Paranoia

PARANOIA (The Witches of Santa Anna, Book Eleven) by Lauren Barnholdt & Aaron Gorvine Copyright 2011, Lauren Barnholdt and Aaron Gorvine, all rights reserved This book is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to any persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental Chapter One Natalia There are shards of glass all over the ground and on the window ledge, so I pull the sleeve of my shirt down over my hand and brush them away careful y, making sure not to cut myself. Then I slide myself backwards through the window, legs first. It‘s a tight squeeze, and I start to fall , catching myself at the last second. But I‘m in. ―Graceful,‖ Raine says sarcastically y. ―Shut up,‖ I say, brushing myself off. I‘m careful not to make eye contact with her, just in case she gets any crazy ideas about trying to put a spell on me. ―You can stop avoiding me,‖ she says, ―I don‘t have my necklace.‖ I glance quickly at her neck. She‘s not wearing her butterfly necklace. Since I have mine, it means that technical y, I should be more powerful than she is. It makes me relax, but only a little. Raine is crafty, and she knows a lot more about this world and its rules than I do. Which means that just because she doesn‘t have her necklace, it doesn‘t mean I can trust her, or that she doesn‘t have the ability to hurt me. Still . I don‘t want her to think I‘m afraid of her, so I force myself to look at her for the briefest of moments. Her long blonde hair hands limp and loose around her face. There are bruises on her cheeks, and dark circles under her eyes. There‘s a small cut on her top lip, and her eyes have a dead, faraway look in them. Jesus, Hadley, I think, what the hell did you do? ―Where‘s your necklace?‖ I ask. ―Hadley took it,‖ she says. ―You should watch out for her, Natalia. Going on a road trip with your boyfriend, all alone. I wonder what those two are getting up to.‖ She smiles. Ugh. Even when she‘s al beat up, she‘s being a total bitch. ―Are you going to untie me or what?‖ I cross the room and try to pull the rope off Raine‘s hands, but Hadley must have learned all about rope tying in Girl Scouts for Witches or something, because the knots won‘t budge. I look around the basement for something to help me. There‘s a red toolbox in the corner, and I rummage around in it until I find a small saw. ―Oh, hell no,‖ Raine says when she sees me moving toward her with the saw. ―Can‘t you just find some scissors or something?‖ ―Right, like scissors are going to work.‖ I see her body tense up. ―Don‘t be afraid,‖ I tell her, kind of enjoying the fact that she‘s so nervous. ―Nothing bad‘s gonna happen.‖ ―Right,‖ she says, ―You have a saw in your hands and nothing bad‘s gonna happen.‖ I put the blade against the rope and start to move it back and forth. The rope frays pretty easily, but I don‘t want Raine to know that. ―Oops!‖ I say. ―What oops?!‖ she yells. ―Just kidding,‖ I say, ―God, stay still .‖ What a baby.

She stays silent as I keep sawing, and when I get to the last thread of rope, I stop. ―In a second you‘re going to be free,‖ I say, ―And when I let you out, if you do anything to me, if you even try to hurt me, I will kick your ass.‖ I‘m trying to sound threatening, and either it works, or Raine just real y wants to get out, because she nods. Once she‘s free, she stands up slowly, rubbing the two red marks on her wrist. I‘m about to ask her if they hurt, but obviously they do. So instead I just say, ―You okay?‖ ―Whatever,‖ she says, ―I‘m fine.‖ We stand there for a second, looking at each other. For a moment, I think she‘s going to thank me for letting her out. But she stays silent. ―So now we go find Cam?‖ I ask, reminding her that was the deal. ―Yes,‖ she says. ―Now we go find Cam.‖ She starts up the basement stairs, and I fol ow her. *** We get to my mom‘s car without incident. Raine hasn‘t shown any signs of trying anything shady, but I know it‘s important not to let my guard down. Yes, she‘s taking me to Cam. At least, I think she is. But there‘s no way she‘s doing it out of the kindness of her heart. Raine has something planned, or she wants something, even if it‘s just to get Cam back into her clutches. But I have no choice but to trust her. I need to find Cam, especial y after seeing what Hadley did to Raine. Who knows what that girl is capable of. I glance into the backseat, where the iPad Brody gave me is sitting in my bag. I consider taking it out and ask Samara what she thinks about all of this – desperate times call for desperate measure – but there‘s no way I can do that with Raine in the car. ―So which way are we going?‖ I ask, putting the key in the ignition. Raine sighs, then closes her eyes and leans her head back against the seat. ―Get on 95,‖ she says, ―Going north.‖ ―Are you sure?‖ ―Of course I‘m sure.‖ ―Where are we going?‖ ―To find Cam. That‘s what you want, right?‖ She pulls down the visor and slides open the mirror, wincing when she sees her reflection. ―Jesus, Hadley,‖ she whispers. ―You are one crazy bitch.‖ ―Where is Cam?‖ I ask, starting the car and pulling it down the street, heading toward 95. ―What town?‖ ―I don‘t know.‖ I brake. ―You don‘t know?‖ ―I don‘t know exactly,‖ she says, ―But I can feel it.‖ ―You can feel it?‖ ―Yeah,‖ she says. She‘s rummaging around in the glove compartment now. She pulls out a tissue and wipes at her face. ―Cam and I are connected.‖

I swallow. Because I can‘t feel Cam, even though I want to. ―Oh, relax,‖ Raine says, when she sees the look on my face. ―This isn‘t the time to get al teen romance angsty. The further they get away from us, the harder it‘s going to be to find them.‖ ―Fine,‖ I say. ―But we should probably stop somewhere to get something for your face.‖ The bruises on her cheeks are starting to turn shades of purple, yellow, and blue. I‘m afraid if anyone sees us, they might call the police. At the very least, we‘ll call attention to ourselves, which I definitely don‘t want. ―I‘m fine.‖ ―No, you‘re not. You look horrible.‖ ―I‘m fine.‖ ―We can‘t drive around with you looking like that,‖ I say. ―Everyone‘s going to think I‘m kidnapping you.‖ I glance at her out of the corner of my eye. ―Unless you want me to bring you back down to the basement.‖ It‘s a bluff, of course. I don‘t know if I‘m strong enough to get her back down to the basement, and even if I could, I wouldn‘t. I need her to take me to Cam. But when I pull into the Walgreen‘s by Hadley‘s house, Raine doesn‘t fight me on it. *** Once we‘re inside the drugstore, Raine heads for the makeup aisle, where she immediately starts trying out different shades of foundation on the back of her hand. I pick up a package of antibacterial wipes and throw them into my basket. She‘s going to need to clean out some of her scrapes, especial y the ones on her wrist. ―Can I help you find anything?‖ a salesgirl asks me. ―No, thanks,‖ I say, giving her what I hope is an easy smile. ―I‘m just browsing.‖ ―Well , let me know if you need any help,‖ she says, and disappears down toward the cleaning supplies. I grab a bottle of water that‘s sitting in a cooler on an end cap and add it to the basket. ―Is this my color?‖ Raine asks when I get to the cosmetics section. She holds out her wrist, showing me where she‘s dabbed on some liquid foundation. ―It doesn‘t have to be a perfect match,‖ I say, not real y caring what color she picks. ―It just has to be good enough to cover up some of your bruises.‖ I pull a compact off the bottom shelf. It‘s in a gray plastic case, the kind that‘s filled with thick pancake makeup. ―Eww, no,‖ Raine says when I drop it in the basket. She reaches in and pull s it back out. ―I‘m not wearing that. It‘s way too thick.‖ I stare at her. ―You‘re kidding, right?‖ ―I never kid when it comes to makeup.‖ She wrinkles up her nose, like we‘re two friends shopping for makeup for prom, instead of people who supposedly hold the fate of the world in their hands and want to kill each other. ―Yeah, well , if you‘d seen your face lately, you‘d know that the liquid stuff isn‘t going to cut it.‖ I put the pancake makeup back in the basket. She doesn‘t say anything, just sighs and follows me as I start walking up to the checkout counter. A couple seconds later, though, she starts whining about how hungry she is. ―I need to stop for something to eat,‖ she says, looking over the display of candy bars and

gum. ―Hadley hardly fed me while she held me captive. I probably lost, like, seven pounds.‖ The pimply teenage cashier is giving Raine a weird look. He‘s staring at her bruises as I empty our purchases onto the counter for him to scan. ―Okay,‖ I say to Raine, hoping that agreeing with her will get her to shut up and stop talking. She‘s drawing attention to us, and I don‘t like that. ―We‘ll definitely stop for something to eat.‖ I turn back to the cashier. ―Do you know if this is on sale?‖ I ask, in an effort to distract him from Raine‘s face. ―I don‘t think so,‖ he says. He scans the package of pancake makeup, still staring at Raine. ―Seriously, I cannot believe how starving I am,‖ she‘s saying, ―It‘s even worse than the time I had to lose weight so I could fit into my cheerleading uniform.‖ She shakes her head. ―I told Hadley that I was going to faint if she didn‘t give me something, but did she listen? Noooo. She‘s lucky that I had plenty to eat right before she kidnapped me.‖ She‘s prattling along, almost talking to herself, but at that last part, she trails off, getting this weird, sort of vacant look in her eyes. It‘s almost like she‘s remembering something, like she‘s thinking about wherever she was before she ended up in Hadley‘s basement. I wonder if she‘s thinking about Cam, how close she came to making him hers. Sparks of jealousy and anger flare through my body. ―Are you okay?‖ the cashier asks, peering at Raine. ―You look like someone beat you up.‖ He looks at me suspiciously. ―She‘s fine,‖ I say. I rummage around in my purse until I find my wallet. I pull out a twenty-dollar bill and hand it to the cashier. Raine should real y be the one paying for this stuff, but I‘m not going to say anything, because I want to get her the hell out of here. ―Yeah,‖ Raine says, ―As fine as I can be for being locked up in a basement. Oooh, gummy bears.‖ She picks up a package and rips it open. ―She‘s just kidding,‖ I say to the cashier, who looks like he‘s about one second away from dialing 911. ―No, I‘m not,‖ Raine says. She pops a gummy bear into her mouth. ―This bitch named Hadley kidnapped me, but I‘m going to get her back, don‘t worry.‖ She swallows, and then gets that same far away look in her eye. ―I‘m going to get everyone back,‖ she says quietly. My mouth drops open. One, because ‗I‘m going to get everyone back‘ is a pretty creepy thing to say, and also because I can‘t believe she‘s talking about this shit in public. The cashier turns around, probably to head to the backroom or to look for his cell phone so he can call his boss and/or the police. ―Raine!‖ I almost scream, panicked. ―Tel him you‘re kidding!‖ ―Oh, relax.‖ She rolls her eyes and eats another gummy bear. ―Hey!‖ she yells at the kid. He turns around. Her voice gets measured and slow, and she looks him in the eye. ―You are going to forget everything you just heard,‖ she says, ―I‘m fine. I haven‘t been beaten. You are also going to let us out of here with all these things. For free. We already paid. Do you understand?‖ The boy nods, his face slack. The life drains from his eyes, and he starts bagging up our stuff.

―Here you go,‖ he says, sounding robotic. He tears the receipt off the register and hands it to me. ―Have a great day.‖ I grab the bags and start to hustle Raine out of the store. ―I can‘t believe you did that,‖ I say. ―I can‘t believe you didn‘t.‖ She eats another gummy bear. ―Have you even used your powers since that night at the dance?‖ ―That‘s none of your business.‖ ―You haven‘t!‖ She shakes her head, like she can‘t believe how naïve I am. ―Well , whatever.‖ She shrugs. ―You might think it‘s wrong to control people now. But just wait.‖ ―For what?‖ I ask. We‘re at the car now, and I pull out the key ring and hit the button, unlocking the doors. ―For them to take the only thing that means anything to you.‖ She opens the door and climbs in. I get in after her, and I‘m about to ask her what the hell she‘s talking about. But when I look over at her, she‘s staring out the window, and suddenly, I have a feeling it‘s better if I don‘t know. So after a moment, I start the car and pull back onto the road, heading toward I-95.

Chapter Two Campbell Hadley and I are driving deep into Maine, heading towards Bangor. I had to stop for gas again. We‘re still on 95, but the highway‘s deserted except for the occasional tractor-trailer hauling past. The latest is an eighteen-wheeler with the words ―Wonder Bread‖ painted in giant red letters on the side. Something about it fills me with a sense of loneliness and deep sadness. My mom used to make me peanut butter and fluff sandwiches on Wonder Bread after long summer days of swimming and playing outside. ―Why can‘t you at least tell me what city we‘re going to?‖ I ask her, a variation on the same question I‘ve been asking since we left Boston. ―Because the name of the city isn‘t important.‖ ―It is to me. I‘d like to at least have an idea of where we‘re headed.‖ ―You do have an idea.‖ She points to a sign that says Bangor, Maine: 100 miles. ―Bangor?‖ She shrugs. ―Close enough.‖ I sigh and shove another piece of gum in my mouth. I‘ve been popping pieces of gum like it‘s fucking Xanax or something. I probably look like a baseball player with a big wad of chew in my cheek. I glance at Hadley. She seems tired. And what else? Maybe a little bit scared. She keeps checking the rearview and side mirrors. She thinks she‘s being slick, but I‘ve noticed her doing it every so often. She‘s still afraid we‘re being fol owed even though there haven‘t been any cars behind us for hours now. ―Do you love her?‖ she asks me out of the blue. The question startles me. ―Do I love who—Raine?‖

―No. Natalia.‖ I consider the question. I think of me and Natalia eating burgers and laughing at some dumb joke. I picture her smile, her eyes. Maybe I do love her. But then I remember her telling me that Brody was the only person she could talk to about this stuff, lying to me about meeting him. ―I don‘t know how I feel about Natalia anymore,‖ I say, final y. ―Why?‖ ―She lied to me.‖ ―About what?‖ I switch to the middle lane for lack of anything better to do. The Wonder Bread truck is just ahead of me on the right. I wish it would go with us all the way to Bangor. Something about its bright and happy logo is comforting. ―It sounds stupid,‖ I say. ―But she told me she was going to lunch with a friend and instead she met Brody.‖ ―That doesn‘t sound stupid. But maybe she had a good reason.‖ ―Like what?‖ ―I don‘t know. Did you ask her?‖ I think about it and realize I didn‘t ask her. I didn‘t give her a chance to explain herself. But then again, why should I? Just to hear more lies? Hadley is watching me closely with a tiny smile playing on her lips. ―What‘s so funny?‖ I ask. ―Young love,‖ she sighs. ―It‘s kind of cute, real y. Or it would be. If it didn‘t impact everyone.‖ I wave at her like I‘m swatting an annoying mosquito. ―I don‘t want to hear that shit.‖ ―What shit?‖ ―You know what shit. About how me and Natalia and Raine are going to determine the fate of the universe.‖ ―Not the universe,‖ she says. ―Just the world.‖ We drive on. *** We go past Bangor, past Orono even, and my back aches from staying in one position for too long. Eventual y we switch off, and I fall into an uneasy sleep as Hadley takes over driving duties. When I wake up, we‘re still driving. The highway is black and we‘re surrounded by dense forest on either side. Hadley‘s got the high beams on and we‘re going eighty miles an hour. Apparently to nowhere. ―This is never going to end, is it?‖ I say, sitting up and blinking my eyes blearily. ―You‘re taking me to fucking Canada.‖ ―Actual y, we‘re close now.‖ She takes the next exit and soon we‘re on a tree-lined street that‘s occasional y graced with a small house or two. We pass a sign that says Welcome to Lakeville e, ME, Pop: 902 ―Lakeville e?‖ I say. ―Is this it?‖

Hadley opts not to reply. She turns onto a narrow road that‘s not even paved, and the trees appear to be encroaching on us now, branches sometimes whipping across the sides and front of my car. And the ride is getting bumpy. Hadley‘s face is a mask of concentration. We start up a large, steep hill . At the very top, she suddenly pulls over as far as possible and turns off the car. ―Where the hell are we?‖ I say, looking around for a house or any signs of life. Hadley takes the keys and pockets them, then opens her door. As I start to open the passenger side, she puts her hand on my shoulder. ―Stay here.‖ ―Where are you going?‖ ―I need to let them know we‘ve arrived.‖ ―Let who know? Why can‘t I come with you?‖ ―Look, it‘ll just be a few more minutes. Stay here and I‘ll be back to get you. And there might be some other people with me when I come back.‖ ―Your friends?‖ ―Sort of. Just keep your mouth shut and don‘t them give any attitude. Fol ow my lead, okay?‖ ―I don‘t know, Hadley.‖ This is sounding shadier and shadier by the second. ―Trust me,‖ she says, ―You can‘t afford to play your whole ‗tough guy with a chip on his shoulder‘ act around these people.‖ ―I don‘t have a chip on my shoulder.‖ ―Good.‖ ―And I don‘t like being left in the middle of nowhere. At least leave the keys so I can listen to the radio?‖ She shakes her head, gets out and slams her door shut. Unbelievable, this chick. She won‘t even give me the keys to my own car. Moments later she disappears into the forest. The car is incredibly quiet. And dark. And creepy. This would be the perfect place to have me killed. The thought chills me. If Hadley wanted me dead, I reason, she could have done it before now. She could have cast a spell on me anytime she wanted. But still . I‘m getting a very, very bad vibe from all of this. My nerves are jangling and I‘m jittery, like I‘ve just had eight cups of coffee. She was smart to snag the keys, I decide. Otherwise I probably would have taken off. The minutes tick by and I‘m excruciatingly aware of each second as it passes. Eventual y I roll down the window. I can hear the chirping of crickets and the rustling of animals in the thick underbrush beside the road. This is Maine, after all . The country. I‘m used to it from going to my dad‘s every summer. Funny that I told my mom I was going to my dad‘s and then ended up probably an hour or so from his place on the lake. Maybe when this whole thing is over I real y will go see him. We‘ll have a beer in the canoe and then maybe he‘ll take me with him on a job or two. He‘d like that. He‘s always telling me to drop by during the school year, and I never do. I check the time. It‘s been over half an hour and still no Hadley. The eeriness is getting stronger, along with the strong sense that I‘m in danger.

But she told me to wait, and what choice do I real y have? And then I hear a loud, high-pitched sound, like a whistle, that pierces the night air in a short burst. It‘s like nothing I‘ve ever heard before. Is it some sort of animal, a person, an alarm? My heart is beating rapidly and I look around at the road, the forest. Nothing stands out. I wait for the sound to recur and it doesn‘t. Maybe Hadley‘s in trouble, I think. Maybe I should go look for her. But she said to stay put. So I wait. More minutes drag by. My instincts tell me it‘s been too long, that something‘s happened. My phone gets no service, but maybe if I get to a different location it will start working again. Before I can decide whether or not to move, there‘s another high-pitched whine, a bit louder and closer than the last. I still have no idea what it is. Al I know is that I can‘t sit here any longer. So I get out of the car and start walking in the general direction of where the sound came from. Maybe Hadley‘s in trouble and she‘s signaling me. I take a few steps into the woods, but I can hardly see. Leaves and branches are smacking me in the face. I keep going though, and after a few minutes, I can make out a light up ahead. It‘s a flashlight. The beam is bouncing around, scanning the tree line. I crouch down and try to be still . Whoever has the flashlight stops moving and says something into a phone or walkie talkie. ―Zero, zero, copy.‖ It‘s a man‘s voice. ―Nothing so far,‖ he says. ―Should I continue?‖ He spins in a circle, shining the light just over my head. Suddenly the light is bright, hitting my eyes. ―Subject is on the perimeter!‖ the man shouts. I‘ve been found. I start running in the opposite direction. My pursuer‘s right behind me, gaining ground, which should be impossible. I run the forty-yard dash in 4.5 seconds, which is almost the speed of a pro football player. I‘m damn fast when I need to be, and yet whoever‘s behind me is even faster. Fine, I decide. If I‘m going to be caught, I‘m going to least put up a fight. And if this guy is some kind of witch like Raine and Hadley, I‘m going to need every advantage I can get. Including the element of surprise. So I go from a full out sprint to completely stopping, pivoting around so that I‘m facing my attacker. It works. He‘s surprised, and so close that he can‘t stop in time. I drop down like I‘m putting a low block on a big defensive lineman. Boom. I time it perfectly, hitting him right at the legs so that he flips over the top of me, ass over teakettle. Then I jump on the guy and start punching him. Hit first and ask questions later, I decide. If you don‘t want to get hit, don‘t chase strangers in the woods at night. I‘m pummeling him pretty good. Eventual y I stop and grab him by the throat. ―Who the fuck are you?‖ I say, breathing heavily, gasping for air between words. He gurgles. I let up just a notch. ―Get…off…me…‖ ―Where‘s Hadley?‖

Suddenly there‘s a deep laugh from nearby. ―Okay, boys, false alarm--I think we‘ve located Hadley‘s stray pup.‖ I turn and look over my shoulder to see who‘s talking. When I do this, the man beneath me takes the chance to toss me off of him. I fall to the side and then he‘s rushing at me again. I get up to defend myself, but the fight is broken up by three other people. I can‘t real y see any of them clearly because it‘s so dark in the forest, but I think they‘re all men. Two of them grab my arms and hold me so I can‘t do any more damage. The other is keeping the guy I hit at bay, as he tries to get at me, yelling threats. ―Does he know who I am?‖ the guy shouts. Someone chuckles. ―Maybe he‘s just got good intuition, Phelps,‖ he says, and the others laugh. ―Oh, you‘re a riot,‖ the man who must be Phelps replies. ―Al of you think this is funny? We‘ll just see what Reed says about it then.‖ He turns and leaves the area. They begin to drag me forward. ―Where‘s Hadley?‖ I ask. ―She‘ll explain why I‘m here.‖ ―We know why you‘re here, Campbell ,‖ the man on my left says. ―And you might have been better off staying home.‖ ―Let me go then!‖ I say. ―I‘m happy to leave.‖ ―It‘s a bit late for that now,‖ he says. I try to break free and make a run for it. ―Okay,‖ the man says regretful y, ―I guess you‘re going to make us do this the hard way.‖ And then everything goes dark.

Chapter Three Natalia The whole car smells like candy and fast food. Raine‘s been eating nonstop ever since we left the drugstore. First she destroyed the whole bag of gummy bears. Then she made me stop at a McDonald‘s, where she ordered a Quarter Pounder, chicken nuggets, and a strawberry shake. When we gassed up at a rest stop, she bought herself a soft pretzel, which was gone before we got to the car, and a bag of chips. I made her pay for everything herself, without using mind control, even though she rolled her eyes and acted like it was ridiculous. I wonder if that‘s how she affords al her manicures and expensive-looking haircuts – she probably just goes into the salon, and mind control the stylists into thinking she paid for them. I glance at her out of the corner of my eye. She takes a sip of orange soda from the drink she got at McDonald‘s. The light from the dashboard illuminates her face. You can hardly see her bruises - we used the pancake makeup in the bathroom of the rest stop, before we bought the food and gassed up the car. I wanted her to put the makeup on in the car, because I was afraid that the people at the rest stop would take one look at her and call the cops (people at rest stops are notoriously suspicious – all you have to do is look at any of those cases where people have been kidnapped and then found – the police always find them because they‘ve gotten tipped off by some well -meaning person at a rest stop.) But Raine insisted that the lighting in the car was

bad, and that she wanted to make sure her face was flawless. ―I don‘t understand why we have to do it in here,‖ I‘d grumbled once we were under the bright lights of the bathroom. ―Because I want to look good when I see Hadley,‖ she said. ―I want to make sure she knows she didn‘t break me.‖ I‘d helped her put the makeup on, the whole time wondering if she‘d real y wanted to look good because she knew she was going to see Cam. ―I‘m still hungry,‖ she says now, leaning back in the passenger seat and sighing. ―I don‘t know how you could be,‖ I say, turning on the cruise control. I‘m exhausted, and starting to lose my focus on the road. I‘m also preoccupied, because a few minutes ago I realized I‘m to have to figure out what I‘m going to tell my mom. I have her car. And even if she‘s sleeping now, at some point, she‘s going to wake up. And she‘s going to notice I‘m gone. ―You should eat something,‖ Raine says. She crumples up the empty chip bag and throws it into the backseat. ―You‘re going to need your strength.‖ I want to ask her if she‘s so worried about me keeping up my strength, why she ate al the chips. I also want to ask her if she put some kind of spell on herself where calories don‘t matter, because I can‘t imagine how she can eat like that and have a body like she does. ―I‘m fine,‖ I say. She looks at me. ―You don‘t look fine.‖ ―Well , I feel fine.‖ She shrugs. ―Suit yourself.‖ I sit up straighter in the seat, but my eyelids keep drooping. There‘s nothing but black pavement in front of me, and even the high beams from my car are only illuminating the white stripes in the middle of the road. I turn the radio on in an effort to stay awake, but I‘m losing the battle. ―You‘re falling asleep,‖ Raine says. ―No, I‘m not.‖ ―I think we should stop,‖ she says. ―How far away are we?‖ ―A couple of hours,‖ she says, then shrugs. ―Maybe more.‖ ―Maybe more?‖ ―I‘m not a GPS,‖ she says. ―Well , maybe we should turn one on.‖ ―Where we‘re going isn‘t on the GPS.‖ I resist the urge to reach my hands out and strangle her. The thing is, I‘m not even that annoyed with her. I‘m annoyed with the situation. I‘m worried about Cam. I want to call Brody, but I‘m not sure if I should. I don‘t know what I‘m going to tell my mom. I know I can‘t completely trust Raine. I‘m scared, yes. But overriding the fear is frustration. ―Let‘s stay the night in a hotel,‖ Raine whines. ―No way,‖ I say, shaking my head. ―I‘m not letting Hadley and Cam get further ahead of us.‖

―You‘re not going to be any good to Cam if you end up dead.‖ ―Why would I end up dead?‖ ―From a car accident,‖ she says, rolling her eyes, like she can‘t believe I would think it was anything more sinister. I guess she‘s forgotten about the fact that just a week ago she was trying to kill me. ―I‘ll bet Hadley and Cam pulled over somewhere to spend the night,‖ she says, watching closely for my reaction. I try not to have one, but the thought of the two of them together makes my mouth go dry and my stomach seize up. I tighten my grip on the steering wheel, the tension in my body taking over. I don‘t answer her, and we drive for a few more minutes without saying anything. But the exhaustion doesn‘t go away, and I feel my eyes closing again. At one point, I‘m so tired that I hit the warning strip. A loud vibration fills the car. ―We‘re stopping at a hotel,‖ Raine says. ―I‘m not going to get killed just because you‘re too stubborn.‖ ―We‘re not.‖ ―We are.‖ ―We‘re not.‖ I look over at her, and she crosses her arms over her chest. She‘s not wearing her seatbelt. I guess she‘s feeling reckless. ―I‘m not going to tell you where we‘re going unless we stop,‖ she says, ―Sorry, but I‘m tired. I need to sleep.‖ But she doesn‘t sound tired. In fact, she sounds total y amped up. ―Why do you want to stop so bad?‖ I ask. ―Because. I‘m. Tired.‖ She rolls down her window, and the air blows the strands of her hair around her face. ―We‘re stopping,‖ she says again, ―or I‘m not telling you where we‘re going.‖ I sigh. I don‘t get the sense that she‘s planning something. In fact, it feels more like she‘s nervous. Or maybe staling? But I can‘t be sure. And she is right about one thing – I‘m going to be no use to Cam if I‘m dead. And I have a feeling that if I push Raine on this, the two of us might get into some kind of altercation. So when we see a sign for a Sheraton at the next exit, I pull the car off the highway and fol ow the signs toward the hotel. *** Raine uses her mind control to put a spell on the front desk clerk and get us a room for free. We have no choice --- neither one of us is eighteen, and even if we were, we don‘t have enough money to pay. For a second, I wonder if we should get two rooms. I have a mental picture of waking up in the middle of the night, Raine standing over me, looking crazy and trying to kill me. But she‘s my only hope for finding Cam, and I want to keep an eye on her. The fact that she was so weird about wanting to stop for the night has put me on edge, and I‘m not completely sure she won‘t run away in the middle of the night. ―Wanna go to the diner next door?‖ Raine asks once we‘re in the room. I stare at her incredulously. ―This isn‘t a slumber party,‖ I say, sitting down on the bed

closest to the door. It‘s covered with an ugly orange quilt, and the mattress seems lumpy, but I don‘t care. Al of a sudden, the only thing I can think about is going to sleep. I realize I have nothing – no toothbrush, no pajamas. Al I have is an iPad with a crazy woman on it, the clothes I‘m wearing, my mom‘s car, and my purse. ―I didn‘t say it was a slumber party,‖ Raine says, al snotty. ―But I‘m hungry, and I‘ll bet they have good food. Did you see all the cars in the parking lot?‖ ―At this time of night it‘s probably al drunks,‖ I say, ―They‘ll eat anything.‖ ―Drunks have excellent taste in food.‖ ―Why are you eating so much, anyway?‖ I ask, pulling the covers down on my bed. ―You‘re acting like it‘s your last meal or something.‖ She turns away, and I can tell from her expression that I‘ve hit a nerve. ―What‘s wrong?‖ I ask. ―Nothing,‖ she says. She‘s stretched out on the other bed, looking up at the ceiling. ―You‘re scared.‖ It‘s a statement, not a question. I don‘t want to give her the chance to deny it. ―Of course I‘m scared,‖ she says, propping herself up on her elbows and looking at me. ―Do you have any idea where I‘m taking you?‖ She says it like I‘m a child. ―No,‖ I say, ―I don‘t. Remember? You won‘t tell me.‖ ―It‘s….bad.‖ She lies back down on the bed. ―The people there, they… you don‘t know what they‘re capable of.‖ ―Then why don‘t you explain it to me?‖ ―They can make you do things,‖ she says, ―Bad things. They don‘t care about us Natalia, and if you ever start to think that they do, you‘re wrong. Al they care about is the good of the world. We‘re just play toys to them.‖ ―So then why are you going there?‖ I ask her. ―Because,‖ she says simply. ―I‘m going to surrender.‖ ―You‘re going to what?‖ My mouth goes dry. ―Surrender.‖ If she was scared before, the fear is gone now, replaced with the usual face she has, a slight sneer, like she can‘t believe she got stuck with someone as stupid as me. ―You know what surrender means, don‘t you? Wave the white flag? Turn myself in?‖ She‘s pulled the compact out of her bag, and she‘s studying her reflection. She pushes her hair out of her face. ―You‘re going to surrender?‖ She doesn‘t say anything. ―Why would you do that?‖ This question seems to anger her. ―Jesus, Natalia,‖ she says, throwing the compact onto the floor. ―You don‘t know anything, do you? Do you even know where I was this past week?‖ ―Yeah,‖ I say, ―You were in Hadley‘s basement.‖ ―Do you know where I was before that?‖ ―No.‖ She shakes her head, and I see her eyes fill with tears. But then her whole face changes.

―I‘m going to bed,‖ she says. She kicks off her shoes and slides under the covers, fully clothed. ―Raine,‖ I say. But she turns off the light and doesn‘t answer. *** I go outside and call my mom. I tell her that Cam and I got into a fight after the disastrous dinner we had at our house. I tell her that Cam took off to Maine to see his dad, and that I fol owed him. She‘s pissed. She has to work tomorrow, and now she‘s going to have to take a cab. I tell her I‘m sorry. She doesn‘t care. She says I basically y stole her car, which is true. But I play it off like I‘m brokenhearted and angsty. Which isn‘t even a lie. I am brokenhearted and angsty. And I am fol owing Cam to Maine. The only part I leave out is the part about the witches. And the mind control. And the finding Raine in Hadley‘s basement. My mom‘s not happy. But honestly, she‘s the least of my problems. When I get back to the room, Raine‘s asleep, her breathing slow and even. I take a shower in the small but clean bathroom, then slide under the covers in the other bed. It‘s surprisingly comfortable. But still , I can‘t sleep. I toss and turn for over an hour. Final y, at around three in the morning, I creep out of the room and out to the car. I slide into the driver‘s seat and then reach into the back, where I stashed the iPad Brody gave me under the seat when Raine wasn‘t looking. I sit there for a second, holding it in my hands. The air is cool, and so I start the car and slide the dial on the heat to low. The warm air fills the car, and I turn the iPad on. That same room fills the screen, with that same woman. Only this time, she‘s sleeping on the cot. I watch her for a moment. I clear my throat. ―Hello?‖ She doesn‘t say anything. ―Hello?‖ I say again, a little louder this time. I try to remember her name. ―Samara,‖ I say. ―Samara!‖ She turns over on her cot, and then without opening her eyes, throws her pillow on the floor. ―Go ‗way,‖ she mumbles. There‘s a line of drool hanging off her mouth, and she wipes it away with the back of her hand. A white hot rage slides through my body. I‘m mad that I‘m in this situation, mad that I‘m somehow involved in all this craziness. Mad that I can‘t just be normal, that I can‘t just have a stupid high school romance filled with drama and facebook stalking and all the other things you‘re supposed to do when you have a boyfriend. Mad that no one will tell me what‘s going on. Mad that I can‘t do something. ―Hey!‖ I yell . ―Get your ass out of bed! Now!‖ Samara sits up and blinks in the light of the room. Then she throws her head back and cackles. This pisses me off even more. ―Stop laughing,‖ I say. ―It‘s not funny.‖

She throws her leg over the side of the bed and walks over to a tiny cupboard in the corner. She pulls out a pack of gum, unwraps a stick, and puts it in her mouth. Then she grabs the chair from her little folding table and sits in front of the camera. ―It‘s late,‖ she says, smacking her gum loudly. ―Oh, real y?‖ I say sarcastically y. I‘m too pissed to be polite or to even be scared of her. ―Yeah.‖ She nods. ―I don‘t like being woken up.‖ ―Yeah, well , I don‘t like the shit that‘s going on either.‖ ―I bet you don‘t,‖ she says, then throws her head back and cackles again. She‘s wearing a long white dressing gown, the kind of thing you‘d see in an old historical romance novel. Her hair is a mess, and there‘s a white stocking cap perched haphazardly on her head. ―I need your help,‖ I say. ―Says who?‖ ―Brody said you would help me.‖ ―Brody who?‖ My mouth drops, but then she laughs again. ―Just messing with you, Blondie.‖ ―I‘m not blonde.‖ She laughs again. Jesus Christ. This is the woman who‘s supposed to be helping me? This is the woman Brody left me with? I think again about cal ing him. But I know what he would tell me. He‘d tell me not to trust Raine, to stay away from her. And honestly, I don‘t want to hear that. I want to believe that Raine is taking me to Cam, that she‘s bringing me to wear I can find him. ―Do you know where Cam is?‖ I ask. ―Cam who?‖ She laughs again, like this is the funniest joke ever. ―Forget it,‖ I say, reaching for the button to switch her off. ―No, no, wait!‖ she says. ―Campbell is here.‖ ―In jail?‖ ―No,‖ she says, ―At the compound.‖ ―The compound?‖ She nods. ―Now can I go back to bed?‖ ―No,‖ I say. I have a million questions for her. ―Is Raine taking me to you?‖ ―You‘re with Raine?‖ she asks. ―Wowzie wow. I didn‘t know you had it in you, Blondie.‖ ―Yes, I‘m with her. I…‖ I swallow. ―Can I trust her?‖ ―What do you think?‖ ―I don‘t know!‖ I practical y scream. ―That‘s why I‘m asking you!‖ I‘m so frustrated I want to cry. Then suddenly, a look comes over Samara‘s face. A look of lucidity. It‘s almost like she‘s been completely mad up until this point, and now she‘s having a moment of clarity. ―Listen,‖ she says, ―You can‘t trust Raine. Not completely.‖ I take in a sharp breath. A shiver runs through me, and it feels like a million sharp knives are pushing on my lungs. I knew I couldn‘t trust Raine, but I had no choice. Did I? ―What should I do?‖ My heart‘s pounding fast and I feel a little lightheaded. ―You have to fol ow her,‖ Samara says. ―She‘ll take you to Cam. She will . But be careful. There will be times you must trust her, and times you must not.‖

―And how will I know when those times are?‖ I ask. I can hear the desperation in my voice. ―I don‘t know, Blondie,‖ Samara says. ―Why the hell do I have to do all your thinking for you?‖ She‘s up now, shuffling back toward the cupboard. She hawks her chewed up gum into the garbage, then starts walking toward the cot. ―Wait!‖ I scream at her. ―That‘s it? That‘s all you have to tell me?‖ But she‘s not listening. In fact, it seems almost like she‘s somewhere else. She climbs back into bed. After a few seconds, the sounds of her snores fill the car. I shut the iPad off and then I start to cry.

Chapter Four Campbell I wake up bleary-eyed and confused, having no idea where I am. It takes a second for last night to come flooding back to me. Hadley‘s basement. Finding Raine bruised and bloody. Dinner with Natalia and her mom. The long drive to Maine with Hadley. I remember getting out of my car and then being chased through the woods. But what happened after they final y caught me? I‘m in a strange bed and I sit up and look around, trying to remember this room and how I got here. The room‘s large and kind of fancy—like a hotel room at The Four Seasons. My bed even has a red and gold canopy on it. Against the far wall is a large plasma TV, there‘s even a mini fridge in the corner. Next to the television, there‘s a bureau and a sleek black desk with matching leather chair. A sofa and coffee table sit in the center of the room. No phone, though. And no windows either. I‘m still dressed in the same clothes I was wearing last night, so I check my pockets for my keys, wallet and cell . Nothing. My pockets have been emptied by whoever brought me here. ―Shit.‖ I bend over and cradle my head in my hands. I have a massive, pounding headache. Snatches of how I got here start to pop into my head. People grabbing me, pushing me, forcing me to walk toward some unknown destination. I think I may have started resisting them, and they either drugged me—which is what it feels like right now—or put a spell on me. I get up and stride to the door, but of course the handle doesn‘t turn. There‘s a bathroom over to the right, complete with a large tub, shower, and overhead heat lamps. I look at myself in the mirror over the sink. There are a few scratches on my face, and one across the bridge of my nose. I have a bruise near my collarbone. Other than those minor abrasions and the bags under my eyes, I don‘t look much worse for wear. Still , I hate this feeling of not knowing where I am or how I got here. It‘s like I‘ve become some puppet, some little wind-up toy that does whatever these people want. Cast a spell and Cam will turn into a zombie! Look, now he‘s a lover! Now watch him become a fighter! Shit, they could probably force me to kill someone if they did the right spell at the right time. I splash my face with cold water. My headache is slowly fading to a dull throb, which is a

relief. There‘s a brief knock from the other room and then I hear the door open. ―Hello? Cam?‖ The voice is a familiar one. I walk out of the bathroom, droplets of water still cascading down my face. Hadley‘s standing in front of the door, holding a large black garment bag. She‘s dressed in tight black pants, and a bright red blouse. There‘s a silky white scarf around her neck. ―Hey,‖ she says. She tries to hand me the garment bag but I fold my arms. ―Mind tell ing me what‘s going on?‖ I ask. ―Am I a prisoner here?‖ Hadley laughs. ―Yeah, Cam‖ she says and rolls her eyes, ―You‘re a regular Count of Monte Cristo.‖ ―It‘s not funny. That door‘s locked from the outside.‖ ―That was for your own protection.‖ Hadley lays the bag out on the leather chair. ―What else did your people do to protect me? Did someone put a spell on me last night?‖ ―You started fighting, so they injected you with a sedative.‖ ―They injected me? Where?‖ I pull up my sleeves and check my arms. ―I don‘t know where. Does it matter, Cam? You‘re fine. They did it instead of putting you under a spell . We don‘t use spell s around here unless we absolutely have to.‖ ―Wow, how big of you. Thanks a lot.‖ ―Whatever,‖ she says, and readjusts her scarf. ―I need you to shower, change, and get ready to meet with our operations director.‖ ―The who? What are you talking about?‖ I unzip the plastic bag and find a top of the line, navy blue Hugo Boss suit inside. Complete with dress shoes and a red and silver striped tie. ―The operations director. His name is Reed Gagnon and he‘s kind of a hard ass. We need to be on time and we need to look good.‖ I drop the suit. Glance past Hadley to the door and for a split second, I think about making a run for it. But she seems to be able to read my thoughts. ―There‘s no way out of here without talking to Reed,‖ she says. ―It‘s pretty simple. Make a good impression, convince him you‘re going to play by the rules—‖ ―What rules?‖ I ask my voice raising. I begin to pace the room like a caged tiger. ―Where am I? What is this place? Are you ever going to explain anything to me?‖ ―Calm down.‖ ―You try being kidnapped and held against your will , taken from one place to the next, drugged, have spells put on you—and see how you hold up.‖ ―I know it‘s hard and confusing, Cam, but you have to calm down. Getting an attitude now might just get you killed.‖ I stop pacing and stare at her. She meets my gaze without backing down. ―Killed?‖ I repeat. ―I thought you said you were bringing me here to help me!‖ She sighs. ―We‘re a small group, Cam. Very small . Very tight-knight. And we‘re headed for a war with some very powerful people. I believe you and Natalia could help us win this thing, but some of the others around here think maybe

we‘d be better off if you just…went away.‖ ―And they‘ll kill me if I don‘t make a good impression?‖ I laugh crazily, feeling my heart start to race. ―You lied to me, Hadley. You said you were bringing me here to get the bond between me and Raine broken.‖ ―That‘s what I‘m trying to do!‖ she says. ―But you have to trust me, Cam. We‘re not bad people. If we were evil, I would have just killed you and Raine when I had the chance. But I didn‘t, did I?‖ ―None of this makes sense.‖ I grab the suit and throw it over my arm angrily. ―But since I seem to have no say in anything, I guess I‘ll go shower and clean up for…what is it, my trial?‖ Hadley laughs, like I‘m being ridiculous. ―It‘s just a conversation, and if you act normal and reasonable, there won‘t be any problems. I promise.‖ ―Right.‖ I go into the bathroom and turn on the shower. It turn the dial all the way to the left, so that that water gets so hot that the whole room steams up and the droplets scald my skin. It feels good, and the heat starts to clear my head. I need to think. I need to prepare myself for what‘s ahead. Obviously I can‘t trust Hadley, but I also don‘t know where I am or how to escape. I realize I don‘t have any choice but to play along for a while, pretend to be a good boy, tell them al what they want to hear. But at some point I‘ll see an opening to escape. And when I have a chance, I‘ll be ready to take it. After my shower, I put on the dark blue suit, which fits so perfectly that I might as well have purchased it myself. When I final y emerge from the bathroom, Hadley‘s pleased with my appearance. ―Breakfast,‖ she announces with a smile, handing me a cup of coffee. Laid out on the coffee table are eggs, bacon and toast. ―You‘re quite the hostess,‖ I say, wondering how hard it will be to pretend that I don‘t hate her guts. I‘m hungrier than I thought, and I eat it all within minutes. The eggs are a little runny and cold but other than that, it‘s not bad. I wish I could have seconds. ―Is this a last meal?‖ I ask, sipping my coffee. Hadley shakes her head. ―Just breakfast, Cam. No ulterior motives.‖ ―So what kinds of questions is this Reed dude going to ask me? What do I need to tell him?‖ ―Just the truth. Just be yourself,‖ she says. Right. Just be myself. Look how far that‘s gotten me. *** Hadley takes me to a large building in the middle of the compound. It seems like the kind of place you‘d hold a town meeting or something. There are lots of long maple benches, probably forty or fifty, in neat little rows, all of them empty. Shiny white marble floors sparkle under the overhead lights, and there‘s a huge table at the front of the room. Two people are seated at it, watching me with a mixture of curiosity and…something else. Annoyance? Hatred? Fear? I have no idea. I just know that I‘m in trouble. Hadley leads me to the table and sits down next to me, acting the part of my lawyer. Or

maybe my mom. Reed is different than I expected. He‘s younger, for starters – he doesn‘t look much older than me. He‘s got short, dark hair and even darker eyes. Beneath his white sweater he seems kind of muscular. I hate him on site. He grins at me, showing even white teeth. ―Campbell , my name is Reed and I‘m the director of our community. And this,‖ he says, motioning to the woman at his right, ―is Annabel e Trudeau. She‘s the minister of affairs.‖ Annabel e doesn‘t so much as smile at me. Her face is pale and flawless and she looks like she could be Reed‘s younger sister. But maybe she‘s older. I can‘t real y tell how old she is – she could be fifteen, or she could be twenty. Whatever she is, the way she‘s looking at me makes me think she‘s one of the people who would like to see me…disappear, as Hadley put it earlier. ―Nice to meet you both,‖ I say, smiling and pretending everything‘s cool. Act like they‘re college football recruiters, I tell myself. Impress them, be charming, and maybe you‘ll get out of this without too much trouble. ―So, Hadley, how much does Campbell know about us?‖ Reed asks. ―Not much. I‘ve done just as ordered. Kept exposure to a minimum,‖ Hadley says, shifting in her seat. ―But he understands how serious the situation is.‖ ―Kept exposure to a minimum,‖ Annabel e scoffs. ―Like when you took the Raine girl into custody but refused to erase her per our orders?‖ ―You wanted Cam—Campbell —kept alive. Their bond is too strong. If I killed Raine—‖ ―Erased,‖ Annabel e corrects. ―If I erased Raine, then Campbell would have died also.‖ ―This whole situation has gotten out of control,‖ Annabel e says, shaking her head and tapping a pencil against the table. Reed turns to me, once again flashing his obnoxious grin. ―What‘s your opinion of all of this, Campbell ?‖ ―My opinion of it?‖ ―Yes. What do you think of Raine Marsden?‖ ―I don‘t like her much. Obviously.‖ Reed smiles a little at this, but Annabel e makes a disgusted noise and rolls her eyes. ―No, none of us like Raine Marsden very much,‖ Reed says. ―And we like her friends even less. Are you aware that she and her kind would like to kill you, your friend Natalia, and everyone in this compound?‖ ―I don‘t know the details,‖ I say, ―And I‘m not even sure how I got involved in all this. I mean, why me?‖ Annabelle‘s mouth drops open. She looks at Hadley. ―He real y knows none of it?‖ she asks. ―None of it?‖ Hadley shakes her head. ―He‘s total y ignorant of our history. And his own.‖ ―I want to learn,‖ I interrupt. ―I‘m a fast learner. Just give me a chance. I promise I won‘t let you down.‖ ―Give you a chance to do what exactly?‖ Annabel e asks. She leans back in her chair and crosses her arms over her chest. ―Whatever you need me to do,‖ I say.

―Whatever we need you to do?‖ she repeats. ―But you just said you don‘t know anything about us. You don‘t know our plans, our intentions, our goals.‖ ―No,‖ I say, ―but I trust Hadley.‖ A total lie. But obviously necessary. Annabel e snorts. ―You‘ve known her al of a week. And yet you trust her with your life?‖ She turns to Reed. ―This is ridiculous, Reed. Come on.‖ ―I think you‘re being too hard on him,‖ Hadley says. ―Campbell is doing the best he can in a very difficult situation. And I think he has a lot of potential.‖ Annabel e drums her fingers on the tabletop. She glances at Reed and then at me, her eyes narrowing. ―Why did you attack one of our sentries last night?‖ ―I didn‘t know what was going on,‖ I tell her. ―It was an accident.‖ ―You‘re impulsive. You‘re weak. And you‘re ignorant,‖ she says. ―Tell me what you real y think,‖ I mutter. ―What?‖ she asks. ―Nothing.‖ Hadley sits forward. ―Natalia and Campbell , together, can give us power. If we don‘t have them, we‘re at the mercy of chance. But if we can bring Natalia and Campbell together, and break the spell Raine has on Cam—‖ ―So many ifs,‖ Annabel e sneers. She waves her hand at Hadley as if dismissing her. ―We know that Raine and those with her are getting ready to attack us. Cam introduces an element of uncertainty that we just can‘t have.‖ ―Listen, I want nothing to do with Raine,‖ I tell them, annoyed that they think it‘s okay to talk about me like I‘m not even here. ―I‘m on the side of anyone who‘s against her. You have to believe me. I will never help Raine. Ever.‖ None of them say anything. Reed studies me, and his eyes dark and sharp. I feel a sense of uneasiness every time he looks at me, and I shift in my chair. My hands are beginning to sweat, and I feel like I‘m losing control of the situation. ―Look,‖ I say, ―I wish you would just explain what you want me to do. Whatever it is, I‘ll do it. If you think I‘ve done something wrong, if you think -- ‖ ―The bond between you and Raine is very strong,‖ Reed says, interrupting me. ―And she‘s focused on having you, using you to make her power greater than it already is. And so we‘re not sure what to do with you. Or Natalia. For a long time nobody knew who you were or even where you were. But you‘ve been located. And now we need to make some difficult decisions.‖ ―And you might kill us—kill innocent people?‖ I ask. ―That doesn‘t seem right.‖ I fight to keep my voice from sounding panicked. Reed nods at me. ―I agree. It doesn‘t. Unfortunately, in times of war, you‘re forced to consider some very unpleasant choices.‖

―I haven‘t done anything wrong.‖ ―It‘s not about right and wrong,‖ Annabel e says, her tone condescending. ―Well it should be,‖ Hadley says, standing up. ―If you go through with this—if you murder Natalia and Cam because of fear and paranoia— ‖ ―That‘s enough Hadley,‖ Reed says, holding up his hand. A gold ring glints on his left hand. ―You‘ve become too involved already. Please excuse yourself from the room. We‘ll finish with Campbell alone.‖ ―This is wrong, Reed,‖ she says, ―You – ‖ ―Hadley,‖ Reed says, ―Go.‖ Hadley opens her mouth, and for a second, it looks like she‘s going to say something else. But instead, she stands up and strides toward the exit. The doors to the hall slam shut. Now it‘s just the three of us. Reed and Annabel e stare at me across the table. For the first time I‘m starting to feel genuinely afraid. I thought I‘d have a chance to make my escape, but everything‘s happening way too fast. The desperation is seeping in, and I can hear it in my voice. ―I‘m willing to undergo whatever procedure, whatever is necessary to break this bond I have with Raine,‖ I say, looking at both of them, making eye contact in an effort to show I‘m being sincere. ―Give me a few days at least. Let me learn what I need so I can defend myself from Raine and her friends.‖ Annabel e sighs. ―I think you‘re sincere, Campbell . I believe you want to try. But unfortunately, I think you‘re in way over your head.‖ She looks at Reed, waiting for the final verdict. ―This hasn‘t been easy for you, Cam,‖ Reed says, still studying me with that piercing gaze. ―No, it hasn‘t,‖ I say. Reed looks down and seems to withdraw into himself, his eyes growing distant. I can sense for the first time a power—a deep, strong reservoir of strength—behind those dark eyes. He‘s not a dumb guy, like Brody or Derek. He‘s a serious person and I have a feeling he‘s much, much older than he looks. ―I wish we had the time to teach you and Natalia what we know,‖ he continues. ―To educate you both on the perils of this existence. But we waited too long to find you, and unfortunately, Raine found you first. We failed you, Cam.‖ Now Reed looks up, directly into my eyes. Suddenly, I am frozen. I can‘t move. I can‘t speak. Reed‘s eyes are focused and calm. ―Please understand that I bear you no ill will . It pains me to have to do this. And so it will be quick and painless. First you will become drowsy, then you will start to feel warm, and actual y quite happy. You‘ll begin to drift off into a deep, contented sleep.‖ He sounds like a doctor talking about some minor medical procedure. But he‘s not talking about something minor—he‘s tell ing me how I‘m going to die. I

open my mouth to say something, but I‘m already feeling warm. Floating. My muscles begin to relax. ―It will be painless,‖ Reed assures me. ―And we will remember your name. We will honor your memory. And Natalia‘s, too. Together, may you be reunited on the other side.‖ Don’t Miss The Witches of Santa Anna #12, Coming June 2011….. Can‘t wait?? Turn the page for a sneak peek of EMBERS, the first book of the new Playing With Fire series from Lauren Barnholdt and Aaron Gorvine, available now…. EMBERS (Playing With Fire #1) By Lauren Barnholdt & Aaron Gorvine Copyright 2011, Lauren Barnholdt and Aaron Gorvine, all rights reserved. This book is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to any places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. No part of this text may be reproduced without written permission of the authors.

Chapter One Emily This vacation is not off to a good start. I‘ve been in the backseat of my parents‘ car for five hours, and my iPod died after the first two. Which means that for the past three hours, I‘ve been subjected to listening to whatever my dad put on the car radio (read: 1940s jazz music, or political talk radio.) After the first hour, I was getting antsy. I‘d finished my book (ending = the destined-to-be couple got together, despite all odds), and it was getting hot in the backseat. By the third hour, I was so bored I was actual y considering pulling out the travel Scrabble and playing a game. Against myself. I know I shouldn‘t be complaining. And normal y, I wouldn‘t be. Normal y, I‘d be super excited about going away to the Cape, spending the summer by the beach, relaxing, working on my tan, and forgetting about the stresses of home. But this summer isn‘t normal. This summer is completely different. This summer, I actual y have someone to stay home for. ―We‘re here,‖ my dad announces from the front seat. I look up from rereading the best parts of the book I just finished, and my jaw drops. ―This is the house we‘re staying in?‖ I ask in disbelief. I was picturing a tiny cottage, with crumbling shutters and a ramshackle fence in need of some paint. But this house… this house is huge. It‘s sprawling and new, with cream-colored siding, a neatly manicured lawn, and huge sparkling windows. Rose bushes line either side of the granite steps, and a neat white fence separates the back from the front. ―Yup,‖ my dad says, sounding proud of himself. He slides the car into park. In the passenger seat, my mom pushes her sunglasses up on her forehead and peers through the windshield. ―It‘s gorgeous,‖ she says. ―I think we should all get in the pool and worry about unpacking later.‖ ―It has a pool?‖ I‘m out of the car now, shielding my eyes from the sun as I stare up the driveway toward the house. ―How the hell can we afford a place like this?‖ I demand. My

parents are not rich. They‘re not poor, either, but money has always been tight. In fact, this is the first family vacation I can remember us taking since I was a little kid. And even then we always stayed in cheap motels and ate most of our meals at Burger King. My phone beeps with a text before I can get any explanation regarding our financial situation. I pull it out of my bag. Gabe. ―miss u already‖ I swallow around the lump in my throat. I don‘t care about the pool anymore. Or the fact that the house we‘re staying in is so big. I don‘t care about anything except the fact that I just want to go home. *** Once we‘re inside, my parents immediately head upstairs to drop their bags off in the master bedroom, but I leave mine on the floor in the middle of the front hall . I‘m hoping they get the message. The message being, ―Oh, look, you brought me here and made me leave my boyfriend, so now I‘m going to refuse to put my stuff away.‖ It‘s ridiculous and childish and bratty and I kind of don‘t care. Once I‘ve made my big statement, I don‘t real y know what else to do with myself, so I wander through the huge kitchen and into the backyard. I‘m getting myself al worked up, wondering how my parents could do this to me, and so at first, I don‘t see him. The guy. He‘s cleaning the huge, inground pool, and he looks up when I come outside, his eyes meeting mine. ―Oh,‖ I say, ―Sorry, I, um, I didn‘t know anyone was going to be back here.‖ He‘s wearing a pair of navy blue shorts, and no shirt, and he‘s skimming the water with a huge net. ―No problem,‖ he says, grinning. ―You must be the tenants.‖ ―Yeah,‖ I say, ―And you must be … ― I trail off, because I‘m not sure exactly what to say. Somehow saying ‗you must be the pool boy‘ definitely doesn‘t seem like it‘s okay. Not that I would know for sure. We‘ve never had a pool boy before. We‘ve never even paid someone to cut our lawn. ―I‘m Lucas,‖ he says. He pulls the net out of the pool and drops it on the concrete stones. He picks his shirt up off a lawn chair, and then tosses it over his head. ―I live here.‖ ―You live here?‖ ―Don‘t worry,‖ he says, seeing the look on my face. ―Not for the summer.‖ He pushes by me and toward the other side of the pool. As he does, he pushes his arms through the sleeves of his shirt, and I swallow. Hard. His muscles bulge through the fabric. His arms are tan and strong, the kind of arms that have obviously spent a lot of time outside, working in the sun. ―You live here but not for the summer?‖ I ask. ―That doesn‘t make sense.‖ ―My dad owns this house,‖ he says, ―But in the summer, he rents it out.‖ He‘s bending down now, his hand in the water, messing around with the filter. ―Why would you rent out a house like this?‖ I ask, sitting down in one of the patio chairs. ―It‘s amazing.‖ ―My dad likes to stay closer to the beach in the summer,‖ he says, and shrugs. He finishes with the filter and wipes his hand on his shorts.

Suddenly, I‘m aware of the fact that my hair is probably a mess from napping on it in the car, and I‘m sure my makeup is dripping down my face because of the humidity. Not that I care what I look like. I mean, I have a boyfriend. Okay, that‘s a lie. I kind of do care what I look like. Because Lucas is hot. The kind of hot that isn‘t disputable. The kind of hot that, boyfriend or not, you can‘t help but notice. ―Emily, did you – ― my mom starts, walking out onto the patio. ―Oh,‖ she says when she sees Lucas. ―I didn‘t know someone else was out here.‖ For a second, I think I see a look of anxiety, or maybe fear, flash across her face. But that doesn‘t make any sense. Why would she be worried about a guy who‘s cleaning our pool? ―Sorry,‖ Lucas says, giving her a grin. He reaches over and holds out his hand. ―I‘m Lucas Marshal . My dad owns this house.‖ ―Oh, of course!‖ my mom says, her eyes lighting up. ―Paul mentioned he had a boy just Emily‘s age.‖ ―I was just cleaning the pool,‖ Lucas says. ―It‘s such a hot day, I figured you might want to have a swim.‖ ―That‘s so nice of you,‖ my mom says. ―That‘s so nice of him, isn‘t it, Emily?‖ ―Yeah,‖ I say, ―Very nice.‖ I stand up. It‘s time for me to go in the house. One, because I need to call Gabe and two, because I know what‘s about to happen. See, the thing is, my mom real y does not like the fact that I have a boyfriend. Which is total y ridiculous, since Gabe is exactly the kind of guy you‘d want your daughter to be dating – straight A student, athletic, super polite, etc. But it‘s not about Gabe. My mom doesn‘t think I should be serious with any guy right now. She thinks when you‘re sixteen you should be out partying and having fun. She‘s constantly tell ing me to ―be young while I can‖ and ―explore my options.‖ It‘s pretty ironic, actual y. Most girls would kill for a mom who wants them to go out and party all the time. But all I want is for her to accept that I‘m not into al that typical high school stuff. ―So, Luke,‖ my mom says, sidling closer to him. I wonder what he thinks about her call ing him Luke, when he said his name was Lucas. It‘s like when people call me ‗Em‘ without asking. I hate that. People shouldn‘t shorten your name unless they ask you first. Or unless they know you really well. I sneak a glance at my phone to see if Gabe texted me again. I wonder if it would be rude to just walk into the house. ―Would you like to stay for dinner?‖ my mom asks. I look at her, not even trying to disguise the look of horror on my face. Would he like to stay for dinner? Is she crazy? You don‘t just go around asking hot guys to stay for dinner. ―Oh, I can‘t,‖ Lucas says. He‘s still kneeling down by the pool, testing the chlorine levels. ―I have plans. In fact, I‘m already late.‖ ―Plans?‖ My mom looks interested. ―What kind of plans?‖ ―One of my friends is having a party,‖ Lucas says. He packs up the chlorine testing kit and stands up.

―Pool‘s al set.‖ ―A party sounds wonderful!‖ My mom turns to me and claps her hands. ―Emily, wouldn‘t you love to go to a party tonight?‖ I feel my face turn hot. One of the curses of being a redhead is that I blush super easy. And everyone around me can usual y tell . ―No, Mom,‖ I say, ―I wouldn‘t.‖ ―I‘m sure Emily wants to stay here and get settled in with her family,‖ Lucas says, sounding like he‘s trying to be diplomatic. My blush gets even deeper. Great. Now not only is my mom trying to dump me off on some guy I just met, but he doesn‘t even want to take me to wherever he‘s going. Not that I blame him. I wouldn‘t want to take some stranger to hang out with me and my friends, either. But still . Hasn‘t he heard of inviting someone just to be polite? ―Yes,‖ I say, nodding. ―I have to stay here and get settled in. Plus I have to call my boyfriend.‖ ―Oh, nonsense,‖ my mom says, waving her hand in the air like what I‘ve just said is completely ridiculous. ―You should go to the party. Shouldn‘t she, Lucas?‖ ―Um, sure,‖ Lucas says, giving me a polite smile. ―You should come.‖ ―I don‘t want to.‖ ―Why not?‖ my mom asks. ―Yeah, why not?‖ Lucas asks. Now all of a sudden he wants me to go? Probably he‘s not used to girls turning him down. ―I‘d need time to get ready,‖ I say, trying once again to extricate myself from this situation. ―And I‘m not even unpacked.‖ ―Al you‘d have to do is change your clothes,‖ my mom says. ―You look beautiful already. Doesn‘t she, Luke?‖ ―Sure,‖ he says, his smile a little strained. I can tell my mom isn‘t going to let this go – she‘ll keep pushing and pushing until I give in. I know exactly how she gets when she wants something. I think about it, trying to decide if it‘s worth getting into a big fight with her. Maybe the party won‘t be that bad. And if I go, maybe I‘ll be able to meet some friends here, instead of just having to sit inside all summer, hanging out with my parents and missing Gabe. ―Fine,‖ I say, sighing. ―Just give me a sec to get ready.‖ *** I lug my suitcase upstairs, and then pick a bedroom at random. I drop my bag onto the big, comfy looking queen-size bed that‘s sitting in the middle of the room. It‘s covered with an aqua blue comforter, but I brought my own bedding from home, a pink and chocolate polka-dot spread. I thought it would be good to have at least some of my own stuff here. I wonder which one of these rooms is Lucas‘s. Probably not this one, since I‘m sure he doesn‘t sleep with an aqua blue comforter. Of course, it‘s possible that they changed al the bedding and put all their stuff away before we got here. The thought of sleeping in Lucas‘s bed starts to make me feel a little hot, so I push it out of my mind and quickly unzip my suitcase.

I rummage through the tangle of shorts, tank tops, and dresses, wondering what I should wear. What kind of party is this, anyway? Is it the kind you dress up for? Lucas didn‘t say anything about dressing up. But this is the Cape. People here are hoity-toity. Or at least some of them are. Doesn‘t that one lady on the Food Network, Barefoot Contessa, live on the Cape? Or is that the Hamptons? Either way, if Lucas lives in this house, his family must have money. Which probably means that his friends have money. Which probably means that it‘s at least a little bit of a high-class party. The only problem is, I don‘t real y have anything high-class. Final y, I take a navy blue strapless summer dress out of my suitcase and pull it over my head. I step into a pair of gold wedge sandals, run a brush through my hair, and then get to work fixing the disaster that‘s my makeup. I reapply my foundation, line my lips with a pink gloss, and slap a couple of coats of mascara onto my eyelashes. I‘m just about to head downstairs, when I hear it. Voices coming from downstairs. My parents. They‘re talking in these slow, measured tones. The kind of tones they use when they‘re fighting. My parents don‘t fight like normal people. They don‘t yell and scream and throw vases. They talk in tight, quiet voices, so that I won‘t hear. ―….have to be careful,‖ my dad‘s saying. ―…can‘t just let her…‖ ―…if they own the house…‖ ―….everyone….suspicious…‖ I‘m debating whether or not to creep down the stairs so I can hear them a little better and figure out exactly what it is they‘re arguing about, when my mom starts to come upstairs. I step back into my room, and quickly pull my compact out of my purse, pretending to study my makeup. ―Hey!‖ she says when she appears at the door, trying to infuse brightness into her voice. ―Hey,‖ I say, doing the same so that she doesn‘t know I was eavesdropping. ―So, listen,‖ she says, sitting down on the bed. ―Your father‘s worried about you going out tonight.‖ ―Oh, God,‖ I say, rolling my eyes. I reach into my suitcase and pull out a small plastic jewelry case. Gabe gave it to me before I left. I open the box and pull out a thin gold chain, then fasten it around my neck. ―What‘s he so worried about?‖ ―He just wants you to be careful.‖ She looks at me, her eyes serious. ―He‘s not used to you… um, you know, being like this.‖ She gestures at my body. And even though she doesn‘t say it, I know what she means. My dad‘s not used to be me being skinny. Because up until about a year ago, I was fat. Not overweight. Not chubby. Fat. Very fat. And now I‘m not. ―Mom,‖ I say, rolling my eyes and hoping we don‘t have to get into a whole big conversation about this. I always get a little uncomfortable talking about my weight. Even though I‘m not fat anymore, I don‘t like talking about body size, or dress size, or the number on the scale. I think it‘s a holdover from when I was fat – I always went out of my

way to avoid talking about that stuff, and now it‘s ingrained into me. ―I lost weight. That doesn‘t mean I became stupid. I‘m not suddenly going to start drinking or doing drugs or anything crazy like that.‖ ―No, that‘s not….‖ she trails off, moving her gaze until she‘s staring out the window. Her eyes, which were just happy and vibrant while we were outside by the pool, now seem tired and a little vacant. ―I‘m not talking about drugs.‖ ―Then what are you talking about?‖ ―I‘m talking about….being careful. About who you trust.‖ ―Mom! I‘m not going to just go home with some random person or anything, if that‘s what you‘re worried about.‖ I want to ask her why she basically y threw me at that Lucas kid, if she‘s so nervous about me trusting strangers. But I don‘t want to get into it, and besides, I already know the answer. She wants me to be able to have fun and go out. My dad doesn‘t. He still sees me as his little girl. She gets up and stands next to me, pushes my hair back from my face. ―I know you won‘t.‖ She kisses me on my forehead. ―You look beautiful.‖ ―Thanks,‖ I say. I thread a pair of chunky gold hoops through my ears. ―So I‘ll text you when I get there?‖ ―Call me when you get there.‖ ―Okay.‖ ―Let me give you some money,‖ she says, ―Just in case.‖ ―It‘s okay,‖ I say, sliding my purse over my shoulder. ―I have my debit card.‖ She shakes her head. ―Don‘t use the debit card.‖ ―Why not?‖ ―Because.‖ I see that weird look flash through her eyes, the same look she got when she first saw Lucas in the backyard. ―In fact,‖ she says, ―Why don‘t you give the debit card to me?‖ ―What‘s going on?‖ I ask, rummaging through my bag for my wall et. ―Are we having money problems?‖ I knew we couldn‘t afford this house. ―No,‖ she says, shaking her head. She gives me a smile. ―It‘s just that we‘re getting new cards, and I don‘t want you using the old one by mistake.‖ She‘s obviously lying. She doesn‘t want me using the old one by mistake? I mean, that‘s not even a good excuse. Does she think I‘m some kind of idiot? ―Mom,‖ I say, holding the card out of her reach. ―What‘s going on?‖ ―Nothing.‖ ―Mom, I‘m not stupid.‖ ―There‘s nothing going on!‖ she says. She‘s trying to sound like she can‘t believe I‘m getting all worked up, but it‘s a little too forced, a sure sign that she‘s not telling the truth. ―Mom, you can tell me whatever – ‖ ―Emily,‖ she says warningly, and holds her hand out. I sigh. I don‘t have time to think about why she‘s acting so crazy. And so I hand her the card, deciding I‘ll have to worry about it later. I smooth my dress down one more time. And then I head down the stairs to go meet Lucas for my first party on the Cape…. Find out what happens with Lucas and Emily, in EMBERS, Playing With Fire #1,

available now… Table of Contents Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four

Chapter One