CHAPTER 22
Andi
Andi watched in shock
as the shadow of Evangelina Scales—she recognized her right
away—dominated the Mississippi River and swept their sorcery out of
existence. It was terrifying and beautiful, like the way Skip would
sometimes grab her jaw and squeeze while loving her. She felt
horribly exposed all of a sudden.
The feeling increased
tenfold when she saw the spidery shape of Dianna Wilson flank her
daughter. This shadow glowed jade, with each bright eye a different
color. All eight were looking right up the cliffs at them, as if
they had always known the two of them would be there.
“Mom!” Skip cried
out. “MOM?!?!”
Andi grabbed his
shoulder. “Skip. Time to go. We can’t win this fight.”
“Fight? I don’t get
it. Why is my mom fighting me?”
“Um, maybe because
you killed the first love of her life.”
“She left him.”
“Yes, she left him.
Alive.”
“Oh, this is . . .
unbelievable. Unbelievable! MOM!?!?” He called down to the river,
where the two new shapes hovered in two-dimensional space. “STAY
OUT OF THIS! YOU LEFT, REMEMBER? YOU LEFT! LEAVE
AGAIN!”
“Skip,
we—”
“Yes, I know!” He
slapped her hand away. “Heaven forbid anyone stop the great Dianna
Wilson from doing whatever the fuck she wants. Fine, let’s
go.”
Incredibly, while
Dianna and Evangelina did not pursue them, things actually got
worse for Andi and Skip upon their return to the
Cliffside.
Six arachnids were
waiting for them in the dining area.
“Dear nephew,” said
one of them, a baboon spider. “You have been failing. The time has
come to accept the guidance of your betters.”
“Fucking Aunt Tavia,”
Skip muttered, throwing up his hands. “I hope she died
painfully.”