I'm aware I'm in no place to be starting a new story. It was just begging to be written and I couldn't ignore the idea for much longer. This will be going hand in hand with Shattered, I'm not taking another break. This is my first 'project' to be rated M, not due to sex scenes or anything, but because of the dark themes and…. wild behavior from the main characters. If you know me well or read any of my multi-chapters, then you already do you're in for one hell of a ride. If you're new…. Good luck.
Enjoy and leave a review. Feedback is much appreciated.
Prologue: Spell
Lucy Stone whistled a soft tune under breath as she walked into her apartment building. She picked her mail and called the elevator and pushed the button to the seventh floor watching. She went through her mail as the elevator ascended; stopping at the white invitation that had her name in a beautiful, smooth handwriting on its envelope.
She opened the envelope and took out the folded piece of paper, raising her eyebrows at the words written inside.
Has it really been that long?
"Yes, sir. I know. Our agents are handling the investigation splendidly." Kendall Knight sighed and leaned back in his seat in his office in the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He held the prestigious position of Section Chief in their office in California. He perked up at the knock on the door and he put his hand on the mouthpiece of the phone; "Come in!"
A man walked in with Kendall's mail, discarding it on Kendall's desk. He nodded in respect and left the room in complete silence. Kendall frowned at the white envelope that stood out among the others, he held the phone between his shoulder and his ear, hearing the Unit Chief but not actually listening as he skimmed the words that were typed in a delicate font on the invitation.
Looks like I do have plans for the tomorrow, after all.
Logan Mitchell rubbed his sore neck as he exited the scrub room, stifling his yawn when he saw his secretary approaching him.
"Doctor Mitchell, excuse me, sir." The woman called him, presenting him with a white envelope with his name on it. "Someone dropped this off for you in the office, Chief."
"Thanks." Logan muttered and took the envelope, removing his scrub cap with his other hand and shoved it into his pocket. He opened the envelope quickly; eager to see what was it about. He rarely got any mail at the hospital; it had always been delivered to his home.
His slight excitement soon turned into a frown and a sigh, as he read the words written in the invitation.
We request the honor of your presence to celebrate our wedding anniversary…
His frown deepened as his eyes trailed to the signature of two names written in big font.
James Diamond & Camille Roberts.
He hadn't even realized it was November…
"I told you I already handled the buffet." James said, looking at Camille's reflected image in the mirror as she fixed her make up; "What's new?"
"What's new is that I want Alex to handle the buffet."
"Why would we do that?" James asked; "George always handles the catering every year."
"Change is good." Camille replied abruptly. "And I like Alex's staff."
"Then let them handle your birthday." James chuckled dryly; "But this is our anniversary. If we can't agree on what we want, let's just cancel it."
"Then cancel it."
James rolled his eyes and turned around, maneuvering himself by the wheelchair skillfully out the door.
He had been in it for years, anyway.
"Leah?" Jo Taylor called, walking into her apartment in London; "Leah, honey, where are you?"
She walked into her daughter's room, frowning when she didn't find her there. She went out and left her purse in the living room, and went into her room. She frowned again when she found her laptop on her bed; almost certain she had left it on the kitchen counter earlier that morning.
Jo sat on her bed and reactivated the laptop from its sleep mode, her eyes widening instantly at the picture that were staring right back at her.
A picture that was taken over twenty years ago…
February, 1986.
Twenty-two-year-old Jo came out from the kitchen of the big villa, careful not to drop the Coca Cola bottles she held in her hands. She went to the living room, where the rest of the guys where sitting. Logan was spread on the couch, laughing at something Kendall said from his place on the floor. Lucy was sitting opposite to Kendall, also on the floor, her back resting against the side of the chair Camille was currently occupying.
Kendall stood up and took the bottles from Jo, distributing them among the rest and sitting back on the floor. He sat back on the cushion he had laid out earlier and sipped his drink.
"Do you guys think we'd forget about each other?" Logan asked from the couch, one leg spread on it while the other dangled off the side.
"Why would that ever happen?" Camille replied, "Jo, Lucy and I just graduated from the same college. You graduated last year and you're still here. Kendall graduated from the police academy two years ago and he's still here. Hell, James is twenty-seven, he refused to move out and here we are hanging out in his home. Without him in it, for that matter."
"I'm not talking about right now." Logan insisted, crossing his arms over his chest; "I'm talking about later. I just finished my intern year; I'll be swamped at the hospital most of the time, Kendall changes his office hours every few weeks and you three will be job hunting for God knows how long. I'm talking about when we get too busy, later in life."
"Let us worry about later when it's time for later." Lucy replied, twirling her hair around her fingers while going through a magazine.
"Lighten up, Loges." Jo chuckled, extending her hand to ruffle his hair and completely missing the jealous look Kendall sent her way.
They heard the front door open across from them and James appeared at the door, smiling with a medium-sized box in his hand.
"Hey, guys!" James grinned as he crossed the huge lobby of his villa.
"We told you a hundred times before not to leave us in this place alone." Camille said, "Even if your parents are away."
"Sorry." James apologized and kissed the back of her hand, hugging the box to himself. He addressed everyone when he started again; "You guys all know I was in morocco a few weeks back. When I was there I heard about this magical thing, but I had no time to look for it. I pulled some strings and I finally bought it." He kneeled down, the others following his example and gathered around the table; "And it's in this box." He grabbed his key chain and started to cut the duct tape off the box. Lucy made a move to help him but he slapped her hand away, "No touching." He opened the box and took out an old-looking book.
"What's the magic in this?" Kendall asked, eyeing the old book.
It was an old book with a red leather cover. It had a string attached to it and was wrapped around it to keep it closed.
"It's empty." James answered.
"What's so magical about an empty book, butthead?" Logan asked.
"Follow me."
The five of them followed James through the villa and into his father's office. The entire perimeter of the office was lined with shelves and shelves of books. They went and stood around the desk, James standing in the center. He opened the book and laid it on the desk.
There was an ashtray already on the desk, and two lighters. James got a paper out of his pocket, the writing on it was in a language none of the guys understood. He opened the folded paper and laid it on the table.
"This is a spell; we don't even have to say it." James told them.
"Wow, you really did lose it." Kendall smirked.
"Stop making fun of me or I'll turn you into a monkey!" James threatened him playfully, pulling a small box of pins from the desk's first drawer; "All we need to do is bleed. Just a little pinch, a little drop and we're done." James said and opened the box, pulling a pin.
"So this spell is supposed to let us know our future?" Lucy asked, eying the paper; "How?"
"How's that even possible?" Jo asked.
"Wow, you guys actually believe this crap?" Logan chuckled; "And now you want to understand this… stupidity?"
"What have we got to loose?" James grinned; "We're doing something different, having a fun night, break the boring routine."
"That's absurd."
"I'm in." Kendall folded his arms in front of his chest; "This entire thing is just a joke to pass time; let's just have fun, Loges."
"Alright, alright." Logan grinned, raising his hands up in mock surrender and turned to James; "Go on, Mister Magician, do your trick."
"Let's get started." James said and pushed the box of pins towards the center of the desk; "Each of us will poke one finger and drop our blood on this paper. Our blood has to mix so the spell can work and write what we want to know."
Not even twenty seconds later, the folded paper had one big red spot of blood in the middle.
"Now what?" Camille asked.
"Now, we just burn it." James said, placing the paper carefully in the ashtray. He picked one of the lighters, flickering it and burning one side of the paper. Logan picked the other one and copied James's movement.
The six of them stood back, watching as the paper burned in the ashtray. Suddenly, the lights went out and the girls' shouts of protest were heard.
"James? Does the light do that a lot?" Logan asked as he reached for one of the lighter while Lucy grabbed the other as it was close to her. They both turned the lighters on; "James?"
"Where it he?" Kendall asked, eyebrows furrowed.
"James!" Camille shouted, turning to look around the room with the poor light from the lighters.
"Should we look for him?" Jo asked.
"Or check the fuses or something?" Lucy suggested, smacking Kendall's hand away when he tried to take the lighter she held.
A few seconds later, Logan opened the office door, Lucy by his side. Both of them led the group towards the living room, as they had the only sources of light. The two led the group to a table where a candle stand that held five candles rested. Logan lit the candles and handed the stand to Kendall.
"Is this a prank?" Camille asked, holding onto Jo's hand.
"How?" Jo replied; "The office only had one door, how could James have gotten out?"
"Look, we're gonna find him." Logan reassured Camille and turned off the lighter, grabbing one of the five candles; "We'll search the entire villa and we'll find him. I'll go check the fuse-box then we'll keep searching."
"Alone?"
"Nothing is gonna happen, okay?" Logan chuckled; "It's not like the house is haunted; it's just bad timing with James going on about his spells and shit. I'll be fine."
The four of them watched Logan move carefully through the huge room, towards the hall that led to the kitchen. Once he disappeared, Kendall took charge of the situation. He led the girls around the living room, making sure to check every corner. Jo's gasp caught his attention and he turned around to face where she was pointing.
There was something - someone – on the floor, lying there completely motionless. The four took a few steps closer until they recognized that person as James. Camille was about to kneel down by his side when the light came back on and she stumbled away at the sight. James was lying completely still, a pool of blood seeping from under his head.
Hope you guys enjoyed the prologue. Much more to come soon, hopefully.
-J