Kiss Of The Alpha : A YA Paranormal Romance

Chapter 94: Chapter 94

Heather

Adrian brought over two beakers. One had little green pieces that looked like bits of dried leaves. The other was the diced up stuff that had been on the other cookie sheet—it was now tiny little bits of black and white that looked like pencil shavings. "Mix these two with the ashes." He handed me another beaker. "Put it in here, teaspoon by teaspoon. First, a spoonful of the green stuff. Then, a teaspoon of ash. After that, white and black shavings. Then, shavings, ash, green. Green, ash, shavings. Got it?"

Maybe not, but I had it on my copies. "We’re at this part?" I pointed to the step.

Adrian nodded. "Exactly."

"Got it." I started the process, measuring everything out. Each time I measured and mixed, I tried to think of a happy memory with Serena. Her teaching me moves in Martial Arts. Laughing at night before bed. Having a Buffy marathon in her room.

The beaker was nearly full when Brent arrived. He wore his usual dark jeans, but his T-shirt made me laugh. It had a large Above and Beyond Group Therapy logo across the front. I’d gotten it for him last week. "Cool shirt," I said.

He caught a nose pin that Xander threw his way. "This cute chick got it for me." He winked at me, and plugged his nose. There was nothing sexy about a guy wearing a clothes pin, but the way he walked, so confidently, without making a sound, he almost made it work. Almost, but not quite.

I turned to see what the other guys were doing. Adrian was shaving a block of what looked like white soap with a peeler into the nasty blood mixture. It looked like curls of Parmesan cheese floating in upchuck.

Xander was slowly pouring a blue gelatinous mess into a vial through a glass funnel. It was barely moving. Sloping down the funnel little bit by little bit.

"Do you want help pouring that? I could mush it—"

"No!" Adrian and Xander said.

I held up my hands. "Okay. Okay. Jeeze."

Adrian sighed. "It can’t be touched by anything other than glass right now. It’s really volatile."

I widened my eyes at Brent, who shrugged. Apparently I was the third-place witch now. I’d have to make a point of catching up on the bruja training after all this was behind us.

"We set up the roof for the ritual while everything was baking. We’re going to need Serena there in fifteen."

Brent nodded. "I’ll get her and Dr. Gonzales."

"That’s probably a good idea," Adrian said.

I shuddered. I didn’t have anything against the good doctor, but her love of needles...those I had something against.

He brushed a kiss on my forehead. "Be back in a few."

I tapped my fingers on the table. Nerves were working their way back into my thoughts. "Am I forgetting something?"

"Maybe you want to read the incantation? It can’t hurt to be familiar with it."

"Probably a good idea." I remembered what Rosa said, that the words themselves didn’t matter, but it would be good to have the gist of it down. It was going to be my will, my faith, my heart that made this spell work or not work.

The pressure had only gotten heavier in the last few hours. I’d never done anything like this before. It wasn’t anything like saying a few words and tossing vials at vampires. Serena was my best friend.

I took the spell book from Adrian. "I’m going to make it work."

My voice didn’t waiver as I spoke, and I almost believed myself.

The night was quiet as we walked out on the roof. Air conditioning units and their ventilation pipes stuck out in various places. I appreciated the three-foot-high ledge along the edge. Heights and me weren’t exactly the best of friends.

Serena might argue differently, given that in my first two weeks at St. Francis’s, I’d jumped out windows no less than four times. I’d walked away from each fall, but I didn’t plan on making a habit of death-defying leaps.

We walked around the air conditioning units, heading to where the spell area was set up. A Serena-sized circle was drawn in white chalk on the roof within a circle of candles.

The largest candles marked north, south, east, and west, and the smaller ones made up the distance in between. A table was set to the side of the circle. We placed the three beakers on the table. A large copper pot sat on the table, too. The modern day version of a cauldron, apparently.

"Double, double, toil and trouble," I said.

"I thought it was ’Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble,’" Xander said.

"No. ’Double, double, toil and trouble. Fire burn and cauldron bubble.’ Gotta get your Shakespeare learnin’ on, boy."

Xander chuckled. "Nerd."

"This isn’t a joke, y’all," Adrian said. "We’re here to be serious. You’ve got to respect the process if it’s going to work."

I hadn’t meant to make fun of it. Or him. "I’m sorry. It’s the nerves. This has to work, you know?"

Brent and Dr. Gonzales came through the door with another tall blond guy. He was older than the version of him I’d seen in the vision. His hair was longer, past his shoulders and tied back in a low ponytail.

He cradled Serena in his arms. She looked so frail, with her head lolling to the side. Her lungs rattled with every breath. The drugs were keeping her alive, but only barely. He stepped over the chalk,

and lowered Serena into the center of the circle.

"I should’ve brought her a pillow or something," Xander mumbled.

"At least she’s not puking anymore. With any luck, when she wakes up, this will be like a bad dream for her." Thinking positive was going to be my new thing. Light. I was going to be like the light.

Her brother stepped up to me. "I’m Max."

I shook his hand. "Heather."

He exhaled and stared at his sister. "I hear you’re going to help her."

"I’ll do my best. But if you’d rather I not...I mean it’s not a guarantee. It could end up hurting her more or—"

"No. I’ve heard about it. Your mate and I had a long talk."

Huh. That was what Brent was up to.

"Serena doesn’t have much time left. Hours really," Max said, his voice broke.

I glanced at Dr. Gonzales and she nodded. "I’m almost out of options in terms of treatments. The sedative I’ve been using isn’t working as well. She’s already built up an immunity. I thought the injections would last longer, but we’re out of time."

"And Donovan?" I asked Brent.

He shook his head.

Great. I had never felt so afraid of anything. My best friend’s life was in my hands. The responsibility of it made it hard for me to breathe. I stared at Serena’s prone form, barely more than skin and bones at this point.

"You’re her best shot."

I swallowed, unable to trust my voice.

"She might be my sister, but I was fifteen when she was born. It’s almost like she’s my daughter, too. You know? Thank you for helping."

I cleared my throat. "Let’s see what happens before throwing out any thank yous."

He nodded and went to stand to the side with Dr. Gonzales, Brent, and Xander.

"You can do this. Stay positive," Adrian said.

I stepped closer to the circle, trying to believe his words. I had to do this. There weren’t any other acceptable options.