by Amy Manemann
“Welcome, Young Ones. Please, come in,” one woman spoke, her pale eyes peering at us curiously. She had long, flowing white blonde hair that cascaded down her back in waves, and though she was youthful in appearance, the speculative look in her eye spoke of years of wisdom. Braeden and I removed our shoes before taking our respective seats next to Sadie, who gave me a wink.
“Sadiela, you have called the coven heads here on a critical manner. May we assume by your niece’s presence this has to do with her?” With a sniff of indifference, another witch gave a toss of her voluptuous, mahogany hair over a well-sculpted shoulder.
Like all the witches present, she was beautiful beyond words, though the obvious disdain in her violet eyes differed from others around us. Her scorn set my teeth on edge, and I stiffened next to Braeden.
“Yes, Azrhianna, you were called here because there is soon to be a major shift in the powers you all need to know. This involves my niece, Willa, and her…friend, Braeden.” Sadie’s hesitation on what to call Braeden didn’t go unnoticed. Though confused by her obvious deception, I was careful to keep my features schooled.
Azrhianna’s violet eyes turned to Braeden, not bothering to hide her admiration of his muscular physique.
“And what a fine specimen of a friend Willa has. I can feel you have power, Braeden. Tell me, are you a wizard?” she purred, batting her thick, black eyelashes demurely.
I bristled, eyes narrowing. Was she hitting on Braeden?
“I possess a limited amount of Earth Magic,” he admitted, keeping his answer short.
Azrhianna smiled, showing off a set of perfect white teeth. “Mmm…It’s been years since I’ve connected with an Earth Wielder. I could go for a little…pick me up.” She drew back her shoulders, arching her chest so her breasts jutted out suggestively.
A few of the women gasped at her audacity.
My eyes narrowed in silent fury.
Braeden shifted uncomfortably.
“Azrhianna, this is not the time, nor the place for such things,” the woman sitting to Azrhianna’s right spoke indignantly.
Azrhianna scoffed, waving a hand through the air, a Cheshire cat grin curving her full lips. “Oh please, Salene, it’s not as if I’m saying anything you all aren’t thinking.”
“Disgraceful,” another witch mumbled, shooting a scornful look in Azrhianna’s direction.
“Oh Jessamine,” Azhrianna purred, “you know what is disgraceful is how you’re all work and no play. You really need to learn to loosen up a bit.”
“Yes, and let my coven run around in disarray such as you allow yours to. Yes, that’s exactly what we all should do,” Jessamine hissed, cheeks flushing with anger.
Sadie held up a hand, a spark of light flashing from her palm that lit the entire room.
“Enough! This argument has no place at our meeting tonight, and I suggest you let it be. We have far greater matters to discuss.” Her voice boomed, amplified by her magic. I grinned. Go Aunt Sadie.
“My apologies,” Azrhianna cast her violet eyes downward submissively, though not before I caught a flash of anger in them.
Jessamine quickly followed suit, and the room was quiet once again.
Seeing that she had everyone’s attention once again, the tension in Sadie’s shoulders lessened. “You are all aware of the prophecy of the light?”
“And there shall be three who will come into their power and hold the light against the great darkness. We all know of the story, Sadiela,” the witch, Salene, spoke softly.
“The prophecy has come to life. Willa is the first of three,” Sadie continued, pausing to let that information sink in.
All sets of eyes swung to me, and I tensed, wishing I could shrink into the floor. Or behind Braeden.
“She is of the light?”
“How can this be?”
“Do you know of the others?”
Questions came at me in rapid succession and I ducked my head, turning my face towards Braeden’s shoulder. Braeden’s arm immediately went around me, lending me the support I sought.
Sensing my unease, Sadie cleared her throat, bringing everyone’s attention off of me. “As you are already aware, Willa’s mother, my sister, was a powerful Lightkeeper. What I have never spoken of is that when Arianna died, her light passed on to Willa.”
“You knew, yet you kept this from us all these years?” It wasn’t exactly an accusation, but I could tell the news troubled Jessamine.
Sadie slowly nodded, looking chagrined. “Yes. I did what I thought was best for Willa, and I would do the same again if given the choice. With that said, I only knew Willa would become a Lightkeeper upon reaching her twentieth birthday. It was only discovered today that she was part of the prophecy.”
“You realize what this means?” another witch spoke, and Sadie nodded.
“Yes, Sonnet. The growing darkness is more powerful than any of us have ever seen in our lifetimes,” Sadie confirmed.
“And you’ve condemned us all,” Azrhianna spat angrily, jumping to her feet. She paced the room, violet eyes flashing dangerously against her smooth skin. The long flowing, deep blue skirt she wore swirled around her legs as she paced, as if matching her angry movements.
“I've condemned no one, Azrhianna. You are all free to make your own choice. Braeden has come as Willa’s Guardian to train her in her Lightkeeper powers. This is why we are seeking your help. I believe with everyone’s combined magic, we can cast a protection spell around the town and keep everyone safe until Willa can control her powers. She turns twenty this Saturday, leaving us little time to prepare.” Sadie was careful to keep her voice low, but I caught a thread of uneasiness in it.
Azrhianna stopped pacing, slapping her hands on her shapely hips as she stared down at Sadie in fury. “And what if you’re wrong, Sadiela? What if all our combined powers don’t do crap and whatever is coming breaks through our wall? Then what?”
Sadie rose to her feet, her jaw clenched. “Then we stand and fight.”
Azrhianna threw her head back and laughed, the chilling cackle bouncing off the walls of the great room and causing the hairs on the back of my neck to stand up. I felt Braeden’s arm tighten around me, letting me know I was safe by him. A small comfort considering Azrhianna was shooting daggers in my direction.
“No, thanks. You all can stay here and fight, my coven and I will ship out tomorrow morning,” she announced when she stopped laughing, her eyes glowing with a slightly crazed appearance.
Sadie shrugged, giving off an air of calm I desperately wished I had. I wasn’t used to dealing with these wackos like she was. How did she stay so calm?
“If that is your decision, then we wish you well. Let the Goddess be with you.” Though quiet, Sadie's voice was firm.
Eyes wide, Azrhianna’s glanced around the room at the solemn faces. Nobody made a move to join her, each resolutely returning her stare.
“You’re all crazy if you think you will win this war. You know what’s coming as much as I do. You won’t win.” Shaking her head, she took a step backwards towards the door.
My heart dropped to my stomach upon hearing that, and I drew back from Braeden’s comforting arm.
“Then it is a war we will die fighting,” Salene said firmly, her silvery gaze meeting Azrhianna’s.
I rose to my feet, shocked. “Nobody is going to die, so you can all get that out of your heads right now. I may not know what to expect when I come into my powers, but with Braeden’s help, I know I’ll be able to pull this off.” I bit my lower lip when the stares from everyone in the room prickled my skin.
Azrhianna laughed, her eyes flash crazily. “That’s so sweet, Willa. You think you can save everyone, when in fact it’ll be your fault when they all die.”
Anger rose swiftly, and I curled my hands into fists as I squared off with the beautiful witch.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” I fired back, taking a step forward.
“Oh, don’t I?” Azrhianna’s
lips twisted in a sneer.
Sadie put a hand on my arm to prevent me from going any further. “That’s enough, Azrhianna.”
“Why, Sadiela, you haven’t told her, have you?” Azrhianna asked, surprised etched in her features before a slow smirk spread across her lips.
I looked at Sadie, who avoided my gaze. “Told me what?”
“I said enough, Azrhianna,” Sadie again spoke, this time with less conviction.
“But is it really enough, Sadiela? Poor, sweet little Willa. So unaware of herself or the chaos she can cause. You’d do well to stick with me, Handsome. I don’t have near the baggage Willa does,” Azrhianna said, giving Braeden another appreciative once over.
Watching her leer at Braeden brought my simmering anger to a full boil. I jerked my arm free of Sadie’s grasp, moving forward until I stood nose to nose with Azrhianna.
“I don’t know you, and obviously I don’t care to. I will only tell you this one time. Back off, Azrhianna,” I warned through gritted teeth.
“Or what?” she demanded, giving a toss of her hair.
Something in me shifted at the challenge in her words, and my body filled with an overwhelming strength I’d never felt before. The lights overhead flickered, casting chaotic shadows throughout the room, making everyone gasp. I paid it little attention, my eyes narrowed on Azrhianna’s suddenly pale face.
Azrhianna took a step back, real fear shining in her eyes.
“What are you?” she gasped, her voice trailing off as she took another stumbling step towards the door.
“Someone much stronger than your weak-willed mind can handle.” The voice coming from my mouth wasn’t one I had ever heard before, the strength of it bouncing off the walls in the room and bringing everyone to their knees. I wanted to laugh at the sight of Azrhianna on bended knees before me, cradling her head as if in pain. Pain I had caused. The knowledge filled me with immense satisfaction, enjoying the pain I was inflicting on the witch.
“Willa, you must stop.” The pain in Braeden’s voice was unmistakable, breaking through the power swirling chaotically in my mind. I turned to see he and Sadie were also on the floor cradling their heads. Braeden looked up at me with such pain in his eyes that my heart wrenched painfully in my chest. I dropped to my knees beside him, my focus solely on his handsome face. The flickering lights in the room ceased, and the power that had poured through my body receded until I was left with a dull throb.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” A sob rose in the back of my throat at having been the one to cause his pain, and I fought back the tears threatening to spill over my cheeks.
No longer feeling the effects of my powers, Braeden inched forward, cradling my face between his strong hands.
“It’s all right, Willa. You didn’t know what you were doing,” he reassured me softly, pulling me into the comfort of his arms. I buried my face in his chest, uncaring that everyone was watching. Right now, I needed his strength against the chaos going on in my head, a chaos I hadn't even begun to understand.
“That’s the problem. She hasn’t even come into her full powers and she can already bring a roomful of powerful witches to their knees. She’s a menace,” Azrhianna said venomously. Having also recovered, she rose to her feet.
“She isn’t a menace. She just does not know,” one of the women said softly, drawing my attention.
“Doesn’t know what?” I asked, pulling my face away from Braeden’s broad chest. From the corner of my eye I saw Sadie’s shoulders droop.
Azrhianna smirked, turning on her heel and flouncing to the doorway. She paused on the threshold, tossing a glance back at the roomful of people who stood, watching her leave. Tugging the door open, her eyes met mine, a sneer twisting her full lips.
“That you’re a walking time bomb, Sweet Willa. Tonight was just a precursor to what you’ll be able to do. The minute you combine your powers with the other two, you’ll have no way of turning them off until your light completely burns out. Good luck with that one.”
Chapter 9
The door slammed shut behind Azrhianna, and I turned, open-mouthed, to look at Sadie. “What the hell, Aunt Sadie?”
“Language, Willa,” Sadie sharply reprimanded, flushing when my eyes grew incredulous.
“Seriously? You’re worried about me saying cuss words when you didn’t tell me I would die when I joined my powers with Addison and Riley? Are you kidding me?!” Shock reverberated through my body, causing it to tremble, and had it not been for Braeden holding on to me so tightly, I probably would have fallen apart.
“Willa, what Azrhianna spoke of is only a possibility. It's uncertain if your light will go out when you join with your Light Sister’s,” Salene spoke gently, trying to diffuse the tension in the room.
I bit my lower lip, willing the tears prickling the back of my eyes to go away. “And yet she's still to keeping secrets from me. Shocker,” I emphasized the last word, eyes narrowed on my aunt.
“You’re right, I did, but I won’t say I’m sorry for having kept that from you, and I won't wish things were different. With everything that’s happened recently, I didn’t see the need to burden you with yet another thing. Obviously, I was wrong if tonight’s display was any indication.” Voice husky, Sadie cleared her throat.
I closed my eyes, drawing in a deep, calming breath. The scent of Braeden’s cologne came with that breath, soothing the ragged emotions running through me. I understood where Sadie was coming from, and she was right. There had been a lot thrown at me all at once. That still didn’t mean she could keep hiding things from me.
Slowly, I opened my eyes to meet Sadie’s, swallowing when I saw a shimmer of tears in the hazel depths. I knew she hated this as much as I did, probably more so, but the secret-keeping had to end if we wanted to survive.
“I appreciate you trying to protect me, and I love you for it, but if we’re going to do this, then I need to know everything. Starting with this prophecy.” I searched her face, looking for a sign that she would fight me on this. Instead, Sadie dropped to her knees and gathered me in her arms.
“I promise you, no more secrets,” she said, her voice muffled against my hair.
We sat that way for what seemed like forever but was probably only a matter of minutes. All too soon, Sadie drew back to stand, pulling me up next to her. Her arm around my waist, she addressed the group. “You all know what we are up against, and I will not ask you to put your covens in danger. I merely ask for your aide with the protection spell.”
Salene stepped forward, a warm smile on her face. Reaching up, she tentatively brought her hand to my cheek and closed her eyes. A gasp flew from her lips when her hand connected with my skin, and her eyes burst open, wide and startled.
“We all felt the strength of your power moments before, but even now I can feel the light running swiftly in her veins. It’s the most powerful source I’ve ever felt. Willa is strong, and combined with her Light Sister’s, she will be even stronger. My coven and I will stand behind you with this fight.”
Leaning in, Salene pressed a kiss to my forehead, murmuring words of protection over me as she did so. One by one, each witch came forward, repeating the same process until all had come.
Sadie smiled at the women, appreciation in her gaze. “You honor us with your support. I couldn’t ask for anything more.”
“Then we shall ask for you. Braeden, you are Willa’s Guardian. Do you have access to the ancient scrolls?” Jessamine wanted to know.
Braeden nodded, intrigued by the question. “I do, but the ancient scrolls are in London and will do us little good here. The Light Council is already looking into some things. Is there anything in particular you’re looking for?”
“Yes. Any references to the golden amulet and the bloodstone,” she answered.
“Jessamine, of course. I don’t know why I didn’t think of that,” Sadie said in a bare whisper, hope shining in her eyes.
Why did that not sound all warm and fuzzy? “Do I even want to k
now what a bloodstone is?”
“The blood stone was formed by the Keeper of Light. It’s said the stone is so powerful, that when brought to Earth, it must remain in the golden amulet and can only be worn by one of the three,” Braeden explained, a thoughtful expression on his face.
“If the blood amulet is worn by one of three, the curse of their light shall never be,” Salene quoted softly.
“So, that’s it then,” I breathed, feeling more hopeful than I had moments before. “We need to get this amulet and bloodstone, find Addison and Riley and kick some serious bad guy butt. Where do we start?”
Braeden shook his head. “It’s not that easy, Willa. The bloodstone’s whereabouts are locked inside the amulet, and the amulet rests at Council headquarters in London. We’d have to travel there and request permission from the Council to get it.”
I groaned. Of course it was at Council headquarters. Where else would it be? “I was really hoping to leave the British guys out of this.”
“I feel it’s fair to point out that I’m one of those British guys,” Braeden remarked dryly.
“Yeah, but there’s a big difference between you and them. I actually like you,” I said with a grin.
“Anyway,” Sadie looked pointedly between me and Braeden until my cheeks heated. “That settles it. While Braeden goes to London to retrieve the golden amulet, we’ll stay here and ready ourselves.”
Braeden was already shaking his head before she finished. “I’m afraid that won’t work. The golden amulet was put in its resting place by its former wearer. Only one whom the Goddess has chosen can access the amulet and retrieve the whereabouts of the bloodstone. Willa must go.”
