Lynx nods. “I had a feeling.” He looks at Maverick. “Can you set her on my bed, please?”

  Maverick and I stare at him in wonder. “Why?” Maverick asks finally.

  “We need to see if my ability is still intact, right? Honestly, I’m worried about treating something life-threatening like the Sickness without some practice first.”

  “What’s the plan?” I ask.

  “You’re the perfect specimen, Lilith.” Lynx’s hazy eyes drift toward my legs. “I’m going to try to fix you… like you wanted me to when we first met.”

  My heart skips a beat. “You want to what?”

  “Fix you.” His eyes are still cloudy, but the aquamarine shines through like a cloud’s silver lining. “Please trust me.”

  I look down at my legs and back at him. Oddly enough, I do trust him; I just don’t trust the idea that he can fix me. I’ve come to terms with never walking again. Knowing the story of Flora and her permanent death, I’m not sure I want his magic to touch me at all.

  But if I won’t do this for myself, I can at least do it for Clio.

  The minute I realize this, all my reservations disappear. “Okay. It’s worth a try.”

  “You don’t have to do this,” Maverick says.

  “I know.” I turn to look up at him. I don’t have to do anything, but if testing this means giving Clio another chance at life, I’d even cut off my legs to make it happen.

  “Okay.” Maverick bends over to gently set me on the mattress beside Lynx.

  Up close, Lynx is much bigger, his frame dwarfing mine as we sit hip-to-hip on the bed. I shift a little, trying to put some distance between us, but the bed’s not big enough.

  “You ready?” Lynx looks down at me. I nod, and he takes a breath, reaching across my body to set his hands on my ankles. Now I’m staring at his back as he squeezes my ankles. The jolt of pain shooting up my spine makes me wince. For one heart-stopping moment, I get the sickening feeling that this is all a trick, that he’s still with the Council and is now destroying my body any way he can. Maverick stares back at me, frowning in concern. He takes one hesitant step forward, but I shake my head, trying to convince us both that for once, everything will be okay. Maverick doesn’t quite believe it, but he stays puts, watching for the slightest cue that I need him to step in.

  Slowly, Lynx’s hands inch up my calves, working harder into my skin. He pushes and prods the bruises in my legs, injuring the already devasted skin in ways I didn’t think were possible anymore. By the time he’s halfway to my knees, I don’t know how much more I can take. I want to scream. I’ve experienced a lot of pain in my life, but this has its own category. My vision blurs and darkens as I fight back the dizziness.

  “Stay with me, Lilith,” Lynx says. “I need you to focus.”

  I try to focus on him, but it’s hard. I’m ready to succumb to the pain, to give in and accept that I never had a chance anyway. Then Lynx removes his hands. The pain stops a few seconds later, and now we’re both staring at my legs like we expect them to start talking.

  “Well?” Maverick takes one more step toward us.

  Lynx grabs the edge of one bandage and unwraps the cloth, moving through each rotation with agonizing slowness. Then he throws both bandages aside with an extravagant flick of his wrist. I’m almost afraid to see what’s become of my useless legs. I’m so used to seeing my left calf covered in pink scar tissue that the sight of the normal, supple flesh makes me faint.

  Chapter Forty-One

  Blessings and Curses

  “LILITH. LILITH, CAN you hear me?” Katrina’s voice cuts through the blackness.

  Groaning, I struggle to open my eyes. “What happened?” I reach up to cradle the worst of the pain in my forehead.

  “You fainted,” Lynx says.

  I push myself up when I realize I’m still in his bed.

  Embarrassed now, I try to move away from him again. Then I remember and look at my legs—at the perfect, porcelain skin encircling my left calf.

  Lynx watches me with wide eyes, studying my reaction. Does he think I’ll be angry? Should I be? I slowly poke at my leg, not sure what to do when my fingertips brush soft, healthy skin. This has to be a dream. It’s the only way this makes sense.

  Crowe steps toward the bed, his green eyes calm as he offers his arm. Those eyes ask me one question. Am I ready? I nod and grab his arm. His other arm slips around my waist as he gradually eases me toward the edge of the bed.

  Katrina’s in the room now too, watching me. I must have passed out for a while if she and Crowe managed to return to the Land of New Life before I woke up again. Whatever the case, I’m glad they’re here now. No one speaks as Crowe scoots me forward just enough that I slip off the bed. I’m terrified of the pain I’ve grown so used to feeling when my feet hit the ground. There’s no pain at all. My knees don’t buckle. I don’t collapse. With stinging eyes, I blink back the tears and take a step. After another, Crowe lowers both his arms, and I cry out, grabbing at him and knowing that I’ll fall. But he steps away from me, and I’m still standing. On my own two feet. No limp, no pain.

  Through her fingers over her mouth, Katrina mutters, “That’s incredible.”

  I turn back to Lynx with shining eyes. He lifts an eyebrow and studies my legs, probably looking for a sign that something went wrong. Finally, he meets my gaze and offers a small smile. I want to scream ‘thank you’ a thousand times in a hundred languages, but it doesn’t seem enough to express this overwhelming gratitude. So I turn and leap back toward the bed to wrap my arms around his neck. I kiss his cheek and pull this stranger closer to me than most of my friends have ever come.

  “I can never thank you enough,” I whisper in his ear.

  Lynx’s massive arms swallow me when he hugs me back. We break apart, and Crowe puts a hand on my shoulder, grinning. This is a special event for him too, I realize. As my mentor, he’s earned a certain pride in this too.

  The bed creaks beneath Lynx, and I look at him again, still surprised by how massive he is. His body glows with a new, ethereal light, mesmerizing me, and he smiles. “Now, let’s tackle that Sickness.”

  “What’s happening?” Willow’s voice echoes in the hallway, then she bursts into the room. All the color drains from her face.

  Lynx stands from the bed that just yesterday was his literal deathbed. Willow’s mouth drops open, and she searches for Maverick but finds me first.

  “Lily, I… Your legs.” Even in a whisper, her voice shakes.

  I laugh. Not because the situation is by any means hilarious but because it’s such a relief that I can do this—that I can be a good surprise for once. “I know. His magic definitely works.” There’s still a future for this Coven; we can save so many witches now with this turn of events. I’m ready to smile and dance if it’d cheer her up, but Willow looks horrified. “What’s wrong?”

  “Tell me it wasn’t Lynx,” she says, closing her eyes.

  Lynx’s cloudy eyes are wide, as if he thinks he’s in trouble now for doing what we’ve asked of him. I want to grab his hand and tell him everything’s all right, that what he did was a wonderful thing, but I don’t think it’ll help right now. Not when Willow’s this upset about it.

  “You might not like what I say,” I tell her.

  Willow’s eyes squeeze even tighter, and a choking squeak escapes her. If Willow could still cry, I’m sure she would right now.

  Katrina, Crowe, and Maverick all look just as confused. But Katrina goes to Lynx and whispers something in his ear. Then she laces her fingers through his and leads him out into the hall. Crowe follows but stops in the doorway.

  I rush toward Willow, surprised and worried that I can’t read her. “What’s wrong?”

  “Oh, sister. I’m happy for you, I am.” Her eyes crack open.

  I tilt my head, and Maverick takes his place beside her. “Are you? You could’ve fooled me.”

  “I’m sorry. It’s just… his magic…” She leans toward me to whisper, “The whole thing with Flora, remember? I can’t…I won’t be able to…” She pulls away but holds my gaze. “You know what this means for your future… when you… when you…” She can’t finish the sentence.

  “When I die?”

  She nods, her black eyes so wide, so innocent-looking, that I want to grab her and hold her. Sometimes, it’s hard to remember she’s a leader, a warrior, that she’s survived death; seeing her now like this makes her look more like a fragile doll.

  Darrius thought the same of me, didn’t he?

  I smile. “Don’t worry about that part.”

  Willow recoils. “Don’t worry about it?” she snarls. “How can I not?”

  “Willow, if I’m really going to kill the Sage and take her place, I should be able to die. No one should have that much power forever.”

  Folding her arms, she stares past me.

  “Willow?” Maverick prompts, giving me a concerned, sideways glance.

  She swallows and looks down at her hands. “Maybe you’re right.”

  “No, Willow,” I say, realizing she took my words personally, as the leader of the Elemental Coven. “You were born for this role. You should always lead your people.” Just to make a point, I glance at the witches still silently watching us. “They admire you so much. And they respect the Hell out of you.”

  “Do they? I failed them so badly with the Sickness. If I—”

  “Don’t do that.” Maverick places a hand on the small of her back. She looks up at him. “Don’t do that,” he says again.

  I nod. “Don’t ever tell yourself that. There was nothing any of us could’ve done. Even Reggie said the Sickness couldn’t be undone, and he blamed the magic.”

  “Doesn’t mean he was telling the truth.”

  I tap my temple. “Trust me, he was.” Then I pull her into a hug. “You’re the best leader I’ve ever met.”

  She smiles and leans away. “That’s high praise from the future Sage.”

  “So accept it. The Sage knows all.”

  Laughing, she gives me a gentle push. “Whatever you say, cousin.”

  Maverick frowns and blinks at us. “Uh… what?”

  Willow smiles wide enough to fully reveal the gap in her front teeth and gently grabs his arm. “You’ve got a lot to catch up on.” She laughs again.

  The sound of her laughter wipes away all the worries of the past few moments. I glance into the hall at Crowe and the other witches standing there. “Clio first,” I say and bolt out of the room, racing past Crowe and Katrina and Lynx.

  Running on my own two legs brings I joy I just can’t put into words. I stumble over my feet a few times but quickly catch myself. Moving like this, without depending on others, is so freeing, I throw my head back and laugh down the hall. Kado hears me and comes bounding out of our room to run beside me.

  Our group pours into the Community Villa, our footsteps thundering down the hall. When we reach the last door, I fling it open, both terrified and eager to see what’s waiting for me.

  Callista and Thorn hover over a bowl of water in the corner, and Clio still lies in bed. At first, he doesn’t move, and I have the horrible thought that we’re too late. Then he slowly lifts his head and coughs. Even through the Sickness, I can see the surprise in his eyes. “Li, you’re…”

  “Walking.” I step right up to his bedside, grinning.

  “How—” He stops dead when Lynx appears by my side.

  “All is possible in love and war,” I reply.

  Lynx nods and approaches Clio. “My name is Lynx. Hopefully, I’ll be the one who saves your life.”

  Clio’s eyes ask a hundred questions, but he reaches out to brush his fingers against my hand before he grips the bedrail and looks up at the massive Reanimate.

  “Are you ready?” Lynx asks.

  “Will it hurt?” Clio asks, eyeing me.

  “No more than you’ve already been hurt,” Lynx replies.

  Nodding, Clio takes in a deep breath, and Lynx rubs his hands together. In what seems the quickest and the slowest moment of my life, he reaches his fingers toward Clio’s chest. But Clio’s bone-thin hand snatches out to grab Lynx, both of them uncomfortable with the contact. “Even if you can’t save me, just know I will always be grateful for what you’ve done for her.”

  Lynx nods, and Clio lies back against the mattress. Lynx finally brings his fingers down onto Clio’s chest, and I shift anxiously from foot to foot. Lynx mutters under his breath and stumbles once, reminding me of Willow in the midst of her own magic.

  Willow steps forward in silent concern. When Lynx stumbles again, his hip collides with the railing of Clio’s bed, sending a loud clang echoing through the room. He catches himself and sits down.

  “Are you okay?” Willow calls.

  Lynx does not answer. A minute later, his fingers fall away from Clio’s chest, and he slumps over across Clio’s legs. Willow and I rush toward him. She lays a hand gently on his back. “Lynx?” Her other hand cups his cheek.

  I glance at Clio and the flush of color in his cheeks. Slowly, he sits up, returning to the Clio I know with every passing second, as if the Sickness never existed. His eyes clear of the sickly gleam, and he blinks, studying me from head to toe before hopping out of bed and pulling me into a hug that crushes all the air from my lungs.

  “Damn it, Lynx!” Willow cries, willing to shake him fiercely now in her panic. We turn back to her just as she looks, her black eyes glassy. “I think we lost him.”

  Chapter Forty-Two

  It Feels Good to Laugh

  THE NEWS IS like a punch to the gut. It doesn’t hurt as bad as it might if Clio hadn’t recovered first. But after what I’ve seen, I’ve learned to believe in the impossible. I dart out of the room, leaving a confused Willow and Clio behind me.

  For perhaps the first time in my life, my mind is clear. I run through the Community Villa and all the way back to Willow’s mansion. Lazarus is still asleep in his chair, the way old men sleep, and I drop to my knees beside him. “Lazarus. Lazarus!” I shake his arm.

  He’s hard to rouse, but at last his eyes open. “Lilith? What are you doing here?”

  There’s no time for words, so I touch his forehead right between his eyebrows and pour all my thoughts into his third eye. He’s on his feet at once, moving fast for an elderly Reanimate.

  We return to Clio’s room to find Clio still beside Lynx, trying to revive him. Willow stands in the corner, her face buried in her hands.

  She’s lost hope again—the most dangerous thing she could do.

  Lazarus goes to Clio, and I go to my cousin.

  “He’s going to be okay,” I tell her and pull her into a hug.

  She doesn’t resist and leans into me. “How can you be so sure?”

  “Because Lazarus is here.”

  She shoots a startled glance across the room. Lazarus has already pushed Clio out of the way, and together, they roll Lynx over onto his back. Lazarus grabs the massive witch’s head with one hand and Lynx’s shoulder with the other. Lazarus is looking for something.

  Lynx gasps, though his eyes remain closed.

  “Oh, my God,” Willow mutters. “Is he going to—”

  “Be okay?” Lazarus nods. “What he did was a great feat for any witch.” He looks from Clio to me. “He just needs to rest.”

  A snore erupts from Lynx’s open mouth; the sound is so unexpected, so welcome, and so sudden that Willow laughs. The chiming sound of it is the icing on the cake—the release of so many weeks spent in pain and fear. Now that I can see light at the end of the tunnel, I laugh with her.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Warm Goodbyes

  WE AGREE TO let Lynx rest. Thorn and Callista work overtime, pouring their magic into sustaining the few witches still afflicted with the Sickness. Lazarus stays by Lynx’s side, and I walk beside Willow down the hall. This is the first time I’ve felt like her equal, and the thought makes me want to cry all over again.

  Clio walks behind us. After all the days of being bedridden, he’s just as glad to be on his feet as I am.

  “So where’s… Mom?” I ask Willow, glancing over my shoulder at Clio. He doesn’t sense anything out of the ordinary. I’ll have the conversation with him one day, but now is definitely not the time.

  “She’s getting on,” Willow says with something close to pride. She turns into her throne room, where Ivy sits in her cat form, surrounded by the undead tigers. The scars and marks of her death are even more prominent against her silvery fur, but the tigers don’t seem to care. When we enter, they form a circle around her, watching her every move.

  The tigers have bonded with Ivy. They like her.

  “She’s their new caretaker.” Willow’s voice cracks a bit. That used to be Grief’s job, but he’s among those who fell to the Sickness before we could help them.

  “There’s a place for her after all,” I muse.

  Willow sighs and scratches the back of her head. “There always has been. I just had a hard time realizing that for a while.”

  The smallest smiles graces my lips. “Me too. I still have my concerns, but at the end of the day, she’ll always be your mother.”

  Willow slings her cold arm over my shoulders and pulls me into a sideways hug. “And nothing is more important than family.”

  ***

  LYNX WAKES LATER that night and cures one more witch. Despite his dedication and willingness to do himself harm, Lazarus has limited him to healing one witch a day. Any more than that may push Lynx past capacity; he may even lose his gift forever.

  Those are terms to which we can all agree.

  Willow has regained her confidence. I see it in the way she moves. There are still a handful of sick witches, but she knows they will all pull through. So do I. She is so determined in her decisions that she tags along with us to the portal on or way to the Wilderness. There, she tells her witches to pack their bags and prepare to come home.

 

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