Torn Ivy (Thornfield Supernatural Academy #2)

11. Ivy

11

IVY

Ramsey’s phone rattles on the counter, making everyone in the room freeze.

He swoops in and snatches it up, checking it with a frown. He looks up at me with a grim stare.

“An assignment?” I ask, arching my eyebrow.

“Yeah.”

“And I’m just supposed to accept it and go on my merry way to delivering a soul to Death that might be a rig of the system?”

“You don’t really have a choice,” he says quietly.

He’s right. I know he is. Ignoring The Syndicate isn’t an option. “What does it say?”

He turns it around to show me.

TARGET: David Beech

LOCATION: Thornfield Cemetery

TIME: Midnight

I frown at it. “No species or any other information? How the fuck am I supposed to know how to kill him?”

“This is unusual; I’ll give you that,” Ramsey mutters. “Let me call through and see if I can find out.”

He dials and presses the phone to his ear as he disappears from the kitchen.

Ramsey returns a few minutes later, his expression even more troubled. “Something’s not right. The Syndicate has no additional information. None. It’s like this target just appeared in the system.”

“What? That makes no sense. Every target has a file, a history, a reason for being marked.” The magick stirs beneath my skin, responding to my unease. Pink energy crackles along my fingers. “Could someone have hacked the system?”

“Only Death has that kind of access,” Ramsey says quietly.

We all let that sink in. The implications are clear - this isn’t just an assignment, it’s a deliberate move in whatever game Death is playing.

“This could be a test,” Tate says.

“That’s exactly what it is. He’s testing how I’ll handle an impossible assignment.”

“The question is,” Bram says from his position by the window, “what’s he really looking for?”

I look down at my hands. Since the incident this morning, my power has felt different. It is more integrated, less likely to explode, but also more profound somehow, like it’s waiting for something.

“There’s only one way to find out,” I say finally. “I have to go.”

“Not alone,” Tate says immediately.

“He wants to see what we’ll do,” I murmur. “All of us.”

“Then let’s give him exactly what he wants,” Torin says. “I’m done being this arsehole’s puppet.”

“Agreed,” I growl and march off upstairs to my bedroom, slamming the door behind me while I try to figure out what this shit is all about. I open the box of weapons and stare at them, deciding what the hell I’m supposed to take with me on this assignment.

As midnight approaches, I’m no closer to trying to figure out what Death wants from this charade. I stand in front of my mirror, having shifted to Poison to play this game.

“Ready?” Tate asks from the doorway.

I turn to face him, noting how his eyes track the pink energy that flows around me. “As I’ll ever be.”

We set off on foot, as it’s not too far away that we need to drive. The moon hangs full in the sky, which makes the creepy vibes I’m getting so much worse. The cemetery at midnight is exactly as ominous as you’d expect. Moonlight casts long shadows between the headstones, and a light mist curls around my ankles as I walk the familiar paths. Alone, but not. The guys are watching me from strategic points. Tate in the old church tower, Torin among the ancient oak trees, and Bram in the shadows of the mausoleum. Their presence is a comfort, even if I can’t see them.

The cemetery appears empty, but my senses tell me differently. There’s a disturbance in the air, a ripple in reality that sends skitters across my skin.

“Miss Hammond,” Death’s voice echoes from everywhere, making me jump. The mist thickens ominously.

He materialises in front of me, his skeletal face grinning wider than usual. “Ah, chaos incarnate. You’ve exceeded all expectations.”

“Hello, David Beech,” I say.

He chuckles and moves closer, unaffected by the toxic vines that instinctively spring up around me. “He was rather like you, Miss Hammond. Someone who defied their intended path. It didn’t end well for him.”

“Is that supposed to be a warning?”

His laugh is like bones rattling. “More like a preview. Unless...”

The air shifts, and suddenly, the cemetery is full of shadow creatures, more solid than the ones I encountered in Death’s realm. They move among the graves, not attacking but definitely threatening.

“Unless what?” I demand, calling more power to me. The pink energy swirls faster, mixing with the mist to create a storm of chaos and magick around us.

“Unless you learn to truly embrace what you are.” Death waves a hand, and reality ripples. “Show me, little chaos bearer. Show me what you can really do.”

The shadow creatures surge forward, not to attack me directly, but to cut off any escape route. I feel the guys tensing in their positions, ready to intervene, but something tells me that’s exactly what Death wants.

“I already know what I can do,” I say, letting the chaos magick flow freely. Pink energy fills the cemetery, and reality begins to bend around us. “The question is, can you stop me?”

The ground beneath us transforms, toxic vines weaving patterns that pulse with chaotic energy. The shadows try to cross them but recoil, hissing. Interesting.

“Fascinating,” Death murmurs, watching as my power continues to spread. “You’re learning to shape reality quickly. But can you maintain control when everything falls apart?”

He raises his skeletal hand, and the shadow creatures suddenly multiply, hundreds of them filling the cemetery. They start tearing at the fabric of reality, creating rips in the air through which I glimpse other realms, other possibilities.

Pink energy explodes outward in a wave that freezes everything - the shadows, the tears in reality, even the mist. Time seems to stop, caught in my power.

The guys materialise beside me, drawn by the magick. Their own power adds to mine, supporting it and letting their energy merge with the chaos.

The pink energy pulses, and the shadow creatures dissolve into nothing. The tears in reality seal themselves, leaving only a faint pink aurora dancing in the air.

Death stands perfectly still, watching this display with what looks like satisfaction. “Very good. You’ve learned the most important lesson already - chaos isn’t meant to be controlled, only guided.”

“Why this test?” I demand, maintaining my hold on the magick. It hums through me, ready to unleash at a moment’s notice. “Why create a fake assignment?”

“To see what you would do, of course. To understand how your power has evolved.” He moves closer, unaffected by the toxic vines that snap at him. “You were meant to be my successor, but instead, you’ve become something else entirely. Something new.”

“Sorry to mess up your plans,” I say, not sorry at all.

He laughs again. “Oh, but you haven’t. Not really. You’ve just complicated them. In the most delightful way.” His empty eye sockets fix on the guys. “Your connection to these three is most fascinating. The way your magick interacts with their power is informative.”

“What do you really want?” Tate demands, black sparks flying from his fingertips.

“Want? I want to see how this plays out.” Death spreads his skeletal hands. “Chaos is change, and change is coming. The question is, will you be its harbinger or its victim?”

Before any of us can react, he vanishes, taking the oppressive atmosphere with him. The cemetery returns to normal, though my toxic vines remain, glowing softly in the moonlight.

“Well,” Bram says after a moment, “that was anti-climactic.”

“He’s playing a longer game than we thought,” Torin observes. “This wasn’t just about testing your powers.”

“No,” I agree, watching the pink energy still dancing through the air. “He wanted to see how we work together. How the chaos magick responds to your presence.”

“And?” Tate prompts.

I look at my hands, where pink energy still flows like liquid starlight. “And I think he got exactly what he wanted. He knows now that I’m stronger with you, that the chaos magick responds differently when we’re together.”

“Is that a bad thing?” Bram asks.

“I don’t know.” I meet their gazes one by one. “But I think we just showed our hand, and Death is definitely playing cards I can’t see yet.”

I’m pretty sure he has changed his mind about me killing the guys now. He can see it would be disadvantageous to whatever end game he has.

But the question is, what does Death plan to do with this knowledge?

What are we going to do about it?

This is just the beginning of something much bigger than any of us realise, but we need to get up to speed and fucking fast before Death comes for us all.