“First, I couldn’t tell you because it was, duh, a secret.” She shook her head at me like I was a clueless baby cheetah. “And second, she only popped back up on my phone last night. She was actually responsible for me finding some of the supplies I needed to brew the spells last night.” Marcy had the decency to look a little sheepish. “And then she gave me some advice on how to make them more potent by using your blood.”
I glanced around the alternate reality. “You sneaky little witch.”
“I had no choice,” Marcy hedged. “She told me if I uttered a word to anyone, I wouldn’t be here and you would die. I needed to come with you and we needed the spells. I had to trust her—she’s likely a Hag, for cripessake!”
I put my hand to my forehead. “James… James is going to kill me.”
“No, he’s not”—she bit her lip—“well, he better not. This was my decision. He’s not my mother.” She took a step forward and wagged her finger at me. “And you better listen to me when I say this, and listen closely. This is not a game. If we have any chance at all to defeat this bokor and save Naomi and free Danny, we have to work as a team. We’re all we’ve got. You can’t treat me like I’m breakable or hang back to protect me. This is you and me on a mission—Thelma and Louise style. Do you hear me?”
“I hear you,” I said, “but how do you honestly expect me not to try and protect you? You’re my best friend! And you’ve never been in a real battle before. If something happened to you, James won’t be the only one who would be devastated—it would kill me.”
“My case in point. I did not come to this place to die.” She jabbed her finger at the ground, surprising me with her vigor. “So let’s clear that up right now. I came to fight against this evil and win. If James has taught me anything, and believe me he’s taught me a lot”—her eyes sparkled—“it’s that you fight for the people you love. Period. I believe in Juanita. And according to her, this is your only shot. Something has gone wrong with your Fated path. But we are fixing it right here or we’re both going to die trying. Together. Do you feel me?”
“I feel you.” I smiled at my courageous friend. I knew deep down she had to be terrified she was here.
“Good.” Then she surprised me by pulling me into a bear hug. “Because as scared as I am, I know we can do this. But you have to promise me you won’t waste your time trying to protect me or you’ll be distracted. I can take care of myself.”
“Baby cheetah style?”
“BCS. It’s all the rage.”
I pulled back, admiring my friend, feeling lucky and loved all at once. “Did Juanita tell you what to expect? Did she give you any useful details?”
Marcy shook her head. “Nope, just that you needed me and where to find the ingredients to the spells. Oh, and she also made me practice some verbal ones. She’s handy, that one.” She patted the side of her hip. “I also brought along the dagger James gave me for the rabid zombie wolves.”
“Okay.” I blew out a breath, deciding to accept the road we were on. “I guess we’re in agreement to go in and fight. Together.” Rourke, my father, and my brother would all be equally furious with me for not trying to break out and seek backup. But Juanita had given us the way out before, and I had to assume she would try to help us again if things became dire. In a desperate moment, I called out to each of them in my mind, hoping the alternate reality wouldn’t keep out our communication, and at the very least to tell them we were okay.
No response.
Marcy held out her hand to me, grinning. “I want you to shake on it, before you get second thoughts and try and toss me out the nearest tree. Juanita said this was the only way we would ever have a chance to defeat the bokor. In fact, she drilled it across my phone with words like ‘ONLY WAY’ and ‘THIS IS IT.’ So swear you’re not going to get rid of me.”
I shook her hand. “I swear I’ll keep you around. Do you still have your phone on you?”
“Of course.” She drew it out of her back pocket and handed it to me. Its face was dead white again. “That’s not much help.” As soon as the words left my mouth, the phone started to vibrate in my hand. Then blinking words scrolled across the screen:
YOU ARE IN DANGER. YOU ARE IN DANGER. YOU ARE IN DANGER.
“No shit!” I yelled into the air, spinning my head around to find the danger. “We know that. But how do we fight against it?”
WOLVES. WOLVES. WOLVES.
As soon as I read the screen, I heard the growls.
“Marcy, stay still.” I handed the phone back to her and crouched into my fighting stance, scanning the circle. “The wolves want me, not you. Remember that.”
“I don’t think those mutants are picky. Fresh meat is fresh meat.”
“The bokor pulled me in, but she wasn’t looking for a twofer. If there are too many, I want you to climb the nearest tree and wait them out.”
“See, you’re already doing it. Stop,” Marcy muttered. “You promised you weren’t going to protect me. We can handle this. How many do you see?”
“Four.” I scanned the area to make sure. The wolves were lurking in the shadows directly across from us, only their red eyes visible. “We’re going to need to take care of them systematically. If you’re going to fight, pull out your dagger.”