Cassie looked to Faye in the boat behind theirs. They locked eyes and Cassie immediately understood that Faye was ready for anything. She was perched on the edge of her boat's bow, watching and calculating. Cassie gave her a nod. For once, Faye's suspicious, cunning nature served as the most necessary comfort, and Cassie was thankful for it. If this turned out to be a trap, Faye was fully prepared to take Max out to save the Circle - and Cassie would join her.
As their boats neared the caves, the hulking fissures grew larger but no less threatening. By the time they had drifted within walking distance of the main cave's entrance, Cassie got the sense that she was about to step into the mouth of a stone dragon.
"We're here," Max said somberly. "Get up slowly unless you feel like going for a swim."
He smiled then and Cassie recognized the warmth in his face for the first time. She returned his expression as affectionately as she could. In a way, Max's predicament wasn't so different from her own. Like Cassie, he was caught between two opposing sides, between dark and light, his father's nature and his own free will. It couldn't have been a simple decision for him to assist them.
"Thank you," Cassie said to him, hoping to relay some sentiment of camaraderie.
Max nodded, and Cassie said a silent prayer that they were right to rely on him. For his sake and hers.
Cassie climbed out of her rowboat carefully and reached for Adam to steady her on solid ground. She squeezed his hand tightly, needing him close to her now more than ever. It occurred to Cassie that if this attack went poorly, if they failed, it could mean their deaths. These moments could very well be their last. Then a far scarier thought crossed Cassie's mind. What if she survived but Adam didn't? The idea of going on without him was unfathomable to her.
Cassie tried to absorb every detail of Adam as he was now. His electric-blue eyes and wild hair, and the strength that shone in his features even at the worst of times - perhaps especially at the worst of times.
"I don't want to let go of your hand," Cassie said.
"That's good, because I won't let you." Adam brought her fingers to his lips. "Ever."
The whole Circle joined hands then, to link their power. They walked toward the caves in a long line, ready to recite the dark chant they'd memorized.
Cassie's stomach twisted with fear and she struggled with the urge to return to the boats and row home. She glanced back to watch Max heading toward the caves behind them. He would be watching the confrontation from a safe distance. The look on his face was one of love and honor and he was focused solely on Diana. Any residual anxiety Cassie had that Max was leading them into a trap fell away. The cord that connected Max to Diana connected him to the entire Circle - and he was as devoted to this mission as the rest of them.
Candlelight was the first thing Cassie noticed upon entering the cave. It flickered in orange and yellow flashes against the wall, illuminating their way deeper into the bowels of the dark cavern.
Cassie could hear the hunters' soft mumbling before she could see them. There they were: Mr. Boylan, Jedediah Felton, and Louvera Felton, along with two others Cassie hadn't seen before. They were gathered just where Max said they'd be and they were kneeling in a meditative state, performing some kind of ritual. They all had their eyes closed and their heads bowed toward an intricately composed altar. Their ancient relics lay on the ground beside them.
Adam gripped Cassie's hand tighter, and with her other hand Cassie squeezed Diana's fingers in her own. She was suddenly acutely aware of her own breath and the slight sound her own footsteps made upon the gravelly cave floor. She got the distinct feeling that the spell they were about to perform filled her heart and lungs. It rushed through her veins.
This is it, she thought, and she could hardly contain her urgent desire to begin spewing forth the words. They contained her every wish, hope, fear, and need.
The hunters remained motionless, clueless to their impending invasion. It was perfect timing. The words, or sounds really, that Cassie had memorized formed on her lips almost of their own accord. They had fully taken her over. The same must have been true for all the Circle members. Each of them appeared entranced, melded to the spell just as Cassie was.
The twelve of them continued forward, all-powerful and bathed in darkness. They cast the curse, chanting in unison, before the hunters had any idea they'd even arrived.
Chapter 29
It felt different from any magic Cassie had ever done before. The energy behind the words surged through her like it did when she had uttered the spell on the rooftop, but this was exponentially more powerful. It had the strength of the whole Circle behind it. The cave started to tremble and shake around them. Rocks crumbled to the ground. The elements seemed to be bending to the Circle's will.
The hunters woke from their trance in a panic. Cassie registered the terror in each of their faces and the pure shock of being ambushed in their safe space. They'd been caught with their every defense down.
The hunters began reciting the same words from the rooftop and the woods, and their relics brought out the marks on each member of the Circle. Like on the rooftop before Suzan was killed, the hunter symbols glowed brightly upon each of their chests. But against the Circle's curse, the hunters' relics had no other effect. Mr. Boylan shook his like a remote control with a faulty battery, frustrated and enraged by its failure to perform.
Out of desperation, he picked up a rock from the ground and threw it at Cassie. The other hunters followed his lead, grabbing for whatever they could throw. But the Circle remained untouched. The air around them deflected the rocks and foreign objects hurled their way like a protective force field. The Circle's command was impenetrable.
Cassie felt calm and more in control of her magic than ever. And never before had all the members of the Circle worked together so seamlessly, so machinelike in their efficiency. Maybe Cassie had underestimated them, and herself.
The hunters quickly weakened beneath the effects of the spell. Scarlett said it would be quick and painless, that it would be over before the hunters knew what hit them. It was hitting them now with full force. Mr. Boylan swayed back and forth on two wobbly legs, no longer able to even raise his arms in defense. The skin on his face and neck turned ashen and withered. He seemed to age decades right before Cassie's eyes.
The old man hunter, Jedediah, dropped to his knees, holding his head in his hands. He twisted his white hair around his wrinkled fingers and opened his mouth to scream, but no sound escaped. The sight of him reminded Cassie of a famous painting - that ghostly face wide-mouthed with shock. Like the painting itself, the old man's shriek was still and silent.