Chapter 44

Remy had brought Jean-Luc back to Elenora's, collected the zombie dust from Alice, and reassured her and Ephie that Leonie had agreed to handle it with Darryl as a backup. He'd also confirmed that Sheriff Merrow was on call, prepared to respond the moment they were ready for him.

Ephie had taken the opportunity to kiss him one more time, then returned with Alice to her practice, Jean-Luc trotting along with them. Nervous energy buzzed over her skin like a swarm of tiny, annoying insects.

Alice shut and locked the door of her practice, then aimed her hand toward the fireplace and turned her palm in the air as though gently scooping something up. The fire increased.

"You make that look so easy," Ephie said.

"Because it is," Alice replied. "With years of practice, the impossible becomes possible. The difficult simple."

"So you're saying I need to get over myself and practice."

Alice shook her head as she walked behind the big worktable. "I'm not saying anything of the kind, merely stating the truth. Repetition is the key to mastery. That and learning to overcome one's fear."

"What happened at the hotel definitely scared me."

"Understandable." Alice took a large bowl of cast iron from one of the shelves, carrying it with both hands back to the table. She went back to the shelves, looking for something else. "It was a frightening situation."

"So is this one."

Alice searched through a few boxes. "Everything and nothing are terrifying. It's how you perceive events and their outcomes that shapes your views."

Ephie went closer to the table. "You don't think Lang wanting to basically kidnap me is something I should be afraid of?"

"Concerned? Yes. But you're actively working to prevent that from happening, so now?" Alice came back to the table with a slim silver blade in her hand. The hilt was mother-of-pearl. "No, I don't think you should be afraid of him or what he might do. He is only one vampire, as are you, but you have the strength of many around you. He has already lost."

Ephie just nodded. She wasn't that confident. After all, Turner's daughter had bested her, and all she'd had was a little voodoo magic and the element of surprise.

"Have faith," Alice said softly. "In large amounts, fear will weaken the magic."

Jean-Luc sat by the fire, batting at the occasional spark that leaped out.

Ephie watched him for a second, wishing she could be that carefree. "I'm trying."

"I know you are." Alice glanced toward the door. A moment later, someone knocked on it. She went to answer it and came back with a bottle of blood just like the ones Remy had in his fridge.

"I thought we needed my blood."

"We do." Alice set the bottle on the table. "This is to replenish you once we've collected what we need."

"Is this going to hurt?"

"Will the pain stop you from doing it?"

"No."

"Good," Alice said. She held her hand out. "Your arm."

Ephie stuck her arm out, cringing in anticipation of what was to come. "I might not be cut out to be a vampire."

Alice smiled gently. "Too late." She offered Ephie the hilt of the dagger. "The blade is silver. It will prevent the wound from closing immediately, which should allow us to collect enough for our purposes."

Ephie shook her head. "You do it. I don't think I can."

Alice didn't argue, just turned the blade around to hold it properly, whispered a few words over Ephie's arm, then drew the blade across her wrist.

Surprisingly, Ephie didn't feel a thing. After a few long moments, the wound healed, disappearing like it had never happened. A small amount of blood filled the bowl. Ephie peered in. "Is that enough?"

Alice nodded. "It should be. How do you feel?"

"A little lightheaded, but that's probably more from the experience than the lack of blood."

Alice let go of Ephie's arm and stepped back. "We're almost done. Set fire to what we've gathered now. Burn it until it's ash."

"You trust me?"

"More than you trust yourself, I think." Alice smiled. "Go on. You can do it. Focus on the bowl and its contents."

Ephie nodded, staring into the bowl. Calling on her power scared her. What if she accidentally sent a giant fireball into the room like she'd done at the motel? She slanted her gaze at Alice's shelves. So much wood and paper.

"It will be fine," Alice whispered. "You can do this. You must do this."

"I know. I just don't want to hurt you or your things."

"You think I can't control a little fire?" Alice smiled at her. "The blood has already begun to age. Do it now or we'll have to start over."

Ephie didn't want that. She focused on the bowl and its contents like Alice had told her to. She sent fire into the bowl. A few sparks fizzled midair, but that was all. "Maybe I need the sunstone…"

Jean-Luc, ever curious, came closer.

"You don't," Alice said. "You might have before but not now. Stop holding back. Dig deep within yourself."

Ephie took a breath and concentrated harder, thinking about fire and flames and turning that blood into the ash that would fool Solomon into believing she really was gone.

The bowl erupted in a whoosh of flame that shot upward, dying back a little as Ephie jumped out of the way. Jean-Luc went scurrying off, staring back at the inferno like it had been a personal attack.

"Sorry, sorry." Ephie looked for something to quench the fire with. "That was too much. I'll—"

"You'll do nothing. That was perfect. Stay focused so that it burns completely."

"Okay." Ephie inched toward the bowl again. Heat radiated from it as the fire continued to devour the bowl's contents. Had Alice really thought that was perfect? Or had she just said that? Alice didn't seem like the kind of woman who gave false praise. Either way, the elder witch's words gave Ephie's confidence a boost.

When the fire seemed like it might go out, she boosted it with an extra dose of her magic. Jean-Luc kept his distance, although there was no way the fire could have hurt him.

When only a few flickering flames remained, Alice stood at the table again to have a better look at the bowl's contents. "Just about there."

Ephie joined her on the other side of the table. The blood was gone. Only ash remained. It still burned in three spots. One of those petered out while she watched. The other two weren't far behind. "So it's done then? We did it?"

"You did it," Alice said. "And yes, it's done. I'll have these delivered to Remy. You should drink that bottle now, too."

"I'll drink it in a moment. Are you going to cast the spell on me then?"

"Not until morning. It's important that Lang senses your presence until then. Things need to fit into the timeline properly to be the most believable."

"Won't he sense that I'm not at Remy's though?"

"Hopefully not. Unless he was lying about giving you twenty-four hours. In that case, you're still safest here. I'll show you to a guest room."

"All right." Ephie turned. "Come on, Jean-Luc." He scampered to her, getting up on her shoulder in one big leap. She picked up the bottle that would be her dinner, grabbed the bag Remy had brought her, then followed Alice.

Didn't matter how nice the room was, this was going to be a very long night.