After dinner, I helped Lucas load the dishwasher and, with the aid of privacy spells, we discussed our next move. We decided to give the Nix one last chance. Lucas would help Savannah with her math homework while I retreated to Paige's office.

Once the cleanup was done, I thumped upstairs loud enough for the Nix to hear me. Then, for good measure, I called down from the top of the stairs, telling Lucas to hold my calls for the next hour.

Thirty minutes later footsteps sounded in the hall.

"Ready, Trsiel?" I whispered. "You'd better be right where you said you were going to be, cause this demi-demon is going down."

I reached up to Paige's hair and fingered the ribbon. As much as I longed to use my hands for this job, the situation seemed to call for something different. I slid from my chair, grabbed the second one, and pushed it behind the door. Then I climbed up on it, adding the extra elevation I needed. Life is so much easier when you're tall.

Balancing on the chair, I tugged out the ribbon. Then I wound it around my hands and waited. The doorknob turned. I crouched, ribbon at the ready.

The door opened, and Lucas walked in.

Chapter 49

"DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT WOULD HAVE WORKED?" he asked, looking from the ribbon to me.

"With a binding spell, it would have," I said as I hopped down. "Let me guess. Our Nix is showing no signs of impending murderous rage."

"She came down to ask me to take a look at Paige's car."

"Huh?"

"She said it was making a noise when she drove it this afternoon."

I slumped into the chair. "I don't believe this."

"She insisted on giving me a demonstration, even when Savannah 'reminded' her that I know nothing about repairing automobiles, that my mechanical expertise is limited to motorcycles."

"Oh? Oh. I get it. She wants you outside. Away from me, and away from Savannah."

"Precisely. Either she is uncomfortable taking on you with me in the house, or she wants to begin with me, preferably outside, where"-he waved at the window-"it is fast growing dark."

"Ah-ha. Maybe we're making progress after all. But if you go outside, I'm going with you, which is going to cause a problem if I'm the target-"

A scream ripped through the house.

"Oh, my God," I said. "Savannah!"

As I jumped from the chair, Lucas raced across the room, toward the window.

"They're in the living room," he said as he yanked open the window. "Take the stairs. I'll come in the front door. Whoever is first, distract. Whoever is second, attack from the rear."

I was in the hall as his last words floated out to me, muffled as he climbed through the window. I hit the top of the steps running so fast I nearly flew down them face-first.

Another shriek. Then, "You little bitch!"

A blur raced around the corner from the living room and plowed into me as I galloped down the last few steps.

"Get down!" Savannah hissed, pushing me down on the stairs.

"Sav-"

She clamped a hand over my mouth and, holding me down, cast a cover spell over both of us. The Nix strode into the doorway, knife in hand. Blood poured from her nose. She swiped a hand across it.

"Where'd you go, bitch?" She looked from side to side. "Come out, come out, wherever you are."

She smiled, voice taking on a high-pitched singsong that I knew didn't come from the Nix. A ghost had indeed crashed the Nix's party-but it wasn't Jaime.

The woman turned and strode into the living room. I moved, breaking the spell. Still pinning me to the stairs, Savannah cast a privacy spell.

"It's not Jaime," she whispered. "She's possessed, some kind of ghost got into her. We were sitting there talking, and all of a sudden she-"

As the footsteps returned, Savannah cast another cover spell. She held me down. Protecting me. I knew it was Paige she was really protecting, but still, the thought of my little girl taking charge like this, escaping from a killer, protecting me… Kris was right. Savannah didn't need my help anymore. She hadn't needed it for a long time.

The woman walked into the hall, and took another look around, snuffling blood.

"Can't hide, sweetie-pie," she said. "Cheri knows all your tricks. Yes, indeed. All the tricks. No one escapes from her."

Cheri MacKenzie. Shit! So that's what happened. The parasitic Nix was getting a taste of her own medicine, having her body invaded by a past partner. Ironic, and I'm sure I'd appreciate it a whole lot more if it didn't complicate matters so much. Was the Nix still in there? What if I risked Jaime's life and found no one inside except Cheri MacKenzie?

MacKenzie took one last look up and down the hall, then strode into the living room. Savannah broke the cover spell. As she did, I noticed blood seeping through her sleeve. I grabbed her arm and tried to push up the sleeve.

"It's nothing, Paige," she said, pulling away. "Where's Lucas?"

The front doorknob turned. Seeing it, Savannah started to leap up.

"We have to warn-" she began.

I tugged her down. "He knows. Let him come in and distract her, then we'll attack from behind."

The door slid open a few inches. But there was no one there. I was about to move when I realized Lucas was hidden under a cover spell. I pointed to the living room and motioned for him to go in, then I cast a cover spell over Savannah and me.

Lucas broke his cover spell and banged the door open. MacKenzie bolted from the living room, saw Lucas, and stopped in the middle of the hall, her back to us.

"Where is she?" Lucas said, striding into the hall.

"Your wife or your pretty young ward?" Cheri purred. "Which one interests you more?"

"Where are they?" Lucas's gaze flew to the knife in Cheri's hand. "If you've hurt them-"

"You'll do what? Tell me I'm a very naughty girl and send me to bed? Then come up and climb in with me? Bet you've thought of doing that with her, haven't you? Your naughty ward?"

I don't know who looked more disgusted, Lucas or Savannah. I motioned for Savannah to approach from the left while I slid across the hall to the other side.

"I'll make you a deal," Cheri said, sliding over to Lucas. "Help me catch her, and I'll let you have her. How old is she, fifteen, sixteen? And still a virgin. I can tell. Would you like-"

Lucas coldcocked her.

"So much tor distract and attack," I muttered.

As MacKenzie flew back from the blow, I grabbed her and slammed her into the wall. Or that was what I intended to do. But I was in Paige's unathletic body, and Jaime was four or five inches taller. So the slam became more of a shove, and MacKenzie bounced off the wall and rebounded my way, knife raised. Lucas knocked me out of her path.

I hit the floor and cast a binding spell. MacKenzie stabbed Lucas in the thigh. I cast again.

"Binding doesn't work!" Savannah said as she raced toward them. "I already tried. Use something else!"

I cast a shock bolt and flung my hand at MacKenzie. Nothing happened. Shit! Paige must not know it. What does she know? Think, think… Fireball!

I cast the spell just as Lucas threw MacKenzie into the wall. The ball hit the empty space between them, and nearly singed Lucas's face. He shot me a "be careful" look, grabbed MacKenzie by the right elbow, and squeezed hard enough to make her yelp… and drop the knife. As MacKenzie dove for the knife, Savannah cast a sorcerer pull-spell, and yanked it out of the way. I ran forward and kicked it into the dining room. Paige's body might not be equipped for lightning-fast roundhouse kicks, but it could manage that.