Witches of Bourbon Street (11 page)

She pressed her hand over the left side of her breast. “Here. Look, and you will find it.”

Crap. Nothing like a cryptic guru teaching a reluctant supposed witch.
Just look inside. You’ll find it, Jade
. Yeah, sure. I was about to protest when I noticed Bea’s trembling hands nestled in her lap.

The poison really was taking its toll.

I met her eyes, and whatever she saw in mine made her send me an encouraging smile. “You can do this. I’ve seen the light you possess many times. It’s only a matter of you tapping into it.”

Nodding, I took a deep breath. “Once I find it, what do you want me to do?”

“Pinpoint it and focus on it. Then I will guide you.” Her voice seemed to falter on the slight breeze. She cleared her throat and in a commanding tone added, “Be confident. Strength will follow.”

My desire to help her pushed all the reluctance from my mind. I sat, my face tilted up at the emerging moon, and closed my eyes. Somewhere in my inner recesses, I needed to find my magic source. Effortlessly, my awareness took over. Ian’s and Kane’s anxiety, Pyper’s intense interest, and Bea’s mild disapproval washed through me.

“You’re not searching,” Bea said. “Your empath ability is a crutch. Cut it off.”

Pursing my lips, I imagined my glass silo, the one I erected when I wanted to wall myself off from outside energy.

“How’s that going to help?” Bea asked in a gentle tone. “Blocking us out will only lock yourself in.”

Frustrated, I opened my eyes and stared pointedly at her. Bea knew things. She felt my energy shift, but she wasn’t an empath. There was no way she could know how much it interfered with even the most mundane of tasks. Finding my inner spark with the three of them tainting my energy with theirs would never work. “If I don’t block you four out, I won’t be able to concentrate.”

Bea held still, her expression unchanging. “Don’t block us out. Read us, compartmentalize our emotions, and forget us. If you can do that, your day-to-day life will be easier as well.”

I huffed. Easy for her to say. Too much intruding energy made me weak and unable to control anything. Still, she was right. If I built my glass silo, how would I send out any magic? All right then. Time to try something new.

With my eyes closed once again, I focused on Pyper and let her interest and unease settle over me. We were close and spent a great deal of time together, so her energy seemed natural, almost an extension of mine. Instead of pushing it away, I let it merge with my own similar feelings. I did the same thing with Kane’s concern. I was so used to having him near, it was effortless.

I usually made a point of not invading Ian’s emotions. Since he’d once been interested in me, spying on him just wasn’t right. I was so used to blocking all but his most superficial emotions, it took a concerted effort to let him in. Intense fear gripped my soul. A soft cry escaped my lips before I could hold it back.

“Let it go,” Bea whispered. “Just let it go now.”

Releasing Ian’s energy eased the tension curled in my stomach, but left me nauseated. I panted, trying to regain a thread of control.

“You’re past the worst of it,” Bea continued in her gentle tone. “Relax, and we’ll be able to continue.”

After a soul-gripping read like that, there usually was no hope of relaxing, but Bea seemed to be putting something behind her words because soon the tension eased from my chest and my breathing returned to normal. A faint trace of Ian’s fear remained, but not enough to be a bother.

Bea’s emotions were guarded and for that I was grateful. I got a trace of her emotional signature, letting me know she was there, but nothing else. I’d take it.

When I relaxed and focused on what was inside me, suddenly it was just me. Well, mostly me. I could still identify traces of Kane, Ian, and Pyper, but for the most part I was on my own. Relief washed over me.

Until I realized I still needed to find my magical spark. Determination pushed away all my doubts and fears. I could do this. Immediately, I concentrated on my heart. Surely that was a logical place to start. The muscle moved in a steady rhythm.
Thump, thump. Thump, thump.
Calm and efficient, there didn’t seem to be anything extra or out of the ordinary. Just a heart pumping my life’s blood. Next I explored that place deep in the center of my core. The place all my courage and instinct blossomed from. Focusing, I imagined a beacon of light pulsing under my ribcage. Something fluttered inside, leaving me breathless.

“You’ve found the edges of your soul,” Bea whispered. “Your spark won’t be there, though it bodes well you’re able to find such a place inside yourself. Most people can’t.”

My eyes flew open. I’d touched my soul? “Why wouldn’t it be there?”

Bea’s lips turned down into a grim frown. “Only witches have a magical spark, while everyone has a soul. If you combined the two, it would mean giving up part of your soul each time you worked a spell. Do that enough times, and you’d suffer the same fate as a demon.”

Gooseflesh popped out over my skin at the eerie foreboding in her voice. “Oh.” I closed my eyes once more and this time, followed my blood lines, willing it to lead me to the spark. Blood is extremely magical. It had to get its properties somewhere. If I held on long enough, eventually I’d find my power source. Right?

Wrong.

I sat there searching for what seemed like forever, only to come up empty-handed. Opening my eyes, I heaved a heavy frustrated sigh. “I think you may have made a mistake. There isn’t any spark to be found inside me.”

“Of course there is.” Bea’s soft voice barely reached my ears. “I see it…” her words faded away and she slumped forward.

“Bea,” I cried and reached to steady her. Her skin burned just as hot as it had earlier when the poison had taken over. “Ian, help!”

He was already by her side, but before he could touch her, Bea held up a feeble hand. “No, Ian. I’m fine.” She righted herself and turned a few shades paler in the early moonlight. “The poison is taking over. Jade, listen carefully. When you find your spark, hold it in your mind. You’ll need to coax it to do your will. Gently nudge it in the direction you want your magic to go.”

A sheen of sweat glistened over her sagging body.

“Okay, but what spell do I use?”

“There—” she gasped for breath, “—isn’t one.” She looked straight into my eyes. Her upper body tensed and went rigid. With her face frozen in shock, she tilted to the right and fell in slow motion until she landed with a thud on her shoulder.

“Bea!” I scooted forward and rolled her onto her back.

“Do what she said,” Ian said harshly as he knelt beside her.

I didn’t move. I didn’t even breathe.

Ian reached out and shook me. “Find your magic!”

“I can’t!” I cried, but placed both hands over Bea’s chest. Her faint heartbeat skipped a beat. There wasn’t time for me to figure out the spell or to transfer Ian’s energy, but I could send my own. Determined to save my mentor, I gathered my own energy and forced it into her.

It instantly rebounded back into me. “What the…?” I didn’t have time for this. Trying another tactic, I eased my energy once again toward Bea, this time focusing on wrapping her in it like a blanket. Once I had her tucked in, I took her hand and waited.

All of my energy dissipated into the night. “Damn it!”

“Jade?” Pyper said.

“This has to work.” In my panic, I stood and reached deep. So deep my toes started to tingle. The sensation intensified, moving quickly through my legs, core, and down my arms. Everything seemed to vibrate. A wild sensation took over, sparking little bursts of energy in my chest.

The energy bursts excited me, setting every sensation I had on fire. The light, warm breeze lovingly caressed my bare arms. The lush grass tickled my feet. The micro-bursts grew, vibrating through my core. Everything inside me warmed with pleasure.

I raised my arms toward the sky and soaked in the glorious night. It was mine for the taking. Anything I wanted. My heart seemed to swell, and suddenly all the new sensations were fading. The night turned warm and muggy. Clouds shifted, covering the moon. The sparks of energy in my chest started to disappear.

The sparks.
My
spark. That was it. Focusing my attention on the last bits of energy, I willed it to clear Bea of the poison.

Nothing happened, except the bursts became almost undetectable. “More power,” I whispered. With the words, an unknown force took over my body. My head tilted back and my back arched, as if I were being pulled by something from the sky. Ripples of energy coursed through my limbs. I ached all over. If only I could transfer some of what I was experiencing.

Transfer…to Bea. I barely noticed when I dropped to my knees to hover over her. I was beyond pain, too drunk on the power eating away at me. The moment my hands touched her skin, we both went rigid, powerless to move. My hands clutched hers, but I couldn’t drop them. I couldn’t do anything, except will the magic to clear Bea’s blood of the toxins.

Her eyes slowly fluttered open as my limbs became heavy with fatigue. The world started to spin, and I wondered how long I could keep a hold on the spell.

“Stop it, Jade!” Bea sat straight up and yanked her hands from mine.

“What?” I asked weakly. “You seem to be better. I did good, right?”

“No.” She stood and paced before me. “I mean, yes. I’m here. You found your inner spark. Only instead of harnessing your power, you used the source. I told you to coax it into what you wanted it to do. Not just transfer it to me.”

My world spun as I jumped to my feet. It was a good thing Ian was around, or else I’d have taken a tumble on the now-dead grass. “What happened? It was green a moment ago.”

Kane replaced Ian by my side and wrapped a strong, steady arm around my waist.

“You sucked the life out of it,” Pyper said, coming to stand next to me. “While you were standing there, glowing, the grass suddenly turned yellow and started to die.”

“Let’s go inside.” Bea swept past us toward the back door.

“I did it,” I said to no one in particular.

“You did something,” Pyper agreed.

I raised an eyebrow in her direction.

She shrugged. “Looked pretty creepy to me.”

We followed Ian onto the deck. Right before we walked through the back door, I asked, “I was glowing?”

“Afraid so,” Pyper said. “It looked cool, though. Wish I’d remembered to snap a photo.”

“Oh, God.”

“It’s too late to be evoking him now,” Bea said from inside. “Get in here so we can reverse the damage.”

Crap. What had I done now?

Turns out, I hadn’t cast a spell with my magic to clear Bea of the poison. I’d sent her part of my magical spark and she’d done it herself. Now she had to send back my power. “Why send it back?” I asked. “I don’t plan on using it again.” A tiny shiver crawled up my neck. I ignored it. “You’re a great witch. Just keep it.”

“No, dear. A magic transfer is highly dangerous, for both the recipient and the donor. For temporary use, it worked wonderfully, but if I keep your magic inside me, it would cause all sorts of mayhem in my own power source. It’s better for both of us if I transfer it back.”

And that’s what she did, leaving me vibrating with charged energy.

Chapter 9

Kane walked me to the bottom of my stairs and kissed my temple. “I’ll be up in a minute. I have a few things to take care of at the club.”

“Hurry.” I leaned in and brushed my lips over his.

“Count on it.” He strode off, and I worked my way up the never-ending flights of stairs.

By the time I made it to the second floor, the walls seemed to be closing in on me. I quickened my pace and rounded the corner to the third set of stairs. One more flight and I’d be in my apartment, away from the horrid narrowing of the walls. Focusing on my feet, I forced them to move, taking each step two at a time. I had to get out of there.

Finally, the oak door of my apartment loomed before me. With a trembling hand, I fumbled with the key, nearly dropping it before I jammed it into the lock and twisted. The door sprung open, and I stumbled inside.

Duke jumped off the couch and growled.

“Stop it,” I demanded and ran to the bathroom to splash cold water over my face. I stood with my hands braced on the pedestal sink taking deep breaths, willing my pounding heart to slow. It only took a moment for my breathing and pulse to return to a manageable rate.

When the heck had I become claustrophobic? I glanced up into the mirror and blinked. The wall behind me started to pulse. I whirled. The tiny room held me hostage as the walls creeped closer. My vision blurred, making me see double. Stumbling, I pushed my way back into my living area.

Duke snarled.

“Shut up, you stupid dog! It’s just me.” My vision cleared, and I focused on him. He stood across the room with his hackles up. I glanced over my shoulder and back at him. “Did I bring a ghost home with me?” The only other time I’d seen him behave that way was when Pyper had an evil ghost haunting her.

The golden retriever backed down and retreated to the corner.