The Book of Lost Souls Read online

  “Do we have a plan?” Spike asked. “Even the start of one?”

  Ivy ignored Spike’s look of concern. “I’m working on it.” She placed The Rise of the Dark Curse on her lap, and flipped it open. Her heart had started to pound so hard that she could feel her pulse in her temples. She couldn’t believe she was holding it again, watching creepy things move beneath the pages. She heard the familiar voices that were both repulsive and yet so hypnotic and...addictive.

  Spike eyed the book as through it might suddenly grow teeth. Ivy wanted to tell him it wouldn’t. The book’s ability to control, to consume its readers was far more subtle and much more effective.

  “Isn’t there some other way?” he asked.

  Ivy shook her head. “I wish. But, my magic isn’t strong enough. I need to fight dark magic with dark magic, Spike. In the woods, Vlad said that only dark magic works on them. He also said the only thing capable of banishing them—” She jerked her head up from the book. “That’s it! Bane! We need to make a short stop.”

  “Name it,” he replied. Bane had the truck doing at least eighty by now.

  “First, slow down. I want Shayde back as much as you do, but we don’t want to draw attention. Second, we’re going to go visit Mr. Evans. We’ve got to get The Book of Lost Souls from him. It’s the only way to banish Vlad and the Countess.”

  With great restraint, Bane let off the gas a little. As calm as he normally was, Ivy could tell he was ready for action and before the night was over, Ivy figured he’d have it. They all would. Question was, would they live to tell about it?

  “That book gives me the creeps,” Spike said as he scooted as far from Ivy as possible. “I don’t know how you can read it. Don’t you hear those voices?”

  The car fell silent as everyone strained to hear. Bane cocked his head and Ivy heard the faintest hint of whispering.

  “Rejoice! She’s back. Little one loves us.” The voices murmured. “Little one is starting to see, just like her father.”

  “What are they saying?” Raven asked.

  “Nothing. Gibberish. I can’t understand them,” Ivy lied. There was no sense in getting everyone more freaked about the book than they already were. What did the voices mean? She didn’t love them, whoever they were. Starting to see? See what?

  The thought of actually finding and using The Book of Lost Souls when she was already in over her head with its twin made her stomach ball into a knot. Even if the stranglehold had started slowly, The Rise of the Dark Curse had managed to cause its share of erratic mood swings and a few fits of anger. And, if it could cause a compulsive need to not only read it page for page, but an irresistible need to try the spells within it regardless of who she might hurt, then what would The Book of Lost Souls do? It had turned Mr. Evans into a murderer, a kidnapper, and all-around psychopath in less than a week’s time. What happened when someone had control of both books?

  Bane turned down Glenview Street. The beauty of living in a small town all her life was that everyone knew practically where everyone else lived. Mr. Evans’s house sat at the end of the block—a white, 1930’s arts and craft style cottage with a two car garage around the back that was missing a garage door, making it easy to see Mr. Evans’s car inside. He’d probably left school right after she’d run into him in the hallway.

  Careful, Ms. MacTavish. You never know what you’ll lose.

  She recalled Mr. Evans handing her Devlin’s toy. She hadn’t dropped it. By then, Vlad and the Countess had already taken Devlin. If Vlad and the Countess hadn’t told him about her, Nick and possibly Shayde, then he had somehow figured out she had The Rise of the Dark Curse.

  Mr. Evan’s house was in equally rough shape as the garage. The roof sagged in the middle and one of the front windows had a long, jagged crack in it. A notice of some sort had been taped to another window and the entire railing was missing on one side of the porch steps. The property was large, though—a nicely shaped lot with mature hardwood trees.

  Bane pulled to the curb. “Now what? Do we just go knock?”

  Ivy closed The Rise of the Dark Curse. “Yeah, something like that. Let’s go.”

  They didn’t have a lot of time—the sun would start to set just before six o'clock and it was almost two. Even if she were successful in getting the book, she had no idea how long it’d take to find the counter-spell. Then, they needed to get to the textile mill, find and free Shayde and Devlin, and finally send Vlad and the Countess back where they came from. If nothing else, they at least needed to get Shayde and Devlin safe before the cavalry showed up. Ivy had no doubt that Gareth would stay true to his word. If the sun went down and he didn’t hear from them, Gareth would tell everyone within earshot.

  Please let Shayde be okay, she pleaded. And, I’m coming for you, Devlin. Don’t be scared. Hang in there.

  Ivy pushed the book under Bane’s seat and hopped out. She strode to the front porch, fists clenched, prepared to do whatever it took to get the other book. No one threatened to hurt her friends or her dog and got away with it. She rapped on the front door, not really expecting Mr. Evans to answer.

  The door creaked opened and Mr. Evans peered out. His eyes were wild, angry. Fearful. “Give it back!” he hissed at her, “Or—”

  Without further warning, he shot a spell at Ivy.

  A huge flash of light erupted in front of her. She raised a hand defensively, and deflected the hex. The doorframe shattered, sending pieces of splintered wood everywhere.

  “REPELL!” Ivy shouted. Mr. Evans flew backward onto the floor with a huge umpfh.

  Bane pushed past Ivy. Before Mr. Evans could sit upright, Bane shoved him back to the floor and stomped down on his hand.

  Mr. Evans let out an angry cry. “You don’t know how to put them back, do you? You can’t find the right section in the book and your friend and your precious dog are going to die now.”

  Bane pushed down harder and twisted his shoe into Mr. Evans’s hand. Mr. Evans cried out in agony. Raven caught Mr. Evans’s other arm as he tried to strike out against Bane.

  “Don’t even think about touching my boyfriend,” she snarled.

  The search for The Book of Lost Souls wouldn’t be easy. Books were strewn throughout the room, some lying open and face down. There had to be hundreds of books. Strangely, they were the only thing out of place. Everything else was neat and tidy.

  “How dare you! That’s my friend Báthory has,” Ivy said, “You know what she’ll do! And how dare you jeopardize an innocent little dog!”

  “You would have told,” Mr. Evans said. He started to laugh. “I knew you had it figured out. I couldn’t let you tell anyone in the Council, could I?”

  His comment made Ivy think. Vlad and the Countess hadn’t told him they’d seen her, Nick, and Shayde in the woods. Mr. Evans had figured out who had the book on his own. That meant Mr. Evans’s conjured souls were still planning on doing him in. Ivy wanted to blame the time she’d spent with The Rise of the Dark Curse on the way over here, but it wasn’t entirely true. Desperation was the other part of this—she’d do anything to get Shayde and Devlin back safe. Even if that meant putting Mr. Evans in harm’s way. And, why not? Look what he’d done to them.

  Mr. Evans continued to laugh.

  “I don’t find your situation funny,” Bane said, twisting his foot on Mr. Evans’s hand again.

  Mr. Evans howled in pain. After a moment he managed to speak. “You see, it is funny. Ivy thinks she’s so smart! She gets all of you to help her break into my home and find the book, only she can’t use it so she has to come back and beg me for her friend’s and her dog’s life. Everyone thinks she’s like her father. She’s nothing like him. He’d know where the counter curse was. He was stronger, more powerful, and so willing to use that power.”

  Not like him? Had it been anyone else, Ivy would consider Mr. Evans’s words a compliment. On the other hand, had she been more like her father she would have used any number of curses from The Rise of the Dark Curse on Mr. E
vans by now. She wanted to, now that the book was back again.

  Take the higher road, she thought.

  Bane’s eyes had completely changed to amber and his teeth had started to become more wolf than human. “Why did you do it, you freakin’ slime ball? Why did you have your scumbags attack the Harrisons and then kill Mr. Nash and Angela?”

  Mr. Evans leered at him. “Nash was nothing more than an overgrown bully. No one liked him. I did all the Kindreds a favor. Did you see what he taped to my front window?” he nearly shrieked. “He was trying to condemn my house! He wanted the property for himself. I’ve never met anyone who hates Kindreds the way he does! And the Harrisons had been out to the cemetery. I thought they might have the other book. So, I had to threaten them. I didn’t know about Angela until after the murder. I...I never planned for that to happen. It was inconsequential. A small sacrifice.”

  Ivy heard what Mr. Evans had been saying, but it was what he’d already said that stuck with her. “Wait. We didn’t break in earlier.”

  Mr. Evans paused for a moment, then laughed even harder. “Someone else beat you to it? Oh, now that’s even better.”

  Spike, Raven, and Bane exchanged glances with Ivy. Someone else had beaten them to the book?

  “What now?” Raven asked.

  Ivy felt her heart surge, and panic threatened to consume her.

  No, she kept telling herself. Think, Ivy, think! It won’t help Shayde or Devlin if you come apart. So, who’d have the book and what would they be doing with it right now? Where would they go with it?

  Two thoughts came to her mind—it was either Phoebe, or...

  “Bane, do you smell the presence of anyone else?”

  He sniffed the air carefully, then nodded. “Yeah, although it’s not anyone I recognize. It’s like it should be familiar. I can’t figure it out. But, it’s not Phoebe. I’d know her perfume anywhere. It’s a bit overwhelming.”

  True. Even Ivy would have smelled Phoebe’s perfume by now. “It’s him,” she said to them all. “It’s our mystery guy—the one Spike saw in the park. The one who followed us into the forest. He’s been following me all along. Come on, we’ve got to go.”

  She could only hope their mystery guy was still following her around.

  Raven and Bane let Mr. Evans sit upright. He cradled his injured hand against his chest and he shifted his eyes between them. “Go ahead. Run along. I’ll call the police before you’re on the main road.”

  “Oh yeah. About that,” Ivy said. “You’re coming with us.”

  A very large book hurled through the air and smacked Mr. Evans across the forehead. He wobbled, his eyes rolling back in his head before he passed out.

  Bane gave Ivy a surprised look. “He is?”

  CHAPTER 32

  “I can’t believe we’re kidnapping a teacher in broad daylight!” Spike said incredulously, his eyes wide. “And look at his front door!” He paced back and forth in Mr. Evans’s cramped living room like a caged animal searching for a means of escape. “Oh, I wish I’d stayed with Gareth.”

  Leave it to Spike to point out the obvious. Kidnapping made everything else Ivy had done so far seem childish and insignificant. Ivy figured there wasn’t any explanation good enough to cover this, even if she managed to do away with Vlad and the Countess. Kidnapping a teacher made the forged note look like cheating at solitaire.

  “Well,” Bane said, forcing a smile. “On the bright side, we can’t be charged for breaking and entering. He let us in fair and square.”

  “I thought that was for vampires,” Spike stated.

  “You’ve been watching silly Hollywood horror movies, haven’t you?” Ivy sighed.

  “Then you mean like COPS!” Spike said, a hint of exhilaration returning to in his voice. “Tara’s grandmother watched that.”

  Ivy did not want to think about Spike peeking through Grandma Prescott’s window and what else he might have seen. Yeech!

  “Hate to spoil the fun, but how are we going to get him out of here without being seen?” Raven asked.

  “I’ve got an idea,” Ivy said, surprised by how calm she was about kidnapping Mr. Evans. “Spike, get some sheets from the bedroom and see if he’s got anything that we can use for costumes. Raven, see if you can find a pair of scissors and maybe a marker somewhere. Try the kitchen. It’s Halloween, so maybe with a costume no one will notice what we’re doing. Bane, can you guard Mr. Evans while I fix the front door?”

  Raven and Spike went off in search of the objects she’d requested, Spike muttering under his breath. Bane stood watch over Mr. Evans while Ivy did her best to repair the doorframe with a Mending spell. It wasn’t perfect, and anyone who came as close as the porch would certainly see the door had been trashed. They’d just have to hope no one would notice from a distance, or at least assume that since the rest of the house was in such bad condition the frame had always been damaged.

  Raven and Spike returned a few minutes later. Raven had found two black markers and a pair of old scissors that Ivy hoped would cut through the sheets Spike had given her.

  In less than ten minutes, Spike and Bane had Mr. Evans hoisted upright while Ivy and Raven slid a white sheet over him. Bane drew black ovals over where Mr. Evans’s eyes and mouth were. Cheesy costume, but it’d work. The sheet also hid that his hands were tied behind his back. There wasn’t much Ivy could do about the way his head kept lolling from side to side.

  “Too bad he’s not like a Horned Toad lizard,” Spike said. “We often flip over onto our backs and stiffen up when snakes or something look too threatening.”

  Raven tried to right Mr. Evan’s head once more. “Isn’t there something like a rigor mortis charm?”

  “No, unfortunately.” Ivy cocked her head to one side as Mr. Evans head lolled back onto his chest. “Oddly, for the first time in my life, I can honestly say something like that would be useful. Anyway, he’ll have to go as he is. We’ve got to go. The trick-or-treaters will start to come soon.”

  Raven opened the door for Spike and Bane who were pulling Mr. Evans to a standing position. They each had one of Mr. Evans’s arms around their necks. Mr. Evans didn’t look like a ghost as much as he looked like a dead body with a sheet over his head. Or, maybe a giant moth.

  “Yeah,” Raven said. “That’s not going to draw any attention. Put your arms under the sheet to steady him,” she coached.

  Spike lost his grip and Mr. Evans fell to the floor. “Sorry,” he whispered, as though he might awaken Mr. Evans. “He’s a slippery one. He’s all sort of...jiggly. It’s hard to get a grip on him.”

  “That’s because he’s all sweaty,” Bane said, sounding rather disgusted.

  After one more false start, they finally had Mr. Evans upright again.

  Ivy nodded her approval. “Much better. Now, let’s get him to the truck as quickly as possible.”

  “I’ll walk in front,” Raven offered. “Block the view as much as I can.”

  Spike and Bane grunted as they squeezed through the doorway with Mr. Evans. They were out the door and halfway down the front porch steps when Ivy realized people might see Mr. Evan’s feet dragging along the ground.

  “Elongate!” she whispered, aiming at the length of sheet hanging around Mr. Evans calves. Ivy held her aim until the sheet reached his shoes. Then, she scanned the street as they made their way to the truck.

  Three little girls dressed as ballerinas and carrying treat bags gawked as they passed by. Raven opened the hatch, and Bane and Spike shoved Mr. Evans into the cargo area. Raven dusted off her hands as she smiled at the little girls who seemed mesmerized by what was going on.

  “Reaction to all that candy,” Raven told the girls.

  Then everyone scrambled into the truck, leaving the little ballerinas to stare after them.

  “Well, that went well,” Raven said. “You can wipe memories, right Ives? Does it work on small children without giving them nightmares?”

  Ivy didn’t reply because Raven wasn’t really expec
ting an answer.

  Bane took the corner onto the main road a little hard and Mr. Evans rolled around in the cargo area. If he hadn’t brought back Vlad and the Countess, Ivy might feel sorry for all the bumps and bruises he’d feel tomorrow.

  She reluctantly retrieved The Rise of the Dark Curse from under the seat. She forced herself to stay focused and flipped through a few pages. There had to be some spells she could use against Vlad and the Countess.

  “Why even bother with that book if you think we can find the other one? I mean, The Book of Lost Souls will send them back, right?” Bane asked.

  Without taking her eyes off a promising, if not a very grisly spell, Ivy replied, “Because the guy who has it might not want to give it up without a little coaxing. And if, I can’t get hold of The Book of Lost Souls, this is all we’ve got.”

  “So, you’re going to use it on another Kindred?” Bane said.

  “Do you want your sister back?” Raven asked him. “I know Ivy wants her back. Devlin, too. Tell me you aren’t going to use whatever talent your wolf-half has.”

  Bane glanced at her, but Raven didn’t flinch. “I’m using my vampire talents. Just sayin’.”

  Whatever guilt Ivy had on using black magic, Raven’s statement had a profound, freeing effect. She still didn’t like using black magic because of the way it wanted to consume her. But, at least she felt more justified. And, the more Ivy read, the more the pages whispered to her, the more they chanted and cheered her on. With each page, Ivy felt the overwhelming urge to never let the book out of her sight again.

  Little one loves us, she does!

  Reading the book was like a drug. She needed it, true. But this time, she told herself, this time, it was only because she needed it to save her friends.

  Mr. Evans stirred from the cargo area and Ivy closed the book and whacked him on the head with it. He immediately went back into his state of unconsciousness.

  “Where to?” Bane asked.

  “The textile mill,” Ivy replied. “We don’t have time to try and find who this other guy is. We’ve got to rescue Shayde and Devlin.” Ivy glanced over Bane’s shoulder. He was doing eighty-five. She leaned back and closed her eyes, not bothering to tell him to slow down. Of all the things Ivy could conjure, time wasn’t one of them.