Gasping, I jerked the wheel to the right, veering toward the edge of the road. Sylvia shrieked, and Cliff lunged out to catch her as she was thrown toward his window. Metal scraped deafeningly as the car leaned into the guardrail.
“What the fuck are you doing?” Cliff roared.
“Jon, straighten out!” Sylvia cried.
My breaths burst in and out, my foot still on the accelerator as I gaped at the steep drop off below us. Even with my stomach roiling at the height, I was convinced that driving into the snow was a better option than taking the exit to Aspen. A coppery taste filled my mouth, the hum of unnatural energy making the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. I was distantly aware that I had felt this kind of enchantment before, but I couldn’t think over the sound of the GPS bleating.
With great effort, I forced the wheel to straighten somewhat, but my hands trembled with the strain of controlling myself. A thread wavered in my grip, seconds from snapping.
“Can—can you hear that?” I asked desperately.
TURN AROUND. TURN AROUND. TURN AROUND.
Cliff groaned, gritting his teeth like it was getting to him, too. Sylvia looked up from his hands, shaking her head frantically.
“Hear what?” she asked, breathless.
I squinted ahead. The exit loomed only a few hundred feet away now. Other drivers swerved away from Aspen’s exit erratically, taking the turnaround at the last moment. When I didn’t follow the pack and forced myself to change lanes, I jerkily swung around a slowing car. A crunch of metal rang out as the vehicle behind me smashed into the next one in confusion. I glanced at the review mirror, sick with the instinct that joining the terrible wreck was a better fate than moving forward.
TURN BACK. IT’S NOT TOO LATE.
Sylvia’s voice cut through the howl of the GPS. “Listen to me! Take the exit—it’s right there!”
My heart pummeled my ribcage. I was standing on the edge of a ravine, and she was trying to persuade me to take a step over the empty air.
“Ican’t,” I gritted out.
“Trust me!” she screamed. “Do it now!”
I squeezed the wheel and pressed hard on the gas. I shot through the exit, though every nerve in my body was rigid with the certainty that this was a mistake.
Sylvia pushed out from Cliff’s hands and hovered beside me. “Keep fighting it.”
Trying to control my breathing, I forced my gaze forward. There were no other cars on the road ahead, and a glimpse at the rearview mirror told me that we were the only ones who had reached the exit at all.
“Fucking witchcraft,” Cliff bit out, like the utterance itself was an effort. He rubbed his temples, then threw me a dark look packed with memory.
Witchcraft. The realization settled into my bones with chilling certainty. That coppery taste and hum of frantic energy clickedinto a twisted familiarity. Wehadfought these kinds of enchantments before, though never this powerful. If this were the work of a coven, it would be unrivaled by anything we’d come up against.
My mind flew to Tammy. Had she fallen prey to the people behind this?
Sylvia waved her hands for my attention. “Focus onme.” Her sharp command grounded me. She analyzed the GPS on my phone, which flickered dangerously and continued to whisper warnings to me. “We’re nearly to the address. Just a little further.”
The enchantment still pulsed at my senses, threatening to commandeer my body to its bidding. The prismatic haze clouded my senses as I navigated the quiet city streets. Slowly but surely, the intrusive thoughts began to fade, like we had breached an invisible shield. Before long, the buildings became sparser, trees lining the road on either side in neat rows.
The three of us grew quiet as a massive building came into view at the end of the winding, pine-shrouded road.
A hotel, though it could have been mistaken for a castle.
The towering structure cast a gentle glow against the night sky, its architecture a stark contrast to the modern buildings and homes we had passed. Pitched copper roofs and even a couple of towers adjoined the intimidating brick building. But it wasn’t only the majesty of the building that had us reeling.
“Shit,” Cliff murmured, a note of awe in his hoarse voice as I cautiously brought the car closer.
The trees on either side of the road seemed to morph before our very eyes with vibrant hues—golds and silver pine needles that glittered brighter than the stars. Cheerful birdsong chimed around us in nearly human melodies.
Gemstone-altered.
A few cars were parked at the entrance, guests being received by a crew of valets and bellhops with luggage. I pulled the car off to the side of the entryway and found coverage amongst the trees before slamming it into park.
