Waking the Witch

thirty-seven

Jesse had set us up.

I’d started suspecting him when I’d thought about that object flying at my head. Then I became more certain when he’d kept leading me with invisible “signs.” But even now, after witnessing proof, I couldn’t believe it. I just didn’t see a motivation.

Had he enticed me on this case to kill me and collect a bounty from the Nasts? I’d love to think they hated me that much—somehow it was better to be feared than to be ignored. But if they’d offered a bounty, I would have heard of it. Lucas always knows when there’s one on him.

Could Jesse be a witch-hunter? With legends, there were always nuggets of truth surrounded by layers of bullshit. Maybe the part about them always being women was part of the bullshit. Jesse entices me onto a case where he thinks witches are involved, gets me to sniff out Tiffany, kills her, then comes after me.

I knew now how Michael had fallen from that balcony. Jesse lured him up there, probably by rattling stuff around, then telekinetically shoved him over the edge. I hadn’t considered him before because he’d been on the phone with me when I got Michael’s text. More important, no Agito could send a guy flying like that.

But if Jesse killed Michael, what better way to throw off suspicion than call me while texting me from Michael’s phone? As for his powers, he had to be a Volo. I wasn’t sure how that was possible. There were only a few in the world, and at his age, he shouldn’t have full control over his powers yet.

I peered out at Jesse again. Too far to launch a deadly spell ... if I could even manage one. I needed to get closer.

I cast the blur three times and failed. On the fourth, it caught and I slid out the other side—away from Jesse. Then the spell broke.

I took a deep breath. Sweat trickled down my forehead. When I wiped it away, I realized my skin was burning. Fever, coming on fast and strong.

Less than ten feet to my left, the aisle branched off. I could run that way and escape. Not fight. Escape.

No, maybe a blur spell would get me far enough to cast—

Far enough to cast, maybe. Far enough to cast until something worked while Jesse threw god-knew-what at me? No.

Escape it was.

I closed my eyes, focused hard, and cast again. It clicked on the first try. I was so intent on escape that I didn’t hear the patter of my own sneakers until it was too late. I dove out of the way, managing to get into that branching aisle just as Jesse leaped up, crate clattering.

I looked around. The spell was still holding, but it was only a blur one, so he could see me if he looked hard enough. I held my breath and ran again, not caring how much noise I made, just getting as far as I could.

I darted into the first hiding spot I found, wedging myself between two pieces of equipment. I resisted the urge to try a cover spell. Unless he shone a flashlight right at me, I was safe.

Great. Sure. Just wait until he decides to leave. Not like you could be poisoned or anything.

No, I couldn’t hide for long, but I could hide long enough for him to get closer.

“Savannah?”

I closed my eyes, tracking his voice.

“Come out, come out, wherever you are.” A chuckle. “Guess it couldn’t be that easy. Luckily for you, I am chock-full of contingency plans. Or, I suppose, that’s not so lucky for you.”

It didn’t sound like Jesse. The voice was his, but the tone, the cadence, even the chuckle ... The singsong sarcasm poked at a deep memory.

No, it’s Jesse. You confirmed the photo. Adam knows him. That’s clearly Jesse. He was just playing a role before, for you and for Adam and probably for Lucas. Worming his way into your confidences. But why?

“I wouldn’t hide too long,” he said. “Or when they finally raze this building, they’re going to find your corpse, kiddo.”

Kiddo. Another memory twitch.

It’s the fever talking. Ignore it and be ready.

Jesse walked past me. I cast an energy bolt. Nothing happened. I closed my eyes and cast again. Nothing. Cast. Nothing.

A squeak of his boots. I opened my eyes. He’d turned back my way.

I looked around wildly and saw a pencil perched on top of a metal table just behind him. I remembered one of the first spells I’d learned. The simplest spell.

I cast. The pencil levitated on the first try. I moved it to the edge of the table and let it go. As it clattered to the floor, Jesse spun. His left hand formed a fist at his side and a rusty hammer rose from under the table. He maneuvered it out, watching and listening for me to make a move. My gaze stayed fixed on that fisted hand still at his side.

Every telekinetic half-demon has a “tell.” A physical tic that precedes an attack. The other day, in activating his powers, Jesse had flexed his right hand, hiding his left ... because it was a tell I’d recognize.

I heard Paige’s voice from eight years ago. She’d make a fist with her left hand. She was good at covering it, but I figured it out about two seconds before she sent a twenty-pound pot sailing at my head.

The day before that I’d found out who my father was. I heard that voice now. Trust me, kiddo, you’re gonna love this one. You’ve hit the genetic jackpot.

Leah O’Donnell.

My elbow bumped the machine beside me, and I realized I was shivering.

No way. No fucking way.

I blinked hard. It was the fever. I was losing it. I was remembering Jesse talking about Leah so I’d hallucinated that fisting left hand. Or maybe all Volos had that tell. And “kiddo” wasn’t exactly a rare endearment.

But as outrageous as it sounded, it made sense, too. Jaime had sounded freaked out when I called. She’d been trying to contact Paige, and she’d been very happy to hear that I wasn’t staying at home alone. Because she knew Leah had escaped her hell dimension? Feared she might come after me and thought I was safe if I wasn’t in Portland?

Crazy, yes, but in my world, the most bizarre explanation is usually the right one.

Now if I could only figure out what possible reason Leah would have to take over Jesse and try to kill me, I’d be set.

That brainpower, though, was better spent sending the bitch on a one-way trip back to hell. I concentrated, pouring everything I had into a lethal spell—

If the killer was really Jesse, I could justify killing him. But if it was Leah in his body?

Oh, shit.

I didn’t have a clue how to exorcise her. I needed to get Jaime.

Sure, just run outside and call her. Hope you don’t die of poison in the meantime. Hope Leah doesn’t kill Adam in the meantime.

For now, just incapacitate Leah, find Adam, and go. And do it without my spells.

Shit.

Jesse was moving down the aisle, hammer hovering in the air as he searched for the source of the noise. When he slowed, I mentally lifted the pencil and dropped it again. I couldn’t get it high enough, though, and the rolling sound was unmistakable.

Jesse crouched and spotted it. I cast a binding spell. It fizzled. I closed my eyes and tried again.

“Someone doing a little telekinesis of her own?” Jesse said. “Why don’t you come out and we’ll play—”

He stopped as the spell clicked. I leaped out from my hiding spot. My stomach shot up on a wave of bile. I ignored it and barreled into him. As my hands made contact, the spell snapped. He ducked. I stumbled. A power-drive to the side of my skull sent me to the floor.

I tried to scramble up. The hammer appeared, hovering over me.

“Move, and I’ll knock you back down,” Jesse said. “And this will hurt a lot more than my fist, kiddo.”

“So what happened, Leah?” I said. “Did your hell dimension kick you out? Not nearly the badass you thought you were?”

Jesse blinked. Then sputtered a laugh. “I beg your pardon?”

I pushed onto my elbows. “Did you really think I wouldn’t recognize you?”

A pause. He tilted his head, considering, then said, “Actually, I’m surprised I pulled it off this long. But I shouldn’t be. No offense. You’re a great kid. Just none too quick on the uptake.”

I started to rise. The hammer readied itself to strike and I stopped.

“Good girl,” Jesse—Leah—said. “I wouldn’t want to mess up that pretty face. You grew up nice, kiddo. If I were a guy, I’d totally go for you. But I’m not, which was part of the problem. It would have made things so much easier.”

“Would have made what easier?”

“Oooh, do I get to reveal my nefarious motives now? I love this part. Okay, cue the sinister music. The villain is about to tell all.”

She stepped toward me. While it was clearly still Jesse’s body, my fevered mind saw Leah.

“It started in my childhood. My brother used to torment me ...” She frowned, tilting her head. “No, I did the tormenting. Huh. That doesn’t make nearly as good a story.”

“Can we get on with it?” I said. “I’m dying here.”

“Oh, it’s all about you, isn’t it? You aren’t going to die, Savannah. Well, I hope not, because I’m really kinda fond of you. Always was. As I recall, you’re the one who snubbed—”

“You poisoned the cookies.”

“So you figured that out? Good girl. Probably thought it was that evil commune, didn’t you? Nope. The cookies were just convenient—like the commune itself.”

“You knew I’d find the Santeria and think it suggested something supernatural was going on in Columbus, when it was just a New Age cult guy practicing what he considered a cool religion.”

“Pretty clever, huh? The cookies were just a bonus. See, to zap your spellcasting, the poison has to be administered slowly, which would have been much easier if ol’ Jesse could have just seduced you and popped in a needle now and then when you were sleeping. But it was clear from the start that wasn’t happening. So on to contingency plan A. Poison something you were munching on. Start draining your spell power while being taken into your confidence, lowering your defenses on all fronts. First part worked smashingly. Second, not so much.”

She was standing so close now that I could reach out and grab her foot. Yank her down. And I would have, if I wasn’t more likely to puke on her than punch her. Just keep her talking. God knows, Leah loved to talk.

“You weren’t interested in poor Jesse as any kind of partner. First you team up with the detective. A human? Never thought I’d see the day. You used to have nothing but contempt for humans. A girl after my own heart. So I get rid of the human—”

“You did kill Michael.”

She sighed. “You’re interrupting. Fine, let’s get this over with. My list of crimes against humanity. I didn’t kill Ginny and Brandi, but you already knew that. Gotta give you credit, kiddo—I wasn’t sure you’d figure that one out. I was actually kind of proud of you, putting together the pieces. Had some trouble with the follow-through, though, didn’t you? Couldn’t bear to take little motherless Kayla away from her grandma. Nothing says a killer can’t be a good mama. You know that from experience.”

I opened my mouth.

Leah cut me off. “Sorry, got off track there. I was listing my crimes, wasn’t I? Killed Claire—that was the setup to get you on the case, so Jesse could get close. Didn’t kill Tiffany. Figured the twit offed herself when you started sniffing around. Killed the security guard and Cody, and, yes, killed Michael. He was in the way. Added a nice twist to the case, too. And a serious bonus—Jesse swoops in to save the day, bringing you two closer. Then who shows up? Adam Vasic. After I timed it just right, killing Claire when I knew Paige, Lucas, and Adam would be away for the week, he has to cut out of his conference early. I remember Adam, you know. That last day at the compound. You were already giving him big puppy dog eyes. Too cute. Between you and me, though, what’s cute at twelve is kind of sad at twenty-one.”

“Go to hell. Oh, sorry. Go back to hell.”

She laughed. “No, thanks. Do you know how tough it is to get out of there? And that’s just escaping. Then I needed to track down a necromancer who owed me a favor and use my poltergeisting skills to torture him until he agreed to get me into a new body. Which is not easy either, let me tell you. And now that I’m here, I intend to stay, which is where you come in.”

“To do what? Cast a super Krazy Glue spell to keep you in Jesse’s body?”

“Um, no. Sorry. Once again, it seems, it’s not about you—it’s about Mom, who is one relentless bounty-hunting bitch, dead set on bouncing my ass back into my hell dimension.”

“You want me to ask her to back off?” I laughed. “Not likely.”

“Um, no. Wrong again. I don’t need you to ask her anything. Your only job here is to play daughter-in-distress. You’ve had some practice at it, I’m sure. You call Mom. She comes running. I cut her a deal—if I get to stay in the living world so do you. I’ll release you, with the name of the poison, which will be the only way any doctor can treat you in time. Haul me off to hell ... and you die a slow, painful death.” She grinned. “A brilliant scheme, if I do say so—”

She stopped as I disappeared under a blur spell. She swung the hammer, but I’d caught her off guard. I scrambled out of the way, then leaped to my feet.

I won’t say I ran—it took all my power just to lurch, and even then my brain kept screaming at me to slow down, conserve energy to cast, not escape. I ducked into an aisle, then another, as Leah whipped who-knew-what at my blur. Finally, when I was far enough ahead, I slid into a shadowy corner and hunkered down.

Leah needed me alive. As much as I raged at being used as a pawn—and not for the first time—I clung to that as proof that I wasn’t as close to death as I felt. Save Adam. Save myself. Then come back, hunt the bitch down, and send her back to hell.