The Hand of Kali Box Set (Books 1-3) Read online

  Maya waited.

  And when two sets of footsteps climbed up the stairs, she knew who had come to visit. Her heart jumped, a certain joy adding to the thump of dread.

  "Hey, stranger," Joss said as she entered the room, Ria trailing behind her. Joss flung herself onto a bright green beanbag near the window while Ria perched beside Maya, and inspected her injuries.

  "So, how did you get these?" Ria asked, shaking her head and sending her long earrings shivering.

  "With those." Maya nodded at her dresser where her set of Madus now sat. She’d insisted on keeping them with her, the weapons already so much a part of the new Maya that the idea of another person fighting with them made her want to cringe.

  "Yikes. What in God’s name are those?" Ria relinquished Maya's hand and walked to the dresser as if walking toward a poisonous snake, as if sensing danger but entranced nonetheless.

  "They're Madus. Ancient Asian weapons made from antelope horns. It’s mainly used as a shield but it’s pretty awesome as a weapon too."

  Ria shook her head. "I’ve never heard of anything like this. Where did you get it?"

  "My dad gave them to me. They're small enough to conceal or keep in my bag, and deadly enough in case . . ."

  "Yeah, how are you feeling after that?" Ria asked, shooting a critical glance at Joss who sat on the beanbag in silence. Maya understood Joss’s reticence now. Joss had brought Ria up to speed. And either she felt guilty or Ria had forced her guilt to the surface. Maya would happily bet her money on both options. "How’s the rib?"

  "Better, healed in fact."

  "That was quick. What, do you have super healing powers then?" Ria smiled.

  You have no idea.

  Maya snuck a glance at Joss, whose eyes remained trained on her cellphone. Her heart gave a discomforting thump against her ribs; to think this all began with a stupid text message.

  "I’m fine. Nothing happened that couldn’t be fixed, so don’t worry about me." Maya hoped her words would satisfy Ria.

  Ria who was so sensitive, so particular too. She had the power of a mother hidden within her tiny frame. And she could nag the ear off a fish. Worst of all, she never strayed one inch from the strictest of traditional law.

  Maya, on the other hand, stayed as far from traditional or stereotypical as possible. Besides, she didn’t mind so much if Ria was orthodox Hindu, but it was the way she allowed herself to fall under her father's chauvinistic dominance, the way she accepted being nothing more than a chattel, or a workhorse. In Mr. Gupta's eyes, she’d never count for much and he wasn’t shy about saying so. Maya forced her thoughts elsewhere; pondering Ria’s predicament frustrated her no end. Especially knowing the girl would never do anything to get free herself.

  She got off the bed and strolled to the window seat beside the beanbag. She secretly adored the lime green silk chair, with its band of gold embroidery and its random golden paisley patterns. Who would've thought one could Indianize a lame old beanbag?

  Maya didn’t miss the tightening of Joss’s muscles or the way her friend avoided her eyes. Poor Joss. She had no idea what she’d gotten mixed up in.

  The buzz of Ria’s phone was a welcome disturbance to the rising discomfort.

  "Sorry Maya. I have to go home. My mom said I can't be long. I have chores." Ria gave them a sad smile. "You girls have fun for me."

  Alone, Joss turned to Maya, her eyes filled with tears.

  "I’m so sorry Maya. I had no idea-"

  "Come on Joss, we're fine. It’s okay." Maya responded unsure of what exactly Joss knew about the incident.

  "What do you remember?"

  "Well, I recall drinking the cocktail Amber brought. I thought they'd be fine . . . I mean . . ."

  "Were they sealed? Were the tops still on?"

  "No." Joss glanced at Maya, her eyes glimmering behind anguished tears. She crawled off the bag and onto the window seat beside Maya where she tucked her hand into Maya's arm in a half- hearted attempt at a hug. "I’m so sorry."

  "Joss, it’s fine. You're fine, I'm fine. We just need to figure out why she did this to us." Maya patted her hand, a tender spark of joy flitting through her at the depth of their friendship.

  "Well, that’s pretty obvious, don’t you think?" Joss said, her voice brittle. "Byron wanted to get laid."

  Maya knew better, but hesitated, unsure of how much truth Joss could handle.

  "Look, I got away. So no harm done."

  Joss lifted Maya's hand into hers, closed her finger into a fist and inspected Maya's scrapes and bruises.

  "Not thanks to me." Her friend's voice broke on a high pitched, teary note. "If it hadn’t been for Nik . . ."

  "How much did he tell you?" Maya was curious. What did Nik tell everyone? Was he trying to make himself look like a savior? Maya admonished herself. It was an unfair thought. However she felt about Nik right now, she knew he'd never do that. Her stomach did a tiny flip as a memory of their encounter in the parking garage flashed before her eyes. Then she wiped it away. She'd seen the regret in his eyes. The kiss sure meant more to her than it ever did to him. Which made her the fool? Maya focused on what Joss was saying.

  "Only that Byron ran off as soon as Nik walked into the poolhouse." Joss shook her head. "The bastard knew he’d done something wrong. Did you know he’s missing? Probably couldn't handle the heat, especially after what he did."

  So people thought Byron had run off, afraid of the consequences. Maya heaved a silent sigh of relief. At least nobody was about to point a finger at her. When Byron doesn’t surface everyone will just assume he ran away for good. Hopefully. Byron had never been the nicest of people, but Maya still felt incredibly guilty for killing him.

  "He hurt you Maya, he should go to jail. I still don’t understand the type of person who would hurt a girl like that."

  "Amber and Byron manipulated both of us. The minute we walked into Amber's house we were doomed. We played right into their hands and it's exactly what they wanted. Yes, who knows what could've happened if Nik hadn’t come looking for me. But you’ve got to stop blaming yourself. You are as much a victim as I am. They drugged you. You were defenseless."

  "Thank you for saving me. I don’t know what I would've done if they-" Joss burst into tears. Maya's heart clenched. The whole incident had affected Joss too. The knowledge she’d been drugged, incapacitated, and unable to defend herself. The knowledge of how vulnerable she’d been had shocked the poor girl. Worse was probably knowing how close she’d come to being attacked while unconscious.

  But would Amber have carried out her threat? Would there have been a point if all the demons had wanted was Maya herself?

  "We’re fine, okay?" said Maya.

  Joss nodded and the girls sat in silence, the moon and stars brightening the inky sky outside. Clenching her fist, Maya contemplated the very realistic possibility the Rakshasas might not give up easily and that no matter how she looked at it, both Joss and Ria were in danger.

  Chapter 14

  That night Maya’s dreams were filled with flames.

  She opened her eyes, her muscles awash with a strange lightness. She rose from the bed and made her way downstairs. The house simmered in silence, streams of silver moonlight sneaking through the blinds, cutting swathes of magical light along the dark wood floors.

  When she blinked the silvery glow disappeared and sinuous shadows danced across the walls as if the moon was alight with white fire. Maya padded to the front door and flung it open, eager to see what caused the shadows, uncaring of the dangers she might invite into her home.

  She’d already stepped outside, one foot almost down the first stair when she stopped in her tracks, suspended in horror.

  The whole world was ablaze. Orange and red and yellow flames roared and danced, eating away the homes, the cars, and even melting the tar on the street.

  "Put out the fire, Maya." A honeyed voice whispered in her ear. Maya didn't fear the voice. Perhaps she knew its owner meant her no harm. Perhap
s she’d heard such a voice somewhere before. She obeyed and took two more steps, away from the house and closer to the fire.

  The flames threw a blanket of warmth around her. The urgency of time pressed upon her. Whatever she was meant to do had to happen soon.

  "Use your power and put out the fire, Maya." The voice rang in her ears. No longer a honeyed whisper, the strong female tones clanged, loud, unavoidable and yet still nonthreatening.

  Maya extended her arms, ready to try when she stiffened. In her dreamy calm she hadn't registered she’d only ever used her power to create or manipulate fire. Never to kill a blaze. The knowledge froze her to the ground and the flames crept close, eating at the sidewalk and the trees in her front yard.

  Mrs. Finnegan’s jacaranda roared into a wild blaze, and across the street, flames engulfed one house at a time.

  "I don’t know how," Maya whispered, her words stolen on a gust of heated wind.

  "Maya, put out the fire, child." The voice was firm and Maya sensed its owner would soon lose patience with her. The thought of her anger filled Maya with dread. Some sense within her feared displeasing the invisible speaker. But the terror wasn't of retaliation, rather of disappointment.

  "I don’t know how," Maya cried, tears filling her eyes and dripping down her cheeks unchecked. Oddly, the tumultuous heat around her hadn’t evaporated any moisture from her face.

  She wanted to turn but found she couldn't move. The fire had reached a foot from where she stood.

  "Yes, you do. Find it deep within yourself. You have the power. You need to accept your ability before you can master it."

  Maya tried to look around her. She’d glimpsed a woman beside her. A woman with bright black eyes and bluish skin. A woman who exuded warmth and a deep sense of love. But Maya was still unable to turn to her. To face her.

  "Maya, Hand of Kali. I have granted your wish. Do not make me regret it." The woman whispered, her voice echoing within the roar of the oncoming flames.

  An empty silence followed, leaving Maya bereft. Her attention returned to the rustling of the fire at her feet as they sucked the air from her lungs and threatened to engulf her whole.

  She screamed, but the roaring flames swallowed the sound. She tried to concentrate, tried to draw on what she’d learned. Perhaps if she imagined drawing the flames into her body she might douse the raging blaze.

  She held out her hands, taking the few seconds to calm herself and focus on the fire. She whirled the power inside her then sent it to her fingertips where it spun, tiny invisible whirlwinds.

  She turned her palms to the fire and concentrated on urging the flames into her hand, to suck the vicious fingers of heat away. A rush of energy hit her head on and she stepped back, holding onto her concentration and onto the open link to the fire. Maya drew strength from deep within her. Perhaps it was those Chakras Nik had been going on about, but she wasn't sure. It wasn't the time to analyze now.

  The heat around her lessened and she studied the street, aware the flames had backed away, retreating, defeated. She tried to close off the power, concentrating on the whirling energy inside her, but it didn’t work. More and more flames were sucked into her body, swirling within her like living fire.

  The heat consumed her and she shivered with fear. Unable to stop the steady stream of power, she panicked, tried to move her hands away. The sudden movement pulled her out of the link with the Fire energy but the fire inside her body continued to rage.

  Soon she was ablaze, every inch of her skin. From afar, she saw herself, fire raging all over her body, even her hair bright and blazing in the now dark night.

  The molten heat seared her from inside out and she began to scream, an agonizing, pitiful keening as flames sought their way through her pores.

  With a sudden rush of heat and a choked off squeak Maya woke up.

  Just a dream. You idiot, it was just a dream.

  Her pulse raced and she took deep breaths trying to calm down. As her heartbeat slowed and she settled her jittery fingers, she smiled into the darkness. She'd panicked over a mere dream. She reached for the nightstand, to switch the light on. Swinging her legs onto the floor, she headed for the bathroom, desperate for water. In the mirror, she appeared normal. She didn’t even look like she’d awakened from a nightmare.

  Maya shook her head, filled a glass and walked back into her room. She reached for the covers as she went to set the water down on her nightstand.

  The glass dropped to the floor shattering into a million tiny daggers.

  The entire surface of her bed, except for the spot she slept on, was blackened, scorched to a fine ebony dust.

  Maya shivered, despite the heat still simmering on her skin. She watched her parents clean up broken glass, strip down the bed and inspect the mattress.

  "It’s ruined." Her dad shook his head. "Wow, you have some kind of power there, honey."

  "Dev, she could've been killed and all you can think about is the extent of her power," her mom said, her expression filled with disapproval.

  Maya’s dad glanced at her, and winked. She smiled, understanding him completely. Yes, she may have been killed. But yes, this power was beyond anything she’d ever thought she’d possess.

  "It just means you need to train really hard, Maya," he said, his placating tone entirely aimed at his scolding wife.

  They lugged the ruined mattress out to the guest room and brought in the spare mattress. After they made the bed, all three sat down, staring at each other.

  "Can you tell us what happened, honey?" said Leela.

  "I was dreaming . . . . It was just a dream."

  "Clearly it wasn’t." Dev raised his eyebrows, but his eyes still twinkled a little too merrily for the occasion.

  Maya related the entire dream, grateful she recalled everything. Usually when she woke from a particularly scary nightmare, she had to think hard to retain the memory of it. The longer she remained awake the harder it became to remember.

  Not this time though. This time she remembered every detail.

  Her dad exchanged a glance with her mom. "I’m no dream therapist, but I have two guesses. It’s either your mind telling you that you have so much potential with your power…so much left to learn. Or it means the Dark Goddess has paid you a visit, to tell you something important about your power."

  "Huh? What would that be?"

  "You don’t only have the power to create fire, you also have the ability to destroy it."

  Chapter 15

  The first Monday back at school was decidedly strange. Amber and her crew were predictable. Death-stares that required no weapons to be lethal. Maya scoffed. As if mere stares would affect her. But she remained aware Amber had caused her entire demon-smoking debacle. Aware too, the girl had gone to such lengths to orchestrate the whole evening. Maya planned to keep a solid eye on her from now on.

  Ria and Joss gravitated to Maya and soon the girls trudged from class to class almost as if nothing had ever happened. Teachers nodded vaguely at Maya as if discussions included more than Byron’s attack. Kids stared too. Some frowned, some gawked. Weird.

  At lunch, the trio found a spot beneath a shedding tree, away from the rest of the tables.

  "What's going on?" asked Maya. "People are staring, they’re all acting real weird today."

  Both Joss and Ria shrugged, a poor attempt to avoid the question.

  "What? What the hell is happening here?"

  Ria blushed, but was the first to speak, again throwing an all-your-fault glare at Joss who had the grace to provide a returning blush. "They think Byron did more than just beat you up."

  "What? But . . . Nik corroborated my story. We were clear on that. Nothing else happened. He never got the chance." Maya’s face burned. What would people who believed that story think of her?

  Maya bristled. Why should she care? Sure, she needed to be concerned about her parent's reputation in the town, but the important people knew the truth. Didn’t they?

  "You don’t beli
eve it, do you?" Maya asked Ria. When her friend didn’t answer, Maya hovered between panic and rage. "Ria!"

  "What? Oh . . . no. Of course not. You said nothing happened. I believe you." But Ria’s gazed sat somewhere in the vicinity of Maya’s ear and her heart sank like a rusted anchor, prepared to hold her down until she drowned in a sea of her own pitiful tears. How could Ria actually believe such a thing? "Heads up. We have incoming."

  "Huh?" Maya asked, confused as Ria's warning tugged her out of her cesspit of self-pity.

  "Amber is coming over," Ria said.

  Maya stiffened. What would she want? To gloat. Or make fun of her?

  "Hey, Maya," Amber said, smiling, her honey eyes glittering in the sunlight. Odd seeing Amber stand before her so calm and steady, when she’d never been known to sit still. Even that funny thing she did, flicking the elephant-bead bracelet on her arm with one manicured fingernail. Amber's grandmother hailed from Kenya, and the ivory piece was an heirloom. Today, Amber's hands remained unnaturally still.

  "Hey, Amber," said Maya, keeping her tone polite as she deliberately unclenched her hands.

  "How are you doing, Maya?" said Amber, her voice rich and loud.

  Maya offered a hesitant smile. For a moment, the strong scent of rancid meat distracted her. "I'm good." She gave Amber a second, harder inspection.

  "We heard about Byron. I’m really sorry. I feel so responsible. If I hadn’t invited you the whole horrible thing wouldn’t have happened."

  Maya could tell everyone heard it. The note of insincerity in Amber's voice. The lack of emotion as she spoke the words as if reading from a script. Maya cringed. The whole apology routine was probably a setup anyway. She forced herself to nod and smile.

  Be nice. And maybe she will go away and leave you alone.

  "You wouldn’t happen to know where Byron is, by the way?"

  There it was. Maya had expected some underlying reason for this conversation. Amber wanted to embarrass her in front of the school.