Music to Murder Boys to -Chapter 3
Ash places a hand on my thigh, snapping me out of it. “Calm down.”
And I do. The inferno inside me washes away as if her touch is a bucket of water.
“Jaz,” Jordan says, as he approaches.
I flinch at the sound of his raspy voice. “What?”
“What’s good? She told me y’all was tryna get lit in the woods.”
Before I can say anything, Ash presses a button on the dashboard and the hood of the convertible groans shut.
“Why would you invite him out with us?” The words fall from my lips calmly, which surprises me. I should be furious. She’s the only person that knows the truth. She knows how hard I try to avoid him at school. She knows how angry he makes me. So why would she bring him here? And why the hell aren’t I angrier?
“Tonight is the night,” she says confidently.
“What do you mean?”
“Remember how we met?” she asks.
Of course, I remember. “Yeah, in the library on the last day of school.”
“Do you remember why I said I moved here?”
“Your mom and sister needed a fresh-”
Jordan knocks on the window. “Y’all coming out or nah?” he asks.
Ash cracks the window a sliver. “Just a second.”
“Just do as I say. Tonight is the night we take back your power.” The white in her eyes turns black for a flicker of a second, completely swallowing her eye sockets whole, turning them into two giant craters of black. I start to say something, then remember that I could be hallucinating from whatever it was she gave me.
She exits the car, skipping over to Jordan amping up the ditziness. “We got beeeeer,” she hums.
He leans closer to her, caught in her orbit too. “Where?”
“In the woods,” she says with a tantalizing smile.
I am completely blindsided. I have no idea why we’re out in the middle of the night with the one person I despise. I can’t figure out why I’m not angry which is frustrating and at the same time it’s not. My emotions are hitting a brick wall before they can fully form.
I stall for a moment when I get out of the car. The moon is casting a spotlight on their two bodies. She’s looking him in the eye, tilting her head while he whispers in her ear. Why is she doing this? She knows what he’s capable of.
“Jaz,” she says, pulling away from him like she read my mind.
“Let’s go, the bonfire is ready.”
There is an orange flicker of light illuminating the dark woods. Ash grabs his hand pulling him toward it. He mindlessly follows her, his lanky body trailing like a giant puppy. I slowly waltz behind. I notice that my legs are weightless. The thick grass underneath my feet disappears and it’s like I’m gliding. I begin to see auras of the world around me. Blades of grass flicker in gold. Tree’s glimmer in an earthy green. The black sky sparkles endlessly as if sequined by a magic seamstress.
I am fucking high.
Somehow I lose track of them and reach the clearing where the bonfire is before they do. Tina’s wearing a flowy black dress, hovering over the fire with a s'more on a stick. Tina is Ash’s younger sister. They aren’t twins, although if you don’t know them personally, you might think otherwise. Tina’s just a bit more slender and rarely ever smiles. Tina’s hair is big and curly, stopping right at her shoulders.
“You look...different,” Tina says, turning to look at me. “Do you feel it?”
I nod in appreciation. “I feel so. . . happy? What the hell am I on right now?”
She snickers. “The word you are looking for is euphoric.” She takes a seat on the log passing me a s'more.
“Thanks.”
She doesn’t say anything else. I close my eyes, lean my head back, and listen to the crackle of the fire. The fire's heat radiates onto my skin, fully embracing me. Every muscle in my body melts in relaxation. Owls woo from the tops of the trees, while crickets harmonize in the grass at my feet. Both providing a peaceful soundtrack for me to ride out this high.
“I feel as free as a bird,” I sing, softly.
“Ash knew you were one of us,” she says.
“Ash!” I shout, remembering her and Jordan were supposed to be here.
“Oh, sit down,” she swats the air, “my sister can take care of herself.”
“You don’t know what he’s capable of. We have to find her!”
“She’s fine,” she says firmly.
Where are you? I type into my phone. Wtf is going on?
“What did you mean when you said Ash said I was one of you?”
“A witch,” she says casually like we're discussing the weather.
“A witch?”
“Yeah, a witch. You know hocus pocus, flying on broomsticks against a moonlit sky?”
I roll my eyes. “I’m really high right now and I know you don’t like me, but can you save it? Why do you always have to be such a bitch?” It falls from my lips without thinking, usually I bite my tongue.
She perks up, amusement sliding across her face. “That’s how you really feel, Jazmine?”
“I-”
“Don’t apologize. I am indeed a bitch.”
“What did she give me?”
“She gave you witchdust.”
“Witchdust?”
She releases an annoyed sigh like I’m already supposed to know what the hell that is. “It’s an elixir that lifts the veil. If consumed and you don’t die, you’re a witch.” Her brown eyes rake up and down. “Seeing how your insides haven’t liquified, you’re one of us.”
I stand. I don’t have time for this bullshit. I’m going to find Ashley and drag her out of here. I turn and head towards the car. Tina mumbles something indecipherable under her breath. Out of nowhere, her entire body blinks in front of me as if she’d just performed some real-life special effects from I Dream of Jeannie.
I shake my head. “No way. I am definitely high.”
A smile cracks across her face. “No.”
She grabs my arm, I blink, and we’re back out at Ash’s car. She does it again, and we’re at the bonfire, the heat caressing my skin again. She whispers once more and we’re on top of the billboard overlooking the highway. My heart plummets to my feet at how high we are from the ground. I look out at the empty road, it’s dark almost pitch black, but the white lines that mark the road glow thanks to the light dripping from the stars.
“This is crazy,” I say, clenching Tina’s arm tight, hoping I don’t fall.
The sound of a guy screaming for his life erupts from her pocket.
My heart drops for a fraction of a second. “Why do you guys have that as a ringtone?”
“It’s music.”
“It’s weird.” She teleports us back to the bonfire. “How is any of this possible?”
“I told you. I’m a witch.”
“There’s no such thing. I’m hallucinating and you’re just fucking with me. It’s not funny. I just want to go home. Where’s Ash?”
“You can’t go home until after the ritual.”
“Ritual?”
Tina swallows and guilt flashes across her face for a fraction of a second. She reaches in her pocket, pulls out a slim cigarette. The end ignites without her having to flick a lighter. Just Poof! And a flame appears, illuminating the lower half of her face. “Since you drank the witchdust, you have to fully commit.”
“Commit how?” I humor her.
“As I’ve said, the witchdust you drank lifted the veil. You now have access to your power. Everything you feel right now-that feeling of connectedness with the earth, feeling the moon’s light fill every pore on your skin, that freedom coursing through your veins-it’s you becoming the woman you were meant to be,” she takes a big hit and then exhales. “There’s just a small price for a slice of heaven.”
“What’s the price?” I ask.
“You have to kill a man.”