a delicate blue light out from within her. Alexander’s dark magic quickly diminishes the light, sending it sputtering to the ground.
Unable to get to her feet, Zoë concedes to crawling on her belly. She angrily outstretches a palm toward Alexander and begins reciting a spell. I cannot hear her words, but her lips move speedily.
A bolt of lightning erupts through the sky and connects with a tall pine tree. Flames erupt from the branches and the smell of burning sap fills the air. I cling tightly to Charlie, attempting to shield him from danger.
Alexander’s magic falters and for a brief moment, the windstorm slows and its howl diminishes. Zoë climbs to her feet and continues her spell. “Non faga mal. Deixe esta muller.” Again, his magic falters. The wind completely stops. He turns to Zoë, confounded. “Corpo conxelado,” she utters.
His body becomes completely immobile. Zoë stands steadfast, staring at him with great intent. Cardine drops to the ground in a withered heap as Alexander's hold on her vanishes. “Emma, I need your help!” Zoë yells desperately to me. “I can’t hold him like this much longer!”
Charlie stirs on my lap. His eyes fly open and he quickly sits up. “What happened? Are you okay?” he asks me.
“I’m fine. You cut your head on a rock. You’re bleeding.” I look at his head. “You were bleeding. It’s completely healed now. That doesn’t make any sense.”
“Emma!” Zoë calls to me again.
Charlie quickly turns toward Zoë. “I need help! Now!” she demands.
Charlie fumbles to his feet and runs across the field as fast as he can. I follow close behind. A slow but steady drip of blood emerges from Zoë’s nose. “Zoë, you’re bleeding,” I say with fear in my voice.
Charlie looks at Cardine, lying on the ground; at Zoë, struggling to keep Alexander contained; at me, enfolded in fear. He does the only thing he can. Gathering his strength he runs to Alexander and tightly grips his jaw. He vehemently twists his head, snapping his neck without hesitation.
Alexander’s limp body falls to the ground. His skin immediately turns an ashen purple. Thick, black veins spiderweb their way through him. Charlie falls to his knees next to Alexander’s body and stares remorsefully down at him, breathing heavily. Within seconds, Alexander’s body disintegrates into a pile of ashes. Charlie leans backward, baffled by the self cremation Alexander’s body has performed.
Five hundred years of pure evil lie in a pile of dust in front of us. Part of me wants to feel relief, but my strongly skeptical side is telling me that this will only intensify Isabel’s rage. I cannot let any part of my guard down yet.
Still terrified of what else might happen, I hurry to Cardine, praying silently to myself that she is still alive. I roll her gently onto her back. Her pale skin still has a gentle pink glow to it. Her chest gently rises and falls with a breath. I sigh in relief before turning my attention to Zoë.
“Are you okay?” I ask Zoë hesitantly.
She nods. “I need to rest for a minute.” She lowers herself to the grass and wipes at the blood under her nose with the back of her hand.
Charlie stands up and walks along the tree line, searching for the two other individuals who were lurking in the shadows.
“Is Cardine alright?” Zoë asks me.
“Hard to tell. She’s still alive, but she’s unconscious.” Just as I say the words, Cardine stirs. A soft moan escapes her lips. I rush over to her and help her sit up. She grabs her head and winces in pain. “I never did like that man. Not in all the four hundred years I've known him.”
I rub my hand across her upper back. “I’m alright, Emma. Don't worry so much about me. You have other business to attend to.”
“How can we leave you here after all that?”
“Emma, I am a healer. It doesn’t take me long to recover. And based on the looks of that pile of ashes, I’d say one of my greatest threats exists no longer.”
“A healer?”
“Aye. Patched up your boyfriend’s head so he’d be of some use.”
Charlie jogs over to us. “Whoever else was hiding out there is gone.”
I glance at him then thank her. “I’m not much of a fighter but I can defend myself if needed. I’ll be okay. You must be on your way. You’ve wasted too much time already.”
“No, not yet,” Zoë hastily demands. “You taught me how to return the memories, but you haven’t