Not that it really changed anything.
I pulled back from my loved ones and wiped the tears from my cheeks. “You guys are sure you’re okay with me taking this risk?”
“More than okay,” Carol said.
“Absolutely.” Deva brushed my arm.
Beth flashed me a smile that lit up her eyes. “Without a doubt.”
Daniel and Bryan grinned, but it was Bryan who answered. “One thing I’ve learned in life is that we have to do the right thing, no matter what, or the consequences will haunt us.”
“Okay.” I took a deep breath and turned to the door leading to the ocean.
My heart raced, but I told myself to stand straight. It wasn't easy, as my head kept spinning with thoughts of everything that could go wrong. I forced those thoughts away for now and tried to tap into the power within me that connected us all—courage, strength, love—whatever it was about being Karma's successor that made this possible for me.
I had no idea what consequences would befall me if things didn’t work out in my favor today. There were too many variables at play. If Alma wanted something from me she'd have to earn it by proving herself worthy first. Taking a deep breath and standing tall I steeled myself before reaching for the door so I could exit and walk out towards the ocean and my fate.
Behind me, a door slammed open, and my heart stopped as I looked back. Henry and Alice hurried inside wearing matching t-shirts with video game characters on them. These were the shirts they wore when they painted their little figurines, so they were splattered with different colors. Anytime I saw them in these outfits, they looked relaxed, like they were having an awesome day, but not now, not tonight.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, Alma's hateful face crossing my mind.
Henry looked at Alice. “She had another vision. She’s actually been purposely trying to have a deeper vision, so she’s exhausted, but then it just happened on its own while we were painting.”
Alice did look tired as she shuffled closer to all of us. “I was able to see the full vision. The older woman I saw in my vision was the Karma who gave you your powers, not this horrible old woman.” She smiled. “The energy around her was warm and welcoming, just like it is around you.”
I was a little surprised. Alice was always polite to me, but I never got the impression she liked me like that. “Oh, okay.” What else could I say?
She continued, “Karma was warning you that Alma used to be Karma but lost her powers by abusing them.”
My jaw dropped open. At first I'd thought the Karma who gave me my powers was the one haunting my dreams and Alice's visions, returning for her powers. After we discovered Alma, I’d just thought she was a powerful witch. It seemed impossible that she could've once been Karma herself. Holy crap. Alma was trying to become Karma again after having her powers rightfully stripped away.
Alice took a deep breath. “There was a clear message in my vision. You can’t, absolutely cannot give that woman your powers. You just can’t. If you do, the consequences will be dire. That woman is unworthy of powers like yours.”
I tended to agree, but that didn’t change the situation. “What about the spell that I feel tightening around me?” Even at this moment it was binding, tighter and tighter.
Alice looked exhausted. “You have to have faith that the last Karma chose you for a reason.”
Such a simple thing to do to have faith in myself. Yet, I didn’t. I knew what I was going to do, I just wasn’t sure it was the right thing for the people I loved, so the decision hung heavily on my shoulders. Part of me wished I had more time, but that would just drag out the inevitable. It was time. Time to face the music.
22
EMMA
It wastime to go outside. I knew it, they knew it. We'd run out of days and hours and minutes.
The magic that had been weaving and tightening in my chest from the moment I'd met Alma grew so painful that I didn’t have any other choice. "Stay here," I gasped. "Stay on the porch." It was close enough to where I'd wait for Alma that they could help if need be, but not so close that they should be in her crosshairs if she tried to unleash whatever curse this deal of ours had entwined through it.
Daniel tried to walk with me. I turned and put my hand on his chest, trying valiantly not to put my other hand on my chest to try to alleviate the pain from the vise around it. "Stay. Here."
He set his jaw but didn't argue, just stepped onto the porch.
"Thank you," I mouthed at them.
With tears stinging my eyes, I turned toward the water again. I'd barely set foot on the beach before she appeared down the beach. The cool night air cut through my thin sweater as I walked along the sand toward her. Every wrinkle on her face as well as the glow in her eyes and the smile that curved her lips were blatantly visible under the bright glow of the full moon. The old bat was excited. She thought she’d won. Unfortunately for her, she was about to find out otherwise.
As I got closer to her, that unsettling feeling, like energy, crackled between us. From her to me. Spreading out around us like electricity. Above us, storm clouds gathered. What the hell? A moment ago, the sky had been clear. The gray clouds did nothing to hide the bright moon, but lightning flashed in the magical clouds and thunder roared overhead. The waves that crashed onto the shore come harder and faster, looking as angry as the sky.
My legs shook beneath me when I stopped a few feet from her.
