The Witching Hour: 11 Enchanting Novels Featuring Witches, Wizards, Vampires, Shifters, Ghosts, Fae, and More!, page 112
Her mouth gaped. “Is it your coven? Surely they didn’t find you here in our protective forest?”
“I had a powerful vision.” I shuddered, remembering it. “I’ve lived in hiding too long. Now it’s time to face them.”
The queen sat taller. “Your coven won’t be able to stand against my army of trained vampires.”
“It’s not that kind of battle. I’ve been chosen to be the leader, and no matter what anyone in the coven wants—myself included—we can’t fight nature. I’ve tried. They’ll try again. As much as I’d love to continue living my quiet life, they’ll never truly rest as long as I’m alive.”
“What do you need?”
“To prepare some potions.”
“I’ll get you containers, ingredients—anything you need.”
“Small vessels would be best. Oh, and a satchel I can keep on me. Something I can easily reach into.”
“Consider it done.” Her phone buzzed. She checked it and frowned. “Those Swiss vampires have been giving us nothing but trouble the last month.” She shook her head and gave me a hug. “If you need anything, you’ve got my number—and don’t leave without saying goodbye.”
I returned the embrace. “I wouldn’t think of it.”
She hurried out and I went back to my mess on the table. I separated the scrolls and books into piles—those I would need to take with me and the ones I wouldn’t. Unfortunately, the ones I needed were more than I could carry. I would have to write notes of what I needed specifically.
I found some blank paper and wrote furiously. Even though I’d somewhat kept up with my craft all the years I’d spent on my own, I hadn’t been as active as I should’ve been. I preferred my quiet life as a yoga instructor, and only practiced magic as needed in order to keep a low profile. If I practiced too much magic, it would have made it too easy for my old coven to find me… and now it appeared they had.
A select few friends over the years knew my secret, and I only used my powers to help them. Well, and myself. I hadn’t aged in centuries—that was a particularly nice benefit of being a powerful witch. Spells had kept me young for centuries.
After writing for a while, my hand cramped. I walked around the room, massaging it.
Knock, knock.
“Come in.”
A burly servant came in, carrying an armful of containers. He looked at me, but didn’t say anything.
“You can put those on the desk.”
He did as instructed and turned back to the door.
“Thank you,” I said.
The servant ignored me and left the room.
A whirring noise sounded outside. I went over to the window. Crows flew around directly where they had been the previous night. They moved in a massive circle, as though they were one entity and not thousands of individual birds.
Whatever was coming, it would be soon.
I went over to the desk and checked out the containers. There was a nice variety of sizes and shapes. Once I had what I needed, these would be perfect. A brown leather satchel sat behind them. It had little pockets for safely storing the potions.
Time to get to work.
My stomach rumbled. I would have to take care of that first. I was already tired. Adding hunger to the mix would be asking for trouble.
I braced myself for not only a walk through the castle to the dining hall, but for the meal itself. Even if I sat at a corner table by myself, I wouldn’t be able to ignore the glares. No one actually said anything rude to me—they wouldn’t dare incite the wrath of their leaders—but the hatred was hardly hidden. If given the chance, ninety percent of them would turn on me.
That was another reason I needed to get out of the castle. I could go back to my condo with my potions. A simple cloaking spell could keep me hidden while I figured out what exactly was going on with my coven.
One thing at a time. First, I needed to get to the dining hall and nourish myself for the long day ahead. I went into the closet, grabbed a cloak, and pulled the hood up over my head. The vampires would be able to smell me a mile away.
Outside my door stood the two guards assigned to me. I turned to one. “I’m going to the dining hall. Don’t let anyone inside.”
He nodded, refusing to make eye contact. If the queen were standing there with me, he would never get away with it, but I wasn’t about to make a big deal about it.
I hurried through the hallways, keeping my gaze low. It was hard to ignore the whispers and stares from the vampires who hated witches nearly as much as werewolves. At least it wouldn’t be long before I’d be out of the castle—that’s what I needed to cling to.
Once I made it to the dining hall, I slid into a seat in the far back corner. More whispers and stares.
It reminded me of the days as a preteen when my powers started to emerge. Most witches gained their early powers on their thirteenth birthday. The other girls despised me for having powers so young. One day, I reached for a bowl across the table. The bowl moved on its own across the table to me.
No witch in our coven had ever received any magic at the age of eleven. Especially not an unwanted orphan like myself. I’d been an outcast in every way possible. While everyone else had dark curly hair, I was blonde-haired and blue-eyed. My mother had fallen in love with a human on a trip to Iceland—or so the story went. With my early-emerging powers, it seemed unlikely.
The Icelandic witches were the strongest, with some lines dating back to pre-history, before humans were thought to have roamed the earth. Could that be my own heritage?
A vampire appeared in front of me with a platter of food, bringing me back to the present. He set it on the table without a word. Another came over with a pitcher of wine.
“Could I get—”
He walked away.
“Water? Or not.” I piled lobster, salad, and steamed vegetables onto my plate. At least I ate well at the castle.
I ate as much as I could, stuffing myself to the point of discomfort. The longer I could go without needing to eat again, the better. I leaned back in the chair and glanced around the room. Every table had pitchers of sparkling red liquid—they loved to drink blood with wine and champagne, about one per two vampires. One young vampire had three pitchers to himself.
I took a small sip of the wine, not wanting to let it get in the way of my thought process. With as much as I had to do, I needed to be at the top of my game, and I was already short on sleep.
Several vampires around the room glared at me. I took a deep breath and hurried back to my room, staying focused on the floor.
Once inside, I realized my error in judgment. Eating so much had only served to make me sleepier. My eyelids grew heavy and my steps sluggish.
Maybe it was time to stop fighting it and just get a little shut eye. I slid off the cloak and hung it on a chair. Then I climbed into the bed, pulled the covers up to my chin, and closed my eyes.
Sleep overtook me, but peace did not.
In my dreams, coven mates teased and tormented me. They hid my favorite doll, laughing as I searched for it.
“Use your magic to find her, Gessilyn,” taunted Claudia, the girl in line to lead the group when we grew up.
“Where are your powers now?” teased Dahlia.
“Maybe her blonde hair sucked them out.” Claudia laughed.
Dahlia grabbed some of my hair and yanked me down to the ground. They both kicked dirt onto me, getting it in my face and hair.
“Now you’re just like us.” Claudia narrowed her eyes at me. “Dark hair and no magic. You have to wait for your thirteenth birthday.”
“Unless she’s first burned at the stake like her mother.” Dahlia smirked at me.
They laughed and skipped away.
I sat up and dusted myself off. It took twenty minutes to get the dirt and pebbles out of my hair. I went to my home and found a string for my hair. With my hair tied back, it wasn’t so obvious that I was horribly different from everyone else. I stuck on a bonnet for good measure.
It hadn't helped. My magic continued to grow stronger by the day, and as much as I tried to hide it, I couldn't. For instance, when I hid to cry, rains would pour down—sometimes resulting in flooding. No one had stepped up to mentor me, so I had no way of controlling it. And I couldn't even watch the older girls train because they would go deep into the woods, where they wouldn't allow me to go.
3
The next morning, I slid the last vial into the satchel and then tucked the notebook inside.
“Are you sure you don’t want to take one of my guards?” Alexis asked.
“I need to do this alone.” I slid the strap over my head and let it rest across my front.
King Alrekur put his arm around Alexis. “Can we send you with anything?”
“Thank you, Alrekur, but no. I should travel light, and you two have given me more than enough already.”
“Call me, Alre. My Alexis considers you family, so that makes you mine, too.”
I tried to smile. “I appreciate it. But I really should get going. I want to travel in the cover of the dark.”
Alexis wrapped her arms around me. “Stay safe. Are you going to Delphic Cove?”
I squeezed her tight. “I’m going to my condo.”
“Good. Let Toby know you’re in town.”
“I will.” I stepped back. “Thanks for everything.”
“See you soon.” Alexis smiled.
I nodded and then hurried out of the room and took a rarely-used route out of the castle. I managed to only run into a few vampires along the way. This time of night, many were likely out on hunts or enjoying themselves in the dining hall.
Once outside, I stopped and took a deep breath. The three-quarters moon shone brightly, casting a comforting glow on everything. I stared at it, taking in some of its power. Between it and the enchanted forest, I would have plenty of magic to draw from without needing to tap into my own resources.
A unicorn came over to me. He had a crescent-shaped mark on his nose. I’d ridden him before, and it appeared he knew I needed the extra speed now. I pulled out a steel brush and scraped some flakes from his horn.
He whinnied and stomped his foot, but not in protest. I scraped a bit more than I needed for the ride and slid the extra flakes into a pocket. The rest I put into my mouth—a requirement for riding the mystical beast. The sugary sweetness melted in my mouth and I climbed on.
In a flash, he took off. I grabbed onto his mane just in time. He ran straight, but as the flakes helped us become of one mind, he turned to the left, heading in the direction I needed to travel. The landscape went by in a blur, making me slightly dizzy. Vampires could handle it much easier, given that they traveled quickly naturally.
I focused my attention on the unicorn’s mane and my sense of balance was restored. I kept my focus there until he stopped. We were several hundred yards from the edge of the woods. He wouldn’t venture any nearer.
“Thank you.” I rubbed the fur between his ears and then jumped down. Dirt flew in all directions as I landed in a dry patch.
He nuzzled against me for a moment before taking off.
Loneliness swept over me. Something else I would have thought I’d adjust to, but given that I was meant for a coven, true solitude could be overwhelming at times.
I glanced up at the moon and then closed my eyes. One last time, I drew in as much magic as I could from the forest. It warmed me with a light tickling sensation as I stored the power. I would still be able to draw from it when I reached Delphic Cove, but there was nothing like being inside of it.
Once I had all I could hold, I opened my eyes and exited the woods. A busy highway greeted me. Cars zoomed past, seeming to race each other. It felt like I had entered another world, rather than just exiting a forest.
Down the road a bus approached a stop. I clung to my satchel and ran toward it, waving my hands like a crazy person. It stayed put.
Relief swept through me. My legs burned as I raced up the steps. I didn’t care where the bus was headed. That was what transfers were for.
I paid the fare and settled into a seat near the back, far away from the other riders. We eventually turned off the highway, heading toward Delphic Cove. I sighed studied my notes.
There was a lot I needed to refresh myself on. I’d grown lax in too many areas, and worse, I hadn’t received any training in key aspects of my craft. Reading would only take me so far, as most of what we needed to know was passed along.
I would need to travel to the east coast to confront the coven I’d grown up in. I’d fled to the west in an attempt to get as far away from them as possible without leaving the country.
The ride dragged on until we finally reached the edge of Delphic Cove. I hurried off the bus and transferred onto a local bus heading toward my place. The sky was already brightening, and soon the residents would wake to start their days. I wanted to avoid them all.
Finally, my building came into sight. I exited the bus, hurried to my building, punched in the entry code, and hurried upstairs to my condo. As I unlocked the deadbolt, a heaviness covered me like a wet blanket.
Something was wrong.
My heart sank, but I opened the door holding my head high. If someone was in my domain, I would have to deal with it using what I had. The power from the woods and the moon still resided deep within my core.
The condo was silent, but something was definitely off. The heaviness nearly choked me.
I stepped inside and closed the door behind me. I couldn’t see anything different. Not yet, anyway. I adjusted the satchel around me and wandered around. The kitchen looked as I’d left it. The dining room, too. Candles and dried plant life rested on the floor from a recent spell to help friends.
The living room, my bedroom, the spare room, and the hallway were all fine. Except for the feeling I couldn’t shake.
Had someone placed a hex on my home? It was the only explanation. A hex bag would take some time to find, and could be nearly impossible depending on where it had been hidden.
I set the satchel on the ground, went into the bathroom, and turned on the light.
Then I screamed.
My heart thundered in my chest as I forced myself into silence.
An intricately designed rune took up nearly an eighth of the mirror. Not only that, but it was one used for traveling from place to place using mirrors as portals.
Given its strength, the intruder hadn’t been long gone.
I climbed on the counter to wipe away the rune. It didn’t so much as smudge, and that meant the witch who left it had used dark magic to place it there.
It could only be removed with the fresh blood of a sacrifice.
There had to be another way, and I would find it. But I wouldn’t stay here until I did. Not when someone had a magical portal into my bathroom.
I ran out of the bathroom, slammed the door, and spoke a spell to keep it shut, trapping any rune travelers. At least for a while. It would buy me some time if someone came through before I could gather some things and leave.
My pulse drummed in my ears as I ran to my bedroom. I glanced around again, still not seeing anything unusual. At least there were no runes. I even checked my handheld mirrors. It was only the one in my bathroom.
The blinds were closed, but I also drew the curtains and threw a blanket over the large mirror on my dresser. I couldn’t risk anyone anywhere seeing what I was about to do.
I got onto all fours and pushed the bed to the side. It was no easy task, but I’d gotten such a heavy bed for exactly this reason. Beads of sweat broke out on my forehead as I pushed.
Finally, it was out of my way. I pulled up the carpeting and set it aside. I dug my nails into the wood panel and pulled. It didn't budge.
Good.
I closed my eyes and whispered the chant I’d made up so many years earlier.
The panel popped open, sounding like a champagne cork. I opened my eyes.
Books I’d hoped to never need sat exactly as I’d left them.
“Thank you, Mama.”
My mother had received a premonition about her death and had spent her final days writing everything she knew for me since she knew she wouldn’t be able to teach me. She told me to guard them with my life. That had been no easy task, given how little the others in the coven had trusted me.
Now it was time to learn from them. From her.
I’d put it off all these years. Centuries, really. Unable to read them in the coven. Barely escaping with the books. Then I avoided them, wanting to live as normal of a life as possible.
My hands shook as I held them over the books. I whispered another spell to break the final protection set over them.
Once I was done, I reached for them. They both felt exactly as I remembered. I held them close. They even smelled the same, with just the faintest hint of my mother.
It was finally time to learn everything I should have learned so long ago from my mother.
4
I glanced around the condo one last time with a couple bags over my shoulders. I wished I could stay here at least one night. It had always been my sanctuary, but now that someone else had been inside, it was no longer the safe haven it once had been.
Chills ran down my back.
I pulled out my phone and sent Toby a text
Gessilyn: Ru home?
Toby: My condo.
That was the best news I’d had all day. He was just one building over, instead of being across town.
Gessilyn: Can I come over?
Toby: OK. U alright?
Gessilyn: I’ll explain l8r.
Toby: OK. I’ll b here.
Gessilyn: Thx. B right over.
I packed a few things into a couple bags and headed over to Toby’s condo. Maybe after I spent some time reading about the runes, I could practice using them if Toby would let me use his place as a testing ground. But that was jumping ahead of myself.
Once in the hallway, I locked my door and then whispered a protection over it, making it harder to enter with magic—dark magic in particular.
I hurried over. He welcomed me in and took my bags from me. “It’s good to see you. I’ve missed seeing you around. It gets kind of dull only seeing werewolves and humans.”
