Part 21 (1/2)

Ramses had not come alone. The instant that the people surrounding us surged forward, vampires started dropping out of the sky from every rooftop.

Elias didn't hesitate for a second. His gun rose to the ready, and he gently shoved me behind him. At the same time, with military precision, his men closed ranks.

Ramses' army nearly matched Mom's to a person. I noticed that a group of vampires guarded Mom the same way Elias's men did me. Mom shouted for someone to ”protect the witches,” at the same time Ramses commanded his people to ”grab the witches.”

I tried to spot Bea's dad. Desperately, I tried to see my other friends from the coven. From what I could tell over the shoulders of my protectors, it was all chaos. I wished they wore uniforms. I couldn't tell which ones were Mom's guys and which belonged to Ramses. Most of the people were unarmed and fighting with fist, claw, and tooth. A few seemed to be carrying clubs or chains.

No one had weapons but Elias and his two men. Elias could have used his gun offensively, picking off Mom's guys one by one, but he didn't. Instead, he made no aggressive move.

This was crazy. There was an all-out vampire rumble in the middle of downtown. Where were the cops!?

I swung my backpack around and started digging through it for my phone. Elias seemed to sense my movement, though he never took his eyes away from the fight surrounding us. ”What are you doing, my lady?”

”Dialing 911,” I said.

Elias nodded as though he approved. ”A cunning strategy in its own way. I wonder if it will work.”

I didn't have time to ask him what he meant by that. I found the cell. Quickly, I punched the numbers, even though my fingers shook so hard I thought for sure I'd misdial. I could barely hear the operator when we connected. She asked me something about the state of my emergency.

”There's a huge fight in downtown St. Paul near the farmers' market,” I told her. Then, because I thought I might get a quicker response, I added, ”There's a ton of them. I think it might be gang related. And there's guns! And drugs! And I have to go!”

She wanted details, like my name and address, but I hung up. I hoped the police hurried. At least both sides seemed to be at a stalemate.

That's when I felt the low-level hum of magic vibrating below my feet. ”Oh no,” I said. ”They're going to use magic!”

Elias s.h.i.+fted, and he trained his weapon on someone. Looking down the length of his arm, I saw he had his sights on Mom.

”No!” I shouted, grabbing at his shoulder, trying to pull down his arm.

”But if they coordinate their magic, it's over for us.”

”You can't kill my mom!” I had to do something. Maybe I could tap my power somehow. I just needed that jump start.

”She wouldn't hesitate to do the same to me,” he muttered.

I ignored his comment. ”Let me bite you,” I said suddenly, surprising myself almost as much as him.

For the first time since the fight began, he s.h.i.+fted all his attention to me. ”What?”

”Bea taught me this trick. I think I can counteract their magic. Or at least make my own. Hurry,” I said, feeling the cold surge begin. ”Give me your arm!”

The black guy with the scimitar took a hit; his head whipped back and he fell almost right in front of Elias's feet. Someone must have thrown a rock at him. He was cradling his head and struggling slowly to his feet. Elias swore in that language I couldn't understand.

Elias tucked his gun into his holster, and pushed up the sleeves of his coat and s.h.i.+rt. Tucking his thumb under my chin for a moment, he caught my eyes. Very seriously he said, ”Freely given.”

The Asian guy noticed what we were doing, and he took in a sharp breath. ”Captain?”

”You heard the words, Lieutenant,” he said sharply. Then to me, he said, ”Your pleasure, my lady.”

”Okay,” I said, since he seemed to want a response from me. My fangs were still out, so I grabbed his wrist and bit down hard. His blood exploded in my mouth.

Twenty-three.

The sensation overwhelmed me. I thought I knew what to expect when I tasted blood, but Elias's was, if possible, even stronger, more intense. It rushed through me like an electric current. Every nerve ending danced as the world began to spin again. My body shook and convulsed as I tried to hold on to his wrist as I drank.

I would have let go, but it was working.

The rush of Elias's blood was a much bigger push than Bea's. Internally, I could feel my energies begin to flip between vampire and witch. My theory in practice! It was astounding how much the sensation did feel like a dynamo spinning. The spark of energy flashed like a strobe along my nerve endings. This time, it had no zombie webbing spell to burn through, so it continued to rise and rise. I needed to direct it.

I focused my will using the skills I'd so desperately tried to hone as a witch. I urged the ice to flow into the ground. I imagined it spreading outward in a circle like an ice-skating rink.

Beneath my feet the tremors of the coveners' magic stilled, stalled . . . froze.

In fact, time seemed to stop.

For a second, I stood outside of it all. I could see the whole event from the outside. Surrounded by her followers, Mom's face showed a slow realization that my magic had dampened the combined forces of five True Witches. Ramses, in the thick of hand-to-hand combat, sensed a change in the tide of the battle. Bea's dad and the other witches had been knocked off their feet by the blast and were frozen in midfall.

Cool.

I did that.

And I so wanted to snap a pic with my cell so I could send it to my friends.

When I let go of Elias's wrist, everything snapped back into motion--sort of. Slowly everyone dropped their fists and lowered their weapons. Their attention swung to the center of the circle to where I stood with Elias's blood on my lips.

No one moved. The street was silent.

In the distance, the sirens wailed.

Ramses took a measured step forward. Then, with a flourish, he dropped to one knee. The instant he did, all his people followed suit. Beside me, Elias did likewise.

Mom's mouth hung open. ”That was you,” she whispered. ”Your magic.”

I nodded, not trusting myself to say anything else. The sirens seemed right on top of us now.

”Behold your true heir,” Bea's dad shouted. ”She who walks between the worlds.” Apparently, this was very meaningful because gasps and whispers rippled through the ranks of those who remained standing.

Pretty soon everyone was on their knees.

Except for Mom.

And me.

We faced each other in the middle of the street. Mom's face twitched, like she didn't know what to say or do.