Luckily, she’d put a few barriers up between the fifth and his friends, just in case.
One of those barriers was hiding on a rooftop near where the fifth was jumping right about now.
The witch wasn’t sure if she should make her way over there or stay put, but before she could make up her mind, something very strange happened.
A voice entered her head.
A familiar voice.
I know you’re here. I’ve taken some of your toys away from you, and they’re going to lead me right to you.
The witch stopped in her tracks, shaken by the invasion into her own thoughts.
She’d done the same thing to other people plenty of times, even watching their dreams or listening to their thoughts, but she’d never had anyone besides the Dark One do it to her.
It was an unsettling feeling, hearing the voice of someone you couldn’t see in your head like that. Knowing from their tone just how badly they wanted revenge.
What surprised her most, though, was how much it stung to hear Karmen’s voice dripping with such disdain. It wasn’t like she’d been the easiest person to get to know in the first place, and she had a tendency to sound snarky or rude, but the witch had liked Karmen.
Maybe her most of all.
They were very similar in their powers, which was something that usually bonded witches in her world. Witches of the same elemental side who shared core abilities were often like sisters back home, and the witch had longed to have someone close to her to discuss spells with and share secrets.
Of course, back there, the witch had barely even known what she was capable of herself. She knew she possessed some fire abilities, but she’d had no idea she could track. She’d used it instinctually when she tracked Tobias through the forest that fateful night, but that was the first time she could ever remember following someone and just knowing where they were headed. Sensing their power.
The coercion abilities were fun, though. The ability to see into people’s minds and twist them to her will.
Karmen enjoyed it, too, and the witch had no doubt that they could have been good friends under different circumstances.
But now, they were on different sides, and she would destroy Karmen if she had to.
I know you can hear me, whether you want to respond or not. I will find you, Karmen said.
The witch smiled and shook her head. Maybe a slight change of plans was in order.
Not if I find you first.
Forty-Five
Parrish
Parrish’s mouth dropped open in shock as the bird-like creature who’d attacked her earlier swooped across the crowd of rotters, slashing them with her sharp talons.
For a split second, she’d thought that thing was coming for her when it flew over her shoulder, but now it was clear what had happened.
“Good job, Karmen,” she said. “I take back every mean thing I ever said about you.”
“Wow, that’s years’ worth of stuff, I bet,” Karmen said.
“Eh, only if you count everything I wrote in my diary about you,” Parrish said with a laugh as she continued working her way through what was left of the horde.
“Oh, I bet I know who you wrote about the most. Dear diary, I have the biggest crush on the hot guy who lives across the street,” Karmen said.
Parrish’s face warmed, and she glanced over at Noah.
He was holding back a smile, and when he winked at her, she could hardly believe this was real life.
After all these years of dreaming, she was finally hanging out with him on a daily basis, and instead of lying in the grass holding his hand and talking about the future, they were fighting their way through a horde of zombies in downtown Manhattan, both covered in blood and guts.
She winced as she studied his face. That did not look good at all.
“Hey, Noah, how are you feeling?” she asked, sliding her blade through the neck of a woman in jogging gear. She’d still been wearing a pair of fancy headphones with an iPhone strapped to her arm.
“I’m feeling a little woozy, to be honest,” he said, bringing his bat down on another rotter’s skull.
Something deep down turned in her stomach.
Was it possible he could get infected from taking on one of their injuries? He’d discovered a while back that his skin was hardened against zombie attacks or any kind of cuts and stuff, but when he shielded them, he got at least some of their injuries.
So the question was whether or not those bird-women had any of the virus in their talons.
Parrish’s mouth went dry just thinking about it, and as she stared at the sea of rotters still heading toward them, she wasn’t sure she had the patience to deal with all of them.
She needed to check on Noah a little more closely. See if he was showing any signs of infection.
And if he is, what do I think I’m going to do about it?
She didn’t have an answer to that, but she needed to know.
They needed to make faster work of these zombies, and she was about to tell her friends that when Karmen’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
“Um, guys? I might have done something really stupid,” she said.
“Oh, well, I guess there’s a millionth time for everything,” Parrish said.
“Haha, very funny.”
“What did you do?” Noah asked.
“I reached out to Lily and kind of threatened her, so I think she’s coming for us,” Karmen said. “So, we might want to make quick work of this horde and figure out a plan for facing her.”
“You did what?” Parrish asked. “How?”
Karmen explained it as though she’d simply tuned into the frequency of Lily’s mind and reached out to her.
Parrish rolled her eyes. Great. That was just what they needed right now.
But hey, if that meant Lily was looking
