Chapter 65
“Brene,” Jezza tugs at my sleeve. “Y-you can’t stay out here all night. The vamps and werewolves will be hunting soon and you’re bleeding. I mean I know neither of them are supposed to go after humans or us witches, but you’re not safe here.”
No. I’m not safe here or anywhere. My hands hurt and I sit up, my stomach rolling.
“The prism,” I gasp, looking around in the fading sunlight.
“It’s here on the grass. Is this where your ghosts are?” She picks up the purple pyramid stone from the gravesite and hands it to me.
“Yeah,” I say, but my throat feels raw like I’ve swallowed gravel. It feels like there’s a band around my chest and it doesn’t allow me to take in a deep breath. Jacques. I can’t leave him behind. And I can’t think about how the leyline is gone now. There has to be a way.
I clutch the prism to my chest. Right now, I need Ben and Kiarr because, without all three of them, I feel like everything is spiraling out of control. They are my anchors and I need to see them. And maybe Ben can help me figure out how to rescue Jacques. I can’t think of anything other than that.
“Where’s Melanie?” I ask Jezza and hike toward the academy.
Wind howls around us and clouds darken the sky. Where did this storm come from all of a sudden?
Jezza scuttles up beside me. “She’s taking her semifinals. Is there something I can help with?”
“I need to get Ben and Kiarr out of here.” I hold out the prism briefly, “Then figure out how to reopen a sealed leyline.”
She grasps my elbow, stopping me. “The leyline?” she squeaks out. “That’s not possible. No one can open or close one.”
“A lot has happened since I saw you last.” I swallow, everything rushing forward and I’m not sure where to start. And exhaustion is pulling at me like I’ve been awake for days. My stomach rumbles and I wonder if I have been in the leylines longer than I thought.
She loops her arm through mine. “How about you catch me up over dinner? I can’t even think with how loud your stomach is growling.”
Inside the academy, lightning flares across the sky. Over and over but oddly without any thunder. Rain drizzles on the rooftop and the flashes light up the windows.
We trek up to the cafeteria and even though part of me wants to curl up into a ball and cry, I know I need to eat. I can’t save anyone if I pass out from not eating and I hope that the water will help the pressure that’s digging into the back of my throat.
Empty tables and chairs fill the cafeteria and it’s dark except for the lights on the vending machines. Thankfully, one of them has prepackaged sandwiches though I still plan on getting chips, soda, and candy.
“Um… I don’t have any money on me.”
“My treat.” She unhooks her arm from mine. “What’s your poison?”
“The roast beef, spicy chips, and a chocolate bar, please.”
“Water too?” She arches an eyebrow at me.
“Sure.” She was right, I really needed water. Soda didn't sound good at all. Aunt Grace always did say that water was the best thing for a person. My heart clenches at the thought of my aunt who did so much for me, and I sit down in an empty chair before I fall. Carefully, I set the prism down on the table and stare at it. I turn it this way and that, hunting for a latch or someway to open it and get my men back. I feel so alone.
The lightning calms to a flash every few minutes now and I guess the odd storm is passing over us.
Jezza taps the buttons on the vending machines and then brings me the food. For herself, she grabs another water and a bag of white chocolate pretzels. She sits across from me. “Okay, eat then spill.”
Now that the food is in front of me, I feel nauseous. I unwrap the candy bar first. My aunt would be appalled. But I’m hoping the sweetness will give me some energy and help bring my appetite back or at least enough to eat the sandwich and chips.
Jezza doesn’t say anything but nibbles on her pretzels. She sucks off the white chocolate then takes dainty bites of the soggy pretzel.
I shudder but stuff a piece of my candy bar in my mouth. The sugar and gooeyness hit my tongue and jolts me. I finish the candy then open the sandwich and chips. Before I know it, both are gone and I’m still hungry. The thought of stuffing myself more makes the food in my stomach churn. I better stop while I’m feeling a touch better and not push it.
After I finish the water, I realize Jezza’s finished her food. Her twin braids are a bit unraveled like she had a long day.
“Thanks,” I tell her and then fill her in on everything from me hitting Gwen, to my uncle being the wraith and killing my family, to my aunt’s death and finally to the leyline closing in on Jacques. “But there’s a way to reverse the line, right? Bring him back out of there?”
She chews on her lip, peeling off the label on her water bottle. “Honestly, I don’t know. I mean some of this is Melanie’s expertise, but I’ve never heard of a vampire ghost. I thought vamps didn’t have souls.”
“Neither did I.” I lean back in the chair. “And what about the leyline? Do you think he’s trapped inside?” Because I couldn’t think of the alternative… that he risked his soul to save me.
“I-I don’t know. Never heard of one collapsing before.”
My insides cramp and I wrap my arms around myself, my gaze going to the purple prism and how much I wish Ben and Kiarr were here so I could see and talk to them. “What about that? Do you know a way to unlock it?”
“I wish I did.” She sighs. “I’m afraid I’m not much help to you or a good friend.”
“That’s ridiculous.” I reach across the table and place my hand over hers. “You’ve been a wonderful friend. Thank you.”
Her smile lights up her hazel eyes. “What about the grimoire?” She snaps her fingers, pulling away. “You know, the one you said you used to raise Ben and Kiarr the first time?”
“Jezza you’re a genius.”
She preens under my praise, her cheeks turning pink.
“Except there’s one problem.” A sinking sensation hits my gut. “Last time we looked for it, we couldn’t find it and I think Gwen has it.”
“But she’s been transferred.” Jezza tapped her finger to her chin. “They wouldn’t let her take something like that off school property.”
I frown remembering how we confronted Gwen and Jezza’s freezing spell had been blocked because she wore a protection amulet. “They wouldn’t allow her to keep any magical objects?”
“No. She’s not a magic user anymore, it’s forbidden for a human to have anything like that.”
I heave a sigh. “But she had the magical necklace, remember? So, I’m sure she’s holding onto a lot more than that.” Especially since Gwen wanted to have magic again and would do anything for it.
The night bell rings, and I flinch. Classes and tests seem so far away after all that has happened to me. I feel like I am already older than when I had first come here.
“That’s Melanie’s last class.” Jezza stands. “Let’s go see if she has any ideas.”
I rise and gather up our trash and throw it away. My heart feels heavy in my chest, but at least I got Ben and Kiarr out of the leyline. Now I have to unlock their prison.