The Devil's Third (12 page)

“We don’t watch you twenty-four/seven,” Dad simply stated.

“We knew about Carrie because we felt the distress you were in,” Mom added.

“How does that work?” I asked, intrigued. I never really given it much thought, but how did people in the spiritual realm know when their loved ones on earth were hurting? Like Dad just said, they didn’t watch us 24/7, which made sense. I mean, really. They had a life, too.

“We’re connected, sweetheart.” A warm smile lit Mom’s face. She was so pretty. She always had been, but her sadness from the loss of my dad had dulled her looks when she was on earth. But now, here and happy with him, her beauty was vibrant and alive. Deeply touched by how happy she was, knowing how much heartache she endured, I swallowed against the lump forming in my throat. “When something is bothering you,” Mom continued, “your father and I can sense it. Sometimes, though, it takes a while to pick up on it.”

“Why?” I wondered.

“We have no idea,” Dad answered.

“Where are you taking me?” Carrie asked.

“It’s a realm where spirits go to get rehabilitated,” Dad told her. “Some spirits are taken there to be cleansed, to sleep, to reawakened and be counseled.”

Carrie snorted. “I don’t need to be
cleansed
or
counseled
.” She was clearly insulted, and I stifled a giggle.

“Of course you don’t,” Mom said. “But spirits also go there to rest and recharge themselves.”

“Can I come?” After the words flew out of my mouth, I could have sworn I heard Nathan calling my name again. I glanced over my shoulder, not surprised he wasn’t there. Then a thought occurred to me. He might be trying to wake me. I ignored the thought and turned back to my parents, a thrill running through me.

 Wide-eyed, Carrie looked at me. “Great idea.” She fixed her gaze on my parents. “Can she come with us?”

Mom shared an apprehensive look with my dad.

“I’m not sure, Gordon. What do you think?”

Dad looked at me and shook his head. “You need to go back.”

“How come? Why can’t I go with you and leave when Carrie recuperates?” I didn’t see any harm in it. I mean, what was the big deal anyway? It wasn’t like I’d be stuck there. And yeah, Nathan was probably waiting for me, but he could wait a little bit longer. It wasn’t like the world would end without me.

Carrie looped her arm back around mine, silently protesting against my dad’s decision. The corners of his mouth twitched into a slow smile. Mom crossed her arms and playfully rolled her eyes, half-smiling. “You girls are something else,” she said, trying not to laugh. “But you need to listen to your father and go back. I’m sure Nathan is waiting for you and might be beside himself with worry.”

My heart squeezed with guilt when she mentioned Nathan. Now that I thought about it, it was selfish of me to make Nathan wait and cause him to worry. Carrie was probably thinking similar thoughts because she untangled her arm from mine and nodded to what Mom said.

“I think your mom is right. You need to return to Nathan now.” She pulled me into a hug. “Thank you so much for helping me.” I could hear the tears in her voice. I embraced her tighter. “I’m sorry for being a pain-in-the-ass.”

“It’s okay,” the raspy part of my voice cracked. I closed my eyes, willing myself to get a hold on my emotions and felt two warm bodies close in on us. I opened them to my parents enfolding their arms around Carrie and me.

“We’ll take good care of her,” Mom whispered in my ear. “I promise.”

Carrie thoughtfully stepped out of our group hug, so the three musketeers (as I always imagined us to be) could say a goodbye.

Goodbye.

I clung to them, not wanting to leave.

Screw the dark spirits. Humans have been dealing with them since like . . . forever. They got along just fine without me. Why should I give up my family for them? Was it too much to ask to take a much needed break for myself and spend some time with my parents? I mean, I was already here. It wouldn’t be much different from living in a different state than your parents back on earth and taking time off to go visit them, right?

But then a little annoying voice in my head said one name, jolting me out of my mental tangent–
Nathan
.

“I don’t want to go back,” I said. “I miss and love you two so much.”

Dad brushed a lock of hair from my face. “We know, Peanut.” When he said my nickname, a short sob escaped my lips, surprising me because I thought I had my emotions under control. He used to call me that when I was a child, and it made my heart ache even more. “But you have a gift and mustn’t waste it. It would be tragic for you to ignore it and--”

“Yeah. Yeah. I’ve been told,” I said in frustration, swiping my hand across my cheeks. I was so frickin’ tired of hearing the same thing over and over again. “I understand and will keep my promise to you and Mom.
I’ll do the best I can do to make things right.
” I sounded like a moody teenager, but I didn’t care and released a dramatic sigh for good measure.

Dad chuckled and ruffled up my hair. I suddenly realized this was probably how my life would have been like if he were around when I was growing up.

Wow.

So that was what it felt like to have a father figure in your life. I didn’t know whether to cry because there was so much I’d missed or laugh because that simple gesture of messing my hair made me feel like his little girl again. I felt kind of giddy and silly.

 I gave all three of them one last hug. Mom took Carrie’s and Dad’s hand. I watched with envious eyes as they walked in the direction they came from, desperately longing to go with them, wondering when it would be my time to get what I wanted instead of pushing my wants aside so I could do the right thing.

Would I ever be able to live the life I desired with Nathan? The way things were going, it looked downright bleak. I would have to betray Nathan in order to fulfill my agreement with Bael, and Nathan may never forgive me for it. So ironically enough, I may end up where I’d been before Nathan entered my life–alone and with the belief of never having a partner for the rest of my days.

I pushed that miserable thought aside and watched a wall of fog appear in front of my parents and Carrie. A door made out of the same substance swung open. A soft melody reached my ears–part instrumental and part humming. It sounded like a peaceful lullaby. Carrie glanced at me and winked. I waved, resisting the urge to run to her.

The doorway widened, giving me a glimpse of a vast meadow surrounded by a circle of enormous mountains. The mountains were covered in lush, thick emerald grass and tall trees. And the waterfalls cascading down them had prisms of colors dancing along the front. Without pause, they stepped through the door, and as soon as their feet crossed the threshold, a white light sparked, illuminating the entire opening. In a flash, it disappeared, and I stood staring at the vacant road, feeling an unbearable emptiness in my chest.

Turning on my heel, I ran to the nearest empty building, burying my sorrow, visualizing my body lying in the circle instead.

When I entered a two-story wooden building that reminded me of a western salon in a Clint Eastwood movie, I must have missed a gaping hole in front of the entrance, because I dropped into it, freefalling into darkness. A scream bellowed out of me as I flailed my arms in the cold rushing air, groping for something to hold onto. I must have passed out because that was the last thing I could remember.

Chapter Twelve

Paige

My body jerked. The sudden jolt and heavy pressure on my chest had me gasping. I sat up, hearing Nathan anxiously calling my name. Placing a hand over my heart, curling my shoulders forward, I gulped in large quantities of air. Warm air, I noticed, tasting like sandalwood.

Gross.

The thick smell of incense engulfed me, which explained why I could taste it. Disoriented, I kept my eyes closed and concentrated on my breathing, trying to ignore the thumping sound of a racing heart not too far from where I sat. Nathan said my name again. Could this be a dream?

“Paige, can you hear me?”

I heard somebody moving in front of me, but I refused to open my eyes, afraid this might be a dream. Hugging my stomach, I rocked back and forth, humming the lullaby I’d heard before Carrie crossed over.

“Paige. Baby. It’s Nathan. Can’t you hear me?” Panic and frustration oozed from Nathan’s voice, but my concern to put him at ease placed secondary to the soothing feeling the melody I hummed gave me. Besides, I was probably imagining it.

My thoughts were swimming in an eternal ocean of the never-ending story of my life. I could see the ocean–dark blue like Nathan’s eyes.

I continued to hum and rock, feeling all floaty, riding on a gentle wave of scattered images. Bit by bit, my thoughts began to form like tiles from a Scrabble game. Words followed, congealing into sentences. It was all coming back to me, every minute detail like individual dust particles hovering before my eyes.

My body became still.

“Paige?”

This couldn’t be a dream
, I thought, my mind now sharp and alert. I must have brought my spirit back when I fell into the dark hole. Despite the warm air, I shivered from that memory and at the same time decided to risk opening my eyes to see if I was right.

I smiled when I saw Nathan kneeling before me. The circle was still glowing a brilliant lilac color like it had been earlier.

Nathan hung his head and sighed. When he peeked at me he smiled, relief visible in his eyes. Something in my chest fluttered.

“Are you okay?” he asked in a low and husky tone.

I nodded, my eyes fixed on his. I pushed myself to my knees and crawled over to him, but when I leaned forward to kiss him, my forehead touched an invisible barrier.

What the hell?

I lifted my hand and placed my palm on it.

Solid.

I gave Nathan a quizzical look. How was I going to get out of this one? And I had to pee.

“You have to perform the closing ritual,” he said.

 “Does this normally happen?” I made a sweeping motion with my hand, indicating the glowing circle.

The corner of his mouth lifted. God, he was cute. “No. It’s all you.” He rose to his feet, picked up the
Book of Shadows
off the couch and moved in front of the incense. “Did you read the instructions on how to carry out the closing ritual?” He opened the book and flipped through the pages.

“No.” I pushed my hair off my shoulders and stood. Man, I had to pee. “Now what am I going to do?” I felt a slight irritation toward Nathan. Why hadn’t he told me I had to enact a closing ritual? He must have spaced it, I rationalized. With everything going on, that was understandable. The irritation left me as quickly as it came. I raked my fingers through my hair while I waited for his reply.

“Here it is.” He placed his thumb in the crease of the book to keep the pages in place. “I’m going to tell you how, and you can recite the closing rites after me.” He looked up from the book, and I nodded in response, thankful he’d come up with a plan. “Raise the Athame and face east,” he instructed me. I did what he said. “Now repeat after me.” He held the book up, leveled with his face. “Ye Lords of the Watchtowers of the east . . . ” He paused so I could repeat it, which I did. “Ye Lords of air, I thank you for attending my rites. Ere ye depart to your pleasant and lovely realms, I bid you hail and farewell.” He paused, and I repeated it. “Now, draw the banishing pentagram in the air with the tip of the Athame, like this.” With his free hand, he motioned from bottom left, then up and to the bottom right, like he was drawing a star. I mimicked him as he did it. He smiled in approval. “Lick your forefinger and thumb and snuff out the east candle,” he told me. I did and turned my body to the south like he did.

We repeated the same rites for south, west, and north, the only difference was saying the element they represented, like south for fire, west for water, and north for earth.

As I was closing the ritual, thanking and saying farewell to the Lords of the elements, I swear I could feel the energy leaving the room, and oddly enough, I felt a quiet sadness.

When I turned to the north and thanked and bid a farewell to Boreas, my eyes welled

 with tears. I couldn’t understand why I’d get so emotional. It was silly. But nevertheless, I did. Nathan’s eyes flicked up at me from the book. Feeling stupid, I turned to wipe the tears away. I could hear him entering the circle, the warmth of his body closing in on my back like the sun breaking through the clouds, offering its heat to the world. Strong arms wrapped around me from behind. I pressed my back against his chest, welcoming his comfort with a contented sigh.

“Are you okay?” he asked in a low whisper next to my ear, resting his chin on my shoulder.

 “I’m perfect now,” I breathed.

“I was worried about you,” he confessed. “But then Boreas paid me a visit and--”

I twisted around in his arms. “You saw Boreas?” I didn’t hide my surprise.

 Why had Boreas paid Nathan a visit? For that matter, why did he help me? Not that I was complaining. In fact, I thought it was one of the coolest things ever. I mean, Boreas was the guardian of the northern portal, and to concern himself with us had to mean something, right? Not to mention, I felt a connection with him, like we were comrades or something.

Crazy, I know.

But I couldn’t help the way I felt or wonder if Nathan sensed the same thing.

Nathan’s fingers slowly trailed down my face to the back of my neck, his eyes following its movement on my skin. My stomach fluttered continuously at his delicate touch, and my breath caught in my throat. His thumbs brushed against my jaw line as he cradled my face and peered into my eyes. “Yes, I saw Boreas. He was kind enough to let me know you were all right and showed me what you did to get rid of Carrie’s memories.”

I gasped. “Are you serious? Did you actually see what happened?”

 “I did. Boreas showed me telepathically you holding a torch and burning doors.”