Dark Realms (39 page)

A sudden bright flash of light blinded both
of us. I winced and covered my eyes.

“Find me?” chuckled Vivian. “I don’t think
that’s going to be a problem.”

My eyes snapped open and I stared in horror
again at the woman who looked so much like our mother. She pointed
her wand at us, but then suddenly appeared to have changed her
mind. She smiled wickedly. “No… I think I’d rather have you around,
so you can fully appreciate my powers, especially when your mother
shrivels up and dies.”

“Why do you hate her so much?” I hollered,
horrified that she could be so heartless. “You’re sisters! How can
you be so cruel as to want her dead?”

Vivian’s blue eyes narrowed. “Why? I suppose
you wouldn’t know. Your mother had many secrets and she probably
wouldn’t have shared this kind of information with you. She
wouldn’t want anyone to know what kind of a person she really
was.”

“We didn’t even know she was a witch,”
muttered Kala.

“But we know she was a good person, one with
a heart of gold,” I said, raising my chin. Nobody was going to tell
me otherwise.

Vivian snorted. “A heart of gold? No, she’s
a deceitful, lying, little fool who should have never tried to
cross me.”

I thought about this woman
before me who’d killed Tyler’s father and now wanted to destroy our
family. I glared at her. “How did she cross
you
?”

“Your
loving
mother,” she sneered, “took
something that meant the world to me. She took it without regret
and didn’t care what it would do to me. She was the one who forgot
that
we
were
sisters.”

“What did she take?” whispered Kala.

Vivian was suddenly distracted by the book
in my arms. She pointed. “What’s that?”

“Um, nothing,” I replied, backing away.

“Give that to me, foolish
girl,” she hollered. “I know exactly what that book is and it
was
my
mother’s.
It doesn’t belong to you!”

I glared at her. “Obviously it doesn’t
belong to you, either. It’s my mother’s now.”

Vivian raised her wand and the book vanished
out of my hands and appeared in hers. She smiled in satisfaction.
“I always wondered what happened to this old thing.”

“Please,” I begged her. “Take your hex off
of our mother and keep the book. You really can’t hate her that
much?”

The look she gave me chilled me to the bone.
“Oh, but I do.”

“Tell us then why, at the very least,”
begged Kala.

She smiled bitterly.
“Adrianne took something that could never be replaced. The man I
loved with all of my heart.
Michael
.”

“Our father?” I gasped.

Her eyes filled with hate. “Yes, your
father. I had Michael first but she stole him from me. And now,”
she smiled coldly, “I’m stealing her life away from her and I want
everyone to suffer the way I have all of these years!”

“Mark?” I whispered in horror. “Mark is our
brother?”

She smirked. “He’s
your
half
-brother,
but only in blood.” She smiled and lowered her voice. “He hates you
both as much as I hate Adrianne.”

Before I could respond, she clutched the
spell book against her chest and disappeared with the only means we
had to save our mother.

Chapter Twenty-Five

“What are we going to do?” cried Kala.

“I don’t know,” I whispered, horrified. “She
has the book, obviously. I just don’t know.”

She grabbed my arm. “Let’s go find
Rebecca.”

“Okay,” I said, bending down into the trunk
again. “Let’s take mom’s wand with us. It might be of some
help.”

“Good idea…oh, my God, what’s happening?”
gasped Kala, as the wand began to radiate in my hand.

“I don’t know, but my fingers feel funny,” I
said, staring at my hand, which was beginning to glow and
tingle.

“Maybe you should put that wand down.”

“No,” replied woman’s voice.

It was coming from the wand!

Kala and I stared at each other in
shock.

“Don’t be afraid, dear,” said the wand.
“It’s just part of the bonding process.”

“Bonding process?” I squeaked.

“Yes,” answered the wand, sounding amused.
“I have to make sure we are compatible.”

“Uh, what would happen if we weren’t?”

“If you tried casting a spell and we weren’t
compatible, one of us would more than likely… perish.”

“What?” I gasped, wanting to get rid of
it.

“Don’t let go of me, dear! You’ve passed the
test and we are indeed compatible.”

I breathed a sigh of relief as my hand
stopped glowing and the tingling receded. “Wow, you frightened me
there for a minute.”

“Are all wands like you?” asked Kala.

“No. It just so happens that I was
manifested in 1956 by Isadora Jenkins, a very powerful
sorceress.”

“Was she a good witch or a bad witch?” I
asked.

“She didn’t consider herself evil, but she
did indeed practice the art of Black magic. Her sister, Fedora, on
the other hand, practiced only White, and I was created as a gift
for her.”

“Oh… so, you are a supposed to be used for
White magic only?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“If I dabbled in Black magic, we wouldn’t be
compatible, then?”

The wand hesitated and then spoke again.
“It’s a bit more complicated than that. I am only compatible with
those who would not use magic specifically for their own personal
gain. Some witches who practice White magic are still… not so pure
of heart.”

“Oh.”

Kala smiled. “That must mean you’re pure of
heart.”

“I didn’t feel so pure yesterday when I was
getting teased at school,” I said. “If I would have had a wand and
a chance to get rid of Mark or Hailey Bates, I wouldn’t have
thought twice about it.”

“May I say something?” asked the wand.

“Uh, certainly,” I said.

“Don’t confuse your temporary emotions, like
humiliation or sadness, with hate, greed, or malevolence. Even
those pure of heart fall victim to the emotions caused by others.
Obviously, you are not capable of intentionally hurting others for
personal gain. If you were, we wouldn’t be having this conversation
right now.”

I didn’t miss the meaning behind those
words. If I was more like my aunt, I’d be dead.

“That’s it!” I cried. “We have to find
Rebecca!”

“What?” asked Kala.

“I know how to stop her,” I said, my heart
pounding in my chest as I raced out of the attic and flew
downstairs.

“Seriously?” asked Kala, following me.

“Yes, I just hope it works. Rebecca!”

Just then, Rebecca materialized, her face
stricken with grief.

“What… what’s happened? Where’s Tyler?” I
asked, afraid of her answer.

“I don’t know. I can’t find him anywhere,”
she answered, tears in her eyes. “I think Vivian might have done
something to him.”

My stomach clenched.

Not Tyler, too!

“Vivian was just here,” said Kala. “She has
the spell book.”

“We have to find her,” said Rebecca. “Before
she hurts Tyler and your mother…” She closed her eyes. “Before
things get worse.”

“Do you know where she’d be?” I asked.

She waved her wand and her purse appeared,
floating next to her waist. “I have something that might lead us to
her,” she said, opening it up.

“What, a magical crystal ball?” asked Kala,
looking hopeful.

She shook her head and pulled out a book.
“No,” she said, showing us the cover. “Your school’s address
book.”

I snorted. “What?”

“When I registered Tyler for school during
the summer, they gave me one.”

Kala’s eyes widened. “Do you really
seriously think Vivian would list theirs when she registered Mark
last year?”

“That’s what I’m hoping,” she said, looking
through the pages. “It’s a longshot, but I don’t know what else to
do.”

“I know how to stop Vivian,” I said.

Rebecca looked at me in surprise. “What do
you mean? How?”

I held up my mother’s wand. “Do you know
about this wand?”

“I know it’s your mom’s,” she said. “And
that it’s a very dangerous wand, one that you don’t want to mess
around with.”

“Well, Kendra has bonded with the wand,”
blurted my sister. “Or it bonded with her, whatever the case may
be.”

“You have to be very careful with that
thing,” warned Rebecca. “Your mother told me years ago that she
didn’t even feel comfortable handling it. That’s why she used a
different one most of the time.”

Kala’s eyes widened. “Why? She was pure of
heart, obviously.”

“So, you know about that?” smiled
Rebecca.

“The wand told us,” I said.

She stared at the wand in amusement. “Ah…
interesting. Your mother was never able to make it talk.”

“Another finicky wand?” I asked, thinking of
Clarice’s.

She nodded. “I guess. Anyway, what did it
say to you?”

I relayed my conversation with the wand and
Rebecca’s eyes lit up. “I’m not even sure if Adrianne was aware of
how dangerous the wand could be to a malevolent witch. You know,
this might just work.”

“What?” asked Kala.

I turned to my sister, who obviously hadn’t
gotten it yet. “If we can get Vivian to use the wand, it just might
destroy her.”

Chapter Twenty-Six

“Might
destroy her,” said Rebecca. “She’s already so powerful that
the chances are pretty slim.”

“Well, I say we go for it anyway,” I said.
“I mean, she has the spell book and you’ve pretty much stated that
you can’t stop her yourself. Kala and I are new to all of this and
don’t know the first thing about witchcraft. What other choice do
we have?”

“Right now, none,” agreed Rebecca.

“Did you hear that?” whispered Kala. “I
think someone’s outside.”

“Don’t worry, I think I know who this is,”
said Rebecca as she walked over to the front door opened it.
Standing on the other side was Trixie and a guy whose features were
similar. Both of them had a soft glow about them that could only be
described as… mystical.

“Trixie and Bailey,” beamed Rebecca,
stepping back. “Come in, please.”

“We’ve come to help,” said Trixie, who
looked just as breathtaking and ethereal as earlier.

Rebecca’s eyes lit up. “Do you know where
Vivian has taken Tyler? Did you see anything?”

“I did,” replied Bailey. He was tall, with
broad shoulders and longish blond hair. “I followed them. Vivian
cast a spell on Tyler and he was knocked unconscious. I believe
he’s still alive, though.”

Rebecca put her hand on her chest and sighed
in relief. “Oh, thank God, I was so worried.”

“We’ll find them,” he said, placing his hand
on her shoulder. “Don’t worry, Rebecca.”

“With Vivian, it’s hard not to,” she
said.

He nodded and turned toward us. “You must be
Adrianne’s daughters?”

“Oh, God, where are my manners? I forgot to
introduce you,” said Trixie, raising her hand. “This is my brother,
Bailey.”

“Hi,” I said shyly. I had
to admit, he
was
gorgeous, with his silvery blue eyes and perfectly sculpted
features, but truthfully, all I could think about was Tyler and my
mother. “I’m Kendra.”

We shook hands and then he turned to Kala
whose own eyes were glazed over with adoration.

“You are clearly Kendra’s sister,” he said,
smiling in amusement. Obviously, being fawned over was nothing new
to him.

“Yes, I’m Kala,” she answered, her cheeks
turning pink. “So… um, are you a witch or some kind of
warlock?”

“No. I’m a Shape-shifter,” he answered,
puffing his chest out a little.

“Oh, how… wonderful,” she gushed, fluttering
her eyelashes. “That must be so exciting.”

He crossed his arms under his chest and
nodded. “Well, yes, it certainly has its moments.”

I bit my lip to keep from laughing.

“We don’t have much time,” interrupted
Rebecca. “We need to find Tyler and stop the curse. Lead the way,
Bailey.”

He dropped his arms. “We’ll need to
teleport. They’re in New York.”

I raised my eyebrows. “New York?”

“Well, to tell you the truth… it makes
perfect sense,” said Rebecca. “With her interest in the theater and
her music. I guess I should have figured that out before.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, Rebecca. She
covers her tracks well,” said Trixie. “It wasn’t easy to follow
either of them. It took Bailey a while before he actually found her
real home in New York.”

“So, they don’t even live in Bayport?” I
asked.

“They don’t have to,” said Bailey. “Vivan
and Mark can teleport anywhere in the world.”

I rubbed the bridge of my nose, feeling so
vulnerable. How in the world was I going to help stop someone as
powerful as Vivian? And right now our mother was dying and poor
Tyler was at her mercy. My stomach tightened into a knot. “What do
you think she wants with Tyler?”

Rebecca’s eyes darkened. “Revenge, for what
his father did. I have a feeling she’ll torture him if we don’t get
moving. Bailey?”

“Let’s move,” he said. “Join hands and we’ll
teleport together.”

“You know how to teleport?” asked Kala,
reaching quickly for his hand.

He nodded. “There are many things us
Shape-shifters have learned throughout the years.”

“It also helps to have a mother and an aunt
who are witches,” smirked Rebecca. “Right, nephew?”

He grinned.

I joined hands with Trixie and Rebecca.

“Now, she lives in Long Beach, right near
the ocean. There’s a small wooded area behind her home and I’m
going to aim for that,” said Bailey.

“Let’s go,” said Rebecca.