The Mayhem Sisters (17 page)

Vivi snatched a glass of champagne off a passing tray and continued on her trajectory to the stairwell, slinking up to Finn. Bubbles tickled her nose. She gulped the last swallow of her drink and handed the empty glass to one of the other guards, going for confident and nonchalant. The drink made her feel warm and fuzzy, and she suppressed a hiccup.

“I didn’t expect to see you here tonight, but then again I wouldn’t expect to see you in a lot of places. You sure do travel in interesting circles.” Vivi held her chin high while opening up her clutch and pulling out a small envelope.

“I’m not going to take the bait.” Finn shifted his weight, squared his shoulders. “Tonight’s an important job, so as for you and your sisters’ little game of spying the other night, don’t think it went unnoticed, but I’ve got more important work to do. I suggest you stay out of events that don’t concern you.” He averted his gaze and scanned the room.

“You’re right. I should leave illegal activities and cover-ups to the professionals.”
Meow
, she thought.

“Meddling doesn’t become you. And tonight you look very becoming.”

Vivi ignored the compliment, not taking his bait either. “I didn’t come over to chat with you. I need to drop a note off to Dr. Fowler. He was kind enough to give me a tour the last time I was here. So, if you don’t mind, I’ll leave it in his lab.” She held up the envelope. The thank-you note was her best idea to get past security. She turned sideways and tried to squeeze between the Hexer and the doorframe.

“The lower levels are off-limits.” Finn crossed his arms over his chest and spread his stance, trying to block her descent.

“I’m sure you can make an exception,” she said, scrambling to come up with a more convincing reason to get downstairs.

“Sorry, no exceptions, not even for you. I’m sure you’ll see the good doctor tonight.” Finn motioned to the crowd. “He’s here somewhere.”

Time to think fast. Vivi opened her purse, only this time she pulled out a tiny vial and showed it to Finn. “I have a potion to drop off for business purposes. I’m trying to get his opinion on a new formula I’m working on. It would be inappropriate for me to ask at the party. It’ll take me two seconds to run down and leave it. I’ll be right back.” It was a long shot, since she wasn’t his favorite witch in the world.

“Aren’t you ambitious? But I can’t let anyone down there.” One of his eyebrows arched seductively, and she got the feeling he was flirting with her. “A Mayhem sister on the loose is the last thing I need tonight,” he added under his breath.

Vivi was forced to retreat. There was no easy way she was getting down those stairs. Plan B, it was. She slipped away from the Hexer and tried to locate her sister in the crowd. “I wish he hadn’t said that,” Vivi mumbled to herself. “Because
mayhem
is exactly what he’s going to get.”

Luckily, Honora’s glittery gold cocktail dress was easily spotted through the crowd and Vivi rendezvoused with her at an area beside the stage.

“Dax is going to give a presentation. He said we should be near the front and it’ll be unforgettable.” Honora beamed.

“Sounds intriguing,” Vivi said. “We still need a way to get past the Hexer squad over there.” For now, she turned her attention to the stage.

Dax tapped on the microphone and a hush fell over the crowd. The bewitching Mender twins were positioned to his far left at a place of honor, conspicuous as ever, seated with Dr. Fowler, who looked more bored than excited. A twitchy, wide-eyed wizard with a pale complexion and a line of sweat trailing down his neck into his collar stood by Dax’s side. He gave the nervous wizard a reassuring pat on the back and began his speech.

“We are gathered here tonight to celebrate the latest magical wonder brought to the witching community by our esteemed visionary leaders, the Menders.” Applause and cheers filled the room. “It’s thanks to their genius and sacrifice that we are here today, and once again I’m proud to showcase yet another breakthrough in magical technology.”

Dax pulled a small wooden box from his jacket pocket and cracked it open, revealing a piece of shiny metal on a velvet bed. He pulled the jewelry out and held a silver cuff high into the air.

Vivi gasped. “What’s he doing with
that
?” She grabbed her sister’s arm.

Honora’s eyes went wide, but she hedged. “Wait and see what happens.”

The charismatic wizard smiled. “I’m more of a watch man myself.” Everyone chuckled at the joke. “But my brave friend here has offered to demonstrate exactly what this little gem can do for him and for witches and wizards across Everland.”

The nervous wizard stepped forward and stuck his arm out in a stiff gesture. Dax took his wrist and attached the silver band.

“This can’t be good,” Vivi said, giving her sister an anxious stare.

The man’s body suddenly jerked, but Dax continued his speech. “We call this new invention the ‘gift of
persuasion
.’ It will be the company’s greatest accomplishment.”

Honora’s body tensed. “I don’t like the sound of this.”

“I told you,” Vivi said. “Gift of
persuasion
? More like the theft of
persuasion
.”

“Now all of us will have the opportunity to sample other
persuasions
that we were not given at birth. This first band is in the testing phase and is currently called five-minute flight.”

Honora’s face went pale. It was a look of fear in her eyes Vivi had rarely seen on her. “He’s kidding, right?” she asked, grabbing Vivi’s arms. “This isn’t possible. That bracelet can’t make someone fly, can it?” She sucked in a sharp breath.

The wizard hopped tentatively, drawing laughs from the crowd. His face went red and Dax gave him a nod of encouragement. The nervous wizard drew a deep breath and made a few bounding steps until he reached the end of the stage and leapt into the air. The crowd gasped.

The wizard was airborne.

His mouth hung wide open as a cascade of emotions from disbelief to wonder crossed his face. His arms flailed, his feet kicked wildly like he was drowning in midair, but after an excruciating few seconds, he gained his bearings and took flight, soaring skyward above the heads of the gathered dignitaries.

“Holy Hazel,” Honora said. “This can’t be happening. This isn’t right.”

“They’ve done it,” Vivi said. “The twins have created magical
persuasions
. I didn’t think it was even possible.” A rush of panic filled her as she watched the wizard awkwardly circling the room.

“He’s going to hurt himself. Vivi, it took me years to learn how to control my
persuasion
. Flying isn’t a game you just pick up. It’s dangerous. If everyone suddenly started flying like it’s some party trick, there would be some serious accidents.” Honora never took her eyes off the wizard.

“I agree, but how do we stop the most powerful witches in Everland? When news of this gets out to the general public, the Menders will be unstoppable. Everyone will want to try this new invention.”

“I’m going to talk to Dax. He’s got to know this is going too far.”

Vivi followed as Honora made her way up onto the stage. Never afraid of speaking her mind, Honora grabbed Dax’s arm. “You have to stop that guy. Get him to come down now,” she implored.

The wizard had gotten the hang of flying and was making wild loops around the room, diving and banking left and right, soaring higher and higher across the open air of the glass-enclosed atrium.

“He’s loving it. Everyone’s loving it.” There was a joyous gleam in Dax’s eyes. “I never dreamed this was possible. And now look.”

“It’s dangerous,” Vivi said, backing up her sister. “He’s going to get hurt.”

“This isn’t right, Dax.” Honora’s voice rose.

“What do you mean?” His expression changed, and he grabbed Honora’s arm. “I pushed this through for
us
. Now we both can fly together. Think of everything we can explore. It’ll be brilliant.” His eyes gleamed. Vivi had never seen Dax this excited before.

Honora pulled away from him. “It isn’t right.
Persuasions
are individual. You shouldn’t mass-produce them like shoes. It will cause an imbalance in the magical order.”

“Why not? Why should only some witches be able to fly? Why not all of us?” Dax didn’t wait for a response, but turned his back on them and continued to watch the show.

“That didn’t go well,” Vivi said. Dax was totally on board with selling
persuasions
. Was he right? Were they overreacting?

Murmuring among the crowd grew frantic. A gasp suddenly filled the room.

The flying wizard banged against a glass window, sending a shudder through the crowd. He waved, acknowledging that he was all right, but he clutched at his arm. Unsteadily, he made another pass over the crowd, lower this time, brushing against a huge flower arrangement and sending roses tumbling to the floor in a shatter of glass when the vase crashed. He wobbled in the air as he struggled to gain control of his flight.

“He needs to come down.” Honora tracked the wizard with her eyes. “He can’t control his directional navigation. He’s going to crash.” Her voice was firm.

Dax grabbed her arm. “Leave him be. Let him have his fun. It’s only for a few minutes. Or is that it? You don’t want to share your power with anyone else because then it won’t be special. It won’t make you better than others.”

“That’s rich, coming from one of the most intellectually gifted wizards in the world. What happens when all of us can have instant magical knowledge of everything?” She put her hand on her hip.

“That won’t happen. This device is for popular magic,” Dax countered.

“Is it? Or do you mean profitable magic?
Persuasions
you can sell.”

“Enough, you two.” Vivi interrupted their quickly escalating argument. It was all becoming clear to her. “What about the cost to witches’ lives? That
persuasion
was ripped out of a wizard,” Vivi said, thinking of the flyer, Maynard Luck, who was dead thanks to that device. “It’s unethical, not to mention deadly to the wizard being sucked dry of his magic.”

But Dax and Honora had stopped listening. They were watching the flying wizard. Currently, he was tangled in an enchanted web of illuma lights that had been draped over the entrance to the room. “He needs help,” Vivi said.

Honora rose off her feet and flew up to untangle the poor wizard. A wave of relief washed over his face when she reached him, and from what Vivi could tell from the ground, her presence was having a calming effect on him. Her sister was talking nonstop to the wizard, trying to offer advice, pointing to the ground. Once free from the illuma webbing, the wizard took off, seemingly over his little accident, totally ignoring any words of caution that Honora may have given him.

The guy is nuts,
Vivi thought. Or he was just too excited with his new
persuasion
to heed the warning.

Dax returned to center stage and spoke. “Within a very short time, we at Mender Corp hope to offer an array of different temporary
persuasions
to our customers.” Applause filled the room. “That ends our display portion of the evening. Please enjoy the festivities and have a wonderful night.”

The lights in the hall flickered, signaling a cue, but the young wizard kept up his flight. Honora watched him from a perch on one of the crossbeams. The man was halfway across the room on a routine pass when he dropped a few feet before regaining his elevation. He needed to land; even Vivi could see the magic was wearing off. He shook his wrist, but his body jerked as he tried to fly higher, intoxicated with his new abilities.

He wasn’t going to make it. Attempting to reach the safety of a beam, he suddenly plummeted, falling right toward the crowd. Screams erupted. Dozens of guests scrambled to get out of the way of the flailing wizard. In a stunning move, Honora swooped down and snatched the man up in her arms right before he crashed into a group of partygoers. Gasps and relieved cries filled the air at the daring rescue. Honora hauled the man’s body up and hung him from the edge of a huge statue, where he dangled like a bug about six feet from the ground, the metal statue impaling the man’s expensive jacket. It appeared to Vivi that Honora wanted to teach him a lesson in the dangers of flying.

“Stop this!” Mitchell yelled. “Help him down! Now!”

The Hexer security staff went into action, racing forward. Finn was on the move, his wand raised, ready to strike. The wizard was safe thanks to her sister, so Vivi grabbed the opportunity to sneak by them. There was only one guard left blocking her way down to Dr. Fowler’s lab. Commotion continued when the wizard struggled to free himself from the statue. Finn motioned for the rest of the guards to approach, and the one blocking the stairs abandoned his post.

Right as Vivi was about to descend the stairs, she glanced over her shoulder and saw her sister trying to pry the
persuasion
bracelet off of the wizard’s wrist. Dax was not going to be happy.

C
hills raced up Vivi’s spine as she hurried down the stairs and through the darkened labs. Pale blue illuma lights glowed through the empty hallways echoing with clinical silence. She crept along, senses alert. Her pulse quickened. She still had her doubts whether the doctor was involved in hurting witches, but she had to go where the clues led her, and right then, they led deep into the labyrinth of Mender Corp. Luckily, she had memorized the route from the building schematics, or she would have never found his workspace.

The plain wooden door was out of character in the gleaming modern laboratory. He grabbed the handle, but the door was locked with a black wrought-iron bolt. She fished through her purse and pulled out the potion she’d flashed to Hexer Finn. The little bottle actually contained a lock-releasing concoction, which she had brought just in case, and was glad she had.

She popped the cork and attached an atomizer she borrowed from an old perfume bottle. Holding the nose of the bottle up to the lock, Vivi gave it a quick spray, releasing the potion into the metal keyhole. She pulled her wand from her purse and tapped it against the lock, whispering the spell. To her relief, the latch clicked, and the old bolt shifted.

“That was easy.” She stepped tentatively inside the room. “Hopefully not
too
easy.”

Vivi thought Paul was being melodramatic when he called Dr. Fowler’s lab his dungeon, and she couldn’t have been more right. The room was neat as a pin. The metal tables where spotless, the shelves were orderly arranged, glass beakers all lined up in gleaming rows. A tall metal chair was positioned like a throne at the end of a row of tables. Vivi could see nothing weird or unusual. No sounds, no torture chamber, or bound witches. Her source was looking less reliable by the second.

She heard the soft padding of paws across the polished marble floor. The hairs on the back of her neck rose. She jerked around. The swish of a black tail caught her attention. Her stomach lurched. How had
the familiar
gotten down here? The panther swayed lazily down the aisle between a long row of metal tables. Vivi froze. Running would only set the creature off. The carnivorous cat leapt up onto a table in one fluid movement, watching her the entire time with eyes the color of sulfur. A diamond-studded collar reflected the low light. Even the panther got dressed up for the party. It would have been cute, if not for the fact it could eat her like an appetizer.

The big cat growled, its mouth filled with sharp fangs. Vivi stumbled backwards, her heart racing. It jumped to the floor, herding her, and she had no choice but to back into the throne-like chair stationed at the back of the lab. “Nice kitty,” she said, her entire body trembling. If curiosity killed the cat, then what did the cat do to a curious witch? Rip it to shreds with its razor-sharp claws.
Get it together.
She swallowed hard and slid back into the seat as the panther held her pinned down.

The sound of high heels clicking across the marble floor drifted toward her.

“So nice of you to join us this evening.” Miranda glided over to them and stroked the silken back of her deadly familiar.

“Nice to be invited,” Vivi said, trying to remain calm.

The twin was not whom she’d expected to encounter. Tension rose between them as Miranda made a slow appraisal of Vivi, as if eyeing up her prey. She had foolishly lost track of Miranda during the evening, thinking she would be preoccupied entertaining her guests. “Your familiar has caught me snooping.” Vivi smiled politely, disguising her nerves.

“Of course you were. Just as I had hoped.” Miranda pulled out her wand and gave it a violent flick. The door to the room slammed shut and locked.

“Me? How did you know I would be here?” Vivi asked, but she had a sinking feeling she’d been set up, and the fact that her question was answered with peals of laughter from Miranda only confirmed her suspicion.

Once she regained her composure, Miranda patted the metal lab table, and the giant cat leapt up, sitting near its master in an attentive posture. “I knew you would be here because I know everything that goes on with my company. Especially when someone is meddling, my darling little witch.”

Vivi had walked right into a trap. That pipsqueak wizard Paul was working for Miranda. She never should have trusted him. It had all been a little
too
convenient. The information Paul provided was exactly what she’d wanted to hear. Vivi had desperately wanted to believe him, needed to do whatever it took to find the witch, and he knew it. There was no dungeon laboratory or terrible cries or black ash.

Now Vivi was alone with an insanely ambitious witch and her deadly familiar, and no one but her sister knew where she was. After the commotion she’d witnessed upstairs, Honora and the Hexers had their hands full. Vivi doubted anyone would come looking for her anytime soon. “What do you want with me? I can’t hurt you or your company. I’m nothing to you.” Vivi tried to hold her ground, but the devious witch had other plans.

“You underestimate yourself. You’re a powerful witch with a very covetous
persuasion
.” She slapped her wand in her palm over and over. Her gaze narrowed, as if contemplating what to do with her new toy. At least Vivi knew what this was all about—her
persuasion
and the
test
. Mitchell had taken her blood, tested it, and now the twins knew about her
real
magical abilities. If anything, her
persuasion
had been nothing but a curse. Miranda could have it. See how she liked being dragged into nightmares she couldn’t stop.

“You have no idea what you’re talking about,” Vivi said. “Some magic only looks good from the outside.”

Miranda gave her a sympathetic turn of her head as if Vivi were the simplest witch alive, and she pitied her. “At the hands of an experienced witch, magic can perform miracles.” Her voice was as slippery as oiled glass.

Vivi rolled her eyes at the witch’s arrogance, but her gaze followed Miranda curiously as she reached over and adjusted the cat’s collar and something shiny attached to it caught the light. The sudden realization of what the witch possessed was a jab to Vivi’s heart.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Panic flooded through her veins. She jerked around on impulse, immediately seeking a way out, but she was pinned to the chair, cornered with no means of escape.

Coy as a snake, Miranda held up a silver bracelet. “I have a present for you. It’s like mine, except this bracelet will take some of that precious magic of yours and give it to me.”

“You’re insane,” Vivi blurted. Time for some brutal honesty. “You can’t just go around hurting witches, robbing them of their powers, and leaving them near death or dead.”
Or could she?

“So dramatic. You don’t know what you’re talking about. Everyone should have whatever
persuasion
they want. Magic should be for all of us.” Her temper rose, her voice turning rough. Miranda wasn’t listening to her.

Vivi had to make her understand. “Life is about more than power. Please, you’ve been mislead about the bracelet. It’s a siphon. It’s dangerous.”

Miranda’s brow creased, but she continued on the same path. “This miraculous device will take a sampling of your
persuasion,
and by the end of the evening, it will be mine. Your sleeping body will be found. Too much champagne will be blamed. It’s a party. These things happen. You’ll be embarrassed, but no one will think anything of it.” She had this all planned.

“That
thing
is too strong.” Words flooded out of Vivi. Her muscles tensed and sweat streamed down her back. Miranda had no idea the device was killing witches. But how could she not know? Vivi didn’t have time to figure it out now; she had to convince her. “The bracelet is volatile. The magic isn’t safe.”

Miranda turned on her with a vicious glare. “Stop it! Shut up!”

With sheer muscular power, the great cat pounced at Vivi’s feet and held its heavy front paws on either side of her lap. Its muzzle was so close to her face she could feel its hot breath on her check. Vivi froze. Miranda waved her wand and uttered a spell, causing thick bars to jut out of the chair and wrap around her chest, strapping her down.

“Foolishness. Lies. I won’t hear it.” In one swift motion, Miranda snapped the bracelet around Vivi’s wrist, and a jolt of pain flowed up her arm like a river of fire.

Vivi screamed as the icy silver enveloped her wrist with a searing pain. The magic pierced her skin like a needle pulling thread, pulling her essence from her. Her body jerked. She struggled against the bonds, but the metal band only tightened around her chest, causing her breathing to spasm in deep gasps. “No! Don’t do it! You’re better than this. You’re a healer.” Vivi’s eyes welled with hot tears that slid down her cheeks.

“It only hurts for a few minutes. Then all the pain will drift away.” Miranda stroked her hair in an odd show of affection.

“Is my life worth it?” Vivi pleaded, her back pressed hard against the chair. Sweat beaded on her brow as the bracelet slowly drained her energy. Her mind reeled as the image of Clarissa, lying in the healer ward empty of magic, of her essence, of her very soul, filled her mind. Vivi had to think of a way out. She couldn’t die like this.

Miranda bent down to Vivi’s level, her eyes wide. She clasped Vivi’s face in her cold hands. “I want the power to see the future. All my life I’ve helped other people to feel better, healing them. But I want more out of life. I’m tired of serving others. I want a
persuasion
that serves me. Nothing is more powerful than the
persuasion
of prophecy.”

“Is this what you did to the others? Lured them here with promises? Just tell me one thing. Where’s the other witch? What have you done to her?” Vivi asked. She had to know what had happened to the young strawberry-blonde witch from her vision. She hadn’t sensed her when she entered the lab, and now she realized, she might never find her. “Please tell me what you’ve done to her?”

A flicker of confusion crossed Miranda’s beautifully evil face. “I don’t know what you’re mumbling about. There’s no one here but us. No one to stop me.” She lifted her arms and turned around in a dramatic gesture.

“What about the other witches, the ones who suffered to give you the
persuasions
you think you deserve?”

Miranda’s expression twisted in a moment of confusion, but she brushed it aside. “You’ve had too much champagne. No one is going to get hurt. It’s a very simple procedure. Witches will be lining up to offer their
persuasions
.” Miranda gave her a self-satisfied smirk and turned her attention to the panther. The giant black cat had leapt back up on the table, and Miranda showered the animal with affection.

If Miranda didn’t know about the other witches, then who did? Was someone else at Mender Corp behind the siphon’s power? Was it
really
Dr. Fowler, after all? Had he hidden his nefarious testing from the Menders? The pain in her wrist surged. Vivi’s head was killing her, but she had to focus her attention. Her eyelids felt heavy as lead. There had to be a way out. She couldn’t let Miranda steal her magic and her life.

Then Vivi remembered the tiny vial she wore around her neck—the wish.

It was a long shot. The potion was not a strong punch of magic. The wish wasn’t a weapon or a ward. It was just a simple wish. Her eyes fluttered. Her chest and upper arms were pressed tightly against the chair, but her forearms were free. If she could bend her head down, she might be able to reach the dangling charm. She took a deep breath and feigned a coughing attack. Reaching up to cover her mouth, she lowered her head and the necklace dangled within reach. In a swift motion, Vivi broke the chain and held the tiny potion bottle in her closed fist. So far so good.

Loud noise from the party upstairs distracted Miranda. Vivi formed the wish in her head. She only had one shot, so she’d better make it a good one. She decided on a big loud, party-ruining disruption.

“I wish the fire alarm would go off and not stop. Right now,” she mumbled under her breath while pulling the stopper out of the bottle. From between her fingers, the potion activated and a pale purple cloud drifted out of the vial and caused a swirl of color and sparks. A second passed and then another, but the silence was shattered when a blaring alarm and glowing red illuma lights lit up the room. Vivi figured a colossal disturbance was her best chance to get Miranda out of the lab and to alert her sister she was in trouble.

“What’s happening?” A look of panic washed over Miranda’s face. The panther jumped off the table and stayed close to her side.

“How should I know? It’s your alarm.”

Shouting and movement stirred above them. Miranda waved her wand and the door flew open. She muttered a litany of spells, but the blaring alarm continued, causing her to curse under her breath. The giant cat paced across the room, tail twitching, head lowered. Miranda stormed over to the door and peered up the stairwell. Within a few seconds, a wash of sounds poured into the room—loud voices, heavy footsteps, clanking of doors. With an agitated glare, the witch spun around and hurried back to Vivi.

“Problem?” Vivi asked, satisfaction welling inside her. She could barely hold her head up and her eyelids were thin slits, but she had beaten the witch, and it felt good, even through the pain.

Miranda made a few angry swipes with her wand, muttered a spell, and the restraints on the chair released. Next, she quickly yanked the bracelet off of Vivi’s wrist and slipped it back onto the panther’s collar. From her purse, she pulled a small metal flask and poured the contents into Vivi’s mouth and down the front of her dress. Vivi coughed violently when the strong liquor went down her throat, but she was too weak to fight Miranda off. She grabbed Vivi by the back of her hair and yanked her head up. “I don’t know what’s going on, but we aren’t done here,” she hissed in her ear and hurried out of the lab, followed by her familiar, who wasn’t so ferocious with an alarm scaring it. Vivi closed her eyes, dazed and weak as time slipped by.