Page 69 of Of Poison & Pumpkins
Darkness entombs me.
“You weren’t supposed to stab my son!”
“I didn’t mean to. He got in the way.”
“Well, I guess he’ll be good for one thing in his life.”
“Yeah, it’s better this way. Precious Rynnlee won’t have a choice but to listen if we use her guy.”
“We only need to capture your sister next. How do we find her?”
“Seriously? Does a witch have to do ALL the thinking? You have no faith in me. I already grabbed her off the street a few minutes ago. She’s locked in the back.”
She’s practicing witchcraft? No! I won’t let them hurt my Rynn. With every ounce of strength, I fight the powers caging me. Every muscle is so tight I’m about to snap. I strain and push against the mysterious force.
“It’s no use, buttercup. You’re my monster to control.” Brooke’s laugh sounds unstable, as if the unnatural magic she’s trying to practice has confused her. “Oh, this will be a fun sort of torture, don’t you think?”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Rynn
Palooza’s employee office door doesn’t magically swing open for me like it’s supposed to. I grab a pen like a dagger and try to shove the tip into the lock. Twist it. The only thing I accomplish is snapping off the top.
“Damn it!” I scream and kick the door. Slam my fist for the hundredth time. “Brooke! Let me out!”
Panting from exertion, I don’t want to take a deep breath since it smells like rotten fish from the trashcan. Gagging, I scan the office for any tool that could get me out of here. Along my desk, diseased items, all gray, are starting to vanish before my eyes. A sharp tightness squeezes in my chest.
“No, no, please, stay,” I beg, rushing around the room, trying to hold on to the random stapler until it slowly disintegrates into nothing in my hands. “Please …”
Is this what will happen to the people who have been Dazed? How has my sister destroyed so much in such a short duration? What does she even want? To create chaos? Devastation? Because she has achieved that! So she can get the fuck out of my town.
I scream at the ghost of a mirror. From the edges of the glass, my reflection slowly evaporates as the mirror disappears.
Soon, there will be nothing left. And it’s all my fault. I created the poisoned paint. I let my guard down and kept my apartment window open that night. If I hadn’t trusted my town and settled into comfort here, this never would’ve happened. This is the consequence when someone lowers their guard and lets others into their safe space.
Deflated, I slump to the floor and drop my forehead against my forearms. The images of Oakmar, desolate and gray down the entire street, will haunt me until the day I die.
Three faces I care about the most roll-on repeat like a slideshow. Tinsley. Maya. Elias. A tear slides over my cheek. I have no idea where they are. If they’re safe or Dazed or locked in another room.
Suddenly, the door flies open, slamming against the wall. Hudson is shoved inside before I can stand, then the door closes again.
“No! Wait! Let me out!”
Hudson wears the same milky eyed trance. His red shirt fades into a colorless gray halfway up and he stares at the wall where the mirror used to hang.
“We need to get out of here. Do you have a weapon that can serve as a screwdriver?”
He doesn’t move. Doesn’t respond. I want to scream at him, slap his face to snap him out of his stupor. There’s no point. It won’t work. Nothing will work.
“Wait!” I dig in my pocket for the baggie of the antidote candies. “Here! Eat this.” I place it at his lips, but he doesn’t open his mouth.
“Hey,” I say quietly, rubbing his arm slowly. “This will help you. Please open your mouth, Hudson. It’s me, Rynn. I won’t hurt you.”
His lips part slightly and I take advantage by slipping the candy in. I watch him absent-mindedly swallow and take a relieving breath. He’s a cop, so saving someone with authority and power could help drastically. It’s too bad he’s not carrying his gun, otherwise we could shoot our way out of the locked door.
I wait for the antidote to take hold. Minutes pass. Nothing happens.
“Come on,” I speak to the Goddesses above. “Help us, please.”
