Witches of Bourbon Street (23 page)

Chapter 17

Kane only lived two blocks from Kat’s apartment. We remained silent during the brisk walk to his house, and I was grateful for a moment to think. Bea had seen one thing and I’d seen another. It’s not that she didn’t believe me; she just didn’t know what to think. Had Lailah really fallen?

I didn’t think so. The evil in my vision of Meri had been decayed. Wouldn’t it take a while for Lailah’s soul to reach such a state? I’d said as much to Bea, but she’d shaken her head and remained silent, locked in her own thoughts.

When we reached the outside of Kane’s shotgun double home, I glanced up at the ornate Victorian scrollwork brackets and flashed back to the first time Kane had brought me there. It had been our first date, and the first time I’d known he loved me. He hadn’t said it, of course, but one can’t hide something like that from an empath. It had been obvious right up until his emotions had become hidden from me.

I unlocked the door and held it open for my friends. Standing there, I almost expected to hear his familiar greeting from the kitchen. I took a deep breath and swallowed the emotion bubbling up from my chest. Breaking down wouldn’t help anyone.

“Have a seat,” I said when I joined them in the living room. “I need to text Pyper.”

I’d forgotten to update her on our side trip to Kat’s. Considering she hadn’t called demanding to know where we were, I assumed she was still at the hospital. A minute didn’t even go by before Pyper replied. She and Ian were on their way.

“I don’t understand why you would see one thing and I would see another,” Bea said when I sat across from her in Kane’s overstuffed, beige armchair.

“But you both saw Dan, right?” Kat asked.

“Yes,” we agreed.

“Could you sense anything from her?” I asked. “Like her soul or any thoughts?”

“No.” Bea wrung her hands in her lap.

“I did.” I got up and paced. “The being I encountered had a deep-seated evil. An evil that had grown with time. If Lailah has fallen, I don’t think her soul has had enough time to wither into such an awful state. Nothing about what I experienced suggested it could be Lailah.”

“I hope you’re right.” Bea stared into her lap and suddenly stilled her ringing hands, clenching them into fists at her side. She stood. “Let’s get started.”

For a second, I thought about waiting for Pyper and Ian, but quickly dismissed the idea. Finding Kane was a lot more important. I picked up my pumpkin loaf concoction, which had started to separate. Thin cracks widened as I stared at it. “Do we form another circle?”

“Not yet. This one requires heat first.” Bea took off toward the back of the house, where the kitchen was located.

I hoped that meant we could use the stove and wouldn’t have to wrestle up a caldron or use the fireplace.

Gwen fell in step beside me. She touched my arm lightly. “I need to talk to you,” she said with an undercurrent of urgency.

Kat gave me a wary glance.

I tilted my head toward the kitchen, indicating she should go ahead.

“What’s wrong?” I asked my aunt.

She pulled me back into the living room. The mixture split entirely down the center and slumped on two sides of the bowl. I grimaced and hoped that wasn’t going to be an issue.

“I had a vision, but I don’t know what it means,” Gwen whispered.

I set the bowl aside and gave her my full attention. “Tell me.”

“While you were conjuring Dan and…whoever it was that appeared, I got a flash. I can’t say where it was because there wasn’t anything to identify the location, other than fog or a light mist. I don’t know. It was just gray. But I did see Dan, Kane, Lailah, and a woman I didn’t recognize.”

“What did she look like?”

“Long, black, straight hair, and lots of body like one of those Cover Girl models. Thin, but not skinny. Angular face. She was striking. But it was her eyes…” She shivered. “They were solid black and empty of all emotions.”

“Creepy. What was she doing?”

“Nothing, actually. Just watching.” Gwen cupped her hand over the side of her mouth to keep anyone from overhearing. “Someone else was there, too.” She pointed toward the kitchen and mouthed,
Bea
.

Breath caught in my lungs, and then my heart almost burst with joy. That meant at some point we’d find Kane. Gwen had seen Bea with Kane and Lailah and Dan. Hope I’d been keeping buried rose in my chest. “This is great news.”

Gwen’s face transformed from worried to something close to panic. “Shhh. You don’t understand. Bea was engaged in a magical battle with the black-eyed woman. And she was winning, but…” She clamped down tight on my hand.

“Jade?” Bea called from the kitchen.

“Coming,” I replied. “But what?” I asked Gwen, an ominous warning rising in my gut.

“She had the same empty black eyes as the other woman, and everything about her seemed off. Like she was possessed.”

“Black magic,” I whispered. “Isn’t that what happens when a witch invites evil forces?” I’d never actually seen it happen before. My mother had been an earth witch. Their magic was mostly benign: protection spells, intention spells, blessings of seasons, rebirths, and harvests. That sort of thing. Black magic, I’d been told, eats away at the soul. I’d never met a black-magic user, but in all the stories, they each had the same thing in common—black eyes of evil.

“Maybe,” Gwen said with a quiver. “It’s not something I know much about. I don’t know what to think.”

“We have to tell her.” I tried to pull my hand out of her grasp, but she tightened her hold on it.

“No! The first rule of a seer is to keep the visions to yourself. Interfering is not permitted.”

“That’s ridiculous.” This time I managed to escape her grasp and picked up my withering, cracked potion-loaf. “Would you not tell me if I was headed into something dangerous?”

Gwen’s face hardened. A swift current of her stubbornness almost made me stumble. “No, Jade. I wouldn’t. When have I ever told you about my visions before they happened?”

Never. Not once. Except on the rare occasion she went into a trance and spoke aloud. But she never remembered those. “Have any of them ever shown me in true danger?”

Strain flashed over her features briefly. Her expression cleared and she nodded.

“Jade!” Bea called impatiently.

I gave Gwen one last impatient look.

“Please don’t say anything. Trust I have my reasons,” Gwen pleaded as I walked to the kitchen.

“What happened to your potion?” Bea asked, appalled.

“I think it needed to be refrigerated.” I set in on the counter next to her.

“Possibly,” Bea agreed. “What took you so long?”

Gwen shot me a warning look from the doorway.

“Gwen was giving me a pep talk.” I’d honor her request until I got a chance to talk to her again. The last thing we needed was for Bea to go Wicked Witch of the South on us. I’d do whatever it took to spare her.

Gwen smiled in Bea’s direction.

“You poor dear.” Bea put an arm around my waist. “I can’t imagine how difficult this has to be for you. But don’t worry. We’ll find him.”

I prayed she was right. I glanced at the copper bowl. “What are we doing with that?”

Bea’s demeanor quickly shifted from nurturing mother to serious witch practitioner. “Does your friend have any copper sauce pots?”

I shrugged and bent to dig around in his cabinets. After moving a half a dozen stainless steel pots and pans, I came up shaking my head. “Doesn’t look like it.”

“That’s fine. Grab the biggest one you can find. We’ll use it like a double boiler.” Bea turned on the stove while I filled a stainless steel pot with hot water. “This is probably better for the integrity of the potion, anyway.” She took the pot from me and placed it on the stove. “At this point, your potion can use all the help it can get.”

“What’s the goal here?” I wrinkled my nose at the globby mess.

“It needs to solidify.” She handed me a wooden spoon. “When it starts melting, stir it until it’s smooth. As you did earlier, keep focused on finding Kane. The intentions will help when you invoke it.”

Bea excused herself to the restroom. I was about to question Gwen again when a loud knock sounded at the door, followed by Pyper and Ian clattering in.

“What’s going on?” Pyper demanded after hobbling in with one crutch. She’d changed into a black T-shirt, black skirt, and black knee high stockings, matching Ian’s signature look.

“How’s your leg?” I asked.

“Stitched and ready to go.” She pulled up on her skirt, revealing the white gauze bandage. “What are you doing about Kane?”

“We—”

Kat cut me off. “You need to focus. I’ll fill them in.” She rose from her seat at the kitchen bar and herded everyone back into the living room.

I scolded myself for the slight pang of irritation. Kat was right. I had a job to do. I hated not being part of the conversation. I wanted to assure Pyper we’d find Kane. She was tougher than most. But I knew she considered Kane family. Her only family. Losing him would devastate her just as much as it would me. And Ian always had an interesting perspective to add.

“You’re not concentrating,” Bea said, startling me. “Stop worrying about your friends. Kane is the important one right now.”

I glanced over my shoulder. “Right. Sorry.”

She didn’t say anything else. I put all my worries aside and focused on Kane. I envisioned embracing his emotions and letting our connection be my guide. In no time, the previously disgusting pumpkin blob turned into a cider-colored liquid.

Bea appeared by my side, making me jump. I’d been so focused I’d forgotten all about her. “Good. It’s ready. I’ll be right back.” She headed back into the living room and, a moment later, reappeared with a hobbling Pyper in tow. “She’ll be the third one in our circle this time. She’s the closest to Kane, right?”

We both nodded.

“That’s what I thought.” Once again, Bea lowered herself, taking a seat right on the tiled kitchen floor.

“Here?” I asked.

“Yes. Place the pot on the tile.” She gestured in front of her.

I did as she asked and helped Pyper to the floor. She sat next to me, her leg angled awkwardly in my direction.

“This is a locator spell. Unlike the one earlier, we—” Bea indicated her and Pyper, “—won’t see anything. If all goes well, you’ll find him in a dream state.”

Pyper stifled a snort.

“Fitting for a dreamwalker,” I said.

“Indeed.” Bea reached out her hands and we formed the circle. “After the incantation, infuse the liquid with your magic then take a drink. It will cause you to go into a semi-conscious state and you should be able to find Kane.”

I stuck my tongue out in a gagging motion. She wanted me to drink the pumpkin loaf? Gross.

Bea ignored my immature facial expression and started her incantation. It was very similar to the one we’d used at Kat’s. Only this time I didn’t need to light it on fire. That was good. I didn’t want to become a fire-eater on top of everything else.

My power flowed as easily as it had before. With the liquid shimmering gold, I brought the bowl to my lips. It took all my willpower to not spit the bitter, dirt-tasting silt back in the pot, and I forced it down in one gulp.

Just as I expected, my gag reflex kicked in. I clamped my mouth shut and swallowed again, determined to keep it down.

My body went limp against the kitchen cabinets. The surreal sensation of not having control over my limbs sent a thread of panic to my brain. But before I could react, a dreamy bliss clouded my mind. I floated effortlessly, content to think of nothing and relax. I’d never taken drugs before, but I imagined it must be similar. Having nothing to care about sure was appealing.

Wait, that wasn’t right. I had something—no, someone—very important to care about. To think about.

Kane
, I shouted with my mind.

To my surprise, I instantly locked in on his unique emotional signature.

Pain. Kane was in physical pain. It echoed in my limbs. My wrists burned, and my thigh pulsed with a dull ache. I pressed my awareness toward the source and the closer I got, the more the wounds screamed. I saw nothing but a gray sheet of mist. But it didn’t matter. Kane’s agony beckoned to me. I welcomed the sensation and pressed harder.

It was no surprise when his anger and frustration burst through. But it was so strong the combination of his wounds and his mental state almost paralyzed me. I pulled my energy back just a touch and conjured up every bit of love I harbored for him. When I sought him again, instead of just seeking him, I pushed that love forcibly in his direction.

A thread of recognition materialized through Kane’s frustration. My body warmed with the connection I’d been missing the last few days. Something inside me strengthened. All the crazy doubts and suspicion disappeared. He was here somewhere, and he knew I was searching for him.

Kane
.

A faint trace of Kane’s voice returned my call.
Jade
.