CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Something was rotting in Milly’s house.

It was in the very first stages of decay, but Theo could smell it when he walked into the living room: sweet and cloying, overpowering the scent of old coffee and dust.

Kade wrinkled his nose. So quietly only Theo could hear it, he muttered: “Super smelling is not as fun as you promised.”

“I don’t remember promising that,” Theo replied. He sniffed again. He was pretty sure the smell was coming from the coffee table covered with old dishes and older books. Milly had obviously been busy; the whiteboard was covered in new string. His mother’s picture had been moved to the center in a way that made Theo nervous. Did his mom have a role in the ritual after all?

“Milly,” Kade called. “There’s something fermenting under your stack of mugs…”

He trailed off. Russel emerged from the kitchen, carrying a bottle of store-brand lemonade.

Kade shot Theo a look. He’d been betting Russel wouldn’t come. Theo’s text was pretty last-minute, and Russel hadn’t replied. But here he was, clearing a spot on the coffee table for the bottle of lemonade.

“I got it,” he said. He thunked the lemonade down and picked up the stack of mugs with a well-concealed grimace. “How are you two feeling?”

Theo looked at Kade as they sat down on the couch. He felt worried about his boyfriend—and now, about what Milly was going to tell him about his mom. He felt annoyed he still had to do homework when he was trying to stop the town from getting destroyed. He was torn in two about the prospect of fighting his parents tomorrow. And of course, he was endlessly in agony over not being able to touch the love of his life. Or love of his death, as Kade had pointed out last night. He’d even sewn it into a shirt, complete with red glittery sequins.

“Eager to get this over with,” Theo replied. “Where’s Milly?”

“There’s a cat having trouble. Milly went to check on it.” Russel headed back into the kitchen with the stack of plates and mugs, calling: “Where are the others?”

“Sundance is coming from work. Felicity said they’re going to be late,” Kade said. “They’re finding a new disguise for Skeeter. She tore the big hat in a fit of rage after losing a game of Connect Four.”

“I’ll grab some glasses anyway,” Russel called from the kitchen. The kitchen tap started running. “Theo, could you help me out?”

“Sure,” Theo called back. He flexed his hands anxiously. Something in Russel’s tone told him he wasn’t going in there to help with dishes.

Kade lowered his voice. “Need more hands?”

Still annoyed. Still hungry. But he knew where Theo’s mind was at.

Theo shook his head. He squeezed Kade’s gloved pinkie and headed to the kitchen, knowing Kade would be listening in anyway.

Russel was standing at the tiny sink, rinsing Milly’s dirty plates. He made a face as mold and rotted grapes clumped down the drain.

“She gets a little distracted when she’s deep in this,” Theo explained, taking a plate from the drying rack and rubbing it with a dish towel. “She was back to normal in winter, but this past month she’s basically gone underground. The bookstore’s closed this week. For all the good it’s done us.”

“She’s very dedicated,” Russel said lightly.

Theo grunted an agreement. She was dedicated. Without her they would still have no idea what the prophecy said or what the Fletchers were trying to do. But he wanted her to give them a way out , dammit. Something to derail tomorrow’s ritual before it came. He wanted a spell, easy and fast. He wanted a happy ending.

Russel brushed the last of the rotting grapes down the drain, and the smell of decay went with it.

“There we go,” Russel muttered. He took a deep breath. Theo tensed, tightening his fingers dangerously around the plate he was drying.

“I never really said, after…” Russel sighed. “I’m so sorry about your dad.”

Theo swallowed hard, eyes on the plate. It was already dry, but he kept rubbing.

“You did say it,” he offered.

“But not after I found out what really happened.” Russel went rigid, as if waiting for his bones to start churning inside of him. When it didn’t happen, he continued: “I…I can’t imagine how this feels, Theo. You deserved so much better.”

Theo gave him a tight smile. He didn’t want to talk about his dad. He had to, because of the ritual tomorrow, but that was talk about the evil vampire using Theo and Kade for his selfish gains. Not about Theo’s dad , who drove him to basketball games and took him hiking on weekends and taught him how to shave and was going to try and make Theo murder his boyfriend tomorrow.

He grabbed another plate, pretending to examine a nonexistent speck of grime.

“It’s more than that,” Russel continued, drying his scarred hands on his shorts. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you.”

“Russel—”

“No, come on, let me say it.” Russel hesitated. “I was an idiot. With the?—”

He motioned wordlessly at his mouth, indicating the silence spell with an embarrassed wince. Then he replaced it with that soft expression that Theo shied away from instinctively.

Russel sighed. “You’re a good person, Theo. Your parents tried to kill your heart. And you didn’t let that happen. I’m…I’m so proud of you. And I’m so goddamn sorry.”

Theo nodded stiffly. The plate creaked in his grip. He couldn’t let go of it and he couldn’t look up, couldn’t see Russel look at him with such horrible tenderness. It made Theo’s skin crawl. It made him want to hug him. To argue that he had been there for Theo, he’d been there for years, cheering him up after his parents yelled at him and teaching him how to treat stinging nettle. What to do after stamping through a patch of poison ivy. How to trim a rose without getting cut. Once Theo nicked him with a pair of garden shears and he wasn’t even mad, just chuckled and held his hand over an exposed root. He’d smiled over at Theo as blood dripped down his wrist.

It’s okay , he’d said. I’m feeding it. Look, it’s growing more petals already.

“Theo,” Russel said gently. He touched Theo’s shoulder.

Theo cracked the plate he was holding.

Russel jumped. He stared down at the broken plate, split down the middle.

“Sorry,” Theo started. “I?—”

A car alarm went off.

Russel sighed. “That’s my damn car. I’ll be back in a minute.”

Theo nodded numbly, stepping out of the way for Russel to get to the back door. The alarm blared even louder for a second, then the back door slammed and the sound returned to a tolerable shriek.

Theo piled the broken halves into the trash and headed back into the living room. He’d buy Milly a new plate later.

Kade was perched on the edge of the couch. He had his hands over his ears, wincing with each whine of the alarm. “It’s like getting hit with a pickax,” he grumbled as Theo joined him.

Theo nodded, brushing shards of ceramic off his palms. They landed on the floor with the rest of the mess. Next week, Theo would come over and help Milly clear all of this up. There would be no reason to look into this anymore. No more ritual looming over them. No more missing classmates. No more evil plots to unveil. Just school and a minimum wage job and community college applications in whatever city Kade took him to.

“Theo,” Kade prompted. He tugged Theo toward the living room.

The middle of the clue board had been cleared. Huge letters loomed across the top of it: RITUAL NIGHT, with a sketch of Finn Harley’s house, and everybody’s pictures gathered around.

Theo reached up to touch a yearbook photo of Skeeter, grimacing and heavy with braces. Milly had doodled a cartoon crossbow next to her. Next to most of them, now that Theo looked closely.

“We have enough of us to cover all the exits,” he said. “Right? I’ve been to his house, it’s not that big.”

Kade sighed. “So what, we just loiter around until whatever they’re planning happens and then we deal with the fallout?”

“I guess. I just don’t know how it’s gonna connect up to?—”

The car alarm stopped.

Kade tensed. It was so sudden and complete that Theo tensed with him, ready to throw himself on top of him to stop him from lunging at Milly, fangs bared. But then Kade snapped his head toward him, eyes huge and gray, no black to be seen.

Theo opened his mouth to ask what was wrong. Then he heard it: footsteps. Heavy and urgent, lurching up the porch.

The front door slammed open. Theo and Kade surged up from the couch just in time to see Skeeter in a pink ski mask, holding up Beverly Sloan by her armpits. Beverly was stumbling, blood matting her dark hair.

Theo grabbed Kade’s sleeve.

“I’m fine,” Kade managed, hands clenched tight at his sides.

“Sons of bitches,” Beverly slurred. She stunk of blood, a thick river streaming from the back of her head. She wobbled, pulled herself out of Skeeter’s arms, and braced herself in the living room doorway.

“Whoa,” Skeeter said. “Um, Beverly?—”

She reached for her. Beverly jerked away and stretched an arm toward Theo.

Theo blurred forward to catch her before she toppled over. She gripped his elbows hard enough to bruise a human, face twisted in a desperate snarl.

“Felicity,” she mumbled. “ Felicity .”

“They knocked her out,” Skeeter said. “I…I was in the woods, I didn’t hear until it was too late. I’m sorry. I tried to heal her, but she kept saying to drive?—”

Beverly tightened her grip on Theo’s arms. One of her pupils was bigger than the other. Theo was flooded with fear, remembering the awful sound of Mr. Fletcher’s insides twisting as the spell took hold.

“Don’t say anything else,” he reminded her, placing his fingers on her temples.

“I know ,” she snapped, her voice clumsy and wet.

Theo concentrated. There was a sickening click as her cracked skull popped back into place, the skin creeping over it.

“Theo,” Kade said, strained.

Theo grunted. Bone to seal, skin to regrow. Skeeter bent down beside him, face pinched as she held her breath against the heavy scent of blood. She touched the nape of Beverly’s neck, and suddenly the bone was smooth and the skin was regrowing a lot faster.

“ Theo ,” Kade repeated.

“Go into the other room,” Theo replied. “I’m almost done.”

Kade stepped into view. His eyes flickered black, hands shaking with the effort of not looking at the bloody Beverly Sloan.

“Car alarm,” he said.

Theo didn’t pay much attention to Skeeter’s low gasp. He was too busy watching Beverly’s skin seal crawl over white bone.

“What? Yeah, it’s stopped.”

Kade nodded stiffly, white-knuckling his phone. “Where’s Russel?”

The driver’s window was smashed. Blood dripped down the glass. There was a note tucked under the windshield wipers in the same handwriting that once signed Theo’s permission slips:

Until tomorrow.

Theo crushed it in his fist and turned back to Kade. “Anything from Sundance?”

“No,” Kade said, voice breaking as he held the phone up to his ear again. “She’s not…she’s not answering.”

“She’s probably driving,” Theo tried. “She’ll show up any minute.”

Kade nodded. But Theo could see it in his face: he didn’t believe him. Which was fair. Theo didn’t believe himself either.

The call timed out. Kade cursed, wiping his face.

“Try again,” Theo said.

Kade did.

The call timed out.