A handful of teachers rounded the corner at a run. The Nome King raised his hands, and another shock wave sent them flying backward. Nox, abandoning magic, barreled into the Nome King’s stomach, but the Nome King kicked him away easily. The Nome King reached upward and pulled a mass of long, thin strands of darkness out of the air that began to swirl and expand, whirling faster and faster.
“My dear Miss Gumm,” he said lightly, his slithering voice sending chills down my spine. “I’m afraid it’s time to bid adieu to your little beau. I’m taking you back to Oz now, where you belong.” The swirling mass of darkness ballooned upward, tearing tiles off the floor and sending them spinning through the shattered windows. Suddenly, I knew what he was doing. He’d summoned a tornado. I had Dorothy’s shoes and I knew the Nome King wanted to send me back to Oz. And I knew he wasn’t just going to leave Nox behind—he couldn’t risk leaving one of the Quadrant. He was going to kill him.
We didn’t have much time. In fact, we didn’t have any. I wanted to help Dustin. I wanted to tell Madison how much I hoped she got out of Flat Hill someday. I wanted to say good-bye to my mom for the last time. But I didn’t have a choice. It was either return to Oz, or watch Nox die in this hallway.
“Nox!” I screamed. “Come on!” He took in my shoes with a single glance and darted away from the Nome King, wrapping his arms around me. “Take us home!” I yelled above the furious howl of the tornado. The shoes shot out rays of white light, and we floated up—into the eye of the storm.
Standing in the middle of the ruined hallway, surrounded by shattered glass, blood, and rubble, the Nome King watched us go. A huge, terrifying smile spread slowly across his face. I’ll see you very soon, Miss Gumm, his awful voice sliced into my head. And then the tornado had us, and everything went dark.
EIGHTEEN
The first thing I heard was birdsong. Panic seized me. If I didn’t get my butt in gear, I was going to be late for school. My eyelids seemed to be stuck shut. I lifted one hand to rub them, and winced as pain coursed through my body. Everything hurt, from my head to my toes. Moving only made it worse. Something heavy was pinning down my other arm. And the birdsong I was hearing was nothing anyone in Kansas would recognize. For one thing, it was all the wrong notes. For another, it was coming from the ground.
“Amy? Are you okay?” The voice was familiar. Rough and low. A boy’s voice. “Hold still,” it said again. “I think you might be hurt.” The weight on my unmoving arm shifted, and gentle fingers touched my cheek. “We need to get you help.”
Finally, I opened my eyes. Inches from my face, someone was looking down at me in concern. Someone I recognized. I struggled to remember his name.
“Nox,” I croaked. “What happened? Where are we?”
“You did it, Amy,” he said. “We’re back in Oz. Outside the Tin Woodman’s old palace. I think we landed in the vegetable garden.”
In spite of myself, I started to laugh. It hurt like hell, but I didn’t care. “I think I might be pissed at you,” I said.
“I know,” he said, and then he kissed me.
I couldn’t move without pain surging through my body, and I figured Nox was in about the same shape—he just happened to be lying on top of me. He tasted like Oz: like a field of singing, sweet-smelling flowers, or a handful of Lulu’s sunfruit—wild and clean. His lips were so soft. Everything still hurt, but suddenly I didn’t care. I closed my eyes again and lost myself in the sensation of the kiss. He shifted his weight and grunted with pain, and I started to laugh again. After a second, he laughed, too. His mouth moved to my neck, and then my ear. “Amy,” he said softly, his voice rough with emotion. “I am so not supposed to be doing this, but—”
I knew kisses didn’t solve what was wrong with us. But I wanted his lips on mine. I wanted him this close for as long as it lasted. The kiss tasted stolen.
Someone coughed loudly, and he jerked his head up. I yelped as his movement set off a new chain of aches in my body, and then opened my eyes reluctantly. Mombi loomed over us, a frown of disapproval across her face.
“How did you get here?” Nox said, bewildered.
“How do you think? We’re all bound together through the magic of the Quadrant.”
“As one of the Quadrant witches, Nox, you are connected to us now,” Gert explained. “We can see what you see and feel what you feel.” Wait—did that mean I’d just made out with all of them? That thought was too disgusting for words. Gert raised an eyebrow at me before continuing. “We realized what was happening as soon as you found Dorothy’s original shoes and we were able to piggyback on the magic that pulled you both back to Oz.”
“This was the first safe place we could think of, so we teleported you here,” Glamora added. “The palace is abandoned; the Winkies are gone, the Woodman’s dead, and it’s not a likely place for anyone to look for us. But it won’t be long before Dorothy and Glinda figure out where we are. We can’t hide forever from their magic.”