CHAPTER TWENTY

It was just past one o'clock in the morning when Jade's phone began to ring. She was still wide awake as she grabbed it.

"Beth, what's wrong?" Jade asked as she saw Beth's name on the caller ID.

"Come to your lovely little shop and find out," a voice that definitely didn't belong to Beth replied.

"Who the hell is this?" Jade demanded.

"I'm hurt, Jade. Don't you remember me?" He asked.

Jade felt her chest tighten as she recognized his voice. "Luigi..." She said.

"Join us, Jade... I look forward to seeing you again." Luigi hung up Beth's phone.

Damnit, Jade thought. She knew she was being lured into a trap. She also knew that her pregnant best friend was in danger, so that didn't matter.

Corey had been called to the woods for a slayer emergency. Joey was still with his friends, and Jade didn't want to endanger him. She couldn't call Arnie... Luigi probably wanted to lure him into the trap, too.

Dylan, can you hear me? Jade asked. She didn't get a response. Randy? Everything remained silent. Someone was blocking her from reaching the others.

"Screw it," Jade mumbled. She began dialing phone numbers. None of the calls went through.

"Damnit! I really don't have a choice here, do I?" She asked in frustration.

She quickly got dressed and raced out of the house. Jade headed straight to the waterfront. Standing in front of Om Shanti was an army of shadow creatures. They watched her, not attacking. They seemed to be in a trance as Jade made her way into the store.

"Merry Meet, Jade! How wonderful it is to see you again," Luigi greeted her. He smiled brightly and managed to look powerful and intimidating despite the colorful glitter that was clinging to his hair.

"There is nothing merry about this meeting, Luigi," Jade replied coldly. "Where's Beth?"

"Right here," Luigi replied, pointing to Beth's unconscious form behind the counter.

"If you hurt her, I swear to the Gods-"

"She's perfectly fine, Jade. I would never harm Beth or her unborn child."

"Forgive me if I don't believe that," Jade replied. She knelt beside Beth and checked her pulse. It was strong and she didn't appear to be injured. While she was partially hidden from Luigi's sight Jade did the only thing she could think of that might work despite the obvious anti-communication spell that Luigi had cast.

She ran her finger over a loose nail in the counter and drew blood. Luigi had practiced witchcraft for years and was a powerful warlock, but he didn't know much about devil worshipper spells. Jade touched her bloody thumb to a talisman she'd left there for an absolute emergency. Although she'd hoped never to use it, this seemed like the time.

"Why are you here, Luigi? And why did you kidnap Beth?" Jade asked. "And, while we're at it, what's with the glitter? Who's your stylist, Chad?"

"My granddaughter has a few unexpected spells in her repertoire," Luigi replied. "As for the more important matters... Beth was a means to an end... You see, your son stole my daughter from me tonight, so I have decided to take his mother from him... And then I'll kill his favorite aunt, too."

So much for him not hurting Beth, Jade thought.

She glared at him. "Good luck trying, Luigi. You couldn't handle me as a teenager, and I've picked up a lot of new tricks since then," she informed him.

"I look forward to seeing how much you've grown, Jade," he replied.

With that, Luigi cast a spell meant to kill. Jade easily deflected it and said, "I cast stronger death spells than that when I was fifteen."

"I'm just warming up," Luigi replied.

Jade cast a spell that flung Luigi out of the door of the shop. "I'm not," she informed him as she followed him outside.

He slowly got to his feet and began to laugh. "I should know better than to underestimate you, Jade," he said.

Luigi pulled out a ritual knife. He slashed his hand open. Jade could feel the power in his blood. Suddenly, the shadow creatures seemed to become aware all at once. They rapidly surrounded her.

"You can control them," Jade realized.

"I was granted the power tonight. My new friend realized what I plan to do and felt this would help increase my odds of success."

"New friend?" Jade repeated.

"He calls himself Judas. Although he is working with the child who aimed to control me, he knew I would break free, and he also knew I would come here tonight."

Suddenly, a burst of magick hit Luigi. He cried out in pain as his atoms began to split apart. Jade spun around to see Beth, now fully conscious and in Warrior Mode, standing behind her.

"What a valiant effort, Bethany," a voice said as someone approached them. "Unfortunately, I'm afraid that it won't be enough."

"Skip?" Beth asked in confusion. She hesitated just long enough for Skip to send a blast of energy into her body. Beth fell onto her hands and knees, immediately losing her warrior's edge.

Luigi followed that attack up with one of his own, slamming Beth into the front of Om Shanti. She landed awkwardly. Her head was bleeding. As a third attack was sent her way, a shield of light burst from her abdomen and protected her.

The baby's already using magick, Jade realized. It had kept Beth safe for now, but Jade couldn't be sure how long an unborn child could keep that up.

"Judas, I presume?" Jade asked the man who was obviously not Skip, trying to remain calm. Beth was seriously injured. If she didn't get help soon, even her magickal baby might not be able to save her life.

Judas smiled at Jade darkly. "My reputation precedes me," he replied.

"What did you do to Skip?" Jade demanded.

"He's in his office, asleep at his desk," Judas replied. "I did not harm him."

She believed him, and tried to take comfort in the fact that Skip was safe. "So, you felt like I was enough of a threat that you needed to lend Luigi an army and come by in person? I think I'm flattered," she replied.

"I have no illusions about what you are capable of, Jade Collins. You are quite impressive, especially this incarnation. Adding to the fact that you had our dear Beth in your corner, I understood that Luigi would be facing quite the uphill battle tonight." He chuckled slightly as he added, "Killing the two of you at the same time is a rather ambitious choice. I admire his initiative."

"And when he fails, are you going to attempt it yourself?" Jade asked sharply.

"Of course not. That could get messy. I can't risk my coworkers figuring out what I'm up to, after all."

Coworkers, Jade thought, carefully shielding her mind. Arnie's right. This is one of the Powers That Be.

She tried to read his energy, but it was expertly hidden behind Skip's. As the shadow creatures flew back into motion, Jade had to shift her focus to the battle. She was holding her own, but she knew she couldn't keep it up forever.

Suddenly, she heard a roar. A lion came running toward her. Jade almost sighed in relief. Timmy, she thought. Thank the Gods.

Communication might be blocked, but Timmy was one of Beth's guardians. He must have sensed the threat to her life.

Timmy tore apart several of the shadow creatures as Jade continued using spells to hold the others back. The shadow creatures were no match for the lion royal, and he quickly made his way to Jade, who had moved protectively in front of Beth. As Timmy shifted form back into a human, he turned his attention to Luigi. "Should I maul him, too?" He asked Jade.

Before she could reply, more shadow creatures arrived. Luigi seemed to be gaining power from their presence. He radiated with dark magick as he launched another attack.

Timmy fell to the ground as he cried out in pain. A ball of energy had scorched his chest. Jade glared at Luigi before telekinetically flinging him into the water.

Judas seemed amused by that development as he applauded her mockingly. She tried to repeat the trick on him, but he simply absorbed the energy from her attack and remained in place.

Jade ran to Timmy's side. "Are you okay?" She asked.

"Not so much," Timmy replied with a groan of pain.

Jade immediately cast a quick healing spell on him. Slowly, Timmy's injury began to vanish. Luigi surfaced and began swimming back to the shore. "We can't beat them like this," Jade said as she realized the truth.

That was when she saw something that made her freeze. Spencer stood nearby, watching her with concern and affection in his eyes. A few feet away from him, River stood, his blue eyes full of sorrow. Finally, she spotted another spirit, and as she looked into his sad, patient eyes, Jade understood what was happening.

Beth groaned in pain, still mostly unconscious. "You need to get Beth out of here," Jade said to Timmy. "When I tell you to, take her and run as fast as you can. Get her to the Unit. She needs medical attention."

"Jade, I'm not just going to leave you here," Timmy protested.

"You're Beth's guardian," she replied. "It's your turn to keep her safe, Timmy."

"Jade-"

"I see them," Jade whispered, desperate to make him understand.

"See who?" Timmy asked in confusion.

"Spencer... And River..." Jade hesitated. "And Alex. They're here for me, Timmy. This is it. This is my time."

"It can't be," Timmy protested.

"Timmy, I need you to get Beth out of here safely. Josh has been dead for years, and you're her only other guardian."

He had tears in his eyes as he looked from Jade to Beth and back again. Beth was defenseless. Timmy knew he had no choice.

"I will," he promised, his voice trembling but his expression determined.

"Tell Joey and Corey that I love them... And I'm sorry," Jade said softly. As Luigi climbed out of the water, she added, "Go on. We're out of time."

Timmy hugged her tightly for a second. "I love you," he said.

"I love you, too," Jade replied softly.

Timmy shifted back into a lion. He pulled Beth onto his back and took off running, but was immediately surrounded by more shadow creatures.

As she looked at Alex, Jade knew that her fate was inevitable. That didn't mean that she was going to make it easy for Luigi.

She began to gather every ounce of power she had. Jade let out a furious scream and used her magick to cast a spell that struck down all of the shadow creatures at once. In the chaos, Timmy was able to escape with Beth. Jade prayed they'd make it safely to the Unit.

The attack took everything Jade had. Her head felt like it was being torn in half. Her nose began to bleed as she struggled to remain on her feet.

Give him hell, Green, River encouraged her with a sad smile.

Jade looked Luigi in his eyes defiantly as she asked, "Is that all you've got?"

Luigi cast another attack spell. Jade somehow managed to deflect it. The attack rebounded and hit Luigi, knocking him into a tree. His head was bleeding.

Jade's vision began to blur. She knew she had just wielded more power than her body could survive using, but she still stubbornly struggled to hold on. She barely felt Luigi's ritual knife pierce her flesh as he slashed her throat.

Jade collapsed onto the ground as blood rushed out of her wound. She thought of Joey, and of Corey, and of Beth. She thought of her brother, Austin. She didn't want to leave them, but as Spencer knelt beside her body and gently stroked her hair, she knew that she needed to let go.

It was Alex who pulled her soul into his arms. "Come on, Kid," he said sadly. "It's time to go."