Betrayal by Lee Nichols Read Free Book Online

the other attacked Gabriel.
    They were losing. I concentrated on dispelling the wraith attacking Bennett, adding my own power to his. The wraith slithered away from him and staggered toward me, claws slashing. Drool from its gaping mouth splashed at my feet like acid, and I waited as it lurched forward. I waited until my palm was an inch from its ribcage, then I unraveled it into smoke.
    Gabriel yelled for help, and Bennett spun and saw the wraith at Gabriel’s throat. He launched a glowing nimbus of light directly into it.
    Too late. Gabriel staggered under the wraith’s attack and lost control of the wraith inside Rachel. It pulled its bony arm from Yoshiro’s chest. An arc of blood spurted across the room as Yoshiro collapsed to the floor. As Bennett burned his way through the wraith still attacking Gabriel, the one inside Rachel leaped at Bennett from behind.
    Its bony arm swung in a lethal arc toward Bennett’s unprotected neck, and a wave of blackness rose around me, an almost overwhelming flare of fear, rage, and urgency. From some dark chamber of my heart, I unleashed more force than ever before, a single blast directly into Rachel’s chest.
    The blast shot through her and exploded against the opposite wall. She stopped dead and her insectlike limb morphed back into a regular arm, as she swayed on her feet.
    I caught Rachel as she fell, the wraith leeching from her body. Her skin faded from the unnatural white to a deathly pallor, and her eyes, still sunken, glinted with tears.
    She clutched at me. “Forgive me; I couldn’t stop him.”
    â€œShhh, you’re going to be okay.”
    â€œNo. You need—,” she gasped, “a weapon. To focus your power. It’s your only hope. Emma, you need …” Her voice faltered.
    â€œRachel,” I said. “Don’t go. We just met. I need you—”
    â€œI’m sorry,” she whispered. “For everything. You need to end this, Emma. Neos fears you. He sent a siren. To cripple you. She will …”
    And Rachel died.

4

    The Knell doctor arrived within minutes. She checked Yoshiro, but we all knew he was dead. When the wraith-arm had jerked out of his chest, blood had spouted across the room. I’d never get that sight out of my mind.
    The doctor treated William’s wound, disinfecting and stitching it, then tended Gabriel’s and Bennett’s cuts and bruises. She looked me over and tsked at my chattering teeth and jittery hands, and the blood splatter on my sweater. She offered a Valium for the shock, but I shook my head.
    I’d lost Yoshiro, the only person who knew how to defeat Neos. And I’d lost my newfound aunt in the most gruesome way possible. It’s called parricide, the killing of a close relative. Probably not on the SATs, but branded in my mind. I didn’t want to dull the pain; I wanted to feel it.
    We left the room as the doctor began performing an autopsy on Rachel. She didn’t want to move the body, as she’d never autopsied the corpse of a possessed person before. We crossed the hall into a sitting room, where we all sat in stunned silence.
    â€œWraiths can’t possess people,” Gabriel finally muttered.
    â€œThey can now,” Bennett said. “And they can march right into the Knell and kill our leader.”
    Nobody said anything for a while. Then I said, in a small voice, “What do we do?”
    â€œStick to the plan,” William said. “Build the teams. Start training together and …” His voice trailed off.
    â€œAnd what? Does anyone else know how to beat Neos?”
    William didn’t answer—his defeated expression spoke loudly enough.
    â€œThat’s why Neos killed Yoshiro,” Gabriel told me. “You and he are the only ones who scared Neos. But Yoshiro was careful; he’d been staying out of sight—until today, to meet you.”
    Bennett nodded. “So Neos put a wraith in Rachel,