Anathema (Causal Enchantment #1)(76)

“Bags?” I fought panic.

“Yes. The bags. You’ve emptied them of their contents, based on what I see here, and yet they’re full again.”

“Oh, yeah,” I stammered, feeling Amelie’s arm squeezing me ever so slightly.

Fiona’s eyed narrowed, indicating she hadn’t missed Amelie’s gesture.

Would it be that bad if she found out? Yes, it would. It meant the Council would have fields of Merth to inflict more pain. It would mean I couldn’t bring it back for Sofie. And most important, it would prove we’ve been keeping secrets from Rachel. That would be disastrous. But what else could I tell her?

“Flowers,” Fiona answered in her usual placid tone, saving me.

“Flowers?” Rachel’s face screwed up in skepticism.

“And plants!” I exclaimed before adjusting my tone to sound calm. “You may have things that we don’t have on Earth, and Sofie wants to study them, see if she can use them for some of her witchy spell–casting. Hocus–pocus stuff. I don’t get it.” I rolled my eyes. I knew my voice was trembling and probably unconvincing, but I couldn’t help but be impressed with how easily that lie had popped into my head. Maybe I was getting better at this.

“That much?” Rachel said her eyes narrowing further in disbelief.

I shrugged. “She asked for any plant I didn’t recognize. I’m not a botanist.”

“Hmmm. Right.” She pursed her lips, then turned her attention back to Caden, tracing his collarbone with her index finger.

My shoulders, rigid with anxiety, began to relax. My quick–thinking deception had worked.

“Show me, Evangeline,” she demanded in a crisp voice, not looking away from Caden.

I froze.

“You wanna see a bunch of half–dead weeds?” Bishop scoffed.

Her left eyebrow arched severely. “Show me,” she repeated.

“Um, sure,” I managed in a hoarse whisper, my eyes darting to Caden. He didn’t dare look away from her.

Rising slowly, I walked over to one of the bags on shaky legs. I took my time, now in extreme panic mode and condemning my cleverness. I started fumbling with the strings, trying to think of some way out of this impending disaster.

“Here, let me help you. The knots are tight,” Bishop called, suddenly appearing in front of me to help unfasten one of the bags. From the corner of my eye, I saw Rachel slide off Caden’s lap and take a step toward us.

Caden was right behind her, though, grabbing her waist playfully and kissing the side of her neck as a means of distraction. It partially worked. She stayed there to revel in his affections but her snake eyes never left us.

I was too worried about being murdered at this point to be upset by Caden’s actions. I watched nervously as Bishop unraveled the knot. I frowned as he continued fumbling with the strings, as if there was still a knot to be untied. What’s he doing?

“Here, put your hand on that loop and pull,” he instructed. I frowned. There was no loop. “Right here!” he said impatiently, holding his hand out, palm up. I mechanically reached over, and Bishop grabbed my hand and guided it into the bag. From where Rachel stood, she wasn’t able to see what we were doing.

I understood. “Merth only has to touch us for a second to make us flop like rag dolls,” Bishop had said. Just the briefest of moments, and Rachel would be controlled; restrained; no longer a dangerous problem. But I couldn’t screw up. If I did, someone would likely die. It could be me, or worse, it could be one of the others. Would it work, though? Would she fall for it? We had no other choice. Committing myself entirely to the unspoken plan, I twined my fingers around one of the strands.

“Damn knot,” Bishop cursed, gripping my forearm tightly enough that it began to hurt.

“You idiot!” Rachel sneered, wriggling free of Caden.

As she strolled toward us, I noticed Amelie and Fiona stealthily slide in behind her, grim determination in their eyes. Caden moved forward as well, his jaw tight with anxiety, his head shaking, warning us. Warning me not to risk it. It was too late, though.

Rachel’s hand reached toward the bag.

Bishop, still holding my forearm, whipped my hand out toward her with lightning speed. Somehow I managed to grab hold of her wrist, pressing the Merth tightly against her skin.

In the next instant, four pairs of hands were securing her. She let out one high–pitched shriek and then her body went limp.

Amelie lifted her other arm up. I wound the cord around both wrists and tied a knot, my hands trembling violently the entire time.

“Her legs too,” Caden instructed, his voice now devoid of all emotion.

I reached in for two more cords and went to work binding her legs at the knees and the ankles. Will more Merth mean more pain? I wondered sympathetically. Will the thousand razor blade cuts turn into a million? I gave my head a shake. You’re too soft, Evangeline. She’d do it to you in a heartbeat.

When we finished, the previously deadly vampire lay immobilized on the ground, all bound up like a pig ready for a spit.

It was over. We were safe.

My knees buckled. I would have collapsed if Caden hadn’t been there to catch me, scooping me into his arms and swiftly gliding away from Rachel.

“Are you okay?” he whispered breathlessly as he placed me on the ground, deep concern in his eyes.