Chapter 22

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

FRANKIE

"Okay, where do you want all these paper lanterns?"

Madge looked up from her clipboard to Seamus, then pointed to her left. "Bring those over to Ava. She's going to fill them with these little twinkle lights."

As Seamus lugged two big boxes across the gym, I glanced around. I'd been helping him carry boxes of decorations in since neither of us were gifted with a wand. Seamus said they used magic to decorate, but so far everything looked perfectly human.

"Why are you frowning?" Madge lightly tapped on my forehead with her pen. "What's wrong?"

"I was just wondering where the magic is?" I gestured around the gym. "Also, if you can use magic to decorate, then why didn't you just use magic to create decorations?"

"That would be nice, wouldn't it?" Madge shrugged one shoulder, then glanced over and yelled, "Jo, please, remove Tomás from the flower walls. He will break them before he gets them hung up."

Jo swatted at Tomás's hands, forcing him to drop the curtain covered in fake flowers of every color. She shooed him away. He looked up and spotted me watching them and his smile widened. My stomach tightened into knots. I needed to find an opening to let him down gently. I just wasn't interested in him that way. It was unfortunate but still true.

"Only a Wand could create decorations, and while Ava is brilliant at using her Wand to put up these decorations, she does not have the skill to create. And Esther, well, her magic is weak— wait! " Madge scowled and spun around until she spotted Esther on the far side of the gym with Birdie. "Esther! Come here!"

Esther hurried over, and the closer she got, the more that electricity in the air tingled. It didn't usually feel like that with her. Those gray eyes of hers really sparkled today. They were almost a light blue now. Even her skin held more color than before.

"Why are you guys looking at me like that?" She glanced back and forth between us. "What?"

I looked to Madge, but the fashionista was just staring at our friend pensively. "Madge?"

She cursed. "Where's your wand?"

Esther pointed to her hair where the wand was sticking through her messy bun. "Why?"

"Has your magic come back stronger yet?" I prayed I wasn't overstepping but those rune stones had been for me, or so she said. I reached into my backpack that was sitting on the table next to Madge and pulled out that blue velvet drawstring bag. The second my hands touched it, blue flames billowed from within it. I held them up. "We haven't talked about these much, admittedly because I'm a little freaked out by it, but you said once your job was complete, your magic would restrengthen . . . So has it?"

She opened her mouth, then shut it. Her eyes were wide. She reached up with hands that trembled ever so slightly and plucked her wand from her hair. "I've been too afraid to hope it was stronger now, because what if it isn't?"

"What if it is?" Madge cleared her throat. When I looked up to her, she had a shimmer in her eyes. " Try it now ," she whispered.

"What . . ." Esther looked around the gym, then back to her wand. "What should I try?"

"Try the stars," Whitney said from suddenly behind us. When we all looked to her, she shrugged. "What? Those chiffon strips we drape across the ceiling with the twinkle lights are a pain in the ass to put up—even with magic. Ava and I have skill but that's a bit beyond us."

"Okay. Right. I can try that." Esther licked her lips and stared at her wand. "I know how to use this. I know how magic works. I just have to . . ."

She spun away from us toward the center of the gym and waved her wand like that dude in an orchestra leading everyone. Instantly, white sheer curtains lifted off the ground and shot straight to the ceiling. Gasps echoed around the gym and then I heard footsteps hurrying toward us. I glanced around to find all of Esther's friends with tears in their eyes and flushes in their cheeks. They watched silently as she expertly draped the fabric, then lifted strings with golden lights within them. When she lowered her wand, the ceiling looked like a galaxy of stars twinkling down at us.

Her magic was back.

Esther choked on a sob and the group pounced on her with the most violent group hug I'd ever seen. They were aggressively happy for her. I meant to get in there, to celebrate with her, but I was taken aback by the emotional power of the moment. This was friendship. For all the jokes and light-heartedness, they all cared so damn much for each other.

"What happened?"

I jumped and spun to find Atley standing there with a horrified expression on his face. Behind him Peabo, Brody, and Danny looked more concerned than scared. I smiled. "Esther's magic is strong again."

Their eyes all widened and then they tackled her in a hug.

Madge was the first to break from the hug. She wiped at her eyes, smearing her purple eyeliner, and held up her clipboard. "Okay, okay, I think we can re-evaluate our decorating plan. What should we have Esther try next?"

Ideas were thrown at her in rapid-fire. I couldn't discern one from the other, so I just backed away. Magic was still so new to me, and I wasn't a Wand, which meant I wasn't going to be much help. I was feeling some type of way, but I couldn't put my finger on it. Obviously, I was so happy for Esther. I knew her magic being so weak while having such prestige to her family name bothered her more than she let on . . . Seeing that dark period end in front of me was surreal and . . . magical. But it was also a reminder of why this happened.

And the why kept me up all night.

Esther's mother had come over to talk to me and my aunt and uncle about the rune stones, but she didn't know much more information than Esther had. She did, however, have a little blue leather notebook with a cool lock that apparently their family had been keeping notes in since they got the stones. That notebook was currently in my aunt's possession. She wanted to read and research as much she could before I tapped into them. Since I was so new to all this, I was grateful for it.

"You all right, Miss Existential Crisis over there?"

I jumped and looked to Archie who stood beside me. "What?"

He pointed to his own face, then to mine. "That's an alarming face to be making. Wanna share with the class?"

I bit my bottom lip and shook my head.

"Okay, wanna share just with me since I'm the only one standing within earshot?"

I frowned and looked up and my breath left me in a rush. The others had all followed Esther to the other side of the gym where she was creating glow-in-the-dark butterflies that hung on strings from the ceiling.

"Yeah, the shock at you finding out they all left is part of the alarming thing."

I closed my eyes and smiled. "Archie . . ."

"Why don't you loosen your grip . . ." When I looked, I found my left hand gripping the bag of rune stones so tight my muscles were straining. He tapped my hand softly. "Yeah, that's your arm. Very good. We're making progress. Let's uncurl one finger at a time, shall we?"

A little nervous chuckle came out. I took a deep breath, then slowly uncurled my fingers, but my muscles were so tight they didn't want to relax. Archie caught the bag of stones and put them in my other hand. I exhaled and shook my left hand out. "Thanks."

"No problem."

I groaned. "What does this mean, Archie? Why did some angel leave these for me centuries ago? Why me? And what do these runes mean? What do these stones do?"

"I don't know what this means or what the stones do, though I know you'll find out soon enough." He pulled the bag from my hand and opened it. "I also know that you're a Proctor. You come from the line of Edward Proctor, the son of angel Uriel, who was given Archangel Michael's Heavenly sword to fight Lilith in the last war. That is not a coincidence, of that I am positive."

I stared at him. I didn't know what to say. Archie was quiet and unassuming, yet when you got him alone, he really knew and understood a lot about magic, the world, and the history of arcana. He was an old soul who saw too much.

"While I cannot read the Angelic language, I do know what that symbol you saw last night was. The big one in pink…" He gestured with his hands to make the shape of it. "That rune meant The Coven."

I gasped. " Really? "

He shrugged and dug through the bag of stones. "You see things in Eden, and if you listen closely, you'll hear them here too." He held the one stone with that same symbol on it.

"It was a message, wasn't it? That's what it felt like. The stones were telling me to seek The Coven, weren't they?"

He smiled. "I think that is a safe bet."

"But why?"

"For help." He frowned. "They're not just brutal warriors. They're experts in magic and this world we live in. That's why there's so many of them. We're supposed to go to them for help, whatever help we need. People just forget that in times of fear and war."

"Dude, how old are you?" I blurted before I could stop myself. "Sorry. Just, you say some of the deepest shit."

"I get that a lot." He cleared his throat and shifted his weight around, then handed the bag of stones back to me. "When you're ready, you should seek them out for help with these. Also, I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure I overheard that the High Priestess can speak the Angelic language, so she'd be your first stop . . . and then probably your extended family members. Until then, just keep those safe and near you at all times."

"And the notebook Esther's mom gave me." I nodded. "Thanks, Archie. Not to get all touchy feely on ya here, but I don't know what I would've done without you here. You and Esther."

He smiled and his cheeks flushed. "You're a pretty stand-up friend too. I bet Elizabeth would agree."

My heart hurt. "Thanks."

"Right." He cleared his throat. "Well, we've made us both uncomfortable, so I'm gonna take a bathroom break. When I get back, we'll forget this happened."

I was still laughing as I watched him walk through the door that led out to the hallway where the bathrooms were. With a sigh, I turned and shoved my bag of scary angel stones back into my backpack. Esther and her family had kept these stones safe for centuries. I needed to at least keep them safe for a day.

"You okay, Frankie?"

I spun to find Tomás standing there with a sheepish smile on his face. "I think I'd have to ask you the same thing . . ."

He wrung his hands together and shifted his weight around. The nervous chuckle made me nervous. "Yeah, um, well . . . I wanted to ask you something, but it's hard to find you alone."

Oh boy. Here we go. I took a deep breath and nodded. "Well, ask me then."

His face turned bright-red. He glanced over his shoulder like he wanted to make sure we were alone, then looked back to me with puppy dog eyes. "I was wondering if you'd like to be my date for the dance tomorrow?"

Whomp, there it is. Shit. Okay, Frankie, you wanted a way to start this conversation, so have it. I smiled. "I'm not the type to beat around the bush, so I'm just going to be blunt . . . I don't have romantic or physical feelings for you. I've been trying, because you're so adorable. It's just not there."

His face fell and it hurt my heart. He looked to the ground and nodded. "I understand."

I reached out and put my hand on his shoulder. "I do really like you, as a friend, and I would've loved to go as your date for fun, but I don't want to be inconsiderate of your feelings. I don't want to lead you on."

At that, he peeked up at me through his dark eyelashes and gave me a small smile. "You haven't, which is why I was so nervous to ask because I was pretty sure you were going to say no."

I groaned. "I'm sorry, Tomás."

"It's okay. Thanks for being nice about it." He sighed and glanced over his shoulder to the group. "If I'm being honest, I wasn't sure I liked you that way either. You're really pretty and super awesome, but I wasn't sure. I was hoping though, I mean, you're the first new girl in town in a while so I had to try. Because, man, it's hard being single with them. Ava and Seamus are still in that puppy love stage and then there are literal soulmates."

"What about Esther or Birdie?"

"Esther and I dated two years ago. I wasn't good for her. She's . . . she's got all this pressure on her with her bloodline being what it is. I wasn't the right match for that. And now that her magic is free? I don't expect her to get to stay with us. Something tells me The Coven will claim her as one of their pets soon." He frowned. "And Birdie? We both feel like I'm her little brother, so that just wouldn't work."

"I get that. My best friend has an older brother who is gorgeous but . . . he's my brother and that's gross."

"See!?" He threw his arms up. "You get it."

We both laughed.

"Well, what about the other girls?"

"Barb, Patti, and Ruby are heading to SOMA next year for sure. Caitlin is going Ivy League and will be living among humans, which is not where I wanna be. Pitts is miserable, so no thanks. Marina only cares about soccer. Sierra's my cousin, like for real. The other three makeup girls, I don't know?—"

"Whitney seems really cool." I pointed to her. "I mean, she does magical tattoos. That's epic."

He pursed his lips. "She does make really cool art too. I don't know why she doesn't hang with us more."

"Maybe she's shy? Maybe she's uncertain if she's welcome to be in the group? Y'all are a very tight knit circle." I shrugged. "Why don't you go talk to her?"

"Just ask her to be my date for the dance?"

"Why not? Best case, y'all fall madly in love. Worst case, you have fun at the dance together and keep it platonic."

He snapped his fingers. "Fuck it. Why not? It'd be nice to not go to a dance alone again. Okay, Imma do it."

"Good luck!"

He spun on his toes, then skipped across the gym toward Whitney. I smiled and shook my head. Dodged that bullet. It was a damn shame I wasn't attracted to Tomás. He was such a great guy and would probably be a fun boyfriend. Dating was not an area of my life I excelled in.

"Did anyone lose their chihuahua?"

Jacob. I knew that grating voice anywhere. I spun and rage filled my veins. Jacob and Aaron were carrying Archie by the back of hoodie, his feet dangling about a foot in the air between them. Archie looked entertained, and that was the only reason I hadn't already pulled out my bat. Because the look in their eyes was pure antagonization. They wanted to piss me off, to instigate a fight to retaliate. They wanted me to get in trouble.

"We'd be happy to take this one to the shelter?—"

"Put him down," I snapped. My hands were already in fists at my side. "Now."

Archie smirked at me. "At least I got to pee first."

Only Archie would be making jokes when being carried by the scruff like a kitten. He just let himself dangle. He didn't try to get free or defend himself. I genuinely thought Archie found this to be hilarious, and it made no sense to me.

Aaron looked around, then gave me a sickening smile. "No cameras in here right now so they can use magic. How convenient that is for us."

"No one will have proof of what we do." Jacob smacked Archie's cheek with the back of his hand. "Shall we break something on him first?"

"Nah, how far can he get from us? Let's take the bitch down first." Aaron wagged his eyebrows. "Her friends are too busy over there to notice. I bet we could break a few bones first."

I sighed. Bullies were exhausting. "Do you really wanna do this? You really want a fight? Haven't you had enough?"

"You got us suspended from school," Jacob snarled.

"No. You got you suspended from school for having a brawl on a baseball field." I gestured between them. "Do you not remember you both charging the pitcher's mound unprovoked?"

" Unprovoked? You little?—"

A shrill scream ripped through the gym.

I spun toward the sound with my heart in my throat. Rootbeer barked and tackled Seamus like she wanted to shield his body with hers. The glass windows at the top of the gym walls exploded and shards of glass rained down on us. Dark objects shot across the ceiling.

" DEMON! " Archie yelled.

Demons? OH MY GOD. What? Those?! They were so small, about the size of a basketball, and had little wings that fluttered so fast you could barely see them. They swarmed like gnats trying to find a way around the fabric hanging from the ceiling.

A black object bounced off the ground, soared over Rootbeer's body, and slammed into Esther's chest. She screamed and flew backward, her back sliding across the gym floor. Atley pounced on Esther with his sword drawn. He grabbed the demon by the wing, pulling it off of her so he could stab it with his blade. Black liquid splashed onto the ground.

And then chaos reigned around us.

"Aaron—"

"Drop him! GO!"

I glanced back just as Archie's feet hit the ground and his legs buckled beneath him, sending him crashing onto his knees. Aaron and Jacob were already out the door. Those cowards just ran away.

"Franks, get that bat out!" Archie yanked on my arm. "Get it out!"

SHIT. I pulled my phone out of my pocket, then pressed my finger to the sticker of the baseball bat. In a flash of blue magic, my Louisville Slugger sat perfectly in my grip. I adjusted my grip and swung it around out of pure habit just as one of those demons dropped down right in front of us. There was a flash of red eyes. I screamed and swung my bat as hard as I could. The demon shot straight into the wall with a splatter.

" What the hell are these?" Peabo shouted. He was chasing one across the gym, but his swings were missing like the demon was dodging him. "Atley!"

"I don't know! These are new!" Atley dove in the air and tackled a demon, wrapping his arms around it. "Catch and kill!"

Something moved in my peripheral vision. I spun and screamed with all the rage in my body. Five demon gnats were hovering around my backpack. I went full Hulk-smash mode and whacked the shit out of whatever I could hit.

"The stones!" Archie grabbed my backpack, then sprinted away. "HOME RUN DERBY!"

Home run derby? I gasped. OH! The demon gnats were chasing him. They must be drawn to the magic in the stones! I cursed and sprinted after them, hitting each of them with my bat as we ran. Once they were gone, we ducked behind a table. I looked out to our friends and my stomach sank. There were demons everywhere. It was a swarm. I tried to keep track of my friends, but they were running and dodging demons.

Ava leapt to her feet and screamed as she whipped her wand back and forth. She bolted across the gym, shooting spells at the demons. Whitney had her back pressed to a wall, but she was also throwing magic at the demons with her wand. I had no idea what they were doing. ll I saw were flashes of light.

Gold and navy-blue glitter shot like a firework through the chaos. Demons hissed and shrieked when Esther's magic hit them. I scanned the gym for her, but I couldn't find her. I just saw her magic going everywhere. Peabo and Atley were fierce. I suddenly understood what the rest of this community knew about these two young teens. But they couldn't do this on their own.

"We have to kill them, right?"

"Yeah. They're not gonna just leave." Archie cursed. "These things are annoying."

"Are they drawn to the stones in my bag?"

He nodded.

"Fun. Stay here with them."

I didn't give him a chance to argue. Archie was great but he was too clumsy for this. He tripped on air on a daily basis. He needed to just stay down and stay hidden. I had to get in there and help the boys.

"ATLEY!" I planted my feet and swung my bat into a demon gnat. "KILL!"

He jumped up and sliced his sword through the demon's body. As black demon blood splashed onto him, he looked to me with wide eyes. "AGAIN! PEABO!"

"I SMASH. YOU KILL!" And then I charged into the fight with a battle cry.

I ran around the gym like a headless chicken just swatting at anything that moved. My body found a rhythm. I thanked my years as an athlete for that. But in my head, it was just a steady stream of screaming. I tried to keep an eye on my friends, but it was impossible. Every other second there was magic shooting by me. The lights in the ceiling flickered like in a horror film.

A demon dropped in front of me. It bounced off the ground, then flew right toward me like a baseball from the pitcher's mound. I slid to a stop with a curse, jumped into position, then slammed the demon into left field. I watched in horrified slow motion as that demon soared right for Archie who was no longer hiding behind the table. I screamed his name, but it was too late. It crashed into his face and sent them both flying into the shadows.

"I'm fine!" Archie shouted from out of sight.

I took a deep breath and cringed at the scent of maple syrup clinging to the air.

The doors to the gym opened. I braced myself for more demons, only to find my aunt and uncle standing in the open doorway. Uncle Kyle held a stack of three pizza boxes. Aunt Kimmy held a bag with what looked like bottles of soda. Their eyes widened.

"Well, this is a fun surprise." Uncle Kyle chuckled. He actually chuckled.

Aunt Kimmy pulled her wand out and swirled it in the air while whispering words I couldn't make out. Light sparkled over my head. I turned to watch as my aunt's spell disintegrated three demons at once. I gasped and looked back at her, but she just kept going without pausing.

Uncle Kyle was still holding pizza boxes, but he hurried into the gym. "Franks, send ‘em here!"

I lunged toward a demon and swung. It soared right for my uncle who calmly just lifted the pizza boxes and drop kicked the demon to the ground. Then he stomped it with his foot, causing black demon blood to splatter across his jeans.

He laughed. "AGAIN!"

We did this five more times before I turned and found no more demons. I spun in circles, scanning the gym for more. There had to be more.

"Okay. Demons are dead," Aunt Kimmy yelled out. "Take a deep breath, kids."

I exhaled in a rush and dropped my bat onto the floor so I could rest my hands on my knees. My chest and lungs were on fire. The oxygen I sucked in burned a path down my throat. Sweat dripped down my temples and my spine.

"Right. Let's get the lights back at least." Aunt Kimmy flicked her wand, and the lights came right back on over our heads. She nodded. "That's better."

"Well, we know you're hungry now." Uncle Kyle chuckled and finally sat the three boxes on a table. "Come and get a slice while it's still hot."

Atley was breathing heavy and still gripping his sword like he was waiting for more. "Don't we need to clean up?"

"In a minute. Everyone over here. Now." Aunt Kimmy waved for everyone to follow her. Once we were all together around the pizza boxes, Aunt Kimmy pointed her wand like a flashlight at us, walking one by one. "Let me assess any injuries first. The clean-up can wait. But grab a slice while it's hot. It's important to eat."

Tomás, Brody, Whitney, and Danny went straight for the pizza without hesitation.

Birdie held her hand up. "Um, I'd like to warn the rest of the community. Just in case."

"Thank you. Yes. Go ahead. You'll have to step outside for your phone to work but don't go far." Aunt Kimmy turned to Atley. "Can you go with her?"

Atley gave her a salute, then followed Birdie for the door.

Peabo cleared his throat. "Can I do a little perimeter check? I'd feel better if I knew there weren't more lurking in the shadows. The Coven always does a perimeter check after an attack—ever since Cassandra."

"Yes, but not alone. Brody, would you go with him?"

Brody grabbed another slice of pizza, then unsheathed his dagger. "We got this."

Once they took off, Aunt Kimmy turned back to the rest of us. "Okay, who's hurt?"

"Seamus is." Ava pointed to her boyfriend beside her. "He was protecting Rootbeer and they sliced him up pretty good."

I gasped and turned toward him. "Is Rootbeer okay?"

Seamus didn't respond. He was just sitting on the ground next to his dog, running his blood-splattered hands through her fur. He turned his head to the side, and I saw a little river of blood running down his neck from right behind his ear. I cursed and moved closer. Rootbeer barked and put her paw on Seamus's arm.

He jumped and looked up with wide, panicked eyes. "What?" he yelled so loud we all flinched.

Ava scowled and dropped down in front of him. She cupped his face and turned it from side to side, then she reached up and pulled not one but two shattered hearing aids off. They were covered in both black demon blood and Seamus's red blood. His face fell as he stared at them in her hands.

She kissed his forehead, then stood and looked to my aunt. "He's not gonna be able to hear a single thing without these. Um, his parents have extras?—"

"Why don't you go get those and come back?"

"I can bring him to the infirmary. I know sign language," I offered.

Ava's yellow eyes filled with unshed tears. She nodded. "I'll meet you there?"

"Yep. Don't worry. I've got him." I tapped his shoulder to get his attention, then I signed, " Ava is going to your house to get your other hearing aids. She's going to meet us at the infirmary. Okay? "

"Yeah." He looked up at his girlfriend and smiled. His voice was much louder than it needed to be, but without his hearing aids, he'd have trouble knowing how loud he was so no one flinched or said a thing. "I'm okay. Just little cuts. Rootbeer is not hurt. I'll go with Frankie."

Ava started to sign, but she was struggling. "Dammit, I have to get better at ASL faster. Um, ask him if he wants to take Rootbeer with him or should I bring her home?"

He was watching us with a frown, and I saw his frustration in his eyes, so I signed, " Do you want Rootbeer to go with you or home? "

He looked to his dog. "Rootbeer, you want to go home?—"

She jumped in his lap, which gave us all the chuckle we needed in that moment.

Ava sighed. "Okay, I'll go now. I'll meet you at the infirmary."

Uncle Kyle cocked his head to the side. "Madge, Jo, are you okay? You hurt?"

Jo tapped on her chest. " Je serai marqué à jamais ."

Madge laughed. "She'll be scarred forever."

" Je suis blessée émotionnellement. " Jo shuddered and specks of black demon blood fell off of her blonde hair. " Je ne serai plus jamais la même ."

"You're right. We'll never be the same." Madge scrubbed her face with her hands. Her stiletto-pointed nails were stained with black demon blood. When she pulled her hands away, she smeared her eyeliner down her cheeks. She huffed. "We got too comfortable with them here. We can't be the same. Give me pizza."

"But are you hurt?"

"No, Uncle Kyle. I am not physically injured. Unless I find a wound after a shower. Can I just have pizza now?" Madge pouted her bottom lip at my uncle. I loved that they all referred to them as aunt and uncle because I did.

He chuckled and handed her the whole box. "Feed your other half too please."

I wiped my face, then gagged as the maple syrup scent invaded my senses. "Where's Esther? That first demon got her?—"

"I'm here," she said softly from where she was sprawled out on her back on the floor. "I'm alive. That's all I know."

"Right. Okay." I grabbed my bat, then walked over to her. "Let's get you and Seamus to the infirmary."

"Um . . ." Archie waddled out of the shadows with my backpack hanging from his chest. Half of his face and upper body were covered in both his own blood and black demon blood. "Add me to that list."