Fire Spell (28 page)

His shoulders straightened and he peered toward the horizon. I don’t think he heard a word I said. Before I could try another plea, he screamed, “Ian, on your left!”

One of the Ladri raced from the marsh, his cloak trailing the brush, as he lunged at my brother.

“Ian!” I screamed as he dodged the grasp of the cloaked assailant. “He has a knife.”

I saw the moonlight flicker off something in his hand. I watched in horror as he swiped at Ian again. I recognized it wasn’t a knife; it was his hands. He had talons that were inches long, curling from his fingertips. I realized then those were the same talons that had sliced my leg.

Holly flew behind the beast and sent a stun wave straight at his head. He slumped into the marsh.

Ian pointed. “Holly, there’s another one, quick!” She whipped around in time to stun the second hooded Ladri into the marsh.

She smiled triumphantly. “Got ‘em.”

Finn grabbed my shoulders; I could feel the blood soaking through my shirt. “Ivy, we have to get out of here. There are ninety-eight more, and they are all on their way to stop us. It’s not worth it.” He pulled me against his chest and began to push toward the sky.

I fought against him, pounding into his shoulders. “No. Stay. We have to complete the spell. We can’t run. Fight with me.”

His eyes scanned the marsh in front of us. “I feel more of them coming. It’s too late.”

“No, it isn’t. Fight the Guardian laws. You are stronger than they are. Fight for me.”

He let us sink back into the tidal pool where the spell started. I sifted through the water, searching for the dagger. I felt the blade brush against my knuckles.

I held it toward him. “Do it.” My eyes bore into his.

The air was filled with the screeching hisses of the Sognare Ladri. They knew we were here. We had minutes, probably only seconds, until ninety-eight of the most evil creatures in the world were after us. It was now or never.

Finn squeezed the dagger in his fist, the blood from his hands trickled over the handle. I steadied my hands, not sure if I could take the pain, but knowing I didn’t have a choice. He raised his arm, and just when I thought he was pulling back with hesitation, he drove it deep into my palm. I doubled forward.

I raised it up and called the spell words, “Extinguish this evil.” My throat was tight. “Extinguish this darkness.”

Finn pulled my other hand in the air and plunged the tip of the dagger into the center. This felt deeper than the first or maybe it was the combination of having two severe gashes at once. The tears welled in my eyes, and I tried to steady my breathing.

I looked at him and saw his face wet from the anguish he caused me. I held my hands below his chin as the tears dripped into the cuts. He followed my action and cupped his palms under my cheeks.

I didn’t see Leo and Lily get this far with the spell, but I didn’t need a study guide. I knew exactly what to do. I pressed my palms into Finn’s, our hands melting together, the blood and tears mixing until his were mine, and mine were his.

In the distance, I could hear Holly and Ian shooting sparks from their
Stun Spells
. I couldn’t break my concentration with Finn. It would all be for nothing if we had come this far and didn’t complete the spell.

I gripped his fingers. The orange glow from the water started to rise. The air around us was thick with smoke. The swirl blended to pink then red before circling our waists. We held on to each other, not breaking the contact of our palms. I focused all my energy on extinguishing the evil that surrounded us. The Ladri were surging from the end of the island. Ian and Holly were little match for ninety-eight evil assholes.

My hands began to shimmer yellow. I felt Finn’s force taking over. It was his Guardian protection enveloping us. It felt like the
Cover Spell
. He projected a safety sphere of magic around us, while the
Fire Spell
infused into the roots of the island. Its warmth spread through the marsh until I couldn’t feel where it ended. I ground my heels into the sand, connecting to the earth, urging the
Extinguish Spell
to wipe out the evil plaguing us.

Ian screamed, “We can’t do this much longer!”

I pressed harder against Finn’s palms, and repeated the chant. It was all I could hold on to.

My eyes opened as a flash streaked through the island, tearing at the hold the Sognare Ladri had on the tide’s and moon’s energy. The sky rippled with blues and yellows until an orange hue descended on the center of the island. Then there was silence.

I looked at Finn. The smoke had cleared and the glow from the swirling flames had vanished.

He brushed the hair that clung to my forehead from sweat and the dampness of the air. “You did it, babe.”

I shook my head. “No, we did it.”

Using my good foot, I reached on my toes to kiss him. His arms circled my waist. This was a kiss worth walking through fire for.

I don’t know how long Finn and I stood, arms encircling each other, hearts pounding out of our chests, but eventually my pulse slowed and I felt safe enough to let go.

He squeezed my hand, and I turned to congratulate Holly and Ian on our victory. I searched the sky over the marsh, but they weren’t there. I looked along the shoreline, but it was empty.

Raindrops began to pelt my face. The clouds had opened up.

“Finn, where are they?” I wanted to run, to fly, to shout, do anything to find them and know they were ok.

Why hadn’t I noticed before now they weren’t with us to celebrate?

“Stay here. I’ll scan the island. Don’t move.”

I nodded, frozen in place with fear. What if something had happened to them? What if my Extinguish part of the spell had hurt them? I had overdone it. I forced too much energy on the island. With all of the chaos at the end, I didn’t see which direction Ian turned after his last warning to us. I should have protected him.

I started to shake. It could have been the cold rain or the adrenaline leaving my body in rapid succession, but every nerve ending I possessed vibrated. I pulled my arms against my chest, wincing at the pain in my palms. The throbbing sensation had moved up my wrists and was searing all the way to my elbows.

I could no longer make out Finn’s silhouette in the rain. I felt utterly alone on the end of the island.

“Ivy!”

“Holly?” I thought it was her voice calling through the storm, but it sounded weak and tired. She floated across the marsh and landed next to me. “What’s wrong? Where’s Ian?” My brother was visibly absent.

“He’s going to be ok, but he was struck.”

“Oh my God.” My hand flew to my mouth.

Holly reached for my arm. “It wasn’t even as bad as your ankle. He’s going to be fine.”

“Where did he get cut? Where is he now?”

“Finn’s taking him back to the hotel. Luckily, I had a complete batch of herbs ready for you if you needed them, so we’ll just use that on his shoulder. He turned around to stun one of the Ladri next to me and he caught a talon blade on the top of his shoulder.”

I closed my eyes. He had to fine. Ian was bigger and stronger than me, and with a smaller injury, he’d probably bounce back faster than I did.

“Do you think you can fly?” Holly asked.

“Yes, if you can help me with the lift off.”

“Finn said he’d come back for you, but he thought you’d want him to take are of Ian first.”

I smiled for the first time. It was exactly what I wanted. Ian came first. I could hang out on this cold rainy island all night if it meant my brother would heal faster.

I shuffled forward in the sand, to line up with Holly, when my boot hit something. I reached toward my toe and picked up the dagger. The saltwater had washed it clean of all our blood. I slipped it into the side of my boot. You never know when you might need a mystical enchanted dagger again. In my case, I hoped the answer was never.

“Ready?” Holly stood next to my strong leg as I kicked back my injured ankle.

“Yes. Let’s get back to the hotel.” We locked hands around each other’s waists.

“On the count of three. One, two, three.”

We shoved off the sand and headed back to the city. I always considered myself a beach girl, but this was one island I never wanted to set foot on again.

One month later

H
OLLY CLOSED
another box. “I can’t believe you’re actually leaving Sullen’s Grove. You just moved into this house.”

I looked at the stack of boxes she had assembled. “You know Savannah is not that far by air. We’ll see each other a ton, and plus, we still have the wedding coming up.” I squeezed her shoulder.

“But, it’s not the same. You know it won’t be the same.” She slumped into a chair. Cooper dropped a tennis ball in her lap. “Look, even Coop is sad about the move.”

I giggled. She wasn’t going to use Coop against me. “It’s not forever, forever. We could move back at any time.”

“It might as well be. Remind me again why I was on Finn’s side all this time?” She sulked.

“Because I’m irresistibly charming and I’ve always been your favorite.” Finn winked as he jogged down the stairs. I had put him in charge of packing my office.

“Ugh! You and your charm are taking my best friend away.”

He snaked a hand around my waist and kissed my neck. “I’m not about to live in a different city than my wife.”

I shook my head. “We can’t have that.” I loved it every time he said
wife
. The wedding wasn’t until the summer, but just the thought of being married to Finn made my normally girly side turn to complete sugary mush, like melted candy.

“I picked the worst time to be single.” She picked the tennis ball up from Cooper. “Ok, boy, let’s go outside for a minute.” He wagged his tail. “I’ll give you ten minutes.” She eyed us. “And then I’m finishing up the kitchen. It’s the last room in the house.”

I giggled as Finn hitched my legs around his waist and walked me to the couch, planting me in the center. “Don’t you think it’s time she goes home?” He pulled the button on my shirt with his teeth.

“No, you and I will have plenty of alone time in a few days. I need to hang out with her. She’s feeling lonely since she broke up with Mike. I think she regrets it.”

“Hmm, ok but once we get to Savannah, don’t think I’m letting you have any friends or visitors.”