24
“Check the water,” I tell Jacques, stomach churning. We’re at the top of the waterfall, and other than the sound of rushing water, the forest is silent.
Lynn is here, and the wildlife is holding its breath.
“And we’ll check the surrounding area,” Thomas says, taking flight. Gilbert follows after him, disappearing into the clouds above us.
“Ready?” I ask Gemma. She’s holding a flashlight with trembling hands.
“As I’ll ever be.”
I meet her eyes. “Let’s do this.”
Finding a flat section near the top of the waterfall, I set my bag down and open the notebook. Hasan pours salt in a large circle around me, leaving about a foot open as the door to bring Lynn in. Gemma sets candles and crystals around the salt circle and steps back, taking another canister of salt from her purse and making a little circle for herself to stand in.
“All right.” I take in a deep breath. “Here goes nothing.”
Before I start the summoning spell, Hasan steps over the salt and pulls me close. His lips land on mine and his tongue slips into my mouth. My arms wrap around him, and feeling his body against mine steadies my pounding heart.
“I love you,” he whispers, and kisses me once more. Then he steps back and disappears from sight.
I crouch down on the ground, taking a baggie of herbs from my bag. “Spiritum meum et vocavi te. Rectae. Veni ad ego,” I whisper, pouring the herbs into a metal bowl. “Spiritum meum et vocavi te. Rectae. Veni ad ego.” I light a stick of incense and waft the smoke around the bowl. Inhaling deeply, I hold my hands over the herbs and close my eyes. “Spiritum meum et vocavi te. Rectae. Veni ad ego.”
The temperature drops several degrees and the hair on the back of my neck stands up. I open my eyes and the world around me looks gray.
“Lynn,” I call, looking out over the water. “Cross the veil and show yourself.” I wait a beat and unfold a photo of her. “Lynn. I know you’re here. I summon you to appear before me.”
The temperature drops again and a chill creeps through me, coming up through the ground. The candle in front of me goes out, and then Lynn appears. She’s wearing the pink dress, but this time she’s dripping with water. Leaves are clumped in her wet hair, and her face is streaked with blood and dirt.
I spring up and flick my wrist, signaling for Hasan to come and close the circle. We weren’t sure if he’d be able to see Lynn’s ghost, just like how he wasn’t able to see my mother’s spirit.
“Lynn,” I start, holding out my hands. “Trevor confessed. We know you didn’t fall. We know he pushed you.”
The woman before me gains color, going from a translucent gray to looking like a real flesh and bone person before me. She’s taking energy in, getting stronger and stronger.
And she’s taking that energy from me.
My chest tightens and it takes effort to breathe.
“Lynn,” I repeat. “We know.”
She tips her head, eyes full of tears. My stomach flip-flops from the rapid loss of energy. Now would be the perfect time for that bright light to come from above and for her to move the fuck on.
But she doesn’t, and she rushes forward, hands going around my neck. I stagger back, digging my heels into the earth to keep from falling.
“Ace!” Hasan shouts, appearing from the shadows.
“Don’t…break…the…circle,” I pant, and summon the fire to my hands. I reach up and grab Lynn, who screeches and backs away. She bumps into an invisible wall, slumping down and covering her head to protect herself from the fire.
“Lynn!” I shout again, wanting to get through to her. The woman was murdered and her asshole boyfriend got away with it for years. I’d be angry too. “It’s over! Trevor got arrested. He’ll be held accountable for his crimes. You can move on!”
“The spell!” Hasan shouts. “Perform the spell!”
The fire burning around my fingers is the only thing keeping Lynn from attacking me again. But I can’t open the rift with the fire. I’m running out of energy, and doing magic requires a great deal of it. I clench my fist and the fire goes out.
Lynn advances like a rabid dog, energy rippling through her. I throw out my hand and look up at the moon, trying to bring in energy from somewhere—anywhere—else.
“Pull back the curtain and the veil,” I shout, and imagine the rift just how it was in my backyard. “Open a gateway between two worlds.”
