Page 7 of Wicked Magik

I distinctly heard Leo’s voice and several other men grumbling to themselves.

As I crouched into my hiding spot, I noticed a body lying inside a circle, strange lines branched out beneath it. At the tip of each line sat a flickering candle. I squinted, trying to make senseof it—then my eyes widened as the shape clicked into place. A pentagram.

I rolled my eyes and pinched my fingers at the bridge of my nose.

Leo, what have you gotten yourself into? What would your father think?

And that was when I heard Leo’s father’s voice. “I’m not sure if this is a good idea. How sure are you that this is going to work?” Leo’s father came from the other side of the body. I was too busy taking in the scene to notice him.

Gods, he even had his poor father in this too?

“It’s going to work, then we will roll in it, old man. Trust me.”

I rubbed my chest at the betrayal. Mr. Marchant was in it for the money too, the dumb asses. My last shred of respect for the man had gone out the window.

Mr. Marchant hesitantly walked over to the body, careful not to disturb the white trails of the misshapen pentagram. “Vesper did a great job. He looks brand new, doesn’t even look dead. Crazy how she does that.”

Leo hummed and flipped through the ancient book in his hand.

Where did an idiot like him get that thing?

“Yes, it will bring us millions. Can you imagine? For the right price, bring back your loved ones and have them for a few more years, depending on their age of course. We can’t have walking zombies coming around, now can we. Not unless we have Vesper to figure out a way to tuck skin and make people more youthful. Or, or!” He wagged his finger. “We could transfer spirits into other youthful bodies.” He flipped the pages. “There is a spell for that, I’m sure.”

I covered my mouth in disgust.

“What makes you think she would do a thing like that? I don’t think Vesper could ever, if she knew we were doing this, shenever would have agreed. I told you this was a one-time deal for me son, enough to pad our pockets. We don’t need to be in excess, Leopold.”

Leo scoffed. “You never did look at the big picture. Come on. We need to prepare before those goons show up with the money.”

I lowered myself onto the ground, trying to remain as silent as possible, my mind swirling with disbelief and curiosity. Could he truly believe he had the power to resurrect someone from the dead? The body may be just a vessel, as my mother always insisted, but how could he possibly think he could summon a spirit to return and dwell within it?

He’s playing as though he is a God. Nothing good could come of this.

I peeked through the bushes again, the ancient book that was tattered and torn. It was a stark contrast to the Armani suit thatLeopoldwore.

A businessman conducting magic. It would never work.

Leo carefully placed candles at each corner of the pentagram. Mr. Marchant, with a flick of his lighter, ignited the wicks, and the flames danced, casting flickering shadows on the trees. Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoed from my right, growing louder with each deliberate step.

The two men from yesterday approached. Thank gods they didn’t have their sunglasses on, instead they brought two suitcases. My guess, with a butt load of cash inside.

The one on the left lifted his left arm and glanced at his watch. “Is it ready?”

The other, more stiffly walked to the circle, placed the case down and glanced over the body. He leaned over and observed the face and nodded. “Appears alive already.”

Leo chuckled. “I told you, Vesper is a miracle worker. His blood has been replaced and he will not die again unless theliquid inside his body is drained. It stinks, so I suggest you bring him back here quickly before people realize he no longer bleeds.”

My mouth dropped, yet again in disgust.

The two men looked at each other and nodded. “This better work.”

Leo turned his back. “I’ve done this three times before on animals. They are still alive. They eat, breathe and even shit. You won’t know the difference. Then you can go back to your lives.”

My eyes widened when I watched as Leo took his place at the top of the circle where the dead body laid. Each person took a point to stand, just as Leo had instructed. Before Mr. Marchant stood at his point, he brought out a cage with an animal inside. It appeared to be a wolf.

“This is the sacrifice we are making. A life for a life.” Leo said with a smirk.

My heart pounded in my chest as I watched. This couldn’t possibly work. He was tricking them.