Chapter 83- Into The Thorns

Crystal’s head felt like a marching band was playing inside. Her skull seemed to push against her skin causing her forehead to feel tight. She pulled herself into a sitting position and the room began to spin. Nausea swarm around her stomach and she slithered back under the covers, closing her eyes from the bright light shining through the curtains.
If this is what a hangover felt like. I never want to get drunk. She groaned as the pain worsened. She had inflicted the suffering herself. However, it was for a worthy cause. Sharp stabbing pains ran through her heart and chest. She screamed out in pain. It felt like someone was squeezing her insides.
The door flung open, as the pain travelled around her body as if her blood was on fire.
“Hay, it’s okay,” she heard the words, but she was in too much discomfort and just whimpered as Levi brushed the hair from her face. Finally, the pain reduced, and she found herself panting, pulling in as much oxygen as she could.
“It’s the dark magic, it’s like toxins that attack your very being,” Levi explained.
“Will it happen again?” she asked.
“I am not sure,” he answered honestly.
Crystal rolled over and onto the remote and accidently switched the T.V on.
Her eyes opened wide as she watched Perl running from a café in the city with a baby over her shoulder.
“What the….” Crystal’s heart accelerated and her breathing became ragged.
“She’s found him,” Levi pointed out and she glared at him.
“We have to stop her,” Crystal jumped from the bed and was hit with a dizzy spell she wobbled from side to side.
“Easy there,” Levi gripped her shoulders and steadied her. He pressed his palm to her forehead then gently placed a kissed.
“Perl doesn’t have the heart to kill the child,” Levi whispered.
“Who knows what she is capable of?” Crystal knew that Perl had a dark side. One that showed its ugly face more often than her good side, all she had ever known was the deeds of the wicked. If she thought killing the child was the best way to end their nightmare, then she feared she may already be too late.
Her family was messed up. Out of control with no compassion, love nor loyalty. Jeanette had stolen their innocence and turned her children into mindless killers. All in the name of the coven.
“If Perl as hurt him, in any way, I will kill her myself,” Crystal grumbled. Her dizzy spell subsided. Pulling random items out of the closet she dressed inside her bathroom and re-entered wearing jeans and a black jumper. Tying her hair back she was ready to face Perl and defend her nephew. Death wasn’t the answer. Too many lives had already been lost. She would be dammed if she let another innocent soul die.
Levi laid on her bed his legs in the air and his head propped up on his hands. Crystal looked at the screen and watched an African American plead for the safe return of his son, Isaac.
There was no mistaking that the boy was Ruby’s. His dazzling green eyes and sharp facial features were a tell-tale sign. She gulped. The entire world would now know about the boy. Perl had made a big mistake. No one knew the child existed but now….
“Everyone will know,” Crystal voiced her thought.
“None will know he is a Hudson,”
“Look at him Levi. His green eyes give him away,”
“All we can do is find them and hide him again. Far away from here.” Levi said and she followed him out of the door.
Mary halted them on the staircase; her grim expression caused a knot to form in Crystal’s stomach.
“I am afraid that the future as been set and now the path before us all is dark,” Mary whispered.
“Mum?”
“There is no future. Just the end,” Mary added and walked past them in a daze. Both of them watched her go as she slowly walked down the hall and to her room. Goosebumps formed on Crystals body, and she shivered. The tone of Mary’s gloomy voice left her heart feeling hollow. Were they too late?
When the door to Mary’s room closed, they descended the stairs in silence and exited the house. As they drove into town, Crystal stared Longley at the homes decorated with Christmas decorations. It was the day before Christmas Eve and instead of preparing to spend the holidays with her family she was running out of time to save them.
They drove to the café in which the incident had taken place. Parking the car, they both walked inside. The place was jam packed. The media attention that they had received had done wonders for the small business. They wouldn’t find anything in there. They walked back outside, and Levi leaned against the café wall.
“It’s a big city Crystal,”
“Yeah, I know that” she snapped she knew what he was getting at. Where did they look? Where would Perl have gone?
“You need to do a locater spell,” Rolling her eyes she gazed at the people going about their daily business.
“I am not the best student,” she confessed. She never listened when it came to the community classes. She was always lost in her own daydreams. Now those lessons seemed to be useful she wished she had taken more time to learn the knowledge.
“You don’t know how?” he asked sceptical.
“No, community classes they just didn’t do it for me,”
“Great, I will have to talk you through it,” he muttered. Crystal was about to respond with a snarky comment of her own when numerous screams and shouts echoed through the busy streets.
An explosion caused the ground to shake, and a large cloud of dust moved at a rapid pace covering the streets in a thick blanket.
Crystal coughed and spluttered as it entered her chest.
She couldn’t see a thing and her eyes stung like crazy from the fine bits of debris she had gotten in them.
Like a demon rising from the pits of hell, Ruby waltzed through the smoke. Her once brown hair was pitch black and her green eyes had tuned a red mixed with orange.
“Ruby?” Crystal found it hard to speak. Her throat and mouth were dry from all the dust.
“Where is my son!” she bellowed.
“I will find him,” Crystal said with determination and Ruby looked right through her. A fireball formed in her hand and with a smirk she casually tossed the ball in Crystal’s direction.
Crystal was too shocked to move. Levi pushed her out of the way, and she fell to the floor in a heap. When she stood, Ruby was gone.
“What happened to her?” Crystal whispered.
“She has let the darkness in,” Levi answered as more screams danced around them. Ruby would rip the city apart. They had to act fast.
“Listen Crystal. You need to put Ruby to sleep. She is out of control,”
“How?” she asked.
“We need to get closer to her,” he gripped her hands and dragged her in the direction everyone else was running from.
They hid behind big, large dumpsters.
“Hold your hand up, palm out and repeat after me. Gods gave us power; Gods gave us might. Take away our city’s pain. Take away this fright. From eyes wide too eyes closed. From the power of gods, I send thee to sleep, until the next morning light,” Crystal repeated his words and felt the tingle of magic run through her veins. It coaxed something inside of her. Something wicked that wanted to kill. She could feel it. Taste the desire, pushing the feeling down, she concentrated on repeating the spell.
Ruby slumped to the ground and Levi rushed towards her, gathering her in his arms. Crystal helped him get her to the car.
“She will wake tomorrow when the sun rises,”
“How do we fix her?” Crystal asked as she watched her toss and turn.
“She isn’t broken Crystal. She has just lost her way. Only Ruby can find her purpose in life. Only she can save herself,” Crystal looked at her once sweet sister. She had always helped Ruby one way or another with her comforting words and motherly hugs.
She was the light in her family. Sighing she bent down and kissed her forehead.
“I know you can rise above this, you’re the light within our abnormal dysfunctional family. You just have to find yourself,” she whispered then closed the door. Levi held a soft smile on his perfect lips when her eyes met his.
“What?” she asked.
“You amaze me. No matter what, you hold your faith,” looking at the ground she let out a puff of air. He didn’t know how wrong he was. She had lost her hope, a few times. The will to fight was almost gone. At times she wondered if death would be easier.
Lifting her chin, he planted a soft kiss on her lips and then pressed his forehead to hers. Crystal felt her knees grow weak and butterflies danced in her stomach.
“Ruby will pull through. She has you,” he whispered, and she tiptoed and softly kissed him.
“I hope so,” she whispered back.
Her phone began to sing, and she raised one brow. It had been days since she had heard that tone. Her own community was gone. Most of the witches were dead or fighting the virus and the one friend she had was gone. When she glanced at the screen her heart surged.
“Hello,” she quickly answered.
“Crystal, I don’t know what to do,”
“Where are you Perl?” Crystal demanded she tried hard to keep her tone neutral and not rant and rave at her sister.
“I am staying at Potter’s Motel, room thirty-two A,”
“Wait there, where on our way,” she hung up and ran around the car. Levi jumped in the driver’s seat and started the engine. He didn’t need her to relay the message she knew that. After all, he had super hearing.
“What do we do?” She asked him.
“We need to get the baby out of this city as fast as possible,” he answered.
“How?” she asked.
“I have a contact. I will see if he can get him to England,”
“England?” she asked with panic.
“America isn’t safe for him. The further he is away the better,”
“Why not just send him to Australia,” she grumbled. She wouldn’t get the chance to play aunt. Her mother had made sure of that. She had taken everything good in the world and turned it into to ash.
“You know Crystal that is not a bad idea,” she punched him gently in the arm and gazed out of the window. The destruction that Ruby had created would take years to repair.