lying. You didn’t need information from my mother. You needed
me
. Inviting my mother to Charlotte was a ruse.”

“At the time, we didn’t realize you were too young and wouldn’t be ready for another decade. Mr. Dailey came back empty-handed, not to mention quite belligerent.”

I remembered Collin saying Steven was a low-level member and would probably run to the group looking for help after we showed up with our questions. Collin’s father must have done the same. “You recruited him because you needed him. But he didn’t really know why.”

“He was needed as a backup plan, just like Collin. We would have considered using your father, Ellie, but we were told to wait for the female Dare Keeper. So we kept waiting, as we had for three hundred years. And once we realized you wouldn’t be ready for another ten years, and that Mr. Dailey had a son who was only two years older than you, it was much cleaner to dispose of him and wait for the two of you.”

“You killed my father?” Collin asked, his voice gravelly.

Jeremiah released a derisive laugh. “He was hardly an innocent. He murdered Ellie’s mother.”

“So why wait?” I asked. “Why didn’t you instigate this five years ago when I turned eighteen?”

“The timing wasn’t right.”

Then the answer hit me. “You didn’t have the ring. You needed the ring.”

The man’s mouth twitched. “Admittedly, it was lost. But then Steven told us a couple of weeks ago that you had recovered it.”

“He found out from Myra.”

He smirked. “Once we knew you had possession of the ring, we could finally achieve our goal.”

“To harness the demons to do your will.”

Jeremiah nodded. “We will be performing a great public service.”

I shook my head. “I don’t get it. Why do you need both Collin and me for that?”

“We need you to show us the gate.”

I glanced at Collin and gave a slight shake of my head. There was no way I was going to help them. Especially since they planned to kill me anyway.

“But Miriam said you didn’t know about the curse.”

“Curse?” He paused. “We’ve never known anything about a curse. But we’ve known for centuries about the spear and the ring that have power over the demons and gods. And the prophecy has been passed on that the girl who could use the ring would be a descendant of Jonathon Dare, the man who commissioned the Croatan conjurer to bless the objects at the gate to hell.”

My mouth dropped open. “How did you know?”

“The letter.” He smiled. “The one we sent to the Wilson Library in Chapel Hill several months ago.” He took a step forward. “We’ve watched your family since we stumbled upon the letter. We acquired the ring and the spear in the seventeen hundreds after one of your ancestors became careless with the ring. So we held the weapons for safekeeping and began to accumulate additional weapons that would help us to manage the demons. All in preparation for tonight.”

“So we show you the gate, the ring brings all the demons to the yard, and you trap them . . . how?” Their plan didn’t make sense. The letter in the library said the ring would seal the gate. From the sounds of it, that was the last thing the Guardians wanted to do.

He hesitated.

So they planned to control the demons with the sword. It didn’t take a genius to figure it out, but Jeremiah seemed uncomfortable with how much I’d already deduced. But what about the spear? “Okay, then tell me why you need my blood.”

Jeremiah’s mouth gaped and he sputtered, “How . . . ”

I glanced at the table. “It wasn’t hard to figure out.”

He swallowed and seemed to regain his confidence. “For the Great One. She has helped us set this in motion, and we have agreed to give you to her in exchange for her assistance.”

“Why?”

“The Great One has taken the form of her latest victim, but it comes with limitations. The Great One says your blood will let her stay in one body. She will choose your likeness as an homage.”

My blood turned icy and I gaped at Collin. His eyes were wild with fear.

How were we going to get out of this? Why hadn’t Tsagasi shown up yet?

“Come, Ellie,” the man said, beckoning me again.

“I want the ring.”

“All in good time.”

“I want the ring
now
.” My voice bellowed louder than I anticipated, but I had another resource. These nut jobs might be human, but I suspected they weren’t immune to my power as a witness to creation. If only I could figure out how to use it to save us.

He grinned. “Bring me the ring.”

A shorter figure stepped forward and placed the ring in the leader’s open palm. She looked up with a smirk. Miriam.

Hot anger burned away my fear, and I welcomed it. “I told you I’d make you pay for taking David,” I said, surprised to hear how cold my voice was. “I meant it.”

A flicker of fear flashed in her eyes. “No need for incivility, Elinor,” Miriam murmured.

“Yes, let’s keep this all nice and polite. I hope the Great One brought a
napkin
.”

Jeremiah released a hearty laugh. “You
are
entertaining.”

Miriam shot him a frown of disapproval.

Rebuked, he lowered his chin and then lifted the ring between his thumb and index finger. I held out my left palm and he placed it in the center. As I pulled my hand back, I waited for the singing. Wasn’t the ring supposed to sing?

I put the ring on my left middle finger and still nothing. I hoped it was because I held it in my left hand.

“It is time, Ellie.”

This wasn’t the order things were supposed to take. Weren’t we supposed to show them the gate first? But even if I agreed to do that, David was tied to the tree. What would happen if we opened it while he was still tied there? Could we take the risk?

“We need to show you the gate,” said Collin, his voice loud and authoritative. And it was obvious to me that he was thinking the same thing I was.

“The Great One believes she only needs the ring. She has opened our eyes since she sought us out a month ago. She wants to help us enslave the wicked spirits, and she has the knowledge and tactics to make our dream a reality at last. You, Mr. Dailey, are here as insurance if something happens to Ms. Lancaster.”

“But Ellie needs to be alive for me to show it to you. I can’t do it alone.” I was amazed how much Collin’s voice sounded detached and in control.

I glanced at the table, my heart racing. Had I gambled wrong when I put the ring on my left hand?

The two men who’d grabbed me earlier took hold of my arms and dragged me to the makeshift altar, then lifted me onto the table in a sitting position.

“Ellie,” Jeremiah said. “If you’d please cooperate and lie down.”

If this wasn’t so dire, I’d laugh. So polite
. Ellie, please lie down so we can slaughter you
. But they probably expected me to put up a huge fuss. They probably got off on it.