Triumph of Chaos (Red Magic) (15 page)

Her face darkened, and she began to glow faintly with Blue light. For one ridiculous minute, I thought she was going to attack me, but then she snapped her fingers, and something landed in front of her with a
plop
.

I stared at the ground in disbelief. A battered black spirit board sat on the dry grass between us. “Do I even want to know how you did that?”

Izzy shrugged. “Suffice it to say that’s one of the perks of being raised by Isis. I doubt you could even do the spell if you tried.”

I ignored her barb and knelt to study the board. “I’ve never seen one like this before.”

“Found it in an antique shop on a school trip to London.”

I looked up at her stern expression. “Izzy, who have you contacted using this board?”

She pursed her lips. “That doesn’t matter. But I know this board works.”

“Because you’ve used it?”

After a moment, she shook her head. “But the Witch who sold it to me promised it was the real thing.” She tried to laugh. “When I bought it, I wasn’t looking for ghosts. It was just something of a lark. But now we need it and I have it, and that’s that.”

I shook my head. “I don’t know. I’ve never done anything like this.”

“First time for everything, right?” She dropped down onto the grass beside me.

“I guess.” I felt a little self-conscious sitting in my backyard in broad daylight. “Don’t ghosts prefer the dark?”

She raised an eyebrow. “Has he talked to you during the day?”

I thought back. Grudgingly, I said, “Yes.”

She smiled. “So this is good enough, then.” Deftly, Izzy warded the backyard, effectively hiding us from the view of the neighbors. Then she encased us in a shimmering bubble, a spell I’d never seen before, but I guessed it was to add an extra layer of protection. It always surprised me how much magic she knew since she’s so much younger than me.
But I guess that’s what happens when you’re trained by a god. Marcus knew all kinds of things I didn’t know, too.

Marcus
. I drew a ragged breath and looked at the board. “How do we do this?”

Izzy grabbed a stone from the grass beside her and set it on the board. “We’ll use this, I guess.” She reached across the board and gripped my forearms. “Ready?”

I nodded. “I guess.”

Izzy cleared her throat. “Marcus? Are you there?”

We sat there holding onto each other for a few minutes in silence.

Finally, Izzy sighed. “Maybe you should try. You’re the one he’s talking to, after all.”

I heard the sting of disappointment in her words, but I tried to ignore it. Now that we were trying to contact him, I wasn’t sure it was such a good idea anymore, but I didn’t know how to back out now. “Marcus? It’s me, Darlena. And Izzy. Can you hear us?”

For a couple of breaths, nothing happened, but then Izzy whispered, “Look.”

The stone was quivering on top of the Ouija board.

We stared at it, and I felt Izzy’s fingernails digging into my arm. “Marcus?” I whispered.

The stone kept shaking.

Izzy loosened her grip on me. “This doesn’t feel right.”

Before I could answer, the stone flew off the board toward her face, hitting her with a sickening
crack
.

I barely had a chance to react before blood was gushing from Izzy’s nose. The sight of it made me dizzy.

“What the hell was that?” She pressed her fingers to her face, trying to staunch the flow of blood.

“I don’t know.”

“That can’t have been Marcus. He’d never hurt me.”

Harsh laughter filled my ears, and I stared at her blankly. “She’s so naive,” Marcus whispered in my mind.

Izzy must have seen something on my face, because she lowered her hands and stared at me. “Did he just speak to you? What’d he say?”

I shook my head, denying everything. “He can’t be a ghost. You were right. Let’s get you cleaned up.”

The laughter echoed in my head as I helped her inside, and I felt tendrils of ice creeping up my neck. Despite the ninety-degree heat, I shivered.

The kitchen was empty, thankfully, and I had Izzy cleaned up and clutching a bag of frozen peas against her face before my dad walked in. He glanced at her and raised an eyebrow, but he didn’t say anything about it. I sighed in relief as he poured himself a cup of coffee.

Before I could leave the kitchen, Dad cleared his throat. “Lena, your mother and I are headed to Raleigh. Did you girls want to come along?”

Izzy looked at me questioningly. “It’s a peace rally,” I explained.

“We meet at the state capitol on the first Sunday of every month. It’s an all-day thing, very exhilarating. There’s a large group of activists, not just Witches, but Nons too.” He gave me a hard look. “It might do you some good to remember what you claim to be fighting for.”

I shook my head. “You guys have fun. Izzy and I have things we need to discuss.”

She nodded. “We should probably call Ben and Brad and start training them.”

My dad hesitated like he wanted to say more, but then he shrugged. “Okay. We’ll be home for dinner.”

To my surprise, Lorna walked into the kitchen, wearing dark sunglasses and a floppy wide-brimmed hat. Her voice was steady for the first time since she’d come to America. “Are we ready to go?”

Dad smiled at her and looked at Izzy, completely ignoring me. “Are you sure you don’t want to come with us? Peace seems to be a very Blue and Green thing.” He chuckled, and Lorna smiled at his bad joke as Mom came into the kitchen, riffling through her purse.

But Izzy shook her head. “Thanks, Mr. Agara, but not this time. Maybe next month!”

Dad didn’t say anything else, and Mom gave me a quick kiss on the forehead before they headed out. I stood in the doorway, watching as they slipped into the station wagon. Lorna looked happier than I’d seen her since she got here, and she and Dad were chatting animatedly as he started the engine. Mom waved from the front seat as the car backed down the driveway, and after a moment, I waved back. For the second time that morning, ice danced across my spine, and I felt vaguely uneasy as Izzy chattered about her ideas for teaching Ben and Brad how to do magic. I couldn’t shake the sense that something worse than Marcus’s cranky ghost was hanging around, but I didn’t have the faintest idea what it might be.

A few minutes after my parents left, the doorbell rang. Confused, I answered it.

Justin stood there, a suitcase at his feet. I studied his face, but he didn’t look at me.

“Since when do you ring the doorbell?”

He shrugged, not meeting my eyes. “Is Dr. Farren ready?”

“Ready for what?”

“We’re leaving for India today. The flight’s in three hours.”

Dumfounded, I stared at him. Finally, I blurted, “You’re really going to leave me?”

He looked at me coldly. “I thought you made it quite clear that there’s nothing between us. Yes, I’m leaving. I hope it helps.”

Before I could answer, Dr. Farren came down the stairs carrying my mom’s old hiking backpack. “I’ve already checked us in online, but we should leave now. Don’t want any trouble with security.”

Justin nodded. “My dad gets back from a business trip tomorrow, so I’ll just leave the car at the airport for him.” He grabbed Dr. Farren’s bag and his own and walked down the driveway.

I glared at her. “Were you going to tell me about this?”

Dr. Farren sighed. “We agreed we needed to move fast, Darlena.”

I struggled to get a grip on my emotions. “But … doesn’t this seem sudden?”

She shrugged. “I was able to reach my family last night, and then I found a pair of discounted tickets. Everything seems to be falling into place on this one.” She smiled at me gently. “I don’t question good fortune when it finally finds me.”

Slowly, I nodded. “I guess.” I glanced out the door, watching as Justin slammed the trunk.

Dr. Farren tapped my shoulder. “Be careful.”

I tried to laugh. “You’re the ones who’re hunting another Red.”

“Still. There is great power in you, Darlena, and that attracts danger like flame draws a moth.”

That’s the second time this morning that someone told me I was powerful.
Strangely, her words weren’t comforting. “I’ll do my best. Izzy will help.”

Dr. Farren nodded. “Isadora!” She raised her voice slightly, and Izzy popped around the corner. She glanced at the open door and at Dr. Farren, and to my surprise, her eyes filled with tears.

“You have to come back,” she said, her voice heavy as she tried not to cry. “You have to come back so we can both go home when this is done.”

I was taken aback. Izzy had rolled with everything that had happened, and it had never occurred to me that she was homesick for Scotland and her magical school. Dr. Farren was the headmistress of the school, and I suddenly realized that she was probably the only constant adult figure in Izzy’s life. I stepped back, trying to give them a little bit of privacy for their goodbyes.

Finally, Dr. Farren pulled away from Izzy and looked at me. “Remember, Darlena: be cautious.”

I nodded. “Travel safe, and keep us posted.”

“We will.”

The door closed behind her, and only then did I realize that Justin hadn’t come back to say goodbye. I rushed onto the porch, but the car was already pulling into the street. I waved until the car was out of sight, but he didn’t turn his head. My heart sank into my feet.
Is this really the way things are going to be between us now?

Izzy was watching me with sympathy when I turned back toward the house. “He’ll be back. They both will.”

I swallowed, willing myself not to cry. “Yeah, but I don’t think it will be the same.”

“Do you want it to be the same?”

I stared at her, processing her words. Finally, I shook my head. “Not really. It’s been two years since we broke up. I mean, it only feels like one for me, but in reality, we haven’t dated for two years.” I realized I was babbling, and I took a deep breath. “Maybe whatever we are will be better once he comes back.”

Izzy’s voice was soft. “He will come back, Lena. Really.”

I let her lead me back inside the house, trying to ignore the worry that was chewing on my gut.
Why did everyone have to leave today?
I glanced at Izzy, insanely grateful that she was still on my side.
It’s not like they’ve abandoned you,
I argued with myself.
They’re all just doing what they have to do.
But I kept glancing at the door, willing Justin and Dr. Farren or my parents to forget something and come back.

“What should we do today? We’ve got the house to ourselves. Oh!” Izzy smiled broadly. “I know! Can we turn on the air-conditioning?”

I just looked at her.

“It’s been ninety degrees all week, but your dad won’t turn it on. He never needs to know!”

Despite my dark thoughts, I laughed. “Fine. You know, a normal kid would throw a party in an empty house, or something.”

She shrugged, pushing a few buttons on the thermostat. “I’ve never pretended to be normal.” Icy air blew through the vents, and Izzy sighed in contentment. Secretly, I was relieved. The hot weather never used to bother me, but all spring I’d felt like my skin was on fire. It was no wonder I was having combustible nightmares.

Nightmares. Marcus.
I glanced at Izzy nervously. “Um, Izzy, about Marcus—”

She shook her head. “I don’t believe the rock was his fault. In fact, I’m not sure I believe he’s a ghost.”

Exasperated, I flopped onto the couch.“Then how do you explain the fact that I keep hearing his voice?”

She sat up straight. “Could it be a glamour? Rochelle has tricked you before.”

The thought hadn’t occurred to me. “I don’t know,” I said, puzzling over the idea. “I suppose so.”

“What did the so-called ghost say to you?”

I thought back, digging into my memories. “He wants vengeance. He doesn’t want his death to have been in vain.”

Izzy snorted. “That’s nothing my brother would have ever said.”

“I don’t know, Izzy. He was murdered. He’s got a right to be pissed.”

She shook her head again. “No, you don’t get it. Even though he trained for war, Marcus never wanted to be hero.” Her eyes grew foggy as she remembered her brother. “He told me once that he’d rather die anonymously on a battlefield than be remembered; he said he always thought Achilles was an idiot for choosing glory.”