The space under the stairs was low and narrow and packed full with boxes. Cassie brushed her hands over a few of their damp surfaces to see if she felt any vibes coming from one over another. Careful not to make too much noise, she sorted through them until she noticed one box with a faint design on its side - a swirl similar to a Celtic knot. Hurriedly, Cassie lifted its flap and looked inside. There she found another box. A steel document box.
In her excitement, she reached for it without thinking. It sparked at her touch, singeing the skin of her fingers.
Of course Faye had it guarded. Cassie dug into her pocket and retrieved the obsidian crystal she'd brought from home. Black like lava with sharp edges, the rock was the size of her hand and could easily be used as a weapon.
But Cassie brought it for its ability to purify dark matter. She glided the crystal over and around the steel box to disable Faye's spell while whispering the words she'd memorized:
"Darkness be gone, no shields are needed, purity enters and leaves here unhindered."
And it worked. When Cassie tapped the box with her fingertip a second time to see if it drew a spark, it was cool and quiet to her touch. Confidently now, she popped the lid off the top of the metal box.
But she didn't find the garter inside. Instead she found a note scrawled in bloodred ink that said, Nice try.
Cassie slammed the box closed, furious. Typical Faye.
Cassie was going to have to get crafty if she were to pull this off. She had to think like Faye.
Faye was . . . what? Faye was . . . possessive, to say the least. She would only trust herself as the garter's security system. She must be keeping it close by. In fact, it probably never left her sight.
Suddenly Cassie knew, beyond any shadow of a doubt, what she had to do next. She had to go to Faye's room, where she was sleeping, and find the garter there. That was the only place it could be, where Faye could protect it even as she slept.
Now Cassie wished Faye had snuck out tonight, leaving her room empty. But Cassie knew it was time to act, not think. A silence spell would help with getting upstairs.
"From my chin to my toes, a mute silence grows." Cassie slid her fingers from her mouth down the length of her torso, across her arms and legs, all the way to her feet, feeling every inch of her go soundless beneath her touch. When she stepped forward, the feeling of her shoe touching the floor remained the same, but not a single hint of noise accompanied it. Even when she jumped up and down, no sound escaped from the motion. It was eerie but amazing.
Like a stealthy thief in the night, she made her way up the main staircase, through the lavish living room, to Faye's bedroom door. She turned the knob and pushed the door open with assurance.
The room looked the same as Cassie remembered it, but darker. Moonlight shined in from the wide window, but it was still difficult to see, and Cassie couldn't risk waking Faye with the beam of her flashlight. There were many red candles strewn about, but of course they were all unlit.
Cassie waited a few seconds to let her eyes adjust, and then words she hadn't known before came to her.
By the power of the sun, make the dark become light And give me sight to see at night
Suddenly, Cassie could see in the dark as if she'd slipped on night-vision goggles. And there Faye was, sleeping, snoring ever so softly. For a split second, Cassie felt a tenderness toward her - it was by far the most peaceful Cassie had ever seen Faye. She looked almost childlike, serenely curled up in her huge bed, surrounded by soft cushions and embroidered pillows. Her tangled, pitch-black hair cascaded down in long full curls, framing her face in such a way that Cassie could hardly remember what it was that made Faye so scary in her waking hours.
But Cassie shook herself from the notion. She knew she was in a dangerous place, and Faye was like a sleeping dragon protecting a jewel. One false move, and Cassie would be -
Before she could even finish her thought, the dust ruffle on the bed stirred, and out poked the head of an orange cat, followed by a gray one.
Cassie had forgotten about Faye's bloodsucking kittens.
They were fully grown cats now. No doubt with sharper teeth and claws than the last time Cassie encountered them.
Cassie stood very still and watched the creatures slink out from beneath the bed. She may have been silent, but the cats could still see her and smell her. They sniffed at her toes, purring. The orange one pawed up her leg to the knee and then hissed. Then the gray one clawed at her foot and took a vicious swipe at the skin of her ankle.
Glancing at Faye, she kicked the gray cat from her right foot, sending it tumbling across the carpet. But that only seemed to make the orange one angrier. From where it was perched with both paws upon Cassie's left knee, it leaped for her face, swiping its sharp claws at her cheek.
No! Cassie screamed, but her voice made no sound.
With a swift motion of defense, she grabbed the cat by the scruff of its neck. It cut at her wrist with its claws and bit through the skin of her hand. Blood dripped down from her fingers to the floor.
She tossed the orange cat out of the room, closing the door in its face before it could take another lunge at her.
Meanwhile, the gray cat had jumped up on the bed, needling at Faye's neck, trying to stir her awake.
"Ouch!" Faye cried.
And with the speed of a cat herself, Cassie bolted for Faye's closet, soundlessly shutting herself inside before Faye could detect her.
"Ow - what has gotten into you?" Faye, fully awake now, scolded the gray cat.
Out of habit, Cassie held her breath and closed her eyes from inside the closet.
Faye got quiet again, but Cassie could hear the rustling of bedsheets. She was sure Faye sensed something was amiss. Explanations and apologies raced through her mind. If only she knew a spell to make herself invisible. That was the only thing that could save her now if Faye opened the closet door.
But then Faye chuckled absentmindedly. "That's better," she said. "Now let Mama get her beauty rest. You can sleep up here with me tonight if you promise to be good." Cassie exhaled. That was too close. But when she reopened her eyes, the closet appeared different. An unusual aquamarine light was radiating from a piece of clothing hanging in the closet.
The location spell had worked, and it was still working for her. The glowing light was hovering just inside Faye's favorite leather jacket, the one she wore every day in spite of the weather. Cassie rubbed her fingers over its soft leather and across the smooth red satin of its interior lining.
Of course. Faye had sewn the garter into the jacket's lining. It made perfect sense.
Cassie clawed at the red satin until she broke through its surface and tore it wide open. And there it was, resting in a bed of supple red satin - the green leather garter. Cassie was about to reach into the material to pluck it free when she remembered the sparks that burned her fingers earlier.